tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-52307770817284292772024-03-13T23:21:58.135-04:00OBSERVATIONS WORKSHOPReflecting truths, observations and lucky moments
as they're encountered on life's journey.Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.comBlogger1090125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-53933987868889388362024-02-06T19:57:00.014-05:002024-02-07T11:29:31.608-05:00LOOKING AT LIFE FROM BOTH SIDES<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7hBW3tPh_Vttz8dHc6gh143fH-Sh3OnqbDdiTne3P3RSOLIr6As8ebs2dKjqCstwH90nbt1q5-hrbtjzTGyiHA1VlvD5JM1l5v_h3Jw2uf76NvEic5aHvlVpQbbKdjyHCDZ9j6Ovi4mjhzejfZZxbGUgaoiQGrc6APKJZGYTWgI7BzYa6yPSIVH3m/s1080/JONI%20CLOUDS.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="942" data-original-width="1080" height="279" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7hBW3tPh_Vttz8dHc6gh143fH-Sh3OnqbDdiTne3P3RSOLIr6As8ebs2dKjqCstwH90nbt1q5-hrbtjzTGyiHA1VlvD5JM1l5v_h3Jw2uf76NvEic5aHvlVpQbbKdjyHCDZ9j6Ovi4mjhzejfZZxbGUgaoiQGrc6APKJZGYTWgI7BzYa6yPSIVH3m/s320/JONI%20CLOUDS.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUau9cOwWfcWRviUfWc7WIBHZzV1T4C8LY7eZW0Cu1CFl9hTR8-X0D7GWwzg-zu7TVdUm1KNbTCFeXoYFTuql4Q6cin0Kl0C9E5jUgeMjfRY9XSJ4qZYWAbmhySyFwSLpPwpXigxpd83WaOgVtsX2wJPsqfksZmUzyOgy0XNUvZvmvYoBd1YFZLysS/s1600/CLOUD%20BELOW.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1066" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUau9cOwWfcWRviUfWc7WIBHZzV1T4C8LY7eZW0Cu1CFl9hTR8-X0D7GWwzg-zu7TVdUm1KNbTCFeXoYFTuql4Q6cin0Kl0C9E5jUgeMjfRY9XSJ4qZYWAbmhySyFwSLpPwpXigxpd83WaOgVtsX2wJPsqfksZmUzyOgy0XNUvZvmvYoBd1YFZLysS/s320/CLOUD%20BELOW.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtq2Qp3e3cf181m99wv_tAEzY3IZE8oVis5EJ5czWM44J3Qp4sLB71K4_FX1ovmRHfocgZm89Hl7EMuByIPeO_1JvSq1DiKy3h7eZQeUvgK8BuJ4o1fKmmMbEVF3B84D6gCFeI7r8zg5gTpUwsyeAOQ19o15xSmOYkjhrddoXzfMnacZVGCxiOY7Eb/s703/JONI%20MITCHELL%202024.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="496" data-original-width="703" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtq2Qp3e3cf181m99wv_tAEzY3IZE8oVis5EJ5czWM44J3Qp4sLB71K4_FX1ovmRHfocgZm89Hl7EMuByIPeO_1JvSq1DiKy3h7eZQeUvgK8BuJ4o1fKmmMbEVF3B84D6gCFeI7r8zg5gTpUwsyeAOQ19o15xSmOYkjhrddoXzfMnacZVGCxiOY7Eb/s320/JONI%20MITCHELL%202024.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><b>CLOUDS, ICE CREAM CASTLES AND GRAMMYS</b></div><p></p><p class="yiv1557193675p1" style="background: repeat white; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">I’ve always been mesmerized by
Joni Mitchell’s 1969 song </span><b style="color: #1d2228; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">Both Sides Now</b><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> which she wrote at 21.</span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">It was introduced in her second album Clouds
and has become her best known song.</span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">But I
was uncertain about watching her perform her poetic lyrics last Sunday at the
Grammys while sitting in a living room chair sixty years later.</span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">The longer I watched and listened, however,
the message held new meaning for me as we are both now close in age and have
experienced </span><b style="color: #1d2228; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody, serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">both sides of a life well lived. </b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;">
<p class="yiv1557193675p1" style="background: repeat white; margin: 0in;"><span class="yiv1557193675s1"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "UICTFontTextStyleBody",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="yiv1557193675p1" style="background: repeat white; margin: 0in;"><span class="yiv1557193675s1"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "UICTFontTextStyleBody",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">It seems that Joni found the
inspiration for the song while sitting at the window seat in an airplane and
noticing the flip side of clouds, as we’re the first generation to see from
that perspective. She observed that she
had always saw them as beautiful ice cream castles from below, but also concluded that they
can block the sun while raining and snowing on everyone. By this time, she had fought and won a
struggle with polio at age nine, the “<b>win and lose</b>” of life, and given
up her baby daughter at 20 that she had with a fellow student that wasn’t ready
for parenthood, the “<b>give and take</b>” of love. Clouds got in the way. I too have observed the dark, menacing,
underbelly of thick clouds only to discover beautiful skyscapes on the other
side once the plane gains altitude and breaks through to <b>the other side</b>.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="yiv1557193675p1" style="background: repeat white; margin: 0in;"><span class="yiv1557193675s1"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "UICTFontTextStyleBody",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="yiv1557193675p1" style="background: repeat white; margin: 0in;"><span class="yiv1557193675s1"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "UICTFontTextStyleBody",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Joni continues the dichotomy observing
that “old friends shake their heads and say I’ve changed, but ‘<b>something’s
lost and something’s gained</b>’ in living every day.” She finally concedes that “I really don’t
know life at all.” But today at age 80
she has the advantage of reflecting back from the other side of life with the wisdom
of age and the writings of those who have come before us. We all have the succinct words from authors
like M. Scott Peck that “<b>Life is difficult</b>” and Robert Frost who summed
up everything he learned about life in three words, “<b>It goes on.</b>” <o:p></o:p></span></span></p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /> </div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /> <p></p>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-43263109105773959252024-02-01T18:03:00.016-05:002024-02-02T09:21:52.158-05:00COWBOY WISDOM<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf2OqtGUkG6VlkMrhb9jQTWqPf8P5R5VQ4xCUdZX77TWdDgh4989uXfwCxyMOoHezDjfH7v7zKr8A5fzWF6z4izTnqr-aFCCnkYJbq3X_8TfUXowxXGv7yxAQi0MQzyBnfbpNZL_ZCi_mNmOmczSzfgap1R6ThahqF_ycUK2x52LW2AjJSsS0nJT82/s4032/GORE%20CREEK%20(2).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf2OqtGUkG6VlkMrhb9jQTWqPf8P5R5VQ4xCUdZX77TWdDgh4989uXfwCxyMOoHezDjfH7v7zKr8A5fzWF6z4izTnqr-aFCCnkYJbq3X_8TfUXowxXGv7yxAQi0MQzyBnfbpNZL_ZCi_mNmOmczSzfgap1R6ThahqF_ycUK2x52LW2AjJSsS0nJT82/s320/GORE%20CREEK%20(2).jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Gore Creek, Vail, Colorado</div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Most of the stuff people worry
about ain’t never gonna happen anyway.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Silence is sometimes the best
answer.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Timing has a lot to do with the
outcome of a rain dance.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Sometimes you get, and sometimes
you get got.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Most times, it just gets down to
common sense, which ain’t so common.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">If you get to thinkin’ you’re a
person of some influence, try orderin’ somebody else’s dog around.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Live simply. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Love generously.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Care deeply.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Speak kindly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Leave the rest to
God.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Live a good, honorable life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then when you think back, you’ll enjoy it a
second time!<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Always drink upstream from the
herd.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Wilderness is not a luxury but a necessity of
the human spirit.”</b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>--Edward Abbey<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">That final bit of wisdom prompted
me to think way back and enjoy a memory a second time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Early in our marriage, my wife Karen and I
enjoyed driving west on I-70 on a summer vacation from Kansas City to Denver,
Colorado and the colorful Rocky Mountains.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Western Kansas and Eastern Colorado are flat land cattle pastures and waving
wheat fields with panoramic skies that wrap 360 degrees and provide endless skyscapes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But once you approach Denver, what seems to
be lowering dark clouds on the horizon become in focus as towering mountain
ranges.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">We two city folk had driven up a
rather remote mountain trail on a subsequent July afternoon and happened upon a
pure Rocky Mountain stream that was calmly moving the opposite direction
alongside our vehicle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was obviously
being fed by springs and what little snow melt still remained on the shady
areas among the pine trees.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
temperature was hot in the bright sunshine and we hadn’t packed anything for
snacks or drinks on this little adventure.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">As we approached the summit of the
trail, we stopped and ventured out into nature beside the gurgling mountain
stream.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I dipped my cupped hand into the
water and experienced an immediate coolness in contrast to the ambient
temperature.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We knew enough about hiking
to understand that there are purifying tablets which can be added to ground
water in a container, but we were ill prepared for that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, I confidently announced that this water
must be as pure as any liquid on the planet and drank in a cupped handful of
the cool Coors beer Rocky Mountain spring water!</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">We hadn’t ventured more than a quarter
mile up the trail when we saw signs indicating the trail was ending.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> We soon noticed a </span>sign that announced the
presence of a camp ground ahead and an admonition not to drink the water!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I gasped and turned the car around, realizing
that I had just drank water down stream from the herd!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I carefully monitored my lower intestine for
about 24 hours, but thankfully never got sick.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></p><br /><p></p>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-26420944666307333022024-01-24T16:00:00.012-05:002024-01-26T09:55:16.852-05:00YOU, YOURSELF INCORPORATED<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUBKZPbGntZrGmMstPlNOi5S1kHpW7K7lFjRwN8XcpxBaOAw7SMHKa4xUe6MylUNKi_Drx734HXrFAyFRCUImRTL5njfXkQe-69vVNupm-H41ly-AGOxuUnpfHb4ai8eSXn-qzhnD5ZRoJsCjBtCyw1kl7Yiz1IX0JCAoOHOyGSFR3QwEhcHox21QD/s400/ALONENESS.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="400" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUBKZPbGntZrGmMstPlNOi5S1kHpW7K7lFjRwN8XcpxBaOAw7SMHKa4xUe6MylUNKi_Drx734HXrFAyFRCUImRTL5njfXkQe-69vVNupm-H41ly-AGOxuUnpfHb4ai8eSXn-qzhnD5ZRoJsCjBtCyw1kl7Yiz1IX0JCAoOHOyGSFR3QwEhcHox21QD/s320/ALONENESS.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>YOU, YOURSELF</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 12pt; text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 12pt; text-align: left;">Life
isn't so much about how many times you get knocked down, </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 12pt; text-align: left;">but how many times you
get back up!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 12pt; text-align: left;"> </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #26282a; font-size: 12pt; text-align: left;">Through
everything that you will ever experience until the day you die, </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #26282a; font-size: 12pt; text-align: left;">you’re going to
be the only person present for every event. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #26282a; font-size: 12pt; text-align: left;">Don’t wait around for someone else to resolve life’s issues.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #26282a; font-size: 12pt; text-align: left;"> </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #26282a; font-size: 12pt; text-align: left;">You never lose if you don’t lose the lesson
and act on it!</span></div><p></p>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-34455769670883774712024-01-18T12:24:00.015-05:002024-01-21T13:15:27.257-05:00SOUNDS THAT TOUCH THE SOUL<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhayJkCBRm8DT6Du9-D65d0bBPMD8Z-JKXWtaq7_w4wusqwAr5xfvaqUymEP_euYqEG6j4k_obUbfxfgfFIUypk4HqqiOLRUqbm_Dw3MzmeGBkdDJlC9pKyq1AXjSuc0Xri_9maDcqoGLR8N5Xl7GgbdgM5Mayy0FIQTVu0sxsSae1e8Z5Vs22G6UfJ/s400/ALONE.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhayJkCBRm8DT6Du9-D65d0bBPMD8Z-JKXWtaq7_w4wusqwAr5xfvaqUymEP_euYqEG6j4k_obUbfxfgfFIUypk4HqqiOLRUqbm_Dw3MzmeGBkdDJlC9pKyq1AXjSuc0Xri_9maDcqoGLR8N5Xl7GgbdgM5Mayy0FIQTVu0sxsSae1e8Z5Vs22G6UfJ/s320/ALONE.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>SOLITUDE</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">“Hear that lonely whippoorwill,</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">He sounds too blue to fly,</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">The midnight train is whining low”</span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;">The opening lines to the classic
country song, I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry, by Hank Williams evokes memories of hearing
that provocative sound in the very still of the night. I remember hearing that sound as a child in
bed since we lived within about a mile from a train crossing in Kansas. The wind had to be in the right direction to
hear it that far away, which made it evoke a sense of spiritual resonance. That sound of a train whistle at major
crossways can only resonate at a distance and usually late at night. If it’s carried on a strong north wind in
winter time the feeling is even more emotional.
I hadn’t heard the sound for many years after leaving home, but now I
can hear it once again here at home in North Carolina. It not only conjures up the same emotions, but
also memories of my long-ago childhood.
It’s one of those extraordinary sounds that touches the soul. And it can trigger nostalgia, remembering who
we were and validating our own identity. </p></div></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">That sound evoked loneliness in
old Hank and obviously many others related to the lyrics. But loneliness is a state of sadness, while
solitude is a healthy state of meaningful self-reflection. It’s a state of being alone without being
lonely. You can be lonely in a crowd,
but you can’t experience solitude there. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">There are some other sounds that have
the capacity to touch the solitary soul and evoke emotions of well being at the
deepest level of human life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of the
first that comes to mind is another one from my childhood of sitting on a dock
and hearing the call of a distant loon over a moonlit placid Minnesota Northwoods
lake.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve been walking up a vanishing windrow
of midwestern hedge trees hunting bob white quail and hearing their calls as
they gather the covey together.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And many
of us have quietly listened to the soft coo of mourning doves at daylight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then there’s the rhythmic song of cicadas in
the trees on summer evenings while sitting with family outside on a wrap-around
porch.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve also been sitting on a rural
river bank at sunset while the crickets and frogs serenaded all of us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And who of us has been touched by the
experience of sitting near the ocean at any time of the day apart from the
noise of civilization and hearing the rhythm of the breaking waves on shore that
takes us back to the first nine months of life in the watery womb?</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">A few other sounds that have touched
my soul include the wind and ancestral spirits racing through pine needles at the
ancient Mesa Verde ruins in Colorado, standing on the prairies of eastern
Colorado and western Kansas and hearing the distant thunder of an approaching
summer storm, and standing outside our home in central Kansas as a winter snow
mixed with sleet gently falls upon frozen ground.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Distant church bells and windchimes touch my
soul along with the whirring drone of an overhead airplane that slowly fades away
along with all of nature on a late autumn afternoon.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">It occurs to me that all of these reflective
sounds that have touched deep within my soul were experienced outside in God’s
creation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Perhaps that’s why I still
enjoy the solitude of being there.<o:p></o:p></p>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-2464287836964497662023-12-29T15:06:00.001-05:002023-12-29T15:10:32.387-05:00EMPATHY<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrRA1OoAVeOU6n7yYx6HdFug8Wcif0uBElQ7II17XuUW83saV5HLdtRXvcoi40A9o5e7yKhRDKRPyvnInJ0vj5DtW0OZjr6xg91qaxOIbbCWv4_J4MbUL2TUhXeKm9pMzHCw7SF1hNUut0AwcPjnCQfHWpr1ybSoq717LLPC7Hcj_ZUN8hAtMIXctL/s1388/LEO%20IN%20BOOTS.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1015" data-original-width="1388" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrRA1OoAVeOU6n7yYx6HdFug8Wcif0uBElQ7II17XuUW83saV5HLdtRXvcoi40A9o5e7yKhRDKRPyvnInJ0vj5DtW0OZjr6xg91qaxOIbbCWv4_J4MbUL2TUhXeKm9pMzHCw7SF1hNUut0AwcPjnCQfHWpr1ybSoq717LLPC7Hcj_ZUN8hAtMIXctL/s320/LEO%20IN%20BOOTS.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Ready to cross the street, Chicago, IL.</div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal">I just finished a short article written by Alyssa Campbell who
works in early childhood education and emotional development. She makes the point that “key components of
emotionally intelligent kids include self-awareness, self-regulation and
motivation. But surprisingly, the most
overlooked one is empathy…We teach emotional intelligence by responding to
children with empathy.” <o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<p class="MsoNormal">That reading prompted me to recall a very short but meaningful
incident that occurred a few years ago as I was leaving a restaurant in Chicago
with my three-year-old grandson and his parents. As we crossed the street to our car and entered
the other side, we turned and noticed the little boy’s lips were slightly
quivering and a tear was streaking down his rosy cheek. We immediately stopped in our tracks and bent
down to ask why he was suddenly crying.
It was difficult for him to voice what was troubling him but he was
saying something about a squirrel. We
all then remembered that we had casually passed a flat squirrel in the middle
of the street, but frankly, thought nothing of it. We’ve all seen lots of squirrels that couldn’t
make a decision to run faster, so they froze and paid the ultimate price. We adults had become desensitized to the
image. Sort of like watching war clips
on the nightly news… <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Fortunately, his parents embraced his genuine empathy and
his dad asked if he would feel better if he went back and moved the squirrel
out of the street to the curb. My
grandson slowly shook his head affirmatively and we waited patiently while the
body was removed from ongoing traffic.
Once he witnessed this his demeaner brightened and we proceeded to our car
where we all shared an uplifting ride home! <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">And lastly, Campbell concludes that we should all “remember
to pause and say ‘I love you’. It’s
impossible to spoil kids with love. We
promise that you can never say those words too much.”<o:p></o:p></p></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><p> </p>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-50896240898766135672023-12-23T16:23:00.006-05:002023-12-23T16:31:07.032-05:00FAVORITE ONE LINERS<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5cKm6anQOccJvBmjPjkvKTmf4KQBSEvUofiiozD7b7HMvQRQF263kmlakRWKH1QbY12nOqrtRDbUidc4hRAwg6ZEFCC7Ck_NKSNgyVN47apa7aiSKBm-mDjVeosJQ5XOucQPRhZLxNaF03HqtgLHkGiRQd8Pg4VNDexukCVClpICAv8RgXkOMqebI/s425/STARS.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="318" data-original-width="425" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5cKm6anQOccJvBmjPjkvKTmf4KQBSEvUofiiozD7b7HMvQRQF263kmlakRWKH1QbY12nOqrtRDbUidc4hRAwg6ZEFCC7Ck_NKSNgyVN47apa7aiSKBm-mDjVeosJQ5XOucQPRhZLxNaF03HqtgLHkGiRQd8Pg4VNDexukCVClpICAv8RgXkOMqebI/s320/STARS.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>STARDUST</b></div><br /><span style="font-family: arial;"> <span>I recently ran across a social media
challenge to list folks’ favorite one liners from music, etc. It seems like a rather daunting challenge,
but there were actually hundreds of posts covering a variety of subjects like life,
love, relationships, etc. So, I waded
through the responses and copied and added some of my favorites and then
attempted to arrange them into a post:</span></span><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><p class="yiv9143773017p1" style="background: white; margin: 0in 0in 5pt 0.5in; text-align: center; text-indent: -0.25in;"></p><p class="yiv9143773017p1" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 5pt 0.25in;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> <span style="font-family: arial;">Every new beginning comes from some
other beginning's end.</span></span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-family: arial; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.25in; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span style="color: #1d2228; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> Today is just tomorrow's yesterday. </span></span><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span style="line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p><p class="yiv9143773017p1" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 5pt 0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> You’re the master of your own destiny.</span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="yiv9143773017p1" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 5pt 0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> Dream on, but don’t imagine they’ll all
come true.</span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="yiv9143773017p1" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 5pt 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Life
is just a candle…and the dream must give it flame.</span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="yiv9143773017p1" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 5pt 0.5in;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-family: arial; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Life
is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="yiv9143773017p1" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 5pt 0.5in;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-family: arial; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">We
see in life what we look for.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="yiv9143773017p1" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 5pt 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Too
many people don’t listen to understand, but to reply.</span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="yiv9143773017p1" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 5pt 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I
was so much older then. I'm younger than
that now.</span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="yiv9143773017p1" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 5pt 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> Those
were the days, my friend. </span></span><span class="yiv9143773017apple-converted-space"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> </span></span><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">We
thought they'd never end.</span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="yiv9143773017p1" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 5pt 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">All
you touch and all you see is all your life will ever be...</span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="yiv9143773017p1" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 5pt 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I’m
glad I’m alive at the same time as you.</span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="yiv9143773017p1" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 5pt 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Of
all the things my hands have held, the best by far is you…</span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="yiv9143773017p1" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 5pt 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I
gave her my heart; she wanted my soul.
Don’t think twice it’s alright.</span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="yiv9143773017p1" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 5pt 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">And
in the end the love you take is equal to the love you make.</span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="yiv9143773017p1" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 5pt 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">You
make me smile with my heart.</span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraph"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span style="color: #1d2228; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> Put
your arms around my soul and take it dancing.</span></span><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span style="line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p><p class="yiv9143773017p1" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 5pt 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Couples
dancing, wrapped around each other in a song.</span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraph"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span style="color: #1d2228; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> The
future is uncertain, and the end is always near.</span></span><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span style="line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p><p class="yiv9143773017p1" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 5pt 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">You
can check out any time you like, but you can never leave.</span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="yiv9143773017p1" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 5pt 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Light
of the world shine on me, love is the answer.</span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraph"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span style="color: #1d2228; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> There
is a crack, a crack in everything,</span></span><span class="yiv9143773017apple-converted-space"><span style="color: #1d2228; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> </span></span><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span style="color: #1d2228; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">that's how the light gets in.</span></span><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span style="line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p><p class="yiv9143773017p1" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 5pt 0.5in;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-family: arial; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The
entire universe and ourselves are composed of the stardust of creation.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="yiv9143773017p1" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 5pt 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Everything
is dust in the wind.</span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="yiv9143773017p1" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 5pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</p><p class="yiv9143773017p1" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; margin: 0in 0in 5pt 0.5in;"><span class="yiv9143773017s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-family: arial; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">As
sure as Kilimanjaro rises like Olympus above the Serengeti.</span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p></p></div>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-63908850578840704962023-12-23T15:51:00.000-05:002023-12-23T15:51:32.573-05:00LATE BLOOMER<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD1Q5C6ov3cQuGJQSCNyrLgp_PGf0Gm6G31x60qSal5-5WtEPvz-m8jFqFLnNoZ42EhKPI-wbLULU1cuY-HP5a1U_CzEgWD4VJsC03V_sQoKaY_lKDpqCQKVFCNWHllQFJbnm5LDlpk_bfMECCfubXrgyjktmM0fQ9e8f7ml6oAFHwreOWAyPRJrjs/s540/LATE%20BLOOMER.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="510" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD1Q5C6ov3cQuGJQSCNyrLgp_PGf0Gm6G31x60qSal5-5WtEPvz-m8jFqFLnNoZ42EhKPI-wbLULU1cuY-HP5a1U_CzEgWD4VJsC03V_sQoKaY_lKDpqCQKVFCNWHllQFJbnm5LDlpk_bfMECCfubXrgyjktmM0fQ9e8f7ml6oAFHwreOWAyPRJrjs/s320/LATE%20BLOOMER.jpg" width="302" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>Late Blooming Camellia, Jamestown, NC</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Nighttime temperatures have been in the twenties lately and the fall blooming camellias appeared to have fulfilled their destiny a few weeks ago. As I opened the blinds this morning this fresh bloom greeted me with its delicate open petals. </div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Later, as I ventured out into the chilly air, I noticed that it was the Lone Ranger on the entire bush beside a seasonal string of Christmas lights!</div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Fortunately, most of us now understand that we shouldn’t push children to keep <span style="font-family: inherit;"><a style="color: #385898; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit;" tabindex="-1"></a></span>pace with an early learner or level of maturation and we should patiently assist in their development until they finally blossom, no matter how late in the season.</div></div><p><br /> </p>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-72353501898198668472023-12-23T15:45:00.000-05:002023-12-23T15:46:09.026-05:00THE SPIRIT OF GIVING<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf25afZpQ_8Xv61lJKREcoyFaP97nNGTw67ApVq9b05CkypP3KPERhFR3K56KP_khPyCthGjLK4Q1l7Cg9RQuwcw8xHBwyzYt9zjQuqt8pHGLlD5_X2BMtYxiVUOInSDnbgDnPWcuvzn0dHb-eOtExqQBf58TLincNh9wxX2IHzIDaoEqxnudZJDbO/s720/SANTA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="720" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf25afZpQ_8Xv61lJKREcoyFaP97nNGTw67ApVq9b05CkypP3KPERhFR3K56KP_khPyCthGjLK4Q1l7Cg9RQuwcw8xHBwyzYt9zjQuqt8pHGLlD5_X2BMtYxiVUOInSDnbgDnPWcuvzn0dHb-eOtExqQBf58TLincNh9wxX2IHzIDaoEqxnudZJDbO/s320/SANTA.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>The Spirit of Giving</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><div class="xdj266r x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit; text-align: center;">When you generously give the gift of giving,</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit; text-align: center;">And expect nothing in return,</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit; text-align: center;">You’re not doing business,</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit; text-align: center;">But spreading Christmas joy at every turn.</div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; text-align: left; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit; text-align: center;">And <span style="font-family: inherit;"><a style="color: #385898; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit;" tabindex="-1"></a></span>when we leave this world ,</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit; text-align: center;">For a better home some day,</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit; text-align: center;">Some of the things we’ll take with us,</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit; text-align: center;">Are joyful memories of things we gave away.</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit; text-align: center;">—Inspiration from The Christmas Coat</div></div></div><p> </p>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-51483723708133347042023-12-23T15:32:00.000-05:002023-12-23T15:32:28.085-05:00SILENT SPRING<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbIQ_CS9erfzqevNBgJSG137j0W6GbMEuS1_s2oJBkgCHibh1XCJkF-xOSlo6NBvVrfoU_tNY_NgQ8OLBOAi1HrCivvftUZpo066Pb1BF-sLOt9Z18BLrHV-j0NWOpL-EMBHU2Auf604WJm0SvRatf-91ODVGkBgN2n3NsrCL6zZdj7_j0QNtIusv5/s843/NORTHERN%20LIGHTS.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="515" data-original-width="843" height="195" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbIQ_CS9erfzqevNBgJSG137j0W6GbMEuS1_s2oJBkgCHibh1XCJkF-xOSlo6NBvVrfoU_tNY_NgQ8OLBOAi1HrCivvftUZpo066Pb1BF-sLOt9Z18BLrHV-j0NWOpL-EMBHU2Auf604WJm0SvRatf-91ODVGkBgN2n3NsrCL6zZdj7_j0QNtIusv5/s320/NORTHERN%20LIGHTS.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Northern Lights</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; text-align: start; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; text-align: start; white-space-collapse: preserve;">“Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; text-align: start; white-space-collapse: preserve;">that will endure as long as life lasts. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; text-align: start; white-space-collapse: preserve;">There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature, </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; text-align: start; white-space-collapse: preserve;">the assurance that dawn comes after night, </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; text-align: start; white-space-collapse: preserve;">and spring after winter.” </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; text-align: start; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; text-align: start; white-space-collapse: preserve;">—Rachel Carson, Silent Spring.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><br /><p></p>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-2616699618511318952023-12-02T15:23:00.000-05:002023-12-02T15:25:26.464-05:00FOLLOW YOUR BLISS<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbkrhLPB4-p3c7AKQOd18rG8goiNxbZk61mPRWaTwYwtt3SpOhu52D2z-iDadmtodC25QhRriUQiOazRJySN1CJM2dZAd56l9GLnn7RyPfb7yC2okvnPSElPRh0ptoWZqRpFaMfDx1f8qzkpCElb7vgPZPoyydINsjyYc9Lqzxd_ymgAQxhM_hbdpi/s259/TWO%20ROADS.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="194" data-original-width="259" height="194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbkrhLPB4-p3c7AKQOd18rG8goiNxbZk61mPRWaTwYwtt3SpOhu52D2z-iDadmtodC25QhRriUQiOazRJySN1CJM2dZAd56l9GLnn7RyPfb7yC2okvnPSElPRh0ptoWZqRpFaMfDx1f8qzkpCElb7vgPZPoyydINsjyYc9Lqzxd_ymgAQxhM_hbdpi/s1600/TWO%20ROADS.jpg" width="259" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>TWO ROADS DIVERGING</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 13pt; text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 13pt; text-align: left;">I’ve always
remembered the first and last two lines of the famous poem, </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 13pt; text-align: left;"><b>The Road Not Taken
by Robert Frost:</b></span></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<p style="background: white; margin: 0in; text-align: center;"><span class="long-line"><span style="color: #343434; font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 13.0pt;">“Two roads
diverged in a yellow wood,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin: 0in; text-align: center;"><span class="long-line"><span style="color: #343434; font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 13.0pt;">And sorry I
could not travel both…<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin: 0in; text-align: center;"><span class="long-line"><span style="color: #343434; font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 13.0pt;"> </span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin: 0in; text-align: center;"><span class="long-line"><span style="color: #343434; font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 13.0pt;">I took the
one less traveled by,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin: 0in; text-align: center;"><span class="long-line"><span style="color: #343434; font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 13.0pt;">And that has
made all the difference.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin: 0in;"><span class="long-line"><span style="color: #343434; font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 13.0pt;"> </span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin: 0in;"><span class="long-line"><span style="color: #343434; font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 13.0pt;">The poem is
all about the choices we make as we travel the road of life and the choices
that shape us. Garth Brooks has a
country song about unanswered prayers and the paths that were seemingly blocked
on our journey which turned out to be to our benefit. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin: 0in;"><span class="long-line"><span style="color: #343434; font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 13.0pt;"> </span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin: 0in;"><span class="long-line"><span style="color: #343434; font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 13.0pt;">The mention
of <b>a yellow wood </b>implies that many of our significant life decisions will have
a consequential impact on our future, but faith and intuition must be our guide,
as foreseeing the future is akin to peering through a dense forest darkly. Knowing the woods have turned a yellow color
implies that our sojourner has entered into a season of early autumn,
symbolizing <b>a season of maturity in life.</b><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin: 0in;"><span class="long-line"><span style="color: #343434; font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 13.0pt;"> </span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin: 0in;"><span class="long-line"><span style="color: #343434; font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 13.0pt;">I’ve also
been influenced by <b>Joseph Campbell’s introspection in The Power of Myth</b> where
he encourages us to<b> “Follow Your Bliss”</b>.
His well received interview on PBS with Bill Moyers resulted in that
suggestion becoming a catchphrase in our culture. When Moyers asked Campbell if he ever had a
sense of being helped by hidden hands, he had a ready reply; “If you do follow
your bliss, you put yourself on a kind of track that has been there all the
while and the life that you ought to be living is the one you are living. You begin to meet <b>people in your field of
bliss</b> and they open doors to you.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin: 0in;"><span class="long-line"><span style="color: #343434; font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 13.0pt;"> </span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin: 0in;"><span class="long-line"><span style="color: #343434; font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 13.0pt;"><b>Jeremiah
29:11</b> is one of the most quoted Bible verses; “For I know <b>the plans I have for
you</b>, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give
you a hope and a future.” The good news
for those who aren’t interested is that we have also been given <b>free will </b>to do
as we please and the chips will fall as they may. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin: 0in;"><span class="long-line"><span style="color: #343434; font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 13.0pt;"> </span></span></p>
<p style="background: white; margin: 0in;"><span class="long-line"><span style="color: #343434; font-family: "Georgia",serif; font-size: 13.0pt;">The “<b>Reason
for the Season</b>” we will soon be celebrating is part of that plan. Our Creator’s <b>free gift of grace</b> has provided
a plan for us <b>both in this life and also the next! </b><o:p></o:p></span></span></p></div><p><br /> </p>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-6137117622758592852023-11-25T10:50:00.004-05:002023-11-25T10:51:36.975-05:00BLACK CROW HAIKU<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9jVj474TETwRHzZ4MTQeApBMXJ042hyphenhyphenGAwE-8nuQJ5FitjaM7_DvWOJCPZKcSlXlrSLTkb90Dnpasg9sO3hrv3V4c9tVS6Yhww39eKhvHd6uwl7BiWuIm-Te9PdlI7M2sAvJFguENPrq8z75ZTLhWIPa_mL4p8iNzCgvSnDzTr2nI9oL6clzaxLyK/s728/BLACK%20CROW%20I.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="487" data-original-width="728" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9jVj474TETwRHzZ4MTQeApBMXJ042hyphenhyphenGAwE-8nuQJ5FitjaM7_DvWOJCPZKcSlXlrSLTkb90Dnpasg9sO3hrv3V4c9tVS6Yhww39eKhvHd6uwl7BiWuIm-Te9PdlI7M2sAvJFguENPrq8z75ZTLhWIPa_mL4p8iNzCgvSnDzTr2nI9oL6clzaxLyK/s320/BLACK%20CROW%20I.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><b>BLACK CROW SOUNDING THE ALARM</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<p align="center" class="yiv2568776062p1" style="background: white; margin: 0in;"><span class="yiv2568776062s1"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "UICTFontTextStyleBody",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Late November days,</span></span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p align="center" class="yiv2568776062p1" style="background: white; font-stretch: normal; margin: 0in; outline: none !important;"><span style="outline: none !important;"><span class="yiv2568776062s1"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "UICTFontTextStyleBody",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Black crows alert all nature,</span></span></span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p align="center" class="yiv2568776062p1" style="background: white; font-stretch: normal; margin: 0in; outline: none !important;"><span style="outline: none !important;"><span class="yiv2568776062s1"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "UICTFontTextStyleBody",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">A chilling rain falls.</span></span></span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p align="center" class="yiv2568776062p2" style="background: white; font-stretch: normal; margin: 0in; min-height: 23.6px; outline: none !important;"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span></p>
<p align="center" class="yiv2568776062p1" style="background: white; font-stretch: normal; margin: 0in; outline: none !important;"><span style="outline: none !important;"><span class="yiv2568776062s1"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "UICTFontTextStyleBody",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Spindly forest trees,</span></span></span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p align="center" class="yiv2568776062p1" style="background: white; font-stretch: normal; margin: 0in; outline: none !important;"><span style="outline: none !important;"><span class="yiv2568776062s1"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "UICTFontTextStyleBody",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Stripped of colorful vestments,</span></span></span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p align="center" class="yiv2568776062p1" style="background: white; font-stretch: normal; margin: 0in; outline: none !important;"><span style="outline: none !important;"><span class="yiv2568776062s1"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "UICTFontTextStyleBody",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Stand alone and weep.</span></span></span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p align="center" class="yiv2568776062p2" style="background: white; font-stretch: normal; margin: 0in; min-height: 23.6px; outline: none !important;"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span></p>
<p align="center" class="yiv2568776062p1" style="background: white; font-stretch: normal; margin: 0in; outline: none !important;"><span style="outline: none !important;"><span class="yiv2568776062s1"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "UICTFontTextStyleBody",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">A north wind arrives,</span></span></span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p align="center" class="yiv2568776062p1" style="background: white; font-stretch: normal; margin: 0in; outline: none !important;"><span style="outline: none !important;"><span class="yiv2568776062s1"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "UICTFontTextStyleBody",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Transitioning the seasons,</span></span></span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p align="center" class="yiv2568776062p1" style="background: white; font-stretch: normal; margin: 0in; outline: none !important;"><span style="outline: none !important;"><span class="yiv2568776062s1"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "UICTFontTextStyleBody",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">As rain turns to ice.</span></span></span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p> </div><p><br /> </p>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-64960569045144901602023-11-15T16:21:00.001-05:002023-11-15T16:22:21.607-05:00REFLECTING BACK<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOlmYwKkUJdQTlpHJv2f939Xqrbyv4kH4E9DV6uF2_ttxFOGYssMzoJVoqj-8F4Z2MvzLkY2nNugsKaCwRtAcZ37VZoeYNhQbcnbSMtK3YoRL8zXvtp-yCHX79b8ZW8a5z29OP8nyPaRi4xFjlem9oK-uifvaOQIIUT_hOZI0KZmu5zCs3IgDkxb38/s690/REFLECTING%20BACK.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="660" data-original-width="690" height="306" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOlmYwKkUJdQTlpHJv2f939Xqrbyv4kH4E9DV6uF2_ttxFOGYssMzoJVoqj-8F4Z2MvzLkY2nNugsKaCwRtAcZ37VZoeYNhQbcnbSMtK3YoRL8zXvtp-yCHX79b8ZW8a5z29OP8nyPaRi4xFjlem9oK-uifvaOQIIUT_hOZI0KZmu5zCs3IgDkxb38/s320/REFLECTING%20BACK.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP70dIXiQwHRQG6RDrmICDQiDsUUScMpsRbbSo0DGTqDE3aMBsK3sRLyKdsrEUl26DbAQupCeX7Ri8UUSdVr3ti25x0QKjXu0ziO_hRPryX0YH96GhaOPeYgg84uwB5AOVBaHhuKl1YsLp4cB8K5wXAp5V5M1UmOS8oDY4G7MQ8hOlMrJS_eurKNSW/s635/REFLECTING.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="517" data-original-width="635" height="261" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP70dIXiQwHRQG6RDrmICDQiDsUUScMpsRbbSo0DGTqDE3aMBsK3sRLyKdsrEUl26DbAQupCeX7Ri8UUSdVr3ti25x0QKjXu0ziO_hRPryX0YH96GhaOPeYgg84uwB5AOVBaHhuKl1YsLp4cB8K5wXAp5V5M1UmOS8oDY4G7MQ8hOlMrJS_eurKNSW/s320/REFLECTING.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>REFLECTING BACK</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><p class="yiv3390556013p2" style="background: white; margin: 0in;"><span class="yiv3390556013s1"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: #1d2228;">Surviving life to reach senior status has its negative issues
with a body that has been in decline ever since it stopped growing years ago.
But I’ve finally realized that I’m not a body with a soul, rather I’m a
soul which happens to temporarily occupy a body. In the end, consciousness rejoins
consciousness in a much more vast and very different environment. And once the pinnacle has been conquered it’s
an interesting exercise to pause life and reflect on the milestones where
significant events changed the trajectory of a life well lived.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These milestones are much more relevant than
the birthdays we acknowledge which are really just an accounting of the number
of times we beings on this planet have circled the sun.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thanks to modern medicine and the miracle of
mortal bodies that can heal themselves, God is revealed in our existence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And we’re not left with imperfect scars, just
character lines.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="yiv3390556013p2" style="background: white; margin: 0in;"><span class="yiv3390556013s1"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="yiv3390556013p2" style="background: white; margin: 0in;"><span class="yiv3390556013s1"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;">As I started writing and reflecting back on my life, it became
apparent that the basic ten major milestones which I documented in my life took
too much space and time for a blog post, so I’ll just recommend it to others
reading this blog and see how many you can detail.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p>
<p class="yiv3390556013p2" style="background: white; margin: 0in;"><span class="yiv3390556013s1"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="yiv3390556013p2" style="background: white; margin: 0in;"><span class="yiv3390556013s1"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The fact that I was born into a close family whose members had immigrated
to America in recent history is beyond huge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The love and closeness of those wonderful people who influenced my youth
are immeasurable.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p>
<p class="yiv3390556013p2" style="background: white; margin: 0in;"><span class="yiv3390556013s1"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;">My life after work life has now been partially devoted to
volunteer work, exploiting the management tools which were attained for such a
time as this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The game of golf has led
me to innumerable relationships and saved thousands of dollars on counseling
and medical appointments.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The family
life, work experiences, travel all over this country and abroad, and living in
multiple locations has enabled me to meet and know hundreds of people in my
lifetime.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can’t stay in touch with all
of them and I know they have their own immediate lives to attend to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the memories of many whose names may have
slipped away still remains as I reflect back on many adventurous occasions and
many battle scars.</span> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></p><br /></div><p></p>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-33703212110363506512023-10-21T15:54:00.000-04:002023-10-21T15:56:40.598-04:00RESPONSIBLE DECONGESTING<p> </p><p><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjg9-sR0gUUD59mS6kzEFi2KWZLclLvfPB6IUZ-5JLZIJXU5ogGwILvJlXXsFSDmDhG8QvrrRFVOX7KeXbOmg3j2n5wvw_hjwqQ5NLakvFaYYnWK7U5P59hIr5lMzklCSvt7KUSKsT9t9wYwcuBd2SHENRefJBjsaFN8fhEz7NXG_g357BzPrqdYWe4" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="758" data-original-width="1080" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjg9-sR0gUUD59mS6kzEFi2KWZLclLvfPB6IUZ-5JLZIJXU5ogGwILvJlXXsFSDmDhG8QvrrRFVOX7KeXbOmg3j2n5wvw_hjwqQ5NLakvFaYYnWK7U5P59hIr5lMzklCSvt7KUSKsT9t9wYwcuBd2SHENRefJBjsaFN8fhEz7NXG_g357BzPrqdYWe4" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>ZYRTEC, Jamestown, NC</b></div><br /><span style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: preserve;">It’s been said that with age comes wisdom, but sometimes age comes alone. And with autumn comes beautiful leaves sailing on the winds, but allergies come along for the ride. </span><p></p><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: preserve;">I was seeking an assist from a strong antihistamine in Public’s Pharmacy area without finding it, so I asked for help. I was reminded that it is kept behind the counter (to discourage meth labs) and I needed to produce my Drivers License to be registered in a database and pay on the spot to acquire <span style="font-family: inherit;"><a style="color: #385898; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit;" tabindex="-1"></a></span>some relief. </div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: preserve;">I produced my cards, raised my right hand and swore to “decongest responsibly”! The pharmacists on duty were listening and they all chuckled as the cashier handed me my bagged contraband with great fanfare and the admonition to “please decongest responsibly”. <span class="x3nfvp2 x1j61x8r x1fcty0u xdj266r xhhsvwb xat24cr xgzva0m xxymvpz xlup9mm x1kky2od" style="display: inline-flex; font-family: inherit; height: 16px; margin: 0px 1px; vertical-align: middle; width: 16px;"><img alt="😉" class="xz74otr" height="16" referrerpolicy="origin-when-cross-origin" src="https://static.xx.fbcdn.net/images/emoji.php/v9/t57/1/16/1f609.png" style="border: 0px; object-fit: fill;" width="16" /></span></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span class="x3nfvp2 x1j61x8r x1fcty0u xdj266r xhhsvwb xat24cr xgzva0m xxymvpz xlup9mm x1kky2od" style="display: inline-flex; font-family: inherit; height: 16px; margin: 0px 1px; vertical-align: middle; width: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: preserve;">—Just another day in the life of a retired senior citizen.</div>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-1849354394543074132023-10-18T16:13:00.032-04:002023-10-20T20:57:30.504-04:00AWARENESS<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPZ1sAeu_Joy0acRp0U565uLHQ2hmzYk_5mAC8conb71EXjiSuEf7f9gqa614lup-TD4Y8jEI3-Nv5H-GauPq4Z1v1q4G3a1YYW_bWcD9-XZGStEqWImjpWWSnjWvOZ2wZxkxeCmtAbogL2qYNIyb75cIwW7LXBXIOeTN5_TQkGRT5mHi9q-eguFM1/s789/AWARENESS.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="789" data-original-width="526" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPZ1sAeu_Joy0acRp0U565uLHQ2hmzYk_5mAC8conb71EXjiSuEf7f9gqa614lup-TD4Y8jEI3-Nv5H-GauPq4Z1v1q4G3a1YYW_bWcD9-XZGStEqWImjpWWSnjWvOZ2wZxkxeCmtAbogL2qYNIyb75cIwW7LXBXIOeTN5_TQkGRT5mHi9q-eguFM1/s320/AWARENESS.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>Paradox, Blue Ridge Parkway</b></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="background: repeat white; color: #050505; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 107%;">“All through
Autumn we hear a double voice: one says everything is ripe; the other says
everything is dying. The paradox is exquisite. We feel what the Japanese call ‘aware’
— an almost untranslatable word meaning something like ‘beauty tinged with
sadness’” —Gretel Ehrlich, The Solace of Open Spaces</span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: repeat white; color: #050505; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I liked the
quote above and saved it for a possible blog post. And then I happened upon a photo that was just
taken on the Blue Ridge Parkway of the first snow of the season. It visually captures both the beauty and
sadness of the colorful, vibrant leaves below and the quickening demise of the
trees above that are covered in frozen snow. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: repeat white; color: #050505; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Much has been
written about all the sensory feelings which we humans associate with the
autumn season as summer days seamlessly morph into cooler nights and all nature
begins the process of retreating from the hectic days of growth and reaching to
the heavens. And perhaps the most
paradoxical example we all observe is the withdrawing of green chlorophyl from
the surrounding forests and urban trees.
Once the true colors of their leaves that have adorned them since springtime
appear, people gaze in wonder at the splendid colors that begin their swan song
reveal.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: repeat white; color: #050505; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Autumn beckons a
bittersweet melancholy as we breath in the beauty of this colorful display, but
for those who have witnessed this rodeo before, we know the sad ending of loss
and decay. Once the harsh north winds
begin to sail through the countryside, the leaves are torn lose from their
moorings and join in a joyful dance that has a much too short run before they begin
their cycle of returning to the stardust of all creation.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: repeat white; color: #050505; font-family: arial; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 107%;">
</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: repeat white; color: #050505; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">We become all
too aware of the sweetness of life in autumn and the shortness of time for all
living organisms. But we can take heart
in observing that every living organism including ourselves gets a chance at
being part of the cycle, understanding that it has both a beginning and ending
before it repeats with new players. </span><span face="Segoe UI Historic, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR0ZYesYjJLou73ywkcPcvyd5dT7M70z6Dbxa4lk9pH4CKM5zzj4mQNSLV77RkzWBInbJQXugTo-YSh0gU3GXBgAff9atIRkRpJEqZybDe4iOYGQ77aFgWrMfTMHM59sEvIHhOfFg-0gUOROjhKtEuXTyi6wrW9nIeYsrr2YttE8yemG_8AfJQm_3q/s612/ASPEN%20FALLEN%20LEAVES.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="309" data-original-width="612" height="162" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR0ZYesYjJLou73ywkcPcvyd5dT7M70z6Dbxa4lk9pH4CKM5zzj4mQNSLV77RkzWBInbJQXugTo-YSh0gU3GXBgAff9atIRkRpJEqZybDe4iOYGQ77aFgWrMfTMHM59sEvIHhOfFg-0gUOROjhKtEuXTyi6wrW9nIeYsrr2YttE8yemG_8AfJQm_3q/s320/ASPEN%20FALLEN%20LEAVES.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">“An intense beauty is trembling on the
edge of destruction” as golden Aspen leaves quake in the cold north wind, acquiescing to the inevitable.</span><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><span face=""Segoe UI Historic",sans-serif" style="background: repeat white; color: #050505; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Segoe UI Historic",sans-serif" style="background: repeat white; color: #050505; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 107%;">THE PINOCCHIO PARADOX; “My nose grows longer now.”</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><p><br /> </p>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-22961280880007429642023-10-15T20:45:00.086-04:002023-10-18T14:48:12.905-04:00BIRTHDAYS<p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOSshKB_cqpKQ79o8BD84C22qO6yJqah6Qbzhp7y15MrV3aWOgUF-6zF9Nu4Kdvwm6knAPOmomwE-zBz8bWBbAPdHFs5YVhqQMopH61INXwFh7DXA6cZLx__3oHtpLd09m0MOJvJClAQ_yFNOSSqdEOPfGhdAc7XtPNT34cdtykJewlnPjXai5N30Q/s640/BIRTHDAYS.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="640" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOSshKB_cqpKQ79o8BD84C22qO6yJqah6Qbzhp7y15MrV3aWOgUF-6zF9Nu4Kdvwm6knAPOmomwE-zBz8bWBbAPdHFs5YVhqQMopH61INXwFh7DXA6cZLx__3oHtpLd09m0MOJvJClAQ_yFNOSSqdEOPfGhdAc7XtPNT34cdtykJewlnPjXai5N30Q/s320/BIRTHDAYS.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>BIRTHDAYS, Jamestown, NC</b></div><p><b>On the occasion of my October 15th birthday.<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.24px; text-size-adjust: auto;">🎉</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 18.2px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.24px;">“Human beings are not born once and for all on the day their mothers give birth to them, but that life obliges them over and over again to give birth to themselves.”</span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 18.2px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.24px;">—Gabriel Garcia Marquez </span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 18.2px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.24px;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 18.2px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.24px;">The only two birthdays I’ve really acknowledged were my 16th for a driver’s license and my 47th which was my dad’s age when cancer took his life. <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>I considered that year the beginning of my gifted second life and I don’t count the pandemic years since I didn’t use them, so I’m really only 31!</span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 18.2px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.24px;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 18.2px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.24px;">The birthdays we acknowledge are really just an accounting of the number of times we beings on this planet have circled the sun! I've observed folks that are old at 60 and others that are quite lucid and active at 90. Critical life stages would seem to be better key indicators! Examples might include born, walking upright, conversational, puberty, education, independent living, working full time, partnering, raising children, retired, physically/mentally impaired and assisted living.</span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 18.2px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.24px;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 18.2px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.24px;">Thanks to modern medicine and the miracle of mortal bodies that can heal themselves, God is revealed in our existence. <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>And we’re not left with imperfect scars, just character lines that validate a life fully lived. 😎</span></p>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-62662359755202895582023-10-11T15:06:00.003-04:002023-10-11T15:09:43.465-04:00MORNING SHADOWS HAIKU<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3dgSNv0YSQ4vv2kftKQx8yXbzTn6X4_d6_eNRn336xxa3F8sGBOQUucDumLKVoav02-p0I69FfGJsmajbMY9-aozT7aGZ0g-HhRA1GrT3lBHFFiCiExErgf2wlHiLHgRFX3865kolG3975naVpjHu43c33crhyphenhyphenUW3xCVSjQ0_7-ktvSHrXQRzjRfD/s2045/MORNING%20SHADOWS%20X.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1312" data-original-width="2045" height="205" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3dgSNv0YSQ4vv2kftKQx8yXbzTn6X4_d6_eNRn336xxa3F8sGBOQUucDumLKVoav02-p0I69FfGJsmajbMY9-aozT7aGZ0g-HhRA1GrT3lBHFFiCiExErgf2wlHiLHgRFX3865kolG3975naVpjHu43c33crhyphenhyphenUW3xCVSjQ0_7-ktvSHrXQRzjRfD/s320/MORNING%20SHADOWS%20X.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>MORNING SHADOWS, Jamestown, NC</b></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #333333; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="font-size: large;">Morning sunlight casts,<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #333333; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="font-size: large;">Dark shadows through arched window,<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #333333; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="font-size: large;">As all the world mourns,<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #333333; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="font-size: large;">Yet another senseless war.</span><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #333333; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></b></p></div><p><br /> </p>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-83338686265430184892023-10-05T20:31:00.001-04:002023-10-05T20:31:49.828-04:00WHITE AUTUMN HORSES<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyZIcgzbxUllSxpXHvdsCKS7fPs_DPap3St3lG04RQ0KL2qF-qgr-oTBSp-ZqfGWkmngyQoVjyosFiRKoXzpWfDC0F51efPCpISBF3xtX9JsYipSmgqL4MlGSQnjW04OdXAXEY0EnAvhtt-tYEKk1De_LhxSlxwQUmNUcokXyC0CvCzW48gYDR6E9S/s2485/IMG_7129.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1414" data-original-width="2485" height="182" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyZIcgzbxUllSxpXHvdsCKS7fPs_DPap3St3lG04RQ0KL2qF-qgr-oTBSp-ZqfGWkmngyQoVjyosFiRKoXzpWfDC0F51efPCpISBF3xtX9JsYipSmgqL4MlGSQnjW04OdXAXEY0EnAvhtt-tYEKk1De_LhxSlxwQUmNUcokXyC0CvCzW48gYDR6E9S/s320/IMG_7129.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>WHITE AUTUMN HORSES</b></div><p></p><p>“<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.24px;">And then the sun took a step back and the leaves lulled themselves to sleep, and autumn awakened." —Raquel</span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 18.2px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.24px;">‘Tis the season of warm waters and overnight, still, cool air that spawns ethereal, white, spirit horses rising on the lake’s surface at sunrise.</span></p>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-88565330361767199992023-10-05T18:16:00.004-04:002023-10-05T18:16:28.678-04:00WE HAVE TWO LIVES<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEizJne7YCbbUJZlYrpGe0E5h_p25x2XFzAj_N6mGXMo7PJ5T7oFqIqbRUfnbXthWUXgudoLiIXyUFFm2Gv5MP_tUQwd_gI33XeiXZ-V4q2jkLeHVIsFemVCLi8hqLawNTcRtUAalro8gGBPsTwPpybkfGM9Noq96dv0sEqBVHUrtOmpwRttp5N8VOqz" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEizJne7YCbbUJZlYrpGe0E5h_p25x2XFzAj_N6mGXMo7PJ5T7oFqIqbRUfnbXthWUXgudoLiIXyUFFm2Gv5MP_tUQwd_gI33XeiXZ-V4q2jkLeHVIsFemVCLi8hqLawNTcRtUAalro8gGBPsTwPpybkfGM9Noq96dv0sEqBVHUrtOmpwRttp5N8VOqz" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>ALONE IN A CROWD</b></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">It’s
been said that we have two births in life:</span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">the first is when we are born and the second is when we discover
why.</span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Friedrich Nietzsche observed that “He
who has a why to live can bear almost any how.”</span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Hopefully, we discover this as
soon as possible because the great Chinese Philosopher Confucius wrote clear
back in 550 BC that “We have two lives:</span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">the second begins when we realize we only have one.” Joseph Campbell has
written that “The problem in middle life, when the body has reached its climax
of power and begins to decline, is to identify yourself, not with the body,
which is falling away, but with the consciousness of which it is a vehicle.”</span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">I’ve always likened mortal death as a final
stage rocket being jettisoned as the capsule soars off into space and our consciousness
rejoins the ultimate sea of consciousness.</span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">It’s always important to focus on the understanding that we’re not a
body with a soul, but rather a soul with a body! </span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">Growing
older needn’t be a phase of surrender or depression, but one of maintaining a
positive attitude. It’s a time of
growing wiser. A time to reflect on all
of life’s accumulated lessons and learning to emulate all the positive people
who have crossed your path that you admired and doing the opposite of the
actions of people you didn’t respect.
You become more selective in all things and realize that it’s not only
permissible but necessary to say no to some of the requests for your time. It’s a time when life slows and you can stop
living stories and start writing them. We
have to wear many hats when we’re immersed in life and competing with others
for a chance at the golden ring. It’s
been said that your true character, however, is revealed when you’re alone. Aging and time in solitude gives us a chance
to live who we really are as a person.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">When
life slows and we realize we have probably lived more days than we have left to
live, we begin to relish our time and savor the days more intensely. We become selective of our contacts and
migrate to those who have been strengthened in the crucible of life and know
how to touch hearts. We soldier on to be
at peace with those around us and our own consciousness, understanding that
forgiveness is available to all who ask and seek to live a better life.</span></p><p>
</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><b> “We have two lives: the second begins when we realize we only
have one.”</b><o:p></o:p></span></p>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-52205632806953544702023-10-05T18:09:00.001-04:002023-10-05T18:09:08.114-04:00OBSERVING<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj0R7-RD_Kimil1iWcKHHga21b1Ep-SWQ7kVe5jxScMZDUCMn9kODn1V7h_XTwHnknEfdW7cnFzu1jFN3MALZ0igJ7fL0s-rRmQsP0IP4G9ifnA9334ZDbGAYC1DqYzanfshbhihCk6ZrZf-emrvaKbmqmgpVPbLAUbWlqBqDF1xulxtksV-wyFvDby" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="821" data-original-width="1080" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj0R7-RD_Kimil1iWcKHHga21b1Ep-SWQ7kVe5jxScMZDUCMn9kODn1V7h_XTwHnknEfdW7cnFzu1jFN3MALZ0igJ7fL0s-rRmQsP0IP4G9ifnA9334ZDbGAYC1DqYzanfshbhihCk6ZrZf-emrvaKbmqmgpVPbLAUbWlqBqDF1xulxtksV-wyFvDby" width="316" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>OBSERVING</b></div><p></p><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The ideas behind Observer are based on real science, starting with the famous two-slit experiments, in which the presence of an observer affects the path taken by a sub-atomic particle, and moves step-by-step into cutting-edge science about quantum entanglement, on-going experiments applying quantum-level physics to the macro-world, the multiverse, and the nature of time and consciousness itself.</div><p></p><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The book recounts astounding scientific discoveries that all lead inexorably to <span style="font-family: inherit;"><a style="color: #385898; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit;" tabindex="-1"></a></span>the bizarre but reality-shaking conclusion that the basic structure of the cosmos—things like space and time and the way matter holds together—requires observers.</div>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-90681344006806152932023-09-18T12:37:00.031-04:002023-09-18T18:56:54.186-04:00THE FLEETING PASSAGE OF TIME AND LIFE<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguZ_ZSj7mMoUrZ7TZZtiBrtScB279m45gRUUC7PUay94QIeNmoq-y6-8OQkBQ15sGqMnDrsHqNPW2wEKKiMUE48-YveZHJxAN4gFYZFwsjc79KFUU2cM0g8pTE-7yizz6GU77OoO7X9cij-XlHs5CSs5XDIj-hCF5l_9_rShX4aQHhA_9gXyKzPp17/s640/BUFFALO%20BREATH.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="571" data-original-width="640" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguZ_ZSj7mMoUrZ7TZZtiBrtScB279m45gRUUC7PUay94QIeNmoq-y6-8OQkBQ15sGqMnDrsHqNPW2wEKKiMUE48-YveZHJxAN4gFYZFwsjc79KFUU2cM0g8pTE-7yizz6GU77OoO7X9cij-XlHs5CSs5XDIj-hCF5l_9_rShX4aQHhA_9gXyKzPp17/s320/BUFFALO%20BREATH.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>WINTER BUFFALO BREATH</b></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Kenny Chesney has a great country song titled “Don’t Blink” about
the fleeting passage of time. Of course,
it does seem to fly by faster when we’re enjoying ourselves instead of going to
the dentist where I’m headed shortly. If
you Google “fleeting time” you will find a plethora of quotes on the subject. And those observations cast a wide net over
time and humanity. You have to believe
that every human being that ever drew a breath on this planet has easily
experienced fleeting time, especially since modern man invented the clock. But even earlier in time man watched the years,
seasons and days slip by without ceasing. </p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Only our creator has been recognized as being timeless,
while we mortal beings with frontal lobes understand that our beginnings have
endings that arrive all too soon. Our
pets wake up each morning living constantly in the present moment without the
concern for endings. We could all take that
lesson from them, understanding that life does have a stop date, but with the promise of another spiritual life.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">I ran across a saying attributed to a native American, Chief
Crowfoot, to illustrate the fleeting aspect of life:<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">“What is life?<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">It is the flash of a firefly in the night.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">It is the breath of a buffalo in the wintertime.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">It is the little shadow that runs across the grass,<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">And loses itself in the sunset.”<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span face=""Lato",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">We need to make peace with the passing
of time and embrace each waking moment we have without knowing exactly how much
sand is left in the hourglass. Using our
time wisely and intentionally also includes wasting some of it to recharge and
refresh. If we can learn from the past
and plan for the future, our present moments can be filled with gratitude, fearless hope, healthy
relationships and new possibilities. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p>
</p>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-67388749928769454872023-09-16T14:35:00.014-04:002023-10-06T11:05:23.258-04:00AUTUMN EQUINOX<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgq6D_nZwN5ISMbeD4kA9otYny7pQcmbBwDDiHI58vm_9L_TU8YzfnRl9AARp9fXQIwGxoeiR8kV9K8H3xd4-hFf98vBXjJl3D8QiNDecIdNpr7N_o_ltWAIEzDxTJqHUOXb4tMd4K2QOnlTB7yCCxscohhj26BmIGHK0rbG-F-t1ggRIWrJ8hEx_oJ" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1080" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgq6D_nZwN5ISMbeD4kA9otYny7pQcmbBwDDiHI58vm_9L_TU8YzfnRl9AARp9fXQIwGxoeiR8kV9K8H3xd4-hFf98vBXjJl3D8QiNDecIdNpr7N_o_ltWAIEzDxTJqHUOXb4tMd4K2QOnlTB7yCCxscohhj26BmIGHK0rbG-F-t1ggRIWrJ8hEx_oJ" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>EVENING SUNSET, KIAWAH, SC</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">"Life is the little shadow that runs across the grass and loses itself in the sunset."</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">--Chief Crowfoot</div><p></p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Next Saturday marks the Autumn Equinox for this year and
the first day of fall. That implies that
both daytime and nighttime will be equal as the nights will become longer than
our days. The hot and humid days of
summer are waning, abdicating to northerly breezes that are cooler and dryer, a
prophetic breath of autumn. It’s a time
when the sun seamlessly retreats earlier over the horizon and autumn leaves
awaken to their true colors as green chlorophyl also retreats back into mother
earth’s womb. The colorful leaves wave
goodbye to summer on their journey back into the stardust of all matter.<o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">The annual seasons move from
spring to summer to fall to winter as we complete one more trip around the sun
and add one more candle to our birthday cake. The temperatures can rapidly go
from 90 to 55 faster than spotting a speed trap! We’re born dependent, experience childhood,
grow to independent adulthood, then ease into senior citizenship and begin to
circle back. Generation follows generation, one season follows another, and the
years fly swiftly by, filled with happiness and tears. Only time will tell if
it was time well spent.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Perhaps at this particular
time of the year, all creation serves as a reminder that this life not only has
beginnings but also endings for every living organism and even every material
object. It reminds us to strive to live wisely and with a positive
intention so that our lives matter and we won’t squander a priceless
opportunity. The imminent fallow time of winter on the horizon reminds us
to live a life that will enable us to look back on the winter of our life and
not be sad because it’s over, but to smile because it happened.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">The lowering rays of the sun on the evening horizon have
begun their disappearing act earlier each evening. Relentless ocean waves continue their assault
on the beaches and lengthening rays render staring westward a blinding
ordeal. Ocean breezes calm down as the
night cools to sweater weather. Warm
deserts and hot coffee on the ocean pier are a welcome treat after a seafood
dinner and a career afternoon out in nature on the golf course.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Dark shadows silently
descend on the motionless land as gentle rain drops once again quench the
thankful earth.</span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #333333; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> </span></span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Another circle of life has marked the earth’s
passage around the sun.</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #333333; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> <span style="background: white;">And in the midst of the peaceful calm, God whispers
through the stillness, “Well done, rest and be at peace; the cycle of life
circles on.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></p></div></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><p><br /></p>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-48896166737610326392023-08-16T19:33:00.021-04:002023-08-17T09:57:33.954-04:00WITNESSING A DERECHO<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV16BOjKUdW97rT5xGxcPbTqbQSg2aKWKwCQEuwjUuQdVHnNsaKX7x-cLsCALTxFJSNz7slxlIk-jrE_CHU-WbxaxzkpRLdeMvuqp1y2pKfN_H2WJMgQ1ux1pz9YTsvjdWfjzCx_j4sfSHRtObz7qGfAk2RFLUyf5uIP54Ed0JeLKgbxUksCsFvpgQ/s534/DERECHO%20X.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="328" data-original-width="534" height="197" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV16BOjKUdW97rT5xGxcPbTqbQSg2aKWKwCQEuwjUuQdVHnNsaKX7x-cLsCALTxFJSNz7slxlIk-jrE_CHU-WbxaxzkpRLdeMvuqp1y2pKfN_H2WJMgQ1ux1pz9YTsvjdWfjzCx_j4sfSHRtObz7qGfAk2RFLUyf5uIP54Ed0JeLKgbxUksCsFvpgQ/s320/DERECHO%20X.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>DERECHO, SIOUX FALLS, SD</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Red sky in the morning, sailor take warning,<o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; text-align: left;">Green sky in the afternoon, pilgrim take cover soon!</span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I recently
ran across a photo from South Dakota that triggered a latent memory from my
childhood in Kansas. The photo captured
a rare sight that is only seen during a violent weather event which
meteorologists call a derecho which means “straight ahead” in Spanish. That’s the first and last time that I
witnessed a green sky in the west and just as rare an event when the storm
reached our neighborhood.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">A derecho is
a widespread and long-lived, fast moving, straight line, storm that can extend
for more than 250 miles and include very strong, severe, damaging winds and
wind gusts. The green, apocalyptic-looking
sky implies that the deep blue clouds are saturated with water and ice particles
which scatter the short wavelength blue light rays. When the longer wavelength red sunset beams
of light illuminate the blue objects in the sky, it morphs to green. It’s an indication that the ice particles
have been tumbled up and back down in the turbulent clouds until the hail stones
weigh enough to strike the earth’s surface.
This intense weather event can even spawn destructive tornadoes and downward
microbursts.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Back in Kansas,
I recall standing on the sidewalk outside our home when the approaching storm
caught my attention. I could see distant
lightning flashes and the thunderous responses getting closer together as the
storm gathered nearer. And as it
ominously came closer to me over the neighboring homes and elm trees, I saw the
blue sky turn into that apocalyptic green as if the world was coming to an
end! I ran inside the house and called my
mother to come outside and see this green mass descending upon us.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">We stood
together on the front porch for some sense of security and then witnessed a
second anomaly that I’ve never seen since.
The skies opened with a torrential rain and large hail pummeling the
land across the street, but our side of the street was spared. Not one drop of rain or hail crossed that
road and the storm passed almost as quickly as it arrived. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Watching the
skies actually turn from a bright blue to an ominous dark green probably couldn’t
compare to the ancient Egyptians watching the Nile River turn from a deep blue
to a blood red or the worst thunderstorm ever of hail and fire during the ten
plagues.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But it left an indelible memory with an
impressionable young Kansas boy that day. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span><p></p>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-50388719124326961662023-08-14T15:12:00.002-04:002023-08-14T15:13:41.044-04:00BE A GOLDFISH<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmVFfcYEZtEh-oBuotywcpDaRehf62KFAW6Dxpj2UuLRU0DD7g5qxEvLRFxI-4bPfv6o7lQufEqc4C7Qh9mlwjRq3-TFN-p0nqwtuFKe599fgRjRGwuyNFt2cA1r7e7gX8_XhVofPrAn3tabcbqe3j2mog-3oxw_gN5JOFGaqoqLbEExCQzUiF2TXI/s1080/GOLDFISH.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="816" data-original-width="1080" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmVFfcYEZtEh-oBuotywcpDaRehf62KFAW6Dxpj2UuLRU0DD7g5qxEvLRFxI-4bPfv6o7lQufEqc4C7Qh9mlwjRq3-TFN-p0nqwtuFKe599fgRjRGwuyNFt2cA1r7e7gX8_XhVofPrAn3tabcbqe3j2mog-3oxw_gN5JOFGaqoqLbEExCQzUiF2TXI/s320/GOLDFISH.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>BE A GOLDFISH</b></div><br /> <span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.24px;">After a bad play, Ted Lasso reminded his players that the happiest creatures in the world are goldfish, because they can only remember things for 10 seconds. </span><span class="yiv6026072728Apple-converted-space" style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.24px; outline: none !important;"> </span><p></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.24px;">Tiger Woods dad, Earl, always told him to take 10 steps before doing anything else after a bad shot. </span><span class="yiv6026072728Apple-converted-space" style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.24px; outline: none !important;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.24px;">When asked to comment about a previous bad shot, </span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.24px;">Jack Nicklaus always responded that he didn’t remember it. </span><span class="yiv6026072728Apple-converted-space" style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.24px; outline: none !important;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.24px;">We never lose if we don’t lose the lesson and soldier on. </span><span class="yiv6026072728Apple-converted-space" style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.24px; outline: none !important;"> </span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 18.24px;">Be a goldfish!</span></p>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-87926145387013265832023-08-09T11:48:00.002-04:002023-08-10T21:17:27.822-04:00THE OBSERVER EFFECT<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg95vvhPQItDNFHB0YEwKwvEME8wl5w8RQjr5TVwWIPLiS9SgizcTkq10xweGd4L7PrMLI78SU3NEeDVhUgf1xDie1oM0mAgk6ISiOTjWcXjIO_WzGjt9POboiXdFVVoWfsomRHwsvWIYt0o7ceVw7e1BwSh1MqHt4EO3lw7HHAuC9N_-huTDq7m7dn/s350/THE%20THINKER.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="250" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg95vvhPQItDNFHB0YEwKwvEME8wl5w8RQjr5TVwWIPLiS9SgizcTkq10xweGd4L7PrMLI78SU3NEeDVhUgf1xDie1oM0mAgk6ISiOTjWcXjIO_WzGjt9POboiXdFVVoWfsomRHwsvWIYt0o7ceVw7e1BwSh1MqHt4EO3lw7HHAuC9N_-huTDq7m7dn/s320/THE%20THINKER.jpg" width="229" /></a></div>
<p class="MsoNormal">I recently read a review of a new best-selling fictional
book simply titled OBSERVER.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It caught
my attention because I remembered reading about a scientific experiment result in
1998 that was completely unexpected when the researchers at the Weizmann
Institute of Science encountered the Observer Effect.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were conducting a double split fork
experiment with electrons at the subatomic level beamed at the fork.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In short, the particles behaved like waves,
but when a conscious, quantum observer was present, they behaved like
particles.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The researchers were forced
to conclude that the mere act of observation affected the outcome which has
raised all sorts of speculation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Robert
Lanza’s new novel explores the notion that time, space and even reality all
ultimately depend upon us, the observers.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Consciousness can be defined as being mindful or aware of
oneself as a thinking, feeling being.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
realize with awe the miracle of a body that is informed by this extraordinary
thing we call life that we take for granted almost every day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fateful day we realize this eternal truth
is the beginning of a lifelong spiritual journey.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">God is a conscious spiritual being and we are conscious mortal beings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were created in his
image, so we can expect parallels in our existence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His being occupies the universe like our
consciousness occupies our body.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By
liberating the spaces in our lives and minds that are filled with clutter and
chatter, we allow the presence of God to more easily occupy that space! <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">If two particles are entangled and if you observe one of
them, then the other is affected even if they’re far apart.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That communication is instantaneous,
suggesting there is no space between them and no time influencing their
behavior.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Aldous Huxley in his book, The
Doors of Perception” theorizes that our brain possibly acts as a mental filter
to help us survive on this planet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’re
only capable of perceiving the material world around us versus the infinite sea
of consciousness<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">We only consciously know the information that our five
senses perceive.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, consciousness
does not simply observe the universe, we create it collectively.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even though a table is mostly composed of
empty space at the subatomic level, we collectively consider it as a solid at
the macro-level.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The particles of atoms
consist of a nucleus surrounded by electrons that revolve in extremely vast
regions of empty space.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Man has now
determined that there are no solid objects at the subatomic level.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A subatomic particle is a set of
relationships that reach out and interconnect, not with objects, but with other
interconnections.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Light travels in waves
and as particles (photons) at the speed of light.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The photons collide with the air, in a cosmic
dance of continuous creation and destruction, a ceaseless flow of energy going
through a multiplicity of patterns.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
waves are abstract patterns of probabilities or relationships.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At the subatomic level there is a continual
exchange of matter and energy between us and everything around us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We're all part of one inseparable web of
relationships.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>J. P. Moreland
reasons that, “Consciousness cannot be reduced merely to the physical
brain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our consciousness came from a
greater consciousness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You see, the
Christian worldview begins with thought and feeling and desire and choice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is, God is conscious.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God has thoughts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He has beliefs, he has desires, he has
awareness, he’s alive, he acts with a purpose.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We start there and because we start with the mind of God, we don’t have
a problem explaining the origin of our mind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>…he’s invisible because that’s the way conscious beings are.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have no inclination to doubt that this very
room is teeming with the very presence of God.”<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Jill Bolte Taylor writing in My Stroke of Insight perceived
life through the restricted lens of only her right brain after a stroke
incapacitated her left hemisphere.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She
observed that her self-concept was no longer a solid with boundaries, but a fluid.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Operating without the constant "brain
chatter" from her left hemisphere left her feeling one with the
universe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mystics and serious
practitioners can also reach that ultimate present moment state of
nirvana.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Taylor writes, “The innate differences we each
experience...to stimulation contributes greatly to how we perceive the
world…When I lost my left hemisphere and its language centers, I also lost the
clock that would break my moments into consecutive brief instances.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Instead of having my moments prematurely
stunted, they became open-ended, and I felt no rush to do anything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">My entire self-concept shifted as I no longer perceived
myself as a single, a solid, an entity with boundaries that separated me from
the entities around me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I understood that
at the most elementary level, I am a fluid.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Of course, I am a fluid!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Everything around us, about us, among us, within us, and between us is
made up of atoms and molecules vibrating in space.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">My left hemisphere had been trained to perceive myself as a
solid, separate from others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now,
released from that restrictive circuitry, my right hemisphere relished in its
attachment to the eternal flow.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was no
longer isolated and alone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My soul was
as big as the universe and frolicked with glee in a boundless sea… Our right
brain perceives the big picture and recognizes that everything around us, about
us, among us, and within us is made up of energy particles that are woven
together into a universal tapestry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Since everything is connected, there is an intimate relationship between
the atomic space around and within me, and the atomic space around and within
you—regardless of where we are. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">One of the many conclusions in the book refers back to the
famous two-slit experiment which asks the question, “How can a particle ‘out
there’ change its behavior depending on whether you watch it or not?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The answer is simple—reality is a process
that involves our consciousness.”<o:p></o:p></p>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5230777081728429277.post-31145728023396471492023-07-24T15:49:00.006-04:002023-08-12T08:28:42.905-04:00FINDING EACH OTHER HAIKU<p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2TM483nxHUm5EVfS62qaGrNn0qWk4LU4IOM2fzBJlyPLuE8lWewo8Y0i_lze-wOZObxyH2QgU22Z-GC6l8AQvQ6qxfZaRJQLXT8P8DGA9eh4Iul7mEbABfB9Zm0UhjkkAnmfw6l9Z5dwb74c5pVUGGiL-kgJWr-4M8eUOvgWxS-3Zj5dkLicTLf4j/s449/SOULMATES.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="331" data-original-width="449" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2TM483nxHUm5EVfS62qaGrNn0qWk4LU4IOM2fzBJlyPLuE8lWewo8Y0i_lze-wOZObxyH2QgU22Z-GC6l8AQvQ6qxfZaRJQLXT8P8DGA9eh4Iul7mEbABfB9Zm0UhjkkAnmfw6l9Z5dwb74c5pVUGGiL-kgJWr-4M8eUOvgWxS-3Zj5dkLicTLf4j/s320/SOULMATES.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>SOULMATES</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>
<p class="yiv8467036503p1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background: white; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; margin: 0in; orphans: 2; outline: none; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="outline: none;"><span class="yiv8467036503s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Oh, Hello, it’s you,</span></span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="yiv8467036503p1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background: white; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; margin: 0in; orphans: 2; outline: none; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="outline: none;"><span class="yiv8467036503s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">You seem so familiar,</span></span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="yiv8467036503p1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background: white; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; margin: 0in; orphans: 2; outline: none; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="outline: none;"><span class="yiv8467036503s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">We’re soulmates you know.</span></span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="yiv8467036503p2" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background: white; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; margin: 0in; min-height: 23.6px; orphans: 2; outline: none; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="yiv8467036503p1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background: white; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; margin: 0in; orphans: 2; outline: none; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="outline: none;"><span class="yiv8467036503s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The paths we’ve taken,</span></span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="yiv8467036503p1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background: white; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; margin: 0in; orphans: 2; outline: none; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="outline: none;"><span class="yiv8467036503s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In spite of the twists and turns,</span></span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="yiv8467036503p1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background: white; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; margin: 0in; orphans: 2; outline: none; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="outline: none;"><span class="yiv8467036503s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Have converged tonight.</span></span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="yiv8467036503p2" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background: white; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; margin: 0in; min-height: 23.6px; orphans: 2; outline: none; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="yiv8467036503p1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background: white; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; margin: 0in; orphans: 2; outline: none; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="outline: none;"><span class="yiv8467036503s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Our pasts were the same,</span></span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="yiv8467036503p1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background: white; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; margin: 0in; orphans: 2; outline: none; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="outline: none;"><span class="yiv8467036503s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Even though they were apart,</span></span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="yiv8467036503p1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background: white; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; margin: 0in; orphans: 2; outline: none; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="outline: none;"><span class="yiv8467036503s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Now we're joined as one.</span></span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="yiv8467036503p2" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background: white; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; margin: 0in; min-height: 23.6px; orphans: 2; outline: none; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="yiv8467036503p1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background: white; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; margin: 0in; orphans: 2; outline: none; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="outline: none;"><span class="yiv8467036503s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The game is over,</span></span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="yiv8467036503p1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background: white; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; margin: 0in; orphans: 2; outline: none; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="outline: none;"><span class="yiv8467036503s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">There’s no need to look further,</span></span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="yiv8467036503p1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background: white; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; margin: 0in; orphans: 2; outline: none; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="outline: none;"><span class="yiv8467036503s1"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">We’ve found each other.</span></span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><br /><p></p>Larry Davishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00754633619928420760noreply@blogger.com0