Treehouse? or cave?
Hmmmm depends on my mood at the time. . . Would love a Treehouse that has an indoor cave (lol)
No really if I had to pick one...treehouse!
The light is a must and the open air.. whoa.. love it!

September 11 2001. . .I was in graduate school in Richmond VA and I remember turning the TV on as I fed the dogs and got ready for class.  I saw clips of the towers fall but did not hear what exactly was being said because the volume was turned down and remember thinking it was a movie or something.  It wasn't until I arrived at school that I realized it was in fact the news and was happening live!
Words cannot express the confusion, fear, and pain that quickly takes over as you begin to question the present and the future.

Thoughts of war, death, pain, destruction begin to gain strength. . .
In the aftermath of 9/11, I remember how people rallied together and healed from the attack.
I know that in the grand scheme of things, the attack may have been karmic payback, reaping what America has sown, attracting that event based upon our group consciousness and victim mentality and ego driven perspectives.

But I also know that if we continue to focus on what was wrong or what caused that then we will continue to bring it. 
"As you think.. so shall you be."

I also know that pointing the finger at someone else means four are pointing back at me.  What am I doing that is contributing to the pain or to the healing?
"Energy flows where attention goes."

Do I blame Bush?  Blaming him is not the answer.  We are Americans, We are the people and the U.S. is US - not them!!

What do each of US do to heal ourselves?
Do to heal a neighbor?

There are no little things...
Watching Jerry Springer, Maury, and several other shows - contributes to the pain and the hatred.
Pointing fingers at others, allowing road rage to be your common state of being, impatience and intolerance of anyone regardless. . .

Rather than think about the cause of 9/11
Rather than focusing on the chief players that orchestrated the events
Rather than hate, blame, point, criticize or condemn... Remember that in the midst of it all - We can choose love at any minute.

Love the survivors and help them heal
Love those who transitioned back to spirit, mourn them yes but also honor their memories with love
Love those you are most tempted to hate for in that is your character and soul forged
Your hate and blame does not describe them.. it but a statement of how you choose to perceive the world and interact within it. . .

I cannot hate you without it coming back to me. . .the seeds "I" plant are the trees, flowers or weeds that will grow in "my" garden.

It is so easy to disown and distance from someone when you allow hate or blame or fear to take over.

Choose the miracle in the NOW.

9/11 reminds me to love the person I am looking at as I walk down the street, as I buy a water, as I stop at a red light. . . His eyes, her face, their body is but a reflection of mine.
He is my brother, she is my sister and in spirit we are but one. . .


Choose Love
Choose Peace
Choose NOW

As a child growing up, magic was something that fascinated me beyond belief.  I could not get enough of David Copperfield, Doug Henning, and people like Criss Angel (even though he was not around when I was young. . . He's cool to see now - smile).  It wasn't so much that they could do tricks.  But more so was the fact that what they did was "magic."  Real Magic!

My response in part would depend on the child's age but in general I would say:  See that tree, the grass, the sky, that water over there?  Feel the breeze, the rain, the sunshine, the snow?  Hear that music, those people laughing, the birds? Know how you feel when you are happy, when someone gives you a big ole hug, when you care about someone and want the best for them, when you love someone and feel loved by someone? That is God.
God is in everything and everyone. . .
God is love and love is all there really is.

Learning to forgive myself of several things I perceived as offenses and infractions.
Of them all the most difficult would probably be forgiving myself for not being in Pittsburgh with my father when he passed away. . . .
Still dealing with this on some levels.