I am sitting at my main desk, but am using my trusty laptop as usual. This because my desktop computer is without its power pack, which John will come to replace later today. That’s the plan. This interrupted routine has resulted in my downloading the Audacity software on this laptop. I need that software in order to transfer to the tape’s backside the missing last part of my talk. Herman’s tape runs out as I speak, but I record my talk in full on my RCA digital packet recorder, which has lots of room.

I intent to use this computer situation to make this laptop a ‘mirror-site’ of my desktop for my website. This way I do not have to rely on a backup and will be able to switch without much interruption. Two things have to happen for this. One is enabling the Filezilla software to access my server and secondly to then transfer the current web files to this computer, which only has the 2012 as the most recent version!

My talk “Adding to Old Teachings l” was well received last Sunday. Thomas even complementing me by telling me that it was helpful to be shown how these historical development relate to our situation today. This in response to my emphasising that current values such as human rights have a long pedigree in history, as human attitudes developed slowly and still do today.

I closed last Sunday’s talk by saying: 'Diversity is a Gift!'. We must keep in mind that acquiring that attitude is a learning process that needs time and effort.

Next August 14 I hope to show similar developments for Hinduism, Buddhism and Islam in my talk “Adding to Old Teachings ll”. The common theme of my talks is that our world today requires additional teachings for the Old Traditions to accommodate each other. I closed last Sunday’s talk by saying: “Diversity is a Gift!”. We must keep in mind that acquiring that attitude is a learning process that needs time and effort.

This morning I was thinking that we should raise the battle cry: 'Limit the guns to limit the victims.'

During our meeting at the Palliser last Sunday I did not mention the shooting in Florida (US) as I only heard about it at the last minute. I usually allocate some attention to such events, but you have to do that properly. This morning I was thinking that we should raise the battle cry: “Limit the guns to limit the victims.” This would not deny anyone’s perceived need to have some weapon, but would at least reduce the number of people that a single person is able to kill. Imagine two or three of such misguided shooters taking such action. That could divide a community against itself with dire consequences.

Yesterday morning I met with Elisabeth at Tompkins park where we sat in the sun and chatted while savouring some frozen yogurt that Elisabeth had bought. We talked for almost two hours and I was home past noon. Late in the day the sun took its leave, so I was glad we caught its morning rays.

I have started to browse through some of my books an Hinduism in preparation for my new talk. It is the oldest well known religion, being the basis of the later Buddhism and predating Islam by far. Zoroastrianism is older than Hinduism, but though known, its early history and teachings are spares and often obscure. It certainly is not a world religion, nor has it been for centuries.
<10:03am, time for a coffee break.