Have a Happy Fourth of July!

You ever have those times in life you felt like you were just hanging on. That no matter what you do to embrace your life journey, nothing seems to move in the right direction for you? You even wonder at times if this is all there is to life and if you will ever get to the other side of your stagnation.

We all have had those times in our life and the issue is not avoiding them but how to deal with them.

During the past couples of weeks, I have watched the deer emerge from winter. Fortunately, the first half of the season was mild but the last three months have been brutal. Some deer barely made it through. When they showed up in my back yard after the heavy snows and bitter cold, many were skin and bones. I wondered what they called upon inside themselves to survive these last dark weeks to make it to spring. But this week, their flesh is fuller, they are playing and dancing in my backyard, and they seem thrilled to bask in the spring sun.

Even the daffodils are an enigma. Every other blooming flower wilts in a frost or heavy snow. But the Daffodils are determined to be the flower that announces spring --pushing upward no matter if they are covered in snow or if they have to endure one more bitterly cold night. This week, with new blooms, they once again achieved the honor of declaring that spring had arrived. These yellow flowers standing beneath my yellow house bring lightness to my mountain woods, creating my own Walden Pond. It makes my heart sing.

They all hang on to give us their gifts and somehow they know that it will get better. That nature has a certain order and it will be alright.

Mahatma Gandhi always knew when he needed to pull back and hang on until it was clear how he was supposed to continue his journey. Often when talks between Muslims and Hindus were difficult and stalled, he would get up from the negotiating table and simply return to his Ashram. There, he would make the traditional Indian dhoti and shawl woven with a charkha. He called this time his wilderness years and he had the wisdom not to return to activism until he was certain what he had to say and if people were ready to listen.

I personally have had those times in life where I felt if I was just hanging on and it was sheer blind faith that enabled me to walk through fear to get to the other side. My younger years were actually a dark time for me, filled with fear, low self esteem and failure. Those demons seemed to rule my soul, but when the light finally returned to my life, I almost forgot they ever existed.

As I have grown older, I am still not particularly fond of my wilderness years. Now, I find that I am no longer afraid of them. Spring is just down the road and there is always a time and place for one of my gifts. Instead of depression and fear, I fill the time with the search for knowledge, listening to music, spending time with my teachers, and reading the books of others who had to struggle through difficult times. I usually emerge into my own personal spring rejuvenated and filled with strength.

“Hanging On” can be a place of real opportunity. A place for personal growth and, like the deer, a place to find one’s own courage to survive. It can be a time out to gain new knowledge and to deepen personal bonds between those you love and yourself.

I kept this line from Gandhi close to me during my own wilderness years:

"When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love has always won. There have been tyrants and murderers and for a time they seem invincible, but in the end, they always fall — think of it, always."

Madagascar recently signed an historic debt-for-nature swap with the French Government. France forgave the $20 million it is owed by Madagascar in exchange of the protection of Madagascar's incredible biodiversity. According to WWF, the most recent Madagascar agreement:

"… is part of Madagascar's ambitious national effort, pledged by President Ravalomanana, to triple the size of the country's protected areas. The funds will be managed through the Foundation for Protected Areas and Biodiversity—a conservation trust fund established by WWF, Conservation International and the Government of Madagascar to support the country's distinct ecosystems and extraordinary wildlife. With this agreement, the fund has reached its endowment target of $50 million."

$50 million is an unprecedented level of funding and conservation in Madagascar. It is these creative conservation actions that are needed to build capacity to actually do conservation, rather than just talk about it. The USA has participated in many debt for nature swaps through the Tropical Forests Conservation Act. The act has generated $135 million for forest conservation in Bangladesh, Belize, Botswana, Colombia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Jamaica, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, and the Philippines. Accumulated from all sources around the world, debt-for-nature swaps have generated more than a billion dollars for conservation.

Best wishes,
David

Turkey Hollow Almanac: Looking Into the Heavens
February 25, 2007

I live near the top of a mountain where city lights can’t obstruct the spectacular scene of a clear night sky. It’s a gift that comes with living in Turkey Hollow. Having lived in big cities for the last several decades, I had forgotten the splendor of stars in the night sky.

The other night after a major snowstorm, the northwest winds howled. The star filled sky suddenly grew dark and then light again as the wind tossed puffs of clouds overhead. I watched a magical show outside my window on the fresh snow, which reflected the shadows of clouds dancing in the moon’s light. The woods became my orchestra, as the trees swayed in the light creating vivid patterns and complementing the show. Broadway has nothing on the Turkey Hollow theater.

I shut all the lights out in the house and lighted a roaring fire. Pulling my favorite chair to window, I sat down to enjoy the show. The joy of reconnecting with the sky was overwhelming and, in the quiet moment, memories that I had long forgotten suddenly came back to me.

My mother used to sit me in her lap in the kitchen rocker and hold me in her arms. We would look out onto the moon filled sky together and she would gently rock me and softly sing:

I see the moon
The moon sees me
The moon sees somebody I want to see
So please Mr. Moon that shines on me
Shine on the one I love

I grew up in an age when space travel evolved from Saturday morning science fiction, like Flash Gordon: the Dominion of Ming starring Buster Crabbe (one of my first male fantasies!), to real life space travel. We were a transitional generation as the sky became a place to explore, not just dream about.

Night after night in October 1957, my entire family stood in our backyard to catch a glimpse of Sputnik, the world’s first satellite raised to the heavens by the “Godless communists.” We expected that some sort of menacing evil would take over the sky. Each day our local paper, Bridgeton Evening News, printed a chart telling us where to look. After several nights searching the sky, we finally saw the “red menace” and it was just a tiny little light flying across the southwestern sky. This little space satellite that we were so fearful of was only the size of a basketball and weighed less than 200lbs.

But mostly, my memories were of swimming at night in the irrigation pond and seeing millions of stars overhead. Or of thunderstorms, which we watched approach across the corn fields as they filled the night with lightening. On one winter night, the Northern Lights brilliantly filled the north sky. Mom and Dad were fascinated and it was highly unusual to see them that far south.

Then, as I grew older and became more of a city boy, the irrigation pond was replaced by my swimming pool in Palm Springs, where we swam naked at night. On Safari in Africa, the stars seemed so close that I felt like I could reach up and touch them and put them in my pocket. One time, a couple of us went out into the dessert and got stoned before watching meteorites fall from the August sky.

So up here in Turkey Hollow, the heavens and I have become friends again. The stars decorate my snow-covered lawn, the moon is my night light, and the clouds and trees dance for me. I love life in Turkey Hollow.

The Plaza Hotel was built in 1907 for a grand total of $12 million. It took two years to build the 19-story skyscraper, which was very tall for its time.

For those of you who might wonder what the nearest 'big city' is to Turkey Hollow, The New York Times has a great piece on Livingston Manor as an artist destination. The town was almost out of business in the 1990s but has recently made a terrific comeback. Take time to read "Bright Waters and Old Time Catskill's Feel" by Diane Mehta.

The name of former United States Senator Sam Nunn keeps popping up in the speculation of who will be Obama's Vice President. The thought just appalls me. Until recently, there was no web site devoted to stopping Nunn from achieving that goal. But Dyan Matthews has started http://www.havingnunnofit.com and you can add your name to the list of those that oppose Nunn.

Loving the polls these days, especially the Public Policy Polling survey which as Obama leading McCain in Ohio by 50% to 39%!

If you love wildlife like I do, you will be moved to tears by this video. A lion named Christian was raised by a pair of guys before they returned it to the wild. Lions once in a wild are very good at forgetting their previous captivity. Unless you are this lion. You have to watch this amazing and warm video at www.cyberthing.net/video-play.php?id=105

We were all shocked and saddened by the very sudden passing of NBC Washington Bureau Chief and moderator of MEET THE PRESS Tim Russert. He was a fixture in our homes for years on Sunday morning. My hope is that they pick either Chuck Todd or Andrea Mitchell to replace the irreplaceable Russert.

More great polls out this week. Quinnipiac University new polls in key battle ground states bring nothing but good news. Obama leads in Florida by 47% to 43% and leads in Pennsylvania by 52% to 40%. As the election will get closer, sit back and enjoy these numbers!

Queerty.com keeps getting better and better under the guidance of Andrew Belonsky. He has an excellent interview online with powerful Washington insider Hilary Rosen. She chats about the press, politics and sexism. Be sure to check out "Hilary Rosen Talks.....".

Frank Rich, the amazing columnist for the New York Times, had what I think was an especially good column in last Sunday's paper. "Do Angry Clinton Women Love McCain?" put the rest that idea that a feminist can find a home in the McCain campaign. Take a few minutes and read this important column. Actually - better yet - go on line and make Frank Rich one of your favorite places on your computer each and every Sunday!

One of the seats that the Democrats have a chance of capturing in the fall is the Minnesota seat held by Senator Norm Coleman. Charismatic former comedian and progressive radio host Al Franken is running one hell of an issues campaign in the best tradition of Paul Wellstone. His most recent ad should be run by all of our candidates across the country. Take a look!