Appendix Twelve

Here is a little about bill

Here is a little bit about bill, and it’s about You too! Whoever You are, and it’s about the capacities inside All of us, no exceptions, no one left out; the choices and possibilities, available to each and every one of us, in every moment. We are All capable, able and powerful, with the ability to choose, change and create A World That Works for Everyone… Now back to “bill” small “b,” You and A World That Works for Everyone…

White Armband

“Those who wear a white armband are committed to A World That Works for Everyone, the divinity of each human being, are willing to die for and never intentionally damage another human being.

The cost in a democracy will be small – perhaps laughter, perhaps ridicule at first, perhaps loss of a job or a “friendship that wasn’t.”

In a dictatorship, the cost is likely to be lives at first. Those committed to an ideal – though no organization or government – may die because they desire peace and service to others more than allegiance to a form of state.

The time has come for each of us as individual and as planet to rise to a higher plane: “A World That Works for Everyone.”

Is the action you are about to take going to move us closer to this goal?

“bill” wrote the above text. As long as i have known him he has worn a White Armband. He is one of the few people i am blessed to know who truly lives their life’s path. What do i mean by “life’s path?” I have asked bill often to share the stories of his life with me. I love to listen and he is happy to indulge my keen interest. All his stories have one thing in common, A World That Works for Everyone. He may not have always called it that, but right from childhood on, that’s what he has been about. As a child he cringed every time he heard the racist language of his parents, even though he was unaware of what the words meant, he knew he didn’t like it when they were spoken around him. In high school he got teased for working his arse off for more causes than i can count.  Someone’s path is that which resonates its musical notes throughout our lives. If we choose to listen, be disciplined and follow the song that resonates most strongly within us, it can guide us through many adventures.  “bill” always says as he looks back, he is thankful at his age that there are few doors he didn’t choose to walk through.  I recently asked bill to make me a white armband. I now wear a white armband because A World That Works for Everyone is possible. I’ve decided to make my life about creating it.

In case you would like to make one for yourself as well, a white armband doesn’t need to be made of anything fancy, a wide piece of elastic and 2 safety pins will do it. Whatever you choose to do in the world, it is how you choose to Be that will ultimately change everything.

Beingness can be felt, in the way we choose to connect with each other and ourselves. It can be felt in the wordless space, emanating from our very presence. It can be seen in the light that is in our eyes. It can be felt in our presence, no matter what the words are, whether they are I love you or not. If we are internally in the space of loving-kindness, the words become more than words, they become a healing balm, to whom ever we interact with. We each have the opportunity, to live our lives from a ground of being that blesses all those we interact with. If we choose in each moment to speak from the very depths of our being, our lives become a living blessing.

This is Katie Abbott and bill cumming.

Katie wrote a lovely introduction about how she met bill:

“Meet Bill. This is us this morning. In our happy place, side by side, or more likely, me laying on the sofa, Bill at the table with his computer. Happily together. Sometimes stopping to talk and reflect, other times just enjoying the shared space.

I met Bill 8 years ago in New York City and since that time our lives have become inexplicably interwoven. 

Bill’s presence is his greatest teaching. The way he offers his soul unconditionally. The way he treats his every environment. The way each person he passes on this street is his family. His endless generosity. His kindness and grace. 

I often joke and say it is like being friends with Mahatma Gandhi. The experience of being in the presence of a true revolutionary. Someone who has given their life to be of service to others. To walk the walk in this way is no mean feat. It is rare. Completely alive and completely of service to others. With every breath.

It is a privilege to love and to know someone whose commitment to a world that works for everyone infuses every detail of their being.

Bill, you are my friend, my mentor and my appreciation of you exists beyond words. Thank you x x x“

So, what is important about what Katie wrote? From my point of view what is important is bill (small b to be explained in a moment) is no fluke. He is a walking talking example of choice. He isn’t any different than you or me in his capacity to access a ground of being within that is within all of us. Nor were any of the people who created great change in any time period, in the vast myriad of the world’s history. They were all someone, just like the person sitting in your chair. I shared this because, i believe it is important for us to look at who we all are and can be. That it is important to realize, we are simply a series of choices away from a new experience in life, from being able to gift the world, no matter what it is we choose to do with our lives, no matter what our life’s circumstances are. One of my favorite quotes from Victor Frankl:

 “The last of the human freedoms: to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way. And there were always choices to make. Every day, every hour, offered the opportunity to make a decision, a decision which determined whether you would or would not submit to those powers which threatened to rob you of your very self, your inner freedom; which determined whether or not you become the plaything to circumstance, renouncing freedom and dignity…”

This quote was written in Auschwitz after his family had been gassed. . . bill is a very humble man, and no doubt once he sees what i have written, he will tell me it’s too much about him; he just saw it and indeed said “It is WAY too Much!”…This part of the preface, is meant to be a small glimpse into the capacity we all have to live boldly, to choose our own path, to make a difference, no matter who we are, what circumstances we come from or what circumstances we are currently in. No one can ever take away from us, our choices, of how we choose to be in each moment… So back around the bend, why is it that bill prefers his name written with a small “b” and would rather the English language start using a small “i” instead of a capital one.

Here is a mindful moment of his that i feel explains it well:

“The Small Letter (i)

Of late, i have been experimenting with using the small letter i instead of capitalizing it.

As i do that, it must be corrected each time it occurs because the computer wants it to be a capital I.

Using the small i reminds me each and every time that i am simply one in a family of 7,632,819,325 people (estimate for July 2018).

It seems to put me in perspective.”