From Omaha to Buenos Aries:
"What If God Was One Of Us?"
Joan Osborne sings the song that hits a chord of truth. "What If God Was One Of Us?" It is the root question of Liberation Breathing®. What else would we be looking at when a person lays down and breathes their heart into our presence? It's worth a good listen.
Sondra and I traveled this summer to the Midwest, then to Florida, and ended up in Santiago, Chile, and Buenos Aries, Argentina. It took a lot of co-ordination and stamina, not just on our part, but on the part of the good people who worked months ahead to bring their communities to our seminars......and to the feet of a higher purpose in life. What If God Was one of US? And we actually saw that? We would probably have a whole new way of looking at the world and people we meet.
Sondra and Sandy at the OM Center in Omaha
The Midwest generally invokes images of corn fields, small towns with a Main Street and a High Street crossing in the center of town, and a bunch of folks at high school football games. Sandy Aquila has created an oasis of Eastern elements in her OM Center in Omaha, Nebraska. She hosted us in her Center for a day on relationships, as well as a series of private Liberation Breathing® Sessions. She also hosts Buddhist monks who have done the most incredible sand paintings and mandalas. But we were there to breath........simple. The attendance was small but potent. We would like to thank Trishna Horkan and David Bucksner and wife Heather for their kind support. Omaha is a small city, but the seeds of Liberation Breathing are planted for the future, and we look forward to going back.
We saw all over people are concerned with money in these times.....keeping their lifestyles intact.....the mortgage paid, the family fed, and their mental health stabilized to the degree they can relax. There is a lot of pressure out there. All the more reason to breath and remember our inner assets. Who can lose their own divinity? That is the status quo of it. What If God Was One of Us?
After Omaha we drove down to Kansas City to see my Mom and Sister and family. It was bittersweet. My Dad passed last summer and Mom is still adjusting to living alone. My Sister takes excellent care of her needs, looks in on her frequently and has her over for Sunday dinners in the midst of her busy life. We call her frequently on the road, but that is not a substitute for companionship. It is not easy for someone married sixty years to the same person to be living alone all of a sudden. What if God Was One of US? Every encounter would be HOLY.....and those with our Mothers one of the holiest.
After Kansas City we opened up the Chicago area. Kerry Leigh at the helm, supported by Dave Womack, Patrick and Kathryn Andries, all grouped together to produce an LRT. They put their hearts into it and brought together a nice group of people who were eager to look at themselves, and to be introduced to Liberation Breathing®. Much gratitude was in the air, and mostly gratitude we had for Kerry. She came for a Liberation Breathing® session with us in Nashville, Tennessee, and then decided immediately to organize an LRT in Chicago.
Kerry and Sondra at the Chicago LRT
One to One sharing at the Chicago LRT
It was Sondra's birthday while in Chicago, and Kerry took us into the city on that day to celebrate. We met an old friend of Sondra's, Randy Rubin, a native of the Chicago area, at the Drake Hotel for brunch. Afterward we went to the top of the Hancock Building to see the Chicago vista from a gazillion stories up in the sky. It was awesome to see the energy of mankind's urban endeavors. The Chicago skyline from a couple thousand feet up was breathtaking. These skyscrapers represent feats of engineering genius. But what about the most meaningful "project", to see everybody with the eyes of holiness? What If God Was One of Us? How would we look on that person?
Randy and Sondra at the Drake Hotel in Chicago
Florida was next. Miami/Ft.Lauderdale is our fastest growing center for Liberation Breathing® in the country.......mostly because of the diligent work of three people: Sula DePaula who opened up the community a few years back, and now Benicio Farina and Lori Reyes who have taken the reins. They manage very well to inspire the people to heal themselves with the power of their minds, hearts and BREATH. We are extremely beholding to these three. They have persevered with conviction, and built a center of community, co-operation, service to the people, and a high frequency of Peace and Joy. What can we say? Sula, Benicio, and Lori.....and all of the many other assistants and participants who made the LRT possible on a scale of grand proportions......we could wash your feet. What if God Was One of Us? I think we saw What could happen.
Benicio Farina and Mari Monge at Van Dyke's Cafe
In our joy at the Van Dyke
The LRT opened our vision. Indescribable beauty beyond what the body's eyes could see. People went deeply into themselves and let go of a lot of @^&*^%$W!*^....stuff. The building of joy was palpable. When it came to the end, the process where we acknowledge everyone with the red pin-on hearts felt like ecstasy. The delight in the people would lift the world at large to a higher LOVE.... What If God Was One Of US? We would pull in Heaven on Earth. Look at everyone and see God in their eyes. What better thing do you have to do with your life?
We behold you with eyes of LOVE, You radiant Being YOU!
We cannot thank the team of the Florida LRT enough. You are in Service to your highest Self, and to the true Self of others. We have a lot to learn from you and we mean that. Many thanks. You make this work we do to uplift ourselves and others possible. God Is One Of US.........in YOU. HUGS...and More Endless HUGS!!
Pure Love in our Florida Team
Benicio Farina is the first rebirther who has joined us in the Liberation Breathing® Body. He has conviction for the process, for his own enlightenment towards Service, and has impeccable intentions around organizing and bringing the community together. He and Lori Reyes offer a nine month program of breathwork and personal growth, which is a bedrock for their community. We are fortunate to have Benicio as the co-ordinator of Liberation Breathing® for Florida and beyond....What If God Was One Of Us? We think so in Benicio.
Sondra and B. at Miami International Airport...Get ready Africa!
We flew off to Santiago. They had an earthquake not long ago. It was our first time to Chile. The effects were noticeable in the Airport when we arrived...scaffolding and workers in many places making the repairs to the systems. We were tired from a long flight....and no matter how much planning we do, there is always an edge to arriving in a foreign country. Will the person lined up to pick us up be there, especially when it takes two hours to get through customs? Well, when it was Paula Estevez waiting for us, no worries. She is an open heart in a Chilean body...ready to embrace Sondra and me. What If God Was One Of Us? Well, there she was....with wide spread arms around us.
Paula and Sondra in the Brilliant Chilean Light
She and her husband, Juan Somavia, brought us to Chile to introduce Liberation Breathing® and the Divine Mother energy to the people. And the insights people need to raise the frequency of their relationships became the main focus of our work in Chile. Juan & Paula have a family of four, with two daughters to round out the "sacred family". We have to commend them for their commitment to breathwork in Chile. Paula, an environmental engineer, and Juan, a diplomatic ambassador for the Chilean wine industry, make up an inspiring couple on the way to their own ascension. What If God Was One Of US? You don't have to look far to find Him/Her.
Juan and the girls, Blanca and Amelia
The seminar was held in a beautiful yoga center, not far from their house. The clean and open nature of the space, and the brilliant light of southern skies, made for a fantastic setting. As in any foreign country, the translation is one of the most important elements of the work. We had and excellent lady to translate. She had lived in Hawaii for many years and was very much into the energy of service. What If God sent this woman to us to help us with the work? What if God Is One of US. Here she is with Sondra:
Sondra and our translator in meditation
Chilean people breathing at the yoga center
Liberation Breathing® in Chile brought the blanket of peace to the people we touched. There was an atmosphere of receptivity....that made our work there very enjoyable and effective. Our outreach to the people was made possible by Juan and Paula. Many thanks to them for their dedication, and hospitality they bestowed upon us while in their lovely home.
Buenos Aries was our last stop on the tour, but certainly not least. With the tango one of their national products, the atmosphere there is one of passion and intensity. We stayed with Eleanor Blydenstein and her family. Claudia Dorda (aka Ma Bavali) along with Ara Circo were our organizers. Marta Espezel translated beautifully...even though Sondra speaks some Spanish, it is always necessary to make sure the translations are accurate and precise. Marta did a superb job.
Sondra and Eleanor
Sondra and Ma Bavali at the seminar
The workshops went well, and the turnout was good. All throughout this tour, the many people who made it possible gave us reason for Extreme Gratitude. Our hearts were opened more and more by their giving nature....which is the real Law of our Creator. If God Is One Of Us, God is in each and everyone of us; it was proven over and over again in all of our encounters, from OMAHA to BUENOS ARIES. Thank YOU to ALL !! And we give thanks to our employers, Babaji and the Divine Mother for making this tour one of continuous Holy Encounters. "What If God Was One Of Us?"...thank you to Joan Osborne.
Much Love, Mark & Sondra
