The Inner Courtyard Garden at San Juan Capistrano Mission

It has been raining every day and all night--just like I remember from my childhood in Hillside Village near Los Angeles.

Such a wonderful, wet and hopeful spring after years of drought.

The emerald green of new grass and young plants make our part of Southern California look a bit like Ireland--and just in time for Saint Patrick's Day!

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ahimsaland

Mission Garden, San Juan Capistrano.

There are so very, very many beautiful and peaceful places in California.

Stressful and awful places and situations too.

Not so very different, I suppose, from any other place on this tiny blue island in space.

Any place anywhere can truly be Ahimsaland.

Its up to us to make it so.

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Exploring Medieval Village

Tanya Exploring Medieval Village

It looks like one doesn't it?

This charming and romantic village street scene is actually in the restored ruins of the San Juan Capistrano Mission in California.

Of course, the way to this quiet place is far from quiet--no famous place in Southern California can be reached quietly or peacefully.

Unruly drivers--heavy traffic--and the freeway culture which is so much a part of life in the Golden State--make "getting there" so much less than "half the fun"--as they used to say.

But once there--the old place has some lovely nooks and crannies--especially in the winter after the rain on a week-day.

Peaceful!

We are very lucky to live close to such a beautiful spot: The Mission of San Juan Capistrano.

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Ruins Bring out the Artist

These colorful plants were hanging out at the San Juan Capistrano Mission grounds.

Such vivid blues in an ice-plant!

And the old arches make everything seem to be of another time.

Lots of tourists, of course--and everybody just like me snapping photos of the famous ruins.

It's OK.

Here everybody can be an artist and everybody can see the beauty!

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Endangered Species

Threatened Species

The photo above is an endangered ape's eye view of another threatened species at the Wild Animal Park near Escondido.

There are only 300 of the endangered variety of ape presently living in the wild and millions of the above pictured species--but probably individuals of neither species is aware of its nearness to extinction.

Great numbers of living individuals of a species do not guarantee its survival as we have seen from the demise of the passenger pigeon and others--it seems most difficult to stop or turn around a species which no longer fits into the earth environment for any number of reasons.

Also a species which has been successful for the billions of years necessary to evolve into its present form may suddenly not be successful enough to withstand new environmental conditions.

We can only wish good luck and bon voyage to both of these closely related life forms.

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Predator Drone

Original California Freeway

"Weapon technology does not remain secret for long, and whatever works for one side can be readily adapted for use by the enemy."

Jack weatherford, "Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World"

When Predator drones were first being used by the American military in Afghanistan I would sometimes see a birds eye view of their work on the Internet news: first I would see some tiny buildings perhaps with some miniature people moving about--more like ants really than human beings--then I would see a shadow move with lightning speed across the screen toward the target and everything in the target area would go black. Bulls eye. Enemy gone.

Gradually the news stopped showing the results of Predator drone's activities in Afghanistan but switched to the news that drones were being used to patrol the Canadian/US border watching for drug smugglers or terrorists.

Last summer I read in the daily newspaper that a Predator drone was flying in North Dakota to monitor the flooding Red River--the pilot-less drone being a big advantage over manned aircraft because it could fly for thirty hours straight.

I was wondering how and when the enemy would start using their own version of Predator on us?

Practice Peace. They say it's wonderful.

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Prefer Peace

Eagle photo by Tanya

Reuters news service included this remark today in an article about Iran's nuclear program:


"Tomas Valasek, director of foreign policy and defense, Center for European Reform, said if the needs of Iran's research reactor were to dictate the process there would be no agreement.

"That's a deal breaker, because of course the whole idea behind the deal is let's get all of the stuff out so that we win more time so that the Israelis don't feel itchy and don't bomb Iran in the next few weeks," he said."

We hope too that the Israelis don't get itchy and bomb Iran--but if the Iranian government does not make some positive moves the Israelis are not such fools as to allow them to strike first.

I assume that the common people in both countries would much prefer peace.

I assume that all "common people", everywhere would much prefer peace.

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