Liz befriended me shortly after she arrived here. Or I befriended her. Not sure which. She read my thread in my personal news where I talked about soaring, and we got to talking. Pretty soon we were talking on the phone. We laughed together over difficulties here on Onet and learned about each others lives.

I found Liz to be really inspiring. She sees people as they are and pours forth love--all the time in all directions. I got to be a lucky recipient of that love.

I love having conversations with her. She understands so deeply about courage and boldness and living fully. Most of all she is all about love. She has taught me that hate is not the opposite of love--fear is.

I met Liz in person when we attended the Canton conference! We actually had rooms next to each other, and went to enter our rooms at the same time. We didn’t recognize each other until we met downstairs. Rather funny. I really thought hard about love in Canton. Do we focus on love because part of us has been destroyed? I saw clearly that some people choose a path because they are avoiding something so painful they can’t deal with it. Do we cling to love and aspire to it out of some fear? In the end, I had to say no. While it may happen in other domains, like Liz taught me, Love is the opposite of fear.

Later, we danced. Liz dances with grace and incredible playfulness. She is a joy to spend time with, a real listener. Because of her I am more able to embrace the love I feel, love people I would not have loved, and be more of myself.

Liz has taught me about boundaries. This is very useful and important in my work. When something unhealthy emerges, my tendency is to run away. Liz has shown me, through her own efforts, how to set boundaries. Thank you Liz!

Love em all!

Love Like a Rocket

I love this song -- it's got alot of that energy that's burning within Liz. Go get a copy of "Deep in the Heart of Nowhere" now!

BTW: I was at a really rockin' open air festival in Germany back in the late 80's where Bob & the Boomtown Rats totally inspired me with the beat -- the beat of the night, I was rockin' in the beat, I said "yeah, yeah, yeah...."

;D nmw

Geldof, aware that we stand on the shoulders of giants, has never been shy about using quotes and references from previous pop music. But this goes beyond that. Its a full-scale update of Ray Davies "Waterloo Sunset." Twenty years later, as might be expected, life has worked its heartbreaking ways upon Terry and Julie. And the once-paradise-evoking Waterloo sunset serves only as a reminder of broken dreams. Claptons guitar weeps, but not gently. It cries unabashedly. This song should have been a hit.

Appreciating Dr. Liz Garcia-Gray

The more I get to know Dr. Gray, the more I am impressed with her personal qualities, her energy, kindness, loving intentions, generosity, professional skills and capabilities.

I met Dr. Gray in Omidyar.net from her Love thread. Since then when I get into unexpected difficulties because I did not know where I am and who else was here, she has been there to help orient me.

She is truly world class in her ability to mentor, teach, heal, coach and connect with people of diverse backgrounds. She is very generous in giving her precious time to help me and others. She has provided me with insights and excellent suggestions on how to deal with a variety of challenges more effectively.

She has tremendous compassion, a big heart as well as the courage to confront and act as a "human shield" when necessary. I would count her friendship as one of the unusual blessings of Omidyar.net.

I know very few at her level of awareness. I am proud of her as an Asian American woman and dedicated professional. She is a fine example for other Asian Americans young women. She is an inspiration and excellent mentor for a better world community.

I have met Liz f2f twice - this Spring in Canton, and just a couple of weeks ago in NYC. Liz, you are inspiring. A lovely soul simply oozing exuberance with a genuine wish to help and uplift people. I admire your ability to be unguarded and vivacious in a pure and unselfconscious way. With you, I have danced free like never before, frolicked in Belvedere fountain and loudly sung Beatles songs in Central Park. I just couldn't imagine doing these very PUBLIC, life-affirming and wonderful acts before having met you. You have really made such a positive impression on me. You have teased me out of some self-protecting (from what??) shell, reminded me that there is nothing to loose and everything to gain by meeting life head-on and fearless - and being loud and outgoing and joyous about it. :-)

Appreciating Dr. Elizabeth Garcia Gray ("Liz")

I appreciate the leadership of Dr. Gray for the Daily Appreciation project here at Omidyar! Through that discussion area, I am getting to know so many wonderful people in this community! Liz's appreciations are beautiful introductions! We can learn a lot from her nice appreciations.

Reading the positive thoughts and good humor from the participants always brings ha ha ha chuckles. I appreciate Liz's assistance in spreading the word and encouraging people to contribute their positive energy to the community.

Liz is a great model and doing very important work in the world. I am glad she is able to handle so many challenging projects! Thank you very much Liz for all that you do for all of us and for the world!