TED Community » Terra Kosako

More About Me

I'm passionate about

Living holistically.

Talk to me about

Philosophy; education; holistic esoteric living; farming and ranching; bees; dance and music; painting and photography; relationships; respect; Systems of thought and cultures

People don't know that I'm good at

at understanding the ideas of Quantum physics and their connections into our world

Comments

• TEDCred score: +0.50 TEDCred reflects your contribution to the TED community.

• A comment on Conversation: HOW DOES OUR NATIVE LANGUAGE AFFECT OUR CONCEPTION OF TIME?

  Nov 16 2011: I have never thought of how language shapes our perception of time. But I have looked at how different cultures relationship to time is different. And I assume that their language reflects that difference.
  
  For instance in a culture that is dominated by the idea of reincarnation time is different to one which is dominate by the idea that this is our only chance. For instance, in Japan, the idea of performing the ultimate act of responsibility - Seppuku - is not as dramatic because they will be coming back. Where as in a culture where in this is our only chance ..... it is horrific. The same applies to our station in life. When a person believes that they will reincarnate, they are not in such a rush to have a materialistically better life, because they will. But when your chance to experience ends this time ..... there is more pressure.
  
  Anyway, I will ask my hubby - he is Japanese! I am looking forward to the conversation!
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  A comment on Conversation: What role do you think humor has in human discourse?

  Nov 16 2011: I think humor is useful and here below is why I think humor is a great teacher. In my opinion some of that masters of wit in this form were Abraham Lincoln, along with Mulla Nasrudin from whom I learned so much.
  
  Through humor our body relaxes from its fight/flight mode to a receptive awareness. When humor doesn't point in a flippant manner that causes someone to be shamed ..... we find we laugh at ourselves and later reflect on how many times in the past that could have been used.
  
  One example I borrowed from President Lincoln, was his story about the steam engine - (Paraphrasing) There is a steam engine that produces 120 pound of pressure; to run the engine took 80, and to blow the whistle took 70. So when ever the whistle blows the engine stops." I would tell this to my workers when they would lean on their tools and start a beautiful philosophical conversation. In time, they would catch themselves 'blowing the whistle', smile, and go back to work. The nice thing about this, was, they would Smile .... If I had directly gotten on their case about their excessive talking I would have put them directly into fight/flight mode. humor allowed me to by pass that.

• A comment on Conversation: In 10 words or less, name a living expert from any field & a creative title for a lesson they could guest-teach in a high school/college.

  Nov 16 2011: Motoshi Kosako/ The form of improvisation and following ones passion http://www.harpmusician.com/Motoshi_Kosako/Biography.html (he does talks already in Japan)
  
  John Ratey/ Life enrichment through movement http://johnratey.typepad.com/
  
  ????? / How all our sense perceptions are 'food' for the whole person
  
  Jim Carrey/ Life blessing through not 'taking it personally' or seeing the humor http://mariamuir.com/2010/10/10/thinking-spiritual-awakening-with-jim-carrey/
  
  Master Lou Robinson/ Health through understanding/experiencing our connection to the world through holistic Oriental teaching and string theory He does not at this time have a website - he is a professor of String theory, lived at the Shaolin Temple, works closely with Parkinson patients was born in NY, was a police officer .......
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  A reply on Conversation: What are the Top 5 things you can teach/share with a 6 year old?

  Nov 16 2011: That is so wonderful to know. I will have to show it to my kids!
  
  My personal rule, is 'cause no harm' ....... and as you stated above, it requires thinking. For it does come from the Hippocratic oath. Yet, a Doctor does cause harm when he cuts for surgery .... yet that harm is small compared to the harm if they do not operate.
  
  I find laws, make thinking unnecessary. Which is sad. I will now go looking for this wonderful town!
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  A comment on Conversation: What are the Top 5 things you can teach/share with a 6 year old?

  Nov 16 2011: I am a parent of 3, and I was a PE teacher for 6 to 14. If I remember correctly, 6 is a difficult age social wise. The need to be cool becomes more insistent with the new level of kids the child is in contact with.
  
  As and adult, I felt is was my job to prepare the child for what was coming as well as helping them through what was happening.
  
  So, for a 6 year old, knowing that they were most likely facing 'bullying', whether as one or a victim, or both, I would be speaking with them about how to deal with it, mostly by not taking it personally, rather than be a victim, and trying to make connections between when they were, and how they felt about, and when they were victims and when they where just witnesses.
  
  6 year olds are very justice oriented, so we had a "talking stick", and when things got really bad, we would hold court. In this, I found they learned to listen and discovered how good it felt to be listened to. We would create rules .... and then try to act accordingly. And sometimes we would find those rules didn't work, so we would change the rules.
  
  Good faith - This became a key point with us, as many times, in playing the fights would occur because one person accidentally hurt another, and this would start a fight. So before we started a game, I would remind them of good faith.
  
  Self control/awareness/Responsibility - In learning to know themselves they gain compassion for others, and learned to do things because they wanted to not because it was cool. Even if we are manipulated into it, how we respond it is up to us ..... this is empowering.
  
  Patience - All mentioned things above are only learned through patience. Our life is here to be lived, felt, thought out, moved through and experienced. The practice of patience, allows us the freedom, internally, to live.
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  A comment on Conversation: What is your greatest passion and how have you been able to develop and sustain it?

  Aug 31 2011: My inspiration/passion comes from a multitude of sources. In short it was the experience harsh injustice while being deeply educated in the greatest dreams and dreamers of the world. While growing up on a farm/ranch where 1 mistake can cause great harm to many, and that is the reality of living.
  
  In growing up in such a paradoxical environment I learned that to be inspired, to be noble, to make a choice based on fore thought and conscience (not social morality) is possible, and it is what makes us 'human'. I learned that most of the time we don't want to take responsibility because it brings attention. With that attention comes both the adoration and the scorn. The difficult part for me is that I have not found my expression yet. I am working on it though. For now I take what comes. As Lincoln said, "All my life I have tried to pluck a thistle and plant a flower wherever the flower would grow in thought and mind. "
  
  So to answer, I think in many ways my choice started as self protection. I did not want to be what I saw around me. In a world filled with so much drama, hypocrisy and thoughtlessness. I turned to books, to hope, to people of action with compassion. With time it becomes clear that many are looking for a way out but don't know where to turn .....