Monthly Archives: February, 2014
When we sip tea
“When we sip tea, we are on our way to serenity.” — Alexandra Stoddard With all the bad weather this winter has brought us, it’s definitely tea time. So I couldn’t resist repeating my offer from one year ago today (which you can read about at the link below). Anyone who would like me to …
As the magnet finds iron
“The unthankful heart… discovers no mercies; but let the thankful heart sweep through the day and, as the magnet finds the iron, so it will find, in every hour, some heavenly blessings!” — Henry Ward Beecher As I write this, two weeks before publication, much of the country is in the grip of yet another …
Something wonderful
“I had begun to feel that the days that stretched out in front of me were a dark, terrifying wilderness. As I wrote about moments along the way, everything looked more friendly, and I discovered that the days are only days. I received and gave love as I untangled my thoughts through the act of …
Filled with joy
“One filled with joy preaches without preaching.” ― Mother Teresa So often, words are painful without being beneficial. Most of us who say harmful things aren’t deliberately trying to hurt anyone, but we end up doing it anyway. We may be trying to help someone else by pointing out where we believe the person is …
Made for kids
“Baseball was made for kids, and grown-ups only screw it up.” — Bob Lemon Those of us who admire the complexity of baseball — or maybe only imagine that we do — might think Lemon has oversimplified things with this statement. But he has far more authority on the subject than I do, and in …
The true magic carpet
“Imagination is the true magic carpet.” — Norman Vincent Peale Even when we aren’t free to travel because of health, finances or responsibilities, our minds are always free. And now, with the entire world available literally at our fingertips, through words, photos, music and videos, our minds have even more fuel for our imaginary journeys. …
Until I write
“I cannot see what I have gone through until I write it down. I am blind without a pencil…But it does seem a slow and wasteful process. (Like walking, tapping with a cane.)…There is so much waste in creativity, always. But there is something curious about creativity: the trying-too-hard for results seems to defeat itself.” …
Every stretch of road
“A route differs from a road not only because it is solely intended for vehicles, but also because it is merely a line that connects one point with another…A road is a tribute to space. Every stretch of road has meaning in itself and invites us to stop.” – Milan Kundera With only a week …
Up and doing
Let us, then, be up and doing, With a heart for any fate; Still achieving, still pursuing, Learn to labor and to wait. — Henry Wadsworth Longfellow If a few short words could sum up the past 18 months of Jeff’s life, it would be hard to find any more appropriate than these. The photo …
On my farm
“I had rather be on my farm than be emperor of the world.” ― George Washington Washington didn’t just say those words, he lived them. At the close of the American Revolution, and again at the end of his presidency, he willingly set aside his power and returned to Mount Vernon. Strolling the grounds of …
Some kind of recreational activity
“It is inhumane, in my opinion, to force people who have a genuine medical need for coffee to wait in line behind people who apparently view it as some kind of recreational activity.” — Dave Barry I know people who have a genuine medical need for coffee, and I’m not one of them. I have …
Rivers are roads
“Rivers are roads that move.” — Blaise Pascal I’ve always been fascinated by maps; I could literally sit and study them for hours. One of the first things I noticed as a child, when I would look at maps, is how the cities of America seemed to cluster along rivers and coasts. There’s a logical …
The last thing on my mind
“I don’t understand why Cupid was chosen to represent Valentine’s Day. When I think about romance, the last thing on my mind is a short, chubby toddler coming at me with a weapon.” — Author Unknown Let’s just say I’m not a typically romantic woman. I’ve tried reading contemporary romance novels, but I can’t seem …
It takes courage
“It takes courage to be crocus-minded…Highly irregular. Knifing through hard-frozen ground and snow, sticking their necks out, because they believe in Spring and have something personal and emphatic to say about it.” — Jo Sorley Deciding to have faith and hope isn’t always easy, but it is a decision, and one that comes more naturally …
From a single source
“At the deepest level, the creative process and the healing process arise from a single source. When you are an artist, you are a healer.” — Rachel Naomi Remen Often we think of art as something that hangs in a frame on a wall, but in reality the work of countless artists surrounds us so …
Great things
“Great things are done when men and mountains meet. This is not done by jostling in the street.” — William Blake I like these lines from Blake, because they remind me that obstacles need not be setbacks. In a few well-chosen and memorable words, he acknowledges the stamina life requires of us, the potential for tremendous …
The sun a spark
“The days are short The sun a spark Hung thin between The dark and dark.” — John Updike One thing I like about this time of year is the gradual lengthening of daylight hours. It still turns dark far too early, several weeks away from the onset of Daylight Savings Time. But I know that …
Bright, loud, weird and delicate
“I wish I could convey the perfection of a seal slipping into water or a spider monkey swinging from point to point or a lion merely turning its head. But language founders in such seas. Better to picture it in your head if you want to feel it…I spent more hours than I can count …
Restraint must enter
“An element of abstention, of restraint, must enter into all finer joys.” — Vida D. Scudder I think one of the nicest things we can do for ourselves is learning to enjoy things without wanting to own them. This is trickier with some things than with others, of course, and what appeals to the eyes …
Repainting the landscape
“Nature has many scenes to exhibit, and constantly draws a curtain over this part or that. She is constantly repainting the landscape and all surfaces, dressing up some scene for our entertainment. Lately we had a leafy wilderness; now bare twigs begin to prevail, and soon she will surprise us with a mantle of snow. …
The history of liberty
“Liberty has never come from the government. Liberty has always come from the subjects of it. The history of liberty is a history of resistance.” — Woodrow Wilson “That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; That whenever any Form of Government becomes …
Our neighbors
“While the spirit of neighborliness was important on the frontier because neighbors were so few, it is even more important now because our neighbors are so many.” — Lady Bird Johnson Almost everyone I know would like to make the world a better place. We long to do great things, to make a difference. For …
A repository of possibilities
“Walkers are ‘practitioners of the city,’ for the city is made to be walked. A city is a language, a repository of possibilities, and walking is the act of speaking that language, of selecting from those possibilities. Just as language limits what can be said, architecture limits where one can walk, but the walker invents …
Defeat Despair 