posted September 28, 2006 10:16 PM         

"We who lived in concentration camps can remember the men who walked through the huts comforting others, giving away their last piece of bread. They may have been few in number, but they offer sufficient proof that everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms -- to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances." -- Victor Frankl

~*~

"The intellect has little to do on the road to discovery. There comes a leap in consciousness, call it intuition or what you will, and the solution comes to you and you don't know how or why." -- Albert Einstein

~*~

"There is guidance for each of us, and by lowly listening, we shall hear the right word. Certainly there is a right for you that needs no choice on your part. Place yourself in the middle of the stream of power and wisdom which flows into your life. Then, without effort, you are impelled to truth and to perfect contentment."
-- Ralph Waldo Emerson

~*~

I should be content
to look at a mountain
for what it is
and not as a comment
on my life
-- David Ignatow

~*~

"I remembered one morning when I discovered a cocoon in a bark of a tree, just as a butterfly was making a hole in its case and preparing to come out. I waited awhile, but it was too long appearing and I was impatient. I bent over it and breathed on it to warm it. I warmed it as quickly as I could and the miracle began to happen before my eyes, faster than life.

The case opened, the butterfly started slowly crawling out and I shall never forget my horror when I saw how its wings were folded back and crumpled; the wretched butterfly tried with its whole trembling body to unfold them. Bending over it I tried to help it with my breath. In vain.

It needed to be hatched out patiently and the unfolding of its wings should be a gradual process in the sun. Now it was too late. My breath had forced the butterfly to appear, all crumpled, before its time. It struggled desperately and, a few seconds later, died in the palm of my hand.

The little body is, I do believe, the greatest weight I have on my conscience, for I realize today that it is a mortal sin to violate the great laws of nature. We should not hurry, we should not be impatient, but we should confidently obey the eternal rhythm."

(from Zorba the Greek, by Nikos Kazantzakis)

~*~

I walk down the street.
There is a hole.
I don't see it.
I fall in.
It isn't my fault.
It takes a very long time to get out.

I walk down the same street.
There is still a deep hole.
I pretend not to see it.
I fall in.
I pretend it's still not my fault.
It takes a long time to get out.

I walk down the same street.
There is still the same deep hole.
I see it.
I fall in anyway.
It's a habit.
I get out quicker this time.

I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole.
I see it.
I walk around it.
I don't fall in.

I walk down a different street.

-- Portia Nelson

~*~

After awhile you learn the subtle difference
Between holding a hand and chaining a soul.
And you learn that love doesn't mean leaning
And company doesn't mean security.
And you begin to understand that kisses aren't contracts
And presents aren't promises,
And you begin to accept your defeats
With your head held high and your eyes wide open.
With the grace of a woman, not the grief of a child.
You learn to build your roads
On today because tomorrow's ground
Is too uncertain for plans, and futures have
A way of falling down in midflight.
After awhile you learn that even sunshine
Burns if you get too much.
So you plant your own garden and decorate
Your own soul, instead of waiting
For someone to bring you flowers.
And you learn that you really can endure,
That you really are strong.
And you really do have worth.
And you learn and learn...and you learn
With every goodbye you learn.

--Veronica A. Shoffstall

~*~

A Native American elder once described his own inner struggles in this manner:

"Inside of me there are two dogs. One of the dogs is mean and evil. The other dog is good. The mean dog fights the good dog all the time."

When asked which dog wins, he reflected for a moment and replied, "The one I feed the most."

~*~

"The only man who behaved sensibly was my tailor; he took my measurement anew every time he saw me, while all the rest went on with their old measurements and expected them to fit me."
-- George Bernard Shaw

~*~

"From the spiritual point of view, the only important thing is to realize Divine Life and to help others realize it by manifesting it in everyday happenings. To penetrate into the essence of all being and significance and to release the fragrance of that inner attainment for the guidance and benefit of others -- by expressing, in the world of forms, truth, love, purity, and beauty -- this is the sole game that has intrinsic and absolute worth. All other happenings, incidents, and attainments in themselves can have no lasting importance."

-- Meher Baba, Discourses, page 200.

posted September 28, 2006 11:56 PM         

quote:

---

"There is guidance for each of us, and by lowly listening, we shall hear the right word. Certainly there is a right for you that needs no choice on your part. Place yourself in the middle of the stream of power and wisdom which flows into your life. Then, without effort, you are impelled to truth and to perfect contentment."
-- Ralph Waldo Emerson

---

BEAUTIFUL, I never read that one before Or I missed it! Much there to disect

Thanks, Lia...
I'll be back

Silverstone

------------------
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.

posted September 29, 2006 01:18 AM         

Thanks for posting these. Much to ponder on here.

posted September 29, 2006 01:54 AM         

I disagree with Frankl's statement that the exceptional acts of a few exceptional individuals "prove" that all humans are capable of doing likewise. Experience proves that men act differently "in any given set of circumstances" according to their natures. One man gives his last loaf, and one steals when he has much too much. The generous man does not prove that all men are free to be generous, any more than the greedy man proves that all men are free to be greedy.

posted September 30, 2006 12:49 AM         

HSC, are you testing me?
That is a very interesting different way to look at it. I think I tend to believe that it's not of man's inherent, inborn character, but of the present frequency he is in; the collective experience of the frequencies he has already traveled that led him to the present reckoning moment in time. But maybe it is a bit of both. For, a man must have an honorable character to begin with for him to attain to traveling into 'higher' frequencies. (I don't believe they're 'higher' persay...it's just the closest word I can think of to describe it)

None of us could definately say what we would do in such a situation, could we? Although, we like to hope we would be that generous, selfless soul... and we can go by our actions thus far in our life and how we've responded at crucial times. Hurricane Katrina was a good example of how crazy the mind turns for some when it comes to survival.

Recently there was a grand opening in a nearby city of another of our stores, and they had a meat sale for a dollar a pound.
People were like rabid starving animals or something. Fights broke out and punches flew as they scrambled to fight over the meat. Police had to be called to calm and disperse the mob. It was in the news! I'm serious.
I don't understand how just saving a few dollars could drive someone to that kind of selfish rage. Not even for critical life-threatening reasons. Just for greed.
It's crazy.

posted September 30, 2006 08:22 PM         

Still waiting for it to take effect.