London III....

Went to National portrait gallery....great paintings
Click on the post title to go on a virtual tour....

London....

Yesterday i went on a ride in London Eye....great view.

The picture is not mine but i have some....

Will to live II....

The size of a mobile phone: Kimberley Mueller weighed just over 10 ounces when she was born in Hanover, Germany - making her the world's smallest surviving baby

Will to live....

She was just eight inches long and her chances of survival were 1,000 to one against.

Yet tiny Kimberley Mueller clung defiantly to life - despite being born 15 weeks prematurely and weighing a mere 10 ounces.

No doctor in the world would have expected her to pull through.

But six months after this amazing first picture, Kimberley has been declared healthy enough to go home.

Advertisement
She spent months in an incubator being drip-fed while a machine helped her breathe.

Cuddling her baby at home, mum Petra, 38, said: "I was allowed to stroke her with my finger. I always spoke to her. It was so nice when she gripped my finger in her tiny hands."

Kimberley had laser surgery to save her sight three months after her birth, in Hanover, Germany.

Chidbirth experts are hailing her survival as a miracle.

Great Ormond Street consultant Dr Arvind Shah said: "This is remarkable. She must be a little fighter."

Smallest surviving baby is thought to be Rumaisa Rahman, born at 8.6oz in Chicago in 2004. In the UK 800 a year arrive at under 25 weeks


Source...Daily Mirror

Destiny....

During a momentous battle, a Japanese general decided to attack even though his army was greatly outnumbered. He was confident they would win, but his men were filled with doubt.

On the way to the battle, they stopped at a religious shrine. After praying with the men, the general took out a coin and said, "I shall now toss this coin. If it is heads, we shall win. If it is tails we shall lose."

"Destiny will now reveal itself."

He threw the coin into the air and all watched intently as it landed. It was heads. The soldiers were so overjoyed and filled with confidence that they vigorously attacked the enemy and were victorious.

After the battle. a lieutenant remarked to the general, "No one can change destiny."

"Quite right," the general replied as he showed the lieutenant the coin, which had heads on both sides.


Author Unknown, Source Unknown

Challenged....

Some say I am disabled,
But you know that isn't true.
I simply have a challenge
A little different from you.

My slight inconvenience, has taught me
Things they could not know.
Each obstacle is a victory,
Enabling me to grow.

I'm not really any different,
I cry, I laugh, I snore.
I don't want to be treated
As if I'm not a person anymore.

Out of good intentions,
People are afraid to let me try.
But sometimes I have to fall,
And sometimes I need to cry.

God gives me strength and dignity,
And the courage to be all I can be.
For He doesn't see me as disabled,
He just sees me as me.


by: Leslie W. Ortega, Source Unknown

Why Aren't I....

I asked why I wasn't rich.

And I saw a man with the wealth of a thousand kings, who was lonely, and had no one to share it with.

I asked why I wasn't beautiful

And I saw a woman more beautiful than any other, who was ugly because of her vanity.

I asked why I have to become old.

And I saw a boy of 16, who lay dead at the scene of a car accident.

I asked why I didn't have a bigger house.

And I saw a family of six, who'd just been evicted from their tiny shack, and were forced to live on the street.

I asked why I had to work.

And I saw a man who couldn't find a decent job, because he'd never learned to read.

I asked why I wasn't more popular.

And I saw a socialite with a thousand friends, who all left the moment the money and parties were no longer there.

I asked why I wasn't smarter.

And I saw a natural born genius, who was serving life in prison for making ill use of his knowledge.



What's eating you today? Are your problems weighing heavy on your heart? Do learn to look on the bright side, to be content with what you have, to spare a thought for the less fortunate, and to realize how privileged you really are.

Remember, a candle loses nothing by lighting another candle. Just reach out and touch someone's life and brighten up his or her day.


Author unknown

London....

On 25 of September i caught a plane to London where i will be staying until 9 of October.
The trip is going well except for a minor problem with the plane because we had to be diverted to Barajas airport in Madrid because there was a bit of smoke coming from the toilet in front of the plane and the crew thought better for security reasons to divert so i was forced to be in Madrid for more than 3 hours until another
plane came from Luton,so instead of arriving at Luton at 17:00 local time i arrived
at 23:30 more or less and could not make my way to Turnpike Lane where i am saying,and had to look for a hotel for the night wich took a bit of a search because i had to search 5 until i finnally got a room for the night wich goes without saying that they "robbed" me blind but at 01:20 in the evening i gladly opened the wallet for them to pick my pocket but all "bad" things have a good face instead of a single room i now have a triple room with a fridge a tv so it is alrihgt.


No dia 25 de Setembro apanhei um aviao para Londres onde vou ficar ate 9 de Outubro.
A viagem esta a correr bem excepto por um pequeno problema com o aviao o qual foi desviado da rota por motivos de seguranca devido ao cheiro a fumo que emanava da casa de banho da frente,aterramos entao no aeroorto de de Barajas Madrid onde estive a espera que outro aviao chegasse de Luton devido a esse pequeno precalco cheguei a Luton eram perto das 23:30 e nao pude ir para Turnpike Lane onde estou hospedado o que me levou a procurar um hotel na zona para passar a noite o que nao foi facil apenas no quinto havia vaga escusado sera dizer que me meteram a mao no bolso mas as 01:20 da madrugada fui eu proprio que abri o bolso...mas nem tudo foi mau em vez de ter ficado com um quarto simples agora estou num triplo com frigorifico e tv como veem nem tudo corre mal....


Lost_soul

Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow....

Today is the tomorrow I worried about yesterday
And today was such a lovely day,
that I wondered why I worried about today yesterday
So today I am not going to worry about tomorrow
There may not be a tomorrow anyway
So today I am going to live as if there is no tomorrow
And I am going to forget about yesterday.

Today is the tomorrow I planned for yesterday
And nearly all my plans for today did not plan out the way I thought they would yesterday
So today I am forgetting about tomorrow and I will plan for today
But not too strenuously
Today I will stop to smell a rose
I will tell a loved one how much I love her
I will stop planning for tomorrow and plan to make today the best day of my life.

Today is the tomorrow I was afraid of yesterday
And today was nothing to be afraid of
So today I will banish fear of the unknown
I will embrace the unknown as a learning experience full of exciting opportunities
Today, unlike yesterday I will not fear tomorrow.

Today is the tomorrow I dreamed about yesterday
And some of the dreams I dreamt about yesterday came true today
So today I am going to continue dreaming about tomorrow
And perhaps more of the dreams I dream today will come true tomorrow.

Today is the tomorrow I set goals for yesterday
And I reached some of those goals today
So today I am going to set slightly higher goals for today and tomorrow
And if tomorrow turns out to be like today
I will certainly reach all of my goals one day!


Author Unknown

Anyway....

People are unreasonable, illogical and self-centered.
Love them anyway.

If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.
Do good anyway.

If you are successful, you win false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.

The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.

Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.
Be honest and frank anyway.

What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.

People really need help but may attack you if you help them.
Help people anyway.

Give the world the best you have and you'll get kicked in the teeth.
Give the world the best you've got anyway.


Mother Teresa

Don't Ever....

Don't ever be reluctant to show your feelings when you're happy, give in to it.
When you're not, live with it.

Don't ever be afraid to try to make things better you might be surprised at the results.

Don't ever take the weight of the world on your shoulders.

Don't ever feel threatened by the future take life one day at a time.

Don't ever feel guilty about the past what's done is done. Learn from any mistakes you might have made.

Don't ever feel that you are alone there is always somebody there for you to reach out to.

Don't ever forget that you can achieve so many of the things you can imagine.
It's not as hard as it seems.

Don't ever stop loving don't ever stop believing, don't ever stop dreaming your dreams.


Laine Parsons

Success....

To laugh often and much;

To win the respect of intelligent people
and the affection of children;

To earn the appreciation of honest critics
and endure the betrayal of false friends;

To appreciate beauty;
To find the best in others;

To leave the world a bit better, whether by
a healthy child, a garden patch
or a redeemed social condition;

To know even one life has breathed
easier because you have lived;

This is to have succeeded.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Only one....

I am only one,
But still I am one.
I cannot do everything,
But still I can do something;
And because I cannot do everything
I will not refuse to do the something that I can do.


Edward Everett Hale

Change....

"If you don't like something, change it. If you can't change it, change your attitude. Don't complain."

Maya Angelou

A Poison Tree....

I was angry with my friend:
I told my wrath, my wrath did end.
I was angry with my foe:
I told it not, my wrath did grow.

And I watered it in fears
Night and morning with my tears,
And I sunned it with smiles
And with soft deceitful wiles.

And it grew both day and night,
Till it bore an apple bright,
And my foe beheld it shine,
And he knew that it was mine,--

And into my garden stole
When the night had veiled the pole;
In the morning, glad, I see
My foe outstretched beneath the tree.


William Blake

Tomorrow....

He was going to be all that a mortal should be
Tomorrow.
No one should be kinder or braver than he
Tomorrow.
A friend who was troubled and weary he knew,
Who'd be glad of a lift and who needed it, too;
On him he would call and see what he could do
Tomorrow.

Each morning he stacked up the letters he'd write
Tomorrow.
And thought of the folks he would fill with delight
Tomorrow.
It was too bad, indeed, he was busy today,
And hadn't a minute to stop on his way;
More time he would have to give others, he'd say
Tomorrow.

The greatest of workers this man would have been
Tomorrow.
The world would have known him, had he ever seen
Tomorrow.
But the fact is he died and he faded from view,
And all that he left here when living was through
Was a mountain of things he intended to do
Tomorrow.


Edgar Guest

Conselho de leitura....One of my favourite books

Sinopse

Neste romance, Sheldon cria uma heroína, Trace Whitney, ao mesmo tempo ingênua e fascinante. Atraente e idealista, suas únicas armas são a inteligência e a beleza. O duelo é contra um intocável mestre do crime, que manteve-a presa numa cadeia de segurança máxima por 15 anos. Expert na condição de narrativas, Sheldon enreda a personagem numa série de extraordinárias fugas, fazendo-a rodar pelo mundo todo. Em uma dessas cenas frenéticas, Tracy encontra o igualmente irresistível Jeff Stevens, com um passado tão recheado e instigante quanto o dela. Mais um bestseller do mestre do suspense, em que o leitor não consegue prever o final antes que o próprio Sheldon o revele

Se carregarem no titulo do post surge o link para o livro em formato word em portugues

The Soldier....

A story is told about a soldier who was finally coming home after having fought in Vietnam. He called his parents from San Francisco. "Mom and Dad, I'm coming home, but I've got a favour to ask. I have a friend I'd like to bring with me." "Sure," they replied, "we'd love to meet him."

"There's something you should know," the son continued, "he was hurt pretty badly in the fighting. He stepped on a land mine and lost an arm and leg. He has nowhere else to go, and I want him to come live with us."

"I'm sorry to hear that, son. Maybe we can help him find somewhere to live."

"No, Mom and Dad, I want him to live with us."

"Son," said the father, "you don't know what you're asking. Someone with such a handicap would be a terrible burden on us. We have our own lives to live, and we can't let something like this interfere with our lives. I think you should just come home and forget about this guy. He'll find a way to live on his own." At that point, the son hung up the phone. The parents heard nothing more from him.

A few days later, however, they received a call from the San Francisco police. Their son had died after falling from a building, they were told. The police believed it was suicide. The grief-stricken parents flew to San Francisco and were taken to the city morgue to identify the body of their son. They recognized him, but to their horror they also discovered something they didn't know, their son had only one arm and one leg.

The parents in this story are like many of us. We find it easy to love those who are good-looking or fun to have around, but we don't like people who inconvenience us or make us feel uncomfortable. We would rather stay away from people who aren't as healthy, beautiful, or smart as we are.

Thankfully, there's someone who won't treat us that way. Someone who loves us with an unconditional love that welcomes us into the forever family, regardless of how messed up we are. Tonight, before you tuck yourself in for the night, say a little prayer that God will give you the strength you need to accept people as they are, and to help us all be more understanding of those who are different from us!!!

Author Unknown

Instructions for Life....

•Give people more than they expect and do it cheerfully.
•Memorize your favourite poem.
•Don't believe all you hear, spend all you have or sleep all you want.
•When you say, "I love you", mean it.
•When you say, "I'm sorry", look the person in the eye.
•Be engaged at least six months before you get married.
•Believe in love at first sight.
•Never laugh at anyone's dreams.
•Love deeply and passionately. You might get hurt but it's the only way to live life completely.
•In disagreements, fight fairly. No name calling.
•Don't judge people by their relatives.
•Talk slow but think quickly.
•When someone asks you a question you don't want to answer, smile and ask, "Why do you want to know?".
•Remember that great love and great achievements involve great risk.
•Call your mom.
•Say "bless you" when you hear someone sneeze.
•When you lose, don't lose the lesson.
•Remember the three R's: Respect for self, Respect for others, Responsibility for all your actions.
•Don't let a little dispute injure a great friendship.
•When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.
•Smile when picking up the phone. The caller will hear it in your voice.
•Marry a woman you love to talk to. As you get older, her conversational skills will be as important as any other.
•Spend some time alone.
•Open your arms to change, but don't let go of your values.
•Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.
•Read more books and watch less TV.
•Live a good, honourable life. Then when you get older and think back, you'll get to enjoy it a second time.
•Trust in God but lock your car.
•A loving atmosphere in your home is so important. Do all you can to create a tranquil harmonious home.
•In disagreements with loved ones, deal with the current situation. Don't bring up the past.
•Read between the lines.
•Share your knowledge. It's a way to achieve immortality.
•Be gentle with the earth.
•Pray -- there's immeasurable power in it.
•Never interrupt when you are being flattered.
•Mind your own business.
•Don't trust a woman who doesn't close her eyes when you kiss her.
•Once a year, go someplace you've never been before.
•If you make a lot of money, put it to use helping others while you are living. That is wealth's greatest satisfaction.
•Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a stroke of luck.
•Learn the rules then break some.
•Remember that the best relationship is one where your love for each other is greater than your need for each other.
•Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.
•Remember that your character is your destiny.
•Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon.

Jackson Brown

Risk....

To laugh is to risk appearing the fool.
To weep is to risk appearing sentimental.
To reach out for another is to risk involvement.
To expose feelings is to risk exposing your true self.
To place your ideas, your dreams, before a crowd is to risk their loss.
To love is to risk not being loved in return.
To live is to risk dying.
To hope is to risk failure.

But risks must be taken.
Because the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing.
If you risk nothing and do nothing, you dull your spirit.
You may avoid suffering and sorrow, but you cannot learn, feel, change,

grow, love, and live.
Chained by your attitude, you are a slave.
You have forfeited your freedom.
Only if you risk are you free.

Leo Buscaglia

Reason....Season..... Lifetime

People come into your life for a reason, a season, or
a lifetime. When you figure out which one it is, you
will know what to do for each person.

When someone is in your life for a REASON . . . It is
usually to meet a need you have expressed. They have
come to assist you through a difficulty, to provide you
with guidance and support, to aid you physically,
emotionally, or spiritually. They may seem like a
godsend, and they are! They are there for the reason
you need them to be.

Then, without any wrong doing on your part, or at an
inconvenient time, this person will say or do something
to bring the relationship to an end.

Sometimes they die.
Sometimes they walk away.
Sometimes they act up and force you to take a stand.

What we must realise is that our need has been met, our
desire fulfilled, their work is done. The prayer you
sent up has been answered. And now it is time to move on.

When people come into your life for a SEASON . . .
Because your turn has come to share, grow, or learn.
They bring you an experience of peace, or make you laugh.
They may teach you something you have never done.
They usually give you an unbelievable amount
of joy. Believe it! It is real! But, only for a season.

LIFETIME relationships teach you lifetime lessons; things
you must build upon in order to have a solid emotional
foundation. Your job is to accept the lesson, love the
person, and put what you have learned to use in all
other relationships and areas of your life. It is said
that love is blind but friendship is clairvoyant.

Author Unknown

For a reason....

Sometimes people come into your life and you know right away that they were meant to be there, they serve some sort of purpose, teach you a lesson or help figure out who you are or who you want to become. You never know who these people may be; your roommate, neighbor, professor, long lost friend, lover or even a complete stranger who, when you lock eyes with them, you know that very moment that they will affect your life in some profound way. And sometimes things happen to you and at the time they may seem horrible, painful and unfair, but in reflection you realize that without overcoming those obstacles you would have never realized your potential strength will power or heart.

Everything happens for a reason. Nothing happens by chance or by means of good or bad luck. Illness, injury, love, lost moments of true greatness and sheer stupidity all occur to test the limits of your soul. Without these small tests, if they be events, illnesses or relationships, life would be like a smoothly paved, straight, flat road to nowhere. Safe and comfortable but dull and utterly pointless. The people you meet who affect your life and the successes and downfalls you experience, they are the ones who create who you are. Even the bad experiences can be learned from, those lessons are the hardest and probably the most important ones.

If someone hurts you, betrays you or breaks your heart, forgive them, for they have helped you learn about trust and the importance of being cautious to who you open your heart to.

If someone loves you, love them back unconditionally, not only because they love you, but because they are teaching you to love and opening your heart and eyes to things you would have never seen or felt without them.

Make every day count. Appreciate every moment and take from it everything that you possibly can, for you may never be able to experience it again.

Talk to people you have never talked to before, and actually listen, let yourself fall in love, break free and set your sights high.

Hold your head up because you have every right to. Tell yourself you are a great individual and believe in yourself, for if you don't believe in yourself, no one else will believe in you either.

You can make of your life anything you wish. Create your own life and then go out and live it.


Author unknown

The Guy In The Glass....

"If you get what you want in your struggle for self,
And the world makes you a champion for a day,
Just go to the mirror and look at yourself,
And see what that guy has to say.

For it isn't your father, or mother, or brother,
Who upon you their judgment will pass.
The feller whose verdict counts most in your life
Is the guy staring back from the glass.

He's the feller to please—never mind all the rest!
For he's with you clear up to the end.
And you've passed your most difficult test,
If the guy in the glass is your friend.…

You can fool the whole world down the pathway of years,
And get pats on the back, as you pass,
But your final reward will be headache or tears,
If you've cheated the guy in the glass."


Peter Wimbrow

Learning about life from a puzzle....

1-Don’t force a fit. If something is meant to be, it will come together naturally.

2-When things aren’t going so well, take a break. Everything will look different when you return.

3-Be sure to look at the big picture. Getting hung up on the little pieces only leads to frustration.

4-Perseverance pays off. Every important puzzle went together bit by bit, piece by piece.

5-When one spot stops working, move to another. But be sure to come back later (see #4).

6-The creator of the puzzle gave you the picture as a guidebook.

7-Variety is the spice of life. It’s the different colors and patterns that make the puzzle interesting.

8-Working together with friends and family makes any task fun.

9-Establish the border first. Boundaries give a sense of security and order.

10-Don’t be afraid to try different combinations. Some matches are surprising.

11-Take time often to celebrate your successes—even little ones.

12-Anything worth doing takes time and effort. A great puzzle can’t be rushed.



Author unknown

The strength of a man....

The strength of a man isn't seen in the width of his shoulders.
It's in the width of his arms that encircle you.

The strength of a man isn't in the deep tone of his voice.
It's in the gentle words he whispers.

The strength of a man isn't how many buddies he has.
It's how good a buddy he is with his children.

The strength of a man isn't in how respected he is at work.
It's in how respected he is at home.

The strength of a man isn't in how hard he hits.
It's in how tender he touches.

The strength of a man isn't in the hair on his chest.
It's in his heart, that lies within his chest.

The strength of a man isn't how many women he's loved.
It's in being true to one woman.

The strength of a man isn't in the weight he can lift.
It's in the burdens he can carry.

Author unknown

You Learn ....

After awhile you learn
the subtle difference between
holding a hand and chaining a soul
and you learn that love doesn't mean possession
and company doesn't mean security.
And you begin to learn that kisses aren't contracts
and presents aren't promises and you begin to accept
your defeats with your head up and your eyes ahead
with the grace of an adult not the grief of a child.
And you learn to build your roads today
because tomorrow's ground is too uncertain for plans
and futures have ways of falling down in mid-flight.
After awhile you learn that even sunshine
burns if you get too much so you plant your
own garden and decorate your own soul
instead of waiting for someone to bring you flowers.
And you learn that you really can endure
that you really are strong
and you really do have worth
and you learn
and you learn...


Veronica A. Shoffstall

You Have Wings....

You were born with potential.
You were born with goodness and trust.
You were born with ideals and dreams.
You were born with greatness.
You were born with wings.
You are not meant for crawling, so don't.
You have wings.
Learn to use them and fly!


Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi

Letting Go ....

To let go doesn't mean to stop caring;
It means I can't do it for someone else.
To let go is not to cut myself off...
It's the realization that I can't control another...
To let go is not to enable,
but to allow learning from natural consequences.
To let go is to admit powerlessness,
which means the outcome is not in my hands.
To let go is not to try and change or blame another,
I can only change myself.
To let go is not to care for, but to care about.
To let go is not to fix, but to be supportive.
To let go is not to judge,
but to allow another to be a human being.
To let go is not to be in the middle arranging all the outcomes,
but to allow others to affect their own outcomes.
To let go is not to be protective,
It is to permit another to face reality.
To let go is not to deny, but to accept.
To let go is not to nag, scold, or argue,
but to search out my own shortcomings and correct them.
To let go is not to adjust everything to my desires,
but to take each day as it comes and cherish the moment.
To let go is not to criticize and regulate anyone,
but to try to become what I dream I can be.
To let go is not to regret the past,
but to grow and live for the future.
To let go is to fear less and love more.


Author Unknown

Unconditional Love ....

When we love someone in its truest of form, it is a pure love, a love with no conditions. Love out of purity can develop over time or be instantaneous in some situations. When we love or care for someone unconditionally it is because we want to, not because we feel we have to. We don't love that person because of what they do for us.

We don't love them because we want something that they have. We love them because we have a special place reserved in our hearts and in our spirits specifically for them. This love is unshaken because it is based on truth not on convenience.

It doesn't even matter if our love is reciprocated by the person we care for. It doesn't matter f they turn their backs and walk away. It doesn't matter if they choose to say nothing at all, because the love you have for them exists regardless of the circumstance and regardless of the condition.

It is simply based on your strong sense of care for this individual. It is not based on power. It is not based ... It is based on love's purest intentions. When we love someone unconditionally, we love them as they are, as they were, and as they intend to be.

We embrace their past, their present, and their future as a fine intricate detail of who they are. When they speak, we listen to them. When they are still, we stand by their sides. When they need to be left alone, we leave them be, but we continue to love them even when separated by distance. Unconditional love goes beyond just the emotions of love, it develops in the core of our being as it is there where we hold those close to us so dearly.


Meilena Hauslendale

Engano dos olhos....

Meus olhos enganados estão
pelas lágrimas do teu coração
que nunca me amou de verdade.
Há outros olhos enganados, sim,
dentro de nós dois,
mais de mim,
que quis ser enganado.
O teu mundo não me aceitou
e a alma que te amou
não mais viverá para te amar
como antes.
Morreram todos os meus sentimentos,
deixo-te o espólio de um lamento,
não quis de tudo morrer por amor.



Paulino Vergetti Neto

Words in the sand....

A story tells of two friends who were walking through the desert. During some point of the journey they had an argument, and one friend slapped the other one in the face.

The one who got slapped was hurt, but without saying anything, wrote in the sand:

TODAY MY BEST FRIEND SLAPPED ME IN THE FACE.

They kept on walking until they found an oasis, where they decided to take a bath. The one who had been slapped got stuck in the mire and started drowning, but the friend saved him.

After he recovered from the near drowning, he wrote on a stone:

TODAY MY BEST FRIEND SAVED MY LIFE.

The friend who had slapped and saved his best friend asked him:

"After I hurt you, you wrote in the sand and now, you write on a stone, why?"

The other friend replied "When someone hurts us we should write it down in sand where winds of forgiveness can erase it away. But, when someone does something good for us, we must engrave it in stone where no wind can ever erase it."

LEARN TO WRITE YOUR HURTS IN THE SAND AND TO CARVE YOUR BENEFITS IN STONE.

I Want to Know You....

It doesn't interest me what you do for a living. I want to know what you ache for, and if you dare to dream of meeting your life's longing.

It doesn't interest me how old you are. I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool for love, for your dreams, for the adventure of being alive.

It doesn't interest me what planets are squaring your moon. I want to know if you have touched the center of your own sorrow, if you have been opened by life's betrayals or have been shriveled and closed from fear of further pain.

I want to know if you can sit with pain, mine or your own, without moving to hide it or fade it or fix it.

I want to know if you can be with joy, mine or your own, if you can dance with wildness and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers and toes without cautioning us to be careful, be realistic, or to remember the limitations of being human.

It doesn't interest me if the story you're telling me is true. I want to know if you can disappoint another to be true to yourself, if you can bear the accusation of betrayal and not betray you own soul. I want to know if you can be faithful and therefore be trustworthy.

I want to know if you can see beauty even when it is not pretty everyday, and if you can source your life from God's presence. I want to know if you can live with the failure, yours or mine, and still stand on the edge of a lake and shout to the silver of the full moon, 'Yes'!

It doesn't interest me to know where you live or how much money you have. I want to know if you can get up after the night of grief and despair, weary and bruised to the bone, and do what needs to be done for the children.

It doesn't interest me who you are, how you came to be here. I want to know if you will stand in the center of the fire with me and not shrink back.

It doesn't interest interest me where or what or with whom you have studied. I want to know what sustains you from the inside when all else falls away. I want to know if you can be alone with yourself, and if you truly like the company you keep in the empty moments.


By Oriah Mountain Dreamer (an Indian Elder)

DOR DE ALMA....

Meu pratinho de arroz doce
polvilhado de canela;
Era bom mas acabou-se
desde que a vida me trouxe
outros cuidados com ela.

Eu, infante, não sabia
as mágoas que a vida tem.
Ingenuamente sorria,
me aninhava e adormecia
no colo da minha mãe.

Soube depois que há no mundo
umas tantas criaturas
que vivem num charco imundo
arrancando arroz do fundo
de pestilentas planuras.

Um sol de arestas pastosas
cobre-os de cinza e de azebre
à flor das águas lodosas,
eclodindo em capciosas
intermitências de febre.

Já não tenho o teu engodo,
Ó mãe, nem desejo tê-lo.
Prefiro o charco e o lodo.
Quero o sofrimento todo,
Quero senti-lo, e vencê-lo.



António Gedeão

A Sombra sou eu ....

A minha sombra sou eu,
ela não me segue,
eu estou na minha sombra
e não vou em mim.
Sombra de mim que recebo a luz,
sombra atrelada ao que eu nasci,
distância imutável de minha sombra a mim,
toco-me e não me atinjo,
só sei do que seria
se de minha sombra chegasse a mim.
Passa-se tudo em seguir-me
e finjo que sou eu que sigo,
finjo que sou eu que vou
e não que me persigo.
Faço por confundir a minha sombra comigo,
estou sempre às portas da vida,
sempre lá, sempre às portas de mim!


José de Almada Negreiros

Blind by light....

Blind by light
Unable to see
Took a path
Without exit

No turning back
Darkness awaits
Must move forward

Eyes open
Closed to distractions
Life is short
Illusions must forget

Courage must have
To reality accept
Hope must gather
To new opportunities believe

Past can’t forget
So same path avoid
Future I can’t, won’t deny
My path will find
So happiness be mine.

Lost_soul

Two wolves....

An old cherokee chief is teaching is grandson about life:

"A fight is going on inside me",he said to the boy
"it is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves."

"One is evil-he is anger,envy,sorrow,regret,greed,
arrogance,self-pity,guilt,resentment,inferiority,
lies,false pride,superiority,self-doubt and ego"

"The other is good-he is joy,peace,love,hope,serenity,
humility,kindness,benevolence,empathy,generosity,truth,
compassion and faith."

"This same fight is going on inside you-and inside
every other person,too."

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then
asked his grandfather,"Wich wolf will win?"

The old chief simply replied,

"The one you feed."

Point of no return....

I am reaching the point
The point of no return
As I keep moving forward
Each step I take
Makes me feel forced
To leave part of my past behind
Without even trying to forget it

Because our future must have
The past and the lessons we
Learned from it as the base
And if we foolishly try to forget
Our past fears
Our past expectations
Our past tears
Our past emotions

Since tomorrow is not here yet
We find ourselves in a dark void
A limbo, where all the light of hope
Has been denied to enter
And in the darkness
We lose our sense of direction
Our sense of equilibrium
And to prevent us from falling
We try to grab a rope
But in the darkness illusion wins
And what appeared to be our life line
Our salvation
Is nothing more than a snake
Who won’t keep us from falling

As you fall start thinking
Wich direction to go the moment
That you reach the bottom
Because the abbys is yours
You made it
It is only as deep as you want
It has all the exits you want
So just stand up
STAND UP
And keep going
You will not be lost
Trust your inner light
She will guide you
And you will be welcomed by….
Tomorrow


Lost_soul

Snake....

I´ve been given this Karma
For wich I try to find
An apparently impossible solution

A solution to the enigma that is
My own existence
My own solitude

In an active search my soul has been
Since I can remember

A search to find a reason for all
These contradictions, all this deceits
All this sweet lies

Still certain that the reason
I will find, I keep on searching
But the answer seems as elusive
As a snake I encounter moving
Trough the grass
A snake that has one of the most
beautyful eyes I have ever seen

Those eyes have made me stop
Those eyes have made me believe
That I had found the reason

But reality is sometimes cruel
And despite my best intentions
The snake is trapped in a quest
Of her own

She appears to be moving
But I don’t understand
If she is moving from or to
Something

Now I must understand not only
My existence, but also the quest
Of the snake because somehow
I feel in my heart that if I solve
The snakes puzzle I will find if
My search has finally ended or
If this is just another obstacle
In my difficult path

And if the snake is moving from
Something will she see me or just
Pass me by?

And if the snake is moving to
Something will I still have the
Strength the determination
To let her go and to continue
My search…
To keep moving forward?

At this moment in time
I don’t know the answer
I will wait a little longer
To try to understand

But if the snake disappears
In the grass, of one thing you
Can be certain, those eyes I
Will always remember
Not as a mistake but as a
Motivational force to
Remind me that the reason
Is out there, somewhere,

I just haven’t found it yet.

Lost_soul