The world was just waking up (after all, it was Sunday). Most of the city down below was still lit with lights. The sky had a beautiful blue color with darker clouds and pink light peeking through. Behind my back on the scantily lit hill, a flock of robins were busily pecking at something on the ground, chirping constantly (possibly greeting each other with ‘Good Morning’.) I was the only one there. The silver moon was high in the sky, as a reminder that the night was not yet over. Down the hill, Downtown San Francisco was grey with some lights and the lit streets were waking up, slowly. The Golden Gate Bridge was crossing the dark water of the bay onto the other side. As the minutes passed by and the steady voice of the wind filled the air, the pink color of the sky was converting into magenta with yellow lines above Mount Diablo on the other side of the Bay. With every minute the dominating magenta was expanding, bringing the excitement in anticipation of what would happen next. The city lights on the surrounding hills were fading out and more light from the sky was slipping in.

But suddenly, the brightness of the sky was gone—everything became grey with light pink streaks. It seemed that the show was over, though I knew otherwise—it was just a prelude. His majesty was not out yet. I had to be patient. And then at 7:06am, right in front of me, the sliver of orange was announcing its’ inevitable return! The street lights below went out, and the city became dark grey. The sky became lighter, with every changing second.

And then it showed up; the white crown surrounded by strong colors of red and magenta, which slowly changed into blue and yellow, layering each other.

Release Date: March 18, 2015

For immediate release

Information received since the Federal Open Market Committee met in January suggests that economic growth has moderated somewhat. Labor market conditions have improved further, with strong job gains and a lower unemployment rate. A range of labor market indicators suggests that underutilization of labor resources continues to diminish. Household spending is rising moderately; declines in energy prices have boosted household purchasing power. Business fixed investment is advancing, while the recovery in the housing sector remains slow and export growth has weakened. Inflation has declined further below the Committee’s longer-run objective, largely reflecting declines in energy prices. Market-based measures of inflation compensation remain low; survey-based measures of longer-term inflation expectations have remained stable.

Consistent with its statutory mandate, the Committee seeks to foster maximum employment and price stability. The Committee expects that, with appropriate policy accommodation, economic activity will expand at a moderate pace, with labor market indicators continuing to move toward levels the Committee judges consistent with its dual mandate. The Committee continues to see the risks to the outlook for economic activity and the labor market as nearly balanced. Inflation is anticipated to remain near its recent low level in the near term, but the Committee expects inflation to rise gradually toward 2 percent over the medium term as the labor market improves further and the transitory effects of energy price declines and other factors dissipate. The Committee continues to monitor inflation developments closely.

To support continued progress toward maximum employment and price stability, the Committee today reaffirmed its view that the current 0 to 1/4 percent target range for the federal funds rate remains appropriate. In determining how long to maintain this target range, the Committee will assess progress–both realized and expected–toward its objectives of maximum employment and 2 percent inflation. This assessment will take into account a wide range of information, including measures of labor market conditions, indicators of inflation pressures and inflation expectations, and readings on financial and international developments. Consistent with its previous statement, the Committee judges that an increase in the target range for the federal funds rate remains unlikely at the April FOMC meeting. The Committee anticipates that it will be appropriate to raise the target range for the federal funds rate when it has seen further improvement in the labor market and is reasonably confident that inflation will move back to its 2 percent objective over the medium term. This change in the forward guidance does not indicate that the Committee has decided on the timing of the initial increase in the target range.

The Committee is maintaining its existing policy of reinvesting principal payments from its holdings of agency debt and agency mortgage-backed securities in agency mortgage-backed securities and of rolling over maturing Treasury securities at auction. This policy, by keeping the Committee’s holdings of longer-term securities at sizable levels, should help maintain accommodative financial conditions.

When the Committee decides to begin to remove policy accommodation, it will take a balanced approach consistent with its longer-run goals of maximum employment and inflation of 2 percent. The Committee currently anticipates that, even after employment and inflation are near mandate-consistent levels, economic conditions may, for some time, warrant keeping the target federal funds rate below levels the Committee views as normal in the longer run.

Voting for the FOMC monetary policy action were: Janet L. Yellen, Chair; William C. Dudley, Vice Chairman; Lael Brainard; Charles L. Evans; Stanley Fischer; Jeffrey M. Lacker; Dennis P. Lockhart; Jerome H. Powell; Daniel K. Tarullo; and John C. Williams.

FULL PDF DOCUMENT HERE–Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System

But there are people who do not know how to read, for various reasons. As a matter of fact, according to a study conducted by the U.S. Department of Education and the National Institute of Literacy in April 2014, 32 million adults in the U.S. can’t read. That’s about 14 percent of the population. 21 percent of adults in the U.S. read below a 5^th grade level and 19 percent of high school graduates cannot read at all. This statistic is mind boggling.

I found out about this by coincidence. While helping a client with a complicated mortgage solution, we became instant friends. Her father, who is a farmer in Washington State, came for a visit and brought some of the products of his labor. One day, my client surprised me by giving a huge jar of the most delicious apple cider that I’ve ever tasted in my life, as well as some other tasty goodies. To express my gratitude, I asked her if I could send him a book, “The Second Nature: A Gardener’s Education”, written by Michael Pollan. A few weeks later, she called me with excitement in her voice. Her dad received the book—it was the first one he had ever received in the mail. She also told me that he was illiterate for many years, and finally learned to read a few years ago, and liked Michael Pollan’s book very much.

According to Wikipedia, “music is an art form whose medium is sound”. Sound is vibration, which we perceive through our ears. Light, which we perceive with our eyes, is also vibration. At the same time, we can visualize things with closed eyes and hear sounds with the inner ear in our minds.

The famous composer Ludwig Von Beethoven composed music even after he became deaf. It is said, that good musicians make music, instead of playing it. The same is said about good photographers, who manifest an image versus just taking a picture. All this leads to the realization that sound is based on our seismic communication, which actually is not one of our traditional five senses, but is often used to express our feelings.

In the Torah’s text, the first line states “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth…” (Genesis 1:1). Thus, when our world was created there were not one, but a multitude of heavens. According to the accounts of Dr. Alexander and others, who experienced NDE, it seemed that what we call our soul, left the body and traveled through different heavens towards the light. There, it met the souls of their departed relatives, and guardian angels, who are also mentioned in the Torah, “And God said, ‘Let us make Man in Our image, after Our likeness’” (Genesis 1:26). But none of the people who reported their experience of NDE met the reputable 72 virgins in the heavens, which according to some sources is the reward expected by the Islamic martyrs.

But how about communicating with our departed ones? Is it possible? Author Mitch Albom, whose first book, “Tuesdays With Morrie: An Old Man, A Young Man, and Life’s Greatest Lessons” became a best seller, has his own take on this subject in his latest book, “The First Phone Call From Heaven”. His theory is one’s quest of the afterlife accompanies humans from our birth. Some religions promise the paradise as a salvation for those who suffer in their life on earth, or to sinners after their repentance. But what happens after we die? According to Dr. Eben Alexander and others, what we call the heavens or paradise is filled with love. Do we need to wait until we die to experience it? I do not think so. Love is everywhere. The Bible tells us “love your enemies” (Matthew 5:43-45).