"Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in where nature may heal and cheer and give strength to the body and soul."

— John Muir

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“Everything we do is infused with the energy with which we do it. If we’re frantic, life will be frantic. If we are peaceful, life will be peaceful.” –Marianne Williamson

SKY ABOVE ME
EARTH BELOW ME
FIRE WITHIN ME

Run my dear,
From anything
That may not strengthen
Your precious budding wings.

Run like hell my dear,
From anyone likely
To put a sharp knife
Into the sacred, tender vision
Of your beautiful heart.

- Hafiz

I do like to play the game of chess, but my love for playing the game is not about winning - it is more about the moves, the logic behind the move, the inestimable capacity and resilency of making the best move possible.

http://www.chess.com/blog/kurtgodden...tend_blog_view

true story!!
 

The minute you settle for less than you deserve, you get even less than you settled for.

~Maureen Dowd

this came to mind when I saw the rain early this morning... :)
 

Now Close the Windows

Now close the windows and hush all the fields:
If the trees must, let them silently toss;
No bird is singing now, and if there is,
Be it my loss.

It will be long ere the marshes resume,
It will be long ere the earliest bird:
So close the windows and not hear the wind,
But see all wind-stirred.

Robert Frost

What we have once enjoyed we can never lose. All that we love deeply becomes a part of us.

Helen Keller (1880 - 1968)

“A failure establishes only this, that our determination to succeed was not strong enough.” ― Christian Nestell Bovee


“Don't die without fulfilling your purpose.”― Jaachynma N.E. Agu


“INTENT reveals desire; ACTION reveals commitment.” ― Steve Maraboli

Seize the moment. Remember all those women on the 'Titanic' who waved off the dessert cart.

A Color of Sky
 

A Color of the Sky

Windy today and I feel less than brilliant,
driving over the hills from work.
There are the dark parts on the road
when you pass through clumps of wood
and the bright spots where you have a view of the ocean,
but that doesn’t make the road an allegory.

I should call Marie and apologize
for being so boring at dinner last night,
but can I really promise not to be that way again?
And anyway, I’d rather watch the trees, tossing
in what certainly looks like sexual arousal.

Otherwise it’s spring, and everything looks frail;
the sky is baby blue, and the just-unfurling leaves
are full of infant chlorophyll,
the very tint of inexperience.

Last summer’s song is making a comeback on the radio,
and on the highway overpass,
the only metaphysical vandal in America has written
MEMORY LOVES TIME
in big black spraypaint letters,

which makes us wonder if Time loves Memory back.

Last night I dreamed of X again.
She’s like a stain on my subconscious sheets.
Years ago she penetrated me
but though I scrubbed and scrubbed and scrubbed,
I never got her out,
but now I’m glad.

What I thought was an end turned out to be a middle.
What I thought was a brick wall turned out to be a tunnel.
What I thought was an injustice
turned out to be a color of the sky.

Outside the youth center, between the liquor store
and the police station,
a little dogwood tree is losing its mind;

overflowing with blossomfoam,
like a sudsy mug of beer;
like a bride ripping off her clothes,

dropping snow white petals to the ground in clouds,

so Nature’s wastefulness seems quietly obscene.
It’s been doing that all week:
making beauty,
and throwing it away,
and making more.

Tony Hoagland

Katniss~~(I kind of like the fact my green lawn is littered with cherry blossoms!)

"Don't be pushed by your problems. Be led by your dreams."
~Unknown

"Never forget the three powerful resources you always have available to you: love, prayer, and forgiveness."
~H. Jackson Brown Jr.

A little more from the Prophet
 

A thick warm morning already,
the suns shines boldly upon my skin.

Kisses and a tail wag and were off for our morning jaunt
exploring scents, greeting and being...

I often question which of us is more protective he or I?
My muscle bound buddy, my best friend, confidant, go to...
He's a prince, a love and kind, he is no Alpha but that's my job.

He minds me, despite his stubborn willfulness, the breed is like that.
Determined... I admire that.

My furry friend. My sweet boy.
To laze around my days with you, a great pleasure!
-KC (4/21/13)

The Firefighter Within
Never give up.
Never give in.
Fight 'til you lose...
(or) fight 'til you win.
Never let up. Never let down. Never let the frightened see you frown. Wield your weapons, conquer all fears. Work 'til your sweat...replaces their tears. Learn from your losses. Savor your wins. Prepare for the next one. And battle again.