The Reality of Life

By Dollar Johannas

The Reality of Life is a bold and blatantly honest work on human nature, empowerment and self discovery. Written in a tough love style, Johannas challenges the reader to question everything that life is or could be. Each short essay or article is written to generate emotion and question why. Unrelenting in a sharp pen approach, Johannas tears into Religion, Politics, Sex, Wealth, Family and all the encompasses life. This is no Grandpa Walton but rather a hearty bowl of chicken soup seasoned heavily with Tabasco.

Johannas will incite the reader to anger, laughter, tears and in the end offer a wonderfully story. The main purpose of this work is to get the reader to question and think "What If".

The work is well organized in short articles all reflecting different aspects of life and the entire book is meant to be read straight through. Johannas presents a world full of vivid color yet writes aggressively and without remorse.

Yet the Reality of Life echos a tender spirit. The book is straight forward and makes no demands of the reader other than consider a different point of view. Reading this material will be difficult at times and perhaps hit a nerve.

No matter where the reader maybe one life's journey, the book offers ideas of merit and purpose. Johannas does not hold back on the complex development of human nature. The entire work is a journey to self discovery.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Dollar Johannas
• Release date: Jul 11, 2012
• ISBN: 9781476013220

Dollar Johannas

Dollar Johannas is professionally employed as a successful registered representative for one of Wall Street's most respected wire houses. After earning his degree in Economics with minors & advanced study in Physics, Environmental Science and Psychology, Dollar started his career at the Department of Energy with extensive interaction at various National Laboratories. This allowed Dollar to work among some of the brightest minds in Science. Dollar traveled the world and experienced many cultures, ideas, governments, religions and people. Seeing the world through the eyes of so many different human beings lead to an awakening. Dollar left Federal Service to pursue his interest in Wall Street as this is a profession where one can help another in a profound way. Known as "the Lama" by friends and colleges, Dollar's experiences in life lead to the publication of his first e book, The Reality of Life. Dollar is a amateur motorcycle builder and racer, is fitness minded with years of weight training and loves art & music as ways to unwind. Dollar has been happily married to a wonderful nurse for over 21 years and has 2 children & 2 dogs. The family makes residence in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Please feel free to contact Dollar at [e-mail]

Book preview

Introduction

So the title caught your eye, The Reality of Life and you were slightly curious to find out what this material is all about. Well, first off, let me say thank you for considering this book. This is my first book that I have written and decided to have it e-published. In these pages, we will discuss many different topics including religion, politics, sex, finances, kids, family, debt, illness, God and numerous other little tidbits that make up the reality of life.

So who am I? Why should you care about what I have to say about life, how to live it or not live it? Well you don’t. I have no responsibility to convince anyone on anything. You will create your own life good or bad. Likewise you will learn one way or another that you will need to be accountable for all aspects of your life and not just bits & pieces. You can read this book and embrace its concepts or use its pages to soak up a spill that you’re crying two year old just dumped on the floor. That choice is up to you but before you deep six my epic; here is a little food for thought.

Numerous people of substance have suggested to me that I have some rather interesting takes on the processes of life. Some have said that I may have a good story to tell. Some have told me that I must have had a number of past lives. It appears that I have a number of choice little nuggets regarding this world and it has been suggested by many, over the years that I should get these printed, arrange them in short stories, articles or essays and let the world digest them. This is not to say that my words or writings are flawless as this is not intellectual furniture. Consider it more on the lines of grandma’s homemade chicken soup seasoned heavily with Tabasco sauce. I reserve the right to be in error. I am very far from perfect and I admit this openly. I am for more interested in generating a reaction, to get you thinking in a different way. To consider-what if? The contents presented here are a means to an end. Don’t take this as indulgent or self-serving on my part. I give no advice, as that is not my place. This book is not my memoirs. I relate stories about others and myself I have known to stress an objective. I use a pen name and my photo is not on the cover by design for I did not write this for me. It is not about me, it is about you. I present ideas, arguments, issues, forethought, love, lust, hate, anger, compassion and all of it the makes up the human experience.

My name is Dollar Johannas. I am married, and have 2 great kids, one boy (Spencer) and one girl (Chloe). Yes, their names are cool. I have been married over 22 years and have known my wife for over 37 years. We knew each other as kids. I recall never liking her as a kid, but really I do love her now. Her name is Margie; she is a RN/BSN and has worked on a hospital’s Oncology floor for over 13 years. I hold a series 7 & 66 securities license plus a degree in Economics and a minor in Psychology. I also hold an insurance license and a few other financial designations. In addition, I have extensive study in the fields of Physics with a professional certificate of completion in waste management offered by the UNM school of Engineering. This program was offered to PhD candidates in the fields of hard sciences with emphasis in nuclear engineering, waste, surface chemistry and colloid science. I work for a Fortune 100 firm as a Registered Representative for one of the largest Wealth Management firms in the world. That means I am a stockbroker that sells a lot of product, makes plan and goes on the yearly circle of excellence trips. I have great co-workers and some good friends. My kids are sharp, popular, independent, strong and very loving. My wife is a goddess in many ways for she has intelligence, warmth, compassion, and supports many of my ideas and theories. She has reached out to many dying cancer patients when their families did not. She has provided comfort to children as their dying mother turned blue. She has saved patients during a code that had a will to live. Families and doctors have yelled her at too. All nurses are treated badly however, it comes with the job. At graduation, nurses should be handed out a kick me sign. If you are a nurse you know exactly what I am saying. If not, you soon will.

So, you have a rather well educated, independent thinking male as your author that has a few things to discuss with you. Listen, my intent here is to offer you a different spin on the reality of life. I will present to you, my reader, a number of different ideas that you may accept or reject. Before you say that this book is just Johannas’s opinion, consider that every book written is some ones opinion. The ideas in this book do not make up a program or some other self-help series that requires an on going financial commitment. This book and all the thought within it- is what it is. I offer you intelligent ideas to a number of issues and problems that have existed since the dawn of time. After 48 years of living on this Earth, intensive study in the fields of history, politics, hard science, religion, finances and human spirit, I can speak with a trained, open mind. I will not sugar coat anything here. If my writings give you peace, understanding, appreciation and/or perception, then consider this book an investment that you made in yourself. If my ideas, on the other hand, really get you angry and upset, I make no apologies for I speak fact based on objective study. Truly, I do not give a damn if you are offended. Hence there is a fair amount of tough love throughout this entire book. This is no Grandpa Walton. Again, I present reality, not a fairy tale. If you have a black and white viewpoint of the world, you will find this material personally challenging. This writing has a very strong spin on spiritually yet is not a book on spiritually exclusively. It is a book on being human; its nature and experiences.

Everyday I see how humankind failed itself. How elected officials misuse the trust given to them. How priests molest children. How parents abandon their kids. How adults misuse drugs, fall into debt; make excuses for the life they feel that is owed to them as an entitlement. The list goes on and on.

I also see the joy of children, the compassion of nurses, the unconditional love of animals, human determination, the will to live, love of the young, kindness of the elderly and the magnificence of the stars. This list never goes on long enough.

This work is not a self-help book rather it is a self-awareness exercise. It can be read as a series of independent chapters or essays yet will be clearer if read as a complete work. If one reader has a change in attitude, thought and/or conciseness, than this work found ultimate purpose. Likewise, if one reader becomes outraged at the ideas within, that is fine as you are always free to believe whatever works for you. I will present a series of ideas and arguments on numerous subjects for your consideration. These ideas are certainly not mine in their entirety but some are my thoughts that I have developed. Many people have influenced the developed of The Reality of Life, mostly indirectly yet I will give credit where credit is deserved. With that said, I would like to acknowledge the following individuals, in this partial list, that have influenced me and this writing:

Family

Margie, my wife

Spencer, my son

Chloe, my daughter

Licorice, my toy poodle

Mr. Stedman Todd, my miniature daschaud

Teachers, Humanitarians and Spiritual Influences

Jesus, Enlighten teacher

Martin Luther King, Civil Rights Leader

Mahatma Gandhi, Humanitian

Mother Theresa, Humanitarian

Charles Fillmore, Co-Founder of Unity

Eric Butterworth, Unity Minister, Highly Spiritual Writer

Rumi, Sufi Mystic and Enlightener of the Soul

Public Television (PBS) - Nature, Nova, Frontline, Charlie Rose & the like

Independent Media Sources

Inventors, Mathematicians, Scientists, and Business Icons

Bill Gates, Founder of Microsoft and Philanthropist

Albert Einstein, Genius

Nikola Tesla, Inventor and Underrated Genius

Carl Sagan, Author, Physicist

Al Greenspan, Economist

Vince McMahon, CEO of the WWE, Visionary, and Business Icon

Oprah Winfrey, Business Icon, TV Personality, Philanthropist and Kind Spirit

Sales Managers, Trainers and Motivational Speakers

Tom Reed, The Greatest Salesman I have ever worked with

Marshall Sylver, Motivational Speaker, author and reprogramming genius

Marc Martinez, Friend & for surviving 9/11 with courage to face the world.

Artists, Musicians, Play Writers, Poets and Philosophers

Salvador Dali, Artist

Walt Disney, Dreamer, Visionary and Creator of Magic

Bruce Springsteen, Musician and Story Teller

Tom Petty, The Great Sage.

Sting, Musician and Poet

Ovid, Poet

Dante, Play Write and Poet

Aristotle, Philosopher

Euclid, Developer of Geometry and Philosopher

William Shakespeare, Play Writer

Earl Klugh, Musician

Plato, Philosopher

Johnny Cash, Musical Genius and Embracer of Life

Joan Jett, Musician and Sexual Energy

KISS, still the best band in the world!

World Leaders

Bill Clinton, Former President of the United States

Jimmy Carter, Former President of the United States

Abe Lincoln, Former President of the United States

Nelson Mandela, Reformer of a Crushed World, Believer of People

Winston Churchill, Savior of Europe

Barack Obama, Current President of the United States

I have numerous other individuals that have inspired me, taught me, and help reach a new understanding within The Reality of Life that the list could fill volumes. I quote and refer to many writers, actors, political figures and numerous others however this does not mean that I buy off on their whole viewpoint on life. It does mean that whatever they said does make sense and is leading towards the point that I am sharing with you, my reader. The point here is that everyone can teach you and/or inspire you in your life’s journey. No one is disposable on this Earth, even the homeless man, who stands at the corner everyday begging for help. He is teaching you too. That wrong decisions or misfortune can visit you as well, anytime, in your life. Or perhaps, he has more wealth than you see or understand. We will spend some time with our friend, the homeless man, later on in the book.

If there is one underlying theme that I am stressing to you today is that the reality of life can be very sweet or extremely bitter. The life you lead is up to you determined directly by your thoughts and the experiences from that determines how sweet or how bitter your 70 plus years on Earth will be. This is referred to as the law of attraction. It shows no partiality. Some call it a secret; others call it the law of mind action. I call it an idea of great merit. Your thoughts are things and become reality. Thoughts and words have power. Positive thoughts put into action yield positive outcomes while negative thoughts yield negative outcomes. Every decision you make has an outcome. If the outcome is not what you wanted, you made an improper decision. Hence reverse your decision and alter the outcome. Now the real world only allows you a limited number of mistakes until the reality of life demands a price from you. Your past will always catch up to you regardless if you desire it to or not. It is my intention to point out where some of the pitfalls occur in life and how to avoid falling in. For once you fall in; it is very difficult to get out. Redemption is an illusion. The reality of life is:

The road to redemption is the longest road of all.

I have written all material in each section and/or essay in a style that fits the topic or more importantly the point that is being stressed within that topic. This leads to a somewhat uneven writing style on my part. Likewise, some of the material presented may be deemed tasteless, inappropriate, crude and/or ill mannered. Other areas of this work may be viewed as sensitive, thoughtful, gentle and well spoken. I can assure you that I wrote The Reality of Life cover to cover. I changed the style to reflect the fact that life can be crude or sweet, gentle or violent and this work stresses this. Again, if you are an individual that cannot withstand a challenge to your belief system, then you will have some issues with this material. Somewhere along the line, due to the industrial and technology revolutions, we have forgotten how to think. The point of this book is really to get the world thinking again. Many of the world’s greatest books were all written before 1920. Let’s look at the stars and wonder what if all over again instead of sitting in front of out Plasma TVs watching reruns of stupid sitcoms. Just give it a chance. Please hold your opinion of the book until the last page.

Again, thank you for allowing me to share some alternative ideas on the reality of life. I realize that there are many quality books that are being released everyday and you can be spending time with another author rather than me. Well, I am really not an author-just a guy who wrote a book. Thank you for your time and attention. With that said, let’s take a different look on the reality of life.

It was once said the every saint has a past and every sinner has a future.

No matter where you are on life’s journey, perhaps this book really does have a

good story to tell, you will need to determine that.

Be well and find your bliss.

Dollar Johannas

Religion

What is God?

In the faces of men and women, I see God

- Walt Whitman

I wanted to start off with some of the most difficult subject matter first to lay some groundwork for the upcoming sections. Mankind’s greatest scholars, writers and thinkers have asked such questions as: What is God? Who is God? Does God exist?

I am going to ask you to set aside everything you have been taught about God. If your religious upbringing has spun around Christianity, then I most sincerely ask for your cooperation on this request. Likewise, if you were raised under Islam or Judaism, I am requesting the same consideration.

God is very difficult for many to understand but the idea of God is not. Mankind has distorted, even perverted the idea of God since written history some 6,000 years ago. I say distorted, for the more research I do with regard to God and the 12 major classical world religions, the more twisted and short sighted I see man’s understanding. Or perhaps, lack of understanding.

The first question to ask here is on the existence of God. Does God exist? My response to that question is yes, God does, in fact exist. But not in the way you have been taught to believe. God is not a noun, as traditional Christianity or other absolute religions would love to tell you. Rather, God is more like a verb. God is quantum by design, not Macro as you have or might have been taught. God is not supernatural. God did not create the universe; rather God is part of the universe. In Rhonda Byrne’s incredible work on the law of attraction, known around the world as The Secret, Dr. Fred Alan Wolf, a quantum physicist and other presenters within the film mention that a scientist will tell you the universe is energy that can never be created or destroyed, while a theologian will tell you that God is energy that can never be created or destroyed. They are the same. Let me clarify.

Christianity paints a misleading, even damning idea of God. Christian history has developed over the years to suggest that God is an old man, in a white robe, sitting with Jesus, in a golden, palace called Heaven. God represents good while Satan (a fallen angle) represents evil. Man, is sinful, at birth and must accept Jesus (born again), in order to be saved and enter Heaven. Or, else burn in Satan’s Kingdom referred to as Hell.

This is simply untrue. You were never born in original sin; you were born in original blessing!!! There is nothing that needs to be washed or cleansed away. You are perfect as you stand in the eyes of God. Jesus never taught original sin that was Saint Augustine’s brainchild in the fourth century. The universe is limitless and everything is here for you. God is limitless and everything that God is is here for you. Remember the law of attraction. You can have everything you want and more, just ask, accept and receive. This is an and world, not a or world. Live your life from a creative mindset instead of a competitive point of view. Since all good is truly limitless, there is no reason to fight for it.

God is not a cartoon or character sketch as Christianity has designed. God is not an old man sitting with Jesus in a piece of spiritual real estate called Heaven. God does not exist out there only. God lives within you now!!! There is no ‘Heaven" lined with gold. No holy land. That is a fairy tail. A spiritual pipedream! The traditional Christian or Islamic God does NOT exist. And never has.

My friends, God lives within you every moment of every day. I am not saying that God is in you like a chocolate chip is in a cookie. Rather, I am suggesting that God is in you now like the ocean is in the wave or air is in the wind. Wherever you are, God is there too. Believe in yourself and you believe in God. Remember, God is not out there in "Heaven’ rather God lives in you now. God is an idea, a conciseness, and a mindset. God is not co-dependent on you. God is not a puppet master. You are not separate from God, you are one. The ground you are standing on is as holy as any dirt in the Middle East.

Here is something to consider. Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor, a very well known and respected Harvard Medical School Brain researcher experienced a major AMV stroke and took 8 years to recover. She is a neuroanatomist currently at the IU school of medicine and is also the spokesperson for the Harvard brain bank. Dr. Taylor’s stroke caused massive damage to the left side of her brain. In her lectures, book and 18-minute video that can be seen at www.TED.com, she explains the vast differences between the left and right hemispheres of the human brain. She suggests, through her own experience, that the right side of the brain plays a vital part in the connection with God. She advocates that mankind should use the right hemisphere much more to find and tap the energy of the universe, which is in fact God. Her story is truly remarkable. Her journey is beyond most near death experiences. Watch the video and it becomes very apparent that here is someone that understands enlightenment from a scientific point of view. Highly enlighten people operate from their right hemisphere more so than their left.

God is life. God instilled a soul (or any term that you wish to call it) into a physical body in which you were born into. The soul knows no right from wrong and is here to simply learn. The physical body knows right from wrong if and only if it is not damaged in some mental capacity. The soul is a rather intangible piece of your body, unlike the heart, lung or brain. I cannot point out your soul any more then I can point out your mind. Consider the soul, less of a noun and more like a verb as well. In a sense, the soul is an electrical conciseness, perhaps from the right hemisphere of the brain, an idea that has been misused. Your being is your soul and it is not a spiritual component in and of itself, rather this intangible or semi-tangible essence is the make up of your being that science has not yet been able to fully understand much like the mind. God is part of your mind and life; it is up to you to make the best of it. God never leaves you and allows you to co-create with God. A moment of shear insight is a moment with the God mind. You and God co-created together. You are not a puppet to God and God is not seeking co-dependence from you. God does not protect you like a father protects his son; rather God gave you insight to protect yourself. God has never been about the details as everything in the Universe is flowing. There is always movement of energy from one form to another. There really are no details. Think of it like this; you are a grain of sand on the beach, surrounded by other grains of sand that offer you some protection from the sea. Yet, should the sea (or universe) come for you, out you go back to sea.

Don’ t belittle God by asking God to help you find a parking space at the mall, help you out of debt, save your relationship with family, or other such non-sense. God is beyond all of that. God is not about responding to needs rather God is about responding to conciseness. God is a part of the everything and you are as well, as both of you is energy. You have tools, given to you by God, to use in your life that will help you find the parking space at the mall, get you out of debt and other such matters. These tools are called intelligence, drive, common sense, will, desire, and tolerance. It is so sad that humankind has perverted God with religious garbage and rituals. God is not here to provide you with anything that you cannot provide for yourself, as you are part of this limitless universe. Instead of begging God in a beseeching prayer, co-create with God through meditation. Listen to God as you would a friend. You are not beneath God. You and God are one. Never fear God. God wants you to co-create with the God mind. This is how you grow, how your soul learns. You are a spiritual being wrapped in a physical body. You can get in touch with the divine by getting out of the way. Keep your mind open and learn to relax, it is here where you and God are joined. Do not give God your wants list in prayer. Listen instead of asking. Meditate! Prayer evaluates hormone levels and leads to clarity of thought.

Human beings are like flowers. The flower has a number of pedals that unfold or peel back in order to show the most beautiful and fragrant part of the flower, which is the center. Human beings have layers, just like the flower has pedals. These layers also need to be peeled back in order to show the true beauty of whom you are. Establish a consciousness with God and these layers will fold back on their own.

If this helps to clarify my point, may I suggest to you where to find God? You see God all the time but you search in your Bible, Torah, Book of Mormon or Quran for answers that are right in front of you. You will see God in the mind of a child prodigy, experience God in the beauty of indigo children, know God by looking into the eyes of a disabled or handicapped person, taste God in the air of the seaside and touch God as you and your lover be one at the moment of release. Look at the stars at night and see God’s canvas. Simply be still. Open your mind to God by co-creating with God. Moments of inspiration come from God. You have already experienced God sometime in your life. You can experience more of God by meditating, relaxing, visualizing, and hearing. Look at the tree roots as they push out of the ground before you are 75 years old and sitting on a park bench. Pull your car over at sunset and look at the sky. Laugh outside in the rain, instead of running from it. God is in every particle within the universe. Look at God as a quantum property that is larger than a trillion universes. God is an awareness that is greater then the physical body that encases the being yet the being and