A thought for the Day

[EROS]

Until lions have their historians, tales of the hunt shall always glorify the hunters.

African proverb

 

[Disney Doll]

Seek opportunity, not security. A boat in a harbor is safe, but in time its bottom will rot out.--Life's Little Instruction Book

 

[EROS]

Too often in time past, religion has brought forth criminal and shameful actions.... How many evils has religion caused?

Lucretius

 

[Big Dude]

This was a response to another thread that I thought would be fitting on this thread.

Originally posted on the "Big Dude Speaking Out" thread by MAMU

Interesting thread and quite a few replies, and don't you just love the way a threads take on a life of their own.

Some of us take the straight and narrow path, some venture out. Some of us speak up, some remain silent. Some of us choose to remain private, some tell their life's story. Some choose right, some choose wrong.

One thing does stands out. That we are all one in the same. Whether we exersise our freedom of speech or whether we choose to remain silent. Aren't we all brothers and sisters?

Thank you Mamu for a very interesting "Thought for Today".

Adam aka Big Dude

 

[Catzeyes]

Treat the other man's faith gently: it is all he has to believe with.
-Henry S. Haskins

 

[Dan Murphy]

Thanks, DD and Kath, very nice.

Did you notice?

Did you notice the sunrise this morning? Did you feel the gentle warmth in your child's heart as she kissed you? Did you stop to marvel at how many good people were doing their best to do their jobs to keep life moving positively forward?
Did you remember to appreciate and be thankful for all the good times you've known, and all the good things you have, and all the great possibilities which are open to you? Did you count your many blessings and look for new ways to share them?

Did you offer a kind word of encouragement? Did you suddenly smile for no reason and then keep on smiling because of how good it made everyone feel? Did you pause and just let your spirit be energized by the beauty and wonder of being alive? Did you say thank you every time you could?

On your list of things to do, be sure to include the things that really matter. By itself, simply being busy won't get you very far. Live, with your thoughts, your efforts and your time, like your life really means something, and sure enough, it will.

-- Ralph Marston

 

[Disney Doll]

Question your goals by asking,"Will this help me become my very best?"

 

[EROS]

"There is always a need for intoxication: China has opium, Islam has hashish, the West has women."

-André Malraux from Man's Fate

 

[helenabear]

Thank you everyone, especially Dan... I really enjoyed that one today

...were we to love none who had imperfections, this would be a desert for our love. All we can do is to make the best of our friends; love and cherish what is good in them, and keep out of the way of what is bad: but no more think of rejecting them for it than of throwing away a piece of music for a flat passage or two.
- Thomas Jefferson

 

[Disney Doll]

Living in the past is a dull and lonely buiness, lloking back strains the neck muscles, causes you to bump into people not going your way.--Edna Ferber

 

[Dan Murphy]

THE LADY

I wonder what she thought
As she stood there, strong and tall.
She couldn't turn away,
She was forced to watch it all.

Did she long to offer comfort
As her country bled?
With her arm forever frozen
High above her head.

She could not shield her eyes
She could not hide her face
She just stared across the water
Keeping Freedom's place.

The smell of smoke and terror
Somehow reduced her size
So small within the harbor
But still we recognized...

How dignified and beautiful
On a day so many died
I wonder what she thought,
And I know she must have cried.

 

[Dan Murphy]

One

As the soot and dirt and ash rained down,
We became one color.

As we carried each other down the
stairs of the burning building,
We became one class.

As we lit candles of waiting and hope,
We became one generation.

As the firefighters and police officers
fought their way into the inferno,
We became one gender.

As we fell to our knees
in prayer for strength,
We became one faith.

As we whispered or shouted
words of encouragement,
We spoke one language.

As we gave our blood in lines a mile long,
We became one body.

As we mourned together the great loss,
We became one family.

As we cried tears of grief and loss,
We became one soul.

As we retell with pride of
the sacrifice of heroes,
We become one people.

We are:
One color
One class
One generation
One gender
One faith
One language
One body
One family
One soul
One people

We are The Power of One.
We are United.
We are America.

 

[EROS]

"Lisa, if the Bible has taught us nothing else -- and it hasn't -- it's that girls should stick to girl's sports, such as hot oil wrestling and foxy boxing and such and such."

Homer Simpson

 

[Disney Doll]

Get your priorities straight. No one ever said on his deathbed,"Gee, if only I'd spent more time at the office."
--Life's Little Instruction Book

 

[Catzeyes]

Where there is love there is life. -- Mahatma Gandhi

 

[dizneenut]

We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools -- Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

 

[helenabear]

Such wonderful thoughts today... thank you all for those

I always entertain great hopes.
--Robert Frost

In our honest journey, we must admit life is often difficult and painful. But these facts do not describe all of life, and they do not determine how we respond.

The sun rises warm and bright after a cold and dark night. The open, generous smile of a small child reaches into the soft part of us all. To be strong and hardy on this spiritual path, we must be truthful about the pain and unfairness in life while holding firmly to a belief in all the generous possibilities.

Surrendering to despair, we trade the uncertainty of options for the certainty of gloom. Then we might say, "At least I'm never disappointed this way." Life isn't filled only with difficulty and pain. It is also filled with people whose dignity and spirit rise above their circumstances. These are situations when great sacrifice or love and wisdom turn a problem into an opportunity and a strength. If we look at what has happened in our own lives and in those of others, we have ample reason to hope.

 

[Dan Murphy]

A day to remember

We were frightened, yet we were united. We were stunned, yet we were courageous. We were confused, and in that confusion our first, most driving and compelling instinct was to help each other.
We were shocked and saddened by the ruthless attacks.

Yet instead of lashing out we reconnected with those things we value most. Instead of being frightened into hiding, we strengthened our sense of purpose and our commitment to the things that truly matter.

The day called out for heroes, and genuine heroes selflessly came forward in heartening abundance. We lost too many of those we loved, and we found a new, more profound appreciation for those who are still with us, for each other.

We were suddenly and violently stripped of our pretenses, and many of our assumptions were ripped away. We found that underneath it all, there was still more to treasure and more to live for than we ever could have imagined. We experienced the worst, and it brought out our best.

September 11, 2001 will always be a day to remember. And each time we remember, let us resolve again to honor those who sacrificed so much, to honor them not merely with our tears, not merely with our memorials or sadness, but with the way we live.

For the most powerful, lasting monument we can build is a world of people whose lives are filled with freedom, meaning, true fulfillment and joy.

-- Ralph Marston

A short slide presentation

 

[Disney Doll]

A friend makes you feel as if the whole world loves you.

 

[Dan Murphy]

Originally posted by Disney Doll
A friend makes you feel as if the whole world loves you.

So true, DD.


A thing of beauty

Make a point today to find something beautiful and just spend a little time admiring it. Think of it and simply appreciate the fact that it's there for you to experience. Don't try to think of ways to use it to your advantage. Just admire and appreciate it for what it is.
Think of how fortunate you are to be here and to be able to experience the beauty that's around you, the joy and possibilities of being alive. You spend your days striving for more, and yet you already have so very much. Spend a little time enjoying it.

You have problems and concerns and deadlines and commitments. You also have the precious, irreplaceable experience of being alive right here, right now.

Life is a thing of beauty and wonder. It has its difficulties, and yet the extreme beauty of it all is what makes it possible for us to even see those difficulties as being such. Your good fortune is here and now in the life you live. The more you appreciate and value it, the better it will be.

-- Ralph Marston