Beyond The Loneliest Star

I've Moved -- New Website!

2011-10-03T16:39:00.003+03:00

Well, folks, my time at Beyond the Loneliest Star is over!

I've moved to an Opinion Journal here.

I hope to see you over at the The High Tide and the Turn, where my sister and I write political commentary and literary reviews.

Seize the Day!

-Strongjoy

Don't Worry

2011-07-05T03:10:00.002+03:00

Seize the Day!
-StrongJoy

O Pioneers! and Wuthering Heights ---

2011-06-25T06:01:00.001+03:00

What does Willa Cather’s O Pioneers – a novel about a struggling Swedish homesteading family in Nebraska – have in common with Emily Bronte’s classic story of a haunting and tragic love affair on the moors of Britain -- the windswept Wuthering Heights? Well, both stories deal with unhappy marriages, with impetuous and emotional people, and with the passing of time. Both stories deal with the history of personal tragedies, and both invite the reader to step back and take a good, hard look at his own life.

O Pioneers! tells us the story of the sweet, independent and wise Alexandra Bergson who transforms her family’s farm into a profitable business after her father’s death, despite opposition from her less intelligent brothers, Lou and Oscar. Alexandra has a close relationship with a neighbor boy, Carl Lindstrum, who is introduced to us at the outset of the novel as a slightly hardened but kind fifteen-year-old boy. He becomes estranged from Alexandra when his family moves away, and she doesn’t see him again until he is a grown man of thirty-five. He has always felt inferior to her, and so he is unwilling to marry her. Alexandra’s dream is to create a happy life for her youngest brother Emil, a full fifteen years her junior. She hopes to send him to college and see him make a great man of himself. When he returns from college, he is slightly indolent and does not fully appreciate the sacrifices his sister has made on his behalf. He entangles himself in an affair with a vivacious and unhappily married Bohemian girl, Marie Shabata. Marie’s jealous husband catches them together and shoots both of them to death in a blind rage. Alexandra realizes that she should have seen the tragedy coming and is devastated. In her time of weakness, Carl comes rushing home to see her and finally they are married.

Wuthering Heights tells us of the capricious and jealous Catherine Earnshaw and her relationship with her foster-brother, a gypsy foundling named Heathcliff. Perhaps the most memorable portions of the book are those detailing the childhood shared by Cathy and Heathcliff. A former family servant tells how the two passionate and unruly childen were unrestrained and left to their own devices. Upon the death of their parents, the children fall into to the care of their older brother Hindley, a selfish man who is envious of Heathcliff. He treats the younger boy badly, depriving him of the privileges he had enjoyed under Cathy’s father and reducing him to a position of servanthood. Heathcliff, always of a passionate nature, becomes bitter and this bitterness is increased to a vengefulness when Cathy chooses to marry his rival Edgar Linton. She doesn’t really love Edgar, but says it would “degrade” her to marry Heathcliff. Heathcliff hears a part of her statement and his pride is severely wounded. He runs away and does not return for three years, during which time he acquires a small fortune. The new Heathcliff re-enters the story only for the purpose of vengeance. He swindles and abuses Cathy’s relatives, including her brother Hindley and her sister-in-law, Isabella Linton. As book wears on, we see the horrific results of his tormented passions, and those of Cathy, who grows increasingly selfish and eventually dies unhappy and frustrated.

I think it is likely that the authors of these books want us to look at the lives of their characters as a whole. This is why the stories are told from so far back. Probably Bronte and Cather were hoping that we would step back and look from a distance at their word paintings to see the design. Both of these books seek to show the importance of childhood in the shaping of character. The authors are telling us that children become adults regardless, with adult problems and adult temptations, but that they do not ever really grow up unless there is someone there to grow them up. We see how Cathy, Heathcliff, Marie and Emil’s lethal passions could have been mastered by better training and more time with deliberate adults. Both books also strongly emphasize the power of childhood relationships with the opposite sex. Cather and Bronte try to tell us that when a girl and a boy are best friends as children, they have a homegrown love that goes deeper than a fascination with an attractive stranger. Alexandra and Carl do come together in the end. They wait for a long time. But they are married, and we are happy and gratified when the thing finally comes about. Cathy is more selfish and impatient than Alexandra. She does not want to wait, and she is flattered by Edgar Linton’s attentions. She spurns Heathcliff as a lover, even though she acknowledges that he knows her better than anyone else ever will. Cathy and Heathcliff are forever tormented by her decision and their bitterness causes them not only to ruin their own lives, but the lives of others.

And yet, both Bronte and Cather seem to suggest that a mistake such as Cathy’s should not be considered a fatal one, and that it is crucial for those people involved to choose to get over it. In both novels, we see how the lovers’ unwillingness to move on proved to be destructive, and did not alleviate their regrets. The bleak and unlovely lives that are the results of Cathy and Marie’s refusal to accept their own choices are contrasted starkly with the beautifully normal and simple lives of others around them. Cather adresses the issue of a contented, simple life when Carl returns home to see Alexandra for the first time since he was an adolescent. He has been wandering the country for awhile, trying to make ends meet as an artist, just doing his own thing. He tells her this has not made him happy. “Freedom so often means one isn’t needed anywhere,” he says to her. While Wuthering Heights and O Pioneers! certainly hold their own as mere stories, their chief merits lie in their ability to warn and caution the reader through the mistakes of their characters.

Seize The Day!

StrongJoy

On Mozart --- (You're Not a Genius Until You're Dead)

2011-05-03T19:20:00.002+03:00

(This is a paper I wrote a few months ago.)

You're Not a Genius Until You're Dead

(Reflective Narration from The Arts by Hendrik Willem Van Loon)

Recognized today as one of the greatest Western composers of all time, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart lived his short thirty-six years not only overworked and underfed but unappreciated. Music-lover that he was, perhaps as a young man it wouldn't have bothered Mozart too much to learn that his strenuous composer's lifestyle was to bring him quickly to the grave --- but chances are he would have the resented the fact that it was to be an unmarked pauper's grave.

Mozart's musical career began at the age of three, with his father, a violinist in the service of the Archbishop, as his private teacher. He was performing in public a year later, playing his own compositions. At six he went to Vienna to play for Maria Theresa. "How pretty you are!" he said to her young daughter Marie Antoinette on this occasion. "When I am grown up, I shall marry you." Did she perhaps remember these words as she stepped up to the guillotine thirty-one years later and prepared to breathe her last? Had this childish dream been realized, Marie Antoinette might have lived to see old age. But it would have been an old age without Mozart. By then he had already been dead two years.

When Mozart returned to Salzburg as an older teenager, the old Prince Archbishop had died and his successor was neither courteous nor an admirer of music. Mozart found his new master's superiority complex so frustrating that he resigned his position as honorary Kapellmeister. This action only further enraged the Archbishop who determined to do everything in his power to make the young man's life miserable. At that time in history, there was a great deal that such a power figure could do to a poor musician. Mozart's family fell into debt and he began traveling Europe in attempts to support himself. He fell in love with a penniless young German girl and this only made life more difficult. In response to his father's pleas not to allow his passion to ruin the girl, he wrote that he was hopelessly in love but too conscious of his duties toward God to do anything wrong. Shortly after this, he had to send news of a different sort. His mother had died in a Paris boarding-house after a long illness. It is apparent that the Mozart family's debts would not allow a doctor visit.

After his mother's death, Mozart acquired a position and was able to marry Constance Weber, the younger sister of the girl he'd so hopelessly pursued a few years before. Unfortunately, she was as bad a money manager as he was and the bills began to pile up. A poor man has to take what he is given, and while many exalted personages had commissions for Mozart, none of them paid well enough to enable him to live comfortable. When a Count Walsegg commissioned a requiem that he would later palm off as a composition of his own, Mozart, worn and stressed and in a constant fever, imagined that the valet sent to request the goods was a messenger from heaven, announcing his approaching end. The next day he died.

On the day of Mozart's burial it rained so hard that not even his wife was able to accompany him to the cemetery. The only one of Mozart's friends that was there to see his body dropped into a common grave was his faithful mongrel dog. Constance remarried and she and her new husband spent the rest of their lives organizing Mozart's compositions and preparing a biography for him. Since then dozens of biographies and monuments and memorials have been erected in his honor. Unfortunately no one even knows what exactly killed the composer, because his body, thrown into a grave reserved for the poorest of the poor, cannot be identified.

THE LAST SLEEPING MOMENT

2011-04-16T16:34:00.001+03:00

It’s good of you to be here,
to sit by the window and hold your eyes open.
Mine that are cloudy cannot tell who you are –
but it was good of you to come sit awhile, watch a man dying.
The night has been a long time going by –
a long time for a fretful old man to fidget between the blankets.
But now that I know I will not see the morning,
one night maybe isn’t such a long time after all.

Suddenly I want to say some last words,
something you could write down and be proud to have heard.
You could say, “I was there when the old man died. He said------”
- if you weren’t nodding a head too heavy, too long watching,
if you weren’t snoring, dreaming on the windowpane -.
“Last words are for fools who haven’t said enough already.”
Well, Marx, old man, you said more than enough.
But me --- have I ever said anything worth saying in my whole life?

I feel my eyelids slipping --
not the withered, fleshy ones against the wet lens,
but the ones under, up against the Being, cutting off
the shapes of this dingy room and the candle flickering on the wall.
I also can’t hear the quiet anymore. No soundlessness of the death-watch
and the middle of the night. Instead, there is this splashing on rocks,
so close I can feel that the mist of the waterfall is cold,
but still blurred in with the fading dark.

I have been a long time dreaming
but this is not like the world blacking out,
but like the glass darkly is getting thinner,
the veil keeping me in dreams falling off.
The stuff of Afterwards doesn’t bubble into the picture
through a screen of boiling water so as to make you not-sure it’s real
like in the movies. Oh, there is water - only water you can touch
and splash fingers in and slurp cold over the dry tongue.

I cannot see you anymore -- you by the window --
the realness of this waterfall has closed in over you.
But I know you could still hear me if you weren’t so fast asleep,
because right in the middle of the plunging white
still flutters that pathetic candle that called itself a light.
God, if he could see this light dumping over the mountains like a million suns,
feel this sharp infusion of aliveness!
Man, you would never, never sleep again.

Funny, I am not looking for them –
for the girl with the finger that wears my band of gold,
for the woman with the smile that the cancer took away
while a little boy watched it, begged her not to go.
The little boy is not looking for his two buried babies.
Instead I am wondering what exactly is a man with no last words worth saying
supposed to say to a very busy Judge trying him for murder.
And I’m guessing nothing.

You by the window,
giving in to the clock and the still night,
when you pass from that dream you’re in to the next one,
find my clumsy heart still beneath the sheets, thank you.
It was good of you to sit awhile, watch a man waking up,
eyelids slipping right wide open.

Bryana J.
all rights reserved

The Hound of Heaven

2011-04-10T02:51:00.001+03:00

He put a hound on you - I asked Him to -
an animal with gasping, wild breath,
and groping teeth and lunging, starving eyes,
and he will catch you, it's as sure as death.

Two miles from town and by the clock of night
1:00 in the morning, we found prints of yours
tracking the snow with frightened sneaker-feet
and followed them right to the bolted door.

By windowlight I saw your silhouette,
made out your shape, your blackness, in that room
"Snap leashes! Subject bolting for the door!"
and all His dogs came raging after you.

We watch you jerk through darkness from the steps,
and hurtle over winterfallen white
after you they come like bullet bursts
and howls curdle blood and chill the night.

Your sleeping days are over - you will run,
your sitting-down time gone - you will pound feet.
We love you and the only way to show
it, is to free you from your sultry peace.

The world rolled out before you - you have room
Press hard heels into firm dirt - you can run,
You have a lifetime to attempt escape.
Go for it - let us know when you are done.

You will not tear forever over fields,
and up the rocks and crannies of the walls
You will not run the circle of the world
unending - someday you will trip and fall.

You will wear tired and you will miss steps
someday toes slide and you will feel the ledge
His hounds will find your flesh and meet their teeth
through frenzied skin, and drag you from the edge.

I told Him softly, “I have one I love,
one distant and one orphaned from the day.
Maybe you could send a couple dogs
To take him down and bring him in someday?”

by Bryana Joy

(all rights reserved)

The Grudge

2010-08-03T06:58:00.006+03:00

I came in second for a national poetry contest. I would have come in first but my younger sister won that. The poem had to be heroic couplets in iambic pentameter on JUSTICE.

We had a thunder in the night that came
Like evil laughter heralding the rain.
I woke and found my city half-asleep,
And I put on old shoes to walk the street.
We have too many cars here on my block,
Even in blinding rain at three'o'clock.
I know I'm not the first one to complain -
Don't we all hate our cities just the same?

I turned to take a back-alley and found,
God, sitting in a puddle on the ground.
It'd been awhile since we'd kept in touch,
But I could see He hadn't changed that much.
"Where have you been?" I asked Him kinda slow,
"I'm pretty sure the whole world wants to know
If God has sent us coasting down a hill,
And took off work and left the steering wheel."

I hoped to see a fire light His face,
To kneel there conquered by a flaming grace.
God didn't look up from The New York Times,
"Go on," He said, "what else is on your mind?"
The sullen anger seething in my head
Exploded into wild wrath instead.
"I have a list, get ready!" I half yelled.
"When I'm done, see if You can do as well!

I want to know why You hate innocents,
And why You feed the world at their expense.
I want to know why God has set apart,
And holds a grudge against the pure in heart.
If God is sovereign, He cannot be just,
(And I'm prepared to prove it if I must).
If God is just, He has no final say ---
Judge of the Earth, You need a Judgment Day.

We had a knifing right here yesterday -
A good man going on his quiet way.
I want to hear You say You did not see,
It will make it much easier for me.
We have a lot of babies clean, unborn,
Unstained, and quite unwanted and so torn
With scissors in a sanitary space,
Tell me You have not seen this taking place.

What of the kids that line our night-time streets,
And sell themselves because they have to eat?
I know You passed a few outside that store,
God, don't You help the children anymore?
When one who loves You lets his whole world go,
Why doesn't God who saved Abednego
Take His scared, trusting lover from the flame,
And bring a matchless glory to His name?

'Three times beaten with rods and one time stoned,
Thrice shipwrecked, one night in the deep alone,'
Is this the way God sees the blessed meek?
As targets for death and calamity?
The Devil roams the streets and countryside
And takes whom he shall find and rips him wide,
The wretched righteous call You through the years,
Please tell me You have cotton in your ears!

God set the Evening News down in the mud,
And smiled, like I dared to hope He would.
And in that one igniting of His eyes,
Was life and death and sunset and sunrise.
All shades of stars within the Milky Way,
And all the flaming colors of the day,
The passion of the surf upon the sand,
And laughing of the ship in sight of land,

The holy joy of altar-kneeling tears,
Through all the multitude of counted years,
The sparkle of a thousand glories dead,
Hung, hovered in his smile when He said,
"You say the 'pure in heart' - I've known one man
And only one since all the world began.
All outrages, all wounds to soul and skin
Pale when compared with what was done to Him.

Those hands bound, that cheek slapped upon the kiss,
That head crowned thorny, -- yes, I lived through this.
Those shoulders robed in mockery and shame,
And all the hurting spitting out the Name.
That back bared, those arms stretched to take the sting!
A man can look at almost anything,
But this wrong wrongs the one that has to watch
The eye can take a lot, but not that much.

Go on and tell Me what I should have done,
-- All forces of the universe My own ---
Tell Me I should have held the striking hand,
And sent that legion scouring the land.
You will be right. My child, you will be right.
But tell Me what you would have done that night --
Would you have spared the blood within that heart?
And left the children crying in the dark?"

I thought that I had other things to say ----
The wind picked up and took my breath away.

Be Sill For The Presence of the Lord

2010-03-16T06:44:00.001+03:00

EDEN - Perelandra, and The Fall of Man Into Sin as a Real Loss

2010-01-29T01:59:00.003+03:00

Yes, I've taken a long break from blogging. In fact, it was such a long break that I should now have more than enough topics on my mind to keep me blogging every week for months. January has been a very busy month here. My family runs fifty goats and we just went through kidding season while my Dad was on a business trip overseas. We now have eighteen baby goats running around the farm and several more on the way. Several have to be bottle fed around the clock. I'm tired. My eleven-year-old sister also broke her arm this week.

There's a topic that I've spent so much time thinking on over the past year, I'm going to take at least two posts to write about it: EDEN.

To be quite honest, it all began with C.S. Lewis' Perelandra, which I begin to understand is probably the most overlooked and underrated book I've ever read. For months after reading it, I continued to persist in my opinion that The Space Trilogy was dry and difficult to read and that there was really nothing wonderful about it. But when I think back and realize how much Perelandra has influenced my life, and how much it has encouraged and inspired and excited me even during the months in which I was insisting that I didn't really like it, I think I need to go back and read it again.

But before I write about Perelandra, I'm going to write about its prequel, Out Of The Silent Planet. In this first book of The Space Trilogy, a man from planet Earth is taken to another planet, a perfect planet without a "fall into sin." At one point the protagonist, Ransom, tries to explain the concept of sin to some of the creatures on the other planet, but they are totally unable to understand him. The only word in their language that can even be used to refer to sin is the term "bent" or "twisted." Ransom tries to talk to them about promiscuity and they are not even able to understand what could possibly induce a creature to want to be unfaithful. Their nature is not evil like ours, and every inclination of the thoughts of their hearts is only good all the time.

In Perelandra, Ransom is taken to another "un-fallen" planet to save it from a fall into sin. The book raises all kinds of thrilling and important topics, from the sovereignty of God to the need for Law, to righteous hatred, to demon possession. But the thing that I found the most interesting was the assertion of the superiority of a perfect world.

At one point in the book Ransom is wrestling in his mind over whether or not he can risk his entire life for a faint hope of saving the perfect planet. He begins to ask himself if, after all, it is so necessary to save the planet in the first place. If it were to fall, surely God would redeem it eventually, just as He did ours. Not in the same way, maybe, but it would be redeemed. And his mind, agonized and afraid of doing what he knows he should do, begins to wonder if perhaps redemption is better anyway than un-fallen perfection. After all, didn't we get Jesus out of the Fall? Don’t we have the Kingdom of God among us, and the Spirit of God dwelling in us? However, these lines completely void his argument:

"Whatever you do, He will make good of it, but not the good He had prepared for you. That is lost forever. The first King and Mother of our world did the forbidden thing; and He brought of it good in the end, but what they did was not good, and what they lost we have not seen, and there were some to whom no good ever came nor ever will come."

After Ransom makes his decision he goes and finds the "Eve" of the planet sleeping in the woods, and there is this beautiful and heart-breaking passage:

"As he stood looking down on her, what was most with him was an intense and orphaned longing that he might, if only for once, have seen the great Mother of his own race thus, in her innocence and splendor. 'Other things, other blessings, other glories,' he murmured. 'But never that. Never in all worlds, that. God can make good use of all that happens. But the loss is real.'"

The loss is real. We don't know everything that we lost when we fell into sin, but it is a real loss - a loss of things that God wanted us to have. And because of this fall, everything here that was created whole and lovely and majestic is broken.

I was instant messaging a good friend of mine a couple nights ago and we were talking about this concept of brokenness as a result of the human fall into sin. I think that very often we don't even come close to realizing how deeply sin has perverted everything in the world. Sin has perverted even the good things. The world is messed-up and even the beautiful things are adulterated. If you just take a minute to think about this, you can trace the effects of sin in every sphere of life. Here are a few I thought of off the top of my head:

Human Love: As Galadriel says in The Fellowship of The Ring, "In all lands, love is now mingled with grief." Love in our world comes with pain. I'm not necessarily talking about romantic love between the sexes here, but just about love in general. Even the very purest and deepest love that we have for other people is sure to get us hurt in some way, whether by death or betrayal or separation or misunderstanding or something else.

Nature/The Outdoors: The nature that is still praised by poets and idealists as the way to relax the mind and still sought by city people as a refuge from the horrors of social problems and urban stress, is messed-up. Cruelty is manifest in nature. The fittest survive, and the weak suffer.

Human Nature: The nature of men has been destroyed. Our "natural" lusts for blood and violence and ready sex are indicators that nature is not absolute, and has definitely failed. Our more subtle desires for power and position and fame and wealth and control at any cost are other examples of this perversion.

Human Beauty: God made us in His image, and we are beautiful. But how frequently our beauty is corrupted by our lusts! How frequently are beautiful people regarded not as living testimonies to the glory of the Creator but as things to be played with and discarded when we are tired of them! And how frequently we refuse to reflect the beauty of God in our bodies and instead choose to allow ourselves to be ugly?

My friend was highlighting the fact that even God, when He is blessing us with the most vital and important things, has to break us to do so. We live in a sinful world, and when we hurt and break ourselves with sin, the only way for Him to heal us is to re-break the bone we’ve broken and set it correctly. It's almost a contradiction that the perfect and Almighty God has to heal us by breaking us again. Jars of Clay has a sweet, sad song about brokenness and the wretched condition of humanity and their first lines go like this:

"Oh my God, look around this place
Your fingers reach around the bone
You set the break and set the tone……"

After reciting a list of the horrific evils, they end it with the simple cry,

"Oh my God,
Oh my God,
Oh my GOD!"

You can listen to this song here:

http://www.playlist.com/searchbeta/tracks#jars%20of%20clay%20oh%20my%20god

That is what I feel like saying sometimes. There are some things so evil that nothing else can carry their weight. Sometimes, when I get hit in the face by the full force and understanding of the depth of our fall, the only thing worth saying is, "Oh my God," because as George MacDonald puts it in Sir Gibbie, "Jesus is the one rock where evil finds no echo. Jesus is the cavern of destroying love into which all evil tumbles and finds no reaction and ends forever."

P.S. If that struck you as a slightly depressive post, don't worry: the next one will more than make up for it!

HENRY V - Movie Review

2009-10-19T16:11:00.004+03:00

Although I've never been a devoted fan of Shakespeare, I really appreciated Hamlet. The storyline was interesting and philosophical and the movie with Mel Gibson was tolerably good too. However, it was nothing when compared to Kenneth Branagh's film rendition of Henry V. I think this film may possibly be as good as Shakespearean histories can get.

Henry V details the exploits of the young English king, Henry V, in the early fifteenth century. Carrying on a traditional war over the succession of the French throne, Henry V launches an invasion of France. The play is a story about his hopes, decisions and emotions during this time, but also about the actual historical battles that took place. Shakespeare even managed to insert a little love story as a subplot.

I've always thought of Harfleur and Agincourt as inexcusable wars of aggression on the part of the English. It is difficult for our culture to even consider this kind of violent attack as acceptable for any civilized monarch. However, in order to enjoy the story at all, we do have to understand the times and the national sentiments going around in an age where no one felt safe, even in days of relative peace. France was the traditional enemy of

England and both sides were apprehensive that as soon as the other should find it convenient, they would attack.

I really liked the balance in the movie. Even though the script for the movie is taken word-for-word from the play, the director shapes the attitude of the audience towards the story with the sets and actors he uses. While giving Henry a very fair chance to appear noble and showing his misgivings and his desire to please God, Branagh also paints the horrors of war vividly. He makes no attempt to glorify the battles, but instead makes them far worse than Shakespeare probably intended. I think that in a way he short-circuits some of Shakespeare's obvious intentions of romanticizing the war, and I do appreciate this.

I've heard Shakespeare's version of Henry hailed as a Christ-figure, but I must say that this analogy really doesn't bear any examination. Rather, the Henry in Shakespeare's play is a noble and heroic but severely misguided and violent man. (I can't speak for the historical Henry V. I'm only talking about Henry V as depicted in the play.) Although there are good aspects of his character and he is a generous and good-hearted king to his own people, his standards are far too low for me to even come close to considering that he could represent Christ.

The most famous portion of the movie and the play is the St. Crispin's Day speech. Indeed, the whole thing would lose most of its appeal without this scene that ties off all of the loose ends of both Henry's character and the motivation for the war. I was very impacted by this speech. When the King launches into these immortal lines:

He which hath no stomach to this fight,

Let him depart. His passport shall be made,

And crowns for convoy put into his purse.

We would not die in that man’s company

That fears his fellowship to die with us.

…………………….

And gentlemen in England now abed

Shall think themselves accursed they were not here,

And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks

That fought with us upon Saint Crispin’s day!

it made me think what a privilege it is to be living now, in the time and place that God has set for us. You can watch that scene here:

The movie reaches a climax of tragedy when the victorious English army returns to their camp to find all of their boys slaughtered by the angry and desperate French army. Boys too young to fight had been left behind when the army went to battle and it was illegal by the rules of honorable war to strike them. The unutterable rage and horror incited by the sight of the bleeding children provokes the king to cry, "I was not angry since I came to France until this instant!" As the triumphant but miserable and outraged English army sets out to bury the dead boys, this lovely scene wraps up the battle of Agincourt:

Kenneth Branagh's Henry V is an excellent way to watch Shakespeare's play. While retaining the original text, it brings the story to life on screen, preserving the Shakespearian regard for the man, but not without raising questions as to the ethical basis for the war.

Seize The Day!

-StrongJoy

SONNET III

2009-09-24T16:50:00.004+03:00

OK. :) I'm back. I've committed to try to post more frequently now that summer is over and the school term has started again.

Here is a sonnet I wrote last week. (I still think I like Sonnet II better- what do you think?) As always, suggestions are more than welcome!

SONNET III

Considering the present sufferings

Not worthy to be thought of or compared

To glory that shall burn away these things

And leave our souls and hearts and senses bared,

Some of the ransomed lovely ones in Christ

Refused the dying world's attentions

And named the named of Jesus at a price,

To obtain the better resurrection.

These ones held true and loyal to one Love

And watched their other loves die all around,

The ones for whom the world was not enough,

Of whom the world has been unworthy found,

O Church, are you to be the Bride of GOD?

You have not yet resisted unto blood!

StrongJoy

Just a Song I Wrote

2009-09-19T19:35:00.003+03:00

Run For Your Life

2009-06-28T21:36:00.000+03:00

TRANSFORMERS, STANDARDS and THE HIDDEN MESSAGES IN MOVIES

2009-05-27T06:04:00.015+03:00

I believe that every painting, book, or movie reveals in some measure the worldview of its creator. This may not be intentional, but it's inevitable. This is why it’s so important to be aware when we expose our eyes or minds to these things. Although literature and art are just as full of ideas, I think that our generation needs to be especially careful with movies.

The entertainment business has one simple and foolproof tactic for changing the culture. They realize that people watch movies for entertainment and therefore don’t generally tend to think when they are watching movies. Therefore, they know that they can get away with a lot in movies that they might not be able to get away with otherwise. They also know that the ideas they put into movies are going to influence our culture, even if we aren’t aware of what these ideas are. And even if we think that we won’t be affected by these ideas, we can’t help it when we watch so much television. Thus, it’s imperative that we recognize and identify the ideas behind the movies we watch.

I think that the movie Transformers (2007) is a perfect example of this concept. The movie revolves around the life of a highschool kid in a “typical” American home. He’s a dork and doesn’t make good grades in school. He has no character. He does not work hard and his life is obviously full of impurity. One day he sees the school football captain’s girlfriend (a cheerleader) walking down the street in very provocative clothing and is immediately smitten. He spends most of the rest of the movie trying to impress this girl and spite the football captain. In the end he becomes a “hero” through no merit of his own, saves the world, and gets her. The movie ends with the girl lying in his arms on the hood of his car in a very inappropriate position for an unmarried couple.

I was very disappointed with this movie. It struck me as being a blatant glorification of pre-marital sex and mediocrity. I just kept wondering, “What’s the point?” I feel like this generation’s standards are too low. Why are we accepting films that are gradually chipping away at our values? Why aren’t we saying, “This isn’t good enough. It has to be better.” The trouble with us is that we are far too easily pleased, too easily satisfied. I just LOVE what C.S. Lewis says about this in “The Weight Of Glory”:

“Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased”.

A lot of people have told me that they like this movie because of the special effects which, I will acknowledge, were awesome. And I certainly don’t think there’s anything wrong with being intrigued by the astonishingly realistic cinematography displayed in so many modern movies. Modern movies thrill me with their special effects and pristine film quality. It’s amazing to me that humans can make such incredible works of art. However, I think we need to start holding our artists to higher standards. If we, as a nation and a culture, continue to just accept whatever Hollywood sees fit to give us, we are going to drop our standards and lose our values.

Seize The Day!

-StrongJoy

Answers to the "Cultural Literacy and Goats" Quiz

2009-04-10T05:25:00.012+03:00

Sorry this is a little overdue, folks. I've been sick with the flu and had visitors over this week. But here are the answers to the quiz....and our winner is..........Miss Eyebright! Congratulations! You take up the lead with 20 correct answers out of 28.

MarthaH605 came in 2nd place with 17 correct answers.

Good job and thank you to everyone who took a guess!

1 Carmen - from the opera, "Carmen"
2 Princess Leia - from Star Wars
3 Kızıl Ok - Turkish for "Red Arrow"
4 Jason Argonaut - The mythological character Jason who went after the golden fleece
5 Rosie Cotton - from "The Lord Of The Rings"
6 Catriona - From the book of the same name by Robert Louis Stevenson (it's the sequel to "Kidnapped" and the character Catriona is portrayed in the BBC version of the movie. Awesome version, by the way)
7 Torfrida - from the book "Hereward The Wake" by Charles Kingsley
8 Good Queen Bess - nickname of Queen Elizabeth I of England
9 Boudicca (Boadicea) - from British history
10 Brunhilde - one of the Valkyries (portrayed in Wagner's Ring Opera)
11 Gazelle - just named after the animal
12 Marie Antoinette - Former Queen of France (a person I have great sympathy for)
13 Myrtle Hardbottle - from "The Lord Of The Rings"
14 Wendy Moira Angela Darling - from "Peter Pan" by James Barrie
15 Rose Salterne - from "Westward Ho!" by Charles Kingsley
16 Jerusha - a name from the Bible. Also an unsavory character from "The Five Little Peppers and How They Grew"
17 Sassafras - named after the plant
18 Thing One - from Dr. Seuss' "The Cat In The Hat"
19 Thing Two - from Dr. Seuss' "The Cat In The Hat"
20 Bambi - from the book "Bambi"
21 Luthien - from "The Silmarillion"
22 Tinuviel - Luthien's other name
23 Padme Amidala - from Star Wars
24 Freya - Norse goddess
25 Odin - Norse god
26 Emrys - Welsh for "immortal," Merlin from the Arthurian legend is referred to as "Merlin Emrys"
27 Castor - a constellation, one of two mythological Greek twins
28 Pollux - a constellation, the other of the two mythological Greek twins

"Amazing Grace" Like You've Never Heard It Before

2009-04-02T03:50:00.002+03:00

Check out this beautiful video. You've got to watch it all the way through.

Imagine what the music is going to be like in Heaven! :)

My Favorite Art and Why

2009-03-28T20:39:00.010+03:00

I can’t imagine my life without art. I think it is sad that so many people go through life without ever really enjoying any art other than cartoons when there are so many beautiful paintings to enjoy!

Currently, I am a sophomore in highschool. Having studied around 45 artists since first grade and having a collection of around 200 prints, today I went through my album and picked out my three favorite artists and three favorite prints and I thought I’d share them with you. Picking out the artists was easy. I knew right away that John William Waterhouse, William Bougereau and Frederick Leighton would be my favorites. (I would have replaced Leighton with Thomas Kinkade in a heartbeat, but I haven’t collected his paintings, or really studied them, so he doesn’t count.) If you quickly scan a few of their paintings, you’ll realize rather quickly that all three of these artists have very similar styles. They are all three realists, and all three paint lots of figures from mythology/poetry/literature, and mostly young girls and children.Most of Waterhouse’s paintings are figures from mythology or poetry. His favorite subjects seem to be Ophelia from Shakespeare’s Hamlet, and The Lady Of Shallot. I was quite pleasantly surprised when I accidentally stumbled upon his painting called, “‘I am half sick of shadows’, said the Lady Of Shallot.” This is a line from Tennyson’s poem The Lady Of Shallot, and one that has always stood out to me. Waterhouse’s other subjects include: Jason and Medea, La Belle Dame Sans Merci, Penelope, Danae, Pandora, Thisbe, Circe and Ulysses.

Bougereau’s paintings make me think of silk. The faces in his paintings are so smooth that they make you want to stroke them. He has a way of making skin look like light. He especially paints beautiful pictures of children. I think he was probably the most skilled of all the painters I have ever studied, with the possible exception of Thomas Cole. Unfortunately most of his paintings seem to have been attempts to glorify the human body rather than the Creator.

Leighton was, perhaps, the most sensuous of the Pre-Raphealite painters. He struggled all his life to find meaning and perhaps to make an absolute out of sensuality. (He failed, by the way) Why would I choose him as a favorite artist? His paintings are beautiful. To me, art is about beauty. Contrast the wretch Leighton with the wretch Gauguin and notice that although both of them were desperately lost and searching for meaning in all the wrong places, one of them made beautiful paintings and the other did not. An ugly painting with a good meaning is nothing to me, because art is not just about meaning. AND a beautiful painting with “no meaning” is still beautiful to me. I don’t believe that there is any such thing as art without a meaning. I think that every artist, whether he likes it or not, is putting down meanings with every stroke of his brush, even if he is only saying, “look how fearfully and wonderfully made I am! I can look at this thing that I see before me and put it down on paper…God is incredible.”

Out of all the many artists I have studied, I like these ones the best because of the skill and beauty in their paintings. It’s amazing to me what they are able to do with paint. I love artists who can capture moods and expressions in people’s faces and I think that the human face is the most intriguing subject for art. I find that I also like surrealistic and/or idealistic landscape paintings but these seem to be a relatively modern interest in art and I have not actually studied any particular artist who painted works of this type, so I cannot list them.

It was quite a bit harder to choose my favorite paintings, but I eventually managed to narrow them down to three.

The first is Jacques Louis David’s Napoleon. I cannot think of any other painting that evokes such feelings in me as Napoleon. I like it because I think it is a beautiful illustration of mankind. Although this may sound odd, it makes me feel a greater capacity to love. I think how hated the historical Napoleon is (and perhaps rightly so) and then see this “romanticized” version and think that it shows him looking rather like a frightened child, pointing vaguely up the mountain towards the “great things” he wants to do. To me he looks like he is giving one of those parting glances we leave with people we love dearly and may never see again. “Think well of me. I did my best.” This is no defense of or excuse for the historical Napoleon, obviously – it’s just the way the painting makes me feel.

Another of my favorite paintings, Forget Me Not is by Arthur Hughes, I think the most admirable of the Pre-Raphaelite painters. Rather than only dreaming about the heroism and perfection that most of the other Pre-Raphaelites failed to live out, Hughes was more devoted to his principles in real every-day life.

Although I greatly appreciate Waterhouse’s paintings of mythological and literary characters that I recognize and enjoy, I cannot imagine choosing any of them to be my favorites paintings. They lack the significance that I look for in anything that I choose to be my “favorite.” Although it is not as skillfully done, perhaps, as many of his other works, I chose The Annunciation as my favorite of Waterhouse’s paintings. It has incredible significance. I love the purplish-blue combination and the way the colors compliment each other so well. I also love the humble way in which he portrays Mary here. Unlike most of his female subjects, she looks completely pure.

So, anyway, those are a few of my favorites when it comes to art. What about you?

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

Cultural Literacy Contest and Goats

2009-03-26T23:49:00.005+03:00

We have a herd of Boer goats, 35 in all. Each time a kid is born, we spend a good deal of time discussing, disagreeing, debating and deciding what to name it. I thought it would be fun if I listed some of their names and see if you can figure out who they are named after. All names are well known in history, art, movies or literature. One is in the foreign language I speak (You will know which one if you read my blog regularly) but it should be easy to find out its meaning. That one is extra credit. : ) Most of the names are females, since most are nannies. But we have some males as well. Leave you answers in the comments section and in a week we will announce the winner (the one who named the most original sources correctly) and we will also post the answers. Here are their names:

1 Carmen
2 Princess Leia
3 Kızıl Ok
4 Jason Argonaut
5 Rosie Cotton
6 Catriona
7 Torfrida
8 Good Queen Bess
9 Boudicca (Boadicea)
10 Brunhilde
11 Gazelle
12 Marie Antoinette
13 Myrtle Hardbottle
14 Wendy Moira Angela Darling
15 Rose Salterne
16 Jerusha
17 Sassafras
18 Thing One
19 Thing Two
20 Bambi
21 Luthien
22 Tinuviel
23 Padme Amidala
24 Freya
25 Odin
26 Emrys
27 Castor
28 Pollux

Ready, set, GO.

How is Your Hearing?

2009-03-19T17:13:00.001+03:00

Created by Train Horns

Viva La Republique!

2009-03-16T04:04:00.000+03:00

I wrote this poem a couple weeks ago. It deals with the young men who fought in the emeute (rebellion) in Les Miserables. They called themselves the Friends of the ABC ("abaisse" - French for abased, poor) Hugo apparently put a lot of effort into making these men express certain views. The Friends of The ABC were an utterly miserable set of young men whose utmost goal was death. They truly did care about the poor class of France but they had nothing to give to them. Even giving up their lives did absolutely no good to help their cause. They succeeded only in killing themselves and others with them. However, Hugo feels infinitely sorry for them and tries to show their wretched condition. In fact, when the book was published, many people were offended by the sympathy with which he portrayed these rebels.

The poem is meant to discuss both the bitter facade of apathy and the hopeless desperation that characterizes these men.

(I finally finished the book by the way!)

VIVA LA REPUBLIQUE!

Somebody said suicide

And then could we refuse?

There are many ways to die

And nothing left to lose.

So the fray is making noise,

It rains sometimes, what then?

And all of us are little boys

Pretending to be men.

We don’t think of surrendering

We die for liberty

The fact is, we are wandering

And so seem to be free.

To wander and to seem free

That is to be lost

And lost is bad enough in life

But worse when you’re a ghost.

Live in Hell, die in Hell

Tell me someone cared

We're so used to Hell by now

But GOD, we are so scared!

-B.J.J. aka StrongJoy

Seize The Day!

-StrongJoy

"Les Miserables" - Why Gavroche Is My Favorite Character and What Grantaire Believes In (Warning: Spoiler)

2009-02-02T23:04:00.001+03:00

I have not actually finished reading Les Miserables, but after my favorite character died I took a long break. I have read 822 pages of the 981 pages in the book and so I guess you could say I am making progress :) (If you haven't read Les Miserables, let me just warn you: I am not going to summarize the storyline for you in this post, or explain anything, because the story is way too long and too complicated)

I actually surprised myself when I decided that Gavroche was my favorite character. For one, I have no idea how to pronounce his name, and then, of course, in the long run, he barely even enters into the story:) There are a lot of reasons why I like him. To be honest, the first reason is probably just because I like street-kids. Gavroche seems to be Victor Hugo's "average" street-kid. Even though Les Miserables is a rough book, Hugo is a gentle author and he wants very badly to redeem certain undesirable people-groups. Of course, the average street-kid isn't like Gavroche, but it makes a good story.

Gavroche is a rough little boy with a good heart. He hangs out with the worst and most despicable criminals but doesn't lose his "character" if you could even call it that. (The author apparently holds to the belief that humans are born with good hearts and that children are innocent. And, of course, that is not true- but it makes a good story.) Despite having a good heart, Gavroche is wild, rebellious, and disrespectful. But perhaps Hugo wanted us to wonder, "Does he owe the world anything? What has anyone ever done for him?" And if that is so, it is something to think about.

The thing that made me love Gavroche the most, though, was the scene in volume two, when he takes charge of two lost little boys he finds abandoned in the street. He never finds out that they are his little brothers. He did it just because. Just because. This is a boy who has probably never in his life heard anything but threats and hard words and never felt anything but the cold and hard hands. But he knew. In this pathetic situation, he knew right from wrong like light from dark. You can't take that away from people. You can't delete the knowledge of good and evil.

Another thing about the book that really caught my attention was Grantaire's relationship with Enjolras. Grantaire and Enjolras are both members of the group, "Friends of The ABC." Enjolras is the leader, a visionary, an absolute champion, the perfect symbol of chastity, purity, honesty and perfection. But he is cold. He abhors impurity and apparently has no concept of love. Grantaire is a decided agnostic (if that's possible:). His only interests are alcohol and girls. Enjolras greatly dislikes Grantaire, and this, again, is such beautiful writing, I think. The author has created a "perfect" character (Enjolras) but he "has not love," and so he is nothing.

At one point in the story, Enjolras is appointing different people to act as spokesmen for the group - to rouse the young men of Paris and invite them to join in the rebellion against tyranny. He runs out of volunteers and is looking around for someone else when,

' "I," said Grantaire, "am here."
"You?"
"I."
"You to indoctrinate republicans! You, to warm up, in the name of principles, hearts that have gone cold!"
"Why not?"
"Is it possible that you can be good for anything?"
"Yes. I have a vague ambition for it," said Grantaire.
"You don't believe in anything."
"I believe in you." '

That line blew me away. "I believe in you." Because he knew. He knew right from wrong like light from dark. Of course he knew! From the middle of his empty, dark, destructive lifestyle, he caught a glimpse of light, and knew it was good. If Enjolras perhaps had known the least thing about love, he might have saved Grantaire, but there is such a thing as empty morality. I don't know how far it goes and, naturally, these are fictional characters so it's pretty irrelevant to them, but the way Victor Hugo delves into these things and creates these fantastic, thought-provoking situations just gets me excited :) The way Enjolras and Grantaire die together was just an extension of an already fascinating and intricate relationship.

To conclude, Victor Hugo seems to have caught a glimpse of part of the big picture. I'm afraid he missed most of it, and that's what makes Les Miserables such a sad book. However, one of the things Hugo captured VERY well is the concept of radical love. It's all throughout the book, from the bishop at the very beginning of the story to the street-kid Gavroche, to the convict JeanValjean. In a nutshell, this book is well worth the time it takes to read it. It's thought-provoking, educational, well-written and full of surprises.

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

Doe The Next Thynge - Fear not tomorrows, Child of the King

2008-12-28T01:34:00.011+03:00

A friend of mine shared this with me a couple weeks ago and it moved me so much that I thought I would share it with you:

"From an old English parsonage down by the sea
There came in the twilight a message to me;
It’s quaint Saxon legend, deeply engraven,
Hath, it seems to me, teaching from Heaven.
And on through the hours the quiet words ring
Like a low inspiration: “DOE THE NEXT THYNGE.”
Many a questioning, many a fear,
Many a doubt, hath its quieting here.
Moment by moment, let down from Heaven,
Time, opportunity, guidance, are given.
Fear not tomorrows, child of the King."
-Elizabeth Eliot

I'm not going to try to elaborate on that. I think the poetry says it all.

I wrote this one myself, a couple days later, trying to capture the power in the phrase, "Doe The Next Thynge" (it's best in Old English:) ).

But there is another thing too. There is "much expected of those to whom much is given," and there is the horrible thought that one day we might look back on our lives and say, "I wasted it." That scares me more than anything else and I wanted to express that in the poem.

Goethe says, "Nothing is worth more than this day" and although that may not be strictly true, I think there is a lot more in that line than we realize. After all, in my own life it will always be "now." It will never be "tomorrow" - that would be absurd. So ultimately, the way I live my life RIGHT NOW is the way I live my future...

THE WAITING

It’s the waiting that takes so long,
It’s the waiting that wastes your life.
And you don’t know till you’re old and bitter,
And look back on your life of lonely winters
And see your dreams in a million splinters
Buried beneath the snow.

It’s the waiting that takes so long,
It’s the waiting that wastes your life.
And you don’t know till you break the rhythm,
And death swings by and takes you with him
Then at last you’ll finally listen
But then it will be too late.

It’s the waiting that takes so long,
It’s the waiting that wastes your life.
And you don’t know till your heart’s been stripped
Of zeal for the for One who rescued it,
And you realize that somewhere along you slipped
And didn’t get up and deal with it
And you lost your life in an iron grip
And finally you say, “I wasted it.”
But you can’t have it back.

It’s the waiting that takes so long,
It’s the waiting that wastes your life.
Don’t wait until the glass is full,
Pour out what you have of love and skill,
If you don’t do it now, you never will.
This is your life, so LIVE!

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

So This Is Christmas

2008-12-02T04:53:00.047+03:00

Some things I'm loving about this Christmas in Texas:

Our 9 foot tree- big, like everything else in Texas!

Christmas music on the radio - (one of the greatest thing about being back America!)

My Celine Dion Christmas CD:

(Especially the songs, "War Is Over," "God Bless Us Everyone", "O Come All Ye Faithful" and "O Holy Night" and...- well, all the other ones :) )

The Christmas Carol:

My favorite Christmas Movie

Our fireplace that actually works!

(Almost every one of the many houses I lived in overseas had a fireplace- that didn't work.)

The chocolate popcorn my aunt sent:

ENYA HAS A NEW ALBUM OUT!

(I don't actually have the album but I heard "Trains and Winter Rains" on the website and as soon as the CD hits the stores here - and my wallet recovers from Christmas - I will have it. )

Being able to play Christmas songs on the guitar at last! (Especially "O Come All Ye Faithful")

(Let me tell you: Christmas songs on the guitar is no joke. Every syllable is a different chord.)

We have goats this year! These are three of the one-month old kids. The music is from Loreena McKennit's "Good King Wenceslas" and I'm the one filming...

Just being here with my whole family, everyone safe and healthy...I hope you have a wonderful Christmas too - and God Bless Us Everyone!

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

The People With The Roses - Whom You Love

2008-11-23T05:50:00.008+03:00

I thought this was a beautiful story. (It's originally an excerpt from the book "And The Angels Were Silent" by Max Lucado.)

"John Blanchard stood up from the bench, straightened his Army uniform, and studied the crowd of people making their way through Grand Central Station. He looked for the girl whose heart he knew, but whose face he didn't, the girl with the rose. His interest in her had begun thirteen months before in a Florida library. Taking a book off the shelf he found himself intrigued, not with the words of the book, but with the notes penciled in the margin. The soft handwriting reflected a thoughtful soul and insightful mind.

In the front of the book, he discovered the previous owner's name, Miss Hollis Maynell. With time and effort he located her address. She lived in New York City. He wrote her a letter introducing himself and inviting her to correspond. The next day he was shipped overseas for service in World War II.

During the next year and one-month the two grew to know each other through the mail. Each letter was a seed falling on a fertile heart. A Romance was budding. Blanchard requested a photograph, but she refused. She felt that if he really cared, it wouldn't matter what she looked like.

When the day finally came for him to return from Europe, they scheduled their first meeting - 7:00 PM at the Grand Central Station in New York. "You'll recognize me," she wrote, "by the red rose I'll be wearing on my lapel." So at 7:00 he was in the station looking for a girl whose heart he loved, but whose face he'd never seen.

I'll let Mr. Blanchard tell you what happened:

'A young woman was coming toward me, her figure long and slim. Her blonde hair lay back in curls from her delicate ears; her eyes were blue as flowers. Her lips and chin had a gentle firmness, and in her pale green suit she was like springtime come alive. I started toward her, entirely forgetting to notice that she was not wearing a rose.

As I moved, a small, provocative smile curved her lips. "Going my way, sailor?" she murmured. Almost uncontrollably I made one step closer to her, and then I saw Hollis Maynell. She was standing almost directly behind the girl.

A woman well past 40, she had graying hair tucked under a worn hat. She was more than plump, her thick-ankled feet thrust into low-heeled shoes. The girl in the green suit was walking quickly away. I felt as though I was split in two, so keen was my desire to follow her, and yet so deep was my longing for the woman whose spirit had truly companioned me and upheld my own. And there she stood. Her pale, plump face was gentle and sensible, her gray eyes had a warm and kindly twinkle. I did not hesitate. My fingers gripped the small worn blue leather copy of the book that was to identify me to her.

This would not be love, but it would be something precious, something perhaps even better than love, a friendship for which I had been and must ever be grateful.

I squared my shoulders and saluted and held out the book to the woman, even though while I spoke I felt choked by the bitterness of my disappointment. "I'm Lieutenant John Blanchard, and you must be Miss Maynell. I am so glad you could meet me; may I take you to dinner?"

The woman's face broadened into a tolerant smile. "I don't know what this is about, son," she answered, "but the young lady in the green suit who just went by, she begged me to wear this rose on my coat. And she said if you were to ask me out to dinner, I should go and tell you that she is waiting for you in the big restaurant across the street. She said it was some kind of test!" '

It's not difficult to understand and admire Miss Maynell's wisdom. The true nature of a heart is seen in its response to the unattractive."

Houssaye wrote:
"Tell me whom you love and I will tell you who you are."

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

The Big Problem With “The Essay On Man”: Misinterpretation

2008-11-15T21:28:00.004+03:00

A couple of weeks ago I got so upset at Alexander Pope’s Essay On Man that we ended up having a big fight. I filled up the margins of the book with lines from Perelandra to console myself and really got a rant out. He didn’t get to respond to me – and so that made it easier :).

Actually, that is an exaggeration - I want to be fair to this great poet, who does, I think, have great talent and probably wrote the Essay on Man out of the best intentions. However, I do think it is important that we question the “greats,” – NOT because they are great but because they are human. The authors of the “classics” are often regarded as incredibly wise and thinking people but this is not always the case, and – as long as we do it humbly – I think it’s crucial that we remember to question them. They are not any less “human” than the rest of us and just as prone to mistakes. Although, of course, this isn’t to say that I don’t think we should admire authors for the wisdom that they display in their writings, I do believe that we shouldn’t idolize them or assume that they will always be right. That said, the lines that I particularly had troubles with were these:

“All Nature is but Art unknown to thee;
All chance direction, which thou canst not see;
All discord, harmony not understood;
All partial evil universal good;
And spite of Pride, in erring Reason’s spite
One truth is clear – whatever is, is right.”

Now, of course, one cannot take Pope seriously here. He surely cannot mean, “Whatever is, is right.” It would be unjust to accuse him of that kind of simple-mindedness – as though he didn’t know about evil = slavery, suicide, addictions, sadism, cruelty, prostitution, oppression, castes, murder, love-of-money, etc….. He knew. So what was he trying to say? This is where the heart of the problem lies, and in reading the poem, one might almost say that he actually believed it was all “destined” to be in order to fulfill a greater good.

Dorothy Sayers (in The Mind Of The Maker*see end note) says, “The fact, however, that ‘all activity is of God’ means that no creative Idea can be wholly destructive: some creation will be produced together with the destruction; and it is the work of the creative mind to see that the destruction is redeemed by it’s creative elements.” Perhaps this thought is what Pope was attempting to express up there, but I guess the root question, the part that Pope didn’t explain very well, is this, “Because the evil was turned to good, was it then, ‘prepared’ that way?” Here is what C.S. Lewis says about that, “Whatever you do, He will make good out of it. But not the good He had prepared for you if you had obeyed Him. That is lost forever. The first King and the first Mother of our world did the forbidden thing; and He brought good of it in the end. But what they did was not good; and what they lost we have not seen. And there were some to whom no good came nor ever will.”

So I guess the answer is no. It was “prepared” to be beautiful, if we had obeyed Him. There was supposed to be no brokenness. And there is. But he made good out of it, and good was “Redemption.” Obviously He knew that we were going to disobey and there was going to be a Fall. But He had something else for us, and, as Aslan says, “No one is ever told what would have happened.” Perhaps the best line I know of on this subject is from "The Last Samurai." Those of you who have seen this movie will remember the part where Captain Algren is talking with Katsumoto and attempting to persuade him not to give up and to keep fighting against the odds, even though it will almost certainly mean defeat. Katsumoto says to him, “Do you believe a man can change his destiny?” and Algren answers, “I believe a man does what he can until his destiny is revealed to him.”

Well, that’s all I have to say on this subject, although I suppose you can see that everything smart in my post was not my own idea but quoted from one of the “greats” :) Oh, and if you disagree, do offer me your alternate opinion – I realize that this is a hard subject and I am totally open to other ideas.

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

*By the way, this book is pretty tough for me and requires my full attention. It is also full of metaphorical language and I would suggest being really careful in quoting from it, as certain passages could easily be misunderstood without the full context. I hope I have quoted her fairly and clearly, without muddling her intended message.

Edit: When I titled the post "The Big Problem With 'The Essay On Man': Misinterpretation," I didn't nessecarily mean that Pope had misinterpreted anything. I just meant that I thought his work was easy to misinterpret.

The Personhood Amendment

2008-10-23T00:02:00.001+03:00

Kristi Burton pledged her life to fighting abortion at thirteen. At nineteen she began the pro-life organization Colorado For Equal Rights, designed for the purpose of getting an amendment passed in Colorado that would define a human as a person "from the moment of fertilization." Now, as a twenty-one year old law student, Kristi is going to get to see the amendment on the Colorado ballot this November.

Watch this awesome little video to find out about the Personhood Amendment.

This story thrills me because I am interested in law and politics myself and I strongly believe in activism and grassroots support. It's always inspiring to read about (especially young) people who do hard things on such a high and far-reaching level.

Election day is almost here! Please pass this around, let people know about it. PRAY about it. Our country will only move if the PEOPLE move it - and that means you and I!

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

The First Movie

2008-10-02T04:54:00.015+03:00

Check out the project I have been working on with Raora

With the participation of our younger brother and sister and some friends who came up for the weekend we've put out our first film production. Unfortunately the film quality is not very pristine, but our equipment is a little limited:) We're currently planning another video and working on picking up more people to cast - hey, if you want to star in your first movie, drop by and we'll cast you! :)

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

The Joys Of Goat-Ownership

2008-09-14T03:46:00.077+03:00

Our farm has grown...quite significantly. To the original six cows (Which are, by the way, sticking around at last!) we have added three cats, twenty-three chickens, two dogs (the second one was dropped off at our house about three weeks ago and we have been unable to get rid of it.) and, the latest addition (as of five days ago) - sixteen goats.

A Few Of The Goats...

For the past several weeks, the goat-crazy members of our family (which would be myself and my Dad) have been doing a great amount of research and investigation on the subject of goats. We've received at least sixty e-mails on the topic and considered dozens of propositions. We've fenced in a pasture for them with electric fence (In my humble opinion, electric fence is THE solution to all fencing difficulties).

Unfortunately, the previous owners of our goats were either uninformed about caring for livestock or extremely negligent. As several of the animals were looking rather sickly, we had a big antibiotic and vaccination session. It lasted for about three hours on Saturday and was quite an experience. I was actually OK with it until around the tenth goat - she kicked me just a little too hard and flipped herself over before running off and jumping over the fence. We've also had to treat most of the herd for lice and some of them for foot rot - I must say that the veterinary work is my least favorite of the joys of goat-ownership...

Three of the goats in the herd belong to my sister and I - actually they were the three original goats. We bought them together as our first experimental investment. So far they haven't yielded us any profit - and we've spent a good deal of money on them :) - but it's been fun.

We do not have a herdsire yet. So far, the only buck in our entire herd is the little kid that my sister and I bought about two months ago. His previous owner had named him Earnhart Junior. (I had to innocently ask him who that was...) and tagged him J.R. Raora and I were not pleased with that name so his name is Jason aRgonaut. Unfortunately he is only about six months old and exceedingly spoiled. He'd follow us around like a dog if we let him.

Apart from the veterinary sessions, the process hasn't actually been that bad, but I am a little nervous about kidding season...

We are currently looking for another addition to the zoo...a donkey! Would you believe that one of the most popular guard animals for goats are donkeys?

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

A Day Without The Master

2008-08-18T17:52:00.002+03:00

I just finished The Holy War a couple weeks ago. I didn't think it was Bunyan's best work. Some parts of it were allegorical to the point of being frustrating and it lacked authenticity at times but the story was thought-provoking nonetheless and it has some very good lines.

One thing I liked about the book was how well it dealt with the issue of playing with sin. In the story, when Emmanuel has the city of Mansoul under siege, the evil Giant Diabolus at first refuses to give up the city to Him. After a long period of parley, the Giant's emissary finally comes to Emmanuel with a new proposition.

"But, sir, suppose that my Lord would resign the whole town to you, only with the proviso, that he sometime when he comes into this country, may, for old acquaintance' sake, be entertained as a wayfaring man, for two days, or ten days or a month or so. May not this small matter be granted?"

Then said Emmanuel, "No. He came as a wayfaring man to David, nor did he stay long with him, and yet it had like to have cost David his soul. I will not consent that he should have any harbour more there."

I wrote this after reading those lines...

A DAY WITHOUT THE MASTER

"May I come again to see you?
Not often and I won't stay long
It'll just be for a single day-
When you get up, I'll be gone.

May I slip in after midnight,
Just to see how well you fare?
I won't attempt to wake you,
I just want to know you're there.

I will keep this poor heart quiet -
You won't even know I've come
Until day on the horizon
Lights my footprints with the sun.

Footprints gentle and unnoticed,
Barely marking your clean snow.
Oh, the Master will not mind it
Why, He'll never even know!

You are always with the Master.
Do you think I do not see?
Surely you can take one day off?
Spare one day for me?

Get behind me, Satan,
For your words are poison rain,
And not even my poor, foolish heart
Will fall for you again

You took our joy and innocence,
You chained us up in Hell,
And as if that were not enough,
You want our hearts as well.

'But we are not your slaves
And will not be your slaves' we say
Our houses will not harbor you
Not even for a day'

For a single day you spent with David
And dug his feet a hole
And David, though his heart was pure
Had like to lose his soul

And if that boy after God's own heart
Could lose sight of the heart he was after
Than which of our trembling hearts can survive
A day without the Master?"
-B.J.J. aka StrongJoy

The Pain of Desire

2008-07-29T18:40:00.003+03:00

"All men desire happiness. This is without exception. Whatever different means they employ, they all tend to this end. The cause of some going to war, and to others avoiding it, is the same desire in both, attended with different views. The will never takes the least step but to this object. This is the motive of every action of every man, even of those who hang themselves." -Blaise
Pascal

I think this is profoundly beautiful and John Piper must have thought so too, because he wrote a book about it. The book is Desiring God and it is beautiful too.

Piper begins his book like this,

"You might turn the world on its head by changing one word in your creed. The old tradition says, 'The chief end of man is to glorify God AND enjoy Him forever.' 'And'? Like ham and eggs? Sometimes you glorify God and sometimes you enjoy Him, Sometimes He gets glory, sometimes you get joy? 'And is a very ambiguous word! Just how do these two things relate to each other? Evidently the old theologians didn't think they were talking about two things. They said 'chief end', not 'chief ends.' Glorifying God and enjoying Him were one end in their minds, not two. How can that be?...What does God say about the chief end of man? How does God teach us to give Him glory? Does He command us to enjoy Him? If so, does this quest for joy in God relate to everything else? Yes, everything! 'Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.' The overriding concern of this book is that in all of life God be glorified the way He Himself has appointed. To that end this book aims to persuade you that 'The chief end of man is to glorify God BY enjoying Him forever."

I think we all know about what I call "The awe and the joy." C.S. Lewis says, "There is a kind of happiness and wonder that makes you serious." We might call it "heartbreaking beauty" because it HURTS. Ultimately, we desire it above everything else.

Desire is that burning, throbbing thirst within us for the "perfect." Everything perfect HURTS. It just hurts. It's hard to explain it because it doesn't seem to make sense. Why should desirable things hurt? But this is an addictive pain, a bittersweet pain. It may hurt us, but we can't get enough of it. And I guess that's precisely why it does hurt. It hurts BECAUSE we can't get enough of it.

So, what's the answer to the problem? Why can't mankind satisfy DESIRE? John Piper says that we are looking for it in all the wrong places. We are looking for the perfect in an imperfect world. C.S. Lewis agrees. He says,

"What Satan put into the minds of our remote ancestors was the idea that they could 'be like gods'- could set up on their own as if they had created themselves - be their own masters - invent some sort of happiness for themselves, outside God, apart from God. And out of that hopeless attempt has come nearly all that we call human history - money, poverty, ambition, war, prostitution, classes, empires, slavery - the long terrible story of man trying to find something other than God which will make him happy...God cannot give us a happiness apart from Himself because it is not there. There is no such thing."

And so here we come to the crucial point. The only thing that can satisfy desire is GOD. "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart." (-Psalm 37:4)

Sonnet II

2008-06-23T01:13:00.041+03:00

Sonnets again. You know I've never been big on sonnets but writing them gives me a sense of achievement and I'm learning to value the rhyme scheme a little more. In fact, I actually enjoy the sound of it now. I guess most all tastes are acquired :) Some of you may remember my first sonnet, written way back when...well, I have another one. I like to think that this one is better than the first one, but you decide. I'm an amateur and so I like every poem I write better than the one before it. :)

This poem came into being through a number of experiences. It touches a little on the "free choice" issue, which has confused me a lot in the past. God has given us the freedom to choose. Why can't we choose whatever we want? If there is only one acceptable choice, why doesn't He just make us choose that? Reading Desiring God (awesome book!!) really helped me to make more sense of that subject. In the poem, I wanted to express the idea that giving up our rights (including the "authority to choose") is The Choice. Submission. And John Piper would say that in return for it, we get JOY!!! "Joy inexpressible and full of glory." Who would not sacrifice everything they have for Joy?

I must admit the thing that moved me to actually write this poem (instead of just sitting around and thinking about it) was one of the last scenes in "The Empire Strikes Back" - the scene where Luke, completely battered and conquered, throws himself over the tower rather than give in to Darth Vader. That was the only part of Star Wars that made me cry. It was too beautiful.

It's reminiscent of Matthew 10:39- "He who has found his life shall lose it, and he who has lost his life for My sake shall find it." Almost suicide. Dying to live - and essentially, dying for JOY! That's what Jesus has been asking from us for roughly 2000 years. Anya posted about this not too long ago: "Giving what we cannot keep to gain what we cannot lose."

Another thing is that I wanted to express a little bit of anger towards The Enemy. You know, the way Luke says, "I'll never join you!" That is why the majority of the poem is addressed to The Enemy and only in the last two lines do I switch over to address God.

As always, I welcome suggestions and recommendations. All the poetry I post here is subject to ruthless editing :)

SONNET II
I know of all the things that I will lose
But I'll not serve you even for their sakes
For I have yet the power to refuse
Along with other things you cannot take.
I treasure them for they are worth the spheres
Worth more than galaxies that I could lose
But I hold still another treasure here
The crystalline authority to choose
The power to know the agony of the heights
To see the torture just as it will be
And throw my life, my treasure and my rights,
Like falling flowers into the ebbing sea.
I die, oh, God, unless I understand
My one choice is to reach out for Your hand.
- B.J.J. aka StrongJoy

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

Cowlessness

2008-06-17T14:17:00.001+03:00

Yes, I'm still here and still alive. I do occasionally turn on the computer and check e-mails...and today I'm making a blog post! Woohoo! :) I do have a good reason for my long absence, though. It can be conveniently summed up in one word: cowlessness.

Cowlessness: The lack or absence of cows in the vicinity in question, and the severe mental distress following such occasions. *There is a higher known occurrence of this malady in rural areas, particularly where the fences are of a more ancient quality.
The story goes like this...a little over a week ago, we were the proud owners of three beautiful pairs of brand-new cows. They were the prettiest cows in the world, with special characteristics such as crooked horns, skittish behavior, healthy tendencies to run upon being slightly startled, etc.

Due to unfortunate problems in "ancient quality" fencing, we now own three pairs of cows, with much the same priceless characteristics but in a much different location. To speak plainly, our precious animals have vanished. Following days of fatiguing search, that involved specifically hour-long treks through chigger-infested grass, entire afternoons spent hiding by the gate to wait for the truant cattle (obviously I brought a book), evenings spent sitting in the gully stalking a family of field mice (to make up for our inability to stalk the cows) and other such thrilling and intriguing experiences, we have at last located the missing beasts.

Taming them is a gradual process of course, involving lots of molasses feed in a conspicuous yellow bucket, but we're getting there, and hoping to see them on our side of the fence again tonight.

I will try to post something more substantial as soon as possible, but wanted to let you know that this is not a deserted blog!...

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

It's Memorial Day - A Tribute To Our Veterans

2008-05-26T22:15:00.000+03:00

"War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse. The person who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself." -John Stuart Mill

I want to say "Thank you" to our troops. Regardless of what we think about politics or about this war, we appreciate you for doing what has to be done. You are heroes and we are blessed to have men who will defend our freedoms.

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

Almost Perfect...But Not Quite

2008-05-10T04:02:00.008+03:00

I think this is one of Shel Silverstein's best works...I love the irony in the poem and the way he was able to get such a great point across to us through this simple poetry.

ALMOST PERFECT BUT NOT QUITE
"Almost perfect… but not quite."
Those were the words of Mary Hume
At her seventh birthday party,
Looking ‘round the ribboned room."
This table cloth is pink not white—
Almost perfect… but not quite."

"Almost perfect… but not quite."
Those were the words of grown-up Mary
Talking about her handsome beau,
The one she wasn’t gonna marry.
"Squeezes me a bit too tight—
Almost perfect… but not quite."

"Almost perfect… but not quite."
Those were the words of ol’ Miss Hume
Teaching in the seventh grade,
Grading papers in the gloom
Late at night up in her room.
"They never cross their t’s just right—
Almost perfect… but not quite."

Ninety-eight the day she died
Complainin’ ‘bout the spotless floor.
People shook their heads and sighed,
"Guess that she’ll like heaven more.
"Up went her soul on feathered wings,
Out the door, up out of sight.
Another voice from heaven came—
"Almost perfect… but not quite."
-Shel Silverstein

And yes, I regret to announce that I will be traveling AGAIN for the next two weeks, so I may not get around to the computer too much for a little while....

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

Hab Keine Angst Vor Menschen

2008-05-01T04:17:00.010+03:00

Then I said, "Alas, Lord God! Behold I do not know how to speak because I am a youth." But the Lord said to me, "Do not say, 'I am a youth,' because everywhere I send you, you shall go, and all that I command you, you shall speak. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you." declares the Lord. -Jeremiah 1:6-8

One of the many repeated lines in the Bible, is "Do not be afraid," or "fear not." I didn't realize the significance of this until very recently. I guess that the reason I did finally start thinking about this was because I was reading the verse in German ("Hab keine Angst vor Menschen") and I loved the sound of it, even before I stopped to figure out exactly what it meant. The German version sounds so powerful and authoritative that it made me pause and think about the verse. In doing this, I noticed something about the line "Do not be afraid of them": it doesn't stop there. It goes on to say "for I am with you." And I realized that nearly every time in the Bible God says, "Do not be afraid," He concludes, "because I am with you."

Seize The Day!

-StrongJoy

We Love Our New House...

2008-04-25T22:23:00.015+03:00

...which is one reason why I'm not posting much lately :)

We moved out here on Saturday and some very sweet people we know surprised us with a big reception at our door and a whole troop of helping hands to unload our truck. This was a wonderful blessing and we were able to get everything into the house in very good time.

On Saturday night we were down by our pond, (which is more like a very small lake, by the way), watching the fish jump and I was inspired to suggest that we go buy some fishing poles and try fishing in the morning. It took some work to convince the older members of the family that this was actually a good idea, but we did it, and we've caught about thirty perch, a catfish and a bass so far. For us, that was a phenomonal thing. I'd only caught three fish in my entire life, none big enough to keep, and my littlest brother and sister had never been fishing before. Where we lived in Turkey, there was never a place to fish and the water was pretty polluted. Our uncle gave us some fishing poles once, but we couldn't really use them because we had no place to go. It's hard to believe that we can fish on our own property now!

There's a lot of work to be done at this new place and our internet situation is still shaky, but I'll try to update before too long.

While you're waiting, here's a hilarious video I found a long time ago and have been meaning to share with you guys for quite awhile...

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

The Cross And The Switchblade - A Call To Anguish

2008-04-15T15:21:00.098+03:00

Not too long ago, I stayed over at a friend's house with my brother and sisters while our parents were out of town. I was sleeping with my little sister, who was asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow, so to speak, but I always have troubles getting to sleep in strange houses, so I went over to the bookshelf, looking for something to read. The book that caught my attention was The Cross And The Switchblade, because I had just heard my Mom talking about it that week, and I wanted to read it. So I did. I started on the very first page, and I said, "I am going to read this book if it takes me all night." (We teenagers don't have any problems with staying up all night - we're very flexible about bedtimes:) That was one decision I will never regret - one night that was not wasted... I laughed, I cried, and over and over I set the book down and prayed, because you cannot read that book without praying. I should warn you, The Cross And The Switchblade is a hard book, and you will probably break your heart over it, but I'm learning every day that it's OK to break my heart. And it's OK to keep breaking it, over and over again. That way I keep a vision of The Perfect. I don't get so used to how it is that I forget how it SHOULD be.

The Cross And The Switchblade is the incredible story of how one young man got a call to do a hard thing - and did it. But it's also the story of the New York City street gangs and the teenagers like Nicky Cruz who were so lost that Wilkerson thought no love could reach them. David Wilkerson was a young, married preacher in Pennsylvania and his call to go to NYC came through a murder-trial picture in a magazine. The murderers were kids, all under 18. And Something told Wilkerson to "go to NYC and help those boys." He didn't want to go. He didn't know anything about violent, teenage street-kids. He didn't WANT to know anything about them. But he knew he was supposed to go, so he did it. What happened afterwards is a story that actually defies reality, but don't get me wrong here - this is not a book about David Wilkerson changing NYC. In fact, much of this book is about moments of absolute miserable desperation, moments of shock and that sickening feeling that comes with the realization of a nasty truth. Much of this book is about defeat and anguish.

Wilkerson says that everything in his life that ever mattered to God was born in anguish. I can testify to that fact, for I have found it to be true in my own life. If I am not anguished over something, I will not do anything about it. The only times in my life where I have committed to set my alarm for five in the morning and get up to pray, were those times I have been anguished over something and could not live with the hurt of it any more. And, to be honest with you, it is only this year that these moments are beginning to come regularly and I am starting to realize what all of this anguish means and how it all works together for good. If you feel up to hearing something that will bring you to your knees, I'd recommend that you listen to A Call To Anguish.

I'd say it is really passages like this one, detailing Wilkerson's first meeting with Nicky Cruz, that show the reader of The Cross And The Switchblade the anguish that birthed everything Wilkerson did for the NYC gangs:

'Go to H---, Preacher,' he said. He had an odd, strangled way of speaking and he stuttered badly over some of his sounds.

'You don't think much of me, Nicky,' I said, 'but I feel different about you. I love you, Nicky.' I took a step towards him.

'You come near me, Preacher,' he said, in that tortured way, 'I'll kill you.'

'You could do that,' I agreed. 'You could cut me in a thousand pieces and lay them out in the street and every piece would love you.' But as I said it, I was thinking: and it wouldn't do a bit of good - not with you, Nicky - there's no love on earth that could reach you."

That is tragedy. There's only one word for that last line: tragedy. It's surely a good thing it wasn't true. The Cross And The Switchblade testifies relentlessly to the Power of Prayer. It cries over and over again, "never, Never, NEVER underestimate the Power of Prayer." If you've read it, you probably know what I mean.

My favorite line from that book is Nicky Cruz' first prayer: "Dear God, I'm the dirtiest sinner in New York. I don't think You want me. If You do want me, You can have me. As bad as I was before - I want to be that good for Jesus." Anybody can say, "I am the dirtiest sinner" but in Nicky's situation, it was probably true. I think it would be hard to imagine a sinner worse than Nicky Cruz...and yet he fell to his knees in tears at the altar and gave it all up to Jesus. How can anbody refuse to believe in miracles?!

I recommend this book to everyone who isn't afraid to cry for the utterly lost kids in our country and to pray for them, not just today or this week or this year, but as long as we live. And I recommend this book to every teenager because we need to know these things.

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

How Many Countries Can You Name In Five Minutes?

2008-04-08T23:21:00.001+03:00

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

The Awe And The Joy

2008-04-02T01:09:00.006+03:00

Well folks, I've never linked you to another post by someone else and sent you on to read that, but I feel this one is worth your time. Anya has hit the nail on the head and I couldn't have done it any better than she did, even if I did trust myself to try explaining such an indescribable thing. Please stop by and read her beautiful post about the awe and the joy.

Seize The Day!

-StrongJoy

Can a Woman Forget Her Baby? - The "When All Else" Mentality

2008-03-29T22:23:00.031+03:00

Yes. A woman can forget her baby. In fact, hundreds of them do it every day. Over and over and over again. This is a horrendous thing and I don't think about when I don't have to.

While I'm on this topic, here is a verse I adore...(I actually adore a great deal of Isaiah and I have it neatly marked up.) My bookmark is always in Isaiah and I always open my Bible to this:

"Can a woman forget her nursing child

and have no compassion on the son of her womb?

Even these may forget, but I will not forget you.

See, I have engraved you on the palms of My hands."

-Isaiah 49:16

I originally read this verse in Turkish on a wristband belonging to a little boy at a hotel, so I think of the Turkish before the English and I have it written in Turkish in my locket.

There are a lot of things I love about this verse, and one of them is the Certainty...I WILL NOT FORGET YOU. He doesn't say, "I'll try not to forget you," or "I'll do my best to remember you." He says, "I WILL NOT FORGET YOU." He takes one of the strongest loves, the love of a mother for her baby, and says it is nothing compared to His love for us. I think that is wonderful.

And here is something else I love: "I have engraved you..." In Turkish it says, "I have cut your name into my hands." Instead of saying He has written our names on his hands, He says He has cut them into His hands. Don't you think this is beautiful?

It's something I started thinking about for the first time last week - "When All Else." "When All Else" is the center of so many favorite verses. "When all else fails..." It seems as though that thought is a primary center of what moves us. I guess that I love it because it is my security. It moves me to act, because it takes away my fears of what will happen when I do. When I am not worried about ANYTHING is when I do my best for Him. But I do worry. All the time. What will happen if...? And I don't always hear Him say, "I will still love You, I will still be with You." I've realized that having a centerpiece in my life is key to everything. And "when all else" is a good centerpiece, because it brings me to the question, "What really matters? What's the One Thing?" and I can say "Dear God, it's You."

Seize The Day
-StrongJoy

Kidnapped! - An Unexpected Hero...

2008-03-21T02:43:00.027+03:00

I've been wanting to post this review since I saw the movie in December, but one thing after another got in the way and I never did it. Before I talk about the movie, I want to be sure that we're all clear about which movie I'm referring to, because there have been so many movies of Kidnapped! made. The only version I've seen is the 2005 TV series.

I certainly think it deserves an A-rating. The movie was well-done, despite the fact that it was a TV serial. It wasn't totally true to the book, but the main story-line was the same. The Scottish kid who played Davy Balfour was a wonderful actor with a delicious accent and Alan Breck was also very skillfully and impressively protrayed. I think this may be one of the few "movie-better-than-the-book" situations. In a previous post, I talked about how Stevenson seems to have a shortage of heroes in his books. This is one reason why I like this movie better than the book - heroism in the movie was much better defined. Of course, this is my personal opinion and you might disagree. It has been quite awhile since I read Kidnapped! all the way through.

A prominent theme in the movie is innocence. From the beginning, Davy Balfour is shown to be a guileless (and sometimes foolish) farm boy. He knows nothing about cruelty, oppression, dishonesty, or hatred. (Don't you just love characters like that?:) When his father dies, though, he is left to face the world alone (A famous theme in a lots of good books) and heads for his uncle Ebeneezer's estate in another part of the country. His uncle, as you've probably already guessed, is a deceitful miser. To keep Davy from coming into his inheritance, he sells him as a slave to a captain headed for The New World. Of course, Davy isn't expecting anything like this. He doesn't even know that such acts are possible. When he wakes up in the bottom of the ship, and learns that he is a slave, the look of utter shock on his face is absolutely priceless. If it doesn't make you feel like crying, I'll be surprised. However, what makes this such a moving scene is not nessecarily Davy's misfortune, but the very fact that he is so shocked by his uncle's betrayal of him. Davy has a clean conscience and a perfect moral compass. This sense of right and wrong is a part of who he is and it automatically tells him that the very IDEA that his own uncle could sell him into slavery is utterly WRONG. When I realized this, I started to think about how treachery of this sort is horribly normal in the world.

Throughout the rest of the movie, this thought kept coming to me and I began to realize that Davy Balfour never accepts wrong because "that's the way it is." It shocks him every time. He cries over killing a man in his first battle, and, at the end of the movie, rescues his uncle from suicide. Even though acts of cruelty hurt and shock him, he never holds grudges. Throughout the movie, he experiences countless cruelties and injustices, including the brutality of life at sea and the tyranny of the English rulers over the Scottish. He meets people, even friends, who betray him, and he learns that the world is generously populated with cutthroats. However, even though he becomes a wiser and more discreet young man, Davy never loses his sense of right and wrong, and he never loses his innocence.

Another of the main characters in the movie is Alan Breck. Alan is an accomplished warrior who has been killing English predators for years. He thinks he's pretty hot stuff but he has a lot of character problems. He doesn't value life and he is very proud. Instead of bravery, Alan displays bravado. He has done great things for Scotland and truly desires to free his country, but he has lost his sense of right and wrong. This is carefully showcased in the movie and when I watched it I felt a sort of quiet dislike towards Mr. Breck. Even though he is the "macho man," I didn't think of him as a hero. I thought of Davy as being the only hero in the story. When Alan and Davy were are their lowest point, Alan had nothing, but Davy had a compass.

We live in a world where "innocence" is valued mostly in poetry, children's books, idealistic paintings, and a few old songs. In the real world, it is often mocked. I think that we (the human race as a majority) have come to expect wrong. We have seen so much of it that it doesn't surprise us anymore. Innocence is incovenient. It gets in the way, it makes us look simple and foolish. Worst of all, we don't even know what it is until we lose some of it. It seems like a tiring sort of worldview altogether. But Romans 16:19 says "Be excellent at what is good and innocent of evil."

Innocence is a high road. It's one of those roads that are easy to fall off of and so hard to follow. But secretly, I think most of us want to be there, and would give uncounted treasures to find ourselves back on that road again.

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

Tears Of The Saints

2008-03-20T03:11:00.028+03:00

And another delightful thing about the U.S: American Radio! It was so weird for me to turn on the radio here, a week after our arrival, and hear a song in my native language that I had heard about but never actually HEARD. Among many beautiful songs that have moved me very deeply since I got here, this is one of my favorites. Leeland is a relatively new (and young:)band but I've been very impressed and highly recommend them, for what I have heard of their music.

As with all songs, reading the lyrics isn't enough. The song doesn't come to life until you hear it recorded and Leeland's voice is one of the most grabbing aspects about the song. You can go here to hear it if you haven't already.

One reason why I like the song so much is because of the note of determination in it. The lyricist and the singer were able to capture both the pain and suffering of the broken world and an inspiring desire to "lead them Home." I guess this is also, perhaps, a vision of what the world could look like "if His people called by His name humbled themselves and prayed...."

TEARS OF THE SAINTS by Leeland

VERSE 1

"There are many prodigal sons
On our city streets they run
Searching for shelter
There are homes broken down
People's hopes have fallen to the ground
From failures.
This is an emergency!

CHORUS:
There are tears from the saints
For the lost and unsaved
We're crying for them come back home
We're crying for them come back home
And all Your children stretch out their hands
And pick up the crippled men
Father, we will lead them home
Father, we will lead them home.

VERSE 2
There are schools full of hatred
Even churches have forsaken
Love and mercy!
May we see this generation
In its state of desperation
For Your glory.
This is an emergency!

BRIDGE:
Sinner, reach out your hands
Children, in Christ you stand
And sinner, reach out your hands!
And children, in Christ you stand!"

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

OK, So I Don't Know English?!!

2008-03-12T07:25:00.001+03:00

Today, while calmly puzzling over an algebra problem, (in case you're interested, the problem was 9x2-49y2 , and, in case you furthermore care to know the answer, it is (3x+7y) (3x-7y)) I was interuppted by my sister, who was doing math in the other room. The conversation proceeded something like this:

Her: "Hey can you go to dictionary.com and look something up for me?"

Me: "Sure...what is it?"

Her: "Sphygmomanometer."

Me: "WHAT???????"

Her: "Sphygmomanometer!"

Later, after she has spelled it out twice to me and we have been enlightened as to what the thing is, (by the way, in case you care to know, "a sphygmomanometer is a device used to measure blood pressure, comprising an inflatable cuff to restrict blood flow, and a mercury or mechanical manometer to measure the pressure." That's Wikipedia.) she calls out another word for me to research.

Her: "Can you look up 'tacometer'?

Me: "Taco-WHAT? What in the world is a tacometer for? To measure how hot your salsa is?!!"

(By the way, dear readers, the correct spelling for this queer instrument is "Tachometer.") Yes, the world of language is a big place and even the native speakers can't learn everything there is to know about their own language.

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

The Color Red

2008-03-06T22:28:00.011+03:00

THE COLOR RED
"Here on the Planet of Passion,
Red is the Ruler Supreme.
We are crushing a world that is crashing
And burning to be redeemed.

Our sun sets in flames before twilight
Igniting the ocean of calm,
And it rises in blood in the morning
With a clash and a flash and the Dawn.

Slaves in the sensuous circle
Of vibrant and beckoning lips.
Wine and red jewels, but no ring
To slide over the fingertips.

Everyone worships a beauty
And who will not die for a kiss?
But the kiss, once it's over, is empty,
And it leaves behind raw, bleeding flesh.

Lost in the Tangle of Tears-
Rose petals on regal red velvet,
Falling from pain, through the years,
To pain on the cardinal carpet.

Scarlet our sorrows and joys,
Scarlet our sacrifice,
Scarlet the bane of our world,
And scarlet the Fountain of Life.

Our sorrows are battles and bleeding,
And brokenness after a kiss.
Our joys are the victories fleeting
And the fluttering heart with a wish.

Our sacrifice is the blood-gift,
Draining the body of life,
And knowing that Love will require
Giving your skin to the knife.

Our bane and our end is the blood-lust,
And the wild desire to grieve,
And the trap of pursuing a happiness,
Apart from a reason to live.

The Fountain of Life is the blood-price =
A drop for each drop we have spilled,
And the Ultimate Hero has paid it
And the lake has been finally filled."
-B.J.J. aka StrongJoy

I wrote this a few days ago and thought I would share it. As always, I welcome your suggestions. I know that I have already used David's "Napoleon" as an illustration to a previous post, but I couldn't find anything that captured my ideas for this poem better than that lovely painting. The artist has managed to capture such a look in Napoleon's face...I don't know how he did it.

Seize The Day!

-StrongJoy

America

2008-02-26T17:22:00.003+03:00

Hello Everyone,
Thank you all for the sweet messages and comments you've sent us since we landed in the U.S. Some things have been difficult or us, but we've had a lot of support and encouragement from many people and that has really helped. Thanks, you guys! I know for myself that I've pretty nearly got over the culture shock by now. There are still lots of weird things about America that I haven't quite got adjusted to yet, but lots of the differences in this country are positive. Did you know that America has some of the cheapest gas in the WORLD? We pay about seven or eight dollars a gallon over in Turkey. And it's not just gas that's cheap over here - practically everything is cheaper! And, of course, Americans have also been blessed with the best standard of living in the world. Yesterday I was thinking about this and realized that most Americans don't even realize how much they have and how little so many other people in so many other countries have. We take so much for granted, guys! In these first weeks of being here, I have decided one thing for certain - Americans have absolutely nothing material to complain about.

Yes, there are horrible things going on in our country - just a ten-minute conversation with a highschooler attending a public highschool reminded me of that- but, at the same time, right now in the U.S, if you make the right desicions, and work hard, you CAN succeed. If you are willing to study, you CAN go to college. If you are willing to work, you CAN get a job. If you are willing to save, you CAN buy a home. This doesn't apply in many parts of the world. Let's not forget how blessed we are!

That said, I must admit that I still miss Turkey and, given the chance, I'd jump on a plane and fly right back:)

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

There Is No Try. Just Do The Next Right Thing.

2008-02-19T06:56:00.000+03:00

Just some things I've been thinking about this week...

The famous Phillippians 4:13 states, "I can do all things, through Him who strengthens me." Is this exaggerated? Is it just a figure of speech? I can't pretend to know, but it surely doesn't seem that way to me.

In "The Empire Strikes Back," Yoda tells Luke Skywalker to do something and Luke answers saying doubtfully, "I'll try." Mercilessly, Yoda responds with, "Either do or do not. There is no try."

I thought that was quite an interesting remark. Aren't there a lot of things that we don't attempt, simply because we don't think we can do them? Perhaps we want to break an addiction, or fight some kind of temptation. We don't think we can do it, so we rationalize our premeditated failure, saying, "I'll try." Isn't this attitude directly contradictory with the 4:13 verse?

I think C.S. Lewis puts it very well (again), "When a thing is to be attempted, one must never think about possibilty or impossibility."

Maybe we should stop procrastinating and get up and do the next right thing, because we know we can.

And of course, we don't want to forget the second part of the verse: "...through HIM who strengthens me."

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

"Westward Ho!" and the Futility Of Revenge

2008-02-13T23:15:00.069+03:00

I finished reading Charles Kingsley's Westward Ho! yesterday and gave it an A- rating. I didn't enjoy Kingsley's other books very much (Water Babies, Madam How And Lady Why) but perhaps it was only because I was a little too young for them when I read them. (Kingsley has a habit of writing children's books for adults:) However, this is definitely my favorite of his works. In Westward Ho, Kingsley brings the Elizabethan era to life through his hero, Amyas Leigh. One good thing about the book is that Kingsley is able to form Amyas' complicated character, while writing about history at the same time. However, though the history in the book is vivid and detailed, the truth Kingsley works hardest to express is the futility of revenge.

Revenge. The book is seething with it. It is in the 1570s and war with Spain is becoming increasingly bitter. The Catholics and Protestants have been struggling for years. Both sides are fighting venomously and both have tasted enough of cruelty to be harsh.

It is into such an atmosphere that Amyas Leigh is born in Bideford, Devon. He spends his childhood dreaming of becoming a sailor and fighting the "Spanish idolaters" in the Indies. As a very young man he falls in love with Rose Salterne. Unfortunately, Amyas is not the only one in love with Rose Salterne. Rose happens to be the town belle and Amyas has not a few rivals to vie with. One of the said rivals turns out to be his older brother, Frank. Unknown to Amyas, Frank has been in love with Rose for even longer than his brother. When Amyas tells his brother of his passion for Rose, Frank resolves to let his brother have her. Amyas accidentally overhears Frank telling his mother of this resolution and is so horrified that he also resolves to give up his sweetheart.

After this event, Amyas sails to Ireland and fights the Jesuits and Irish Catholics there. On this expedition, he captures a haughty Spanish lord, Don Guzman Maria Magdalena Sotomayor de Soto. While the Don is waiting to be ransomed, he goes to Bideford and falls in love with poor Rose Salterne. Rose runs away to the Indies with the Don and, when Amyas returns home, he vows to seek her. His brother, who is generally so gentle and quiet, elects to go with him, and a great many of Rose Salterne's old admirers are also eager to join this expedition.

In the Indies, Amyas and his brother sneak up to the Don's palace one night. There they hear Rose speaking to an spy who is attempting to convert her to Catholicism and threatening her with the Inquisition. Listening to the conversation, Amyas and Frank are able to discover that she is actually married to the Don and this is a relief to both of them. However, they are almost immediately discovered and the island awakes in a flurry to attack the English spies. Amyas and Frank try to run to their ship but Frank is shot and captured.

When Amyas learns that his brother and Rose Salterne were tortured and burned in Spain, a fire of hate is kindled in his heart, and he vows eternal war with the Spaniards to avenge his brother. Throughout the rest of the book, this hatred can be seen to increase constantly and to turn the innocent, gallant, Amyas into a bitter, vengeful, tormented young man.

Towards the end of the book, Amyas is given a chance to chase Don Guzman and get his ultimate revenge. While crew is going after the Spanish galleon, the following scene takes place aboard his ship (named...guess...Vengeance).

"That one fixed thought of selfish vengeance has possessed his whole mind; he forgets England's present need, her past triumph, his own safety, everything but his brother's blood. And yet this is the day for which he has been longing ever since he brought home that magic horn as a fifteen years boy; the day when he should find himself face to face with an invader, and that invader Antichrist himself. He believed for years with Drake, Hawkins, Grenvile and Raleigh, that he was called and sent into the world only to fight the Spaniard: and he is fighting him now, in such a cause, for such a stake, within such battle-lists as he will never see again: and yet he is not content; and while throughout that gallant fleet, whole crews are receiving the Communion side by side, and rising with cheerful faces to shake hands and rejoice that they are sharers in Britain's Salamis, Amyas turns away from the holy elements.

'I cannot communicate, Sir John. Charity with all men? I hate, if ever man hated on earth.'

'You hate the Lord's foes only, Captain Leigh.'

'No, Jack, I hate my own as well.'

'But no one in the fleet, sir?'

'...No, Jack, I hate one of whom you know; and somehow that hatred of him keeps me from loving any human being. I am in love and charity with no man, Sir John Brimblecombe -- not even with you!'"

Amyas gets so eaten up by this "one great revenge that blackened all his soul" that when his enemy's ship sinks, instead of rejoicing in triumph, "'Shame!' cried Amyas, hurling his sword far into the sea, 'to lose my right! when it was in my very grasp! Unmerciful!'" It is the "unmerciful!" in this outburst that caught my attention, and that is because it is so ironic.

I am not going to finish the story and tell you what happens, (No, Amyas doesn't turn into Darth Vader) so if you're still interested you'll have to read it for yourselves.

This is a grotesquely simple summary of a complicated story, filled with numerous plots and ideas, so don't be discouraged by it. I am only trying to track the "Revenge" thread in the book.
The concept of revenge seems to be following me around a lot lately. It is, of course, the main theme in Hamlet, the Shakespeare play I'm reading this month, and then last night we finally got to watch episodes IV, V and VI of Star Wars, another story that deals with hate and revenge at least, very well. It is truly amazing (and horrifying) to look at all of the examples in literature and history where a hero is corrupted by the burning desire for REVENGE.

This quote, perhaps, summarizes these ideas very well: "A true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him but because he loves what is behind him." -Anonymous

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

Yes, I'm Still Here

2008-02-07T03:49:00.000+03:00

Sorry it's been so long, folks! After we landed in the US and got over jetlag, we still didn't have an internet connection, so we haven't been able to keep up with anything over the web. It's been awfully hectic around here lately. In fact, when I sat down to work on my blog, I heard Enya and was refreshed. I haven't heard Enya in two weeks and, since I was introduced to her, that's the longest I've ever lived without her:) Anyway, I am back now, and trying to catch up on everything. To all of you who have sent me comments or e-mails this week, thanks for being so patient.

One of the best things I have done since I got to the US was to go to a bookstore, where I found a book of the complete works of Emily Dickinson. I was amazed to find how much poetry she actually wrote! There are 1782 poems in this book! I also learned that in my old Emily Dickinson book, her original punctuation, spelling, capitalization, and even some rhyme, had been changed, as was once an accepted way to publish Emily Dickinson poetry. Although the original poems are a little more confusing sometimes, I much prefer them to the "doctored" poetry. How audacious of them to CHANGE her poems!

Here's one of my favorites from the new book, with the original spelling, puctuation and capitalization:

"To fight aloud is very brave,
But gallanter, I know
Who charge within the bosom
The Calvary of Wo -

Who win, and nations to do not see -
Who fall, and none observe -
Whose dying eyes, no Country
Regards with patriot love -

We trust, in plumed procession
For such, the Angels go -
Rank after Rank, with even feet -
And Uniforms of snow."
-Emily Dickinson

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

"Doing One's Duty"

2008-01-16T19:01:00.001+03:00

This great passage really caught me by surprise when I first read it. I thought it was well worth the time it takes to understand it thoroughly.

"However strange it may well seem, to do one's duty will make anyone conceited who only does it sometimes. Those who do it always would as soon think of being conceited of eating their dinner as of doing their duty. What honest boy would pride himself on not picking pockets? A thief would who was trying to reform would. To be conceited of doing one's duty is a sign of how little one does it, and how little one sees what a contemtible thing it is not to do it. Could any but a low creature be conceited of not being contemptible? Until our duty becomes to us as common as breathing, we are all poor creatures."
-George McDonald

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

Note: I've updated my Quotations and Poetry Collections and (hopefully) will continue to add new poetry and quotes whenever I get the chance...

On "Laughing At Ourselves" - The Wisdom of the Ages

2008-01-11T16:24:00.000+03:00

As some of you already know, our family will be moving back to America in less than two weeks and so I'm not going to be able to keep up a steady stream of posts during the next month. However, I'll try to post something every now and then and maybe even answer some comments, whenever I can.

In the meanwhile, here are three of my favorite quotes, quite amusing and...painfully true, especially that last one...

"If you can't laugh at yourself,you may be missing the joke of the century."

"Blessed are those who can laugh at themselves for they shall never cease to be amused."

"Those who can't laugh at themselves leave the job to others."

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

Tolkien's Best Poem?

2008-01-03T22:00:00.000+03:00

W.H. Auden, a contemporary poet of Tolkien's time, said that this was Tolkien's best poem. It is true that it is beautiful but I wasn't able to make a whole lot of sense out of it. I was wondering if any of you smart readers could give me some enlightening comments.

Wikipedia says, "It is a piece of great metrical and rhythmical complexity that recounts a journey to a strange land beyond the sea. Drawing on medieval 'dream vision' poetry and Irish 'imram' poems the piece is markedly melancholic and the final note is one of alienation and disillusion." I'm not sure that's a very good synopsis...

"The Sea Bell"or "Frodo's Dreme"

I walked by the sea, and there came to me,
as a star-beam on the wet sand,
a white shell like a sea-bell;
trembling it lay in my wet hand.

In my fingers shaken I heard waken
a ding within, by a harbour bar
a buoy swinging, a call ringing
over endless seas, faint now and far.

Then I saw a boat silently float
on the night-tide, empty and grey.
'It is later than late! Why do we wait?'
I leapt in and cried: 'Bear me away!'

It bore me away, wetted with spray,
wrapped in a mist, wound in a sleep,
to a forgotten strand in a strange land.
In the twilight beyond the deep

I heard a sea-bell swing in the swell,
dinging, dinging, and the breakers roar
on the hidden teeth of a perilous reef;
and at last I came to a long shore.

White it glimmered, and the sea simmered
with star-mirrors in a silver net;
cliffs of stone pale as ruel-bone
in the moon-foam were gleaming wet.

Glittering sand slid through my hand,
dust of pearl and jewel-grist,
trumpets of opal, roses of coral,
flutes of green and amethyst.

But under cliff-eaves there were glooming caves,
weed-curtained, dark and grey;
a cold air stirred in my hair,
and the light waned, as I hurried away.

Down from a hill ran a green rill;
its water I drank to my heart's ease.
Up its fountain-stair to a country fair
of ever-eve I came, far from the seas,

climbing into meadows of fluttering shadows:
flowers lay there like fallen stars,
and on a blue pool, glassy and cool,
like floating moons the nenuphars.

Alders were sleeping, and willows weeping
by a slow river of rippling weeds;
gladdon-swords guarded the fords,
and green spears, and arrow-reeds.

There was echo of song all the evening long
down in the valley; many a thing
running to and fro: hares white as snow,
voles out of holes; moths on the wing

with lantern-eyes; in quiet surprise
brocks were staring out of dark doors.
I heard dancing there, music in the air,
feet going quick on the green floors.

But whenever I came it was ever the same:
the feet fled, and all was still;
never a greeting, only the fleeting pipes,
voices, horns on the hill.

Of river-leaves and the rush-sheaves
I made me a mantle of jewel-green,
a tall wand to hold, and a flag of gold;
my eyes shone like the star-sheen.

With flowers crowned I stood on a mound,
and shrill as a call at cock-crow
proudly I cried: 'Why do you hide?
Why do none speak, wherever I go?

Here now I stand, king of this land,
with gladdon-sword and reed-mace.
Answer my call! Come forth all!
Speak to me words! Show me a face!'

Black came a cloud as a night-shroud.
Like a dark mole groping I went,
to the ground falling, on my hands crawling
with eyes blind and my back bent.

I crept to a wood: silent it stood
in its dead leaves, bare were its boughs.
There must I sit, wandering in wit,
while owls snored in their hollow house.

For a year and a day there must I stay:
beetles were tapping in the rotten trees,
spiders were weaving, in the mould heaving
puffballs loomed about my knees.

At last there came light in my long night,

and I saw my hair hanging grey.

'Bent though I be, I must find the sea!

I have lost myself, and I know not the way,

but let me be gone!' Then I stumbled on;

like a hunting bat shadow was over me;

in my ears dinned a withering wind,

and with ragged briars I tried to cover me.

My hands were torn and my knees worn,

and years were heavy upon my back,

when the rain in my face took a salt taste,

and I smelled the smell of sea-wrack.

Birds came sailing, mewing, wailing;

I heard voices in cold caves,

seals barking, and rocks snarling,

and in spout-holes the gulping of waves.

Winter came fast; into a mist I passed,

to land's end my years I bore;

snow was in the air, ice in my hair,

darkness was lying on the last shore.

There still afloat waited the boat,

in the tide lifting, its prow tossing.

Weary I lay, as it bore me away,

the waves climbing, the seas crossing,

passing old hulls clustered with gulls

and great ships laden with light,

coming to haven, dark as a raven,

silent as snow, deep in the night.

Houses were shuttered, wind round them muttered,

roads were empty. I sat by a door,

and where drizzling rain poured down a drain

I cast away all that I bore:

in my clutching hand some grains of sand,

and a sea-shell silent and dead.

Never will my ear that bell hear,

never my feet that shore tread.

Never again, as in sad lane,

in blind alley and in long street

ragged I walk. To myself I talk;

for still they speak not, men that I meet.

-J.R.R. Tolkien

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

Personality Test

2008-01-03T14:19:00.000+03:00

I thought this little quiz pretty accurately described my personality. I can be bossy but I don't think any of my friends would say I am loud. What's yours?

You Are An ENFJ

The Giver

You strive to maintain harmony in relationships, and usually succeed.
Articulate and enthusiastic, you are good at making personal connections.

Sometimes you idealize relationships too much - and end up being let down.
You find the most energy and comfort in social situations ... where you shine.

In love, you are very protective and supporting. However, you do need to "feel special" - and it's quite easy for you to get jealous.

At work, you are a natural leader. You can help people discover their greatest potential. You would make a good writer, human resources director, or psychologist.

How you see yourself: Trusting, idealistic, and expressive.
When other people don't get you, they see you as: Bossy, inappropriate, and loud

What's Your Personality Type?

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

To All My Friends, Democrats and Republicans, Greetings!

2007-12-21T18:03:00.000+03:00

To All My Democratic Friends:

Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit, my best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low-stress, non-addictive, gender-neutral celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasion and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all. I also wish you a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year 2008, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make America great. Not to imply that America is necessarily greater than any other country nor the only America in the Western Hemisphere. Also, this wish is made without regard to the race, creed, color, age, physical ability, religious faith or sexual preference of the wishee.

To All My Republican Friends:

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

Back Again!

2007-12-20T13:01:00.000+03:00

Well...I'm back! It HAS been quite awhile, I admit, but it's the holiday season and no one is spending much time on the computer lately. I probably won't be posting again until after New Year's Day. I will be sleeping late that day because the day before we will be having our annual LORD OF THE RINGS marathon, watching the extended versions of all the movies. It should last about 12 hours. Can't wait : ) Currently, we are reading through the books again as a family. Am I happy? Need you ask? Happy Christmas everyone, and a Merry New Year!

Here are some photos we took last week while on a trip. This one is just a really nice shot of the sun behind the Mediterranean sea.

This one was taken on the plane. Those are genuine clouds - that's what I love about airplanes - watching the clouds so far below...

Here's another one taken on the plane, though the plane was a wee bit lopsided when it was taken. For some reason, it reminds me of C.S. Lewis' "Perelandra." I think that's sort of how I imagine the face of that planet to look.

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

SONNET I

2007-12-01T17:25:00.000+03:00

Well, speaking of sonnets I wrote my first one yesterday:) I was just playing with the words but I decided that I liked it. It's for Una from Spenser's "Faerie Queene." If you've read the "Faerie Queene," you'll notice that it's supposed to have been written by the Redcrosse Knight. If you haven't read the "Faerie Queene," I do recommend it, but let me warn you that it's not the easiest reading...Did you know that it was considered archaic when it was published?

If anyone has any suggestions of things I should change in the poem, please tell me. I'd be happy to consider changing it.

SONNET I
Too long I labored, striving for your plight,
And little thought of you -- but of my name,
Then left my honor and my glory quite
Nor could I face myself for very shame.
I gave up everything that I'd possessed
(But had not known the worth of before then,)
And threw away, unknowing, my heart's quest,
And left myself for dead, the grave within.
Yet when I thought I'd nothing left in life,
And vowed to make a harsh and timely end,
You came and snatched away the cursed knife,
And rescued there the heart that I would rend.
So, in my darkest hour and deadliest place,
You turned my head towards the Amazing Grace.
-B.J.J aka StrongJoy

Note: I'm going on vacation tomorrow so I won't be posting for a couple weeks. Auf Wiedersehen....

The Voyage Of Life

2007-11-23T15:30:00.000+03:00

When it comes to art, Thomas Cole's painting series, "The Voyage Of Life" has long been one of my favorites.

The first painting in the series is an illustration of infancy. If you blow up the picture, you can see the child in the bottom of the boat. There is a guardian angel standing in the boat with the child. This angel is present in each of the pictures in the series. The figurehead on the prow of the boat symbolizes time.

The second painting in the series is an illustration of youth. In this picture, you can see that the youth is still in the same boat, traveling down the same river, (The River Of Life) and that the same angel stands near him. However, in this picture, the guardian angel is farther off and the youth has turned his head in another direction. He is chasing his "Castle In The Air," the shimmering illusion seen in the skies.

The third painting in the series is an illustration of manhood. The man is passing through wild rapids here, symbolizing the difficulty of manhood. The guardian angel is still present, as you can see, but he\she is far away and only watching from the clouds. However, far up ahead, you can see the sea through the rocks.

The fourth and last painting in the series is an illustration of old age. I don't think it needs much explanation:)

There's a lot more symbolism in these paintings that I didn't cover so if you'd like to find out more about them, I'd suggest that you read up on them here. Also, the pictures aren't nearly so beautiful when they are small like this. They are so much lovelier when they are big. The real paintings cover an entire wall! I'd sure love to see them like that!

Seize The Day!
StrongJoy

Sonnet XXIX

2007-11-21T22:10:00.000+03:00

I'm always a little suspicious of sonnets. They tend to follow a similar pattern of admiring nature and then mourning one's rejection by one's lady-love. Furthermore, the said lady-love was very often not someone the poet cared for in the least, though, of course, many earnest lovers must have written sonnets as well.

However, despite all of these stains upon the reputation of the sonnet, I do believe that Shakespeare has very nearly managed to redeem it with his many contributions to the world of sonnets. Here is one of my favorites:

SONNET XXIX
“When in disgrace with fortune and men’s eyes,
I all alone beweep my outcast state,
And trouble deaf heaven with my bootless cries,
And look upon myself and curse my fate,
Wishing me like to one more rich in hope,
Featur’d like him, like him with friends possess’d,
Desiring this man’s art and that man’s scope,
With what I most enjoy contented least;
Yet in these thoughts myself almost despising,
Haply, I think on thee, -- and then my state,
Like to the lark at break of day arising
From sullen earth, sings hymns at heaven’s gate;
For thy sweet love remembered such wealth brings
That then I scorn to change my place with kings.”
-William Shakespeare

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

Reading The Meaning...

2007-11-14T19:53:00.000+03:00

These lines from Flannery O' Connor made me stop and think more deeply about how I read books...

"Some people have the notion that you read the story and then climb out of it into the meaning, but for the fiction writer himself the whole story is the meaning, because it is an experience, not an abstraction."

-Flannery O'Connor

Seize The Day!

-StrongJoy

The Innocence Of Father Brown

2007-11-07T18:12:00.001+03:00

I finished reading The Innocence of Father Brown by G.K. Chesterton recently and I liked it so much I thought I'd share some of my thoughts about it. I really think that Chesterton is a wonderful writer and he has a way of expressing ideas with startling clarity.

All of the stories in this book include elements of suspense and surprise that are so important in a great detective story. The plots are complex and well-organized. There is the joy of feeling smart when you finally do crack the code and solve the mystery. Even if it isn't until the end of the story, you still feel like a very accomplished detective. In fact, you feel like you solved the mystery yourself, much of the time.

I think that the greatest thing about the book is that it is both entertaining and thought-provoking. Chesterton has created an intriguing story but has also managed to weave much deeper ideas into the book. Through the conversation of Father Brown, the sweet little English priest, Chesterton manages to state many of his own beliefs. Yet, somehow, he says them in such a way that the reader does not feel at all as though he is "preaching to them." Indeed, how can they? For the author rarely states his own opinions with the omnipresent privilege he possesses, but prefers to let his star character influence the reader of each story. This is what I consider to be very good writing.

I cannot say that I agree with everything that Chesterton says - indeed, I differ with him on many points- but somehow, in this book, those differences don't really matter. Winston Churchill says of history, "Nevertheless, the broad story holds for it was founded on a true and dominating principle." I believe that the same is true of these stories. The truth behind the book is so powerful that it makes a fascinating read.

Here are some lines I particularly like:

"Reason and justice grip the remotest and the loneliest star. Look at those stars. Don't they look as if they were single diamonds and sapphires? Well, you can imagine any mad botany or geology you please. Think of forests of adamant with leaves of brilliants. Think the moon is a blue moon, a single elephantine sapphire. But don't fancy that all that frantic astronomy would make the smallest difference to the reason and justice of conduct. On plains of opal, under cliffs cut out of pearl, you would still find a noticeboard, 'Thou shalt not steal.' "

One of the most interesting stories in the book is The Eye Of Apollo. At the beginning of the story, Father Brown asks his friend Flambeau about the new "Religion Of Apollo."

"What on earth is that," asked Father Brown, and stood still."

"Oh, a new religion," said Flambeau, laughing: "one of those new religions that forgive your sins by saying you never had any....It claims, of course, that it can cure all physical diseases."

"Can it cure the one spiritual disease?" asked Father Brown, with a serious curiosity.

"And what is the one spiritual disease?" asked Flambeau, smiling.

"Oh, thinking one is quite well," said his friend.

I sincerely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys mysteries that are more than just mere mysteries.

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

Today's Words Of Wisdom

2007-10-30T20:35:00.000+03:00

"Never work before breakfast.
If you have to work before breakfast, eat your breakfast first."
-Josh Billings

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

Are You Trusting God To Write Your Story?

2007-10-25T18:16:00.000+03:00

I don't remember where I found this but I re-discovered it in my documents this week and I was moved again when I read it:

Are You Trusting God To Write Your Story?

"Do you trust Him with your dreams?

Do you trust Him with your friendships?

Do you trust Him with your work?

Do you trust Him with your finances?

Do you trust Him with your love story?

Do you trust Him with your future?

Do you trust Him in your fears?

Do you trust Him in your pain?

Do you trust Him in your circumstances?

Do you trust Him in EVERYTHING?

Do you trust Him enough to let Him keep on writing?"

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

A Classic Case Of Mixed-Up Priorities

2007-10-13T14:38:00.000+03:00

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

When the Darkness Comes in Like a Flood...

2007-10-12T21:59:00.000+03:00

Star Wars Ideology

2007-10-09T22:08:00.000+03:00

My sister and I saw Star Wars for the first time this week. It was definitely an interesting story. Some of the scenes were incredibly well-filmed and the plot was complex and well-organized. The movie was very clean. I could stop here, call it a "good movie" and go on. But it seems to me that there is a lot more below the surface of this story than meets the eye.

I don't think that there is any such thing as an "innocent author." What I mean by this is that every author has his or her own opinions, biases, beliefs and worldview and that these will naturally come out in that author's writings. Is this bad? No! Of course not! But it is dangerous, especially when we don't read carefully. The same goes for movies. Perhaps we tend to say a movie is "OK" if it doesn't have any inappropriate graphical scenes or bad language. Do we sometimes forget that movies (and books) are usually written to communicate an idea (and even if they aren't written for that purpose they fulfill it anyway, albeit unintentionally). Ideas are dangerous, especially when we aren't paying attention to them, because it is then that they slip into our minds unnoticed and uncontested.

In George Lucas' World there is no God, but 'The Force" -an energy field created by all living things that surround us. It has a good side and an evil side. When someone dies, his spirit joins the force and becomes part of it. This is a Buddhist/New Age belief. By the way, have you noticed that the characters names all sound far-eastern (Obi Wan Kenobi, Qui-Gon Jinn, Yoda)? While researching New Age beliefs, I was surprised to find that many New Agers believe crop circles to be created by aliens and welcome their coming to our earth. Star Wars holds a picture of a world where aliens and humans will one day live together. Each Jedi has a 'guide' who teaches him secret knowledge. Often these guides communicate as 'ghosts' after they have died. This is forbidden in the Holy Scriptures (Leviticus 19:31) and is also a common New Age belief.

When interested in the ideology behind an author's work, I think it's a good idea to research the beliefs of the author concerned. In this case, that would be George Lucas. Did you know that he wrote a book about his New Age beliefs and had it made into a comic books series? Then...you guessed it! The birth of Star Wars! It is clear that Star Wars is New Age propaganda. George Lucas doesn't deny this. I suppose an informed person can still enjoy the adventure in these movies, but I think they are really dangerous for the naive and especially young children and yet this is the audience the Star Wars creator has targeted.

If you're interested in Star Wars, I think it would be a good idea to learn a little bit more about the worldview of its author and the concepts portrayed in the movies. You might profit from it -- I did.

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

Now You Have No Excuse Not To Read It...

2007-10-09T20:07:00.000+03:00

For those of you who haven't read The Ballad Of The White Horse (and, by the way, if you haven't read it, you haven't lived!), it is now possible to read it online. This site has the entire poem typed up and you can even print it out if you want. I highly recommend that you do it immediately...

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

The Best Dialogue In Tolkien's Works (Well, I think so at least...)

2007-10-03T17:48:00.000+03:00

The fact that I am a true and thorough Tolkien fan might not have been made clear yet by any of my previous posts...but it's time to confess...

I found a wonderful passage of his and I decided that it was too good not to share. This dialogue is only published in one of Tolkien's books -- Morgoth's Ring: The Later Silmarillion (Go here to read up on the history of Middle-Earth) and discusses Redemption. Tolkien has been criticized by some that his stories do not contain the redemption story. Read on...

‘Have ye then no hope?’ said Finrod.

‘What is hope?’ she said. ‘An expectation of good, which though uncertain has some foundation in what is known? Then we have none.’

‘That is one thing that Men call “hope”,’ said Finrod. ‘Amdir we call it, “looking up”. But there is another which is founded deeper. Estel we call it, that is “trust”. It is not defeated by the ways of the world, for it does not come from experience, but from our nature and first being. If we are indeed the Eruhin, the Children of the One, then He will not suffer Himself to be deprived of His own, not by any Enemy, not even by ourselves. This is the last foundation of Estel, which we keep even when we contemplate the End: of all His designs the issue must be for His Children’s joy. Amdir you have not, you say. Does no Estel at all abide?’

‘Maybe,’ she said . . . ‘It is believed that healing may yet be found, or that there is some way of escape. But is this indeed Estel? Is it not Amdir rather; but without reason: mere flight in a dream from what waking they know: that there is no escape from darkness and death?’

‘Mere flight in a dream you say,’ answered Finrod. ‘In dream many desires are revealed; and desire may be the last flicker of Estel. But you do not mean dream, Andreth. You confound dream and waking with hope and belief, to make the one more doubtful and the other more sure . . .

‘What then was this hope, if you know?’ Finrod asked.

‘They say,’ answered Andreth: ‘they say that the One will himself enter into Arda, and heal Men and all the Marring from the beginning to the end. . . . How could Eru enter into the thing that He has made, and than which He is beyond measure greater? Can the singer enter into his tale or the designer into his picture?’

‘He is already in it, as well as outside,’ said Finrod . . . ‘For, as it seems to me, even if He in Himself were to enter in, He must still remain also as He is: the Author without. And yet, Andreth, to speak with humility, I cannot conceive how else this healing could be achieved. Since Eru will surely not suffer Melkor to turn the world to his own will and to triumph in the end. Yet there is no power conceivable greater than Melkor save Eru only. Therefore Eru, if He will not relinquish his work to Melkor, who must else proceed to mastery, then Eru must come in to conquer him. More: even if Melkor (or the Morgoth that he has become) could in any way be thrown down or thrust from Arda, still his Shadow would remain, and the evil that he has wrote and sown as a seed would wax and multiply. And if any remedy for this is to be found, ere all is ended, any new light to oppose the shadow, or any medicine for the wounds: then it must, I deem, come from without.’

-John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, "Morgoth's Ring: The Later Silmarillion"

ht: www.lordofthekingdom.com

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

New Twist On An Old Proverb...

2007-09-29T10:25:00.000+04:00

“Before you criticize someone, walk a mile in their shoes. That way, when you do criticize them, you'll be a mile away. Plus, you'll have their shoes.”

-Unknown

Seize The Day!

-StrongJoy

Courage Is...

2007-09-19T16:06:00.000+04:00

"The Death Of Socrates" by Jacque Louis David

"Courage is almost a contradiction in terms.

It means a strong desire to live, taking the form of a readiness to die."

-Gilbert Keith Chesterton

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

Courage Is...

2007-09-17T17:37:00.000+04:00

"Napoleon" By Jacques Louis David

Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death.

-Harold Wilson

Seize The Day!

-StrongJoy

Smoe Itnresetnig Inofmration

2007-09-17T04:49:00.000+04:00

Aoccdrnig to rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a tatol mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

The King's Picture

2007-09-15T02:35:00.000+04:00

I love this because it is a beautiful reminder of the fact that we are every one of us made in His image and, for that reason, if no other, we are all precious in His sight...

THE KING'S PICTURE
The king from the council chamber

Came weary and sore of heart;

He called to Cliff, the painter,

And spoke to him thus apart:

"I'm sickened of faces ignoble,

Hypocrites, cowards, and knaves;

I shall shrink to their shrunken measure,

Chief slave in a realm of slaves.

Paint me a true man's picture,

Gracious and wise and good,

Dowered with the strength of heroes

And the beauty of womanhood.

It shall hang in my inmost chamber,

That, thither when I retire,

It may fill my soul with its grandeur,

And warm it with sacred fires."

So the artist painted the picture,

And it hung in the palace hall;

Never a thing so lovely

Had garnished the stately wall.

The King, with head uncovered,

Gazed on it with rapt delight,

Till it suddenly wore strange meaning -

Baffled his questioning sight.

For the form was the supplest courtier's,

Perfect in every limb;

But the bearing was that of the henchman

Who filled the flagons for him;

The brow was a priest's who pondered

His parchment early and late;

The eye was the wandering minstrel's

Who sang at the palace gate.

The lips, half sad and half mirthful,

With a fitful trembling grace,

Were the very lips of a woman

He had kissed in the market place;

But the smiles which curves transfigured,

As a rose with its shimmer of dew,

Was the smile of the wife who loved him,

Queen Ethelyn, good and true.

"Then learn, O King," said the artist,

"this truth that the picture tells-

That in every form of the human
Some hint of the highest dwells;

That scanning each living temple

For the place that the veil is thin,

We may gather by beautiful glimpses

The form of the God within."

-Helen L.B. Bostwick

-Seize The Day!

-StrongJoy

The Rules Of Economics

2007-09-12T02:41:00.000+04:00

"You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
You cannot help small men by tearing down big men.
You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.
You cannot lift the wage earner by pulling down the wage payer.
You cannot keep out of trouble by spending more than your income.
You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatreds.
You cannot establish security on borrowed money.
You cannot build character and courage by taking away a man's initiative and independence.
You cannot help men permanently by doing for them what they could and should do for themselves."
-Abraham Lincoln

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

"Ceaseless Rosemary"

2007-09-04T18:04:00.000+04:00

Emily Dickinson has a clever trick of writing absolute nonsense. (Perhaps this is part of the reason why her poetry expresses so much of the inexpressible.) She also breaks the rules of writing by inventing new phrases. These are usually phrases we have never heard before -- phrases that don't make sense. How then, is it that we know exactly what she means?

"Essential oils -- are wrung --
The Attar from the Rose
Be not expressed by Suns -- alone --
It is the gift of Screws.

The General Rose -- decay--
But this -- in Lady’s Drawer,
Makes Summer -- When the lady lies
In Ceaseless Rosemary."
-Emily Dickinson

In reading the poem above, I found something particularly intriguing about the beautiful phrase at the end of the poem: "Ceaseless Rosemary." It's certainly a new phrase- I mean, who ever heard of Eternity referred to as "Ceaseless Rosemary"? I decided to do some research on the topic and came up with interesting results: It turns out that the word "Rosemary" is actually commonly used in old literature to symbolize remembrance. Shakespeare says: “There’s rosemary, that’s for remembrance; pray, love, remember;" "Ceaseless" is literally defined as "endless" or "constant." Hmm...so I guess that "Ceaseless Rosemary" not only sounds good , but it makes sense too!

If I researched every unusual phrase in Emily Dickinson's poetry, I'd probably end up with quite a tidy little collection of facts...

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

The Problem With This Whole "Good Attitude Thing" Is That It Really Works...

2007-08-25T04:00:00.000+04:00

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

"The Road Not Taken"

2007-08-25T03:00:00.000+04:00

This poem has long been one of my favorites...

THE ROAD NOT TAKEN

"Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And, sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having, perhaps, the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though, as for that, the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet, knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference."

-Robert Frost

Seize The Day!

-StrongJoy

A Few Announcements

2007-08-17T20:08:00.000+04:00

I've been working very hard on my Quotations Collection and Poetry Collection during these past few days (you can find them on my sidebar) I'm extremely proud of myself for coming up with the idea so bear with me if I boast a little. I'm working to expand these collections this week and I plan to continue adding to them. That will mean hours of typing up my commonplace book and I'll have to start getting up early before anyone else has the computer but, oh well - I like getting up early.

Anyway, instead of posting my second post about Heroes today, I am slacking off on the job and giving you a tag. This is no ordinary tag, my friends. This is a tag that actually caught my interest. It was given to me by TobyBo. Here's the rules:

1. You have to post these rules before you give the facts.

2. Players, you must list one fact that is somehow relevant to your life for each letter of their middle name. If you don’t have a middle name, use the middle name you would have liked to have had.

3. When you are tagged you need to write your own blog-post containing your own middle name game facts.

4. At the end of your blog-post, you need to choose one person for each letter of your middle name to tag.

5. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

And here is my contribution to the fun. My middle name is JOY (very short) so this should be easy.

"Joy of the Lord is my Strength" (my username is thus explained)
"One Pure And Holy Passion" is the song in my head this week- You MUST listen to it.
"Your eyes will see only what your mind is prepared to comprehend." (That IS a great quotation and what else am I supposed to do with the letter "Y"?)

And now, for my last announcement: I would like to encourage all of you to look into the Better Blogging Movement and congratulate Eyebright on this new campaign.

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

"Heroes" = Doing "Great Things"

2007-08-15T22:17:00.000+04:00

Robert Louis Stevenson is a brilliant author, let there be no doubt about that. Books like Treasure Island and Kidnapped could not have been written by anyone other than a brilliant writer. Nonetheless, while reading “The Black Arrow” yesterday, one of his books that is not so well-known, I noticed something lacking in the story. After reflecting on this for some time, I turned back to his other works and began perusing them. The fact stands – his books are timeless and brilliant BUT they have one serious deficiency – there are no heroes! Stevenson never really creates a single heroic character. Those of us who have read some of the old classics are used to books where at least one admirable character is present to steal the show and win our hearts. Stevenson invents a host of characters but I find great difficulty in reconciling myself with any of them. It was only long after I finished “Kidnapped” for instance, that I was able to forgive Alan for his cowardice and even David Balfour struck me as being extremely self-centered, as did Jim Hawkins. Stevenson’s characters are disappointing. They are constantly doing the very thing you hope they will not do and though, they never really do anything absolutely base, they never do anything really heroic either.

And yet, maybe Robert Louis Stevenson knew mankind better than the authors of books with “perfect heroes.” Maybe he knew that people who haven’t learned to make the right choices every day won’t be able to make the right choice when something drastic happens. Maybe he knew something about human nature…Maybe he knew the simple truth that man is weak…and it is true, we ARE weak.

Here's another idea: maybe he DIDN’T know that we don’t have be weak forever...that there is One who strengthens us to do great things…if we KNOW Him.

I plan to expand on this thought so stay tuned...

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

"After The Battle" -

2007-08-12T21:03:00.001+04:00

I wrote a lot of poetry when I was a kid but I've lost most of it and none of it was much good anyway. (If I want a good laugh, all I have to do is take out my first poetry notebook and read through some of the things I proudly scribbled down when I was eight.) There is, however, one of these early poems that I don't laugh over quite so much. When I was little, I wrote a lot of things that I didn't even understand. This is one of them. Now it makes sense to me. Now I realize what it means.

"The face is lifeless,
The eyes but stare
No heartbeat stirs the breast
No wind can blow the hair.

Here is the reason for it:
This arrow ended his time-
It's shaft looks so familiar
I wonder if it was mine."
-B.J.J. aka StrongJoy

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

Some Memories Stay With You Forever...

2007-08-10T08:30:00.000+04:00

I heard this song when I was only a little child and I have never forgotten it. I've used to dream about it and the thought of it brought to my mind a picture of a dark wood. I saw myself walking through it with one Light ahead of me to follow and footsteps on the path before me. I had only to walk in those footsteps and keep my eye on the Light and I would get safely through that fearful wood and see the glorious Light at the other end of forest. Recently I found the song on some old tape stacked away and I couldn't help but cry when I heard it again- it was just so beautiful!

"Sometimes the night was beautiful,
Something the sky was so far away

Sometimes it seemed to be so close,

You could touch it but your heart would break.

Sometimes the morning came too soon

Sometimes the day could be so hot-

There was so much work left to do

But so much you'd already done.

Chorus:

Oh God, You are my God

And I will ever praise You

Oh God,You are my God,

And I will ever praise You

I will seek you in the morning

And I will learn to walk in Your ways

And step by step You lead me

And I will follow You all of my days

And step by step You lead me

And I will follow You all of my days.

And I will follow You all of my days

And step by step You lead me

And I will follow You all of my days.

Sometimes I think of Abraham-

How one star he saw was lit for me.

He was a stranger in the land

And I am that no less than he.

And on this road to holiness,

Sometimes the climb can be so steep

I may falter in my step

But I'm never beyond Your reach.

Chorus:
Oh God, You are my God
And I will ever praise You
Oh God,You are my God,
And I will ever praise You
I will seek you in the morning
And I will learn to walk in Your ways
And step by step You lead me
And I will follow You all of my days
And step by step You lead me
And I will follow You all of my days.
And I will follow You all of my days
And I will follow You all of my days
And step by step You lead me
And I will follow You all of my days...."

-Rich Mullins

Seize The Joy!
-StrongJoy

High-And-Mighty Authors Have Us Fooled With Their Eloquence...

2007-08-07T17:33:00.000+04:00

"Scintillate scintillate, globule vivific,

Fain would I fathom thy nature specific.

Loftily placed in the ether capacious,

Strongly resembling a gem carbonaceous."

-A.P. Gipps

What?! You don't know what that means? What's the matter with you?! Haven't you ever heard the song? - "Twinkle, twinkle, little star"?...

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

"Loved Once"

2007-08-01T12:39:00.000+04:00

I read this last night and it reminded me of my previous post. As Anya said, in her response to that post, "God commands us to love... that command wouldn't even make sense if love was simply an emotion. Sometimes it is good to put concious effort into loving people who are hard to love." Very good point, Anya.

"I classed, appraising once,

Earth's lamentable sounds, - the welladay,

The jarring yea and nay,

The fall of kisses on unanswering clay,

The sobbed farewell, the welcome mournfuller,-

But all did leaven the air

With a less bitter leaven of sure despair

Than these words- "I loved ONCE."

II
And who saith "I loved ONCE"?

Not angels- whose clear eyes, love, love forsee,

Love, through eternity,

And by To Love do apprehend To Be.

Not God, called LOVE, His noble crown-name, casting

A light too broad for blasting!

The great God changing not from everlasting,

Saith never, "I loved ONCE."

III
Oh never is "Loved Once" Thy word,

Thou Victim-Christ, misprized friend!

Thy cross and curse may rend,

But having loved Thou lovest to the end.

This is man's saying - man's. Too weak to move

One sphered star above,

Man desecrates the eternal God-word Love

By his No More, and Once.

IV
How say ye "We loved once,"
Blasphemers? Is your earth not cold enow,
Mourners, without that snow?
Ah, friends! and would ye wrong each other so?
And could ye say of some whose love is known,
Whose prayers have met your own,
Whose tears have fallen for you, whose smiles have shone
So long, - "We loved them ONCE"?

V
Could ye "We loved her once"
Say calm of me, sweet friends, when out of sight?
When hearts of better right
Stand in between me and your happy light?
Or when, as flowers kept too long in the shade,
Ye find my colours fade,
And all that is not love in me, decayed?
Such words- Ye loved me ONCE!

VI
Could ye "We loved her once"
Say cold of me when further put away
In earth's sepulchral clay, -
When mute the lips which deprecate to-day?
Not so! not then -least then.
When life is shriven,
Of those who sit and love you up in Heaven,
Say not, "We loved them once."

VII
Say never, ye loved ONCE.
God is too near above, the grave, beneath,
And all our moments breathe
Too quick in mysteries of life and death,
For such a word. The eternities avenge
Affections of light range.
There comes no change to justify that change,
Whatever comes - Loved ONCE.

VIII
And yet that same word ONCE
Is humanly acceptive. Kings have said,
Shaking a discrowned head,
"We ruled once," - dotards, "We taught once and led."
Cripples once danced i' the vines- and bards approved
Were once by scornings moved:
But love strikes one hour - LOVE! those never loved
Who dream that they loved ONCE."
-Elizabeth Barret Browning

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

The Evolution Of Love

2007-07-31T12:58:00.000+04:00

I found this the other day and I thought it was very well-put:

"In an age where so much of life is based on feelings, it seems that we've begun to lose the true essence of what love means. Once love meant a decision; when you loved someone you loved them forever. Today however, the overwhelming feelings of emotion dictate our decision to "love". But, on the other hand, if the fascinating affection we once felt begins to die we determine that we no longer "love" that person, and then. most sadly, we often give up and walk away. Love has evolved."

-Joel Smallbone

Seize The Day!

-StrongJoy

"Seize The Day"- The Song That Inspires Me EVERY Time...

2007-07-25T03:30:00.000+04:00

I know a girl who was schooled in Manhattan,

She reads dusty books and learns phrases in Latin.

She is as author or maybe a poet-

A genius, it's just that this world doesn't know it!

She works on a novel most every day-

If you laugh she will say...

Chorus:

Seize the day!

Seize whatever you can,

For life slips away

Just like hourglass sand

Seize the day,

Pray...

For Grace from God's hand,

And nothing will stand in your way-

Seize the day!

One thing I've noticed wherever I wander:

Everyone's got a dream he can follow or squander.

You can do what you will with the days you are given-

I'm trying to spend mine on the business of living!

So I'm singing my songs off of any old stage,

You can laugh if you want- I'll still say...

Chorus:

Seize the day!

Seize whatever you can,

For life slips away

Just like hourglass sand

Seize the day,

Pray...

For Grace from God's hand,

And nothing will stand in your way-

Seize the day!

-Carolyn Arends (From "Seize The Day")

Seize The Day!

-StrongJoy

What We See...

2007-07-24T02:28:00.000+04:00

"To hear an oriole sing
May be a common thing,
Or only a divine.

It is not of the bird,
Who sings the same, unheard,
As unto crowd.

The fashion of the ear
Attireth that it hear
In dun or fair.

So whether it be rune,
Or whether it be none,
Is of within.

The “tune is in the tree”
The skeptic showeth thee
'No sir! In thee!'"

-Emily Dickinson

To make a comment on that lovely observation written by one of my favorite poets, I can only say that "What we see, depends mainly on what we are looking for." -Sir John Lubbock

Seize The Day!

-StrongJoy

The Question Of Value

2007-07-23T07:47:00.001+04:00

People through the ages have struggled over the answer to the question, "How do you measure the worth of a man?" I've always believed that the answer to that question had something to do with Love but I wasn't sure how to explain that. I wrote this poem two months ago in frustration over my inability to express how I felt about this subject. When I had finished it, I realized that I had answered my own question: Yes, I believe that the Question of Value IS answered by Love but not by human Love. (See "Idols" - One Of The Best Poems Written In The English Language for a description of human Love.) I believe that the Love of our Creator is what gives us our value. If we are loved by the only One who matters, isn't that enough to give us all the value we could ever care to have?

How do you measure value?
What do you measure it by?
Is value measured by who we are-
We, the Hurt Ones, crushed and scarred,
Far from the light- so far, so far,
All of us reaching for the stars,
Under an empty sky?

How do you measure value?
What do you measure it by?
Is value measured by what we possess-
Years of struggle against weakness,
Groping for diamonds in cold darkness,
To find that somehow we still have less
And somehow we can’t even cry.

Last night as I prayed for the answer
And chased away Hope I had banned,
Someone spoke to me in the night,
A Voice whispered “Can’t you find My Light?
Well, I’ll always love you so it’s alright.”
Look! - Starlight in my hand!

-B.J.J. aka StrongJoy

Seize The Day!

-StrongJoy

"Idols" - One Of The Best Poems Written In The English Language

2007-07-22T21:30:00.000+04:00

“Idols”
How weak the gods of this world are-
And weaker their worship made me!
For I have been an idolater of three-
And three times they betrayed me.

Mine oldest worshipping was given
To natural Beauty, ay, residing
In bowery earth and starry heaven,
In ebbing sea and river gliding.

But natural Beauty shuts her bosom
To what the natural feelings tell!
Albeit I sighed, the trees would blossom-
Albeit I smiled the blossoms fell.

Then left I earthly sights to wander
Amid a grove of name divine,
Where bay-reflecting streams meander
And Moloch Fame hath reared a shrine.

Not green but black is that reflection;
On rocky beds those waters lie;
That grove hath chillness and dejection-
How could I sing? I had to sigh.

Last, human Love, thy Lares greeting,
To rest and warmth I vowed my years
To rest? How wild my pulse is beating!
To warmth? Ah, me! My burning tears!

Aye, they may burn-though thou be frozen
By death and changes wintering on
Fame!- Beauty!- idols madly chosen-
Were yet of gold; but thou art STONE!

Crumble like stone! My voice no longer
Shall wail their names who silent be:
There is a voice that soundeth stronger-
“My daughter, give thine heart to Me.

Lord! Take mine heart! O first and fairest
Whom all creation’s ends shall hear;
Who deathless love in death declarest!
Non else is beauteous-famous-dear!
-Elizabeth Barret Browning

Seize The Day!

-StrongJoy

"Transients In Arcadia" (About Ordinary People)

2007-07-19T14:00:00.000+04:00

I’ve had a respect for O. Henry ever since I read “The Ransom Of Red Chief” which has got to be the absolute funniest story of all time. When I read “The Last Leaf,” I decided that I had found an author worth checking into. (By the way, those of you who have not read “The Last Leaf” are missing out on one of the most gripping, skillfully written short stories written in the English language.) I bought a little book of his short stories about two years ago read it from cover to cover. Then I put it back on my shelf. Yesterday, for no reason at all, I took it down again and opened it up right to “Transients In Arcadia,” one story I didn’t remember very well. I didn’t plan on reading it but somehow I couldn’t tear myself away from that story. It was quite a simple little tale – there was no complex plot and not much action, to be sure, but somehow I found myself very wrapped up in it.

O. Henry begins the story by describing the dream hotel Lotus in a very idyllic way (with just a very little measure of sarcasm). He then goes on to praise a mysterious “Madame Beaumont,” the Lotus’ most illustrious guest.

“Now, isn’t that a wonderful beginning?”
“Yeah, it’s really great.” -The Princess Bride

This description continues for quite some time – long enough to give the reader a sort of respect for the afore-mentioned Madame Beaumont. Then, this magnificent “perfect woman” meets Mr. Harold Farrington, a seemingly respectable gentleman, and the two form a cordial relationship. Everything seems perfectly settled at this point and most readers would suppose that they were reading a “happily-ever-after” romance. However, the day before Madame Beaumont leaves the hotel, she tells Mr. Farrington a secret that changes the course of the story. I can’t tell you what the secret is because then you might not read the story for yourself, but I can assure you that O. Henry always lives up to his name, “The Master Of Surprise.”

I like this story because it reminds me of the real meaning of the phrase “ordinary people” but furthermore, because it reminds me that there are no ordinary people…and we all have hopes and dreams and ambitions - hurts and sorrows and tragedies.

Seize The Day!
-StrongJoy

"It's The Thing You Leave Undone..."

2007-07-15T01:24:00.000+04:00

"You smile upon your friend to-day,
To-day his ills are over;
You hearken to the lover's say,
And happy is the lover.

'Tis late to hearken, late to smile,
But better late than never;
I shall have lived a little while
Before I die for ever."
-A.E. Housman

(Alfred Edward Housman is hardly my favorite poet - he is a little too sarcastic and pessimistic for me - but I do enjoy some of his works and this is one of them.)

Often I don't notice until too late that someone has been wanting something from me - just a smile sometimes, I suppose. I always wish that I could have the moment back in order to give them what they were hoping for but when it's gone, it's gone. The only thing I can do then is to determine that I WON'T miss the next moment. That isn't good enough to make up for lost time, of course, but "better late than never" for there is certainly no sense in losing more time when I can seize the rest of the day!

Seize The Day!

-StrongJoy

Let Us Not Forget...

2007-07-11T19:25:00.000+04:00

Painting: "Gather The Rosebuds While Ye May" By William Waterhouse

"GATHER ye rosebuds while ye may,

Old time is still a-flying :

And this same flower that smiles to-day

To-morrow will be dying..."

-By Robert Herrick

Ronald Reagan Quotes

2007-06-01T19:07:00.000+04:00

"Here's my strategy on the Cold War: We win, they lose."
- Ronald Reagan

"The most terrifying words in the English language are: I'm from the government and I'm here to help."
- Ronald Reagan

"The trouble with our liberal friends is not that they're ignorant: It's just that they know so much that isn't so."
- Ronald Reagan

"Of the four wars in my lifetime none came about because the U. S. was too strong."
- Ronald Reagan

"I have wondered at times about what the Ten Commandment's would have looked like if Moses had run them through the U. S. Congress."
- Ronald Reagan

"The taxpayer: That's someone who works for the federal government but doesn't have to take the civil service examination."
- Ronald Reagan

"If we ever forget that we're one nation under God, then we will be one nation gone under."
- Ronald Reagan

"The nearest thing to eternal life we will ever see on this earth is a government program."
- Ronald Reagan

"I've laid down the law, though, to everyone from now on about anything that happens: no matter what time it is, wake me, even if it's in the middle of a Cabinet meeting."
- Ronald Reagan

"It has been said that politics is the second oldest profession. I have learned that it bears a striking resemblance to the first."
- Ronald Reagan

"Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it."
- Ronald Reagan

"Politics is not a bad profession. If you succeed there are many rewards, if you disgrace yourself you can always write a book."
- Ronald Reagan

"No arsenal, or no weapon in the arsenals of the world, is so formidable as the will and moral courage of free men and women."
- Ronald Reagan

Edgar Allan Poe Poetry

2006-08-25T14:40:00.000+04:00

A DREAM WITHIN A DREAM
"Take this kiss upon the brow!
And, in parting from you now,
Thus much let me avow:
You are not wrong who deem
That my days have been a dream;
Yet if hope has flown away
In a night, or in a day,
In a vision, or in none,
Is it therefore the less gone?
All that we see or seem
Is but a dream within a dream.

I stand amid the roar
Of a surf-tormented shore,
And I hold within my hand
Grains of the golden sand--
How few! yet how they creep
Through my fingers to the deep,
While I weep--while I weep!
O God! can I not grasp
Them with a tighter clasp?
O God! can I not save
One from the pitiless wave?
Is all that we see or seem
But a dream within a dream?"
- Edgar Allan Poe

EL DORADO
Gaily bedight,
A gallant knight,
In sunshine and in shadow,
Had journeyed long,
Singing a song,
In search of Eldorado.

But he grew old,
This knight so bold,
And o'er his heart a shadow
Fell as he found
No spot of ground
That looked like Eldorado.

And, as his strength
Failed him at length,
He met a pilgrim shadow;
"Shadow," said he,
"Where can it be,
This land of Eldorado?"

"Over the mountains
Of the moon,
Down the valley of the shadow,
Ride, boldly ride,"
The shade replied,--
"If you seek for Eldorado!"
- Edgar Allan Poe

Robert Frost Poetry

2006-08-25T14:27:00.000+04:00

BOND AND FREE
"Love has earth to which she clings
With hills and circling arms about—
Wall within wall to shut fear out.
But Thought has need of no such things,
For Thought has a pair of dauntless wings.

On snow and sand and turf, I see
Where Love has left a printed trace
With straining in the world’s embrace.
And such is Love and glad to be.
But Thought has shaken his ankles free.

Thought cleaves the interstellar gloom
And sits in Sirius’ disc all night,
Till day makes him retrace his flight,
With smell of burning on every plume,
Back past the sun to an earthly room.

His gains in heaven are what they are.
Yet some say Love by being thrall
And simply staying possesses all
In several beauty that Thought fares far
To find fused in another star."
-Robert Frost

THE ROAD NOT TAKEN
"Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And, sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could

To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;

Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.

Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference."
-Robert Frost

STOPPING BY WOODS ON A SNOWY EVENING
"Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake."

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
-Robert Frost

FIRE AND ICE
"Some say the world will end in fire,
Some say in ice.
From what I've tasted of desire
I hold with those who favour fire.
But if it had to perish twice,
I think I know enough of hate
To say that for destruction ice
Is also great
And would suffice."
-Robert Frost

GOD'S GARDEN
"God made a beatous garden
With lovely flowers strown,
But one straight, narrow pathway
That was not overgrown.
And to this beauteous garden
He brought mankind to live,
And said: 'To you, my children,
These lovely flowers I give.
Prune ye my vines and fig trees,
With care my flowerets tend,
But keep the pathway open
Your home is at the end.'

Then came another master,
Who did not love mankind,
And planted on the pathway
Gold flowers for them to find.
And mankind saw the bright flowers,
That, glitt'ring in the sun,
Quite hid the thorns of av'rice
That poison blood and bone;
And far off many wandered,
And when life's night came on,
They still were seeking gold flowers,
Lost, helpless and alone.

O, cease to heed the glamour
That blinds your foolish eyes,
Look upward to the glitter
Of stars in God's clear skies.
Their ways are pure and harmless
And will not lead astray,
Bid aid your erring footsteps
To keep the narrow way.
And when the sun shines brightly
Tend flowers that God has given
And keep the pathway open
That leads you on to heaven."
-Robert Frost

INTO MY OWN
"One of my wishes is that those dark trees,
So old and firm they scarcely show the breeze,
Were not, as 'twere, the merest mask of gloom,
But stretched away unto the edge of doom.

I should not be withheld but that some day
into their vastness I should steal away,
Fearless of ever finding open land,
or highway where the slow wheel pours the sand.

I do not see why I should e'er turn back,
Or those should not set forth upon my track
To overtake me, who should miss me here
And long to know if still I held them dear.

They would not find me changed from him they
knew--Only more sure of all I thought was true."
-Robert Frost

RELUCTANCE
"Out through the fields and the woods
And over the walls I have wended;
I have climbed the hills of view
And looked at the world, and descended;
I have come by the highway home,
And lo, it is ended.

The leaves are all dead on the ground,
Save those that the oak is keeping
To ravel them one by one
And let them go scraping and creeping
Out over the crusted snow,
When others are sleeping.

And the dead leaves lie huddled and still,
No longer blown hither and thither;
The last lone aster is gone;
The flowers of the witch-hazel wither;
The heart is still aching to seek,
But the feet question 'Whither?'

Ah, when to the heart of man
Was it ever less than a treason
To go with the drift of things,
To yield with a grace to reason,
And bow and accept the end
Of a love or of a season?"
-Robert Frost

Emily Dickinson Poetry

2006-08-24T14:51:00.000+04:00

CERTAINTY
"I never saw a moor,
I never saw the sea;
Yet know I how the heather looks,
And what a wave must be.

I never spoke with God,
Nor visited in heaven;
Yet certain am I of the spot
As if the chart were given."
-Emily Dickinson

BECAUSE I COULD NOT STOP FOR DEATH
"Because I could not stop for Death--
He kindly stopped for me--
The Carriage held but just Ourselves--
And Immortality.

We slowly drove--He knew no haste
And I had put away
My labour and my leisure too,
For His Civility--

We passed the School, where Children strove
At Recess--in the Ring--
We passed the Fields of Gazing Grain--
We passed the Setting Sun--

Or rather--He passed Us--
The Dews drew quivering and chill--
For only Gossamer, my Gown--
My Tippet--only Tulle--

We paused before a House that seemed
A Swelling of the Ground--
The Roof was scarcely visible--
The Cornice--in the Ground--

Since then--'tis Centuries--and yet
Feels shorter than the Day
I first surmised the Horses Heads
Were toward Eternity--"
-Emily Dickinson

SUCCESS IS COUNTED SWEETEST
"Success is counted sweetest
By those who ne'er succeed.
To comprehend a nectar
Requires sorest need.

Not one of all the purple host
Who took the flag to-day
Can tell the definition,
So clear, of victory,

As he, defeated, dying,
On whose forbidden ear
The distant strains of triumph
Break, agonized and clear."
-Emily Dickinson

I HEARD A FLY BUZZ
"I heard a fly buzz when I died;
The stillness round my form
Was like the stillness in the air
Between the heaves of storm.

The eyes beside had wrung them dry,
And breaths were gathering sure
For that last onset, when the king
Be witnessed in his power.

I willed my keepsakes, signed away
What portion of me I
Could make assignable,--and then
There interposed a fly,

With blue, uncertain, stumbling buzz,
Between the light and me;
And then the windows failed, and then
I could not see to see."
-Emily Dickinson

AFTER GREAT PAIN...
"After great pain a formal feeling comes --
The nerves sit ceremonious like tombs;
The stiff heart questions - was it He that bore?
And yesterday - or centuries before?

The feet mechanical go round
A wooden way,
Of ground or air of Ought,
Regardless grown;
A quartz contentment like a stone.

This is the hour of lead
Remembered if outlived
As freezing persons recollect
The snow --
First chill, then stupor, then
The letting go."
-Emily Dickinson

"I died for beauty, but was scarce
Adjusted in the tomb,
When one who died for truth was lain
In an adjoining room.

He questioned softly why I failed?
“For beauty,” I replied.
“And I for truth,—the two are one;
We brethren are,” he said.

And so, as kinsmen meet at night,
We talked between the rooms,
Until the moss had reached our lips,
And covered up our names."
-Emily Dickinson

"The daisy follows soft the sun,
And when his golden walk is done,
Sits shyly at his feet.
He, waking, finds the flower near.
“Wherefore, marauder, art thou here?”
“Because, sir, love is sweet!”

We are the flower, Thou the sun!
Forgive us, if as days decline,
We nearer steal to Thee,—
Enamoured of the parting west,
The peace, the flight, the amethyst,
Night’s possibility!"
-Emily Dickinson

"Sleep is supposed to be,
By souls of sanity,
The shutting of the eye.

Sleep is the station grand
Down which on either hand
The hosts of witness stand!

Morn is supposed to be,
By people of degree,
The breaking of the day.

Morning has not occurred!
That shall aurora be
East of eternity;

One with the banner gay,
One in the red array,—
That is the break of day."
-Emily Dickinson

THE BATTLEFIELD
"They dropped like flakes, they dropped like stars,
Like petals from a rose,
When suddenly across the June
A wind with fingers goes.

They perished in the seamless grass,—
No eye could find the place;
But God on his repealless list
Can summon every face."
-Emily Dickinson

"Bless God, he went as soldiers,
His musket on his breast;
Grant, God, he charge the bravest
Of all the martial blest.

Please God, might I behold him
In epauletted white,
I should not fear the foe then,
I should not fear the fight."
-Emily Dickinson

"Adrift! A little boat adrift!
And night is coming down!
Will no one guide a little boat
Unto the nearest town?

So sailors say, on yesterday,
Just as the dusk was brown,
One little boat gave up its strife,
And gurgled down and down.

But angels say, on yesterday,
Just as the dawn was red,
One little boat o’erspent with gales
Retrimmed its masts, redecked its sails
Exultant, onward sped!"
-Emily Dickinson

THIRST
"We thirst at first,—’t is Nature’s act;
And later, when we die,
A little water supplicate
Of fingers going by.

It intimates the finer want,
Whose adequate supply
Is that great water in the west
Termed immortality."
-Emily Dickinson

Quotes About COURAGE

2006-08-17T11:11:00.000+04:00

"Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear - not absence of fear."
Mark Twain

"Courage is not the absence of fear, but the conquest of it."
Author Unknown

"Courage is a special kind of knowledge; the knowledge of how to fear what ought to be feared and how not to fear what ought not to be feared."
David Ben-Gurion

"Courage is not simply one of the virtues, but the form of every virtue at the testing point."
C. S. Lewis

"Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak, Courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen." Sir Winston Churchill

"Courage is fear that has said its prayers."
Dorothy Bernard

"Courage is the power to let go of the familiar."
Raymond Lindquist

"Courage is the price that Life exacts for granting peace."
Amelia Earhart

"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
Harold Wilson

"Courage is the ladder on which all the other virtues mount."
Clare Booth Luce

"A timid person is frightened before a danger, a coward during the time, and a courageous person afterward."
Jean Paul Richter

"Many would be cowards if they had courage enough."
Thomas Fuller

"The test of courage comes when we are in the minority. The test of tolerance comes when we are in the majority."
Ralph W. Sockman

"The only courage that matters is the kind that gets you from one moment to the next."
Mignon McLaughlin

"I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It's when you know you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what."
Harper Lee, "To Kill a Mockingbird"

"You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, 'I have lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.' You must do the thing you think you cannot do."
Eleanor Roosevelt

"Everyone has talent. What is rare is the courage to follow the talent to the dark place where it leads."
Erica Jong

"But in the end one needs more courage to live than to kill himself."
Albert Camus

"God, give us grace to accept with serenity the things that cannot be changed, courage to change the things which should be changed, and the wisdom to distinguish the one from the other."
Reinhold Niebuhr

"Don't let life discourage you; everyone who got where he is had to begin where he was."
Richard L. Evans

"Success is that old ABC -- ability, breaks, and courage."
Charles Luckman

"The man who has strong opinions and always says what he thinks is courageous – and friendless."
Author Unknown

"It takes far less courage to kill yourself than it takes to make yourself wake up one more time.
Judith Rossner

"Some have been thought brave because they were afraid to run away."
Thomas Fuller

Quotes About GOD

2006-08-17T10:58:00.000+04:00

"There is polish for everything that takes away rust; and the polish for the heart is the remembrance of God."
~Mohammad~

"What we believe about God is the most important part of us."
~A.W. Tozer~

"One on God's side is a majority."
~Wendell Phillips~

"An atheist is one who hopes the Lord will do nothing to disturb his belief."
~Franklin P. Jones~

"If there was no God, there would be no atheists."
~G.K. Chesterton

"Nobody talks about God as much, as those who insist that there is no God."
~Heywood Brown~

"An atheist does not find God, for the same reason a thief does not find a policeman."

"The value of persistant prayer is not that He will hear us, but that we finally hear Him."

"If you knew who walks beside you on the way you have chosen, fear would be impossible."
~A Course in Miracles~

"A man can no more diminish God's glory by refusing to worship Him than a lunatic can put out the sun by scribbling the word 'darkness' on the walls of his cell."
~C. S. Lewis~

"God is love, and if you lose yourself in Him, you will find yourself."

"All I have seen teaches me to trust the Creator for all I have not seen."
~Ralph Waldo Emerson~

God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing.
~C. S. Lewis~

"We are all pencils in the hand of God."
~Mother Teresa~

"I believe in God like I believe in the sun, not because I can see it, but because of it all things are seen."
~C. S. Lewis~

"God had not promised us a pleasant journey, but a safe arrival."

"I know God will not give me anything I can't handle. I just wish He didn't trust me so much." ~Mother Teresa~

"Don't be afraid, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will stregthen you, I will help you. I will up hold you with My victorious right hand."
~Isaiah 41:10~

"I would rather live my life as if there is a God, and die to find out there isn't, than to live my life as if there isn't, and die to find out there is."
~Albert Camus~

"There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, 'Thy will be done,' and those to whom God says, in the end, 'Oh, all right then- have it your way.' "
~C. S. Lewis~

“God is at home; it is we who have gone for a walk.”
~Meister Eckhart~

Alfred Lord Tennyson Poetry

2006-08-17T10:42:00.000+04:00

Lines From "IN MEMORIAM"

CXXIII
There rolls the deep where grew the tree,
O earth, what changes thou hast seen!
There, where the long street roars hath been
The stillness of the central sea.

The hills are shadows and they flow
From form to form and nothing stands;
They melt like mist, the solid lands
Like clouds they shape themselves and go.

But in my spirit will I dwell,
And dream my dream, and hold it true;
For tho' my lips may breathe adieu,
I cannot think the thing farewell.

CXXIV
That which we dare invoke to bless;
Our dearest faith; our ghastliest doubt;
He, They, One, All, within, without;
The Power in darkness whom we guess;

I found Him not in world or sun,
Or eagle's wing, or insect's eye;
Nor thro' the questions men may try,
The petty cobwebs we have spun:

If ever when faith had fallen asleep,
I heard a voice 'believe no more'
And heard an ever-breaking shore
That tumbled in the Godless deep;

A warmth within the breast would melt
The freezing reason's colder part,
And like a man in wrath the heart,
Stood up and answered ' I have felt.'

No, like a child in doubt and fear:
But that blind clamor made me wise;
Then was I as a child that cries,
But, crying, knows his father is near;

And what I am beheld again
What is and no man understands;
And out of darkness came the hands
That reach thro' nature, molding men."
-Alfred Lord Tennyson

THE LADY OF SHALLOT
"In the stormy east-wind straining,
The pale yellow woods were waning,
The broad stream in his banks complaining,
Heavily the low sky raining,
Over tower’d Camelot;
Down she came and found a boat
Beneath a willow left afloat,
And round about the prow she wrote
The Lady Of Shallot.

And down the river’s dim expanse
Like some bold seer in a trance,
Seeking all his own mischance,
With a glassy countenance,
Did she look to Camelot;
And at the closing of the day,
She loosed the chain and down she lay,
The broad stream bore her far away
The Lady Of Shallot.

Lying, robed in snowy white,
That loosely flew to left and right,
The leaves upon her falling light,
Through the noises of the night,
She floated down to Camelot
And as the boat-head wound along,
The willowy hills and fields among,
They heard her singing her last song,
The Lady Of Shallot.

Heard a carol mournful, holy,
Chanted loudly, chanted lowly,
Till her blood was frozen slowly,
And her eyes were darkened wholly,
Turn’d to tower’d Camelot;
For ere she reached upon the tide
The first house by the water-side,
Singing in her song she died,
The Lady Of Shallot.

Under tower and balcony,
By garden-wall and gallery,
A gleaming shape she floated by,
Dead-pale between the houses high
Silent into Camelot;
Out upon the wharfs they came,
Knight and burgher, lord and dame
And round the prow they read her name,
The Lady Of Shallot.

Who is this? and what is here?
And in the lighted palace near,
Died the sound of royal cheer,
And they crossed themselves for fear,
All the knights of Camelot;
But Lancelot mused a little space;
He said, 'She has a lovely face,
God in His mercy lend her grace,
The Lady Of Shallot.' "
-Alfred Lord Tennyson

Ella Wheeler Wilcox Poetry

2006-08-17T10:24:00.000+04:00

CONVERSATION
God and I in space alone
and nobody else in view.
"And where are the people, O Lord," I said,
"the earth below and the sky o'er head
and the dead whom once I knew?"

"That was a dream," God smiled and said,
"A dream that seemed to be true.
There were no people, living or dead,
there was no earth, and no sky o'er head;
there was only Myself -- in you."

"Why do I feel no fear," I asked,
"meeting You here this way?
For I have sinned I know full well--
and is there heaven, and is there hell,
and is this the Judgment Day?"

"Nay, those were but dreams,"
the Great God said,
"Dreams that have ceased to be.
There are no such things as fear or sin;
there is no you -- you never have been--
there is nothing at all but Me."
-Ella Wheeler Wilcox

SOLITUDE
"Laugh, and the world laughs with you;
Weep, and you weep alone.
For the sad old earth must borrow its mirth,
But has trouble enough of its own.
Sing, and the hills will answer;
Sigh, it is lost on the air.
The echoes bound to a joyful sound,
But shrink from voicing care.
Rejoice, and men will seek you;
Grieve, and they turn and go.
They want full measure of all your pleasure,
But they do not need your woe.
Be glad, and your friends are many;
Be sad, and you lose them all.
There are none to decline your nectared wine,
But alone you must drink life's gall.
Feast, and your halls are crowded;
Fast, and the world goes by.
Succeed and give, and it helps you live,
But no man can help you die.
There is room in the halls of pleasure
For a long and lordly train,
But one by one we must all file on
Through the narrow aisles of pain."
-Ella Wheeler Wilcox

"Don’t look for the flaws as you go through life;
And even when you find them,
It is wise and kind to be somewhat blind
And look for the virtue behind them.
For the cloudiest night has a hint of light
Somewhere in its shadows hiding;
It is better by far to hunt for a star,
Than the spots on the sun abiding.

The current of life runs ever away
To the bosom of God’s great ocean.
Don’t set your force ‘gainst the river’s course
And think to alter its motion.
Don’t waste a curse on the universe –
Remember it lived before you.
Don’t butt at the storm with your puny form,
But bend and let it go o’er you.

The world will never adjust itself
To suit your whims to the letter.
Some things must go wrong your whole life long,
And the sooner you know it the better.
It is folly to fight with the Infinite,
And go under at last in the wrestle;
The wiser man shapes into God’s plan
As water shapes into a vessel."
-Ella Wheeler Wilcox

GOING AWAY
"Walking to-day on the Common,
I heard a stranger say
To a friend who was standing near him,
'Do you know I am going away? '
I had never seen their faces,
May never see them again;
Yet the words the stranger uttered,
Stirred me with nameless pain.

For I knew some heart would miss him,
Would ache at his going away!
And the earth would seem all cheerless
For many and many a day.
No matter how light my spirits,
No matter how glad my heart,
If I hear those two words spoken,
The teardrops always start.

They are so sad and solemn,
So full of a lonely sound;
Like dead leaves rustling downward,
And dropping upon the ground,
Oh, I pity the naked branches,
When the skies are dull and gray,
And the last leaf whispers softly,
'Good-bye, I am going away.'

In the dreary, dripping autumn,
The wings of the flying birds,
As they soar away to the south land,
Seem always to say those words.
Wherever they may be spoken,
They fall with a sob and a sigh;
And heartaches follow the sentence,
'I am going away, Good-bye.'

O God, in Thy blessed Kingdom,
No lips shall ever say,
No ears shall ever harken
To the words 'I am going away.'"
-Ella Wheeler Wilcox

SMILES
"Smile a little, smile a little,
As you go along,
Not alone when life is pleasant,
But when things go wrong.
Care delights to see you frowning,
Loves to hear you sigh;
Turn a smiling face upon her –
Quick the dame will fly.

Smile a little, smile a little,
All along the road;
Every life must have its burden,
Every heart its load.
Why sit down in gloom and darkness
With your grief to sup?
As you drink Fate’s bitter tonic,
Smile across the cup.

Smile upon the troubled pilgrims
Whom you pass and meet;
Frowns are thorns, and smiles are blossoms
Oft for weary feet.
Do not make the way seem harder
By a sullen face;
Smile a little, smile a little,
Brighten up the place.

Smile upon your undone labour;
Not for one who grieves
O’er his task waits wealth or glory;
He who smiles achieves.
Though you meet with loss and sorrow
In the passing years,
Smile a little, smile a little,
Even through your tears."
-Ella Wheeler Wilcox

LISTEN
"Whoever you are as you read this,
Whatever your trouble or grief,
I want you to know and to heed this:
The day draweth near with relief.

No sorrow, no woe is unending,
Though heaven seems voiceless and dumb;
So sure as your cry is ascending,
So surely an answer will come.

Whatever temptation is near you,
Whose eyes on this simple verse fall;
Remember good angels will hear you
And help you to stand, if you call.

Though stunned with despair I beseech you,
Whatever your losses, your need,
Believe, when these printed words reach you,
Believe you were born to succeed.

You are stronger, I tell you, this minute,
Than any unfortunate fate!
And the coveted prize - you can win it;
While life lasts 'tis never too late!"
-Ella Wheeler Wilcox

I TOLD YOU
"I told you the winter would go, love,
I told you the winter would go,
That he'd flee in shame when the south wind came,
And you smiled when I told you so.
You said the blustering fellow
Would never yield to a breeze,
That his cold, icy breath had frozen to death
The flowers, the birds, and trees.

And I told you the snow would melt, love,
In the passionate glance o' the sun;
And the leaves o' the trees, and the flowers and bees,
Would come back again, one by one.
That the great, gray clouds would vanish,
And the sky turn tender and blue;
And the sweet birds would sing, and talk of the spring
And, love, it has all come true.

I told you that sorrow would fade, love,
And you would forget half your pain;
That the sweet bird of song would waken ere long,
And sing in your bosom again;
That hope would creep out of the shadows,
And back to its nest in your heart,
And gladness would come, and find its old home,
And that sorrow at length would depart.

I told you that grief seldom killed, love,
Though the heart might seem dead for awhile.
But the world is so bright, and full of warm light
That 'twould waken at length, in its smile.
Ah, love! was I not a true prophet?
There's a sweet happy smile on your face;
Your sadness has flown - the snow-drift is gone,
And the buttercups bloom in its place."
-Ella Wheeler Wilcox

SLIPPING AWAY
Slipping away---slipping away!
Out of our brief year slips the May;
And Winter lingers, and Summer flies;
And Sorrow abideth, and Pleasure dies;
And the days are short, and the nights are long;
And little is right, and much is wrong.

Slipping away is the Summer-time;
It has lost its rhythm and lilting rhyme---
For the grace goes out of the day so soon,
And the tired head aches in the glare of noon,
And the way seems long to the hills that lie
Under the calm of the western sky.

Slipping away are the friends whose worth
Lent a glow to the sad old earth:
One by one they slip from our sight;
One by one their graves gleam white;
Or we count them lost by the crueller death
Of a trust betrayed, or a murdered faith.

Slipping away are the hopes that made
Bliss out of sorrow, and sun out of shade;
Slipping away is our hold on life;
And out of the struggle and wearing strife,
From joys that diminish, and woes that increase,
We are slipping away to the shores of Peace.
-Ella Wheeler Wilcox

SONGS OF LOVE AND THE SEA
I
When first we met (the Sea and I),
Like one before a King
I stood in awe; nor felt nor saw
The sun, the winds, the earth, the sky
Or any other thing.
God's Universe to me,
Was just the Sea.

When next we met, the lordly Main
Played but a courtier's part;
Crowned Queen was I; and earth and sky,
And sun and sea were my domain,
Since love was in my heart.
Before, beyond, above,
Was only Love.

II
Love built me on a little rock,
A little house of pine;
At first, the Sea
Beat angrily
About that house of mine;
(That dear, dear home of mine).

But when it turned to go away
Beyond the sandy track,
Down o'er its wall
The house would call,
Until the Sea came back;
(It always hurried back).

And now the two have grown so fond,
(Oh, breathe no word of this),
When clouds hang low,
And east winds blow,
They meet and kiss and kiss;
(At night, I hear them kiss).

III
No man can understand the Sea until
He knows all passions of the senses, all
The great emotions of the heart, and each
Exalted aspiration of the soul.
Then may he sit beside the sea and say:
"I, too, have flung myself against the rocks,
And kissed their flinty brows with no return,
And fallen spent upon unfeeling sands.
I, too, have gone forth yearning, to far shores,
Seeking that something which would bring content,
And finding only what I took away;
And I have looked up through the veil of skies
When all the world was still, and understood
That I am one with Nature and with God."

IV
The Dawn was flying from the Night;
Swift as the wind she sped;
Her hair was like a fleece of light;
Her cheeks were warm and red.

All passion pale, the Night pursued;
She fled away, away;
And in her garments, rainbow hued,
She gained the peak of day.

And then, all shaken with alarms,
She leaped down from its crest
Into the Sea's uplifted arms,
And swooned upon his breast.
-Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Winston Churchill Quotes

2006-08-16T16:13:00.000+04:00

"I am prepared to meet my Maker. Whether my Maker is prepared for the great ordeal of meeting me is another matter."
Sir Winston Churchill

"History will be kind to me for I intend to write it."
Sir Winston Churchill

"It has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried."
Sir Winston Churchill

"Men occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of them pick themselves up and hurry off as if nothing ever happened."
Sir Winston Churchill

"A fanatic is one who can't change his mind and won't change the subject."
Sir Winston Churchill

"Personally I'm always ready to learn, although I do not always like being taught."
Sir Winston Churchill

"From now on, ending a sentence with a preposition is something up with which I will not put."
Sir Winston Churchill

"The reserve of modern assertions is sometimes pushed to extremes, in which the fear of being contradicted leads the writer to strip himself of almost all sense and meaning."
Sir Winston Churchill

"When I am abroad, I always make it a rule never to criticize or attack the government of my own country. I make up for lost time when I come home."
Sir Winston Churchill

"He has all the virtues I dislike and none of the vices I admire."
Sir Winston Churchill

"There are a terrible lot of lies going around the world, and the worst of it is half of them are true."
Sir Winston Churchill

"Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm."
Sir Winston Churchill

"We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give."
Sir Winston Churchill

"One ought never to turn one's back on a threatened danger and try to run away from it. If you do that, you will double the danger. But if you meet it promptly and without flinching, you will reduce the danger by half."
Sir Winston Churchill

"Every day you may make progress. Every step may be fruitful. Yet there will stretch out before you an ever-lengthening, ever-ascending, ever-improving path. You know you will never get to the end of the journey. But this, so far from discouraging, only adds to the joy and glory of the climb."
Sir Winston Churchill

"For myself I am an optimist - it does not seem to be much use being anything else."
Sir Winston Churchill

"It's not enough that we do our best; sometimes we have to do what's required."
Sir Winston Churchill

"I would say to the House, as I said to those who have joined this Government: 'I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat."
Sir Winston Churchill

"Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning."
Sir Winston Churchill

"I am reminded of the professor who, in his declining hours, was asked by his devoted pupils for his final counsel. He replied, 'Verify your quotations.'"
Sir Winston Churchill

"Never give in--never, never, never, never, in nothing great or small, large or petty, never give in except to convictions of honor and good sense. Never yield to force; never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy."
Sir Winston Churchill

"All great things are simple, and many can be expressed in single words: freedom, justice, honor, duty, mercy, hope."
Sir Winston Churchill

"To build may have to be the slow and laborious task of years. To destroy can be the thoughtless act of a single day."
Sir Winston Churchill

"The best argument against democracy is a five minute conversation with the average voter."
Sir Winston Churchill

"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
Sir Winston Churchill

"The power of man has grown in every sphere, except over himself."
Sir Winston Churchill

I gather, young man, that you wish to be a Member of Parliament. The first lesson that you must learn is, when I call for statistics about the rate of infant mortality, what I want is proof that fewer babies died when I was Prime Minister than when anyone else was Prime Minister. That is a political statistic.
Sir Winston Churchill

For my part, I consider that it will be found much better by all parties to leave the past to history, especially as I propose to write that history myself.
Sir Winston Churchill

Mark Twain Quotes

2006-08-16T15:38:00.000+04:00

"Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example."
Mark Twain, "Pudd'nhead Wilson" (1894)

"A banker is a fellow who lends you his umbrella when the sun is shining, but wants it back the minute it begins to rain."
Mark Twain

"Always do right. This will gratify some people and astonish the rest."
Mark Twain

"Be careful about reading health books. You may die of a misprint."
Mark Twain

"Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear - not absence of fear."
Mark Twain

"Don't go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first."
Mark Twain

"In Paris they simply stared when I spoke to them in French; I never did succeed in making those idiots understand their language."
Mark Twain

"It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt."
Mark Twain (attributed)

"The man who doesn't read good books has no advantage over the man who can't read them."
Mark Twain

"I was gratified to be able to answer promptly. I said 'I don't know.'"
Mark Twain

"Always tell the truth. That way, you'll never have to remember what you said last time."
Mark Twain

"Whenever you find that you are on the side of the majority, it is time to stop and reconsider."
Mark Twain

"A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes."
Mark Twain (attributed)

"In order to make a man or a boy covet a thing, it is only necessary to make the thing difficult to obtain."
Mark Twain, "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer", Chapter 2

"I have never let my schooling interfere with my education."
Mark Twain

"Somehow, we are always more anxious to be distinguished for a talent which we do not possess, than to be praised for the fifteen which we do possess."
Mark Twain

"It is curious that physical courage should be so common in the world and moral courage so rare."
Mark Twain

"Do something every day that you don't want to do; this is the golden rule for acquiring the habit of doing your duty without pain."
Mark Twain

"Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great."
Mark Twain

"When in doubt, tell the truth."
Mark Twain

"When people do not respect us we are sharply offended; yet deep down in his private heart no man much respects himself."
Mark Twain

"Education: that which reveals to the wise, and conceals from the stupid, the vast limits of their knowledge."
Mark Twain

"[Humanity] has unquestionably one really effective weapon—laughter. Power, money, persuasion, supplication, persecution—these can lift at a colossal humbug—push it a little—weaken it a little, century by century; but only laughter can blow it to rags and atoms at a blast. Against the assault of laughter nothing can stand."
Mark Twain

"There is nothing so annoying as to have two people talking when you're busy interrupting."
Mark Twain

"I can teach anybody how to get what they want out of life. The problem is that I can't find anybody who can tell me what they want."
Mark Twain

"Whenever the literary German dives into a sentence, that is the last you are going to see of him until he emerges on the other side of his atlantic with his verb in his mouth."
Mark Twain

"Never put off until tomorrow what you can do the day after tomorrow."
Mark Twain

"The miracle, or the power, that elevates the few is to be found in their industry, application, and perseverance under the prompting of a brave, determined spirit."
Mark Twain

"Cogito cogito ergo cogito sum (I think that I think, therefore I think that I am.)"
Mark Twain (attributed)

TEARS OF THE SAINTS by Leeland

2006-05-26T01:23:00.000+04:00

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TEARS OF THE SAINTS by Leeland

There are (Em)many prodigal sons
(There are schools full of hatred)

On our (C)city streets they run
(Even churches have forsaken )

Searching for (D)shelter
(Love and mercy)

There are (Em)homes broken down
(May we see this generation)

People’s (C)hopes have fallen to the ground
(In it’s state of desperation)

From (D)failures
(For Your glory)

This is an (C)emergency!

CHORUS:

There are (C)tears from the saints
(And all your children will stretch out their hands)

For the (G)lost and un(D)saved
(And pick up the crippled man)

We’re crying for them (Am)come back home
(Father, we will lead them home)

We’re crying for them (C)come back (D)home (Em)
(Father, we will lead them home)