It has been roughly 2000 years since the death of Jesus Christ. Each succeeding generation has tried, and many times accomplished, to improve the quality of life of the whole. In doing so, we have also sharpened and fine-tuned our weapons over the previous generation. Sticks and stones gave way to bows and arrows, which gave way to swords and shields, which evolved to guns and bombs, until now, where we are at nuclear proliferation. Mankind, in it’s “wisdom,” with each step, gives and takes from life. Yes, indeed, we have fully “upped the ante.”

This past week I rented a video that was made in 1970, called “Colossus.” A little cheesy, but the message was quite powerful. The United States decided that it was going to turn over its entire national security and nuclear weapons program to a computer complex known as “Colossus.” On the day of the unveiling the President and the inventor of the program stood around for photos and a press briefing. They believed that Colossus would not be able to make the same mistakes that mankind would, and the world would be a safer place. The same day as Colossus was launched, Colossus discovered that the Soviet Union also had a computer complex to do the exact same thing for them. The United States was in shock, but they were not prepared for what came next. Colossus informed the Pentagon that it was aware of the other system and it wanted to communicate with it. The Russian system was called, “Guardian.” Colossus and Guardian communicated back and forth for hours….at a certain point the United States and Russian governments started to get concerned that they felt cut out of the loop, so they decided to pull the plug on both computer systems, at the same time. Colossus and Guardian got wind of this, and simultaneously launched two nuclear warheads aimed at both countries. The computer systems threatened that they would allow the missiles to reach their designated targets unless they were both allowed to continue to communicate without human interference. Time and time again both countries tried to secretly shut down both computer systems….each time they failed. Finally, Colossus and Guardian announced a joint message….that there would be world peace and no more famine, as long as they were in control. The price for noncompliance? It would be the launch of all nuclear warheads, one by one. This did not sit well with the governments of the world. Wasn’t world peace and the end of famine important? What was revealed in the movie was that to the powers that be, control was far more important than world peace.

As we go forward in time, how many more ways do we have to find to destroy each other before we feel safe? Can safety be fully guaranteed in 2005? Unfortunately, does it have to take a Colossus situation for safety and peace to be obtained? A third party who implements their rules to solve our problems? What we have failed to see is that to bring about world peace, religion, government, physicality and spirituality all have to walk hand in hand. If not, we all just stay on the merry-go-round.

The latest and greatest doesn’t always have the answers…sometimes all it takes is the embracing of a word that has echoed through the eons…that word is “Love.” All we have to do is listen and believe.

love, Jennifer Avalon
© 2005 Jennifer Avalon

The other day I read about a radio station that made fun of the tsunami victims in Southern Asia….it was a cruel and ugly endeavor on the part of the radio station. It upset me, and made me angry. According to the news that evening, it had upset many other Americans also. Then I heard one reporter say, “Well, nobody should be listening to that kind of junk anyway,”…..and it got me thinking about that perspective….that if nobody listens, or purchases a product, then the power is taken away from the company that produces the item, or endeavor. Throughout history this has been understood as the “Art of Shunning.”

Every business needs financial support…and usually that support either comes from a business loan, and then from customers purchasing their products or expertise. Media, for instance, needs advertisers to support their business model. If a media company doesn’t have the viewership, they lose advertisers, which then affects how they can do business. If customers take the time to complain about something that disturbs them, to a business, the people running that company will usually listen, or they risk losing their advertisers…hence, they can lose their business. The fact that there is so much junk out there in the media means to me that enough people don’t complain. The general public doesn’t realize how much power they have, in the form of shunning. It is probably one of the most powerful tools a person has to control the type of society they will be living in. Remember what happened to Oprah Winfrey when she said on national television that she wouldn’t ever want to eat another hamburger? The meat industry went ballistic, and took her to court, where she ultimately won. She won because a person in America is entitled to have an opinion on what they like or dislike….even if they are in the spotlight. The beef industry understood how powerful shunning can be on a mass level…that is why they tried to make an example of Oprah Winfrey…to frighten others from voicing negative opinions. Can you imagine what happens if a large group of people turn off certain television shows? It happens, and those shows go off the air.

When people feel powerless, they can often turn to violence. Violence usually results in a temporary, but short-lived result. There are other ways to assert power, and this is where the Art of Shunning comes in. As long as people don’t take the time to turn off demeaning radio or television shows, for example, those businesses will continue to get their advertising dollars and keep gaining momentum. They will tell you that “this is what the people want to see and hear,” even though in reality it may be simply through default, meaning because people left their television or radio dial tuned to that particular station without realizing it, those advertising dollars assumed those people were actually interested in those shows.

People are not powerless….their opinions do matter, far more than they realize. These days as I leave certain establishments, they hand me a questionnaire to fill in on how I think they are doing, regarding the help of their staff, their quality of product, how they can improve….it is amazing to me that the average shopkeeper is taking the time to rate their business models through their customers. They know that keeping the customer happy will help their business. The only way the media is going to understand this same concept is through the pushing of a button….your finger on the most powerful tool you own….your television and/or radio button.

Support what you love,
Jennifer Avalon
© 2005 Jennifer Avalon

In life, can you be all and everything to everyone? Perhaps not….but what is possible is to find the place and corner of the world where you can be accomplished and make a difference. Marketers call this “finding your niche.”

For me, that niche is essays and music. In the essay department I try to focus on uplifting topics and subject matter that hopefully can help people along in their daily lives. With music, that involves a definition that I call, “Spiritual-Acoustic.” I have received a few e-mails asking me if I will ever do a heavy metal hard rock song….as much as I enjoy some of the music, I don’t believe it is my “niche.” When people hear the name Jennifer Avalon, I think it’s important that they know what to expect, even though from time to time I do try to push the envelope a little.

Whatever your endeavor is in life, there are always those who will voice their opinion and try to send you off in multiple directions. Like any journey, it’s very easy to get lost, and those critical voices never seem to be around to help you find your way back. So whatever you want to do with your life, try to keep it on one course…and simple….for example, “This is what I want to do, and this is where I want to go.” For that one decision that you make along the way, you will encounter those who will tell you you’re wrong. The “niche,” is the little piece of the pie that can be exquisite. The “niche,” can be your own special place on a Main Street, that people know where to go to get what you offer. We all have the specialty stores in our neighborhoods that have that one item that no one else seems to carry….their “niche.”

The “niche” can be expanded, but it is always the core starting point. Once we decide what it is we want to do, the “niche” becomes the cake that is available at every party and every function. I recently read an article about a company that only makes Christmas items. All year long they manufacture numerous products centered on that one holiday. Their focus is totally on their product and market. If you want Valentine’s Day, Halloween, or Thanksgiving products, that is not their forte. And they would tell you, “our line, or niche” is specifically Christmas items.” They stay focused and busy all year long. The day after Christmas, they begin centering on next year. Believe it or not, Christmas items sell all year long!

So it’s okay to “scratch your niche,”…it shows that you’re focused, centered, and in control of the direction you’re heading in. It is the acceptance that you fully understand that you can’t be all and everything to everyone. As they say, who wants to be a “Jack of all Trades, and a Master of None?”

Keep scratching!
love, Jennifer Avalon
© 2005 Jennifer Avalon

In one form or another, overall, personal taste is acquired through influence and choice. It truly is amazing as the years go by how we develop our own personal favorite items and subjects. As we well know, taste can greatly differ from person to person…yet, realistically, is it an accident how we arrive at the things we want to see, hear, and do?

Fashion, hobbies, electronics, the arts, and even our occupations are affected by what we choose on a day to day basis. Just about everything is open to the voice of opinion. Personal taste is supposed to be freedom of thought…we freely choose what it is that we want and need. The scenario looks wonderful on paper, until mankind gets a hold of it and starts to mold and sculpt to a given person’s viewpoint. For example, can you believe that an individual could enjoy both the music of Led Zeppelin and the Partridge Family? I kid you not….I remember waiting on line in a record store growing up and seeing this long-haired hip looking guy go up to the counter and buy both albums. The clerk behind the counter did a double take, and this is where influence started to have its affect. Because it was not cool to like the Partridge Family, but totally cool, ultra-cool, to enjoy Led Zeppelin, the guy buying the records, when seeing the reaction on the clerk’s face, replied, “Hey man, don’t you know I’m only getting the Partridge Family for my kid sister?” Years later, when I went back to my old neighborhood, I ran into the guy who still lived down the block from my house…I reminded him of the incident, and he said to me, “Jennifer, in all honesty, I loved the Partridge Family, but I couldn’t, to save my life, tell anyone!” Same rules apply across the board…movies, cars, vacation spots…it matters what people think about our choices and personal tastes. Unfortunately what’s “cool” matters.

Let’s raise the bar a little. Three ladies go into a showroom to see the latest model Jaguar. One likes it in blue…one prefers red…while the other likes green. They all agree that it is a great car, so each one purchases the automobile, with the color of choice. Over coffee a week later, they start to have a full blown discussion of whose color is the best. They all have the same car, but the color now has become the new standard of excellence. As the weeks roll past, everything on the car is scrutinized inside and out…and each lady starts to incorporate into their car their own personal tastes…new radios, new radial tires…..hey, one even applies a clever bumper sticker…each person trying to make their car stand out as the best, while all along they’re driving the same car. Personal taste totally changed their perception.

Is it any wonder why this world is so hard to figure out sometimes? Why so many have such a hard time getting along? My house is better than your house, my kids are smarter than your kids, and why not throw in, my religion is better than your religion? At this point we have hit the motherlode of the world’s problems. You see, if I am willing to die for my religion, and you are willing to die for yours, and we have a disagreement, guess what? we both die!!

Personal taste is a wonderful form of individuality…as long as we keep it within reason, and respect someone else whose taste may differ. What are the chances of two people agreeing on everything? Practically zero. Multiply that by a few billion, and you get one confusing square dance. If everyone at the dance makes up their own steps without any regard to a basic standard, then chaos reigns, and everyone gets stepped on.

We don’t always have to agree….but we do have to respect our differences. There is Life and there is Law. It’s what’s in-between where we can get lost. Passion isn’t perfect…and neither are we.

Dosey-doe,
love, Jennifer Avalon
© 2005 Jennifer Avalon

This week we look forward to the start of a new year, untouched, like a slate that is unmarked and clean, just waiting for us to paint our thoughts and impressions onto it. Many of us will start to compile a list of New Year resolutions….setting goals for 2005. For a lot of us, by the end of January many of those goals start to unravel, and we become discouraged, wondering why we should continue on the course that looked so bright at the beginning.

I think if we approach the New Year with a different perspective and keep a symbol or image in our minds it may be easier to stay focused and navigate the road ahead. I approach the New Year as a builder, a person who sees a piece of land, and the possibilities that can come forth. I look at the formulation of my goals, hopes, and dreams as a house….a beautiful shining building that by the end of the year I can be proud of. A builder needs tools, not just hammers and nails but Faith, encouragement, conviction and the belief that when you put your mind to it, anything is possible.

In January we start the foundation….we make sure it is strong and has the potential to hold what we place upon it. We make sure there are no cracks. Each proceeding month we add to our house….floor by floor we put in the plumbing, the electrical wiring, the heating system, etc. Sometimes we make mistakes, one room may not be wired right, so we go back, repair the damage and continue on. By the Spring, we see that our house is off the ground and rising. The contributions we have made to our house are beginning to show. People pass by and are amazed how “fast” the house is starting to come together….but little do they see the problems that we encountered to get to our level. So on we go, each day building brick by brick with the sky above us…..and with each brick a feeling of accomplishment comes over us and a better understanding of the mistakes we have made so that we try not to make them again. God looks down and sees a person trying to push forward with a house of meaning and purpose. A badly built house with a weak foundation won’t stand very long….but a good house can last forever. God understands how hard it is to built good houses.

By the Fall, our floors are completed, and we are about to add our roof. We want a roof that will not leak, that can take the elements. If we have done all our work and done it well, by the end of the year we will be standing in front of a house amazed that we were able to accomplish this once monumental task. We look at each brick and floor and see a story. We see the set-backs and the over comings. It is possible to build a good house, God willing, with the right tools, and determination…….All things are
possible.

Good Luck with your house,

Love,

Jennifer Avalon
2004 Jennifer Avalon

“Wrong” is when God is not factored into the equation:

The day may be right, but the week will turn out wrong

The week may be right, but the month will turn out wrong

The month may be right, but the year will turn out wrong

The year may be right, but the life will turn out wrong…

Keep trying to get it right,

with blessings and love,
Jennifer Avalon
© 2004 Jennifer Avalon