Morning Has Broken / Our Adventure Trip Was Fun / Photos Are Here!

“Knowing what is real,
Can never be compared
To what may be.“
– Wm. C. Anderson

Every day is an opportunity for the Celebration of Life.

My Dear Friends,
Our children are alive,
And they are truly celebrating life.
What you are observing in the actions,
In the motion of your child,
Is called JOY.

Ian and Jack prepare for our new adventure. Little do they know just how exciting it will be.

And if you have forgotten what it is,
Calm yourself down,
Have another cup of coffee,
And just observe your child at play.
And remember, you and they,
Need do ABSOLUTELY nothing to be joyful.
You are born with joy in your heart.
And joy still resides within.

Just observe your child at play.

.
.
.
‘I shut my eyes
in order to see.’
                  – Paul Gamarin

Now, take three deep breaths,
More may be required if you are my age.
Close your eyes
And think back to a time
When joy filled your heart.

‘My eyes make pictures,
when they are shut.’
– Samuel Taylor Coleridge

The child you were is the child you are.

“Love will abide, take things in its stride. Sounds like good advice.”   – Rod McKuen

Yes, you can remember.
It may take longer now that you are older.
Do not think about the people
That caused you to be so miserable.
They do not know what they do.
Forgive them, and stay away from them,
Do not think about money,
The stress of your job,
Or troubling misadventures,
They may have created the person you are.
Just think about you as a child,
How happy you were,
How joyful you could be.

You are born with joy in your heart.

“To be joyful is the basic nature of life.
Joy is the spiritual dimension of happiness,
in which one begins to understand
one’s intrinsic value and place in the universe.
Accepting joy is a decision
To “go with the flow,”
To be grateful to be alive.”
                     – Osho

Just think – how joyful you could be.

Our children are alive, and they are truly celebrating life.

Keep your eyes closed.
And know that the child you were
Is the child you are,
The child you can be again.
Joy has been living in the basement of your heart.
And as long as you are alive,
It will always reside within,
Impatiently waiting for you,
Longing to be free,
Desperate to be the driving force
In your life again,
Longing to dance you
To end of Love.

“It’s the heart afraid of breaking
That never learns to dance.”
              – Bette Midler

It is the morning of your life.

So what are you waiting for?
Forgive everyone of everything.
Become a child of God again.
Joy is one heartbeat away,
It lies on the other side of opening your eyes.
It is and always has been
The dream afraid of waking,
In the dark awaiting the dawn,
In the silence before the song.

‘Many eyes go through the meadow,
but few see the flowers in it.’
– Ralph Waldo Emerson

The motion of your child, Is called JOY.

Now open your eyes,
They have been closed in many ways
Far too long.
Open your heart and sing your song.
Look around you,
It is the morning of your life.
And like the beautiful and loved Christian hymn,
Morning Has Broken,
gently reminds us:

       God’s recreation of the new day.

Morning has broken like the first morning,
Blackbird has spoken like the first bird.
Praise for the singing,
Praise for the morning,
Praise for them springing fresh from the world.

Sweet the rain’s new fall, sunlit from heaven,
Like the first dew fall on the first grass.
Praise for the sweetness of the wet garden,
Sprung in completeness where his feet pass.

Mine is the sunlight,
Mine is the morning,
Born of the one light Eden saw play.
Praise with elation, praise every morning,
God’s recreation of the new day.

Yes, Morning has broken
Of the new day.
Songwriter: Mark Stevens

     Success has a price!

Happy to be in the moment.

        In love with life.

Recently, I quietly observed a child
Literally dancing, by himself, thinking he was all alone.
I have seen such joy in the actions of a child many times.
With his hands in the air, he was almost in a trance,
Being magically transformed into a life-force
Fascinated by the essence of being, of existence,
Of being in love with life.

It was a beautiful moment to again realize
That someone on this Earth was so joyful, so blissful,
So very, very happy at simply being,
Being in the here and now of being alive.
I cannot describe the joy it brought to my heart.
For a few moments, I too, was celebrating existence,
Happy to be in the moment.

  Joy still resides within.

Much of what we construe to be
Overly active children at play,
Is simply a beautiful
Celebration of Life.

We enjoyed the swimming pool.

We may think this is a matter of perspective, point of view.
No.
It is ontologically significant.
It is a matter of knowing what is REAL.

We toured the National Museum of the Pacific War.

It is disturbing to me, and many of you,
To discover so little understanding
About our children.
Those that are highly active
Are NOT in need of harmful and addictive,
Cancer causing chemical substances, like Ritalin,
To make them appear compliant, docile and almost comatose.
Why would you want to pour some chemical substance,
That you know next to absolutely nothing about,
On the Fire of their precious Life?

Lady Diana is looking for new experiences including the sinking of an enemy ship.

Some 40 years after the drug was first marketed,
carcinogenicity tests were conducted by
The National Toxicology Program,
The results of which were published in 1995.
Adult mice were fed Ritalin over a two-year period
At dosages close to those prescribed to children.
The mice developed a statistically significant incidence
Of liver abnormalities and tumors,
Including highly aggressive rare cancers
Known as hepatoblastomas.

How do I know Riley is going to make a great Daddy?

These findings are particularly disturbing
As the tests were conducted on adult,
Rather than young mice which would be expected
To be much more sensitive to carcinogenic effects.
The National Toxicology Program concluded that Ritalin
Is a “possible human carcinogen,”
The Food and Drug Administration admitted
That these findings signal “carcinogenic potential,”.
Well, the F. D. A. did
Keep Thalidomide off the market in this country.

Mrs. A has what is called, “High Expectations”!

Another study at the University of Texas Medical Branch
At Galveston found that every one of a dozen children
Treated for attention deficit/ hyperactivity disorder
With methylphenidate (RITALIN)
Experienced a threefold increase
In levels of chromosome abnormalities –
Occurrences associated with increased risks of cancer.

“Do the levels of chromosome abnormalities go back to normal?”
“We don’t know.”
Said Randa A. El-Zein, M.D., Ph.D.,
Assistant professor of epidemiology
At M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. read more

Hang in there, it’s not going to get easier!

There is also suggestive evidence that Ritalin
Induces genetic damage in the blood cells
Of Ritalin-treated children.
A study published in Biological Psychiatry 
(Biol Psychiatry 60:1121�1130, 2006. Wang L., et al.)
Suggests that exposure of Ritalin in youth
May later disrupt development of brain cells.

There are ALSO concerns regarding
The higher rates of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder,
As well as increased severity of these disorders in individuals
with a history of stimulant use for ADHD in childhood.

           Thalidomide resulted in horrendous and heartbreaking results. Be careful what you take and what you give to your precious children.

Folks, are you getting the picture?
Well, just type Ritalin and Cancer
Into a search engine.
Be prepared to get physically ill,
As you discover that MILLIONS
Of our precious children have been recklessly
Exposed to this horrible substance.

It reminds me of the Thalidomide tragedy,
(Photos above and below)
a drug first marketed
As an over-the-counter sedative:
It came to be used by pregnant women
In many countries during the late 1950s and early 1960s
To get a good night’s rest and
As a treatment for morning sickness. read more

Yes, Mother slept very well, and never got another good night’s sleep after the baby was born.

I cannot even begin to tell you of the horrendous and heartbreaking results of taking this best selling sleeping pill.
see more here

My dear friends,
If you possess a substance prescribed for your precious child
in order to change what is really normal behavior,
I beg you to return it to the pharmacist.

We toured the Nation Museum of the Pacific War.

Hand it back to that person and ask him or her
If they would be willing to take this drug long term.
The look you see on their face should have been
Yours,
When you refused to purchase it.
Now, ask that person to dispose of it properly,
In your presence,
So that it is not sold to some other uninformed parent.
And ask him or her to give you your money back.
This step is very important
Because MONEY is the driving force
Behind pushing these dangerous substances
(just as it was for the sale of Thalidomide).

I just thought I would drop in and see how you are doing.

Common Side Effects of Ritalin include:
Addiction
Nervousness including agitation, anxiety and irritability
Trouble sleeping (insomnia)
Decreased appetite
Headache
Stomach ache
Nausea
Dizziness
Heart palpitations

Other Serious Side Effects Include:
Slowing of growth (height and weight) in children
Seizures, mainly in patients with a history of seizures
Eyesight changes or blurred vision

These nameless students are in the Cave Without a Name.

Other Side Effects include (Hey, the list just goes on, and on):
High blood pressure
Rapid pulse rate (and other heart problems)
Tolerance (constant need to raise the dose)
Feelings of suspicion and paranoia
Visual hallucinations (seeing things that are not there,
probably including having a future!)
Depression
Cocaine craving
Dermatoses (infected or diseased skin)
Urinary tract infection
Infection or viral infection
Elevated ALT enzyme levels in the blood
(signaling liver damage) read more

Next time we will try something difficult!

ADVENTURE TRIP

We had a great time.
Our sincere gratitude to Gina Moreland
for planning this awesome, adventuresome trip.
Thank you again!

And my gratitude to Alexander Anderson for his,
as ever, kind assistance.

And my appreciation to Bruce Rodgers
For helping in so many ways.

And thanks to Riley Smelley
for your many efforts at assisting us.

And thank you students and parents,
One and all,
For the many acts of
Kindness and patience and compassion.

You are all deeply Loved and sincerely appreciated.

Why French Kids Don’t Have ADHD / ROLLERLAND WEST

Now, I think Dr. A is this old!

French parents believe that hearing the word “no”
rescues children from the
“tyranny of their own desires.”

The following information is intended to supplement, not substitute for, the expertise and judgment of your physician, pharmacist or healthcare professional.

(This information is from, “French children don’t need medications        to control their behavior”. Published on March 8, 2012                             by Marilyn Wedge, Ph.D. in Suffer the Children. click here to read full article)

In the United States, at least 9% of school-aged children have been diagnosed with ADHD / ADD, and are taking pharmaceutical medications. But in France, the percentage of kids medicated for ADHD is less than one half of one percent (.5%). Why has the epidemic of ADHD / ADD in the United States almost completely passed over children in France?

In the United States, psychiatrists consider ADHD to be a biological disorder with the preferred treatment also biological–psycho stimulant medications such as Ritalin and Adderall.

Michael and Bailey enjoyed their time at the Monnig Meteorite Gallery at T. C. U.

French child psychiatrists, on the other hand, view ADHD as a medical condition that has psycho-social and situational causes. Instead of treating children’s focusing and behavioral problems with drugs, French doctors prefer to look for the underlying issue that is causing the child distress—not in the child’s brain but in the child’s social context. They then choose to treat the underlying social context problem with psychotherapy or family counseling. This is a very different way of seeing things from the American tendency to attribute all symptoms to a biological dysfunction such as a chemical imbalance in the child’s brain.

French child psychiatrists don’t use the same system of classification of childhood emotional problems as American psychiatrists. They do not use the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders or DSM. According to Sociologist Manuel Vallee, the French Federation of Psychiatry developed an alternative classification system. The focus of this system (CFTMEA) is on identifying and addressing the underlying psychosocial causes of children’s symptoms, not on finding the best pharmacological bandaids with which to mask symptoms.

Information is sometimes found in strange places

To the extent that French clinicians are successful at finding and repairing what has gone awry in the child’s social context, fewer children qualify for the ADHD diagnosis. Moreover, the definition of ADHD is not as broad as in the American system, which, in my view, tends to “pathologize” much of what is normal childhood behavior. The DSM specifically does not consider underlying causes. It thus leads clinicians to give the ADHD diagnosis to a much larger number of symptomatic children, while also encouraging them to treat those children with pharmaceuticals.

The French holistic, psychosocial approach also allows for considering nutritional causes for ADHD symptoms – specifically the fact that the behavior of some children is worsened after eating foods with artificial colors, certain preservatives, and/or allergens. Clinicians who work with troubled children in this country—not to mention parents of many ADHD kids—are well aware that dietary interventions can sometimes help a child’s problem. In the United States, the strict focus on pharmaceutical treatment of ADHD, however, encourages clinicians to ignore the influence of dietary factors on children’s behavior.

And then, of course, there are the vastly different philosophies of child-rearing in the United States and France. These divergent philosophies could account for why French children are generally better-behaved than their American counterparts. Pamela Druckerman highlights the divergent parenting styles in her recent book, “Bringing up Bébé”. I believe her insights are relevant to a discussion of why French children are not diagnosed with ADHD in anything like the numbers we are seeing in the United States.

Kylie enjoys having her puppy with her.

From the time their children are born, French parents provide them with a firm cadre—the word means “frame” or “structure.” Children are not allowed, for example, to snack whenever they want. Mealtimes are at four specific times of the day. French children learn to wait patiently for meals, rather than eating snack foods whenever they feel like it. French babies, too, are expected to conform to limits set by parents and not by their crying selves. French parents let their babies “cry it out” if they are not sleeping through the night at the age of four months.

French parents, Druckerman observes, love their children just as much as American parents. They give them piano lessons, take them to sports practice, and encourage them to make the most of their talents. But French parents have a different philosophy of discipline. Consistently enforced limits, in the French view, make children feel safe and secure. Clear limits, they believe, actually make a child feel happier and safer—something that is congruent with my own experience as both a therapist and a parent. Finally, French parents believe that hearing the word “no” rescues children from the “tyranny of their own desires.”

As a therapist who works with children, it makes perfect sense to me that French children don’t need medications to control their behavior because they learn self-control early in their lives. The children grow up in families in which the rules are well-understood, and a clear family hierarchy is firmly in place. In French families parents are firmly in charge of their kids – instead of the American family style, in which the situation is all too often vice versa.

Marilyn Wedge is the author of “Pills Are Not for Preschoolers: A Drug-Free Approach for Troubled Kids”. I highly recommend this publication.

Website:MarilynWedgephd.com. Twitter: marilyn Wedge

Forty years after the drug was first marketed, carcinogenicity (cancer) tests were conducted by the National Toxicology Program, the results of which were published in 1995. Adult mice were fed Ritalin over a two-year period at dosages close to those prescribed to children. The mice developed a statistically significant incidence of liver abnormalities and tumors, including highly aggressive rare cancers known as hepatoblastomas.

The Physicians’ Desk Reference admits evidence on the carcinogenicity of Ritalin.

Apart from cancer risks, there is also suggestive evidence that Ritalin induces genetic damage in blood cells of Ritalin-treated children.

Methylphenidate (Ritalin, Ritalin SR, Ritalin LA, Concerta, Methylin, Methylin ER, Metadate CD, Metadate ER) prescribed for the treatment of ADHD and Narcolepsy), is classified by our government as a psychoactive drug with cocaine and morphine because it is highly addictive.

The long term effects of methylphenidate on the developing brain are

Alden enjoys reading                about meteorites.

unknown. Methylphenidate is derived from amphetamines, a powerful class of stimulant drugs, and is known on the street as rids, pineapple, uppers, jif, vitamin R and R-ball. Whatever its name, methylphenidate (Ritalin,etc.) is the pharmaceutical equivalent to cocaine.

Even under a physician’s care, methylphenidate addiction can occur because this medication is a highly addictive stimulant drug that works by increasing the dopamine levels in your brain. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), dependency can occur whether the medication is taken under a physician’s supervision or when it is taken recreationally, because your body becomes tolerant to the drug and higher dosages are required to achieve the same high.

In the United States, methylphenidate is classified by the Drug Enforcement Agency as a Schedule II controlled substance with a high potential for abuse. This classification is because of methylphenidate’s high addictive potential. When crushed and snorted, methylphenidate can have the same effects as cocaine in terms of the high it produces. This euphoria is highly addictive.

Methylphenidate addiction treatment is necessary when patients who have taken this medication to treat ADHD, suddenly develop seizures or hypertension. Methylphenidate addiction treatment must begin with detoxification. Methylphenidate detox is the process in which the patient stops using the drug abruptly, and as a result withdrawal symptoms occur. Because methylphenidate is often taken for long periods of time, the likelihood of physical or psychological dependence is high.

Stimulants like methylphenidate can also increase blood pressure, body temperature and heart rate to dangerous levels, and long term repeated use can further lead to acts of hostility and feelings of paranoia. At higher doses, methylphenidate can cause cardiovascular problems such as strokes.

Touching is believing!

Texas researchers have found that after just three months, every one of a dozen children treated for attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) with the drug methylphenidate experienced a threefold increase in levels of chromosome abnormalities—occurrences associated with increased risks of cancer and other adverse health effects. Here is but one of the others:

Chromosome Abnormalities Raise Risk for Autism. Autism is growing at epidemic proportions, and so is the money being dedicated to genetic studies like this. According to one study, published Jan. 9 in the online edition of the New England Journal of Medicine, a section of chromosome 16 is deleted or duplicated in about 1 percent of people with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). About 15 percent of autism cases have known genetic causes. This latest paper follows closely on the heels of another study, which was published in the Dec. 21 online issue of Human Molecular Genetics, that found the exact same deletion was significantly associated with autism.

Researchers at The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston and the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston (UTMB) reported their detection of the chromosome abnormalities in the journal Cancer Letters.

The researchers say that, to their knowledge, this is the first study addressing the potential chromosome-breaking effects associated with treatment of children with methylphenidate, the generic name for a group of drugs that includes Ritalin, Concerta, Metadate CD and others.

Most of the abnormalities found in the studied blood cells consisted of chromosome breaks “and a higher frequency of aberrations is reported to be associated with an increased risk of cancer down the line,” said lead author Randa A. El-Zein, M.D., Ph.D., an assistant professor of epidemiology at M.D. Anderson, who performed the blood studies

Concerns on Ritalin’s cancer risk are more acute in view of the millions of children treated annually with the drug and the escalating incidence of childhood cancer, by some 35% over the last few decades, quite apart from delayed risks of cancer in adult life. These risks are compounded by the availability of alternative safe and effective procedures, notably behavior modification and biofeedback.

There is no justification for prescribing Ritalin, even by highly qualified pediatricians and psychiatrists, unless parents have been explicitly informed of the drug’s cancer risks. Otherwise, prescribing Ritalin constitutes unarguable medical malpractice. This statement is from Samuel S. Epstein, M.D., emeritus Professor Environmental Medicine, University of Illinois School of Public Health, Chicago, and Chairman, Cancer Prevention Coalition.

My gratitude to Mr. Wes Oliver, Vice President of Robert W. Baird & Co.
Private Wealth Management, for bringing this
valuable information to our attention. Dr. and Mrs. Anderson are proud to recommend Wes Oliver to you for assistance with financial management and counseling. You may contact Wes at
woliver@rwbaird.com

               “There is no present or future, only the past,                 happening over and over again, now. “
– EUGENE O’NEILL, A Moon for the Misbegotten

Our docent, Nona Batiste, was wonderful

Due to popular demand and pleading looks from Mary Alice, coupled with a general feeling of excitement, we will meet at 10:00 a.m. at ROLLERLAND WEST, located at 7325 Calmont Avenue –Telephone: 817-244-8290. At approximately 11:15 a.m. will we will travel to McKinley’s Fine Bakery & Café, 1616 South University Drive, (817) 332-3242 to enjoy lunch. Following lunch we will travel to the Barnes and Noble Book Store one block south of the Hulen Shopping Center, 4801 Overton Ridge Blvd. Suite 100, Fort Worth – Telephone Number: (817) 346-2368.

Pickup will be at 2:30 p.m. at the Bookstore.

Emergency Telephone Number: 682-777-1908

If you arrive late, we shall have departed with your child(ren) and will drop them off at Good Will or Bad Will, depending upon their behavior, or return to school. Please call and let us know if you will be late and if you want them back.

Students are NOT to leave Rollerland, the restaurant or bookstore without the approval of Dr. or Mrs. Anderson.

FINANCIAL: Rollerskating $10.00 (Please pay Dr. A.) and lunch. Refreshments available: Yes! You may wish to purchase a book.

Uniform pants with a belt & red monogrammed school shirts are required.

PARENTS / FRIENDS / RELATIVES are invited to participate on our trips.

         IMPORTANT DATES
Jan. 24                              Fort Worth Stock Show
Jan. 20 (Mon.)                 Dr. M. L. King Holiday
Feb. 1                                Tuition Deposit Due for 2014-15
Feb. 17 (Mon.)                President’s Day Holiday
Mar. 10-14                       Spring Break Holidays                        

A. n . d . e . r . s . o . n
Where precocious children are nurtured, appreciated & from time to time,        rollerskate!