I'm working on a couple of new writings, but I'm not ready to post them yet... So, I'm going to share some favorites of mine.

Cherishing a verse from the ancient Rig Veda.. I've always thought this was beautiful. 
 

Although my spirit may wander the four corners of the earth,
Let it come back to me again so that I may live and journey here.
 
Although my spirit may go far away over the sea,
Let it come back to me again so that I may live and journey here.
 
Although my spirit may go far away to the flashing beams of light,
Let it come back to me again so that I may live and journey here.
 
Although my spirit may go far away to visit the sun and the dawn,
Let it come back to me again so that I may live and journey here.
 
Although my spirit may wander over the lofty mountains,
Let it come back to me again so that I may live and journey here.
 
Although my spirit may go far away into all froms that live and move,
Let it come back to me again so that I may live and journey here.
 
Although my spirit may go far away to distant realms,
Let it come back to me again so that I may live and journey here.
 
Although my spirit may go far away to all that is and is to be,
Let it come back to me again so that I may live and journey here.
 
Although my spirit may wander in the valley of death,
Let it come back to me again so that I may live and journey here.

 (I love this one!)  Our society is run by insane people for insane objectives. I think we're being run by maniacs for maniacal ends and I think I'm liable to be put away as insane for expressing that. That's what's insane about it. ~John Lennon

Love is qualified as an attribute of that force, power or influence known as God. Thus as man makes application of love in his daily experience, he finds God a personal God. ~Edgar Cayce

Learn to know yourself ... to search realistically and regularly the processes of your own mind and feelings. ~Nelson Mandela

Enlightenment is the process of facing yourself. ~Michael Sharp

Your vision will become clear only when you look into your heart. Who looks outside, dreams. Who looks inside, awakens. ~Carl Jung

If you want to reach a state of bliss, then go beyond your ego and the internal dialogue. Make a decision to relinquish the need to control, the need to be approved, and the need to judge. Those are the three things the ego is doing all the time. It's very important to be aware of them every time they come up. ~Deepak Chopra

(Love this one too!) Live your life so that the fear of death can never enter your heart. When you arise in the morning, give thanks for the morning light. Give thanks for your life and strength. Give thanks for your food and for the joy of living. And if perchance you see no reason for giving thanks, rest assured the fault is in yourself. ~Chief Tecumseh, Shawnee Indian Chief

By bringing about a change in our outlook toward things and events, all phenomena can become sources of happiness. ~The Dalai Lama

We do not see things as they are. We see them as we are. ~The Talmud

(thought of you with this one, "zeal4living") As above in consciousness, so below in matter. ~Michael Sharp

By conquering my mind, I have conquered the whole world. ~Sri Guru Granth Sahib

The new spirituality is that it will produce an experience in human encounters in which we become a living demonstration of the basic spiritual teaching; We are all one. ~Neale Donald Walsch

You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection. ~The Buddha

Blessings & Love to my xanga friends, ~Helena

My love, my blessings, my dreams, my hopes for all of you...

May you have a 'dreamy' New Year
full of Love
tender and sweet

May you have Passion that
makes you weak at the knees
and makes your toes curl

May you have Kisses
that linger like
honeyed berries breaking on the tongue
that lifts you off your feet

May you have serenity
in the arms of the one you love
and see it --
reflected in your lovers eyes

May you have Prosperity
in the way it matters most -
In love, in serenity, in home.

May your imagination
be touched and caressed
to peaks untouched before.

Feel inspired, feel magical, feel blessed!

Most of all, yes, I wish you love, love, LOVE!

Love & Hugs, ~Helena

AAAHHH!! SCREAM!!!

I'm soooo pissed right now .. Grumble-gripe-bitch-moan
sometimes I really hate men.....damn it I'm ready to burst

*looking around* where's my serenity? sanity? Anything?
How's it said? ~"can't live with 'em & can't shoot 'em" ..

eeeekkkk

just thought I'd log in and blow some steam off..

thanks for reading lol 

Tell me have you met a Goddess like me
soft lips unused by thee and skin so fair
set your seal upon my tender skin
so I may be for you and you alone

Other men may wish to seduce me, but
only you understand the animal within
I am not for just anyone to enjoy
you are my beloved and I am yours

'tis the truth I dare to know
do you ache for me, do confess
the fire it burns the flames rise
as if shades, I close my eyes

I go to my dreams and dimly fade
beneath the crescent moon above
my ancient flame, whom I've known before
'tis your lips, your love I dream of.

She rides the winds

 
 
Two souls searching for each others arms
Twin souls throughout time entertwined

 
She travels in her dreams
she rides the winds to be with him
to feel his strong arms of desire
to feel his body pressed against hers
to feel his untame passion

She rides the winds
feeling his spirit calling her
she listens to her lovers call
and rides the winds to him
 
Together again
they ride the waves of passion

They make love
like thunder clapping
he rides his lover

Like an angel singing
her passion climbs
as she feeds him her sweet nectar
as his lovers milk fills her within

Holding each other,
their hearts racing
the deep kiss they share
is felt by our mother earth
she blooms with beauty
in appreciation of this magical love
 
She rides the winds
back to her bed
He rides the waves
back to his homeland

Two souls who've loved
through many lives
Two souls entertwined together
They are as one

Hope you enjoyed!

G'night and Sweet dreams! ~Helena

I read this in my email, passed along through a list I am on. First person I thought of was you "Tommy Crow White Feathers"   Although I know you have more intelligence than this, I thought you may get a kick out of it! Maybe swipe an idea or two? LOL Its disturbing yet funny, if there is such a thing lol. I'll let you decide.

AN ACTUAL CRAIG'S LIST PERSONALS AD (Supposedly)

To the Guy Who Tried to Mug Me in Downtown Savannah  night before last.

Date: 2009-05-27, 1 :43 a.m.  E.S.T.

I was the guy wearing the black Burberry jacket that you demanded that I hand over, shortly after you pulled the knife on me and my girlfriend, threatening our lives. You also asked for my girlfriend's purse and earrings. I can only hope that you somehow come across this rather important message.

First, I'd like to apologize for your embarrassment; I didn't expect you to actually crap in your pants when I drew my pistol after you took my jacket.. The even ing was not that cold, and I was wearing the jacket for a reason.. My girlfriend had just bought me that Kimber Model 1911 .45 ACP pistol for my birthday, and we had picked up a shoulder holster for it that very evening. Obviously you agree that it is a very intimidating weapon when pointed at your head ... isn't it?!

I know it probably wasn't fun walking back to wherever you'd come from with that brown sludge in your pants. I'm sure it was even worse walking bare-footed since I made you leave your shoes, cell phone, and wallet with me. [That prevented you from calling or running to your buddies to come help mug us again].

After I called your mother or "Momma" as you had her listed in your cell, I explained the entire episode of what you'd done. Then I went and filled up my gas tank as well as those of four other people in the gas station, -- on your credit card. The guy with the big motor home took 150 gallons and was extremely grateful!

I gave your shoes to a homeless guy outside Vinnie Van Go Go's, along with all the cash in your wallet. [That made his day!]

I then threw your wallet into the big pink "pimp mobile" that was parked at the curb .... after I broke the windshield and side window and keyed the entire driver's side of the car.

Later, I called a bunch of phone sex numbers from your cell phone. Ma Bell just now shut down the line, although I only used the phone for a little over a day now, so what 's going on with that? Earlier, I managed to get in two threatening phone calls to the DA's office and one to the FBI, while mentioning President Obama as my possible target.

The FBI guy seemed really intense and we had a nice long chat (I guess while he traced your number etc.).

In a way, perhaps I should apologize for not killing you ... but I feel this type of retribution is a far more appropriate punishment for your threatened crime. I wish you well as you try to sort through some of these rather immediate pressing issues, and can only hope that you have the opportunity to reflect upon, and perhaps reconsider, the career path you've chosen to pursue in life.. Remember, next time you might not be so lucky. Have a good day!

Thoughtfully yours,

Alex

Ok. That was just bizarre, disturbing, yet in a sick way, quite funny. What do you think?

 Today you enter the twighlight zone (the old one)... For your enjoyment, I have found some pretty out-there, bizarre things. I laughed pretty hard at some of the stupidness (is that a word?) LOL

Enjoy, and I hope it makes you laugh at least a little!

Bizarre and Stupid Criminals

Washington D.C. – A convict broke out of jail in Washington
D.C., then a few days later accompanied his girlfriend
to her trial for robbery. At lunch, he went out for a
sandwich. She needed to see him, and thus had him paged.
Police officers recognized his name and arrested him as
he returned to the courthouse in a car he had stolen over
the lunch hour.

Ionia, Michigan – When two service station attendants
refused to hand over the cash to an intoxicated robber,
the man threatened to call the police. They still refused,
so the robber called the police and was arrested.

Radnor, Pennsylvania – Police interrogated a suspect by
placing a metal colander on his head and connecting it
with wires to a photocopy machine. The message “He’s
lying” was placed in the copier, and police pressed the
copy button each time they thought the suspect wasn’t
telling the truth. Believing the “lie detector” was
working, the suspect confessed.

Toronto, Canada – A gas station attendant had no trouble
identifying a robber for police, even though the man had
worn a pair of women’s panties over his head as a disguise.
The thief, who later admitted that his mind was clouded
by intoxicants, had stuck his face through one of the
leg-holes so he could see.

Modesto, CA – Steven Richard King was arrested for trying
to hold up a Bank of America branch without a weapon.
King used a thumb and a finger to simulate a gun, but
unfortunately, he failed to keep his hand in his pocket.

Virginia Beach – A bank robber in Virginia Beach got a
nasty surprise when a dye pack designed to mark stolen
money exploded in his Fruit-of-the-Looms. The robber
apparently stuffed the loot down the front of his pants
as he was running out the door. “He was seen hopping and
jumping around,” said police spokesman Mike Carey, “with
an explosion taking place inside his pants.”

Los Angeles, California – Police in Los Angeles had good
luck with a robbery suspect who just couldn’t control him-
self during a lineup. When detectives asked each man in
the lineup to repeat the words, “Give me all your money
or I’ll shoot,” the man shouted, “That’s not what I said!”

Bizarre December Holidays

December 21 is Look At The Bright Side Day, National
Flashlight Day, National French Fried Shrimp Day, and
Hamburger Day

December 22 is National Date-Nut Bread Day

December 23 is Roots Day

December 24 is National Egg Nog Day

December 25 is National Pumpkin Pie Day

December 26 is National Whiners Day

December 27 is National Fruitcake Day

December 28 is Card Playing Day and National Chocolate Day

December 29 is Pepper Pot Day

December 30 is Festival Of Enormous Changes At The Last
Minute and National Bicarbonate Of Soda Day

December 31 is Unlucky Day

Bizarre Newspaper Ads

Mixing bowl set designed to please a cook with round bottom for efficient beating. (love that one LOL)

Semi-Annual after-Christmas Sale.

And now, the Superstore–unequaled in size, unmatched in variety, unrivaled inconvenience.

We will oil your sewing machine and adjust tension in your home for $1.00.

Girl wanted to assist magician in cutting-off-head illusion. Blue Cross and salary.

For Sale. Three canaries of undermined sex.

Get rid of aunts: Zap does the job in 24 hours.

Christmas sale. Handmade gifts for the hard-to-find person.

Not too much to share tonight.. So, I'll share an interesting post about Gods, Goddesses, and Love. I find it fascinating about the different religious views of sex, and the representations of it through Gods and Goddesses.. Here are a few of my favorites..

Cernunnos

This celtic god is featured in many traditions . In England he was Herne the Hunter and Pan in Greece. His horns revealed his masculine vitality and his ejaculation causes a transformative energy to rise up the spine, manifesting horns and bringing mystical powers.

Inanna
 
Inanna was the Sumerian goddess of love and fertility, who as queen of the land, made every king her bridegroom. She was also regarded as the source of the fertile Earth's life blood. Once a year Inanna descended into the underworld, driven by a powerful love, to rescue her husband from his 6 month long sojourn there.

Parvati

The Hindu Parvati sought to lure Shiva into marriage and through their loving relationship, she reconciled his polarities of remote aesthete and sexual master. These energies were made available to mortals to utilise in their own households. Parvati and Shiva's sexual antics were thought to shake the world.
(ohh sounds rather erotic, huh?) -- I've always felt drawn to the Hindu spirituality, it is so rich and really intrigues me. Someday, I'd love to visit India, and learn more about their culture, and of course Hinduism, see the 'sights' of their holy places too. Would be so neat

Venus

The Roman Love Goddess Venus represents the cycle of beauty and love. She is the original role model of the independent woman, who expresses herself sexually for the sheer joy of it. Venus was never faithful and not tied to any sense of duty. She existed purely for pleasure. -- can I be her? *sly grin* (except I'd be faithful)

Well, that's it for tonight. G'night & sleep well.

Blessings, ~Helena

WRITE POETRY TO HEAL THE SOUL OF THE WORLD
By Dr. Leo Rebello

Penning a poem is about observing the world within or around you. It is also claimed that writing poetry is good for your mental health, especially in a world full of turmoil and stress.

A new study has found that writing poems, no matter how ‘bad’ they may appear, helps the brain to cope with emotional turmoil and to reduce anxiety, fear and sadness – the less vivid and descriptive the poem is, the better is the mental unloading.

According to Dr. Matthew Lieberman of California University, expressing one-self in print is “a sort of unintentional emotion regulation” as it inhibits parts of the brain linked to emotional turmoil, and increases activity in the region to do with self-control.

In their study findings released on Valentine’s Day 2009, the researchers proved the therapeutic powers of writing by scanning the brains of 30 people as they described distressing pictures. Dr. Lieberman and his team found that the act tended to reduce activity in the amygdala, that part of the brain, which deals with control of emotion and fear.

Anger is momentary madness. In our experiments too, we found, that poetry reading or writing regulates our distress and especially in the war zone, or to calm down those incarcerated in prisons, poetry writing has a profound calming effect on the agitated minds.

We have worked with hyperactive children. We have worked with children of disturbed families, those affected by riots and natural calamity and separated from parents, especially children whose parents are in jail or children who have been abused. Making them recite poems or teaching them how to write poetry, we invariably found, has an instant calming effect on them, as poetry is the language of the soul, language of peace and language of the universe. Like in meditation you listen to the inner voice, poetry is another medium to find the god within you – poetry reading or writing leads to awakened consciousness. If poetry is accompanied by lilting music, then listeners experience subliminal bliss and communion with the universal mind, which is perfect.

We had a teacher who taught us Sanskrit through slokas (psalms) and laid the foundation for study of poetry, philosophy of life and wisdom of the universe.

The poems of great poets exude warmth of love, embody sparks of societal unrest and goad the readers to a plan of action. Hence, a Poet is called an unacknowledged legislator of mankind. The best examples of uplifting poetry are "Prayer for Peace" by St. Francis of Assisi, or "Don't Quit" by Anon, which have inspired millions from emotional abyss. Poetry lovers will also remember "The Impossible Dream" from La Mancha (Musical).

Like reverse osmosis, a method of extracting essentially pure, fresh water from salt water, Poetry brings out purity within you, by removing the pollution from your body, mind and the spirit. Poetry helps one to reminisce, retrace, re-vest, refresh and renew oneself.

In conclusion, poetry is an instrument of love and understanding, peace and harmony, hope and faith and all that is good and perfect. There are 39 uplifting poems (35 in this section, 4 in other parts). They should inspire you to start writing poetry to heal the soul of the world, and create a world without wars.

Let us begin with a sensitive Urdu poem of Sahir Ludhiyanwi (pen name) or Abdul Hayee (1921-1980), who was a popular Urdu poet and Hindi lyricist and songwriter. He won the Filmfare Award twice, in 1964 and 1977, and the Padma Shri, in 1971. He is remembered as a poet (along with Kaifi Azmi), who brought Urdu literature to Indian motion pictures. His poetry was full of depth, intensity and purity. Amrita Pritam, a popular novelist, was his lover when they were studying together in Ludhiana.

Aye sharif insanon,
Khoon apna ho ya paraya ho, nasle – Aadam ka khoon hai aakhir.
Jung magrib mein ho ki mashrik mein, Aman-E-Aalam ka khoon hai aakhir.
Bam Gharon per giren ki sarhadpar, rooh-e-taamir zakhm khati hai.
Khet apne jalen ya auron ke, jist phagun mein tilmilati hai.
Tank aage badhen ki peeche haten, kokh dharti ki baanjh hoti hai.
Fateh ka jashn ho ke haar ka sog, zindagi mayyoton pe roti hai.
Isliye aye shariff insanon, jang talti rahe to behtar hai.
Aap aur hum sabhi ke aangan mein shama jalti rahe to behtar hai.

English translation by Dr. Leo Rebello:

Oh Gentlemen,
Whether it is your blood, or someone else's - after all it is the blood of humanity.
Whether the war is fought in the East or West - it is peace messenger's blood after all.
Whether the bombs fall on homes or on the borders - our Soul is scarred.
Whether the fields burnt are ours or theirs - the loss is everyone's.
Whether tanks roll forward or backward - the earth is ravaged.
Whether it is the victory cry or cry of defeat, life cries over the dead.
Therefore, oh Gentlemen,
It is good if war can be avoided,
And if we keep candles burning in our gardens.

Reproduced from World without Wars by Dr. Leo Rebello

Tonight I share what I term as a "hodgepodge" defined as ~ hodgepodge n. A mixture of dissimilar ingredients; a jumble.

Or I suppose you could call it a ramble on thoughts roaming in my head ~ ones that haven't made it to poetry yet *grin*

Please enjoy,

I cry for all humanity
Why must there be so much suffering, anger, hate and death
Why must there be battles, and war

To value what you have
you must first go without
To value what is truly important
you must first have nothing

Hate is only a learned trait
You must first teach love
give love, before hate is overcome
Freely love & be loved
as I like to say

War is not of our creator
is what I have always been told
Man is left to make his own choices

War does not make peace
People, love, unity make peace
War creates more hate, violence, death 
that continues on a vicious cycle, never ending

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

There are few who walk this Earth
that can deny this world is changing 
the world we once knew is no longer
We all feel it

Do you remember what once was
Peace, love, and trust
Once unlocked doors
now bolts and bars
Once a country of riches and happiness
now a country of turmoil and sides

Once neighbors trusting neighbors
now each doubting the other
Once welcomed all races
all nationalities, and religions 
now fearful of all

Once long walks in the park
walks in the dark
now guarded by police
surrounded with fear
there is no peace

Once children and teens
nothing to fear but popularity
and broken hearts - now
fearing the very place they learn
fearing each other
not knowing who is next to change

I say
It is time to dream again
It is time to move forward 
We must dream again

What once was will be again
There is no dream to big
There is no dream to small

My view is that there is but
One race, and that's mankind
One people, all countries unified
One way, the peaceful way

It matters not what color you are, you are human
It matters not what country you live in, you have the same needs as I
It matters not what religion you choose, it is the one for you as mine is for me
It matters not what language you speak, LOVE is universal in all languages
It matters not what age you are, peace transends all ages

I do this so the world will know ~ it will NOT change me
I will not follow the way of harshness, cruelty, anger, hate, violence, or war
I will always follow ~ the road less travelled ~ the one to make a difference, a change.

All we need is Love. Love is the Law.

Blessings & G'night my readers

 "What we do, who we are ~ has an effect on others."

I want to make a difference.

Top things I'd like to do:
End Abuse - in all forms (child, elders, animals)
End Stigma of issues like anxiety disorder, and other various mental illnesses
World Peace - I know, a daydreamer *smiles*
End Hunger/Poverty

Famous person I admire:
Marilyn Monroe, why? A lot of similarities with her and I. I was also adopted, and grew up not knowing my father for many years. Like Marilyn, I too, have low self-esteem. What I admired about her is that she took life by the horns, and she made something of herself. She was not afriad of being "real" despite the fact it wasn't quite 'ok' back then, she was sensual and sexual. She was not ashamed of being a woman, and admittedly loved to make love.  Two quotes of her's that I love are :

"I do have something on. The TV is on." and "I don't mind living in a mans world, as long as I can be a woman in it."

But...
Yeah, I am just one woman, one with some big dreams, and a heart that's too big sometimes. I give my all, even if I get nothing in return. Friendship, love, relationships they are all a special and can be a sacred thing. So, therefore I give 100% in relationships. After all its not about what you 'get' in life, but rather, what changes you make. I believe in using my life for a purpose. Using my gifts, talents, etc to make a difference in this world.
As the saying goes "Be the change you wish to see in the world" and "if you can change but one heart, one mind - it's all worthwhile."

I love to write. I love to share personal experiences, and I like to connect on a deeper level with people. I'm not one of those meaningless "chatter boxes" that you meet. I'm straight from the hip honest, to a fault sometimes. I'm sincere and kind-hearted. I always look for the good in others, even when it is hard to find *smile*

My entire reason, in the beginning on xanga was to connect with others on a more deeper level than that in which you find online. (like the endless chatter in chat rooms, that leaves you wondering just what the heck has happened to our world! and where on earth those people come from!  lol)

I wanted to use my writings as a way to connect with others. I'd like to make others aware of the effects of violence, drunk driving, and many other issues. Some I have lived through and survived, others I am merely writing from a source within. I figure - the more people who are aware, and the more people who 'know' - the less apt it is to happen. The old saying of "knowledge is power" I remember hearing on commercials and such while growing up - always watching Sesame Street *smiles*

If you allow yourself to do so, you can become very depressed at the state of our world now. Each turn of the channel during the news gains you exposure to violence, sensless crimes, acts of terrorism and war. When will it ever end? I'm a unique individual I guess, because I just cannot seem to "wrap my head" around the fact of hating another human being - no matter what color, race or religion. We are all the same within, aren't we?

Just got thinking about so much of this, while looking back through the archives from my old xanga site. Can't believe it was almost 6 years in the making... Refreshing to read my thoughts and views though. I gain much insite into myself by doing so.

So, what brought you to xanga?
A deeper connection?
A need to connect with others who write?
What are your dreams, goals or ambitions?

This morning I drew the card - - THE LOVERS - (meaning) Today is about bonding, union and wholeness. There is an influence that is drawing things together, whether it be people, ideas, events or groups. It indicates intimate relationships and fusion, union, joining, but not in a trivial way. Today you will establish who or what you REALLY care about. This question can only be answered if you look to your heart and your core values. You may be faced with a significant choice and, if so, you must consider issues of trust, commitment, partnership and even marriage. There are elements of wanting to stay with both options in order to avoid divisions. There will be deep communication, deep emotional bonding, deep honesty, love and deep truth-speaking. This can be between two people, or it can be communication between your own conscious and subconscious, anima and animus. Today is about the union of male and female either externally or internally within yourself. Internally, it represents the finding of your shadow and inner light and then marrying them in what has been termed the heiros gamos or the inner marriage. Today is about spiritual, universal love, a force that unites. With Mercury in Gemini here, any mental division must be fused in order for there to be any lasting satisfaction. Today, go deep within to find what you REALLY love and care about.

Wow.. Speaks very loudly to me.. anyway..

I'm feeling bit by a love bug LOL Both kinds of love.. So, here's one I can share in public *grin* Sometimes, when I don't know what to say, I like to say it with quotes. I love 'em, sometimes they make you think.

This blog is dedicated to the peacemakers among us - our courageous brothers and sisters working to build peaceful relationships in their homes, in their communities and throughout the world. They are our heroes...  and we will always remember and respect them.

“For it isn't enough to talk about peace.
  One must believe in it.
  And it isn't enough to believe in it.
  One must work at it.”

  Eleanor Roosevelt
  American First Lady
 

 “Peace is not something you wish for;
  It's something you make,
  Something you do,
  Something you are,
  And something you give away.”

  Robert Fulghum
  

“Through violence you may murder a murderer,
but you can't murder murder.

Through violence you may murder a liar,
but you can't establish truth.

Through violence you may murder a hater,
but you can't murder hate.

Darkness cannot put out darkness.

Only light can do that…

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
American Civil Rights Leader

Once and for all the idea of glorious victories won by the glorious army must be wiped out. Neither side is glorious.
On either side they're just frightened men messing their pants and they all want the same thing - not to lie under the earth, but to walk up on it - without crutches.

Peter Weiss

What difference does it make to the dead, the orphans, and the homeless, whether the mad destruction is wrought under the name of totalitarianism or the holy name of liberty and democracy?

Mahatma Gandhi

“After my experience, I have come to hate war.
War settles nothing.”

Dwight D. Eisenhower
 34th President of the United States

I'm fed up to the ears with old men dreaming up wars for young men to die in.

George McGovern
 

If it were proved to me that in making war, my ideal had a chance of being realized, I would still say "no" to war. For one does not create a human society on mounds of corpses.

Louis Lecoin
French Anarchist

What a cruel thing is war: to separate and destroy families and friends, and mar the purest joys and happiness God has granted us in this world; to fill our hearts with hatred instead of love for our neighbors, and to devastate the fair face of this beautiful world.

Robert E. Lee
Confederate General -
In A Letter To His Wife

Never think that war, no matter how necessary,
nor how justified, is not a crime.

Ernest Hemingway
American Author

If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.

Mother Teresa
Catholic Nun, Missionary
Nobel Peace Prize Recipient

“If we are to teach real peace in this world, and if we are to carry on a real war against war, we shall have to begin with the children.”

Mahatma Gandhi
Indian Political and Spiritual Leader

I will not play at tug o'war.
I'd rather play at hug o'war,
Where everyone hugs
Instead of tugs,
Where everyone giggles
And rolls on the rug,
Where everyone kisses,
And everyone grins,
And everyone cuddles,
And everyone wins.

Shel Silverstein
American Cartoonist, Children's Author

Maybe we should develop a Crayola bomb as our next secret weapon. A happiness weapon. A beauty bomb. And every time a crisis developed, we would launch one. It would explode high in the air - explode softly - and send thousands, millions, of little parachutes into the air. Floating down to earth - boxes of Crayolas. And we wouldn't go cheap, either - not little boxes of eight. Boxes of sixty-four, with the sharpener built right in. With silver and gold and copper, magenta and peach and lime, amber and umber and all the rest. And people would smile and get a little funny look on their faces and cover the world with imagination.

Robert Fulghum
American Writer, Minister, Working Cowboy

  “This I command you,
to love one another.”

   Jesus

The world will never have lasting peace so long as men reserve for war the finest human qualities. Peace, no less than war, requires idealism and self-sacrifice and a righteous and dynamic faith."

John Foster Dulles
US Secretary of State
 

  “I have no idea if world peace is attainable.
    But aiming for it is.”

     Stockard Channing
 American Actress

Where there is faith, there is love;
Where there is love, there is peace;
Where there is peace, there is God;
And where there is God; there is no need.

Leo Tolstoy
Russian Novelist

“Speak out for justice and peace,
even if your voice trembles.”

As seen on a bumper-sticker
in St. Paul, Minnesota

True peace is not for the spineless or self-absorbed. It has nothing to do with passivity or resignation. Peace demands honesty. It entails the burden of duty. Peace requires deeds of love.

Johann Christoph Arnold
From his book Seeking Peace

 
When the power of love overcomes the love of power the world will know peace.

Jimi Hendrix
American Musician, Guitarist, Singer, Songwriter
 

We have all taken risks in the making of war. Isn't it time that we should take risks to secure peace?

J. Ramsay MacDonald
British Prime Minister

Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired, signifies in the final sense a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed.”

 Dwight D. Eisenhower
 34th President of the United States

“The guns and the bombs, the rockets and the
  warships, are all symbols of human failure.”

  Lyndon B Johnson

 
  36th President of the United States

It cost about 75 cents to kill a man in Caesar's time. The price rose to about $3,000 per man during the Napoleonic wars; to $5,000 in the American Civil War; and then to $21,000 per man in World War I. Estimates for the future wars indicate that it may cost the warring countries not less than $50,000 for each man killed.

Senator Homer T. Bone

It takes some perspective to think in billions. Keep the following in mind: one thousand seconds is about 17 minutes. One million seconds is about eleven and a half days. One billion seconds is about 32 years.

Tim Weiner
New York Times Correspondent

 
Give me the money that has been spent in war and I will clothe every man, woman, and child in an attire of which kings and queens will be proud.  I will build a schoolhouse in every valley over the whole earth.  I will crown every hillside with a place of worship consecrated to peace.

Charles Sumner
US Senator from Massachusetts

“There is nothing that war has ever achieved
that we could not better achieve without it.”

Havelock Ellis
English Psychologist

The direct use of force is such a poor solution to any problem, it is generally employed only by small children and large nations.

David Friedman

In order to rally people, governments need enemies. They want us to be afraid, to hate, so we will rally behind them. And if they do not have a real enemy, they will invent one in order to mobilize us.

Thich Nhat Hanh

 
Vietnamese Buddhist Monk, Author

   “If peace only had
     the music and pageantry of war,
     there’d be no wars.”

     Sophie Kerr

War will exist until that distant day when the conscientious objector enjoys the same reputation and prestige that the warrior does today.

John F. Kennedy
Thirty-Fifth President of the United States

 
"I pledge allegiance to the world
to cherish every living thing,
to care for earth and sea and air,
with peace and freedom
everywhere."

A day will come when a cannon will be exhibited in museums, just as instruments of torture are now, and the people will be astonished that such a thing could have been.

Victor Hugo
French Author & Novelist

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons and daughters of God.” - The Bible

Passion Flame

 

Within I have a kindled fire of welcome
the passion rages through my body

Sustain my fiery desire
upon thy naked body
seduce me with your hardness

I am yours and yours alone
come to me
keep me to yourself

Love me like no other can
so I shall remember this all my days

For I am thine, and thine alone.