What's The End Goal?

"To want for nothing" ... that's the end goal, right?  Interesting how these words can take on such a diverse meaning, depending upon your unique perspective as you journey through this life ...

materialism, spiritualism or something in the middle?

 



Jelly Bean Jars

I remember those guessing games we used to play when I was a kid.  A teacher or parent at a party filled a jar with candy --jelly beans, candy corns, butterscotch, M&Ms-- and then the kids would have to guess how many of a given item there were in the jar.  I don't know why, but I always wound up winning those jars?  Guess, I am highly attuned  when it comes to spatial awareness and visualizing objects.  I've always had a thing for numbers too ... often times I have an easier time memorizing someone's license plate or telephone number over their name.  Odd, right?  But that's me in a nutshell.

 

Anyway, I've found it amusing to watch my blog slowly tick its way along to 100,000 page views.  Kind of like those jars full of jelly beans when I was a kid.  About six months ago my blog hit 60,000 page views.  At the time, I thought it would be cool to log in to witness the exact 60,000 page view and as luck would have it -- logging in 1-2 times each day-- I did watch the counter turn to 60,000 right on the money.  I hadn't really thought too much about when my blog would roll over to 100,000 mark. ... too much going on for me these days.  Guess, I was kind of hoping that I'd turn 100,000 before year's end, but never expected it'd be this soon. I'm at  99,862  page views tonight and likely tomorrow or the next day I'll be at 100,000.  What a ride? ; )  Other people must need a place to reflect and clear their heads as well.  So much is going on in our world these days, isn't there?  Sometimes it's hard to find a quiet moment to stop and take it all in.

A special thanks to the Blogger team for providing such awesome, cutting-edge tools for sharing thoughts and ideas in today's technological world.  You all are amazing and truly appreciated!! 

~M

Over 6,000 attend memorial service for fallen firemen

"The tragedy was the greatest loss of life from a U.S. wildfire in 80 years, and the highest number of American firefighters killed in a single incident since the September 11, 2001, attack on the World Trade Center in New York." ~Reuters.com

Memorial Local Fundraiser

May God Bless the souls of the nineteen brave firefighters being laid to rest in Arizona today. 
The fallen firefighters were members of the Granite Mountain ("Hotshots") Fire Department, an elite firefighting squad from Prescott, Arizona.  They were overrun by flames on the afternoon of June 30 while battling a lightning-sparked fiery blaze outside the tiny town of Yarnell, in central Arizona.

May God also bless and comfort the families, friends and loved ones of these brave firemen left behind, especially the little children.  The nation mourns with you, with many heartfelt thoughts and prayers being sent your way.


You really have to admire the men and women --such as the fallen firemen being honored today-- who are brave enough to put self momentarily aside ... brave enough not only to look directly into the eye of a fiercely raging storm, but brave enough to step forward and say "Look out storm, cause here I come!" ... Think these men and women represent what is truly great in this U.S. nation of ours.  I had recently written (elsewhere) this Independence Day was not the usual source of inspiration, pride and renewal of my faith & hope for a bright future in the United State of America as a nation that it usually is for me each year.  I think these fallen firemen and their comrades who survived from the Granite Mountain Fire Department ... such brave men and women fearlessly answering the call to serve so that the lives of others would be spared ... have renewed my hope and faith in this nation of ours once again.  The fearlessness of brave men and women, such as these, and their unselfish willingness to put others first exemplifies what makes our nation truly great.

They Have No Right to Store Our Private Data for Potential "Future Use"!

I still say NO-OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO to storing our data.  Even if "future access" requires a court ordered warrant in order to "legally view and use" this data.  Storing our --private U.S. citizen's-- data (phone conversations, emails, on-line media transactions and postings) is a violation of our constitutional right to privacy that goes way beyond the original intent of the Patriot Act.  The Patriot Act (enacted in the aftermath of 9/11) proved to be sufficient in keeping the U.S. and her citizens within the borders of the United States safe under the Bush Administration.  I fail to see the need or justification for this subsequent intrusive and secretive expansion of data collection for intelligence purposes, in not just scope but depth as well, that has taken place under the Obama Administration.  The government has no absolutely NO RIGHT to store my personal data and quite frankly I don't trust them in doing so --that is to say:  I do not trust in the government's ability to keep my private data safe. 

I am all for keeping Americans safe, but I won't willingly surrender my constitutional right to privacy in order for government to do so.  The latter being said, I am okay with the government providing sufficient grounds for probable cause and then legally obtaining a narrow and specifically targeted court-issued warrant to conduct a "targeted search of private citizen's data".  This was the intent of the original Patriot Act.  The current NSA surveillance program still operates under the original "USA Patriot Act", which was renewed in 2006 and again in 2011 (according to the "Seattle Times" newspaper).  Recent revelations about NSA spying on private citizens, secretly accessing and storing our private data --which they have not denied doing!*--  however, clearly demonstrate that the NSA has overstepped their original mandate, as outlined by the Patriot Act.  Now that the truth about the scope and depth of the current NSA surveillance program is thankfully out in the open:  It is up to us, "We the People", to demand some answers, along with a thorough congressional evaluation of the current expanded NSA surveillance program in order to verify that this program is not operating outside the scope of the "USA Patriot Act".  We need to put accountability in government back onto the table in order to ensure the constitutional rights of "We the People" to privacy are not surrendered and trampled upon moving forward, ever mindful of the fact that once we willingly surrender our constitutional rights we will never truly be able to get them back once again.


*In testimony to Congress yesterday NSA director, Gen. Alexander, when asked if the NSA has the ability "to listen to private citizens' phone calls and to read private citizens' emails" responded with an ambiguous ... "No ... No.  We do not have that authority."  We know the NSA does not have the "authority" to access this data without a court-issued warrant, but the question was does the NSA have the ability to access this data and the general clearly skirted the question with his answer.

And furthermore, does the NSA think that members of Congress and "we the people" are stupid?  If they're not storing our private data (phone conversations, emails, on-line media transactions and postings), then what the heck (feel free to substitute a more feeling expletive!) do they need the new $40 million data storage facility ("Dark Star"), in Salt Lake City UT --capable of storing multiple years worth of the entire internet's traffic in their entirety-- for????????????

Once we willingly give it up: we're never going to get it back!

In today's high tech, digital world there really is no such thing as true 'privacy'.  I've always known and accepted this on some level.  Forgoing a certain level of privacy is just the price we pay for this technology we all seem to be addicted to.  The latter being said, you can't spend all your time worrying about invasions into your personal privacy, right?  You just have to live a good, relatively clean life, and hope that there is just so-oooooooo much information out there that you and yours will remain forever lost in the echoes.

Myself, aside from a lot of pain, I've got nothing to hide.  I would rather some people who hurt me from my past were never able find me again, but I know in my heart that if they truly wanted to they could find me once again.  I guess, for the time being, we should be thankful our own private thoughts (ones inside our head) still remain our very own, right?  After all, the United States is supposed to be one of the greatest nations on the planet and the current U.S. government administration claims that it is ... has been, will remain ... the "most transparent administration in the history of the U.S.", so we U.S. citizens have nothing to worry about?

Or so we thought ... In light of recent revelations regarding "data collecting" of U.S. citizens' private information (i.e., phone records, emails, and other social media messaging and posted digital content) for "future use as needed" by way of a government surveillance program known as PRISM, I'd have to say the table have now turned on an epic scale.  And bonus there a new NSA data storage facility will be coming on-line shortly in Salt Lake City, Utah.  This data storage facility will be called "Dark Star" and it will be capable of storing yottabytes worthof digital data --where one yottabyte contains more than an entire year's worth of internet traffic!  In light of these new developments coming into the light  I'd have to say that "transparent" has come to take on a whole new meaning, with transparent now being turned onto you and me, private citizens of the U.S. A.  When the author of the original "Patriot Act" comes out saying that the U.S. government has overstepped its mandate on a grand scale, in this particular instance, you know the world has truly gone mad.  Maybe I'd better not even mention a recent article I read about government funded studies into the science of mind-reading ... "1984", here we come?

Don't get me wrong, I fully understand that we live in a world where terrorism has literally come to our front doorstep. As such, the methods our government uses to combat this virulent terrorism have changed.  I was okay with the original Patriot Act, after careful consideration of the facts pertaining to this law as originally written within the scope of the initial use.  Interesting piece of history:  this idea breathed into life back in 2004, in the hospital room of then Attorney General John Ashcroft.  The original program started in 2001 after 9/11 ... But this current revelation about the depth and scope of our government's spying on and storing of citizens' private, personal information in the form of phone records, conversations, emails and other on-line social media content and transactions crosses a line.  These actions clearly show our government's ability to dip into the lives of its private citizens without due process of law has really gotten out of control, grossly deviating from the Patriot Act's original mandate!   With this mass storing of our private information "for potential future use" there is no more protection from "unreasonable search and seizure" or any guarantee of "due process of law" because the previous requirements to get a court order before obtaining this type of data have now effectively been eliminated  as the government already has all our data!  And we citizens are just supposed to trust that government or individuals with the security clearance to access our data –perhaps with their own private agendas (e.g., political targeting, black-mail, etc.)-- won't use or abuse our personal data and completely trample on our individual rights to privacy?   

By accepting egregious overreach on the part of our government, without question, we, as Americans, will essentially have effectively given up our right to true any privacy, both now and in the future, in my humble opinion.  Once we surrender this power to the federal government we will we never truly be able to get it back!  This is an important point to make and consider, so I will repeat the latter:  Once we, as citizens, willingly surrender our right to privacy to the federal government, on such a grand scale, we will we never truly be able to get it back!  So now is the time to become informed, think this whole thing through and ACT!  I have to wonder which scares me more:  our government secretly overstepping its original mandate, as dictated by the Patriot Act, or U.S. citizens complacency in responding to this violation of power and privacy?  Is not our right to privacy one of the greatest, hard-won, and globally-speaking relatively unique freedoms we have as citizens of the United States of America?  A freedom that used to make the U.S.A. one of the greatest nations on earth …  And we are now somehow okay with just surrendering this freedom in name of an appearance of enhanced security????!!!!???  Yeah, I don’t think so!  Show me the 'money' (proof) and then maybe we’ll talk.  Keep in mind, this “enhanced security” did absolutely nothing to alert authorities to or to prevent the recent terror attack at the Boston Marathon this past Spring 2013.

Is it just me or are the opportunities for abuse in this blanket PRISM monitoring and subsequent data storage scenario unwieldy and wholly unacceptable?  I mean, if any analyst --even a government contractor, not directly a government employee under direct government oversight-- conceivably has the ability, and not necessarily the legal right or due process directive, to target any individual citizen are we then just supposed to trust that they (or god forbid others using them to gain access to private citizens’ information) will simply choose not do so?  That’s absolutely insane!

Given the facts to date, the important question now becomes:  what will we, as U.S. citizens and elected government officials, do about this egregious violation of our constitutional rights to privacy?  And will this action on our part be decisive and timely (unlike all previous responses to affronts on our civil liberties by this current administration) or will we just wind up letting things s-l-i-d-e, yet again, this time around as well?  Remember, once we let these hard-won constitutional rights go, getting them back once again will be next to impossible, so now is the time to become informed, think this whole thing through and ACT!  The way I see it, timing here is of the essence and letting this one "SLIDE" is simply NOT AN OPTION.  It is time for accountability in U.S. government to be put back onto the table ... We've been on the slippery slope for too long now and the landslide is coming.  The Patriot Act was one thing, PRISM and Dark Star are another matter entirely.  What’s more, given the fact that the latter violations to our privacy did absolutely nothing to stop the recent terrorist attack at the Boston Marathon speaks to the fact that surrendering more of hard-won civil liberties is not the way forward in our efforts to combat terrorists.  You have to draw the line somewhere and I say we draw the line at the Patriot Act, requiring court-issued warrants in order to store and access private citizen’s personal data.

And yes, the fact that this particular contractor to the U.S. government --not even a direct government employee -- had access to the intelligence information he says he did --and therein may lie the key-- does make you scratch your head and wonder why our national security secrets are so widely available and unprotected.  That being said, the lack of security w.r.t. to our national security secrets is another matter entirely:  a matter which sorely needs to be addressed, if true, but addressed in another conversation altogether.   And the fact that our government can't even safeguard information w.r.t. our vital national security secrets does not go a long way toward giving me any further confidence in the government’s ability to safeguard my personal information w.r.t. to phone calls, emails, and other digital transactions.

P.S.  This data-mining revelation kind of paints Microsoft's new "Skydrive: 7GB free cloud-drive storage for everyone", Flickr's photo sharing recent "A FREE terabyte of storage for everyone!", and Google's long running slogan of "With 1GB of free storage who ever needs to delete an email?" ... in a whole new light, doesn't it?  Help populate the database with useful data, you clueless citizens?  Our grandparents' were right:  there truly is no free-lunch, go figure .... And what about possible ramifications for limiting the field of potential candidates to run for political offices with everyone's skeletons now just a click of a few buttons away?  Some scary stuff if you stop for a moment and take a look at the BIG picture.

What makes a nation truly great?

See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil.   Truth ultimately lies in perception?  Think the fundamental questions we should be asking ourselves right now, in the light of revelations surrounding our government's most recent transgression, is:  "What makes a nation truly great?"  And have we, as citizens of this nation, seriously lowered the bar for "great" here in the United States of America if we are willing to allow this ever-growing encroachment upon our basic civil liberties (e.g., airline travel body scanners & groping body pat-downs, Obama-care, civilian drone monitoring and now NSA monitoring/long-term data storage of our private phone conversations, emails and other electronic data without a prior court-issued specific warrant to store this data for future potential access) and a lack of accountability in our government at-large (Benghazi, Department of Homeland Security stock-piling mountains of ammunition and now an IRS scandal) to continue ... And these are just the offenses that have come into the light. 

Doesn't any reasonable person have to wonder, given what we know, what is the size and scope of all that we do not know?  Where do you draw a line and when is enough, enough??  Perhaps a more useful exercise would be to remove President Obama from the equation and insert President George W. Bush in Obama's place.  What would we be doing in any of the previous situations if George W. Bush was at the helm right now and are we taking the same unbiased approach when addressing present circumstances?

"How does the Republican Party go about attracting younger voters?"

It's been awhile since I have actually felt like writing about politics, but a recent discussion topic on the current events news show "The Five" caught me eye and got me to wondering ... which always gets me into trouble, but I digress ....

The question was:  "How does the Republican Party go about attracting younger voters?"


I love Greg Gutfeld, co-host of "The Five".  Yesterday, on the show --I happened to have time to watch for a change-- as the discussion topic above began Eric Bolling stated, rather matter-of-factly, that Republican candidates "need to return to their conservative roots" ... to which Greg replied "We had {a whole field} of conservative candidates this past election and they sucked!" Too funny, but true. You can always count on Mr. Gutfeld to tell it like it is.  The Republican candidates in the 2012 Primary cycle started out strong and then blew themselves up on the land-mines of conservative moral convictions.

Personally, I think that the key to attracting younger voters into the Republican party is for the conservative base to tone down their exclusionary rhetoric and to get a grip on the difference between holding a moral conviction and the infliction of those personal beliefs onto others.  A citizen has every right to believe and act upon their personal moral convictions, in their own lives, but they do not have the right to force their beliefs as such onto others unless these beliefs are the "Will of the people" and thereby accordingly become the "law of the land" as enacted by Congress ... After all, our government is supposed to be a government of "We the people":  ALL people, not just people who happen to believe the way you do.  In my humble opinion, a failure to recognize and speak to the latter on behalf of the Republican field of candidates alone --and the party at-large-- is what cost the Republican Party the White House in the 2012 election.

I also happen to agree with Greg Gutfeld when he speaks about the need for a "Libertarian revolution to sweep across the college campuses" of our nation, ushering in a return to revolutionary times of the times of late 60's - 70's --maybe just minus the drugs and other violent/counter-productive behaviors.  We need a revolutionary-like surge to re-invigorate younger voters, to help motivate them to find a driving belief in something (anything!) as opposed to just settling for being beat-down by the stagnant state of the accepted status quo our nation seems to have settled into these past few years. These days, upon graduation, college-degree holding graduates must often return to waiting tables and living in their parents basement once again, with the added bonus bonus of having accumulated thousands of dollars in student loan debt while having no viable career prospects in their immediate futures.  But shouldn't these same students at least be putting up a fight and demanding more from the rapidly vanishing "American Dream"? Perhaps the Republican Party can help to re-establish a driving belief in the notion that "we the people" can truly create a better, leaner, more efficient government that will finally succeed in bringing back much needed jobs to the United States, while earnestly working to increase our nation's competitive edge in order to create new-age/tech jobs, jobs that would extend way beyond the repeatedly pushed narrative of "employment opportunities provided by infrastructure revitilization" we've heard --with very little resultant actual opportunity, in terms of jobs-- time and again, over the course of the past decade.  With a new market for high demand tech and related jobs, we should see a subsequent substantial increase in GDP, which we can then begin to use toward the end of diligently addressing the growing (by thousands of dollars with each passing minute) need eliminate the current legacy of generations upon generations of inherited national debt.  The latter being said, any awakening belief that sparks hope for a rebuilding of our nation, on multiple levels, would be preferable to the general apathy and malaise of political-correctness and "safe-space" coddling that we are  currently seeing sweep across college campuses throughout the nation today.

In today's tech savvy global world, younger voters are especially more willing to dig deeper and to search multiple sources for information before forming an opinion on any given issue.  This could also be a function of the fact that they are just better and more widely connected in today's "social media"/information-access world. Younger voters are therefore exposed to a wider field of diverse viewpoints and this, perhaps, makes them more open to considering alternate viewpoints, thereby straying from 'traditional' party lines ... Unlike older generations of voters who often readily adopted --most often without questioning the merits of the adopted beliefs, particularly w.r.t. changing times-- the views of their family members and/or religious affiliations w.r.t voting and national issues  [A notable exception being opposition to the Vietnam War].  That is to say, while older voters often inherited their voting preferences, the younger voters of today want to get at a version of the "truth" before forming their opinions on a wide range of issues facing citizens and voters in our nation today.  This means these younger voters are going to be harder to sell when it comes to accepting the traditional Republican Party platform.

Image Source

The Republican Party may have the best engine when it comes to fixing economic woes facing our nation, but if the Republican Party can't bend a little and adapt to changing times by exercising a willingness to rethink and repackage their message in an inclusive (vs. exclusive ... e.g., contraception) 'car body' for their economic engine:  then their "car ain't gonna drive" and the Republican Party will sadly be doomed to fail in round 3 as well.



P.S.  Before you judge me or write me off all-together w.r.t. my opinions posted above, let me just say this ...  Contrary to what you might think --per my more recent posts-- I am still a Christian ... I am just not an intolerant or a judgmental one, not that I have ever been intolerant or judgmental:  I am just now finding my own voice --this past year or so-- to speak out against the latter negative --yet somehow, still widely accepted--  aspects of "Christianity" as I do not find these traits to be truly of Christ or Christian in nature.  To my way of thinking Jesus was all about Peace, Love and Understanding, traits which run counter to the very nature of intolerance and judgment.  As Christians we should lead by example ... love, nurture and care for others in need unconditionally.  From what I have witnessed in my own personal life, it is this "unconditional" part that most Christians have trouble with, especially when it comes to resisting the temptation to force one's own moral convictions and personal beliefs upon others that we encounter in life.  In matters of a spiritual nature our choices must be made, felt and truly processed in the heart and mind of each individual for only then can true spiritual enlightenment and advancement of the soul along the path of our journey home to our Creator occur. The latter meaning simply that fear and coercion --forced or otherwise-- are not instrumental toward the end of spiritual enlightenment and advancement of the immortal soul along our journey home.  I have written several pieces (here in this blog) on contraception and other related topics if you are interested in truly opening your heart and mind in order to consider another valid point of view.

Don't forget ...

Don't forget to pause for a few moments each day and look UP ...

"Dance Across the Sky"

@Copyrighted 2013.  All Rights Reserved:  Isabelle Black Smith.

The rest speaks for itself.   ~M

P.S.  Looking at this sunset --and the one before it-- I am reminded that God colors 'outside the lines' too. 

Thoughts & Prayers in the aftermath of Tornados

My thoughts and prayers go out to all those impacted by the recent bout of tornados sweeping through Texas and Oklahoma.  May God especially Bless and watch over the families who have lost loved ones to these storms.  May those who have lost homes find their way to healing and the resources they need in order to begin the process of re-building.

I saw on a friend's Facebook page this evening how a community is coming together to donate clothes, food and other essential items to storm victims in nearby towns via a school gym at a local elementary school.  Also saw postings for important items found in an effort to identify and reunite them with their rightful owners:  a high school sports letter jacket ... a camera with photographs of a new baby delivered in the hospital not long ago.  Kind of renews your faith in your fellow man to see such an outpouring of love and support.  God Bless one and ALL!

Image Source

(A close match for my recollection of my father's painting and the image,

in my own mind, of the actual twister from my porch-side view)

Thankfully, thus far, my family and friends in Texas and friends in Oklahoma have survived these storms without any major damage.  I actually remember witnessing a tornado, firsthand and up-close, when I was 5 years old, living in Oklahoma.  To the best of my recollection the tornado I witnessed back then was huge, muddy-grey in color and spiraling madly in the not far-off distance from our home in Stillwater.  For some reason, at the time, I had been sitting on the front porch of our old house eating dried cheerios, while my father attempted to paint --onto canvas-- the spiraling beast dancing about before us.  This particular tornado was probably about a mile or two away from us at the time, so we probably weren't in any immediate danger.  I remember watching this twister move across the landscape, uprooting everything in its path and spewing debris back out with a vengeance.  I was too young at the time to fully comprehend that I should have been afraid of this tornado.  I can still see this twister spiraling about before me in my mind, as if the cyclone were right in front of me in this very moment.  I recall feeling the immense energy ... the power and intensity wielded by this storm.  That tornado was definitely a force of nature to be reckoned with, showing no mercy whatsoever to those unfortunate enough to be caught within its grasp.  The randomness of the funnel's motion, its indiscriminate behavior in selecting targets still strikes me with a confounding significance even to this very day.  I remember watching the tornado funnel work its way right towards us ... and I even have a vague recollection of my mother --clutching my baby sister in her arms-- calling for my dad and me to get off the porch and under the house into the safety of the storm shelter as the twister closed the distance on us ... but just when it seemed as if this twister was going to come right down the street, to swallow up my house --and even then fear had not found its way into me-- the writhing fury suddenly decided it would instead take a ninety degree turn and head off in another direction all-together.  So I never did have to go down into that storm shelter, and my father's painting turned out pretty cool from what I am able to recall of it.  I guess we were some of the lucky ones that summer evening so long ago?

Sky's on FIRE!

"We are all connected"

@2010 Copyrighted Image: Isabelle Black Smith.  All Rights Reserved.

Figured my page here could use a bit of color.  Revisiting one of my favorite summer sunsets.  Clouds up here are definitely alive!  I love looking up; finally warm enough to lay in the cool grass and day dream.  God writes his messages in the sky, I think.  Well, wherever you happen be in your life: just remember you're not alone ... somehow we are all connected.  Scenes like this one remind me of this 'connectivity' we all share.  God Bless and Happy Mother's Day to all of the wonderful moms out there!   ~M


P.S.  Praying for the workers who lost their lives --and families left behind-- in recent building collapse of a factory in Bangladesh.  I am a bit slow getting news when I shut myself off to focus on writing.  May God Bless them, one and all.  I sincerely hope all companies choosing to do business with clothing factories in this country do sign-on to support the new safety standards and inspections.  Last I have heard, Walmart --here in the U.S.-- is holding out because of cost concerns to their bottom line.   Don't think Walmart will be getting anymore of my business should they choose not to support this life-saving initiative.

Inspiration comes in all shapes and sizes ...

Yes, inspiration truly comes in all forms, shapes and sizes ... often chancing upon the gentle winds of serendipity. I love it when I am able to take an insult and spin it into a positive light, perhaps in that respect despite all of the hardships I've suffered in my personal life, I have somehow retained my childlike innocence?  Maybe there's hope for me yet?

Music is a major source of inspiration for me.  I'm listening to Dylan again tonight.  I'm not sure why, but Bob Dylan's music feels like a piece of home to me ... A really big piece.  Think if I had to give up all music and I could only pick one artist's music to keep in my life it would probably have to be Dylan for me.  Then again, maybe that's just the place I am at in my life right now?  At other times, I'd probably say Jimi Hendrix felt like 'home'.  How about you?  Who's the artist you simply could not live without?

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P.S.  Dylan seems to help fend off headaches as well ... No joke, I had a bad headache coming on one evening and 45 minutes of soothing Dylan songs later --with no pills-- and my headache was completely gone.  Gotta love it!   

Thoughts on 'Nothingness'

 

“It occurs to me that my present endeavor to complete another novel is, in truth, ‘nothingness’ until it reaches its completion.  For only upon the actual completion of and sharing of my story will it bear any worldly merit.  From the latter perspective, the undertaking of the endeavor to write a novel is perhaps painted in rather a daunting, if not outright unfavorable light then, is it not?  Surely such a task is not to be undertaken by the faint of heart, or those who be in constant need of worldly recognition.  Furthermore, given the limited likelihood of widespread acceptance and recognition in the event of actual completion, the payoff for the completion of a novel, in and of itself, is not much of an incentive for embarking upon such a potentially fruitless undertaking in the first place, is it?  So perhaps, the writer … much like all other forms of artisan … is in a very real sense ‘mad’ from the world’s  perspective just for having entertained the notion of beginning to create his art, in the form of written words residing within a novel, in the first place.  The writer is labeled ‘mad’ even before he begins his task and so he remains long after, until he breeches the waters of his works completion.  For it be only upon delivery of the finished work that the poor writer has any chance of surrendering his cap of ‘madness’ for that of true ‘artist’, or if he be truly lucky:  celebrated ‘genius’.  The latter being said, it also occurs to me, that in the process of endeavoring to create the ‘tangible’ –that which the world is capable of grasping on some generally base level of understanding—I am weaving a wealth of tapestry in an understanding of exploration into thoughts, emotions, ideas … making unique connections and insights along the way which will become the very threads of this woven tapestry of exploration … my tapestry of exploration.  And while the latter process is by worldly standards ‘intangible’, I find it immensely ironic that when my body ceases to house this spirit knowing that is the true me –whether my written efforts meet with worldly approval in the end or not-- my ‘intangible’ tapestry will clothe me on my journey into the next life --my reincarnation, if that be the will of our Creator.  Suddenly, in a spiritual sense, the ‘immaterial’ becomes ‘material’.“ ~Isabelle Black Smith

 @Copyrighted, April 2013, Isabelle Black Smith and Michelle C. of whatplanetareyoulivingon . blogspot . com.  All Rights Reserved.

Think I’ve just written the forward/introduction to my novel?  Thank you to whoever prompted my thoughts on the topic of ‘nothingness’ in the first place.  You know who you are.

Humbly resigned to prayer ...

I have been praying for those directly affected by the Boston Marathon terror attack. I am still trying to wrap my mind around this senseless tragedy and I just haven’t gotten there yet, thus I find myself at a loss for words. I have said before “Do not speak unless you can improve upon the silence” and as, at present, I am unable to offer any ‘improvement’ upon silence:  I have not spoken.  This time, I think I’ll leave the words of wisdom to others and just humbly resign myself to prayer. God Bless one and all and may He help us to find our way to peace and healing.

A reminder to remain humble ....

A reminder for me to remain humble these past few days in revisiting many of my teary-eyed, late night, sleep-deprived writes of years gone by.  Someone has been reading here extensively --particularly my older posts-- these past few days, off and on, and that's okay, really.  It's just humbling to read over my words of old and see how much I have grown and changed since then.  It's all good though.  I'm moving forward, even if I happen taken to take two steps backward from time to time. That's all part of the journey towards enlightenment, right? Anyhow, May  God Bless you, whoever you are, reader(s).

April is Child Abuse Prevention and Sexual Abuse Awareness Month

A fellow blogger, Linda Garner, has written a wonderful post for this month of awareness.  I couldn't do a better write-up myself, so I will just provide a link to her page.  Linda makes one very important point in her write-up that I will take a moment to reiterate:  this type of abuse can only be prevented and eradicated if people educate themselves, open their eyes to truly see and speak out for those who are unable to speak for themselves.

Preventing Abuse Is Everyone's Job, By Linda Garner

Image Source

 

May God bless all the "invisible" girls and boys and give them their wings so they can

fly away to safer ... better ... brighter days.

  

 

Perhaps after you have this discussion (in Linda's post) with your own children you can make a white pinwheel to place in your yard as a symbol of Light and Hope for a boy or girl in need of your light, prayers and wherever possible your voice.  The "Image Source" link above will take you to a page with detailed instructions for how to make your own pinwheel.