How Deepavali?

Dream On...

On Narrower Gates

1 Judge not, that ye be not judged.

2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.

3 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?

4 Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?

5 Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye.

6 Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.

7 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:

8 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

9 Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone?

10 Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent?

11 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?

12 Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets.

13 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:

14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

Matthew 7 (1:14)

16 Now behold, one came and said to Him, “Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?”

17 So He said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.”

18 He said to Him, “Which ones?”

Jesus said, “‘You shall not murder,’ ‘You shall not commit adultery,’ ‘You shall not steal,’ ‘You shall not bear false witness,’

19 ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ ”

20 The young man said to Him, “All these things I have kept from my youth. What do I still lack?”

21 Jesus said to him, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”

22 But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

23 Then Jesus said to His disciples, “Assuredly, I say to you that it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.

24 And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

Matthew 19 (16:24)

Kansas City Blues

Light and Line in Motion

...kinda reminds me of something... ;)

The Many Me's

Many Me's

I feel as if I am constantly being pulled at in two different directions..
It's almost like my mind is divided and the two sides are at a never ending war..
...Always pushing and shoving at one another..
...Desperately trying to reach the surface..
And the moment one finally does, the other immediately pulls it back under..
During this struggle to be heard i just sit, emotionless..
It is impossible even for me to determine what I am feeling at that point..
And then within seconds I become angry, furious actually..
All that i want to do it scream and hurt those around me..
My heart begins pounding wildly..
It is almost impossible to control myself..
These feelings can sometimes last for day at a time..
Then, just as quickly as it came, my anger fades away..
I sink back into nothing..
An empty soul..
Soon comes a new feeling..
A warm sensation of happiness without cause..
I feel a great sense of pride and develop the urge to be a better person..
Throughout my entire body all that I feel is joy and it is simply amazing..
As soon as I start to think that things are perfect...I hit rock bottom..
I feel tons of self pity and sorrow..
All that I want out of my pathetic life are my knife and a side order of drugs to help ease the pain..
My mind gets so deeply tangled that I don't even know who the "real me" is anymore..
I sit and try to figure myself out and become so incredibly confused that I don't even remember if I gave up yet or not..
I must resort to writing ongoing poems about nothing to sort things out..
As I write I drift to sleep and wonder who I will be tomorrow....

-BigPapaIsSoCool, "The Many Me's" (2004)

Stuck in the Middle with You!

O' middle child, dear son of mine, you have always let the others shine
All through the years, you have stood behind
---I want to say, I've noticed you

Your sister's charms, of course, we knew...
And your brother's skills were multitude
But, my quiet child, though your words were few
---I want to say I've noticed you

While people cheered, and guitars were played,
as your siblings sang upon the stage
You cheered them on with no restraint
---but, I want to say I've noticed you

Such wit and charm, a heart of gold,
More generous soul, I've never known
A shoulder you will always lend
---a brother, friend until the end

I love you all, .....of course I do
I have watched you grow, each one of you
My quiet child, you are still the same
---you'll step aside from all acclaim

As parents now, all three of you
I am proud beyond the words I hold

My middle child, I hope you know,
while you've always been a one to sow
a quiet gift to all you've known

---I want to say I've noticed you........

- Carrie Richards, "O' Middle Child" (4/30/13)

JSM

Pan

All of my tastes correspond to ideas I’ve had since I was a child. For example, the bread that I often wear on my head is a hat that I showed up wearing at home when I was six. I emptied out a pan de crostons, a kind of three-pointed Catalan bread, and I put it on my head to amaze my parents.

-Salvador Dali
Salvador Dali, "Basket of Bread" (1926)Salvador Dali, "Calatalan Bread" (1932)Salvador Dali, "Invisible Man" (1932)