Who and What Are You Attracting?

Can I talk to friends for a moment? I need to talk, maybe cry on your shoulders. I am not sure. I am sure I need and want to talk.

I dealt with some disappointments recently. I disappointed a friend. I made a commitment I couldn’t keep. I was responsible and accounted for my behavior.

Second, I worked with a group of women recently in a project. I get on well with women, but not this time. This experience didn’t end well. I was angry possibly because I didn’t get my way.

Third, recently Bonnie and I traveled for a weekend in Paradise when we heard an interview on NPR with legendary college basketball coach John Wooten. Coach Wooten’s teams won 10 NCAA Basketball championships. That’s more than any other.

When asked when his team started winning, he replied, “When we started winning”. The interviewer asked what changed to turn your program into a winning one.

Coach Wooten’s responded he continued to train his players as hard as he had when training facilities and funding were inadequate. When they won their first championship better players came to UCLA. The more they won the better players they attracted.

The light bulb came on. I took a moment to ask myself, “Oscar, who and what are you attracting?”

Fourth, when we arrived in paradise, we met a woman who owns hotels in Florida. She’s from Norway. We share a birthday March 27th. We talked. She told me she grew up near the beach.

Whenever she had an emotional issue to deal with, she went to the beach and wrote it in the sand and waited for the tide to wash it away. When the tide washed it away, she believed her issue had been resolved.

A second light comes on later when I see “The Secret”. I learned about the law of attraction and asked myself again, “Oscar, who and what are you attracting”?

I immediately put the law to work for me. In the three weeks to follow, I was invited for three speaking engagements. An interview went public on the web. People offer to help raise money for film projects.

I attract beautiful people who are blessing my life and work. My friend forgave me for disappointing her. Thanks for listening. I needed to talk. I appreciate you!

Who and what are you attracting?

Living Life Through The Pain of Love

Don't hold to anger, hurt or pain. They steal your energy and keep you from love.”

Anonymous

How long does it take to get over abuse? Should a person be over the affects of abuse in a month, a year, a lifetime? What about an entire culture? How long should it take a culture to get over abuse?

How long should it take a woman to get over the experience of incest, rape, or domestic violence? How long should it take a child to get over the violence of adults who didn’t know how to love? Why do people who are supposed to love and care cause so much pain?

Bonnie St. John reports of a woman whose father used her for sex until she was 15. When he stopped, she wondered what she did wrong. How long should it take for her to get herself together and no longer be affected by what happened?

How long should it take men and women who fight in wars to get over the affects and horrors of war; a month, a year, a lifetime? How long does it take to get over abuse?

Ancestors of African Americans were forced to serve as sex slaves, field slaves, and domestic slaves for more than 240 years prior to the Emancipation Proclamation of January 1, 1863 by the 16th President of The United States, Abraham Lincoln. Another 100 years would pass before legislation would affect civil rights for African Americans. Some ask African Americans, “Can’t you just get over it?”

Are you living life through the pain of love right now? Are you tired of carrying the weight of your pain and not being able to get it out so you can work on getting help? How long do you intend to suffer through the pain of love working very hard to keep secret the abuses of a lifetime hoping no one will ever find out? If you are one struggling hard to keep your primary personal pain a secret, it is time to stop and take a page out of the 12 Step Programs Big Book.

People working recovery systems know for them to get well, it is necessary to talk out secrets and self destructive behavior, come clean and turn the light on to opportunity to work on getting better. There’s hope. You can get better.

Get All The Love You Want

Get All The Love You Want When You Give Away The Love You Need.

“O”



How many people do you know that say they are looking for love? How many people do you know who wouldn’t know love if love nibbled at their ear, kissed them on the cheek and whispered, “I heard you’re looking for me?”

It seems like most of us most of the time have the desire for the fix or the fulfillment of our idea of love. My hopes are that your relationships make your heart, soul, mind, and body sing so much that your aura screams, “YES!” and you want to bust out with a giggle or a loud laugh for how good you got it. Feels good; no it’s ecstatic, isn’t it? This is love at one of its highest spiritually sexual and sexually spiritual moments. This love is good and is so much more.

Here’s a strategy gifted to you that will dramatically enhance your love life. All of us want the good stuff. A lot of us have discovered when we got to the good stuff too fast; the good stuff did not last. This strategy gifted to you will make getting to the good stuff a sweeter process that gets better.

Whatever it is of love that you need most, not want most, find a way to give it away. Giving always produces results just like planting seed. Giving away what you need is like sowing seeds to grow a flower garden.

When you want to experience love and beauty, then you must create experiences of love and beauty and give them away for many others to experience. When you have done this, the process will have been engaged. Don’t stop when you start giving. Keep on giving. The more you give away the love in your heart, the more you grow a garden of beauty, a garden of love; just like the patch of Earth you give the seed to will later give you a patch of Earth covered in beautiful flowers.

Since what you sow grows and what you give away grows, plant what you want to grow. You want to grow love, plant seeds of love by giving away most what you need and want for yourself.

When you have developed this loving, giving, and planting spirit; you will have become the lover, the one to be desired and pursued. Now, you have a new set of opportunities. You have choice.

A Life Saving Procedure

My 73 year old mother had colon cancer. A portion of her colon was removed last year. I’m thankful my mother is doing well and living her full life.

My mom encouraged me to have the colonoscopy procedure. I am 50, black, and need to minimize my health risks.

OK. I describe the experience palatably. Tuesday, January 29, 2008 was the day to clean my colon by eating no food, taking four tablets at 9 AM of an initial cleansing agent, and drinking a gallon of clear liquid for two hours. I now love beef bouillon.

At 2 PM, I engage the second round of cleansing agent. I drink a gallon of salty tasting liquid, 8 ounce portions every 15 minutes until it’s gone. By this time, I am a frequent flyer to a certain household location.

Today, Wednesday, January 30, 2008, was the day. I experienced some anxiety about this. I arrived on time, got undressed, gowned, robed, and sat with a group of men lined up like airliners on a tarmac waiting for their turn to take off.

The next phase is prep. I get stuck for an IV. The first one missed and had to call a back up. Then they wheel me to the door by the room the procedure will take place.

All of you who are getting to know me realize I have a deep love, respect and appreciation for women. So, why does this little fine woman step up to my bed and say, “Mr. Crawford, my name is Dr. Matthews. I will be doing your procedure today.”

Hoover Dam!

I was rolled in and positioned and given the joy juice shot. I told the team working with her I had a silly question I wanted to raise when the procedure is complete. They wanted me to ask then. I needed to wait.

Then the little that little pretty woman put twelve feet of hose with a camera on the end into my body. I watched the camera feed. I have a clean colon with no polyps.

When it was over, I asked, “Do gay men tolerate this procedure better than straight men?” I wasn’t joking. I really wanted to know.

Bottom Line, encourage the people in your life 50 and older to have this life saving procedure. I got it done. I’m thankful for the positive report and so is my family.

Keep Up the Love!

Oscar Crawford

Hope For and Dream For

Presidential Candidate Barack Obama’s platform for change is premised upon the idea of hope. What is hope?

Hope is wishing for something with expectation of its fulfillment. Rev. Jesse Jackson, former presidential candidate continues to preach, “Keep Hope Alive!”

I believe I saw hope alive yesterday while in Tuscon, Arizona. My wife and I attended worship with friends at the Midvale Park Seventh – Day Adventist Church.

Pastor Ronald Yabut, a Filipino American preached from biblical texts and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s speech, I Have a Dream. His presentation was passionate. He appealed to people to embody the attributes of love, good character, and service. He echoed the words of Dr. King, “I Have a Dream”.

As I looked around the congregation, it was 21st Century America, a microcosm of Earth’s global community. Whites were present in an apparently shrinking majority partnered with men and women from other cultural groups in marriage and congregational life.

Cross cultural marriages in many contexts were present. A meal was shared at the conclusion of worship the minister and his family were present for.

A primary initiative of Crawford and Dienst is to bring people together who might never otherwise have opportunity to meet. We assert ourselves as the prompt. For years, we have celebrated birthdays inviting people who are different by color, culture, class, or condition. On this Sabbath, there was not work for us. We were the invited ones.

Hope is alive at Midvale Park without the prompts of political movements and so is the dream of MLK. Remember to Keep Hope Alive and the Dream.

Hope for and dream for the time when people will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. Hope for and dream for the time when America will be an oasis for freedom and for justice. Hope for and dream for the time when we will live out the American idea that all are created equal and endowed by the Creator with certain inalienable rights and among these; life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Each of us and all of us can make a difference. We can help make this dream a reality everyday, one day at a time.

Keep up The Love Everybody. When you’re in Tuscon on Saturday, bless yourself and visit with the great people at the Midvale Park Seventh – Day Adventist Church.

“O”

Give Thanks for Unanswered Prayers

Garth Brooks sings a song called Unanswered Prayers when he remembers a woman he loved and wanted when he was in high school so bad he hurt inside. Years later, he saw her and was thankful his prayers had gone unanswered. His fantasy was gone.

Earlier today, I thought of others like you and me, I am sure are thankful things didn’t go their way. First, Emily (not her real name) was on her way to Guyana to join family members of The People’s Temple. Running late, she missed her plane. Disgusted and disappointed, news arrived to Emily that members of the People’s Temple in Jonestown Guyana had all participated in a mass suicide. Emily was thankful for unanswered prayers.

Second, Jerry (not his real name) was at war in Vietnam. One morning before sunrise while sleeping in a bunker with his unit, Jerry heard his wife’s voice say, “Get up and go outside.”

He got up and walked out. As soon as he cleared the bunker, a bomb hit it and killed everybody inside. He fell to his knees and later put in a call to his wife to let her know he was OK.

Another time, Jerry’s on a helicopter mission with his team. He hears his wife’s voice say, “Lean Forward.” As he leans forward, the soldier next to him is hit. Later, Jerry falls to his knees and then calls his wife.

After Vietnam, Jerry continues his federal government service. On April 19, 1995, Jerry wakes up a bit frustrated with his wife because he has over slept. All she could say was she believed she should let him sleep a little longer that morning. Jerry gets up, gets dressed, and gets on his way to work still frustrated because he will be late.

One block from work Jerry hears an explosion. The ground shakes. The Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City has been bombed. Jerry immediately returns home to hold his wife.

Today, I invite you to join me in taking time to give thanks for unanswered prayers and not getting the many things we wanted that were not in our. I am thankful for you and the privilege to connect with you this way. You are loved and very much appreciated.

Live Well and Love Well My Beautiful Friends and Loved Ones Like You Are Running Out Of Time. You Really Are.

LOVE HAPPENS!!! This Time Angelica Antonio!

Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.
Heb 13:2


7:00 AM The conference would convene in Tokyo in less than 36 hours, many of which I would lose through the time zones. It was snowing in New York. My plane out of Ohio had been delayed. Flights in to JFK had been suspended. It was going to be a very long day.

11:00 AM JFK is open. I board the plane in Ohio at exactly the time my connecting flight was departing for Juneau, Alaska and on to Seoul, South Korea.

It was noon when I arrived in The Big Apple. Since I missed my original flight, I had twelve hours on my hands to see New York.

I bussed, trained, and dif the subway all over the city. I’d been on subways in Athens, Greece before, but it was nothing like the subway in New York. Every representative of humanity was there. I was pleased Mother Nature had a plan in mind of her own for me that day.

I saw the city from JFK to Brooklyn, Times Square to Statue of Liberty. I stood where what is now Ground Zero in New York. I had stood between the World Trade Center buildings at ground level looking up.

I have heard it said that ancient Hebrews said God was a mountain with a cloud at the top. Some of God can be seen. Some of God can never be seen. That’s what it felt like. It had been overcast and I could not see to the top of the buildings.

Just before 1 AM, a Korean Air Lines 747 with hundreds on board departed JFK. I was seated on the aisle. Seated in the row with me were a Korean businessman and a nurse on her way to the Philippines.

It was late. There was much on my mind about my coming experience in Japan and Korea. I intended to sleep to avoid thinking about it. As I closed my eyes, I heard a voice.

“Excuse me”, it said.

My eyes were closed. I did not respond. Whoever it was could not want my attention.

Then, I felt a touch. I opened my eyes.

The nurse wants to talk. I am tired and not particularly impressed.

Her name is Anjelica Antonio. She is so persistent, the man between us insists one of us change seats with him so he can sleep.

For the next five hours, she talks. When she tires, she slips her arm inside mine, looks up at me with beautiful sleepy eyes, yawns, finds a comfortable position for her head against me and proceeds to go to sleep.

I couldn’t sleep. Besides the conference waiting for me in Tokyo, I now have another spin going on in my head.

3:30 AM Pacific Standard Time

We land in Alaska. Everybody must get off the plane. It will be refueled and cleaned. There are two hours to reboarding. I am sure what has been an interesting moment will have concluded.

I get off the plane and go about my business. In the line at the food court, there is a tug at my elbow. If I weren’t so preoccupied with the reason I am traveling, I could enjoy this, and it occurs to me I may have no choice.

I am a Minister of the Gospel by calling. I am on my way to Japan to meet with more than 1,000 ministers to study the Church in Japan and Korea.

I realized more may have happened from New York to Alaska than I thought when it dawned upon me that God might be answering my prayer. I had prayed for God to send a wife. I also wanted her to be a nurse.

From Alaska to Tokyo, I spent little time thinking about the 747 just like this one that had been shot down just a week before by Russian MIG fighter jets. By the time we landed in Tokyo, I did not look forward to saying goodbye to Anjelica.

We had a couple of hours together in Tokyo before she had to leave to Manila. When it was time for her to go, it was emotional. In sync, our lips reached for each other’s. I leaned over as she reached up and a moment of shared love was eternally sealed.

I watched her walk away. I felt sad as if a part of myself was going with her. Part of me wished all of me was.

Love is its own power. It appears at times and in places unannounced. The wise will be ready.

The Hebrew text is powerful. Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels (Anjelicas) unawares.

Father: Bless your children to always be wise and always be ready for love. Amen