This is the old but familiar philosophy of “…Life is but a dream,” expressed in the simple song, Row, Row, Row Your Boat.  No, Plato did not write that song.  The original crew from the Star Ship Enterprise did not write it either. 

MANY people believe in this philosophy.  That we are presently living an ILLUSION.  Wow.

If that is so—that dog or cat that you enjoy hugging or petting or holding on your lap? 

          It’s not real! 

Your mother and father and sisters and brothers? 

               Your spouse and children and grandchildren? 

                              Your friends? 

          Fake! 

School? 

       Work? 

             Make believe. 

                        It’s just one big fairy tale.

                                                     An illusion.

Taxes? 

Well—I’m not going to go there.  My best guess is if you choose NOT to pay them, you may end up someday trying to convince yourself that prison is just a dream too.

Plato compared our life to living in a cave.  That what we are presently experiencing is merely a SHADOW of true reality, which is represented, of course, as existing outside the cave.  BUT—and here is the kicker—SOME people CAN, according to Plato, experience this REALITY.  In his book, the Republic, he basically says that the STATE (government) and those with KNOWLEDGE (academia, which would now be not only leaders in education, but has also come to include most church leaders of the various religions) do experience reality (outside the cave). 

Plato’s philosophy, (that many of us have been taught to revere…go figure) and later philosophies based on his that followed  it and were even more extreme, allowed for governments, religion, colleges and university leaders, and even the media to CONTROL those of us IN THE DARK. 

Here’s the scariest part: 


                    we have allowed this.

Now—you have to understand that a student, say, about third grade level today, knows MORE than the majority of people in Plato’s day.  There were a few very intelligent people in his day, but the majority was not.  Some intelligent people ran with Plato’s philosophy and kept the majority IN THE DARK for years.  Pay attention—for 2400 years! 

We each have in us a certain desire to be LED.  It’s LAZINESS, actually.  While each of us has the ability to make our own decisions for our own individual lives, it’s so much simpler to let somebody else do it.  And then we complain about how horrible things are.  WAKE UP!

When we need a specific answer to ANY question whatsoever, we do NOT have to walk for days to the nearest Library, assuming that we were even worthy to be allowed access, and then search through hundreds or thousands of books or manuscripts or scrolls to find the right page, the right paragraph, the right sentence to answer our needs.  We “Google it.”  

We are very quick to gripe and complain about things not working the way we wish on our phones.  I am no different.   I’ve complained quite often.  We have been taught that KNOWLEDGE is POWER.  We really need to recognize what great POWER each of us has available at our fingertips.

AH—but will we?  

Copyright ©2015 Gabriel Strump

I’m kidding.  About the robe, that is.  Well, okay--maybe. (I don’t think there are any photos.)

I love to read.  One of these days I’ll stick a booklist up on Goodreads. They might have to get a new server.  I’m just saying—I’ve read a lot of books.  Studied them, really.  I’m one of those bad boys who writes in them--Oh my!  You know, underlines and highlights and diagrams and notes and drawings ...Shame, shame, shame on me. 

And most are not the kinds of books one could stick in one’s back pocket or purse.  I have quite a few large-city phonebook-sized editions.  The kind you really would not want to drop on your toes.  And the subject matter is most often just as heavy.

• World Religions. 
  

• Theology.
  
• Spirituality.
  
• Esotericism.
  
• Ancient History.
  
• Mythology. 
  
• Secret Societies.
  
• Cults.
  
• Astrology/Astronomy.
  
• Sacred Geometry.
  
• Folk Lore.
  
• Faeries and elementals and angels and demons and ghosts and other supernatural phenomena.
  
• Music.
  
• Physics.
  
• Health.
  
• Biology.
  
• Architecture.
  
• Art.

<Insert huge deep breath here.>

New age.  Self Help.  Law of Attraction.  Business.  Twitter and Facebook and Microsoft Word.  Writing.  Blogging.  Pinning.  Grinning.

James Allen.  Dale Carnegie.  Napolean Hill.  David Schwartz.  Maxwell Maltz.  Stephen R. Covey.  John C. Maxwell.  Joe Vitale.  Wayne Dyer.  Depok Chopra.  Anthony Robbins.  Adrian Gilbert.  Manly P. Hall.  Mark Hamilton.  Frank R. Wallace.  R. A. Schwaller de Lubicz.

Stephen King.  Dean Koontz.  Dan Brown.  Mary Higgins Clark.  Agatha Christie.

Dickens, Twain, Homer, Verne, Chesterton, Doyle, Carroll, Stevenson, Hawthorne, Grimm, Shakespeare, and more.

Whew!

Oh yeah, books on psychology and philosophy too.

What genre is that?  Does anyone know?

Trust this: There’s a whole lotta stuff jam-packed beneath the surface of that “cute little fairy tale,” titled Vreeland.  It would actually be quite wise to vollow Titi.

And probably smart to subscribe to my FREE newsletter too, as I am about to unpack certain things that just might blow you away.

But you do as you wish.

So— 

<Insert dramatic pause here.>

—Philosophy.

For many years, I believed that no one would ever be interested in my philosophical viewpoints.  My ideas, after all, are most certainly not main-stream.  Most people I knew weren’t interested in what I had to say.  They all thought I was crazy.  Probably still think so.  Maybe I am.  But I don’t care.   

You see, I recently made an astounding discovery: 

The people who share my viewpoints, who would accept my ramblings on as fact—not fiction—and who hold these kinds of ideas in very high esteem are all multi-millionaires or beyond.  That’s a big sentence; you probably should read it again.

And those on their way to greatness are actually hungering for this information, which is such a giant part of who I am.  And so the time has come for me to share this with whoever might be interested.

As of this writing, I must confess, I am not yet a multi-millionaire.  But I intend to become one.  Watch me.

Or, if you dare, as Titi would say, “Vollow me.  Walk whehe I walk.” 

Yeah, yeah, yeah…I realize there are some who know me—and perhaps some who don’t—who are rolling their eyes and thinking to themselves, “Right,” as they chuckle over the idea.  If this happens to be you, I suggest you go back to your TV and couch and jumbo-sized bag-o’-chips.  Watch the movie when it comes out.  It’ll probably be cute.  More than likely, it’ll be quite fantastic too.

Yes, I know—that’s a bit harsh.  But I mean it in love.

Listen, I’ve been there.  I understand.  I know exactly how you feel.  I felt the same way.  This is what I found out:

There’s a whole ‘nother world out there.  And it’s beautiful.  A world of wealth, and true love, and happiness.

Despite what you may have been taught, it’s not full of bad people, but rather, the very best.  Worth is not judged by wealth or looks or race or creed or any of those other barriers we tend to hold fast and cling to, but instead, worth is determined by the values created for each other in love.

This is the place where all your dreams really do come true.  And it’s here and now and most certainly within reach for each and every one of us.

This is no fairy tale.  It’s real.  But until YOU believe it, you’ll never see it. 

If you’re ready for some adventure, and willing to give me a chance to show you something grand, Vollow me!  There’s much more to come!
©2015 GABRIEL STRUMP

Almost every successful person in the world knows this secret.  Many have shared it, indeed, throughout the ages.

Just like you, I’ve searched high and low for the answer to success.  I’ve tried so many different schemes you wouldn’t believe it.  Nothing seemed to work.  Oh, the money and time I’ve wasted over the years.

Lo! And behold, when I found it, I realized it was, well--

Yesss!  That’s right!  It is INDEED that easy.

This great secret is hidden throughout the book, Vreeland.  There are only a couple chapters that do not mention it.

Actually, it is spelled out directly too.  But most of you will miss it.  It’s not in BOLD or italics or set apart.  But it’s there, plain and simple as can be.

I suggest you just enjoy the story.  Let it sink in.  When you get it, it will be like a whack in the head.

“No way!” you’ll say.  “That’s all there is to it?”

And somehow you’ll sense that all the little faeries are nodding and giggling as a voice from deep within answers, “INDEED.”

And they will when you apply this secret.
Well, what are you waiting for?  Buy Vreeland NOW!
©2015 Gabriel Strump

I can’t believe you missed that ball.  It’s because of you the game was lost.  You are such a loser.

You broke my favorite_______,   You are such a klutz.

You’re eating again?  You are going to be so fat.

Fix your hair—you look like a moron.

You keep dressing like that you’ll turn into a bum.

Why can’t you be like everybody else?  You need to fit in; otherwise people will think you’re a lunatic.

You are never on time.  You’ll be late for your own funeral. 

You’ll never find a mate—who would want you?

Go to school.  Get a job.  Nobody ever makes it in business unless they lie, cheat, and steal.

Rich people are all bad.  Be thankful you’re poor.

You’re trying what?  Ha-Ha-Ha-Ha-Ha!

You are such an idiot.

Programing.  Mental programing.  These and many more similar statements are thrown at most of us from a very young age.  And we believe them.  They control our life, our choices, and our destiny. 

BUT—you have within you the power to change all of this. 

Understand that this nonsense has been running your thinking process for a very long time.  It will take work to re-program your mind.  But it can indeed be done.  And if you feel like you’re stuck in some kind of rut, always trying to get ahead but can’t, this re-programing must be done before things will change.

Here’s the good news—you can do it.  It’s not difficult.  But it does take determination.

The first step is realizing that these programs are running things and need to be changed.  You didn’t put them there.  But you have allowed them to control you nonetheless.  Time to rewrite them.

Belief is a strong motivator.  Believe that you can have or become whatever you wish if you’re willing to work for it.  

"But I work my tushy off," you say.  "And I still have not amounted to anything."  

That’s because you still believe you can’t.  The only thing holding you from your dreams is your mental programing.

Before you can change this, you must desire to change it.  You must take a good hard look at what the programing is, which can sometimes be painful, and then you must
let it go.  
You must fill your mind with positive-ness.  By the books you read.  By the things you THINK about all day long.  By the things you say.  By the actions you take.  By your REACTIONS when things don’t go as planned.

For example, let's say you do something stupid.  
           We all do at times.  
                         Unintentionally.  
                                       By accident.  
                                                     It happens.  

But HOW WE REACT to that determines our future more than you might realize.  Do you immediately RE-AFFIRM how stupid you are?  Do you let it ruin your day?  Your week?  Or are you able to let it go and laugh about it and MOVE ON? 

When finances are tight and bills pile up, do you rant and rave about how you are never going to get ahead?  If so, you are RE-AFFIRMING the old programming. 

Take the time to observe yourself doing this.  And then, once you see it, you’ll be able to catch yourself the next time.  REVERSE IT.  As you pay your bills say, “Someday people will be sending their money to me.”  BELIEVE IT. 

It’s ALL IN THE HEAD.  And YOU are in charge.  If you decide to be.  You can determine what gets put into there.  You can determine what you say and do.  So—are you doing that?

I used to watch the 11:00 PM News every night before bed.   I always woke up grumpy.  What was happening was that all night long my mind was processing all that negative information about the world around me.  It took a broken TV for me to realize that when I didn’t watch the nightly News I woke up happy.  By the same token, when I stopped reading the morning paper, my days started to go much better.

PROGRAMING.  Put in crud; guess what you experience all day.  Put in positive-ness, suddenly the whole world seems so much better.  

But the world isn’t what changed—YOU HAVE.

I don’t know too much about cars, but I do know that if you have bad stuff in your gas tank, or your oil hasn’t been changed for a while, or you have a dirty air filter, and so forth, your car doesn’t run so well.  Isn’t it amazing how much better it runs when those things are changed.  Cleaned up.  Replaced.  Wow!  So why do we allow our MINDS to become so cluttered with crud? 

Oh, I know we didn’t really have control over our upbringing and schooling and the place we grew up.  But we have control over where we go from here.  

Stay with me.  I’ll help you through this mess.  There’s much more to come.

©2015 Gabriel Strump

SIGN UP FOR MY FREE NEWSLETTER HERE

SECRET TREASURE.

A nugget of

             TRUTH.

A sparkling GEM of WISDOM that could make ALL your DREAMS come true and lead you to great love and happiness.

“Oh, come on, now,” you say.  “Surely, you jest.”
Oh no, my friend.  Put it to the test.

Culled from the hundreds of books I have read and studied over the years on

     Philosophy (ancient and modern),

          Psychology,

The sacred writings of the great religions,

          The Great Folk Lore,

Fairy tales,        

Mythology,

The teachings of secret societies,

Comic books,                        

                    Song lyrics,

And more,

And have buried it within the pages of Vreeland.

     For you to discover for yourself.
          For you to use as you will.
               For you to become who you are meant to be.

I hope you’re ready.

Subscribe to my FREE Newsletter now.  There’s more to come.

Once upon a time, I decided to plant a garden around my house.

     Oh—I already had some bushes.
     And some hostas too.
     I really loved the hostas.  I could accidentally mow then down and they'd come right up and be beautiful despite me.
     But I wanted more.

     Now—you have to understand—I'm the guy whose house was always full of

                                                          POTS of DIRT.

   Well, they started out as potted plants.  You know—poinsettias, orchids, mums, ferns ...
They didn't quite make it.
     Yeah, yeah, yeah ... I know.  Water is kind of important.

     I decided to get pets instead.  Unlike the potted plants, the pets let me know when they needed water.  Usually at 3:00 in the morning.

     Okay—if the garden is outside, I figured, the RAIN will water for me.
     As it ended up, I had to help.  But, at least for me, playing with a hose outside was much more fun than carrying around a plastic watering thingie with rainbows painted on it inside.
     Besides—if I angled the hose just right, it made real rainbows.  Cool!

     I planted mostly perennials.  I read up on things, studied the different types of flowers, carefully planned my garden on paper in the wee hours of the night, ordered a bunch of seeds and stuff, and then spent almost an entire vacation digging and planting and creating something new for my yard.

     Except, it was August, which is sort of late.
     I did have a few pretty things growing by September.
     I found out later they were weeds.
     And hostas, of course.
     But mostly I had, well,

                                                    A BUNCH of DIRT.

     "You?  You're going to plant a garden?"
                    Ha-Ha-Ha-Ha-Ha!
     "You're going to get your hands dirty?"
                    Ha-Ha-Ha-Ha-Ha!
     You're wearing jeans?"
                    Ha-Ha-Ha-Ha-Ha!

     Have you ever noticed that whenever you try to do something new, no matter how much you may enjoy it, and no matter how much you may believe in it, your family and friends seem to go out of their way to make fun of you;
     to laugh,
          to point their fingers,
               to do their best to put you down and make you feel like an idiot?

     Here's the dirty little secret:

                                                 DO IT ANYWAY!

     I did.

• The research
• The planning
• The cost
• The hard work
• The new-found excitement

     And all I had to show for it was, well,

                                                   A BUNCH of DIRT.  

    
     How can we ever really know what goes on inside a seed, or a bulb, or a tuber, or a system of roots under the ground?
     How can we ever describe what goes on inside our hearts when everything is about to change for the better?
     It didn't happen overnight.  To me, it seemed like it took forever.  But to everyone else, it was magic.

     First, there was winter.
          Cold.
               Gray.
                    Ice.
                         Snow.
     A long-held tone on a tuba—until its player passed out.

                                              Gloom.

     But then, suddenly:

• A tiny high trill on a flute
• Tinkling bells
• Strings
• Woodwinds
• Brass
• Timpani
• A mighty pipe organ
• A choir
• A screaming distorted electric guitar

     Sparkles and twinkles and fireworks.
          Footlights, spotlights, floods.
               And the curtain goes up.

                               FLOWERS!

     Tulips and crocuses and daffodils and dandelions.
          Roses and daisies and black-eyed Susans.
               Cone flowers and lilies and more.

     Hummingbirds.
          Butterflies.
               Colors.
                    Scents.

                              HAPPINESS!

     Those who had laughed?
     "It's so BEAUTIFUL," they cried.

     And it was.
     And it will be again.
    And unless, or until, you've experienced this yourself, it's impossible to describe the joy felt inside by the sights and the smells, and the sound of the birds singing sweetly in the trees.

     "That's MY garden," you say.  
     "I planned that.  
     "I planted that."

     Ah!  But you didn't actually make it grow, did you?

     What are your plans now?
     What kinds of seeds are you planting?
     What are your dreams?
     What steps have you taken today towards achieving them?

     Do the work.
          Ignore what others have to say.

                                   SEE BEYOND the DIRT.

          Believe.

               And you will behold the beauty of your dreams bursting forth into bloom.

©2015 Gabriel Strump