JUNE NEWLETTER

Dear Readers,

In the pagan wheel of the year the summer solstice is the time of Litha, which commonly falls on the 20th of June.

As the air around us is heating up, so is Merlian News!

This Month’s Recommended Merlian News Articles:

Podcasts: Life Experiences Merlian News Podcasts with Nancy Mehagian

In this podcast, Nancy Mehagian talks with Merryn Jose about being raised in an Armenian family and how it influenced her life and cooking. Her spiritual quest through the ’60’s & early ’70’s led her to travel the world. On the island of Ibiza in Spain, she opened the first vegetarian health food restaurant. Through a series of later mishaps she was incarcerated in a London prison, along with her newborn baby. Coming full circle Nancy eventually returned home where she discovered her life’s work as a Jin Shin Jyutsu practitioner, under the master Mary Burmeister. Nancy Mehagian is the author of Siren’s Feast — An Edible Odyssey, a culinary memoir. A native of Phoenix, Arizona, she attended USC and graduated with a degree in English Literature from Arizona State University.

Podcasts: Spirituality Merlian News Podcasts with Annamaria Hemingway In this podcast, Annamaria Hemingway speaks with Merryn Jose about her book, the different views of death, what we can learn from it, Near Death Experiences (NDE’s), after death communications, conscious living and dying, and more! Annamaria Hemingway MA (ABD)is the author of Practicing Conscious Living and Dying, published by O Books. Annamaria is also a spiritual counselor and member of The International Association for Near-Death Studies.

Mediumship The Life of Ronald Hearn by Donna Baker Church Ronald Hearn is one of Britain’s best known clairvoyants and trance mediums. A descendant of British royalty, including Alfred the Great and William the Conqueror, Hearn discovered his psychic talents in the early 1950’s. His communications with discarnate spirits are transmitted through tape recordings, a technique he pioneered. These sittings are often lengthy, detailed, and amazingly accurate. In the 1990’s, Hearn authored The Little Dutch Boy, an account of one of his most detailed cases involving communications from a deceased 10-year-old boy from the Netherlands. His latest book, the Little Boy that Listened: Portrait of a Medium is a biography of Arthur Molinary, one of Britain’s foremost psychics. Hearn is currently writing his own autobiography.

Environmental Awareness Please Don’t Top Trees! by Molly Rice It is a given and well known fact that trees are vital to our world’s survival. Trees produce oxygen which all humans require to live; trees cleanse and purify the air we breathe. There is a growing concern for the de-foresting of many third world countries. Yet every year Joe Homeowner and Martha General Public continue to “top” trees in their very own back yards. The continued practice of “topping trees”, which is also known as; “heading cuts”, “hat-racking”, and “rounding over”, is only a death sentence for trees. I have had many conversations with fellow Arborists who remark the owner of the tree wants the tree topped. WHY?

Environmental Awareness Emeril Lagasse Joins Planet Green Team with “Emeril Green” by Collin Dunn Celebrity chefEmeril Lagasse is coming to Planet Green for a new original series entitled Emeril Green, which will be shot on location at Whole Foods Market. Planet Green, Discovery Communications’ new 24/7 eco-lifestyle television network, is set to launch in June 2008 with a full slate of original series and specials premiering throughout the summer. “I try a little harder every day to think greener and be respectful of our environment and our resources. On Emeril Green we’ll unearth how easy and fun it is to cook with what’s fresh, tasty and in-season and find smart ways to make each day a little greener for you and your family.” — Emeril

Animal World The Circus Is No Place For Animals! by Dena Ventrudo

Elephants, whether privately owned or owned by a circus, are trained with bullhooks. Bullhooks, pictured to the right, are sticks with what is essentially, a meat hook at the end. This hook is sunk into the elephants’ skin during training over and over again, causing them great amounts of pain and suffering. “Sink that hook into ‘em…when you hear that screaming, then you know you got their attention!”- Tim Frisco (Ringling Bro.’s Trainer) We applaud trapeze artists, jugglers, clowns, tightrope walkers, and acrobats, but let’s leave animals in peace. Sweden, Austria, Costa Rica, India, Finland, and Singapore have all banned or restricted the use of animals in entertainment– it’s time for the U.S. to do the same. For stories of hope please visit Merlian News’ Website Of The Month: The Elephant Sanctuary, below.

Spirituality Vatican Says Aliens Could Exist by David Willey BBC News, Rome

“Writing in the Vatican newspaper, the astronomer, Father Gabriel Funes, said intelligent beings created by God could exist in outer space. Father Funes, director of the Vatican Observatory near Rome, is a respected scientist who collaborates with universities around the world. The search for forms of extraterrestrial life, he says, does not contradict belief in God.”

Music Energy Journeys & A Healing Journey by Gene Krackehl Energy Journeys is a guided visualizationC.D. with six wonderful tracks totaling 63 minutes of healing sound. This C.D. is absolutely worth investing time into! A Healing Journey: Words, Music, & Sounds to Help You to Heal is anothergreat C.D.! Krackehl uses a “unique combination of instruments, specific sounds, keys and notes that correspond to the chakra system and auric fields that surround the body.” When these are clogged, “they impede on the body’s immune system.” Leave stress and despair behind and find relief, joy and hope!

Books The Emotional Lives of Animals by Marc Bekoff Any dog owner knows that her own pet has feelings, but what evidence exists beyond the anecdotal and what does this evidence teach us? Bekoff, professor emeritus of biology at the University of Colorado, pores through decades of animal research-behavioral, neurochemical, psychological and environmental- to answer that question, compelling readers to accept both the existence and significance of animal emotions. Demonstrating the far-reaching implications for readers’ relationships with any number of living beings, Bekoff’s book is profound, thought-provoking and even touching.

Books

Spirit Heals: Core Teachings & Practices (CD) by Meredith Young-Sowers In today’s busy and distracting world, women often loose themselves in attempts to be all things to all people – the husband/partner, the kids, the boss, the church, the aging parents, the volunteer groups…the list goes on and on. This tendency to care for others first and foremost often times causes women to ignore their own healthcare needs….

Merlian News’ Website Of The Month: www.elephants.com

The Elephant Sanctuary rescues elephants from circuses. In 2005-2006, they began to rescue a number of elephants from the Hawthorn Corporation. They successfully rescued 9 elephants. To meet the elephants at the sanctuary and read their bio’s, click here .

The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee, founded in 1995, is the nation’s largest natural habitat refuge developed specifically for endangered African and Asian elephants. It operates on 2,700 acres in Hohenwald, Tennessee.

The Elephant Sanctuary exists for two reasons: To provide a haven for old, sick or needy elephants in a setting of green pastures, old-growth forests, spring-fed ponds and a heated barn for cold winter nights.

To provide education about the crisis facing these social, sensitive, passionately intense, playful, complex, exceedingly intelligent and endangered creatures.

You can read articles about some of the rescued elephants in the Merlian News category Animal World .

Thank you once more, for your positive feed back and support!

Merryn & Team

Merryn Jose – Editor & Publisher

Dena Ventrudo- Assistant Editor

Donna Baker Church- Book Reviewer

Eugene Kelly- Book Reviewer

Cheryl Shainmark- Book Reviewer

Carl Casella – Sound Editor

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