Music In The Hands Of Heroes

I rarely endorse websites or organizations. There is such a plethora out here and things are confusing enough to the average web surfer. I much prefer keeping it simple and clean. But this organization has touched my heart, my spirit and my life. I will tell you how but first feel compelled to explain why.

The veterans of the Viet Nam War have often been described as “forgotten” but that is not an accurate statement. Let me see if I can up with a few others that are more accurate and historically acute. We weren’t forgotten. We were scorned, swept under the carpet, ignored, hated, feared, belittled, shamed, blamed, misrepresented, mislabeled as baby killers, targeted with the feces of protesters, shunned by family and former friends, abandoned by our government, and locked out of the very society we had served. Starting to get the picture? No, we were not forgotten. We are still very much in the minds of American society like a horrible jingle that lingers in their minds, like a bad dream they would like to forget but cannot. We will not let them.

Many of us survived the war only to fall in the firefight we walked into when we came home. It as an ambush of immense proportions. No one bothered to ask us our impressions other than to use it against us. “What was it like?” was the most dreaded question because, as soon as we began to answer it, we could see the looks on their faces before they walked away forever. “How many did you kill?” was another. We learned to shut up, shut down and shut in. We were, after all, proven survivors. But many were lost after the war to illnesses, some caused by Agent Orange. Others fell to the toxic spell of mind-numbing drugs and alcohol. Many were homeless, jobless, living on the outermost fringes of society. There was no where to go and no one to whim we could reach out for the help we now so desperately needed.

Some chose isolation. My best buddy from the war went up into the mountains of North Carolina and lived as a hermit for eight years before I coaxed him gently back into society. Others banded together, brothers in arms, to face this new threat, depending upon one another, knowing we could not depend nor trust anyone who hadn’t been there. Still others got on with their lives and somehow escaped the clutches that the experience of war imposes upon the most gentle and the most stalwart warriors.

Regardless of all our diverse reactions and subsequent behaviors, we all shared one thing in common. The war was a polarizing event that defined who we were and who we would become. For so many Viet Nam Vets, heroism did not end when they walked off the battlefield and boarded that big silver bird taking us home. We faced new battles for which we hadn’t been properly prepared and trained. It is a tribute to our courage and adaptability that so many of us survived this new front.

Then there are those who are still shining stars, for whom no adequate or appropriate decoration has yet been designed. The people at Guitars For Vets are such people. They are my heroes. I only learned about them recently via a spot on FOX News. Though I didn’t realize it at the time, a mind seed had been planted by that pot that would change my life. This is their story, as described on their home page:

In May of 2007 Patrick Nettesheim was teaching Dan Van Buskirk his guitar lesson when they started chatting about how much playing the guitar has helped Dan manage his Vietnam born PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). Dan felt that it gave him focus and a great sense of happiness. They speculated that other Vets with PTSD might benefit from this meditation in motion.

Great idea! It was then that Pat told Dan a story about an entire song that he had recently composed while lying down with his eyes closed. The relevance of this was, that even injured Vets who could not sit up, might learn how to play the guitar and find joy in it. Dan then said something to the order of “It would be really powerful if we could get some guitars for these men and women.” And then Pat simply countered with, “Why don’t we start an organization called Guitars for Vets? Its the healing power of music in the hands of heroes.” They did.

After watching the spot on Fox, I found their website and was intrigued enough to send them an e-mail thanking them for their service and mission. I was really touched! I also enclosed a poem I had written in Viet Nam and put to music. It is:

The Little Flower

A little flower growing beside

A human road that had long since died

Had a picture in her mind

Of a dark, and frightening

Hour.

(For what good are words

To a flower?)

Another flower, this one’s mother,

She had to be for there was no other

Living in this

Vicinity,

Was crushed beneath advancing boots

Of human animals trying to shoot

That which they called

the enemy.

Her mother, wilting as she bled,

Heard no cries. No one said

Anything.

They just tended their own

And left this little flower

Crying all alone.

Bill Gould, Viet Nam, 1968

I really didn’t expect a response. I was just expressing my gratitude. However, Dan contacted me and asked if they could post my poem on their website and informed me they were sending me a guitar! I was blown away! I have been an avid musician since the tender age of 14 but have not played for the past ten years when I lost all my guitars and recording equipment in an unfortunate disaster. It also came at a time when I had just decided to return to America after a ten-year absence. It was another brother Vet reaching out half-way around the world and shouting, “Welcome home, brother!” I wept and am not ashamed to admit it.

Since that first e-mail, Dan and I have begun to develop a friendship and that entirely opened new possibilities for me that I had never considered before. Previously, I had no idea what I was going to do upon my return. Now I know.

If only the Viet Nam War had produced the last generation of war vets, but such is not the case. The war in Iraq has brought us an entirely new generation of warriors, men and women, returning home after experiencing the worst of humanity’s endeavors. While the implements of war may have advanced, it is still the human mind, heart and soul that pulls the trigger. War is an indiscriminate assailant of all the senses. The effects are long-lasting and life-transforming.

The people at Guitars For Vets understand. They are reaching out and helping these returning Vets and providing them with the means to share what they have experienced in the most open and accepted forum possible, music. I intend to find a way to use my talents, experience and knowledge to somehow expand their work though I do not yet know how. Albert Einstein said, “I would like to know God’s thoughts; the rest is details.” I will find a way.

I want to thank Dan for reaching across the miles and years and welcoming this old Vet home. I urge everyone to support these people and their work. They are doing what we should all be doing. They are walking the walk while so many others are just talking the talk.

Finally, one last thought: Every single veteran has served you, taken your place on the battlefield to protect your way of life and your freedom, as well as that of others. We owe them all a great deal. Time to start paying that debt with action. Do not let this new generation of Vets suffer what we did, please. Show your support and gratitude with actions, not words. Go to this website and contribute whatever you can. If you have an old guitar sitting around gathering dust, send it to them. If you have a few dollars and are wondering what to do with it (highly unlikely in view of the current situation) send it to them. At the very least, rally around them and send them e-mails of support and inspiration. To find their site (until I can figure out how to establish a direct link, just go to Google search and type in Guitars For Vets.) That will get you there.

Thank you, Dan, for opening my heart, mind and eyes. Thank you for gently touching my spirit and guiding me onto the path I know I will now follow. Walk that path with us and prepare for an incredible adventure!

The Iconoclastic Thinker

Tonight, I was corresponding in real time with a friend back in the States. We have known each other for several years and she wrote and told me she felt like an “outcast”. Now, I know this lady well. Our e-mails number in the hundreds, if not the thousands over the years. She came to Thailand to study with me for a five day Master Thinker program. She is a doctor who lost her practice, her spouse, house and all her worldly belongings because she stood up for people. She took on the entire health care system single-handedly and was a whistle blower. They sought to destroy her but couldn’t ever diminish her spirit. She has been a source of inspiration for me since before I met her. They even made a movie about her but it only served to make her more of a target. She is an iconoclastic thinker. I will not use her name in this article because she has been targeted enough.

I immediately wrote her back the first thing that came to my mind. “The iconoclastic thinker is always an outcast. I use the stones that others throw at me for batting practice. It improves my focus, aim, accuracy and distance.”

Most great leaders in virtually every field are iconoclastic thinkers. Most managers are not. Most managers urge their people to “think outside the box!” What they don’t tell then is, “Don’t think outside mine!” For the iconoclastic leader, there are no boxes. They simply do not exist. A few examples? Martin Luther King, Mahatma Gandhi, Mother Theresa, Jesus Christ, the Buddha, Copernicus, Albert Einstein, Steve Jobs and many, many more. We are surrounded by them but, instead of listening to them, we are usually the ones casting stones.

Iconoclastic thinking is not just the domain of leaders and here is where it gets really interesting. An iconoclastic thinker is anyone who thinks upstream while everyone else around him or her is relaxing on their inner tubes of perception and idly floating downstream. They can be a teacher, a parent, a friend, an enemy or even the smallest child.

Have you ever felt like the odd-person-out? Welcome to the world of iconoclastic thinking! Understand, it is not about being right or wrong, but about thinking differently. You can place your own values on your thinking (and you will) but know that others are just as ready to place theirs upon it, too (and they will). Expect others to think differently from you and the stones they toss do not hurt nearly as much.

I cannot think of a single iconoclastic thinker who lived his or her life without pain, attack and opposition. We all, at different points, ask ourselves, “Is it worth it?” The resounding answer is, “Yes!” Sure, we have our moments of doubt. One of the signs of a real iconoclast is a constant challenging of our own beliefs. Another is unflinching flexibility as situations and circumstances evolve. Still another is the ability to act according to those beliefs despite the fear of the unknown that inevitably accompanies them. That is the essence of courage and commitment. That is the makeup of the iconoclastic thinker. Do you qualify? If not, why not?

Keep in mind that the iconoclastic thinker does not always go against the tide. Great iconoclastic leaders have a way of coalescing what other believe or want to believe and lead the way to change and evolution. There was a great experiment conducted in Japan that is know as the “100 Monkeys Experiment”. It involved a troupe of monkeys being relocated on an island with only a supply of yams (sweet potatoes) to eat, something that was outside their normal diet. One day, a female monkey from the troupe, picked up a yam, went into the sea, washed it and began eating it. Soon, all of the troupe was doing the same thing and they all survived as a result.

The fact is that we are all potentially iconoclastic thinkers. We all have ideas and thoughts that run contrary to the winds of current thinking. I suspect that passion is what divides the iconoclast from the masses. What is your purpose in life? Are you willing and able to pursue it with a passion that is unfettered and undeterred? Are you willing and able to take the hits from others? If so, welcome to the world of the iconoclastic thinker. Get off your butt and get out there and involve and include others. It doesn’t matter what the area of human endeavor is involved.

Artists, musicians, poets and dancers, are all iconoclastic thinkers when they break out of the mold and take their art in a new direction and to a new level. The same is true for business people, politicians and theologians. When I was 11 years old, I remember one older kid who came up with a system that revised how we packed groceries at the store in which I worked that increased customer service and raised our level of tips. I still consider him a genius, an iconoclastic thinker. Management was totally opposed to the change but he convinced us all to try it just on one shift and management could not deny the results. I was so inspired that I decided to apply what he had taught us to my newspaper route and the result was that I doubled it within two weeks! Iconoclastic thinking can be contagious to the point of becoming mainstream.

Find your purpose and pursue it with passion. Be brave enough to think differently and have the courage to follow the dictates of your heart, mind and spirit. Live what you preach. Walk the walk. Dare to be different!

Revisiting The Past With Today’s Perceptions

We all have past experiences we would rather forget and have derived many ways of doing so. Some seek psychiatric help. Others “blank” such experience out. Still others “reshape the original” reality into something more palatable and less painful. The most common approach we have been taught is to “learn” from the experience, let it go and move on. I think I have tried them all. Much of my childhood and months of my Viet Nam combat experience is blank. Both contained very painful experiences I strived to forget. A few years ago, I decided to try something different.

The human mind is “wired” to forget pain. A few years ago, I had a very serious motorcycle accident and nearly died. I can recall the incident in minute detail . . . except for the pain. Sure, I am aware there was intense pain but that realization is not nearly as clear as the other details, which are still as clear as crystal.

The fact is that every experience, good or bad, contains lessons. For example, from my motorcycle accident, I certainly learned the benefit of wearing a helmet! The question is, why would we want to revisit them? Ah! This is one of the keys I have discovered through Transformational Thinking to expanding awareness, and this is what I want to share with you in this article.

Usually, when we revisit (remember) an experience, we tend to do so with our perception of that time, like an old tape replaying. A few years ago, I began to wonder what it would it would be like if I revisited past experiences, good or bad, with today’s perception and began to do so with incredible results. In fact, I am beginning to understand that this is the key to the door leading from knowledge and experience to wisdom.

We are able to “see” details that were always there but that we were simply unable to focus upon at the time because of our mind focusing only on those factors centered upon survival or pleasure. In other words, we are able to expand our consciousness of the event when we look at it with our current perception.

The first thing to consider is that, no matter how painful the experience was, it is over. We are impervious to further pain! That takes care of the fear factor, often a difficult barrier to get through. Once past that, we can now look around and “notice” all the other things that were happening at the time and such an experience has always been rewarding for me ever since I began applying this technique. It is, I suppose, very similar to what some describe as an out-of body or near-death experience. Through emotional non-attachment, we can find much to learn from the original experience we may have missed on the first time through.

Many claim that we should focus on the future rather than the past. I disagree for a good reason. In order to create a better future, we must understand the present and, in order to do that, we need to know how we got here from there. We need to develop our minds to clearly focus on all three: the past, present and future, in order to become more adaptable and successful. It is only through this expansion of awareness that we can grow.

Let me put it into perspective. I lived much of my life with anger and that limited my ability to expand my perception. Every time I revisited an “bad” experience of the past, I did so with that anger. Later on in life, I was able to remove that element of anger but it was a while before I decided to revisit those events or experiences. When I did, I had a totally different outlook! I was also able to learn so much more that I had missed during the original happening.

Although this may be a difficult concept for some, consider the following: As I revisit an old experience with new perception, I change the original event because I change the actual experience (or at least my perception of it). Now, I proceed to the next event with that changed perception and the result is equally or more so different. We are talking about expanding one’s life experience here and nothing less. Think about what that means!

That is precisely what I have done and, the more I do it, the greater the parameters of my perception expands. Every revisit is more expanding. It is a spiraling cycle achieved with nothing more than the mind. It is something we are all capable of doing.

If you really want to improve your life, this is a great starting point. Can we really change the past? No, but we can change or expand our perception of it. You have that power right now. Start right now. Pick an experience and relive it, not with the intention of re-experiencing what you did then, but with what you know now. Look at it with the purpose of discovering all the learning points you lay have missed the first time through. Do so without fear or anger, but with love and a desire to learn more. You will be amazed at the results.

The past, present and future are all interconnected. They are not the linear journey we have all been taught to accept. Learning is not a one-time event. Not if you learn ow to revisit the path with your current perception to create a better future and realize that will be a different experience every time you do. It will change you current perception and the cycle simply continues to expand into true awareness and wisdom.

Fond Memories

I will soon be leaving Thailand and returning home to America after a ten year absence. I will miss the Land of Smiles greatly and will pack memories and photographs I managed to capture here with me. Like knowledge, however, unless shared, memories and photographs fade and die with time. So I have decided to start a new section on this blog, one that highlights some of my favorite memories of Thailand along with photos that captured those memorable moments.

My travels in Thailand were on a Honda 110, not exactly a monster bike, but good enough to take me where I wanted to go and I never feared any road, path or trail upon it. I took that bike where most people wouldn’t even think of going! Sign it off to just plain dumb! If ignorance is bliss, I was the happiest biker on or off road!

I decided to start with this one. It is of a most memorable morning. As usual, I had begun my trip long before sunrise, determined to be in position to capture the event from a most advantageous position. In this one, I succeeded, due as much to pure luck as to the cooperation of nature.

I was so cold! I remember my teeth chattering and being concerned that I could not hold the camera still enough to get a decent picture. It turned out to be a legitimate concern as several takes were necessary. As the sunrise revealed the temple on the mountain in silhouette, my breath was literally taken away. I couldn’t believe what I was witnessing. It was a most magical and mystical moment.

Later, I found my way to that temple and, after removing my shoes at the door, I entered into the serenity that reigned there. I remember thanking the Buddha and nature for what I had been privy to. I vowed to share the moment with others and prayed that they, too, would experience the feeling of exhilaration and fulfillment I had felt.

I continued on my journey of exploration and adventure that day, clocking over 600 kilometers on my bike in that one single day. That moment was followed by others equally as memorable, all of which I attempted to capture on camera. Future postings will determine whether or not I was successful in this endeavor.