Gott ist tot

Hey, it's Maureen's DH!! and this being my first official post I'd like to state to the anonymous readers: I don't think you're all cowards, only if you seek to defame and slander under your anonymity; that is cowardly and holds no respect. Anyway I have been honoured with an invitation to post here at MBB, and I've accepted!

So, there we were, our 8yro daughter and I, in the dining-room and she asked a question apropos the Mad Hatter and his head twirling capabilities whilst he was futterwacken. Thereupon I explained and this conversation ensued:

'The Mad Hatter, darling, is a fictional character, just like in a cartoon they can make it look like his head is spinning; but it really isn't.'

'What's a "fictional character"?'

'Fictional characters are people, animals, things, that don't really exist; like Santa Claus.'

'Santa is real!'

'Well then, like the Easter Bunny.'

'Dad! the Easter Bunny is real as well.'

'OK, then like who?' I ask my knowledgeable daughter who is looking up at me, eyes full of retribution and scorn for proclaiming the myth, and she pauses to think, and looks away. Her gaze returns carrying in it's wake a glint and a grin.

'Like God?' She almost whispers.

'Well, yes.' I reply, proud and shocked. Previously all of my theological discussions with our little angel have been more along the lines of god's existence being up to the individual and if she wanted to believe in god that that would be OK with us. I continued 'Don't you believe in god any more?'

'Well, I did, but then we went to Scitech and they said that everything around us came from the sun. At church they told us that everything comes from god. So, I don't think that god is real.'

Our conversation continued of course but ended with the same sentiment: Gott ist tot.

God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him. How shall we comfort ourselves, the murderers of all murderers? What was holiest and mightiest of all that the world has yet owned has bled to death under our knives: who will wipe this blood off us? What water is there for us to clean ourselves? What festivals of atonement, what sacred games shall we have to invent? Is not the greatness of this deed too great for us? Must we ourselves not become gods simply to appear worthy of it?

—Nietzsche, The Gay Science, Section 125, tr. Walter Kaufmann

Or a more contemporary take:

God is dead,

and no one cares.

If there is a hell

I'll see you there.

—Nine Inch Nails, Heresy

Here's to our fictional characters (or should that be Fictional Characters?)

T.

A Few of My Favourite Things

Happy Lost Sheep tagged me............... so in no particular order I will share 10 pieces of me

One: Massage. Nearly every muscle in my body is aching right now and I would do just about anything for a massage!! I'm in the middle of launching the new choreography for the Body Balance classes that I teach and I have done so many pilates moves and backbends that I really don't feel like teaching it again tonight. So, on my mind is this place... ahhh, soon soon soon.

Two: Rain.

Last week I was home by myself and it started to pour. I sat myself all warm and snuggly by a window and just watched the greenery get drenched. I love the sound of it, the smell of it, the look of it, the feel of it. In winter I continue to go for early morning beach walks and especially enjoy the days when it is storming and I get drenched and just rely on my own body heat from the exertion to keep me warm. Sand, rain, waves lapping at my feet, grey skies, no people (oh maybe some crazy surfers but they're ok ;)

Three: Cardio. A spin class that used to make me want to puke my guts up. 40 minutes on a Xtrainer with Pendulum, The Killers or The Chemical Brothers spurring me on. A 45 minute non-stop traverse of my local indoor rock climbing gym. I love to punish my body! I love to wear myself out and use all of my frustration and anger, hell lets call it rage, to find my peak fitness and an feel the absolute glory of what my body is capable of. The high that comes afterwards is phenomenal and has been my chosen form of medication when battling postnatal depression.

Four: Relaxation. After my baby girl arrived 8 years ago I joined the gym and immediately got hooked on the Body Balance classes. Yoga, Tai Chi, Pilates. Then after you have stretched and strengthened and sweated you lie on the floor in corpse pose and drift away to some beautiful music. After 8 years of practice I can transport myself nearly immediately. Complete relaxation. I feel light, joyful, peaceful... and sometimes I really do feel a sense of lifting off. It is very healing.

Five: Green Day. Oh how I love green day (otherwise known as Friday). My youngest child, my sweet little boy is home from Kindy on Fridays. We go to the zoo, the park, the beach, the pools, the library, Scitech. He puts his little hand in mine and we have the best time!! No shopping, no cleaning, no serious stuff, just fun fun fun. I love my time with him.

Six: Movies. I love a good movie. I used to feel bad 'wasting my time' watching a movie but now that I am postmo' I have allowed myself to embrace my deep love for escapism. I am a little picky.. no Horror or extreme violence. However, if the movie is depicting real events then I can handle the violence (e.g. Hotel Rwanda), when I know that someone actually had to bloody live through it then I can watch it. I just can't handle the movies that use violence for entertainment purposes. I love movies like say, the new Robin Hood that came out recently with Russell the Love Muscle. I love adventure, drama, comedy, documentary. Avatar was great. Also loved The Hurt Locker. Oh, and anything that has Tim Burton, Johnny Depp or Helena Bonham Carter involved in it.

Seven: Books. More escapism I suppose. All Jane Austen, Wuthering Heights, The Age of Innocence, Jane Eyre... and a surprise favourite, Elizabeth Gaskell's North and South. I just picked it up, having never heard of it and loved it. The book that got me back into my childhood love for reading, after some odd drought once I became a mother... was Girl With A Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier. I also love to read about ancient civilisations. I was lucky enough to be able to choose Ancient History as my major for my Arts Degree. Saw a great exhibition at our local museum the other night with artefacts from Pompeii.

Eight: Girl Talk. I learned soon after I became a mother that talking with other women was necessary to my survival. As attentive and caring as DH is there are some things that he just can't give me. I need women to talk with. Lucky for me I have 3 sisters!! and a darling daughter who loves to chat chat chat as much as I do. Sometimes I swear she has woken up mid-sentence! Me, I need a good 10 minutes in the morning before I feel human enough to talk. So, girls, plenty of long beach walks and hot chocolates with much associated chatter to keep our worlds in good working chaotic order eh! (notice commas aren't on my list of favourites!).

Nine: Nakedness. This is a little bit Xrated so, hmm. I like body on body. There is nothing like full naked body contact. (p.s. No. 3 and 4 tie in nicely with this, I enjoy the nakedness more when I feel good about my own body). I love feeling comfortable in my own skin again. No more G's, Jeeeeeeeeezzzzzzzzz!!!!!!!

Ten: Freedom and Honesty. In my 32nd year I finally freed myself from a sick and awful religion. I feel alive. I feel peaceful. I feel like I actually have some idea of who I am, after all those years of feeling like a robot. I get to wake up everyday with the knowledge that I truly am in control of my own life.

oops! I forgot to tag people.. so from what I have read the following people have not yet been tagged and so... TAG!

TGD

Reina

dcr

Alkaline Earth

Trent

Jeffrey

Louise H

Tracey

Liana

The Heartfelt Dawn

mack

Daniel

Carmen

Ben

Chocolate Addict (you know who I mean ;)

That's more than 10 but I didn't want to leave anyone out :)

Time for some pictures

I prescribe MORE FUN!!! Take at least 3 times a day.

Canaan has had excema on and off since he was born. We used the steroid creams prescribed by our GP which were successful in making the redness go away if used consistently... however the steroid creams themselves have side effects and I was never very happy nor comfortable about using them. We considered other factors in treating his excema. We tried changing his diet. We tried every available type of moisturiser, bath oil and non-soap cleanser. Then he kind of just grew out of it. By the time he started Kindy we only rarely had an outbreak of excema so we would just use the steroids again and get on with things.

6 months ago his excema flared up again and boy was it angry looking. We started using the steroid creams again but this time the excema just kept getting worse. Finally I took him to a Naturopath. They used iridology to assess that he was low in Zinc and that his gut was not functioning properly. So we bought a Zinc supplement and a probiotic. We stopped using the steroid creams. His excema seemed to get 'less angry' but it started to spread. It had started on the backs of his knees and the inner elbows. Now it was on his face and torso as well.

Next stop, my dad. When I was about 10 my dad had been given 2 months to live. He had cancer. He looked around and got into kinesiology. 20 years later he is a fit and healthy Grandad to 4 (nearly 5!) grand children. So I called him and he said to bring Canaan over straight after school. He used his skills in kinesiology to ask Canaan's body (or his body's 'computer') many questions. Dad said that the main cause for his excema was emotional. He asked more questions (not out loud, so Canaan didn't hear any of this, dad discussed it with me later) and discovered that Canaan was experiencing stress at home in his relationship with his mum and dad. Yep me and Toby. We were being too strict and Canaan needed more freedom. Wow.

Dad gave us an Iron supplement and a prescription for MORE FUN!

One week later and Canaan's excema has calmed down considerably. We are all very happy with these results as well as the special medicine that we decided to share with the whole family. MORE FUN!

For the Mormons who were worried that I would burn my garments on You-Tube!

"One of these things is not like the others,

One of these things just doesn't belong,
Can you tell which thing is not like the others
By the time I finish my song? "

(One of These Things [Is Not Like The Others], words and music by Joe Raposo and Jon Stone)

Is this just wrong? ...

I was throwing out some more Mormon bits and pieces that I still have lying around when I came across my temple clothing. The green, leafy skirt/apron was just too pretty for me to throw away.

Then I thought -

"Well the kids won't know what it is and it would make a great dress-up item. Of course the veil could come in very handy too and while we're at it those soft, white slippers are fairly 'normal' looking... and that plain white sash is very non-threatening. Hmmm, I think I'll draw the line at the pleated robe though.......... however it could make a great Halloween costume!"

(End Note: There is no need to tell me how sacred these clothes are to you. I lost my respect for all things temple long ago.)

... and Justice for All

When I started this blog I just wanted to vent about my feelings, my hurts. Maybe that is not enough. Mormons, please watch this trailer.

Here is the trailer to the movie '8:The Mormon Proposition' out in cinemas June 18.

watch this

then read this

The rising generation will not tolerate the homophobia, sexism, bigotry and hatred of the past. The youth of today will vote with their feet, turning their backs on falsehoods and institutions that maintain such inequality. The youth of today know that it is only when we see ourselves in the Other that we can actually realise our goals for equality.

Betrayal

Emma Smith and Eliza R. Snow were both 32 years of age when they became friends.

In 1835 Emma and Joseph invited Eliza to board with them while she taught a girls school. "Eliza was not fond of teaching school, but living in Emma's home offered a compensation: Eliza watched Joseph" (Mormon Enigma: Emma Hale Smith, Tippetts and Avery, p. 61).

On March 17, 1842 the Female Relief Society of Nauvoo was formed with Emma Smith as president. Emma chose Elizabeth Ann and Sarah Cleveland as her counselors and Eliza as secretary.

On 29 June 1842 Eliza R. Snow and Joseph were married in secret. At the time Eliza was living with Sarah Cleveland. Sarah's husband, John Cleveland, was living several blocks away. It seems likely that Sarah was also married to Joseph by this time.

"Sarah and Eliza knew that Emma regarded them with respect and affection. While women who became Joseph's wives were able to accept the principle of plural marriage as a revelation from God, they still had to grapple silently and alone with their betrayal of Emma. To live as a secret wife to a friend's husband demanded evasion, subterfuge, and deception. For these sincerely devout and faithful women, their duplicity regarding Emma must have prompted guilt and anxiety." (Mormon Enigma:Emma Hale Smith, Newell and Avery p. 120).

Emma worked tirelessly to promote the church, nurture the people and notably to combat accusations of polygamous practices within the church. All the while the members of this group of women, this 'Relief Society', continued to marry Emma's husband in secret.

Louisa Beaman married Joseph April 5, 1841

Agnes Coolbrith Smith married Joseph before June 1842 (she was the widow of Joseph's brother, Don Carlos).

Sarah Cleveland married Joseph in 1842 (this date is not certain but the marriage is)

Elizabeth Durfee married Joseph before June 1842 (this date is not certain but the marriage is)

(The above 2 women were older women who were sometimes referred to as "Mothers in Israel", their job was to teach the younger women the principles of plural marriage).

These women all served in the Relief Society 'supporting' Emma as president whilst married to her husband! As well as these women who were married to Joseph, there were others in the organisation who knew of the plural marriages but kept the secret from Emma.

Joseph addressed the Relief Society on May 26 1842 "There is another error which opens a door for the adversary to enter. As females posses refined feelings and sensitiveness, they are also subject to an overmuch zeal which must ever prove dangerous, and cause them to be rigid in capacity. [You] should be arm'd with mercy notwithstanding the iniquity among us.... Put a double watch over the tongue...[You] should chasten and reprove and keep it all in silence, not even mention them again... One request to the Prest. and society, that you search yourselves--the tongue is an unruly member--hold your tongues about things of no moment. A little tale will set the world on fire. At this time the truth on the guilty should not be told openly--strange as this may seem, yet this is policy. We must use precaution in bringing sinners to justice lest in exposing these heinous sins, we draw the indignation of a gentile world upon us (and to their imagination justly, too). It is necessary to hold an influence in the world and thus to spare ourselves an extermination" Joseph contradicted his previous charge that the women watch over the morals of the community. Emma was doing her job too well. " (Mormon Enigma: Emma Hale Smith, Tippetts and Avery, p.115).

Emma discovered Eliza's secret in early 1843. There is much folklore surrounding the discovery. Tales were told of Emma catching Joseph and Eliza in an embrace outside of his bedroom (Emma's room was on one side of Joseph's room, Eliza's was on the other!) and that Emma then flew into a fury and flung Eliza down the stairs. Some stories claim that Eliza was carrying Joseph's child at the time and miscarried as a result of the fall. Whatever the details it is certain that Emma would have been deeply hurt and shocked by the news.

Shame on the church for their treatment of Emma in their history. Shame on the church for their god-like portrayal of Joseph.

I know of members who believe that the practice of plural marriage was an awful, terrible mistake. They still choose to remain members of the church. They believe that Joseph made a mistake but that he was still a prophet who spoke to god and translated the Book of Mormon. I personally believe he was a complete fraud but my point here is that I hope that members of the church will at least look into the matter of plural marriage, not for my sake, god no, but for Emma and all of the women and men who suffered from the practice.