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• JOY=Acceptance + Courage + Friendship + Awareness by Tom Lambke

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• Anyone for DUI? (Part 1) by Rich Goscicki

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• Assumptions in the Nexus by Catherine Groves
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Welcome from Dreamwalker

Namaste. Welcome to the sixth 2008 issue of DREAMScene — the electronic newsletter of DREAMWalker Group.

Just s few groovy things ...
 

1. The most incredible new development here at DREAMWalker Group is the ability of visitors to buy books directly from the authors!  Our very first agreement to do this is with Rich Goscicki, author of Mirror Reversal.  (A sample of Rich's writing is given in this month's issue in Anyone for DUI?  (Part 1) by Rich Goscicki.  (Part 2 will be in the next issue.)
   
   Visit our Buy Direct Bookstore to purchase Mirror Reversal today.   Contact us at buy_direct@me.com to discuss your own individual needs and to get your book listed.
2. Whether or not you decide to use our Buy Direct Bookstore, let us know if you have a book coming out soon — we'll , list it at our Coming Soon to DREAMWalker Group page. (Once it's released, well move it to our New Releases page.)
3. Wonder who's been added to DREAMWalker Group recently?  Check out our Recent Additions/Changes To Our Site page.

writer_mike@yahoo.com

Missed an issue of this newsletter?  Click here to view old issues online

***

• This month's issue of DREAMScene includes:

  • Assumptions in the Nexus by Catherine Groves
  • Ayahuasca: The University of Gaia by Ralph Miller
  • Ayahuasca: Nature's Teacher by Ralph Miller
  • Anyone for DUI?  (Part 1) by Rich Goscicki
  • JOY=Acceptance + Courage + Friendship + Awareness by Tom Lambke
  • Amazon Kindle’s Embers by Tamara Wilhite
  • A Book Review by Vincent Diamond: Best Gay Romance of 2008

We hope you'll enjoy this issue and anticipate more frequent updates in the future!

 writer_mike@yahoo.com
 

Missed an issue of this newsletter?  Click here to view old issues online

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• Remember that DREAMWalker Group is broken into numerous creative "communities" — which more jaundiced folks might like to think of as "market segments."  Each community, in turn, is broken into topics of interest.
  
  For a list of all general topics of interest, go to the General Community. For a similar list of topics related to other communities, go to that specific community*.
  
  To date, the communities include Arts, Disability, General, GayLesBi, Literary,  Recovery, Seniors, Spirit-Guided, and Transgender.
  
  Feel free to email us and offer suggestions for new topics or topics related to your own avocation or genre.)
  
  *Note that a topic may be under construction.
• Our DreamTeam consists of three very talented folks who help make DREAMWalker Group the magical place it is today.  They are:

The DreamTeam

Proprietor  Michael Walker Editorial   Catherine Groves Michael Walker Layout & Design  Michael Walker Wayne Price

• And we're extremely fortunate that mediabistro.com recently announced our DreamTeam.  mediabistro.com is dedicated to anyone who creates or works with content, or who is a non-creative professional working in a content/creative industry. That includes editors, writers, producers, graphic designers, book publishers, and others in industries including magazines, television, film, radio, newspapers, book publishing, online media, advertising, PR, and design. Our mission is to provide opportunities to meet, share resources, become informed of job opportunities and interesting projects and news, improve career skills, and showcase your work.

Check out their announcement of our DreamTeam at http://www.mediabistro.com/DREAMWalkerGroupcom-profile.html. 

Check it out and consider joining mediabistro.com today!

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• Rumor has it that DREAMWalker Group may have to close down if people don't support the site by buying all their books from Amazon.com by utilizing the DREAMWalker Group/Amazon.com search engines and links to the left of this announcement and elsewhere at dreamwalkergroup.com.
• Opportunity to Subsidize Publication of Ayahausca Book by Bia Labate:
  MAPS (Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies), supporting psychedelic & medical marijuana research since 1986, has agreed to donate $2,000 towards the publication of several essays and a bibliography of scientific papers about the religious use of the Amazonian shamanic brew ayahuasca and is ready to accept an additional $2,000 from a donor who wants to support education about ayahuasca.  The book was edited by Bia Labate and it contains scientific articles and a bibliography of papers about ayahausca, as well as other resources.  Supporters will be commemorated on the title page.
  
  MAPS is seeking to raise a total of $3,500 to supplement the $2,000 that they're donating to cover the publication costs for 2,000 copies. The Trance Foundation has donated $1,000, Julian Babcock has donated $500, and DREAMWalker Group has donated $250 so far. MAPS had previously donated $1,500 toward the costs of translating the book, which has been published in Portuguese.  Richard Wolfe and The Cottonwood Foundation have also already donated $1,500 each toward the translation.

[For more information on ayahuasca, see Ayahuasca: The University of Gaia and Ayahuasca: Natures Teacher in this issue of DREAMScene.  Both articles are by Ralph Miller.]

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Interconnecting through blogs.

• This month  Robin Reardon continues her Blog — a series of installments using logic and facts to prove that the only thing wrong with being gay is how some people treat you when they find out. The Case for Acceptance presents the thinking behind Reardon’s second novel, Thinking Straight, about a gay teen who is sent to a Christian de-programming center to straighten him out.

In the fifth installment of this open letter to humanity, author Robin Reardon continues the logical, rational process for deconstructing and demolishing those nasty virtual cards that homophobic bigots flash at gays. This time we’ll find out what our lizard brain is and how thinking can keep us human. The card? “There’s no need to think; I feel instinctively this is wrong.” (Read the introductory installment on Reardon’s blog and find out what a faggot-bag is and where it comes from.)

• Richard David Kennedy's blog, The Portfolio — a repository for writers of all genres — continues to thrive.
  
  Says Richard, "We've got some brilliant people here — not a joke!  And I, for one, am always looking forward to seeing some really creative, exceptionally good stuff. This isn't about `politics, rules and regulations, or personality favs.'   It's about writing and a place to express and share your work with others who really do appreciate the work of kindred souls.  And you never know just who may be reading what is being posted here. Food for thought."

***

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Surprising to no one, Christianity and New Age spirituality part company when it comes to many of the particulars within their respective schools of thought. Still, both share very core assumptions that give rise to a vastly similar perspective. Indeed, the overarching perspectives of both bear far more resemblance to each other than either does to secular outlooks.

Venturing generalizations is, of course, risky business. Inevitably, one or another aspect falls short of describing all individuals umbrellaed together for the sake of noting the typical. Nevertheless, I believe the following “tenets,” for lack of a better word, are widespread enough within both Christian and New Age camps to bear the weight of the risk.

God exists. Or, since not all New Agers accept god language, All That Is — or the Universe, or the Ground of Being, or whatever one might prefer to call it — exists as an actuality, not just a concept. Moreover, this actuality, whether a personal or impersonal reality, can be envisioned as a singular primacy.

God is good. Again, for those who find god language lacking, the same take on the goodness of All That Is applies. Most Christians see good and evil as diametrically opposed forces, with God having no part in evil and Satan, a created being with a miscreant streak, having no part in good. New Age thought usually takes a different tack. Good, if the term is used at all, does not always have an antithesis known as evil. Instead, ignorance and ego act to form the appearance of evil in our denser reality. But evil has no actuality in and of itself. Hence, All That Is can only be good, but a good which is not based upon the existence of an opposite. Essentially, for both Christians and New Agers the very cause — or substance — of existence is intrinsically good.

Creation, or All That Is, is neither whimsical nor random in its function, but unfolds according to an inherent pattern. We’re not dealing with a disordered chaos in either the Christian or New Age understanding, but with a cohesive system of bringing forth. And some would add that the findings of science not only substantiate this viewpoint, but pretty much have proven it.

Creation, indeed Life itself, has a purpose and that purpose is itself good. What that purpose is, is often subject to dispute between Christians and New Agers. For that matter, little consensus on its definition exists among Christians, much less among New Agers. Nevertheless, Christians and New Agers are largely in striking accord: there is a purpose to life.

However one sees that purpose, that it will come to fruition is an absolute given. God can’t be thwarted. In the end, God’s purpose for his creation will prevail. Or, the full actualization of All That Is is in the process of becoming — or is already complete. Quite various scenarios are envisioned, and the variety is especially compelling when speaking of New Agers. Some would say all that lacks is our awakening to what already is. Others might put forth that the consummation of All That Is isn’t simply a matter of awareness, but the acceleration of subtle energies — an acceleration we co-create as we become enlightened. Still, no matter how it is described, the outcome is sure. Whatever the end of that good purpose is, it is inevitable — or is already in the fullness of its perfection and intrinsic to life itself.

On a personal level, each of us can live in accord with the purpose. The prerequisites of living in harmony with the purpose vastly differ from Christian to Christian, New Ager to New Ager, let alone from Christian to New Ager. For some Christians, the sacrament of baptism is itself the vehicle of entry into God’s will. For others, one must be born again, saved by accepting Jesus as one’s Lord and Savior and asking him into one’s life. For yet others, it is living a forgiven life by regularly pausing to confess one’s sins, repent and receive absolution. And that doesn’t come close to covering the whole Christian side of the coin. For some New Agers, a way of life in harmony with the purpose can be developed through meditation. For others, it is absolutely impossible not to live in accord with the purpose: the purpose is intrinsically embedded in life itself with no sin, evil or separation existing to make possible a life apart from the inherent design. And myriad other scenarios rest between and beyond these.

These are all pretty powerful assumptions. And despite the variations in interpreting singular primacy, goodness, cohesive unfolding, purpose, inevitability, and personal accord — despite how even the words I’ve chosen to identify these tenets are subject to challenge — the worldview or lens, if you will, generated by these assumptions is an extraordinarily transformative way of seeing form and meaning in life. Equally amazing is how similar an outlook Christian and New Age spiritualities bring forth.

It doesn’t take much imagination to hear, in the mind’s eye, a Christian attesting:

Of course God is and is good. He has fashioned an ordered creation, its purpose shaped in mercy and love. All are amply offered the opportunity to believe, to freely choose God’s plan as their own, and to joyfully serve toward the day when He will make all things new.

Or a New Ager affirming:

The existence of All That Iss is self-evident, though best known when one stills the chattering mind. The All works toward the full realization of the innate divinity of everyone and everything. Indeed, All is perfect as it is and awaits only the awakening to the perfection that each and all will come to see in this life or another.

Although many may find these tenets self-evident, they are not. That they appear so persuasive, so inextricably a part of all one observes, attests to the power of belief — not to their necessary truth. Eating, sleeping, and breathing are self-evident, inarguably intrinsic to human life. But the assumptions I’ve outlined do not reveal themselves as truths to each and all, not even to all deeply contemplative people. Many do indeed reject these tenets, or at least hold their belief in abeyance for further scrutiny. The lens through which Christians and New Agers perceive the world isn’t at all a universal lens.

When I reflect on my own perspective, I realize that I really want to believe all these things — that these tenets promote a healthy, wholesome, joyful way of greeting each new breath. This way of belief gives meaning to the troubling times, lends hopefulness and optimism to even the ordinary moments of routine. In fact, I choose these beliefs.

But they don’t always choose me back. Something is ill-fitting about this lens to me, as if I can choose it and try to focus, but I’m still seeing the lens itself instead of the world as it appears through the lens. That’s just the close-up view through these editor’s eyes.

¹Catherine Groves, "Through the Editor’s Unknowing Eyes," Christian*New Age Quarterly 12:3 (July-September 2000).

© 2008 Christian*New Age Quarterly. All rights reserved.

Reprinted with permission, “Assumptions in the Nexus” was originally published by Christian*New Age Quarterly 14:4 (October-December 2002). For more information on Christian*New Age Quarterly, write to Catherine Groves, Editor at PO Box 276, Clifton, NJ 07015-0276 or visit christiannewage.com.

***

DREAMWalker Group topics related to this article:

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For 20-years I raised a family and worked as a travel agent. In recent years I have conducted workshops in Brazil using an ancient plant 'medicine' or brew which has been used in Amazonia for thousands of years by indigenous tribes. The brew is called Ayahuasca and contains the very powerful psychoactive and visionary substance called Dimethyltryptamine (DMT). DMT is found in all living things including humans.

When I discovered Ayahuasca, I guess I remained being a travel agent; but am now showing people how to make inter-dimensional journeys instead.

DMT is likely produced in the pineal gland, and recent research indicates that the pineal will produce DMT in large amounts at least 2 times in the life of a human; at birth and at death. Perhaps it heralds the entry and departure of the soul. Persons having 'near death' experiences ... seeing bright lights ... seeing portals ... seeing religious icons ... are most definitely experiencing the effects of DMT.

The visionary process of Ayahuasca also has the effect of allowing a person to resolve and heal spiritually, psychologically, emotionally and physically. The brew is referred to as "entheogenic" which means "god generated within".

It seems likely (my personal belief) that the brain of humans is in some manner atrophied, and that the shamanic process of reintroducing DMT using Ayahuasca has the effect of 'switching on' the pineal in an extraordinary manner. Other studies have been conducted that suggest that post-Ayahuasca brains are literally 'rewired'.

DMT molecules are similar to Serotonin molecules, and bind to the same receptor sites in the brain. This is extraordinary because, like Serotonin, DMT is a unique key which naturally fits this 'lock' in the brain.

In the diagrams below you can see that the structures of DMT and Serotonin are very similar. They are both bind to the same neuro-receptors in the brain.

The molecular structures of DMT and Serotonin.

Ayahuasca is a very interesting and complicated brew made from two Amazonian plant species; a leafy bush called Psychotria Viridis (P Viridis) and a vine called Banisteriopsis Caapi (B Caapi).

P Viridis is a plant source of relatively large amounts of DMT, which is the primary source of the visionary/entheogenic experience. However DMT is inactive when administered orally because it is destroyed in the gut by the digestive enzyme Monoamine s (MAO).

B Caapi contains only mildly psychoactive alkaloids, specifically Beta-carbolines (Harmine, Harmaline and Tetrahydraharmine) which act as Serotonin re-uptake inhibitors, as well as have pro-Dopamine properties. Serotonin and Dopamine are two human hormone-like substances which are powerful neurotransmitters and create alertness as well as cause a person to be in a psychologically receptive state. Additionally these alkaloids also act as powerful MAO inhibitors.

The interesting thing about Ayahuasca is that while DMT is inactive when taken orally, the MAO inhibiters in the brew allow the DMT to remain intact, and pass the blood/brain barrier.

So you have DMT bonding to receptor sites in the brain, which produces visions, while the pro-Serotonin and pro-Dopamine properties of the brew create a state of alertness and receptivity.

Also, the physical healing properties of Ayahuasca are extraordinary to say the least. Ayahuasca is being looked at as a possible effective treatment for Parkinson's disease, for example.

As early as 1928 a natural substance called Banisterene was used successfully in the treatment of Parkinson's disease. Banisterene is also an old and well-known plant product called Harmine. Harmine is the most pronounced Beta-carboline component of Ayahuasca.

Sadly the use of Banisterene fell out of favor as a Parkinson's treatment, as the pharmaceutical industry was evolving into the study of synthetic drugs that were patentable, and losing interest in natural products that were not patentable.

Even more interesting is that many of the experimental drugs being used today to treat Parkinson's disease which can be found listed by the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry contain strong MAO inhibitors, as well as have pro-Dopamine properties.

In his book, The Cosmic Serpent, Jeremy Narby comments, "Here are people without electron microscopes who choose, among 80,000 Amazonian plant species, the leaves of a bush containing a ... brain hormone, which they combine with a vine containing substances that inactivate an enzyme of the digestive tract, which would otherwise block the effect. And they do this to modify their consciousness. It is as if they knew about the molecular properties of plants and the art of combining them, and when one asks them how they knew these things, they say their knowledge comes directly from [the] plants."

Ayahuasca is the University of Gaia. Nature reaching out to humans.

The 'school' metaphor is actually not a metaphor at all. Ayahuasca is all about learning. During an Ayahuasca ceremony, you start in one place and you end in another place. The next ceremony brings you back to the place where you left off. Class begins at 9pm … the bell rings … and "mother-Aya" gives the lesson for the day!

Generally speaking the lessons are universally profound. The healing and consciousness expanding properties of this plant-teacher bring us to a vastly greater experience of who we are. Ayahuasca facilitates the resolution of a human being.

Resolving the human condition requires a greatly expanded consciousness around two fundamental questions. Where am I? And, who am I?

One of the lessons of the Ayahuasca experience is a greatly expanded perception of what we have grown used to calling reality. The veil is lifted. We perceive 3-D for sure. But our perception expands beyond that to encompass a vastly greater reality that 'contains' 3-D. This expanded reality, or perhaps the 10-D or multi-D reality is not constrained by the timeline or even by causality.

The perception of 10-D is not only something that you become acutely aware of; you are also somehow encoded with the memory of it. Long after the Ayahuasca experience is over, you remember the way back to the extraordinary stillness of this place that you already inhabit. You inhabit it as your higher self.

I mentioned the question of, "Who am I?" Humans employ their best wits in order to live out their lives; to overcome insecurities; to mask their pain; and to gain status and acceptance. Sadly the true 'self' of an individual is almost universally hidden. We define who we are by what status we have, what we do or who we are married to.

The integration of self with Higher-self is a natural consequence of expanded perception. From this integration emerges the true self. The fully functioning 'visionary brain' strips away the fear-based, ego issues that plague the human condition. The mask of our pretend-self becomes irrelevant. It no longer becomes necessary to impress others or to be ashamed of who we are. We become resolved in our humanity and our divinity. It is not a thinking thing. It is a knowing thing. This knowing is a timeless experience of our hearts.

The heart center expands. We move into a new human experience that is quite adept with the subtle feelings of heart. Compassion, intuition, extrasensory perception, vulnerability, "realness" are all the result of a bringing into balance of the feminine intuitive heart, with the masculine analytical brain.

Recent research about the heart itself reveals that the heart contains a large neurological system that in effect acts as a 2nd brain. This "heart-brain" functions coherently with the brain as it sends massive amounts of information to our brains. The heart communicates to the brain via the limbic system within the brain. The pineal gland (responsible for DMT production) is adjacent to the limbic system.

Consensual reality is a masculine, logical, cognitive experience. We react to events based on stored data, which we use to make decisions. The brain alone cannot deal with the timeless multi-dimension.

The experience of the multi-dimensional reality is a feminine, intuitive experience that is not constrained by cause and effect or by logic. The reactivation of an atrophied brain; the rewiring of our minds, again brings balance.

Many people believe (hope) that humanity is at the very doorstep of an extraordinary shift. This 'shift' is really about the return of the Goddess energy. Healing is coming to humanity from nature; from mother-earth; from Gaia. It is about the return of the feminine.

The spirit of the earth or Gaia is literally working with humans towards a conclusion to this age and the advent a new one. Nature is working towards healing herself.

Terence McKenna said, "It is one thing when you become interested in the plants (Ayahuasca) and it is another thing when the plants become interested in you." Somehow the mystery of this shift is contained in the fact that the plants are sentient. They have a collective consciousness.

Some plants nourish us. Some plants are used to heal our physical bodies. And some plants are medicines for the soul. They teach us the way back to the divine within us. They infuse our consciousness with the consciousness of nature.

In the book Holographic Universe by Michael Talbot, he writes, "We are indeed on a shaman's journey, mere children struggling to become technicians of the sacred. We are learning how to deal with the plasticity that is part and parcel of a universe in which mind and reality are a continuum, and in this journey one lesson stands out above all others. As long as the formlessness and breathtaking freedom of the beyond remain frightening to us, we will continue to dream a hologram for ourselves that is comfortably solid and well defined."

The real problem with humanity is that we have forgotten. Over the ages we have agreed to live in a prison. We have forgotten who we are, and we have forgotten the eternal landscape that we inhabit.

Ayahuasca is here to change all of that.

© Ralph Miller 2003, 2008

Heart of the Initiate offers tours to Brazil where they help people make sacred inner journeys through an intensive workshop experience. Their Brazil workshops incorporate shamanic ceremonies using the ancient plant teacher, Ayahuasca. Please check our their website! For more information on their healing retreats, please visit www.heartoftheinitiate.com.

***

DREAMWalker Group topics related to this article:

2012   Anthropology   Ascension   Ayahuasca   Cosmology   DMT   Entheogens   Gaia   Jeremy Narby   Meditation   Metaphysics   Michael Talbot   Native American Experience   New Age   Pineal Gland   Plant Medicine   Religion & Spirituality   Parkinson's Disease   Psychedelics   Psychic Research (Psychism)  Spirit-Guided Community   Terence McKenna   The Soul

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There is a gathering that is happening across the planet right now.  People from all walks of life are becoming aware of a new purpose and inner creativity in an extraordinary way.  In the midst of wars, serious environmental problems, fundamental religious mania, energy concerns and political nausea, something truly beautiful is happening.  People are waking up and remembering something within their hearts. The lotus blooms in the mud.

Forgetfulness.

Ayahuasca is a plant medicine that helps us remember a place within that is long forgotten. It strips away ego behaviors that have enslaved us, and allows us to return to our source. We all arrived on this earth plane alive and conscious. It is likely that during the first days of our lives, our brains were visionary and telepathic. Hidden within each of us was a silent awareness of our own heroic destiny.

Then we all suffered in some way. We were confused by a betrayal or abandonment. We felt misunderstood or not cared for in some way. As this happened, our very young psyches began to shift. We began to construct a false self. We learned to avoid any future possible abandonment. Rather than being open and vulnerable, we became guarded and skeptical. Ego saved us, but in avoiding abandonment ... we gained loneliness.

The current human condition has to do with the condition of individual humans. In order to survive we created an egocentric idea of ourselves that we think is stronger, more capable, and smarter than who we feel we really are. The ego has asserted itself as a false self, while our true nature lay hidden. Over the ages we have agreed to live in a prison. We have forgotten who we are, and we have forgotten the eternal landscape that we inhabit.

Remembering.

The journey back to the ‘true self’ is a natural process that occurs when the sleeping brain awakens. When the sleeping brain awakens, your point of reference is moved, and you naturally see (remember) who you are. You come back to the silent place of your source. You remember.

The only way back to your higher self is to agree to let go of any notion of who you think you are and be willing to make the journey back. This process assails the ego. Shamanic traditions refer to this as the death of ego. Ideas of self-importance fall away naturally. They become irrelevant. The Ayahuasca medicine helps us to find the way back. It is nature’s teacher.

Your sense of creativity and destiny is manifested in your feelings. As you feel this sense of destiny, no matter how crazy or incongruous with your life it feels, it is very important to realize that the feeling is a message from your childlike, higher self. It is connected to your soul’s purpose.

Nature’s Medicine.

Ayahuasca contains the very powerful psychoactive and visionary substance called Dimethyltryptamine (DMT). DMT is found in all living things including humans.

The pineal gland is a primary component of the visionary brain. DMT is likely produced in the pineal, and recent research indicates that the pineal will produce DMT in large amounts at least 2 times in the life of a human; at birth and at death. Perhaps it heralds the entry and departure of the soul. Persons having 'near death' experiences ... seeing bright lights ... seeing portals ... Seeing religious icons ... are most definitely experiencing the effects of DMT. Even lucid dreaming may be the result of smaller quantities being released.

It is now believed that the human pineal goes into an atrophied state in a person’s early teen years. We live in an age where the collective ego has shelved the pineal as old fashioned and unnecessary. Ayahuasca is a natural plant medicine that reawakens the sleeping brain, because it contains exactly the same biochemistry as the pineal. This plant medicine is like liquid consciousness that awakens the telepathic and visionary brain. All we have to do is be willing to let go.

The visionary process of Ayahuasca also has the effect of allowing a person to resolve and heal spiritually, psychologically, emotionally and physically. The brew is referred to as "entheogenic" which means "god generated within".

The famous ethno-botanist, Terrance McKenna said, "It is one thing when you become interested in these plants (Ayahuasca) and it is another thing when these plants become interested in you." Nature itself has a collective intelligence. Plants are sentient. Somehow part of the mystery of the evolution of human consciousness seems to be connected to nature.

Some plants nourish us. Some plants are used to heal our physical bodies. And some plants are medicines for the soul. They teach us the way back to the divine within us.

Planetary Evolution.

Many people hope that humanity is at the very doorstep of an extraordinary shift. This 'shift' is really about the return of the Goddess energy. Healing is coming to humanity from nature; from mother-earth; from Gaia. It is about the return of the feminine.

The spirit of the earth or Gaia is literally working with humans towards a conclusion to this age and the advent of a new one. Nature is working towards healing herself.

The feelings of destiny are becoming more pronounced now than ever before. There is a gathering that is taking place. Healers and teachers are waking up. Brave people are resolving their humanity. Listen to the feelings that have been with you for a long time. Perhaps you are feeling the tug of this undiscovered path within. The Ayahuasca temple in Brazil is in a beautiful and natural setting on the beach in the state of Bahia. It gives me great hope that many brave people are coming here. You can come too.

© Ralph Miller 2008

Heart of the Initiate offers tours to Brazil where they help people make sacred inner journeys through an intensive workshop experience. Their Brazil workshops incorporate shamanic ceremonies using the ancient plant teacher, Ayahuasca. Please check our their website! For more information on their healing retreats, please visit www.heartoftheinitiate.com.

***

DREAMWalker Group topics related to this article:

2012   Anthropology   Ascension   Ayahuasca   Cosmology   Creativity   DMT   Dreams & Dreaming   Entheogens   Gaia   Meditation   Metaphysics   Native American Experience   New Age   Pineal Gland   Plant Medicine   Religion & Spirituality   Parkinson's Disease   Psychedelics   Psychic Research (Psychism)  Shamanism   Spirit-Guided Community   Terence McKenna
The Soul

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In no way am I condoning or advocating drinking and driving.  In the fashion of the great Czech writer, Franz Kafka, I wish only to portray what happens to the individual under Draconian, police-state conditions. -- Rich Goscicki

 

(Part 1 of 2 Parts)

In jail for the first time... 51 years old, imagine. Look at this place. Must be the holding pen where they keep the pigeons ‘til bail’s posted. If you don't have the hard cash, you go in with the hard core prison population no matter how trivial the charge—like debtor's prison in the nineteenth century. Unless, of course, your friends or relatives go see a bail bondsman and let him in on the action at an exorbitant interest rate. The system feeds on itself—more or more bloodsuckers jumping in at every turn. Otherwise, no money, you stay in the can.

What a down. Can barely believe it. Nothing to do, that's the problem...

Sit on the bunk bed, maybe... That’s the only decision you have to make, or not. That's it... Sit on the bed... Yes, makes sense... What a great idea!

What the fuck else am you gonna do? Not much sense staring at the other cells across the cement floor with all the stubby lines and circles painted on. The fronts of the cells look like tight chain-link fencing soaked in drab gray paint rather than old-fashioned iron bars. Can barely see anybody anyway, so what’s the point of even looking out? There’s a young black guy on the other side trying to tell a cop something; I don’t know whether he’s a gang member or a deaf mute trying to use sign language. Jesus, there’s a big clock above the U-shaped arrangement of cells, but I can’t see the time from this angle. These bastards won’t even give you the time!

Cellmate's asleep... wrapped in a grimy blanket with moth holes like a fast food burrito that mice got to. Just lying there. Looks half dead. Big fuck. Wonder what he's in for. Better not wake him. Gotta be smart in here. Street smart. It'd be pretty stupid to wake this guy to ask him what he's in here for, that's for sure.

Man, just four hours ago you were in your favorite clothing-optional resort frolicking in the pool, cavorting with playful damsels, enjoying the royal palms, yellow lilacs and lavender lilies… Debbie looked so elegant with nothing on. What could be more personable, agreeable to mind and body, than a gracile nymphet teaching aerobics? She’s educating you on the importance of good health and feeling fit, and at the same time saturating your field of vision with curvy loveliness.

How about the guy from Key West with that loquacious parrot? You’d swear the feathery creature could speak conversational English. It had larger vocabulary than some of the kids you grew up with. Nearly won the chip for a free drink in au natural water volleyball with Bonnie and Britney and the rest of the crowd. Hadn't had so much fun since teen-age days in the Poconos. Remember?

Now you’re here, sitting on this bunk wondering what this big lug’s in for. Talk about change of reality. The only people that fell from heaven to hell this fast are O.J. and the Shah of Iran... Maybe Fatty Arbuckle in the ‘20s on that trumped up rape charge. Authorities proved his innocence decades later after they destroyed his career. Wonder what happened to him.

Remember that song, “What a difference a day makes—24 little hours”? What a difference a minute makes. One minute you're riding down the highway in a sparkling clean, jet black Cougar with Mafia tinted windows, listening to Puccini, happy as can be, suntanned, massaged and robust, healthy and feeling great, contemplating how to be a soldier in the War to Save the Environment. The next minute you're a low life in jail.

So much for divine providence. Murphy's Law and Chaos Theory are the only designers of destiny. That’s for sure. Unless God's a prankster out to revenge every trivial peccadillo since Adam and Eve ate that stupid apple... For drinking a six pack of Michalob you’re in for the hassle of your life: months of expensive counseling, waiting in line at the DMV, license revoked, hours in court, hard-ass parole officers, listening to ex-offenders harangue you for being as stupid as they are.

Looks like he's waking up... He's not too big, about six feet. Hope he's not in here for any violent crimes, rape or something. Maybe he's a murderer... Nah, they wouldn't put me in with a hard core criminal. You’re just a drunk driver... never committed a crime, never had an accident, never been in jail. Look, Officer, I didn’t want to kill any babies; I just wanted to get home from the party. You expect me to walk home from Tampa ‘cause I drank some beer? Says 'Safe Driver' right on my license. They wouldn't...

There, look at that... Looks like a yellow traffic ticket sticking out of the big fuck’s pants pocket... Must've been drinking and driving too. They segregate all the drunks ‘cause they know you're not hard core criminals. Federal judges and high ranking clergymen probably get behind the wheel with more than two drinks every once in a while, fa Christ's sake. Upstate NY troupers found Police Commissioner W — dead drunk asleep at the wheel on the side of the Thruway. He grunted, “You can’t bust me; I’m the police commissioner.”

There, he's waking up, rolling over and moaning after a night of nasty dreams... Talk to him. He looks all right. Had an acne problem as a teenager, that's for sure... and those teeth, looks like he brushes his teeth when he feel likes it, rather than at a set time during the day. Probably works as a truck driver, or a fast order cook… It's Florida, man, who the hell you expect to meet in jail? A physics professor from Cal Tech. Talk to him... It's okay. He won't bite. Can always yell for help if he gets violent or crazy. But the guards are probably in the office drinking coffee, eating doughnuts and reading the sports pages. They might not hear you ... Better be careful.

"Hi man. Name's Rich Bozlicki. Looks like you and me are in here for the same thing."

Holy shit... He's a lot bigger than six feet... and he's got a scar on his neck! How the hell can you get a two-inch scar by your Adam’s apple without getting killed? Oh, yea, that’s right, medical procedures. But this is jail. He’s around 6’4”, deep-set black eyes and one of those death tattoos on his massive upper right arm, with RIP inscribed in a scroll wrapped around a sinister Gothic cross. He probably thinks I'm a fuckin’ dipshit. Maybe he's one of Mike Tyson's sparring partners, harmless except in the ring. Hope his name's not Bubba.

"Oh... really," he answers, placing his left hand akimbo, a mannerism I didn't expect from a rugged looking guy his size.

"Yeh, I was driving home from my favorite resort with a six pack of beer under my belt. Even had an open bottle of Mic in the driver's console. Was mad at all the cops and politicians that get busted for DUI and just flash their badges and drive off like nothing happened. Was listening to classical music, philosophizing about Gaia... the Mother Earth I mean, happy as can be. But I didn't realize how tired I was. Didn't get any sleep the night before...was working all night; couldn't fight off the fatigue. Somebody with a cell phone nailed me as soon as I strayed over the striped line from the middle lane. No accident, no reckless driving, just strayed over the center lane for a second and now I'm in jail. How about you, whad-ya in for?"

"Oh, they caught me blowing a guy under the lifeguard stand at Cochina Beach."

"Oh! I see..." How the fuck do you act nonchalant? What the hell do you say now? Don't say a word, stupid. Just back up and sit on the bunk. That's it. Take that filthy pillow and bury your head in it.

There's the guard walking by... That's him, the strabismic fuck, Biles, the correction officer that brought you in here.

"Officer... Officer, can you help me a second? I need to call my wife on that payphone over there... to see how long it'll take her to get the $500 to bail me out. She doesn’t get out of work until the banks close, and the ATMs only dispense $200 max."

"Sure,” he answered with a friendly avuncular air. “Just let me go over to the other side to see what those guys want, then I'll come over here and get you, okay?"

You feel like kissing his hand and telling him how wonderful he is. You wanna tell ‘im. “Officer, can I kiss the tips of your shiny black shoes? Let me polish your badge for ya… I gotta get outta here before I go crazy. I’m an aesthete: I love Beethoven and the Louvre Museum, and the Yosemite National Park. Did you know Francisco Goya was the first artist to protest war?”

There he goes... over to the other side. He'll be right back to get me. Nydia will tell you she's got the bail money and she's on the way. You’ll be out of here in two hours. Free at last! Free at last! How can you last that long? Two whole hours!

Oh, no. He wouldn't... he just said... mothafucka... That cross eyed bastard is heading right for the guard's room to drink coffee, eat doughnuts and read the sports pages. They’re probably watching professional wrestling on a black and white TV. It's only been two minutes and he's forgotten me already. Who said, "Hell is where there is no reason?"1

Don't say a word. You can't get depressed unless you let yourself get depressed. Just step over to the bunk and curl up in a nice tight fetal position and wait for your family to rescue you. That's all you can do. Let your consciousness leave your body and float above like a kite. Remember when you were driving a cab in NYC in college days? Whenever some obnoxious rowdy passengers got in, you’d just project your mind outside and let them yell and scream their heads off.

That’s it… Your mind is floating at the ceiling. That’s your body down there. You’re just a hulk of flesh, a glob of protoplasm curled up on a wiry bunk bed. Look at that; there are some teeth marks on the bed spring.

“Go ‘head, ya fucks, do anything you want to me. That’s not me, I’m up here. Go ‘head, rape me. Beat the crap out of me. Club me with those stupid night sticks. Stick pins in me; pull my hair out. Feed me those repulsive bologna sandwiches with that unpalatable American cheese. I don’t give a damn because I’m up here. That’s just my bleary mass of a body—an inert half sack of rice with all the air out.”

You wish. Who ya kiddin’? Wouldn’t it be nice if you could do that? Just project our consciousness in the manner of Mishimashi Yogi. Nice try. You’ll try any crazy ruse when you’re desperate. There’re no atheists in a foxhole. If that cellmate of yours just looks at you tough, you’d piss in your pants.

That's right… Wrap this wormy gray blanket over your head and look out through the moth holes at the wall. That's all you can do... Lie still, so you look like a ghost or dead man. Just stare at that rectangular concrete slab covered with the drab tan paint. Just breathe slowly and deeply. Let yourself linger at the brink of consciousness. Breathe slowly... deeply; your eyelids are getting heavy... Just stare at the wall... That's all there is to do.

(End of Part 1.  Part 2 continued next issue of DREAMScene)

© 2008  Rich Goscicki. All rights reserved.

***

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I was twenty-six years old when our first child was born. My wife, Karen, and I had been married four and a half years and we were looking forward to starting our family. As I watched the doctor deliver our son, I noticed our baby’s eyes looked different. They seemed to have a slight, almond shape, and I immediately realized our son may have Down syndrome. I remember wondering, “Who will I play baseball with?” Looking back these twenty-six plus years ago, I now know that was a very selfish thought. I could not have possibly predicted that our son, Bryan, would grow up to be a young man who now enjoys playing EVERY sport, except baseball!!

 

Yes, Bryan was born with Down syndrome. Ironically, Karen’s older sister, Camille, also had a baby boy born with Down syndrome. Unfortunately, Patrick was born with several health issues and passed away just after his first birthday. That did not give us or any other family member a chance to learn much about Down syndrome so Karen and I really had no clue as to what to do. The library only had a couple of books, both written by doctors in a way that was not useful to us. There was no Internet (what a great resource for today’s new parents). So Karen and I decided to do what we thought was best for Bryan; we raised him as if he was a “normal” baby.

 

At one year old, Bryan showed us the courage that we would see so many more times as he grew up. He went through open heart surgery to patch a hole in his heart and just before they wheeled him away, he looked up to me and said his first words, “dada.” I knew then we had a fighter and that everything would be fine.

 

Bryan did survive the surgery and has grown into an interesting, lively and funny young man. He has always tried whatever we have asked him to try; that has always impressed me. When Bryan was eight, we got him started in Special Olympics. He ran the 50 meter dash, 200 meter relay run and did the softball throw. In the eighteen years he has been participating, he has now also competed in basketball, bowling, swimming, dragon boat racing, kayaking and Challenger baseball. He has excelled at each except baseball, and has won many medals and ribbons. By far his most treasured medal is the gold medal won in Unified bowling at the 2003 Special Olympics Summer World Games in Ireland. It was such an incredible experience for all of us, I wrote a book, Spirit, Courage and Resolve: A Special Olympics Athlete's Road to Gold (www.spiritcourageresolve.com). The book takes the reader from Bryan’s birth to Ireland.

 

We have met so many people because of Bryan, some famous and all incredible. We have had the honor of meeting Eunice Kennedy Shriver, her husband, Sargent, daughter, Maria, and even rode next to Maria and Arnold’s kids during a Best Buddies Bike Challenge. We can count as one of our friends, the incredible Chris Burke from the television show, Life Goes On. We have been given a tour of Fenway Park by Shonda Schilling, wife of Curt Schilling of the Red Sox.         

 

My life has changed completely and drastically. I have gone from high school and college to the United States Marine Corps and a career in the Postal Service and a courier company. I am now a paraprofessional in Special Education at a high school in the Medically Fragile Unit. I have been working with people with disabilities for the last five years but I have had twenty-six years of training!

 

Over the years my wife and I have had to familiarize ourselves with IEP’s (Individual Education Plan), which is what the schools use to monitor and control our kids in special education. The IEP is a powerful tool that parents need to educate themselves about in order to protect their child from overzealous school administrators who think they know your child better than the parents. We have also had to learn about guardianships and why it is so important to use as a way to protect your child’s future health. We actually know some families who choose to not become their child’s guardian because they do not want them to lose the right to vote!!          

 

Bryan and I decided to write a second book together, about Down syndrome. We use this book to do school talks and educate the public about disabilities and Down syndrome awareness. Although Bryan does not talk as much as me, he does a great job answering any questions the students may have. We are proud that both books have been sold in all fifty states and twelve countries. We are extremely proud that I Just Am: A Story of Down Syndrome Awareness and Tolerance (www.ijustam.org) has been translated into Romanian and French and can be found on the desk of Eunice Kennedy Shriver.

 

I grew up a punk kid who called people retards if they were “different”. We all did and after spending some years on a high school campus, I have heard the word used daily and never in a good way. My brother, Ken, gave me a special fiftieth birthday present a couple of years ago; a German Shepard with three legs! Because of Bryan and our dog, Ozzie, I am now a person who advocates for people and animals with disabilities.          

 

I enjoy my life. I am blessed to have Karen, my wife of thirty-one years and our daughter, Shauna, who is twenty-three. But having Bryan in my life changes the way I look at each day and makes me strive to be a better person. He has brought me JOY by his ACCEPTANCE of the life he was given; by his COURAGE in the face of adversity; by his FRIENDSHIP to all those around him; and by his AWARENESS of others. Bryan has helped me make peace with myself and allow me to help others. He has helped me to face life’s challenges positively. Through his attitude toward others I have discovered a new side of myself. Because of Bryan I now see others who are different, differently, and I am proud of the JOY that has brought me.

© 2008 Tom Lambke. All rights reserved.

***

DREAMWalker Group topics related to this article:

Biography and Memoirs   Children's Books   Creativity   Disability Community   Down Syndrome   Inspirational   Literary Community   Motivational   Nonfiction   Special Needs Issues   Special Olympics   Spirit-Guided Community

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I’ve had articles, short stories, and now Kindle versions of both of my books “Sirat: Through the Fires of Hell” and “Humanity’s Edge” published in Kindle format. There have been trials and errors and learning experiences (and a best selling Amazon Kindle “Amazon Kindle Publishing for Idiots”) along the way.

As the fire dims and the warm glow of the accomplishments linger, a few remaining embers glow, warnings for other would be Kindle authors.

Make sure you retain the rights to the works BEFORE publishing them. If the contract does not mention digital rights, it may still be restricted by the publisher under “retaining ALL rights”. Read your contract before you Amazon Kindle it.

PDF files and Microsoft Word files do not convert the same to Amazon Kindle. Just because the PDF came back great from the printer doesn’t mean it looks great on Kindle. Always, always preview. If you can’t edit the PDF file, get an editor. Or convert the PDF back to Microsoft word and convert to Amazon Kindle compatible format per my Amazon Kindle article “Amazon Kindle Publishing for Idiots”.

Page lengths aren’t the same between print and digital. Make sure your Kindle work doesn’t retain old page numbers in a condensed format.

Amazon is great at processing payments and sending them to you once you sell copies. However, it is up to you to market and sell, sell, sell.

Just because you list a price doesn’t mean it sells at that price. Amazon reserves the right to put stuff on sale – and does, sometimes within hours of your listing or price increase. On one hand, lowering the price can improve sales. And Amazon does not reduce your royalty rate on that sales price.

More tips to come as the learning curve becomes less steep.

 —

For technical assistance in doing an Amazon Kindle conversion, setting up Amazon Search Inside for your books, or interviews and presentations to groups, Tamara can be reached at: sirat@wilhite.homeip.net

© 2008 Tamara Wilhite. All rights reserved.

***

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Continuing their ongoing series, Cleis Press releases another stellar group of stories in this year’s Best Gay Romance. It’s another anthology filled with vivid characters, romantic scenarios, and an underlying theme of beauty beyond the physical. Themed anthologies often suffer from repetition and dull sameness, but this group of stories has a nice variety of locales, time periods, and lovers, some meeting for the first time, some together for decades.

♥ Best Gay Romance 2008 ♥ Cleis Press Richard Labonte, Editor ISBN: 978-1-57344-303-6 Buy Now

The seventeen stories come from authors new and experienced. Dale Chase, Victor Banis, Jay Starre, Simon Sheppard, Rob Rosen and T. Hitman have been working in gay male erotica for years. Relative newcomers like Matthew Lower, Max Pierce, JM Snyder, and Shanna Germain contribute stories as well.

The anthology overall is a solid book, and several stories stand out as especially strong.

The opener, “Henry and Jim” is by author J.M. Snyder. It’s a gentle and wistful story, unabashedly romantic that evokes a long-time pair’s love. The first line establishes the bittersweet tone of the piece referencing love letter written long ago. The symbol shows again later in the story in the line, “When we make love now it’s a gentle affair, languid and slow, the movements, careful like turning the crumbling pages of an ancient book.” The implication of Alzheimer’s and its devastating effects are between every line for the reader to discover on their own.

In Shanna Germain’s “Coming Home”, the main character questions his return to the family farm after an unpleasant coming out experience. Germain captures the gritty itchiness of working on a hot afternoon in a hayloft and shows the macho, taciturn personalities of the two country boys. Their clipped dialogue keeps a sense of suspense and tension right up until the charming ending.

In “Falling”, Simon Sheppard uses letters, references to blogs and modern communication to let readers “read between the lines” to make their own interpretation about the narrator’s state of mind. Some might see it as a suicide note; others might see it as a man straining to keep his hope alive in a cold world. It’s a story that needs more than one reading to appreciate.

The theme of beauty beyond the physical is repeated in “What the Eye Reveals” by Jason Shults. Set in the ultra-superficial world of Los Angeles, the narrator and his long-time partner Bob, are stumbling through a difficult time in their relationship. Bob floats through the world, looking for answers in Tarot readings and the pseudo-philosophies of past life readings. With a near-terse pace, the story doesn’t provide answers for the readers—or its main characters. Still, the pulsebeat of love is on every page.

Jameson Currier shows his experience as a writer with deft bookending in “The Country House”. Opening with a line about quarrels between lovers and ending with the same theme, he gives the two stories: a tale of Civil War era lovers wrongly murdered and a modern-day couple who make the lifelong commitment to one another after seeing their ghosts. It’s a sweet story.

Editor Labonte closes the book with one of the most powerful tales, “The Canals of Mars” by Victor J. Banis. Scarred, ugly people aren’t men often found in gay erotica and this tale is affecting. It has a touch of fantasy element: as the lovers grow closer, they grow younger and the scars fade away, the theme of physical beauty that has less power than soulful beauty is once again reinforced.

A couple of the stories feel a bit out of place, more hard-core in tone and subject matter. “Fucked on Kilimanjaro” and “The Belt” would have been home in an erotica anthology that focused on the physical. Jack Fritscher’s “Rush of Love” was an epic poem of an homage to muscle men, with prose that was rich, lush and erotic. Love? Yes, in a transitory way, but still an emotional experience for the narrator—and the reader.

Whether you like the notion of happily ever after, or happily for now, Best Gay Romance offers a good variety of stories that gives readers a sweet taste of love between men.

© 2008 Vincent Diamond.  All rights reserved.

***

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Appearances and Book Signings

• Lester Grinspoon Discusses Medical Marijuana

Listen to a radio interview with author Lester Grinspoon (Living on Purpose with Lynn Thompson) in which Lester discusses medical marijuana, legalization, and more.

• North Richland Hills, Texas
  Saturday, August 9th, 1 - 4 PM
  'His Folk, Books and More' Book and Gifts
  7801 Brandi Place, Suite A, North Richland Hills, TX 76180
  (Right next to the Tarantula Train!)

Tamara Wilhite  will be signing her science fiction anthology Humanity's Edge and new novel Sirat: Through the Fires of Hell.

Calls for Submissions

• 2009 Magic Carpet Ride Mentorship

Tamara Kaye Sellman, director of MRCentral (www.mrcentral.net) announces the opening of the 2009 Magic Carpet Ride mentorship application period.

This mentorship, an innovative one-on-one creative writing program, is the first of its kind to provide specialized instruction, direction, and motivation specifically for a writer of literary magical realism.
 
The purpose of the Magic Carpet Ride mentorship is to assist a promising magical realist writer from anywhere in the world in the completion of a polished manuscript by the end of the session which may then be actively submitted to potential publishers.

Postmark deadline for receipt of all application materials for the 2009 mentorship session is October 31, 2008. Email deadline for receipt of all application materials for the 2008 mentorship session is midnight [Pacific time], October 31, 2008.

For more information, visit www.angelfire.com/wa2/margin/MRCentral/mentorship.html or write Tamara Kaye Sellman at magicalrealismmaven at hotmail dot com.  (Note: Tamara is on her annual summer hiatus from June 20 through September 21.)

Help Offered

• Freelance editing is just one forté of Catherine Groves. For more information about the freelance services of Christian*New Age Quarterly's owner and editor, please write to her at PO Box 276, Clifton, NJ 07015-0276.

Help Wanted

• For a book, Lynda Exley, ambassador, award-winning journalist and editor at the SanTan Sun News, is looking to interview traditionally published writers (not self-published) who were either published younger than 17 years old or they have an inspirational story to tell about how writing as a youth led them to their current writing career. Writes Lynda, "If any of your authors fit this bill and they are interested in being interviewed for the book I'm compiling, please have them email me a brief letter about themselves and include titles of published works."  Lynda can be reached at Exlent@aol.com.
• Film producer sought by author Tracy B. Evans — to turn Fatal Kidnapping into a horror flick. It's a mystery novel with a twist never seen before.  Email Tracy at tracybevans@gmail.com.

Literary Contests

• Swell, a quarterly online journal of original writing focusing on LGBT themes, is pleased to sponsor a fiction contest. The electronic publishing arm of NewTown Writers, a Chicago-based writers salon, SWELL (www.swellzine.com) aims to reach beyond the traditional boundaries of the printed word, exploring the limits of form, structure, and content, while giving a voice to emerging writers.  Prizes to be awarded: First Prize: $250, Second Prize: $100, Third Prize $50. 

When?  Entries will be accepted electronically between May 15, 2008 and September 30, 2008. Submissions will only be accepted via email.  Winners will be announced in January 2009.

Click here to review the complete Swell fiction contest guidlines.  Questions?  Questions? Contact newtownwriters@yahoo.com.

Publishers Seeking Authors

• Christian*New Age Quarterly (C*NAQ) seeks topnotch essayists versed in interfaith dialog. Please, do not send simultaneous submissions, previously published material or pieces available online. To learn more, see Christian*New Age Quarterly's Writer's Guidelines.

© 2008 DREAMWalker Group

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DREAMScene © 2008 DREAMWalker Group/Michael Walker