Pool of Tears

"But she went on all the same, shedding gallons of tears, until there was a large pool all around her, about four inches deep and reaching half down the hall."

Lewis Carroll: Alice in Wonderland

Kenneth Rougeau: "On The Bank Of The Pool Of Tears"

each person
sits next
to their own
pool of tears
 
Andrea at: http://poustiniamoments.blogspot.com/

No Water

Here is no water but only rock
Rock and no water and the sandy road
The road winding above among the mountains
Which are mountains of rock without water
If there were water we should stop and drink
Amongst the rock one cannot stop or think
Sweat is dry and feet are in the sand
If there were only water amongst the rock
Dead mountain mouth of carious teeth that cannot spit
Here one can neither stand nor lie nor sit
There is not even silence in the mountains
But dry sterile thunder without rain
There is not even solitude in the mountains
But red sullen faces sneer and snarl
From doors of mudcracked houses

If there were water

And no rock
If there were rock
And also water
And water
A spring
A pool among the rock
If there were the sound of water only
Not the cicada
And dry grass singing
But sound of water over a rock
Where the hermit-thrush sings in the pine trees
Drip drop drip drop drop drop drop
But there is no water

From T.S.Eliot: The Wasteland; What the Thunder said

God's Garden

The Lord God planted a garden

In the first white days of the world,

And He set there an angel warden

In a garment of light enfurled.

So near to the peace of Heaven,

That the hawk might rest with the wren,

For there in the cool of the even

God walked with the first of men.

And I dream that these garden-closes

With their shade and their sun-flecked sod

And their lilies and bowers of roses,

Were laid by the hand of God.

The kiss of the sun for pardon

The song of the birds for mirth,

One is nearer God's heart in a garden

Than anywhere else on earth.

For He broke it for us in a garden

Under the olive-trees

Where the angel of strength was the warden

And the soul of the world found ease.

Dorothy Frances Gurney (1858-1932)

http://www.wordle.net/

Shakespeare's Sonnet 116

Let me not to the marriage of true minds

Admit impediments. Love is not love

Which alters when it alteration finds,

Or bends with the remover to remove:

O no! it is an ever-fixed mark

That looks on tempests and is never shaken;

It is the star to every wandering bark,

Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken.

Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks

Within his bending sickle's compass come:

Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,

But bears it out even to the edge of doom.

If this be error and upon me proved,

I never writ, not no man ever loved.

Thoughts on a wrought iron fence

It all depends on your perspective.

If you are feeling negative about the fence...

It stops you getting out

It reminds you of an area where you cannot go

You can look at what is beyond but not touch it

It restricts your movements

It can cause pain if you climb it and fall

Its cold and harsh and immoveable

It generates feelings of powerlessness in you

However,

If you are feeling positive about the fence...

It indicates the boundary when you have gone far enough
It provides a safe zone to live and play in

It creates a sense of freedom from worry

It keeps out thieves and stray dogs

It is reliable and doesn't move on a whim

It is a thing of beauty made by a craftsman

How do I perceive the fences that God gives me?

Psalm 23

"The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul." (New International Version)

"The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul." (New King James)

"The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need. He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams. He renews my strength." (New Living Translation)

"The Lord is my shepherd; I have everything I need. He lets me rest in fields of green grass and leads me to quiet pools of fresh water. He gives me new strength. " (Good News Bible)

"The LORD is my shepherd; there is nothing I lack. In green pastures you let me graze; to safe waters you lead me; you restore my strength."(New American Bible)

"The Lord ruleth me and I shall want nothing. He hath set me in a place of pasture. He hath brought me up, on the water of refreshment: He hath converted my soul." (Douay-Rheims)

"Yahweh is my shepherd, I lack nothing. In grassy meadows he lets me lie. By tranquil streams he leads me to restore my spirit."(New Jerusalem Bible)

"The Lord takes care of me as his sheep; I will not be without any good thing. He makes a resting-place for me in the green fields: he is my guide by the quiet waters. He gives new life to my soul." (Bible in Basic English)

"You, LORD, are my shepherd. I will never be in need. You let me rest in fields of green grass. You lead me to streams of peaceful water, and you refresh my life."(Contemporary English Version)

Advertisements

Have you noticed how many advertisements there are for more noise?

• Cheaper mobile phone subscriptions so that you can be contacted more often
• Faster internet for downloading music and videos
• Ringtones to make your life more 'musical'
• Digital television for more channels and radio stations
• Breakfast cereal that will 'snap, crackle and pop' as you eat it
• Beer that brings life to the party
• Icecream that makes you burst into song
• Multivitamins that give you the energy to vaccuum and dance at the same time
• Mineral water that makes lobsters in a restaurant serenade you

When did you last see an advertisement offering you 15 minutes silence?

Drained energy

There are some people that drain my energy. It does not seem to matter whether they are happy or sad, at work or on holiday, at home or away - being with them saps the life out of me.

In my life, where my job already drains my energy, I cannot afford to spend free time with people who drain me further. It has become important to surround myself with people who refill my energy banks.

Spending time alone, in silence, also helps refresh me. Which is where this search for rest, balance and rejuvenation began....

Beloved

Not our actions - what we do

Not our reputation - what others say about us

Not our possessions - what we have

But who we are - you are My beloved child, on whom My favour rests.

After Henri Nouwen