This is a Slide-Show which is used with music in my Community Cohesion workshops. I can provide with music on a DVD from my website. The slide-show takes 20 minutes and contains over 200 slides. It introduces life on the planet, family and friends before exploring some causes of suffering - war, poverty and global warming. Some images are disturbing so I would not show this to anyone under 14 years of age. It is really designed for KS4 and older. Anyone who would like a workshop - and my workshops really do make a difference - can contact me on info@bluelotus.co see our website - www.bluelotus.co

1. Part One Reflections on Life Blue Lotus Enterprises

3. ‘ Reflections on Life’ explores many of the timeless themes and great diversities which weave together to make up the rich and amazing experience we call life. Reflections on Life

4. 'Reflections on Life' Part 1 consists of 220 slides – some are images, others include text. Viewing time excluding 3 minute introduction is 20 minutes .

5. Many of the images in Reflections on Life come from our own photographs. Others have been gathered from many sources. A full list of credits is being prepared. We hope that all whose photographs have been used will be happy and proud to be included in this free download - but should any copyright questions arise we will be happy to make any adjustments necessary. Acknowledgements

6. The images have been chosen to include a great range of ages and races, socio-economic backgrounds, abilities, cultures and religions etc. – to affirm and embrace something of the glorious variety of life which we all experience here on earth. 'Reflections on Life'

11. Note – a few non-English words appear on some slides. Translations can be found on the website. Reflections on Life Reflections on Life

13. “ Music gives soul to the universe wings to the mind flight to the imagination and life to everything" Plato

14. … Aum ~ Shanti ~ Shanti ~ Shanti ~ Aum…

19. In the beginning was the Word. And the Word was with God and the Word was God…. The Gospel of John ch 1

23. “ The unexamined life is not worth living.” Socrates

29. There are two ways to live: you can live as if nothing is a miracle; or you can live as if everything is a miracle. Albert Einstein

35. “ If you don't love yourself, you cannot love others. You will not be able to love others. If you have no compassion for yourself then you are not able to develop compassion for others.” Dalai Lama

38. Nothing is more precious than peace. Peace is the most basic starting point for the advancement of humankind. Daisaku Ikeda

45. Peace may sound simple – one beautiful word – But it requires everything we have, every quality, every strength, every dream, every high ideal. Yehudi Menuhin (1916-1999)

51. The first peace, which is the most important, is that which comes within the souls of people when they realize their relationship, their oneness with the universe and all its powers, and when they realize that at the centre of the universe dwells the Great Spirit, and that this centre is really everywhere, it is within each of us. Black Elk (1863-1950)

63. Each soul Is a leaf Of God’s Universal Heart- Tree. Sri Chinmoy

67. We hold these truths to be self evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Thomas Jefferson

87. You can't separate peace from freedom because no one can be at peace unless he has his freedom. Malcolm X (1925-1965)

92. There is no trust more sacred than the one the world holds with children. There is no duty more important than ensuring that their rights are respected, that their welfare is protected, that their lives are free from fear and want and that they grow up in peace. Kofi Annan

107. Treat the earth well. It was not given to you by your parents, it was loaned to you by your children. We do not inherit the Earth from our Ancestors, we borrow it from our Children. Ancient Indian Proverb

124. "Traditional people of Indian nations have interpreted the two roads that face the light-skinned race as the road to technology and the road to spirituality. We feel that the road to technology.... has led modern society to a damaged and seared earth……

125. Could it be that the road to technology represents a rush to destruction, and that the road to spirituality represents the slower path that the traditional native people have travelled …? William Commanda, Mamiwinini, Canada, 1991

132. The issue of climate change is one that we ignore at our own peril…. what we can be scientifically certain of is that our continued use of fossil fuels is pushing us to a point of no return. And unless we free ourselves from a dependence on these fossil fuels and chart a new course on energy… we are condemning future generations to global catastrophe. Barack Obama

135. Hope and Urgency “Now it is up to us to make moral choices to change the policies and behaviours that would, if continued, leave a degraded, diminished and hostile planet for our children and grandchildren and humankind.” Al Gore

140. Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter. Martin Luther King Jr

153. Peace is the generous, tranquil contribution of all to the good of all. Peace is dynamism. Peace is generosity. It is right and it is duty. Bishop Oscar Romero (1917-1980)

159. Real peace is not just the absence of conflict It is the presence of justice. Andrew Marlowe

164. Oneness is the only need. We can establish oneness Only when we become The soulful life of peace And The fruitful heart of love. Sri Chinmoy (10,000 Flower-Flame series 1418)

172. Peace cannot be kept by force. It can only be achieved by understanding. Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

179. “ If not me, who? And if not now, when?” Mikhail Gorbachev

190. “ I am not bound to win, but I am bound to be true. I am not bound to succeed, but I am bound to live by the light that I have. I must stand with anybody that stands right, and stand with him while he is right, and part with him when he goes wrong.” Abraham Lincoln

201. “ I love those who can smile in trouble, who can gather strength from distress, and grow brave by reflection. 'Tis the business of little minds to shrink, but they whose heart is firm, and whose conscience approves their conduct, will pursue their principles unto death” Leonardo da Vinci

211. He said, “ Sh... Let silence Tell you the secrets of the world.” Mevlana Jelaluddin Rumi (1207 – 12 73 ) Secretly we spoke, that Wise One and me. I said, “ Tell me the secrets of the world.”

219. Continued in Part Two

220. In Part One we have seen some of the pain as well as the beauty that life can bring. The focus is on the need for peace, justice and environmental balance. In Part Two we focus on questions such as – How can we find peace in this fractured world? – and Faced with all the complexities of life, what is the best way to respond?