Click here to view the photo slideshow from the Q&A with John Morton & John-Roger on May 22nd.
Saturday, May 22, 2004 was beautiful in Santa Barbara for the Surfin’ 60’s Q&A with the Travelers. We were blessed to have John-Roger and John Morton join us and share with us how we, individually and as a group, can bring peace more present in our lives. This event was sponsored by The Institute for Individual and World Peace (IIWP) and held most graciously at the home of Irwin and Marilyn Carasso.
We started off the day with a buffet lunch, some “Surfin’ 60’s” inspired music, and getting some time to catch up with old friends and find some new ones too. Mark Lurie, our very own surfer-dude MC, called us forward into the Light, and introduced the program for the day. Many people chose to sit in lawn chairs or on blankets on the soft grass, basking in the sun. While other people chose the lazy shade of a tree to relax and listen to the sharing.
After calling in the Light, we were entertained by a variety of songs with Jsu Garcia, Eric Lumiere, and Jeff Morgan serving as our talent. There were some original pieces, sung straight from the heart, as well as some more well known selections that put a smile on our faces. Their performances were greeted and appreciated with applause and laughter.
Then, it was time to get down to the business — Questions and Answers with J-R and John, to guide us into the heart of God. They took our questions from the lawn, sitting under the shade of a tree with all of us sitting around them. I had this image of Jesus on the mount that I couldn’t get out of my head. There they were, and there we all were sitting around them, listening on our headsets as one by one people stood up to ask their questions. I also thought about what people have told me about the “old days” of sharing with the Travelers, intimate, sitting around at someone’s house. I wondered if this was anything like that, this closeness of them being right in the middle of all of us.
This report would not be complete without mentioning the children. Throughout the day, there were children everywhere! They were playing and screaming and laughing and running around, and on more than one occasion there were some grown-ups mixed in there, throwing a football or rolling around on the grass. That reminded me of going to one of my big family reunions, and in a sense this felt like that too. One big family, gathered to share in the loving with each other.
The sun was shining brightly and we were getting warmed from the inside out. There was this cool breeze off the ocean that balanced with the heat from the sun — it was gorgeous, inspiring peace from within with the words spoken so gently and lovingly through air. Whispering: God Bless. I love you. Peace, be still. We were there sharing with J-R and John. I can’t image a better way to spend my Saturday. Thank you all for making this possible.
