I am Poem by Mira

I Am Poem

By
Mira


I am unique and special.

I wonder what high school will be like.

I hear my friends talking all around me.

I see my favorite color on my binder.

I want an awesome hot pink laptop.

I am unique and special.



I pretend that I like chores.

I feel like I’m where I’m supposed to be.

I touch the warm earth below me.

I worry that I am not safe sometimes.

I cry when something happens to someone I love.

I am unique and special.



I understand that I am not a little kid anymore.

I say that people should all get along.

I dream that someday I can be a teacher.

I try to get good grades.

I hope for world peace some day.

I am unique and special.

Once In Awhile You Get Shown The Light In The Strangest Of Places If You Look At It Right!!!!

This is a picture of a friend Mark and I made at a Greatful Dead show a few years ago...I think it was actually in Columbus on Aug. 9th...the anniversay of Jerry's death....... Anyway, his name is Roger Downs. He is a very cool guy. below is a picture of his artwork that he donated to his hometown and a brief article about him and a link to his my space. thanks for shining your light Roger and making the world a better place!!!!


Roger has been invariably fascinated with all things mechanical from his earliest experiences on his grandfather’s farm, working in his father’s cabinet shop and in the U.S. Army Engineers. He is inspired by his love for classic cars, trucks and motorcycles. He is also a musician. Roger enjoys playing many different styles of music being a skilled drummer and percussionist. As a drummer, Roger has developed not only custom drum stands, but a line of chimes based on found objects.
His love of nature is evident in many of his pieces, but as Roger notes “no sculpture can ever beat natures design”.
An affinity for camping, especially in the Hocking Hills area has allowed Roger to expand his spirituality like “a walk in the woods”.
Roger’s work has been shown in numerous shows and festivals across Ohio where he has won several awards.
Roger currently resides in Greenfield with fellow artist Debbie Powell and numerous pets.
To inquire about or purchase Rogers “Industrial Strength Art” visit (cool song on their by Roger too) :
http://www.myspace.com/industrialstrengthart



Statements

"Don't give up on your dreams." The sculpture in Chillicothe took five years to build. I moved, ask anyone, no easy task, twice! Through life and death and all kinds of changes I kept plugging away. All progress is forward progress. Accept the support of others.

Specialties

Creating functional art from discarded metal.

Inspirations

Alexander Calder is just one of the many artists I find inspiring but I am most inspired by nature. Living in a rural area allows me to be inspired visually by trees, bugs, etc, but I also see the seasons a little more intensely; for example in February we had an ice storm. I was amazed walking through our wooded property covered in 1/2" of ice. As I create things I try to remember shapes of shadows during sunsets, weird branches, etc. Duplicating my memory gives enough freedom to express my imagination.

Speech Yoga

Macy took this picture (upward dog!!!)

Since I am now practicing yoga daily , I am also trying to live the Yoga practice in all areas of my life.......esp. my speech. I came across this article in my yoga journal while camping about yoga speech.....and now have been monitoring my speech more carefully. It is very humbling to see the areas I continue to mess up with unhealthy speech that just slips out of my mouth without conscious thought.

(Ie: this morning already I blurted out some sarcastic remark about George Bush hugging service men in Iraq.....was that kind? was that even necessary?)

well hopefully, I am becoming more conscious about my thoughts and my speech and what I put out in the universe.

Is it kind???

It may seem obvious that some remarks are kind and some not. But what happens when kindness seems at odds with truth? Are there truths that should not be spoken—even kindly—because they are simply too crushing?

Is it true???

does "true" mean only what is literally true? You know you're lying (hopefully!) when you willfully distort or misreport or deny facts. But what about slight exaggerations? If you report an incident and leave out part of the story, does it still count as truth?

Is it necessary?

"I've had words literally stick in my throat," a friend told me, explaining why he came to the conclusion that, confronted with the conflict between kindness and truth, the best choice is simply to remain silent. But sometimes, we must speak out even when we dread the consequences.

Where Words Come From/Words into Speech
To practice right speech is essentially to approach speaking as a form of yoga. The first stage in the yoga of speech is to start becoming conscious of what actually comes out of your mouth. You might begin by spending a day eavesdropping on yourself—hopefully, without activating your inner critic. Try to notice not just what you say, but the tone with which you say it. See if you can sense the emotional residue your words create. How do you feel after certain remarks? How do others react?

Speech yoga is a form of self-inquiry, in which you ask yourself: What makes me say what I say? What unexpressed anger or grief or longing might lie frozen in my emotional body, ready to surface as lies or sarcastic remarks or words meant to mask what I really want to say?

-Sally Kempton

http://www.sallykempton.com/yjarticles/metalkpretty.html

Seventh Generation

Macy took this picture at Omega.....It is a piece of artwork which expresses the seventh generation way of life. It reminds me of this quote that my friend Shannon used to wear on her shirt.......

"Treat the earth well: it was not given to you by your parents, it was loaned to you by your children. We do not inherit the Earth from our Ancestors, we borrow it from our Children."

anyway.....I hope you have a great day. I hope you get to get outside and enjoy nature.

see below.

Love,

Michele

Traditionally, indigenous people would not make any environmental changes until they had carefully considered how it would affect the ecology of their descendants seven generations down the line. This is because indigenous people have direct contact with the responsibilities given to their ancestors and, also, have direct contact with their own responsibilities to the generations yet unborn. Native Americans feel all generations are connected and believe we must think of the effects of decisions made today on the Seventh Generation regarding such matters as preservation of the environment.

The hidden secret

if you take a look at the following picture, let me tell you .... it is not animated.
Your eyes are making it move. To test this, stare at one spot for a couple seconds
and everything will stop moving. Or look at the black center of each circle and it will stop moving.
But move your eyes to the next black center and the previous will move after you take your eyes away from it.......
Weird.



“I may never meet you or know what you do for a living, but I know this about you;
unless you choose a life of love and service, you will never be happy.”
~Dr. Albert Schweitzer

“Everyone will, sooner or later, either in this lifetime or in another
experience a major shift from a focus on ‘How much can I have?’
to ‘How much can I serve?’ Moving from a concentration
on getting to one of giving is a noble path and is a key to our spiritual growth.

But it is not instinctual for most of us, and it usually requires a
set of experiences that form a road to transformation.”
~Ron Scott

My Most Exciting Moment

My Most Exciting Moment

by Mira



Dancing is one of my favorite things to do. I have loved it ever since I was seven years old.
Now that I am older, it is more of a challenge.
In my dance classes most of the people are two or three years older than me, so it makes me
work harder. No matter what happens in my dancing career, my fondest memory will always
be the 10 days I spent at Oberlin College for a summer intensive with Ohio Dance Theater.


On July 19th, 2007, I packed up my dance shoes and drove with my family over to Oberlin
College. When we arrived, I waited in line to get my room assignment and my key. I walked
over to my parents and told them that I had good news and bad news. The good news was I got
a four-person room. The bad news was I only knew one person I was rooming with and we
didn’t know each other that well. My parents helped me set up my room, got me situated, and
off they went. Right then, I felt like a real college student.


As the days went by, it seemed like I was getting up earlier and earlier. I was so worn out, that
as soon as my head hit the pillow I was asleep. We had a very packed schedule. Our day started
at 7:30 a.m., when it was time to wake up. Our first class started at 8:45 a.m., and we danced
all day except for an occasional break for lunch and dinner. Our last class ended at 8:45 p.m.,
and after that we went straight back to the dorms. At 11:00 p.m. when we went to bed, I can
guarantee nobody woke up even once.


During the week in our classes we learned a special dance. When parents came to pick up their
kids, they stayed to watch the ending performance. Each dancer did ballet, tap, jazz, theater,
and modern dance. My favorite was the modern dance because the teacher who taught the
dance was my favorite. When all was said and done, I was happy, yet sad to be leaving. I packed
up my dorm, said my good-byes, and then we left. I knew that everyone felt the same way as
me.


Going to Oberlin was a special treat. To go there, every girl had to try out. Even though I have
four, five, or even six years less of experience, I still made it. To me, that is one of my greatest
accomplishments. I can’t wait to try out again and if I’m lucky, I’ll be among the 60 girls who
are chosen from all over Ohio to be invited to the intensive.

Is this heaven?

Remember Dwier??? He was here visiting in Medina in early August.
He brought his girlfriend, and kids (Lily and Woody....aren't they beautiful) to Medina for a visit with his mom.
That is Mark on the cell phone that Dwier is holding......Dwier was in field of dreams as John Kinsella.
One of my favorite movies.

John Kinsella: Is this heaven?
Ray Kinsella: It's Iowa.
John Kinsella: Iowa? I could have sworn this was heaven.
[John starts to walk away]
Ray Kinsella: Is there a heaven?
John Kinsella: Oh yeah. It's the place where dreams come true.
[Ray looks around, seeing his wife playing with their daughter on the porch]
Ray Kinsella: Maybe this is heaven.

My dream......A VW Solar powered bus!!!!!

Hybrid VW Westfalia byAlexandre Verdier

http://www.verdier.ca/

Our Purpose

Mark and my old heart throb, Rick Manning!!...at Fantasy camp.... about 10 years ago.



"Your purpose here on the Earth is to
give the gifts that your soul desires to give;
those that create harmony, cooperation, sharing,
and reverence for life, no matter what form they take."
-unknown author

Sunshine!!!

Click on the link below......
My friend Pat May had sent me this before and I cried then....
and now my good friend/harp teacher, Sarah sent this today and I cried again and decided to share it.
This little girl is such a breath of fresh air!!!
read below and then click on the link.
Love,
Michele



Hearing her voice and seeing her presence helped me to remember that our dreams for peace, forgiveness for one another and love for our world really can come true!

Blessings on your day,

Sarah

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWNoiVrJDsE

True Colors

This picture was taken on 5/6/89....our wedding day.
This is a picture of two very dear friends of ours.....Robear....and Carlos sporting the scarlet and grey.
Carlos is a cop in L.A........can't you tell by the lovely colorful hairdo????
Robear is Mark's cousin...well kinda...they have known each other since babyhood....long time family friend. He owns sensational Celebrations in Woodmere...ever need any party supplies....? go see Robear and he will take good care of you.
Anyhow,
I love this song below.
beautiful..........
reminds me to keep shining.
I felt really crushed today because I was told not to
even acknowledge this needy patient.....not to even look at her.
That just goes against everything that I am about.
I always look at people in the eye and smile....
just to let them know I acknowledge their beingness.
I was told that that was giving them too much encouragement
because they are so needy.
that is not what I am about.
so I will continue to shine and smile and see the good in others.
You can't always have happiness but you can give happiness!!!
hope you have a great day!!!
see below.
Love,
Michele




You with the sad eyes

don't be discouraged

oh I realize

it's hard to take courage

in a world full of people

you can lose sight of it all

and the darkness inside you

can make you fell so small


But I see your true colors

shining through

I see your true colors

and that's why I love you

so don't be afraid to let them show

your true colors

true colors are beautiful

like a rainbow


Show me a smile then

don't be unhappy, can't remember

when I last saw you laughing

if this world makes you crazy

and you've taken all you can bear

you call me up

because you know I'll be there


And I'll see your true colors

shining through

I see your true colors

and that's why I love you

so don't be afraid to let them show

your true colors

true colors are beautiful

like a rainbow

-Artist: Cyndi Lauper

Oh Wonder!!!

Sad Dusty






Happy Dusty

"OH WONDER!
how many goodly creatures are there here!
how beauteous mankind is!
O brave new world,
That has such people in 't.!
-Miranda in The Tempest,
by William Shakespeare

Congratulations!!

Congratulations to Elizabeth and Nick Nolan!!
They just got married this weekend in California on Montara Beach.
Even their baby, Izzy ,got to attend.
Elizabeth is Jim and Gail Kelly's daughter.








They are staying in a yurt in Big Sur for their honeymoon
before they come home for a "summer of love 1967 themed"reception
at Jim and Gail's house.

Love of Life

Above is a picture from camping, I love sunsets and camping .....and love the quote below.
Have a great day!!!! Love, Michele




In spite of illness, in spite even of the archenemy sorrow,
one can remain alive long past the usual date of disintegration
if one is unafraid of change,
insatiable in intellectual curiosity,
interested in big things,
and happy in small ways.
- Edith Wharton (1862 - 1937)