Happiness

This is a picture of Brahma.....the Hindu creator.....the Hindu faith believes there is a part of Brahma in everyone.
see the legend below...It is beautiful......love, Michele


According to an old Hindu legend there was a time when all men were gods, but they so abused their divinity that Brahma, the chief god, decided to take it away from men and hide it where they would never again find it. Where to hide man's divinity became the big question.

When the lesser gods were called in council to consider this question, they said, "We will bury man's divinity deep in the earth." But Brahma said, "No, that will not do, for man will dig deep down into the earth and find it."

Then they said, "Well, we will sink his divinity into the deepest ocean." But again Brahma replied, "No, not there, for man will learn to dive into the deepest waters, will search out the ocean bed, and will find it."

Then the lesser gods said, "We will take it to the top of the highest mountain and there hide it." But again Brahma replied, "No, for man will eventually climb every high mountain on earth. He will be sure some day to find it and take it up again for himself."

Then the lesser gods gave up and concluded, "We do not know where to hide it, for it seems there is no place on earth or in the sea that man will not eventually reach."

Then Brahma said, "Here is what we will do with man's divinity. We will hide it deep down in man himself, for he will never think to look for it there." Ever since then, the legend concludes, man has been going up and down the earth, climbing, digging, diving, exploring, searching for something that is already in himself.

Happy Day!

The 19th century Polish poet Norwid wrote:"To be what is called happy,one should have something to live on, some- thing to live for,something to die for.The lack of one of these results in drama. The lack of two results in tragedy"

Pronk!!

above is a close up of Marko's favorite Indian player.
My dad took Marko and I out to dinner tonight to Houlihans at Southpark mall then took us to meet Travis Hafner.
Marko goes up to him and said" Hi Pronk."
Travis just laughed and said so what do you want for Christmas.......Marko said "well I want a lot of things."
He signed his hat....my dad took lots of pictures and we went home.
All the way home, Marko talked about meeting Pronk and how he is taking his hat for show and tell tomorrow.
the end.

good bye cheer

Mira said I could post this letter below.......She quit cheer yesterday related to being verbally abused at school when she was made to wear her uniform to school. (the above picture is what she is supposed to wear to school on game days during the winter months) She said she loves to cheer but doesn't want to put up with rude comments when she has to wear her little skirt to school.
Middle school boys can be pretty crude......so can girls.
Plus she said she is cold in the school and they are not aloud to wear anything on their legs because it is "tradition" to wear their uniform.
She was making me laugh....said the wrestlers don't have to wear their singlets to school and the volleyball girls don't have to wear their tight shorts to school......if they did they would be harassed too. Although I am sad that she quit because I enjoyed watching her cheer....I am proud of her standing up for what she feels is right.
She wanted the teacher to wear a little cheer skirt to school and see how comfortable she feels.
anyway, have a great day.
and see the note below
Love, Michele





December 11, 2007
Dear Mrs. Ryan,

This letter is to inform you of my decision to resign from the cheer squad. Yesterday we brought to Ms. Mihaloew’s attention our concerns regarding the demeaning way cheerleaders are treated at school and how we are abused and disrespected. We also brought to her our concerns about having to wear our uniforms to school on game days. We offered suggestions of other ways we could dress on game days (still representing the squad), but our concerns were not even considered. I feel like the school does not take us seriously, like we are just there as a joke. I’d like to suggest that in the future the school consider a more dance-focused cheer squad with modern uniforms, so maybe the school would take us more seriously and show us more respect. I’m sorry I was not able to finish the year out, but I have to go with what makes me happy. Please share this with Ms. Mihaloew.

Sincerely,
Mira Kuhar.

Pray for Peace

Pray for Peace

By Ellen Bass

Pray to whomever you kneel down to:
Jesus nailed to his wooden or marble of plastic cross,
his suffering face bent to kiss you,
Buddha still under the Bo tree in scorching heat,
Adonai, Allah. Raise your arms to Mary
that she may lay her palm on our brows,
to Shekinhah, Queen of Heaven and Earth,
to Inanna in her stripped descent.

Hawk of Wolf, or the Great Whale, Record Keeper
of time before, time now, time ahead, pray. Bow down
to terriers and shepherds and siamese cats.
Fields of artichokes and elegant strawberries.

Pray to the bus driver who takes you to work,
pray on the bus, pray for everyone riding that bus
and for everyone riding buses all over the world.
If you haven't been on a bus in a long time,
climb the few steps, drop some silver, and pray.

Waiting in line for the movies, for the ATM,
for your latte and croissant, offer your plea.
Make your eating and drinking a supplication.
Make your slicing of carrots a holy act,
each translucent layer of the onion, a deeper prayer.

Make the brushing of your hair
a prayer, every strand its own voice,
singing in the choir on your head.
As you wash your face, the water slipping
through your fingers, a prayer: Water,
softest thing on earth, gentleness
that wears away rock.

Making love, of course, is already a prayer.
Skin and open mouths worshipping that skin,
the fragile case we are poured into,
each caress a season of peace.

If you're hungry, pray. If you're tired.
Pray to Gandhi and Dorothy Day.
Shakespeare. Sappho. Sojourner Truth.
Pray to the angels and the ghost of your grandfather.

When you walk to your car, to the mailbox,
to the video store, let each step
be a prayer that we all keep our legs,
that we do not blow off anyone else's legs.
Or crush their skulls.
And if you are riding on a bicycle
or a skateboard, in a wheel chair, each revolution
of the wheels a prayer that as the earth revolves
we will do less harm, less harm, less harm.

And as you work, typing with a new manicure,
a tiny palm tree painted on one pearlescent nail
or delivering soda or drawing good blood
into rubber-capped vials, writing on a blackboard
with yellow chalk, twirling pizzas, pray for peace.

With each breath in, take in the faith of those
who have believed when belief seemed foolish,
who persevered. With each breath out, cherish.

Pull weeds for peace, turn over in your sleep for peace,
feed the birds for peace, each shiny seed
that spills onto the earth, another second of peace.
Wash your dishes, call your mother, drink wine.

Shovel leaves or snow or trash from your sidewalk.
Make a path. Fold a photo of a dead child
around your VISA card. Gnaw your crust
of prayer, scoop your prayer water from the gutter.
Mumble along like a crazy person, stumbling
your prayer through the streets.

happiness

Paramahansa Yogananda said: "If you want to be unhappy, no one in the world can make you happy. And if you determine to be happy, no one in the world will be able to make you unhappy."

'Lady With A Fan'

'Lady With A Fan'

Let my inspiration flow
in token lines suggesting rhythm
that will not forsake me
till my tale is told and done

While the firelight's aglow
strange shadows in the flames will grow
till things we've never seen
will seem familiar

Shadows of a sailor forming
winds both foul and fair all swarm
down in Carlisle he loved a lady
many years ago

Here beside him stands a man
a soldier by the looks of him
who came through many fights
but lost at love

While the storyteller speaks
a door within the fire creaks
suddenly flies open
and a girl is standing there

Eyes alight with glowing hair
all that fancy paints as fair
she takes her fan and throws it
in the lion's den

"Which of you to gain me, tell
will risk uncertain pains of Hell?
I will not forgive you
if you will not take the chance"

The sailor gave at least a try
the soldier being much too wise
strategy was his strength
and not disaster

The sailor coming out again
the lady fairly leapt at him
that's how it stands today
you decide if he was wise

The storyteller makes no choice 
soon you will not hear his
voice
his job is to shed light and not to master

Since the end is never told 
we pay the teller off in gold in hopes
he will come back 
but he cannot be bought or sold

-- words by Robert Hunter, music by Jerry Garcia

from 'Terrapin Station', 1977.

Divine Love and the Lotus

Macy took this picture.....one of my favorites.

Love, Michele

Divine love consumes everything. It consumes the mind completely. But sometimes the mind won’t understand. Let it be. Of what use is a mind if the mind doesn’t help you to achieve cosmic love? And, of what use is a heart if the heart can’t help you to love unconditionally? You must try to develop this. Make your heart a loving heart! Get rid of all this negativity which stops you. And make your mind as pure as the lotus.

The lotus is a symbol of purity and advancement. If you see where the lotuses grow, they always grow on muddy, dirty water. No matter how dirty the water is, the lotus makes its way up to the surface and opens up to be the most beautiful flower! So is man. It doesn’t matter where one is or how muddy it is, one will always have to make one’s way, and achieve the Purity of the lotus.

 — Shri Swami Vishwananda

Jerry Christmas

Fear

If a man harbors any sort of fear, it percolates through all his thinking,
damages his personality, makes him landlord to a ghost.

-- Lloyd C. Douglas

Sacred mystery

my friend, Mickey Hart




Life is the Sacred Mystery singing to itself,
dancing to its drum, telling tales, improvising,
playing and we are all that Spirit,
our stories all but one cosmic story
that we are love indeed,
that perfect love in me seeks the love in you,
and if our eyes could ever meet without fear
we would recognize each other and rejoice,
for love is life believing in itself.

...Manitongquat, Native American Poet

choosing happiness

A father had taken his son to a pet shop to buy him a puppy for a birthday present. "Decided which one you want?" he asked his son.

"Sure!" replied the boy, pointing to one puppy who was wagging his tail enthusiastically. “I want the one with the happy ending."

peeping santa

do you see a peeping santa in our OSU bathroom?
"He sees you when you're peeing. He knows if you wash your hands!!!
He knows if you've been bad or good so be good for goodness sake."

my daughters, my teachers

Mira took this picture from her bus in Washington D.C......they got to see a protest while they were there......they waited on the bus for over an hour while they marched by.
She got some really cool pictures. Love, Michele



Friday night we were coming home from Ruby Tuesday' where we celebrated my dad's 67Th birthday. I was saying that I did not want to invite this one cousin of mine to Christmas because she had relapsed and was smoking dope again and had quit school.....and that I was not going to get her a Christmas present this year.
After hearing that, Mira speaks up and says "mom that is not right...you are judging her behavior...she is still a good person inside. Just because she has made some wrong choices doesn't mean we should exclude her from Christmas."
Then Macy says " yeah mom....and just get her a t-shirt that says 'hugs not drugs' for a Christmas present."
so many times, I feel like the child and my kids are my teachers.