Brother Michael Sky

my mother used to sing for me as a child - there is something very calming about a clear female voice for me.... wouldn't mind being your neighbor - to listen in the background... the sound of singing drifting from a small distance brings back so many memories...

Yeah, my dad had a parrot with bad habits... I've just never felt attracted to them... figured I'd ask... It pains me to see the bird I was referring to kept in seclusion - inside an 8X10 shed on the farm....

Petey's a bright and happy looking bird!! I was never a bird person, but I came across a white, parrot looking thing at the local animal farm... He genuinely seems to be happy to see me, even if it's been a while since my last visit - seems to have an awesome memory .... This bird could actually turn me into a bird person, I think... he coos so softly when I stop and fuss over him, I didn't realize they have so much personality... Why a bird, Brother Thorn? What's the appeal? ( just curious )

I just had a baby kitty show up at the door with an old break in his leg. His knee no longer works and his leg is always sticking straight out. I've been calling him "with cheese" because I misunderstood when my son called him Vachita..... Hes such a sweet guy and so trusting, he is teaching my older cat how to be social...

like the disappearing bubbles in a glass of Champagne.....

ouch - that resonates somewhere deep inside me..... :lol: and it may be why I do not write in my books

reading biographies and books ABOUT famous folks when I was in ROTC made me sometimes wonder: did I really want to know? sometimes our heroes are glorified, and sometimes we find them to be the kind of folks we would have liked to know.... it's a roll of the dice....

ah, I we are showing our favorite Bible.....: Here is the very first Bible I bought for myself. I was six years old and found this at the giant flea market, which used to be at the old movie theater at the base of the Chesapeake bay bridge tunnel - on the Va. Beach side. I have never been able to find a date for this Bible - but it is inscribed inside the front cover - it says " Dec 25, 1910 " and has " Caroline Schadt " on the front cover in gold lettering... and it is 4" X 7" ... perfect hand sized... when I bought it, the old fellow said " She would be happy that you bought this..." - he gave it to me for the small amount of change in my pocket.... but I have had it for 36 years now.... Pages are loose, I have lost a few of the blank pages at the end - but it has maps of the holy land in the appendices... very cool... This is a KJV Bible - the wear of the leather cover has given it a very comfortable feel in your hand... There is NO writing withn - except for the date....

I can't explain to you how many meanings each of these sayings have had for me.... even the straightforward seeming ones have multiple uses.... and I have noticed over the years, by scanning them infrequently, that I am attached to those sayings which have a particular meaning at a particular time... like stumbling upon a new gem hidden in the same old pile of shiny rocks... I also have a pile of quotes from my Hero - The Dalai Lama...

sorry it took so long to answer Frank... I will dig into my notes and see if I can remember where it was I found it originally - but it has been in my notes for years...

This is an original printing of 1870, of Voices in the Night : Ballads and Other Poems by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. It's a hardcover, bound in green decorative cloth boards. The front and back are covered in intricate black and gilt floral decorations and etching, the pages are gilt. In side, apart from a slight browning of the pages, it is in excellent condition. I can not tell you how many hours I have spent with this old friend, but when I pick up it's weight I am immediately comforted, and feel a calmness which is hard to acquire sometimes. My fingers know all the curves and whorls of the flower decorations, and the weight of the book is etched upon my mind. I am in the presence of a good, caring friend when I am quietly reading this book, and I would not sell it for the world. Do you have a favorite book in your collection? do you keep it locked away - or out for folks to discover as you yourself did? What is your favorite book?

Wow, Thanks for that BrDevon...!! Her voice and that mandolin were made for each other... "penny for my thoughts - I'll sell them for a dollar" sticks with me....

All the folks from the New World Order are probably there training.... jobs are scarce unless you're one of "Them".... :lol:

Here is a list of quotes that I have extracted from my notes... from my library of resources that I have built up over many years... These are purported to be the words of the Prince Siddhartha Gautama - otherwise known as The Buddha. I have picked out the ones that I have found special meaning in, because they are the ones I like to share on a regular basis.... They are in reverse order to the way I found them.....here goes - "You can search throughout the entire universe for someone who is more deserving of your love and affection than you are yourself, and that person is not to be found anywhere. You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe deserve your love and affection." "We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts, we make the world." "Virtue is persecuted more by the wicked than it is loved by the good." "Unity can only be manifested by the Binary. Unity itself and the idea of Unity are already two. " "To enjoy good health, to bring true happiness to one's family, to bring peace to all, one must first discipline and control one's own mind. If a man can control his mind he can find the way to Enlightenment, and all wisdom and virtue will naturally come to him. " "To be idle is a short road to death and to be diligent is a way of life; foolish people are idle, wise people are diligent." "Just as treasures are uncovered from the earth, so virtue appears from good deeds, and wisdom appears from a pure and peaceful mind. To walk safely through the maze of human life, one needs the light of wisdom and the guidance of virtue. " "In a controversy the instant we feel anger we have already ceased striving for the truth, and have begun striving for ourselves. " "It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles. Then the victory is yours. It cannot be taken from you, not by angels or by demons, heaven or hell. " "I do not believe in a fate that falls on men however they act; but I do believe in a fate that falls on them unless they act. " "Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned. " "An insincere and evil friend is more to be feared than a wild beast; a wild beast may wound your body, but an evil friend will wound your mind. " “Hatred does not cease through hatred at any time. Hatred ceases through love. This is an unalterable law.” “To keep the body in good health is a duty...otherwise we shall not be able to keep our mind strong and clear.” “To conquer oneself is a greater task than conquering others” “Your work is to discover your work and then with all your heart to give yourself to it.” “The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, worry about the future, or anticipate troubles, but to live in the present moment wisely and earnestly.” “The whole secret of existence is to have no fear. Never fear what will become of you, depend on no one. Only the moment you reject all help are you freed.” "A dog is not considered a good dog because he is a good barker. A man is not considered a good man because he is a good talker.” “However many holy words you read,However many you speak,What good will they do you If you do not act on upon them?” “When you realize how perfect everything is you will tilt your head back and laugh at the sky” “Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth.” “You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.” “There are two mistakes one can make along the road to truth...not going all the way, and not starting.” “Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it. Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many. Do not believe in anything simply because it is found written in your religious books. Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders. Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations. But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it.” “You will not be punished for your anger, you will be punished by your anger.” “All that we are is the result of what we have thought. The mind is everything. What we think we become.” “Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.”

Those who are suffering "so creully" each day, are blind to the assistance they receive on a minute by minute basis. And they judge their life based on a very limited view of what is occurring... and I think there is a basic understanding which does not follow through the words of the text which are left for us... we don't have that understanding, so misunderstanding is inevitable...

Rev Al, I feel what you are going through. I hope that you find a path away from such problems....

Just know I am out here ( along with more of your friends... ), and I read your words, try to get a grasp of what you are sharing, and offer what I may from my own, limited, experience.... Just trying to let you know that this ride is spinning us faster and faster too.... just maybe in a different direction.... as the song says " Lean on us, if you need a hand...."

lol... it's not the frequency - it's the dips and dives..... stand tall in the saddle and grab ahold of the pommel, my friend, it'll smooth the ride.... I see nothing wrong with your frequency - not the kinda thing that's right and wrong... just aim for a steady, relentless pace - not a sprint to the finish....

It's very real stuff Raven.... and you do not have to go far to find a soul who wishes you well....

finally a comment on youtube that I can side with...

ok, so ya got me with posting a comment about the 70's in another thread.... so here's the post I made there... : 70's..... hmmn... that kinda rings a bell...... but, nope - it's all gone..... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87INl8P3vpA ignore harry... it's this version of this song that causes goosebumps all over my body... Sancty - here's some background for the wistful moments in your anime.... ( I would steal Bjork and run away with her - if only I knew where she was at... )

did it again.... oooops

wrong thread...