joyful...joyful...

I just love this song...and the movie? Well...let's just say...the song is good.



It just makes YOU want to get up and dance...doesn't it?

Yep...it sure does

Love,
The Lass

a journal....a young man...and discovery.

Many years ago my mother began a daily habit of journaling. It was something she did not only for herself...but for us. She believed these scratchings would one day illuminate our lives....passed down to future generations...perhaps for her great great great grandchildren...to discover...like reading a book of their lives...or the lives of the ones that came before...

So, I too formed the habit. And shared this idea with others along the way.

One of the "others" is a young man name "k". His young life had been torn by drugs, crime...and a life that was not only hard on him...but the ones who loved him...who would be torn by his tormented life. What brought him to that state was all too typical...what brought him out, was not.

K began life as most...his home was normal in every fashion. His parents were loving...or at least thought so. He was well tended...and attended. But something in K was driven to the other side of life. He was drawn at an early age to things dark...and his choice of friends were darker. His parents were I believe perplexed...and sought every counsel they could...but K's life went deeper and deeper into disrepair. All of the hope began to dim...and even his parents could no longer bear the grief of watching their son...sink into the abyss...

Finally the lad found himself in so much trouble that his bravado...and his rage...could not longer hold him up against his own actions...he was incarcerated for one year...and that was the beginning of the end of his trail of trials.

While in this internment...he was counseled...analyzed...and given many lessons...his inmates were far worse than he...and his life seemed strange to even him...so K continued to slip into this darkness...holding on to the rage that filled him....rage he never quite understood.

When K was released he was without a home. His parents had given up on him...and his only place would be with some cousins who were not exactly role models themselves....

As it turns out...K came to work for my organization. Although he had been convicted and served time...he was hired. And that is when I met K.

At first K was very brash...and quite lazy. So...I set out to turn this around...but what began as a supervisor's...supervision...became something quite different.

One night K was being his moody self...and I was getting a little annoyed with the lad. So I pulled him aside and asked him to take a break with me. We went outside into the fresh air in the garden center...and I asked K what the problem was...and he said that he hated the job...hated his life...and began to tell me his story.

After listening to K...I told him if he picked up the pace a little...that I would make a bargain with him...K was intrigued...what bargain? Well...I said, "we will go about...building a bridge from your past to your future." K, was not impressed..."I don't have a future..." I smiled, "Oh yes you do...you just need to build the bridge."


The next night when K arrived for the night shift...I handed him a journal. He looked at me ...a bit put off...and said, " What am I suppose to do with this?" "Write in it.." I responded. K, looked at me with those brooding eyes of his...and said, "So this is the plan...forget it." And he walked away.

The next night I saw K sitting in the break room...watching TV, when he was suppose to be working. I walked up to the lad...asked him to see his journal...He didn't look up...he just said, "in the garbage can." I said..."you better go home now." And K said..."are you firing me?" I said, "no, I am telling you to go home." Come back tomorrow with the journal and a better attitude...or don't come back at all...your choice...make it..."

The next night K arrived with the journal...and he was not looking pleased...but he was there. So at break time...we went outside to the garden center...perched on the pile of bricks...I sat with K...and asked him to open the journal. The pages were blank...and that is when I pulled out my pen...and wrote on the first page..."The story of my life..."

K stared at the page...then looked at me with such anger...and angst. "I don't have a story...and I don't have a future...and you are full of shit." K started to get up...and I gently put my hand on his arm...and said, "not yet...I am not finished..." So, I continued to write..."my story is yet to be written...on these pages...I will write my future, the real story of my life..." K...was still. I handed him the journal and said..."Write your life...each day...write everything you do, even the simple things...just write..."

K said.."are you some counselor? I have been seen by the best! You think you can change my life?" I smiled and said..."Not at all K...you will change your life...you will write your life..." I placed the journal in K's hands...and then whispered in his ear..."your life is yours...no one else can write it, but you...it is yours...yours alone...now write your life..."

The next weeks K came in...no journal in hand...but his work began to improve...and I would work with him...and listen to his chatter about his friends...his family...and of course girl problems.

Finally about two months into our nightly breaks...never speaking of the journal...K brought it in for me to read...Every page filled with facts and stories of his daily routine...gossip...and little snipets of his thoughts on things...then finally I got to the last page he had written...it was about a conversation he had with his brother...and his anger toward him. K's words were harsh...and full of regret...jealousy and worse. K was looking inward...and saw in his brother...what he hated in himself....this entry would be the first of many such entries...and I knew that K was searching for what was in him...on the pages of his life. My only comment to K..."you have placed a brick onto your bridge...good going..." And with that, we returned to work...not speaking of the journal again for a couple of weeks."

Last night K came to work...and this time he was smiling...and something else...he was clean...haha. So it was at break time...we retreated to the garden center...and K pulled out the now worn journal...and handed it to me. He said, "turn to the last page." So I turned to the last page dutifully...

Here were the words..."I was offered a job as a mechanic today, and I am going to take it. It turns out I am very good with cars, and I am going to be training to get my certification. I discovered I love working on engines, and that is what I want to do. My father is going to pay for school, and I am going to become an aviation mechanic."

I looked up at K...from this worn journal...and put my arm around the lad..."So...you are leaving me K..." His head bowed down..."I built my bridge...time to go." I smiled then whispered in K's ear..."one day I will fly on one of the planes you work on...make sure I am safe." We got up and walked back into the store...silent...these next few nights will be my last with K...but I do believe the lad is now building his bridge...and it was a little journal that took him there...and I hope that he writes the pages of his life...the rest of his life.

So...El Cid, your habit is now handed down...to a young man named K...who will, I am sure...write a very good story...

Love,
The Lass

Oh...and something else...I am giving K a new journal as a going away gift. Something tells me that K has become quite chatty in his writing...maybe one day his children...his grandchildren...and their grandchildren...will be reading about this man...who built a bridge...one page at a time.

the road less traveled....I have been there

A little Robert goes a long way...

The Road Not Taken

TWO roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both And be one traveler, long I stood And looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth; Then took the other, as just as fair, And having perhaps the better claim, Because it was grassy and wanted wear; Though as for that the passing there Had worn them really about the same, And both that morning equally lay In leaves no step had trodden black. Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.

sometimes you need to know the rest of the story...

Here is a true story by Paul Harvey. Pass it to anyone who you think would find it interesting and inspiring. You will be surprised who this young man turned out to be. (Do not look at the bottom of this letter until you have read it fully.)-

Years ago a hardworking man took his family from New York State to Australia to take advantage of a work opportunity there. Part of this man's family was a handsome young son who had aspirations of joining the circus as a trapeze artist or an actor. This young fellow, biding his time until a circus job or even one as a stagehand came along, worked at the local shipyards which bordered on the worse section of town.

Walking home from work one evening this young man was attacked by five thugs who wanted to rob him. Instead of just giving up his money the young fellow resisted. However they robbed him easily and proceeded to beat him to a pulp. They mashed his face with their boots, and kicked and beat his body brutally with clubs, leaving him for dead.

When the police happened to find him lying in the road they assumed he was dead and called for the Morgue Wagon.

On the way to the morgue a policeman heard him gasp for air, and they immediately took him to the emergency unit at the hospital. When he was placed on a gurney a nurse remarked to her horror, that this young man no longer had a face. Each eye socket was smashed, his skull, legs, and arms fractured, his nose literally hanging from his face, all his teeth were gone, and his jaw was almost completely torn from his skull.

Although his life was spared he spent over a year in the hospital. When he finally left his body may have healed but his face was disgusting to look at. He was no longer the handsome youth that everyone admired.

When the young man started to look for work again he was turned down by everyone just on account of the way he looked. One potential employer suggested to him that he join the freak show at the circus as The Man Who Had No Face. And he did this for a while. He was still rejected by Everyone and no one wanted to be seen in his company. He had thoughts of suicide. This went on for five years.

One day he passed a church and sought some solace there. Entering the church he encountered a priest who had seen him sobbing while kneeling in a pew. The priest took pity on him and took him to the rectory where they talked at length. The priest was impressed with him to such a degree that he said that he would do everything possible for him that could be done to restore his dignity and life, if the young man would promise to be the best Catholic he could be, and trust in God's mercy to free him from his torturous life. The young man went to Mass and communion every day, and after thanking God for saving his life, asked God to only give him peace of mind and the grace to be the best man he could ever be in His eyes.

The priest, through his personal contacts was able to secure the services of the best plastic surgeon in Australia. They would be at no cost to the young man, as the doctor was the priest's best friend. The doctor too was so impressed by the young man, whose outlook now on life, even though he had experienced the worst, was filled with good humor and love.

The surgery was a miraculous success. All the best dental work was also done for him. The young man became everything he promised God he would be. He was also blessed with a wonderful, beautiful wife, and many children, and success in an industry which would have been the furthest thing from his mind as a career if not for the goodness of God and the love of the people who cared for him. This he acknowledges publicly..

The young man. Mel Gibson. His life was the inspiration for his production of the movie "The Man Without A Face."

-From the TV appearances, Mel Gibson says he enjoys being a father. He adopted many (seven) poor children. He starred in many films. Among them are, "Lethal Weapon", "Brave Heart", "Conspiracy Theory", recently "What Women Want" and "Million Dollar Hotel".-

Healed by His Wounds and about Passion of Christ.

I have no doubt that we all pass through periods of our lives...where God seems distant...but even in the darkest hour...he sends those we need...and what a miracle it is...

Thanks Paul Harvey...you had a wonderful wife...and a wonderful life.

And now you all know the rest of the story....or do you?

Love,
The Lass

sending out a prayer...a sincere one...

nothing else need be said...



Lord I lift my friend up to you...

Love,
The Lass

a sculptor...a student...and $300.00

I love art. Many people do. But my love began as a child. My mother took me to a museum...and it was over. I had to explore the world of art. It was in my blood.

So it was that many years ago when I was a much younger lass, that I took Art History at Wayne State University. The instructor was a young man named Sergio De Giusti. He was an accomplished artist, whose passion was evident from the first words he spoke..."Art is the awakening of the sleeping spirit." I understood those words. I understood the man, partly because I came to know his art.

Sergio is a sculptor...and his relief works stand in many places...Universities, Museums...Parks...and homes...like mine.

The story of my little piece of Sergio's work...goes like this.

I heard that Sergio's work was at a gallery in town. So, I went. Now...why a student with no money would go to a gallery is one thing...maybe just to look. But...this lass was always placing the love of things...before practical matters. So...on this day...she entered this little gallery...and spied a wax relief...Two wrapped figures...entwined in an eternal embrace. She fell in love with this rapture...and had to have it for her own. 19 years old...no money, and little hope of owning it. But this lass was determined...the work must be hers.

So she went to the instructor, and explained her plight and her desire. "I don't have the money for this relief...I saw how much your work goes for, and I simply can't afford it. " She continued, "I know you do your work in brass, but perhaps you could do me this great kindness, and make a plaster caste copy for me." The instructor inquired, "What is it about this piece you love so much?" "It is a catacomb, it is a bed of love, it is paassion, with religious overtones...it spoke to me." He smiled, "Then if my work is speaking to you...I guess I cannot go against its wishes."

So we made a bargain. $300.00...for the plaster work...and he would break the mold. I would have an original by this man...and it would be the first of many pieces of art I would purchase in my life...

Now, as time goes by...art becomes much more expensive....and so it is with Sergio...

Unions to celebrate unveiling of Hart Plaza landmark Downtown Detroit's six-story steel arch at Hart Plaza, part of the labor landmark called "Transcending,'' gets its formal dedication Aug. 20 in a ceremony scheduled to start at 10:30 a.m. and extend through the day. The $1.5 million monument, designed by local sculptors David Barr of Novi and Sergio DeGuisti of Livonia, was financed by contributions from unions and union members.

1.5 million...and I have my own little monument. Which is of course priceless...

And how did I pay for this? On a payment plan...working full time, going to school full time...and giving up a few things...like going to the movies. I was a young girl, with a dream...a vision...and now a piece of art...that would forever mark...my love of beauty...and passion.

Love,
The Lass

Just enjoying the view.

oh...and the 1.5 million dollar work?

















Mine is better!!!!!

God laughs when man says He is dead

For years my mother listened to Archbishop Sheen...a great man, who knew how to speak to God's love.



I have always maintained that God has a sense of humor...and I believe that...

I also agree with him here...



from the other side of the river...

and as for the relationship between men and women...well this is something he understood...deeply.

"A man teaches a woman pleasure; a woman teaches a man continence. Man is the raging torrent of the cascading river; woman is the bank which keeps it within limits. Pleasure is the bait God induces creatures to fulfill their heavenly infused instincts - pleasure in eating for the sake of the preservation of the individual - pleasure in mating for the sake of the of the preservation of the species... Since the abandonment of the Christian concept of marriage, both man and woman have forgotten their mission..." Perhaps people need to think about this. It is a sad state...

Love,
The lass

oh...and there is this...

"If you don't behave as you believe, you will end by believing as you behave."

with me it is sometimes about music...

I played this song daily for many months...this song kept me company...at a company where there was no respite. But, for me it was a song that would carry me through some days...over and over I would play it...now it is but a memory. Yet in the night, I listen to it...remember the place, my feelings...and my thoughts at the time. How memory is linked to music.

Just like this one.



remembering...

Love,
The Lass

Born on May 20th? Well I was...and here is what else happened.

So happy birthday...to all who were born on this date...

love,
The lass

some women...just make a difference...

I am going to treat myself to a movie tonight...not just a movie...but a Lewis, extravaganza. And as luck would have it, I read a little quote from Lewis's step son...about an experience that occured with C.S., and his mother...read on.

Adamson made his case for the changes to Gresham by arguing that Lewis' female characters become stronger as the book series progresses — something he attributes to Lewis' real-life romance with Gresham's mother, Joy Davidman. Gresham agreed. As evidence, he recounted an encounter he witnessed between Lewis, Davidman and a longbow-wielding trespasser on their property. Davidman carried a small "garden gun." When the man aimed a drawn arrow at the pair, Lewis chivalrously stepped in front of Davidman to shield her. He remained for a moment until Davidman, a Bronx native, commanded, "Goddamn, Jack, get out of my line of fire."

I have always loved these two characters...and their romance, love...and mutual respect have been what I have sought...but not yet found...a chemistry of grit, intelligence and yes...adoration.

So...thrilled I am...to be seeing yet another adventure in Narnia...Popcorn and soda...does it get better than this? Oh...maybe...but just a little.

Please go and see it...better yet read the books. I did...and became a fan...



Love,
The Lass

You see...one woman can make a difference...to a man with vision...and a good tale to tell...

bing and grace....and true love

I remember seeing this movie...to Bing and Grace...and True Love...take it away Bing.



Love,
The Lass

lemonade....come on pour the glass

It seems to me that Chris and I have this in common...I am a sucker for happy endings. Life is like that...we have lemons...we have choices and life gives us lemonade...and lemons...

So here is to life...and lemonade..



And if someone is out there...that likes lemonade...well maybe we will share a glass sometime...could happen...and that would be sweet...for me.

Love,
The Lass

And to my Alaskan friends and family...be seeing you soon. I can't wait. Miss you all...

a joyous occassion...and once again I wasn't there....

First there was the dynamic duo of Phil and Ann...now there is Justin and Adriana...two people who I have come to know, and care about. This wonderful couple joined the ranks of the hopeful tonight. They wed. And this leap of faith was one that I truly had my concerns about.

For those who are not sure one can meet their beloved online...well, Justin and Adriana are one of the success stories. They met online. They met in person. They fell in love. And as all love stories...theirs had a bit of a bumpy start. Now I should say not all love stories begin that way. But, I rather think that if you really think about it, most do, and for good reason...get all that silliness out, to let the relationship in.

So, Justin and Adriana did just that. They fought the odds. Long Distance, a cultural divide, a language difference and a little thing call insecurity reared its ugly head...but the two lovers found a way to get back to the relationship...and maybe they will now have time to devote to each other, their future...and I personally hope...some happiness...

For my two friends, who have proven that sometimes you simply must work out the bugs, and take that leap...Congratulations...and may your lives together bring joy, and most importantly...may that joy be shared with friends and community. We all need to share in it you know.

And although I once again...missed the happy occasion, I am not one to stay away from the celebration. So here is to the couple, who got out of their own way...and let love in.



You see you begin...the moment you decide to let love in.

and this is my favorite...to offer my advice...and hope.



I hope you dance...don't sit it out...

Love,
The Lass

so what is true love? well read on...

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.
—I Corinthians 13:4-8a (NIV)

Yes and more...

Love is best seen as devotion and action, not an emotion. Love is not exclusively based on how we feel. Certainly our emotions are involved, but they cannot be our only criteria for love. True devotion will always lead to action—true love.

Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with ACTIONS and in truth.
I John 3:18 (NIV)


So what is the difference between Love vs. toxic love?

1. Love - Development of self first priority.
Toxic love - Obsession with relationship.

2. Love - Room to grow, expand; desire for other to grow.
Toxic love - Security, comfort in sameness; intensity of need seen as proof of love (may really be fear, insecurity, loneliness)

3. Love - Separate interests; other friends; maintain other meaningful relationships.
Toxic love - Total involvement; limited social life; neglect old friends, interests.

4. Love - Encouragement of each other's expanding; secure in own worth.
Toxic love - Preoccupation with other's behavior; fear of other changing.

5. Love - Appropriate Trust (i.e. trusting partner to behave according to fundamental nature.)
Toxic love - Jealousy; possessiveness; fear of competition; protects "supply."

6. Love - Compromise, negotiation or taking turns at leading. Problem solving together.
Toxic love - Power plays for control; blaming; passive or aggressive manipulation.

7. Love - Embracing of each other's individuality.
Toxic love - Trying to change other to own image.

8. Love - Relationship deals with all aspects of reality.
Toxic love - Relationship is based on delusion and avoidance of the unpleasant.

9. Love - Self-care by both partners; emotional state not dependent on other's mood.
Toxic love - Expectation that one partner will fix and rescue the other.

10. Love - Loving detachment (healthy concern about partner, while letting go.)
Toxic love - Fusion (being obsessed with each other's problems and feelings.)

11. Love - Sex is free choice growing out of caring & friendship.
Toxic love - Pressure around sex due to insecurity, fear & need for immediate gratification.

12. Love - Ability to enjoy being alone.
Toxic love - Unable to endure separation; clinging.

13. Love - Cycle of comfort and contentment.
Toxic love - Cycle of pain and despair.

Love is not supposed to be painful. There is pain involved in any relationship but if it is painful most of the time then something is not working.

There is nothing wrong with wanting a relationship - it is natural and healthy. There is nothing wrong with wanting a relationship that will last forever - expecting it to last forever is what is dysfunctional. Expectations set us up to be a victim - and cause to abandon ourselves in search of our goal.

If we can start seeing relationships not as the goal but as opportunities for growth then we can start having more functional relationships. A relationship that ends is not a failure or a punishment - it is a lesson.

As long as our definition of a successful relationship is one that lasts forever - we are set up to fail. As long as we believe that we have to have the other in our life to be happy, we are really just an addict trying to protect our supply - using another person as our drug of choice. That is not True Love - nor is it Loving.

just my opinion...

Love,

The Lass

God whispered....and she listened...

Sometimes God's voice is very loud....like the lightening...then it is quiet...sometimes even silent. But when He speaks...he is love...and then He cradles me...sometimes He whispers...and I listen.

We all have moments of doubt, but if we are silent in our thoughts, and allow HIm in...his whispers are heard...and He cradles us....in love, and knowledge. In that love, we are never quite alone.

I have thought at times I was terribly alone...then He comes...to visit...just a soft inner voice, to let me know...even in the dark...I am not alone.

So when I think I have been forgotten, He comes...and He reminds me that I am just one of His many creations...and so...I remember to go silent...and listen...to the His whispers...The Father in Heaven...my hope...my love...and he cradles me...

He cradles us all...

Love, the Lass



"Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it."

Hoping that all those I love...have found it...and will enter the narrow gate.

I hate goodbyes...yet this one is the way....to say it

If you must say goodbye...say it this way.

Love,
The Lass

The Trojan Horse...in American Eduation

Dr. Samuel Blumenfield is an brilliant man. I read his book...and found his position on both the history and the direction of our schools to be compelling and relevant.

So every once in a while I look for his work...and I found it today.

Pearls of wisdom from a man you all should read. You may disagree, or it may make you think...which would be wonderful.

The latest from Sam:

Illiterate for life
Posted: April 04, 2008
1:00 am Eastern

© 2008

Jay Leno, in his amusing Jay Walking adventures, interviews young Americans whose appalling ignorance of history, geography and other areas of basic knowledge has become the subject of great hilarity. Many of them couldn't tell you who was buried in Grant's tomb.

But now we learn from across the pond that young Brits have been so dumbed-down that 23 percent of them believe that Winston Churchill was a mythical figure, and 58 percent believe that Sherlock Holmes was a real person.

According to the Boston Herald (Feb. 6, 2008), 77 percent of these clucks readily admit that they don't read history books, and three out of five never watch historical programs on television. Of course, the reason why they don't read history books is because they are functionally illiterate.

In fact, a new book, "The Great Reading Disaster," has just recently been published in England exposing the fact that young Brits are taught to read with the dyslexia-producing Whole Language method, which has also become the present ruin of American education.

(Column continues below)

The authors, Mona McNee and Alice Coleman, write: "Forcing children to read whole words by the look-say method is like telling young piano learners to play a piece in the correct tempo, without being taught the individual notes or the significance of their stave positions. … It is cruel to inflict such frustration on children, and the cruelty is not restricted to childhood. It is even more cruel and humiliating when it leaves people illiterate for life."

Even Margaret Thatcher couldn't get the educators to change their ways, though she appointed a Committee of Inquiry to investigate the teaching of reading in the schools. Apparently, the progressives were clever enough to pay lip service to phonics, ridiculing their advocates, but meanwhile continuing to support the whole-word method.

We've experienced the same situation here in the U.S. where No Child Left Behind was supposed to change the way reading is taught in American schools. In fact, a special billion-dollar reading initiative was passed by Congress to get phonics back into the schools. But the educators charged the government with a bias in reading instruction, which was discriminatory against whole-language educators. And from what I have been told by teachers in the field, whole language is still the dominant way reading is taught in American schools.

The two British authors write: "It took 40 years to produce the first 6 million adult illiterates but only another 10 to increase the total to 9 million. The annual rate has doubled."

And the reason why nothing will change despite the alarm sounded by this new book is because of the tight control the progressives have over the entire British education system. According to the Sunday Telegraph of June 27, 1993, the controlling cabal is called the All Souls Group, which holds its "clandestine thrice-yearly meetings" in an oak-paneled room at Oxford University.

No minutes are kept of the meetings, and no papers or public statements ever emerge. The discussions over evening sherry or dinner are protected by Chatham House Rules, which dictate proceedings are off the record. Chatham House is the British equivalent of our Council on Foreign Relations. Membership is by invitation and the criteria are shrouded in mystery.

Does such a secret education establishment exist in the United States? It does. It is called the Cleveland Conference and was organized in 1915 by professor Charles Judd, head of the University of Chicago School of Education, where William Scott Gray concocted the Dick and Jane look-say, whole-word, reading program. In his book, "Managers of Virtue," David Tyack writes:

[Judd] had a vision that both the structure of the schools and the curriculum needed radical revision but that change would take place "in the haphazard fashion that has characterized our school history unless some group gets together and undertakes, in a cooperative way, to coordinate reforms."

It is easy enough to follow the machinations of the progressives by simply reading the annual reports of the National Society for the Study of Education, founded in 1901. This is the gathering place of the educational elite, and their annual reports can be found in any university library.

For American parents, the only way to free themselves from the stranglehold of the progressive elite is to remove their children from the government schools and either educate them at home or place them in a private school based on traditional principles and teaching methods. As for the Brits, we hope that the new book awakens enough of them to break the hold of the All Souls Group. But don't hold your breath.


Another good read is Charlotte Thomson Iserbyt’s new book, “The Deliberate Dumbing Down of America,”

Now here is your assignment...read these two books and get back with me...


Love,
The Lass

Falun Gong

What is is Falun Gong?



Ok...so what is the Chinese government so afraid of?



What man fears...he destroys.

I need to speak to my young Chinese friend about this...I suppose that we all need to understand what we do not understand...and we need to be aware...so tonight, I am asking my friends...to join me in the question...Tragically, religious persecution still continues...good people cannot be silent.

Love,
The Lass

contemplating a move...

I can't say that I am a great one for moving, having lived in Alaska most of my adult life. However, the idea of staying in a place that doesn't fit me, also is something that I don't want to continue. So...an opportunity has come up...and that got me to act on it. Hopefully I will get the transfer, and move to an area...much more to my liking...

Now, if any of my friends, has any influence...please contact the powers that be. Well it can't hurt...now can it?

Here is to moving...making a move...and moving on...

Oh...and of course there is this...



I won't let the darkness in...what a journey it has been...

Where I'll be tomorrow...I can only guess!!!

Oh what a journey it has been...so join me in my little move...if the fates be kind...and Joe..let's me go...

Love,
The Lass

he's coming back...and I can't wait....who? Well Indie that is who

Yeah...he is coming back...and I can't wait.

Indiana Jones, and I am certainly a fan...but what of the crystal skulls?

Skulls are humanity's foremost symbol of death, and a powerful icon in the visual vocabularies of cultures all over the globe. Thirteen crystal skulls of apparently ancient origin have been found in parts of Mexico, Central America and South America, comprising one of the most fascinating subjects of 20th Century archeology.

These skulls, found near the ancient ruins of Mayan and Aztec civilizations (with some evidence linking the skulls with past civilization in Peru) are a mystery as profound as the Pyramids of Egypt, the Nazca Lines of Peru, or Stonehenge. Some of the skulls are believed to be between 5,000 and 36,000 years old.

Many indigenous people speak of their remarkable magical and healing properties, but nobody really knows where they came from or what they were used for.
Were they left behind after the destruction of a previous world, such as Atlantis? Are they simply ingenious modern fakes or can they really enable us to see deeply into the past and predict the future?

Much research is currently being done on the skulls. However, their origin is still a baffling mystery. They seem to defy logic. Everything that is known about lapidary work indicates that the skulls should have been shattered fractured, or fallen apart when carved.

so...fantasy...fact or mystery. I love a mystery. And the skulls are the stuff of myth. And so, the movie will explore a little of the myth...a little of the history...and we will become crystal skull fanatics...or at least the marketers of the movie would like that.

Me? Well I will of course explore the mystery. And simply enjoy the question...why did human beings decide to make the bloody things? And what is the connection? And what does it really mean? And what are the odds that they are independent acts of random artists? And....? Well you know me...there is an and...and an and...and well, I love a mystery.

oh...and here is Indie...God...I cannot wait for the adventure...are you ready for another ride? I am ...haha



oh...one more thing, from the other side...a little science does change the view...

Contrary to the belief held by many New Age devotees, something that will doubtless be enhanced by this summer's movie, none of the skulls appears to be ancient. Research by Dr Jane Walsh, of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, has shown that not only were modern tools used to shape them, but also many extant specimens can be traced back to the same Victorian fraudster.

Reporting on her 16 years of research in the American journal Archaeology, Walsh notes that “not a single crystal skull in a museum collection comes from a documented excavation, and they have little stylistic or technical relation with any genuine pre-Columbian depictions of skulls, which are an important motif in Mesoamerican iconography”.

The first crystal skulls made their appearance in the early 1860s: they are small, usually not more than one and a half inches high, and the first to be documented seems to be the one in the British Museum, with others appearing in Paris and Mexico City over the next decade or so. This “first generation” of skulls is drilled from top to bottom, and may have been made from genuine pre-Hispanic crystal beads, which are known from archaeological contexts in Mexico; some may have been made as a memento mori, carved for the European market, with no intention to deceive.

You see...sometimes a worm is just a worm. Maybe we just need to believe the worm is a mythical creature...who will wiggle it's way into our collective subconscious... as for me, well I love the myth. But need the science to keep me grounded.

What say you?

Love,
The Lass

the world as I see it...one of my friends is very smart...

But of course I knew that.

The name of my blog..."The world as I see it"...has something to do with a man named Einstein...yes indeed. And one of my wonderful friends called me and said..."you little vixen...haha" Well of course I am a little vixen. And this little vixen wanted to see how long it would take for one of my ne'er do well friends to find the conncetion...only almost a year. You are all forgiven. haha

and here is the rest of the story...


The World as I see it...by Albert Einstein 1931

If you read this essay then you will understand why I chose this...and look close...

"How strange is the lot of us mortals! Each of us is here for a brief sojourn; for what purpose he knows not, though he sometimes thinks he senses it. But without deeper reflection one knows from daily life that one exists for other people -- first of all for those upon whose smiles and well-being our own happiness is wholly dependent, and then for the many, unknown to us, to whose destinies we are bound by the ties of sympathy. A hundred times every day I remind myself that my inner and outer life are based on the labors of other men, living and dead, and that I must exert myself in order to give in the same measure as I have received and am still receiving...

"I have never looked upon ease and happiness as ends in themselves -- this critical basis I call the ideal of a pigsty. The ideals that have lighted my way, and time after time have given me new courage to face life cheerfully, have been Kindness, Beauty, and Truth. Without the sense of kinship with men of like mind, without the occupation with the objective world, the eternally unattainable in the field of art and scientific endeavors, life would have seemed empty to me. The trite objects of human efforts -- possessions, outward success, luxury -- have always seemed to me contemptible.

"My passionate sense of social justice and social responsibility has always contrasted oddly with my pronounced lack of need for direct contact with other human beings and human communities. I am truly a 'lone traveler' and have never belonged to my country, my home, my friends, or even my immediate family, with my whole heart; in the face of all these ties, I have never lost a sense of distance and a need for solitude..."
"My political ideal is democracy. Let every man be respected as an individual and no man idolized. It is an irony of fate that I myself have been the recipient of excessive admiration and reverence from my fellow-beings, through no fault, and no merit, of my own. The cause of this may well be the desire, unattainable for many, to understand the few ideas to which I have with my feeble powers attained through ceaseless struggle. I am quite aware that for any organization to reach its goals, one man must do the thinking and directing and generally bear the responsibility. But the led must not be coerced, they must be able to choose their leader. In my opinion, an autocratic system of coercion soon degenerates; force attracts men of low morality... The really valuable thing in the pageant of human life seems to me not the political state, but the creative, sentient individual, the personality; it alone creates the noble and the sublime, while the herd as such remains dull in thought and dull in feeling.

"This topic brings me to that worst outcrop of herd life, the military system, which I abhor... This plague-spot of civilization ought to be abolished with all possible speed. Heroism on command, senseless violence, and all the loathsome nonsense that goes by the name of patriotism -- how passionately I hate them!

"The most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious. It is the fundamental emotion that stands at the cradle of true art and true science. Whoever does not know it and can no longer wonder, no longer marvel, is as good as dead, and his eyes are dimmed. It was the experience of mystery -- even if mixed with fear -- that engendered religion. A knowledge of the existence of something we cannot penetrate, our perceptions of the profoundest reason and the most radiant beauty, which only in their most primitive forms are accessible to our minds: it is this knowledge and this emotion that constitute true religiosity. In this sense, and only this sense, I am a deeply religious man... I am satisfied with the mystery of life's eternity and with a knowledge, a sense, of the marvelous structure of existence -- as well as the humble attempt to understand even a tiny portion of the Reason that manifests itself in nature."


I rather think that had Albert and I met in life...we would have sat on a rock on a riverside. Shared our thoughts...and watched the river flow by...because you know, Albert knew what I know. Time is a relative thing.

Thanks to my good friend for making the connection...and to that end I leave breadcrumbs for you all to follow. Some do, and some...well you simply must join me and Albert in the mystery. And that my friends, is something that I wanted to share. I will keep sharing...as long as you keep reading.

Love,
The Lass

sensus fidelium

Literally the "sense of the faithful." Just as the Spirit infallibly guides the magisterium so that it doesn't propose teachings that would lead the whole Church into error, so there is a flip side to the infallibility coin: The faithful, as a whole, have an instinct or "sense" about when a teaching is—or is not—in harmony with the true faith.

But that is not the only thing it means...read on.

sensus fidelium

What is this sense we have of faith...where does this instinct come from? I think it comes from a source...not found in the material world...but in the soul...where the spirit of God...speaks...and if the soul is quiet...we listen.

I am concerned about this thing called spirituality. I am concerned because it is now mixed with Pop Culture...icons of the material world are now confused with the Tarot card reading...and tea leaves...are now the staple. Tolle and his ilk have millions jumping off cliffs into the abyss of nothingness...but together they fall...into this grave of minds gone mad on some elixir to fix what ails them.

Why is this happening? Because a generation of narcissists came together at this point in history...and it is their legacy that their children are now experiencing.

You see narcissistic people hold no regard for anything or anyone...but are in constant need of supply...like parasites feeding off of the life of others...never quite satisfied with the meal...hunting for new sources of "me fixes"...they have become legion...and they find each other in the electronic pond of the internet.

And so...slowly I look to Thoreau, and his pond...and I understand why he finally said...enough...enough of humanity...or lack of it.

So Oprah and her kind can have it...this little world of narcissism where a woman's picture will be on the cover...month after month...an image only she can love...with admiring lemmings to kneel at the alter...of a new prophet...for a new age...

But, you see there is one thing these people cannot do...that is, they cannot enter where they are not invited...like little vampires of myth...they stand outside the door waiting for you to invite them in....Don't...let them pass...and remember...they will be back...to feed...and like the vampire of myth...will attempt to "turn" you...so don't invite them in...

Join me instead at another pond...one that is affirming...one that includes sensus fidelium...a sense of the faith...and if you are there...nothing can disturb your peace...and nothing can disturb your faith.

Love,
The Lass

Oh...Zach...you have a voice....and what a voice

you simply must see this...and enjoy it...as it is the language of love...a language that transcends all things...culture, language and borders...Like I say...I love bridges...and Zach..you have built one with love...heart and soul...good to know you are here to inspire us.



And to all the Zach's...you are loved.

Love,
The Lass

Higher....oh yes indeed

I love this tune...and sometimes i just want to go higher...to a place where blind men see...

join me in enjoying the voice...the sound...that takes me higher...




oh yes indeed...

Let's go there...

Love,
The Lass

God..I love this tune.