the storm seemed to grow in strength and fury
while the skies darkened and drew closer to earth
and the island's inhabitants fearing death and injury
turned on each other without reason, pity or mirth

and throughout it all stood the lighthouse, calm, serene
shedding light on each one without distinction or favor
some would be drawn to the waves and the frightening scene
while others ran toward its light, while helping a neighbor

And this quote probably says it much better than my sappy poem:

I'm not afraid of storms, for I'm learning how to sail my ship.

--Louisa May Alcott

When I'm unsure how to proceed, or I'm searching for inner strength or clarity I find it helps to write sometimes. Tonight I was thinking of all the unrest in our country and how it weighs on all of us (self included, for sure).

I've never liked Kinkade (the painter of the lighthouse above) that much, but somehow his little lighthouse painting inspired me and tonight. (Like I said, I'm a sap. ;-p)

I was also thinking about how (and why) we have been really getting into a lot of quarrels on this board lately, and how that ties into and discharges the tension we're feeling around the financial crisis and other things that are going on, on some unconscious level-- anything we don't want to look too closely at because it's scary. And I found this interesting quote about couples, but it could be about anybody:

One of the first things a relationship therapist learns is that couples argue to burn up energy that could be used for something else. In fact, arguments often serve the purpose of using up energy, so that the couple do not have to take the courageous, creative leap into an unknown they fear. Arguing serves the function of being a zone of familiarity into which you can retreat when you are afraid of making a creative breakthrough.

--Gay Hendricks

night night everybody!

Sharrhan:


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P.S.
I want to assure everyone that I have no hard feelings toward Al (elnatural) or cyclopsale. Bryan's choice to delete the thread,I believe needed to happen, but that was then and this is now, and pakd4fun (cy's aunt) and I have reached out to each other and had some wonderful conversations, and cy and I also have had a had a positive and friendly conversation on this board since then, and I expect we will have many more.

I love them both and I think we are all ready to move on together.

Thanks for the poem and your inspiration. I have been feeling some nervous tension about the future. I have also been feeling confused, with a deep urge to just make sense of everything. Yesterday I found myself just wishing that I could just see the situation clearly. I worry about the economic problems our nation is facing and what that means for myself and loved ones, who are currently struggling to make ends meet. Sometimes it takes crisis for people to collectively wake up and maybe this will be a catalyst for forging a new sustainable road ahead. The poem is what I needed, a reminder to stay grounded, clear headed and without fear.

:-) Thanks, Joanne. I'm glad it resonated with you.

Sharrhan:


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I, too, have been feeling some aprehension for the oncoming disaster. I think about it plenty, and I hope that I'm wrong, and that we won't go into a depression. But I know, as your poem and quote said, that if I keep strong and help others, then we can ride out the storm, and be much stronger for it.

She's a good ship, we can ride out the storm .

The People United can never be defeated!
And the whole World is wacthing

bill--

Agreed. I'm not freaking out, but it makes me sad-- all that greed and waste, and there will be some problems that will trickle down to Main Street too, but it'll be okay. 'It's time for the feudal lords to pay the light bill'-- it can't be deferred any longer. But I feel hopeful that this will be the beginning of a shift to much more sane, humane and reasonable ways of doing things in this country now that the rotten core of the current socio-political and monetary system is exposed for all to see.

On another note, I wonder why my photo disappeared.

Sharrhan:


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Photobucket probably deleted the painting photo because of a copyright infringement problem or something. Here's a better image I found by a hopefully obscure artist (unlike Kinkaid, who's famous) to go with the thoughts in the poem. I think it fits the mood of the nation right now even better than the Kinkiad painting:

awesome Kwan .. just awesome

...Jodi, the banana eating buddhist

i used to be able to relate to the stormy waters more than to the lighthouse

but then i realized that the lighthouse is not calm unless it is tested under stormy waters

then looking back in the past
i realized that as long as the lighthouse kept standing

then i was the lighthouse too

cuz i'm still standing

storm, light light storm

they complement each other

Well kwan - let me admit I've been a fan of yours since first seeings your posts.

Whether or not I agree with you on every issue matters not because you are tolerant, forgiving and I'm sure you'd be safe to disagree with.

Thanks for the message while storms brew.

Someone once gave me a book of Thomas Kindade's paintings. I gave it to someone who would like it better because I felt at the time that the pictures were too perfect for me. But I did admit they were beautiful.

Kit

Hi Kit,
Thank you! <<hug>> I've always loved your posts too, because your kindly nature shines through all of them.

Sharrhan:


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kit says:

<<Someone once gave me a book of Thomas Kindade's paintings. I gave it to someone who would like it better because I felt at the time that the pictures were too perfect for me. But I did admit they were beautiful.>>

how very interesting

yeah, his paintings ARE "perfect"

and i can't seem to relate very well to them

but i do relate to the stormy ocean pictures very VERY well

i used to have a fetish around storm photos

cuz that is how i always felt

but i feel less stormy nowadays

more like a squall of rain blithering and dancing across

shafts of sunlight