Greetings. This is Issue #9 of LIGHT TIMES newsletter. Welcome. The purpose of LIGHT TIMES is to support the sharing of LIGHT -- for the sake of EARTH. This is a participatory newsletter for LIGHT-oriented people of all ages and stages in life.

The focus of this newsletter is grounding that LIGHT is simple.

A special welcome goes out to everyone new to the idea of LIGHT and/or the LIGHT TIMES newsletters. EARTH needs us all!

This issue #9 of LIGHT TIMES explores preparing for y2k and beyond.

By now, most people have heard of y2k. Y2k is shorthand for The Year 2000 as it relates to the interconnectedness of computers worldwide. Almost everything we are accustomed to in our everyday lives relies on computers. Examples include: food, water, heat, gasoline, health care, and telecommunications.

When we find ourselves in the year 2000, we may notice that things we depend on for our comfort are not as readily available as we are used to. The purpose of this Y2k and Beyond issue is to help us prepare for this situation.

It is recommended that we start preparing now to make it easier for us then -- that is, when the time comes (which is right around the corner). The most common aspect of preparedness that is being recommended involves storing food, water, medical supplies, and resources for heat and cooking. These are all tangibles.

The focus here will be on the intangibles that are recommended for preparedness. LIGHT TIMES is recommending that we prepare ourselves energetically for the times ahead.

Why?

The times ahead offer us all an amazing opportunity. Y2k and beyond can bring up fear in people or it can create a feeling of opportunity and transformation. It is a choice. It is a choice we each have to make for ourselves.

During y2k and beyond we will be called forth. We will be called forth together -- to make a difference for the greater whole. We can best accomplish this by increasing our calmness, our sense of stability, our mental clarity, and our feeling of commitment to the greater whole.

Pause for a moment and feel what that means.

That means for people to not be afraid of each other. When people are not afraid of each other, miracles occur.

You see, y2k and beyond will call us forth together within the spirit of community strength and commitment. The underlying thread that will hold it all together for us is our inner calm. Coming from a place of this inner calm will enable us all to make more effective and efficient decisions and actions. It will also increase our abilities to support each other with the best that we have in each moment. The importance of this cannot be overemphasized.

So ... it is a good time to begin developing our inner calm.

How do we do this?

Consider beginning with:

It is simpler and easier to develop our inner calm than we may now think it is. Actually, itÕs a matter of focus.

To give us some perspective, it is now the summer of 1999 and look how far we have come. Look at our collective awareness. If we step back and study life since, say the 1950Õs, it becomes apparent that collectively we have grown alot in how we look at life. We have matured quite a bit since then.

This maturity is an important point to note, because itÕs good to know where we are so that we can better navigate as we move forward. Y2k and beyond give us an incredible opportunity to move forward. LIGHT TIMES encourages looking at the situation from the standpoint of community unity and transformation.

What does that mean?

That means that we have a chance to look at the situation from a bigger perspective than maybe we are used to in our daily lives. We can come together in the spirit of community and create the kind of world we want to live in. This is no joke.

We can come together in the spirit of community and create the kind of world we want to live in. How many times have we daydreamed about life and how we would like it to be? HereÕs a big chance for us all to do it ... together.

IsnÕt that exciting! Is it scary? Well, now is a good time to feel our fears, heal them, and tap into our feeling of inner power -- empowerment, and then get on with the business of creating our lives from as large a perspective as we can handle in this moment ... moment by moment.

So ... how do we do it?

One step at a time. Start where we are and go from there.

So ... how do we do it?

Begin from where we are now.

(1) Are we compromising in our lives? If so, where? Make a list -- if need be. Then look at the areas of compromise. Are there any that are the easiest to Òuncompromise?Ó

(2) How do we feel about ourselves? Honestly. Why? How about increasing our self-love? Start with forgiving ourselves for any and all mistakes we have made all along the continuum of mistake making. Yes, making amends to ourselves for all the ways we have erred.

(3) Focus on our level of ki/chi/prana -- our internal energy that is always with us.

(4) Pay attention to our use of words. Very important. What words have become a habit in our vocabulary? Notice them. Notice how they feel. If we donÕt like the way they feel, we can look for substitute words to take their place.

(5) Begin noticing how interactions with other people feel. Do we need to speak up about something? Are we too controlling? Do we respect their energy and are they respecting ours?

These are all guidelines for us increasing the inner calm in our lives. Inner calm is like a seed. Water it and pay attention to it, and it will respond. This is what will assist us all the most during the coming times.

What does this have to do with LIGHT?

LIGHT is an energy, a calm energy. Increasing the inner calm increases the LIGHT.

LIGHT is information. Accessing this information about the times ahead is accessing LIGHT.

The times ahead call us forth and we can do it. Increasing our inner calm and supporting others in increasing their inner calm is the key.

Copyright 1999-2001 Nan Cohen and The Living Light Center. All rights reserved.