Struggling - the avenue of growth

I follow this blog on Google Reader, and really liked this message, so I thought I'd flag it here. It also reminded me that I'd heard something about the trees in the first 'Biosphere', that they didn't really develop their roots and fell over, because they didn't have any wind. Here's a quote from a climate study on that:

Wind is also necessary for creating hardy and strong trees. When it was first created, there was no wind inside of Biosphere 2. Plants grew relatively quickly, but they frequently fell over before they were of reproductive age. After some intensive observations and experimentation, it was determined that the lack of wind created trees with much softer wood than that species would normally make in the wild. They grew more quickly than they did in the wild, but they were harmed in the long run as a consequence.

So here's the blog post by the above title: Struggling - the avenue of growth

EFT Setup Phrase

I have had several people ask me about the EFT 'setup phrase' or affirmation; particularly the part about 'I deeply and completely accept myself' (or -- I would like to deeply and completely accept myself) and why do you say it three times? That is part of the basic EFT 'protocol' as it were, as developed by Gary Craig. Essentially, that part of the whole tapping sequence is to clear out any possible PR or 'psychological reversal'. PR isn't always present, but if it is it'll keep the rest of the tapping from doing any good. It's been estimated that it's only present about 30% of the time, but in some cases (like depression and cravings or addictions), it's present closer to 100% of the time. Since it doesn't take long to do the 'setup', we do it before we really know whether it's actually needed.

However, due to the questions, I decided to look in Roger Callahan's book Tapping the Healer Within , since it'd been a while since I read it, and found that he just taps the Karate Chop point 5 or 7 times IF the PR appears to be present, without any affirmation or 'reminder phrase'. I decided to try something a little different, and just say a 'setup phrase' once, rather than 3 times, (such as: Even though I have this fear, God hasn't given me a spirit of fear) while tapping the KC point -- you'd end up tapping that point or rubbing the Sore Spot, at least 5-7 times. I then move onto the rest of the tapping points with the reminder phrase. I've done that revised setup with myself and a few clients, and it's worked just fine. I have accordingly changed the tapping points I have available on my website. (see below) There was also the thought for me, that repeating the setup phrase 3 times was almost like a 'magic number', which smacks of witchcraft, which of course is in direct opposition to the topic of spiritual warfare, at least from a Christian viewpoint.

As a Christian, I have come to know I am accepted by God in Christ, so if you have a hard time with 'I accept myself' -- then by all means add it into the setup or say something like 'I know I am accepted in Christ Jesus and I can accept myself'. It's somewhat flexible. To illustrate the flexibility, here's a link (see below) to an article by someone else and how she selects setup phrases. What she uses as setup phrases, I would probably use as variations on the 'reminder phrase' while tapping the various points.

Lastly, while I'm mentioning changes, while I was reading the comments on the blog post I mentioned a couple of days ago about the online 'Summit', I discovered there was a change to the Open Hand Rights for EFT, and have accordingly removed the designation of having received the EFT-ADV certificate of completion on this blog and on my website, and have also removed the EFT Logo since it is no longer allowed to be a top of the page sort of identifier. I may add the logo somewhere else on the site as a secondary logo at some point, but for now I just have a palm branch in it's place. Since it looked silly to have the words Emotional Freedom Techniques next to the palm branch rather than next to the Logo that said EFT I removed that also. I also added a disclaimer that I'm using my version of EFT, etc. These new guidelines are apparently part of the fallout of the online 'Summit'. It's a bit annoying, but it is what it is.

20 Aug 2010 - I edited this article to remove the links to the EFT (emofree) website since it isn't up anymore. I also removed the link to the tapping points on my website since that has since moved and was a broken link, the tapping points are now an attachment to an article on the user forum of the site. In addition, I now have the EFT-ADV designation back on the blog and website as mentioned in the blog post earlier this year about Gary Craig's retirement.

Have you wondered why Gary isn’t part of The EFT® World Summit? - EFT Blog

I just read this comment by Gary Craig, about the 'world summit' and thought I'd post the link here, for those who may be interested. I'm still reading the comments, there are lots of them.

I wasn't going to sign up for the summit at all, because it originally sounded like (or I assumed?) it was going to be video presentations, and until last week I was using a dial-up internet connection. But I got a DSL connection last week and signed up for it, and it wasn't until I got onto the page the first day that I discovered it's audio, only. In addition, it's put out by the makers of the 'Try it on everything' DVD and book, and I've not seen the DVD and from what little I know of it, there's a lot of the 'law of attraction' belief, of which I have repented.

I wasn't interested in listening to all of the presenters, or even most of them for that matter; but I'll listen to a few of them and see if I can get some good pointers. But I appreciated Gary's input and figured I'd pass it on.

April 25 - update

Here's a new message from Gary Craig on the EFT World Summit topic.Just thought I'd post the link, to sort of complete the picture.

Classical Arminianism: THE CALVINIST'S APPEAL TO MYSTERY, OR ANTINOMY

Good article, thought I'd post the link:

Classical Arminianism: THE CALVINIST'S APPEAL TO MYSTERY, OR ANTINOMY

YouTube - Becoming Unshakeable In Times Of Shaking

IA message from Joseph Prince. Just over 5 minutes - good message!

Deception in the grocery aisle and inflation rates?

Have you noticed that certain items at the grocery store now come in smaller packages, but you're paying the same price? I've been noticing that for about the last year or so, and it's pretty annoying. I wondered if it was a way to get around reporting on the true cost of inflation (or Consumer Price Index, CPI; here in the U.S.). Some examples I've noticed are: a pound (16 oz) of bacon is now 3/4 of a pound (12 oz); as is a pound of spaghetti or pasta. There are some exceptions, and I didn't make a detailed list prior to writing this post, though I may in a later post. Another example is what used to be an 8oz yogurt is now 6 oz. What used to be a 6 oz can of tuna fish is now 5 oz. There may be other examples, but those have been the most noticeable to me. The can of tuna was the most recent, and it made me so mad I refused to buy any. Wondering if this was reflected in government stats on inflation (because it means that in some cases food prices have actually gone up 20-25%, ounce for ounce) I found this from the (U.S.) Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), who release the CPI data every month. Under the question of How are CPI prices collected and reviewed? it says the following:

During each call or visit, the economic assistant collects price data on a specific good or service that was precisely defined during an earlier visit. If the selected item is available, the economic assistant records its price. If the selected item is no longer available, or if there have been changes in the quality or quantity (for example, eggs sold in packages of ten when they previously were sold by the dozen) of the good or service since the last time prices were collected, the economic assistant selects a new item or records the quality change in the current item.

The recorded information is sent to the national office of BLS, where commodity specialists who have detailed knowledge about the particular goods or services priced review the data. These specialists check the data for accuracy and consistency and make any necessary corrections or adjustments, which can range from an adjustment for a change in the size or quantity of a packaged item to more complex adjustments based upon statistical analysis of the value of an item's features or quality. Thus, commodity specialists strive to prevent changes in the quality of items from affecting the CPI's measurement of price change.

Note that a change in quantity of the theoretical dozen (12) eggs down to a quantity of 10 is called a 'quality change', Or, they'll just select another item if there is a change in 'quality'. Then note the last sentence, where it says that they have specialists that strive to prevent changes in quality (not quantity) from affecting the measurement of price change. I wonder if they're related to the same geniuses that priced the derivatives for 'mortgage-backed securities' that have sent some banks into bankruptcy? Those are what I call 'weasel words'.

It may be that I'm mistaken about the wording or actual result of this, and if so I'll note it here. But to me, a 'change in quality' is when they use different ingredients, like using corn syrup instead of sugar. But as far as I know, tuna is tuna, and if the package size went from 6 oz to 5 oz, then it's a change in QUANTITY and not QUALITY. I just did a search for 'package size AND inflation' and came up with a few interesting articles: Food inflation: A truly painful downsizing as well as: Less is more: Packaging Design & Inflation, as well as: Hidden Inflation: The Sneaky Way Manufacturers Raise Prices They all have other examples of food package size changes than the ones I had noticed.

So what's the solution? In my unscientific survey, it appeared to me that I was more likely to find that imported pasta (i.e. from Italy) was still available in a 1 lb (16 oz) package, and the same with bacon from Canada. I suspect it may tie in to the whole notion of publically-traded companies having to deliver 'shareholder value' (a nice buzzword likely made up by lawyers). Or if it's practical, buy in bulk where a pound is still a pound, at least for now. I may break down and buy a can of tuna someday, but for now I just go with chicken salad, egg salad or peanut-butter for my sandwiches. Other comments or suggestions are welcome, too!