something to think about...

Little pebble upon the sand
now you're lying here in my hand
How many years have you been here?

Little human upon the sand
From where I'm lying here in your hand
you're to me but a passing breeze.

The sun will always shine where you stand
depending in which land you may find yourself
now you have my blessing, go your way.
 
by Donovan Leitch

everything counts... ♥

lilsparrow,
 
you have my blessings as you go on your way and share your beauty with all of us just like these roses
 
the roses don't know any better - they just bloom because that is the way they were made and the sun was shining on them and the rain and the soil nourished them
 
let's all remember to share all our blessings with all we meet today
 

lilsparrow

Little pebble upon the sand
now you're lying here in my hand
How many years have you been here?

Little human upon the sand
From where I'm lying here in your hand
you're to me but a passing breeze.

The sun will always shine where you stand
depending in which land you may find yourself
now you have my blessing, go your way.

by Donovan Leitch

Interesting lilsparrow,
we do receive God's unconditional blessings wherever we are...
we are but like a little piece of sand to our creator...
i am thankful that in Luke12:6 Jesus said
"Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies?
Yet not one of them is forgotten by God.
 
here is another take on me as the sand...
 
The world is my oyster. 
i am the sand ( a creative irritant ) in that oyster.  
who knows, but that a pearl ( blessings ) may come of it.

Many people will walk in & out of your life.
Only true friends will leave footprints in your heart -\,,/

Thanks to Tarit, a new member, I visited the website in his or her signature.
http://www.onenessuniversity.org/oneness/cms/home/video.html
If you go to this page, scroll down to "The Gratitude Day...November 14" and click . . .
a message about gratitude for all of us . . .
Thank you Tarit . . .
with love . . .
sparrow

everything counts... ♥

Something I heard on a Sunday morning TV program has given me something to think about.
Someone was reading from scripture about the Christmas story, but I can't remember the scripture source, and I'm not familiar enough with the Bible to find it.
 
I am familiar with a version of the end of the particular reading, which I have always known as "Praise be to God and Peace to all men." (or something very like this) but the reader said, "Praise be to God and Peace to all who are blessed by his favour."
I'm afraid it left me with an unpleasant feeling. It shows how different interpretations of the same thing can change the meaning completely.
 
Is anyone else familiar with it?
 
Jude

Love is the only way

No, dear Jude, I am not familiar with the version you posted.
But "...all who are blessed with his favour"
strikes an unpleasant and discriminatory chord in me as well.
sparrow

everything counts... ♥

Dear Jude,

this quote is from the Gospel of Luke, chapter 2, verse 14. There are different translations. Here is one from the Christian Community Bible that is more inclusive, "Glory to God in the highest; peace on earth for God is blessing humankind."

The more commonly used translations sound more like what you heard, as in the New American Bible,
"Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests."

What we are all more familiar with is, "Glory to God in the hightest and peace on earth to men of good will."

I don't have a King James Bible for comparison.

Love,
Edda

Peace and joy!

Thank you Edda, so much!  I like first one I think.
 
I have just found a Catholic version which is a bit different again, but similar to the one I didn't much like.
"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom he is pleased!" (the exclamation mark was included)
I may still have a King James Bible somewhere...I will have a look for it.
 
Love Jude

Love is the only way

Here is the one I'm familiar with.
 
"And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, 2:14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. "

Love is the only way

The title of this thread seemed the appropriate place to post this true story!

A Violinist in the Metro

A man sat at a metro station in Washington DC and started to play the violin; it was a cold January morning. He played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, it was calculated that thousand of people went through the station, most of them on their way to work.

Three minutes went by and a middle aged man noticed there was musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried up to meet his schedule.

A minute later, the violinist received his first dollar tip: a woman threw the money in the till and without stopping continued to walk.

A few minutes later, someone leaned against the wall to listen to him, but the man looked at his watch and started to walk again. Clearly he was late for work.

The one who paid the most attention was a 3 year old boy. His mother tagged him along, hurried but the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. All the parents, without exception, forced them to move on.

In the 45 minutes the musician played, only 6 people stopped and stayed for a while. About 20 gave him money but continued to walk their normal pace. He collected $32. When he finished playing and silence took over, no one noticed it. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition.

No one knew this but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the best musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written, with a violin worth 3.5 million dollars.

Two days before his playing in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out at a theater in Boston and the seats averaged $100.

This is a real story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of an social experiment about perception, taste and priorities of people. The outlines were: in a commonplace environment at an inappropriate hour: Do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize the talent in an unexpected context?

One of the possible conclusions from this experience could be:

If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing the best music ever written, how many other things are we missing?

Shalom(May you be at peace in Body, Mind,& Spirit.)
I'menuff

Thank you, Betty!
 
This IS a thought-provoking story that elicits all sorts of considerations. Was Joshua Bell judged by his appearance rather than the music he was playing? Would people have stopped had they known who he was? Why is it that children area attuned to what is real, and why do many adults seem to lose that openness to experiencing beauty in unexpected places?
 
It does point out that we are often too much in a hurry to take notice of so much beauty around us!
 
Love,
Edda

Peace and joy!

Dear Betty . . .
. . . a frightening portrait of our society.
I am humbled.
It makes me think of a story a long time ago about treating all creatures as if they are God, because God can come to us in any form.
The story was beautiful, but I can only remember that he went to a rich man's house in the form of a beggar, and the rich man denied him because he wasn't what the rich man envisioned God to be.
Perhaps you have heard of this story?
with love . . .
sparrow

everything counts... ♥

Betty, this story made me gasp out loud!! Unbelievable!
 
I'd like to think I would recognize his playing even in a subway, but maybe I wouldn't have. Real food for thought.
 
Jude

Love is the only way

I received this in my email this morning. It reminded me of the of the axiom "for every negative there is a positive."

Be careful when you are casting out demons, that you do not allow the casting out of the best parts of yourself.

Shalom(May you be at peace in Body, Mind,& Spirit.)
I'menuff

While browsing through some old posts
I found this one from Betty . . .

everything counts... ♥

From an email this morning--Realize that life is a school and we are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class; but the lessons learned will last a lifetime!

Shalom(May you be at peace in Body, Mind,& Spirit.)
I'menuff

"Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life.
It turns what we have into enough, and more.
It turns denial into acceptance,
chaos to order,
confusion to clarity.
It can turn a meal into a feast,
a house into a home,
a stranger into a friend.
Gratitude makes sense of our past,
brings peace for today,
and creates a vision for tomorrow."
~Melody Beattie

everything counts... ♥

"...open my eyes that I may see the need of others, open my ears that I may hear their cries, open my heart so that they need not be without succour, let me be not afraid to defend the weak because of the anger of the strong, nor afraid to defend the poor because of the anger of the rich. Show me where love and hope and faith are needed, and use me to bring them to those places. And so open my eyes and ears that I may this coming day be able to do some work of peace for Thee."
Alan Paton

everything counts... ♥

This is a good one Sparrow!
 
Jude

Love is the only way

"When you 'cast your bread upon the waters,'
you never know how it will be returned to you."
 
from our local newspaper
sparrow

everything counts... ♥