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This morning I’ve appreciated the blue skies in a different way.
After several days of rain, which has been a problem where I live in , that blue sky brought a sign of hapiness and hope.
I live in Brazil and I can’t say I am a sun deprived person, but couldn’t help myself out of not enjoying sun rays and that fall blue sky.
Thought about the seasons through out life and how we should be wise enough to cope with all rains as an announcement of a beautiful day to come.
OOps sorry I meant:
“I believe we should “seize” this opportunity ..with open arms.
:)
Dear Paulo,
I still believe that what I have written all over the past years resonates with the Unesco education program as well as the Harvard ‘s program on education.
I agree with what Thiruselvamk said that “nation united cannot fail”
This blog is giving us an international way of dealing with nations in a constructive manner.
I believe we should cease this opportunity.
Love Marie-Christine
Thiruselvamk
You stearred something in me with your commant.
One of the zhing I don’t quite geyt it is how come you need to be invited to say what you have to tell to the UN.
It makes it very difficult as well since yuou hav to pay for your own zhings someone told me. It’s Ok if u are loaded, and I suspect, in any case, its ar probabley deducted in their taxes.
The ordinaryman nevrr has a say in these matters, it is quite bizzarre.
Which ever whay u look at i t w’re being kept under there spell, the reach and the pour countriez we’re zhe saeme.
U are writ whenu say united nations cannot fail
Love u brozher
Dear Editor: It is an irony, that the UNITED NATIONS which has lost its respect in Sri Lanka chooses to give a second round of US$10 million. uN officials are dictated upon, denied access to war torn zones to verify, and brushed out of the island as soon as possible. Who knows how the first US$10 million was spent? Even, if detailed, it remains not verifiable. Even, leaders of other countries get to be treated like “slum dogs”, offered help and advice are rejected and get packed away. UNITED NATIONS may have failed, but nations united cannot fail. Amongst the few peaceful ways remain to drive sense into the heads of current Sri Lankan leadership, is to have all Sri Lankan embassies and High Commissions in the world, closed and packed off. All countries cut off ties to this island. In addition, all landing rights to Sri Lankan airlines be withdrawn internationally, and international boycott of Sri Lankan products. Peaceful, practical and a very pragmatic approach to end genocide, and re introduce peace. ThiruselvamK Malaysia.
Dear Paulo and all,
I post it so late as 0n the 1st of May I worked double shift, ten hours in all, but still I felt elated.
I came to work with bunch of red carnations and red roses, said to every single person I met “Happy Holiday!”, lot of them looked me strange but most of them winked and smiled me back.
Somehow this festivity has taken “comunist” conotation in my country but as it is the day we used to go with school on picnic it remained in my subconscious mind as school holiday and no doctrine or politics will alter it for me.
Though I worked that day realy hard I enjoyed it very much !
Love
Luce
Found that on Wiki today.
Mevlâna Jalâluddîn Rumi says, “All loves are a bridge to Divine love. Yet, those who have not had a taste of it do not know!” [2]
Thelema is the utopic school form”Gargantua and Pantagruel”? I laughed a lot when I have read about the school presented first, not Thelema. Was just as we attended , with great bulks of books to read, always in classrooms for so many hours, we became pale for being so much time in closed areas. Well, I have read once in a book about a writer I love, who was in journey with scholarship in India, and there he visited big poet Rabrindanath Tagore, and his school. I was so surprised to see the real semblance with the ideal school Thelema, for there no course was compulsory, all learn in fresh air, classess were taken in gardens, they used to dance and sing, and they also had best results in study, all masters, teacher being the best in their field.Hope I live to see a real school as Thelema in my life.
Much Love, Alexandra
Querido Mestre,
Espero que esteja tudo otimo pra vc e Christina, e todos.
Uma amiga guardou o jornal de sua entrevista au directsoir, eu eu li hj. Adorei sua simplidade e clareza ao responder as perguntas, e como oque vc fala é oque é realmente. “S’interesser aux vraies valeurs de la vie”. Cada dia eu te admiro mais. Obrigada.
Abraços pra vc, pra Christina, e pra todos aqui.
Deus abençoe vcs sempre.
MARG,
Ca
Ahhhh Thelma. Thank you! I love Leif Ove Andsnes. Of course. He’s from Karmøy, not very far from where I grew up. He is sooo clever this young man, and has such a gentle lovely personality. May be it goes with being a pianist? I was thinking today about the Play I talked about, which pretty much is Free Play, in contrast to disciplined Play like in Tennis, as Alexandra mentioned, and as in Playing the piano, as you Thelma can give to us. I believe both the Free and the Disciplined Play…we need both.
Thelma’s son in America says thank you! Giggles. Yes, his mother is Thelma too, but sadly she passed away a couple of years ago, rest her soul.
I wanted to ask you how it was to meet our dear Paulo Coelho in Paris, as I can imagine if meeting him, it would really hurt to have to separate from him again. I can believe how happy and shy you felt. We are all in love with him, ha! May be we need to clone him so we can all have one Paulo Coelho each :) So he asked you how you spell your name? I was wondering what he had said to you. Nobody can refuse an invitation to Cyprus!!! Love you all,
Heart
hola!
Sr. paulo coehlo
un pregunta si entre dos personas hay amor verdedaro. aunque en este momento es un amor debil y fragil, porque despues de muchos años,de vivir y sobrevivir a muchas pruebas por asi llamarlas, pero aun asi sigue en los corazones de cada uno pero el egoismo y soberbia de cada uno ya no deje ver si hay futuro para ese amor…la pregunta es cuando llega al limite ese amor?
Dearest Paulo,
Just a quick question about the mobile version of this blog. It’s really convenient, but i’ve noticed it only gives you posts the currently and last day. Is there a way to read previous entries? Will you be updating the version at any point? I’m loving it and finding it really handy!
One other thing, it seems my life will be taking me to spain amazingly. Possibly for a week during 24 june til around 10 july – dates are not confirmed. I was wondering will you be around to meet? the agenda for june isnt up yet..
Thank you for being
Yajna
http://www.pianostreet.com/blog/piano-news/powerful-leif-ove-andsnes-plays-rach-3-1003/
Rachmaninoff’s 3 piano concert. I am a member of Piano Street and they send me wonderful news and music for …free. The pianist from Norway, my dear Heart, and at the beginning there is an interview in your language! I was just listening to it..
So I am not the …unique Thelma!Your mother in law, dear Heart, is named Thelma too!
Dear Paulo Coelho, I was really so happy and .. shy, at the party that I did not realize why you were asking me about the … spelling of it!!! I asked you, in Greek?? ;] Next time we will meet, maybe in … Cyprus, we will talk about … THELEMA!!!
Happy birthday to .. Thelma’s son in America!
LOVE,
Thelma
Alexandra, yes you got it! The Playful Human Being :))
Thelma, as you, my nature is rather serious, even though my dad would always tease me and cheer me up. May is the month of flowers indeed. As you also say; a man is his mothers son. My mother in law, (who is also named Thelma!), always used to call my husband ‘my little mayflower’, as his birthday is May 1st. He doesn’t admit to be too fond of it as he finds it’s to effeminate. When she teasingly told him; ‘my mayflower’, he would always smile.
Now, being serious…sometimes self pitying, let me tell you of a man I know who grew up completely deprived of Play. His dad left him as a little boy, moving to Las Vegas, and this man grew up with his grandparents. When I asked him what he used to play as a child, he said the only toy he ever had was a Chucky doll his grandfather gave him (this grandfather once tried to kill him, pointing a gun right at him and pulling the trigger). A Chucky doll! Let me show you one example here what a Chucky doll is;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDV-DVWUvrA
I met this man when he was expecting his first son, and of course he talked about how he was worried he couldn’t play with his own children, as he simply didn’t know how. We met weekly, and when the son was born, worked on how to interact and play with babies and children at different age. The man ended up having great, great play time with his son. He played Peek a Boo, later Hide and Seek and would be dangerous Lion chasing his son. The couple got their child all kind of age appropriate toys, and no doubt had a lot of fun trying them out with their child. In this way, my impression is, the man caught up for his own lost childhood joys. He had been a very depressed man. He tried to commit suicide three times. Once he set himself on fire. Once he tried to jump in front of a truck. And another time he tried to overdose on drugs. This man, I saw his dead serious face, lit up, and smile more and more often… It cannot be more beautiful than that… and his son is a very happy toddler too.
A rhetorical question,song.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTI05b4ELzI
Dear Anna M., wish you be happy soon. Happens to me too to have very low moments, but with age, I take all things if possible in a humorous way. My poor mom has pains because cold, but I made her laugh, saying the same painful things in a different way, so we made fun of the troubles. Hope I never lose that feature, it helps me to go over very hard times. Love, Alexandra
Dear Thelma, I am happy you had a wonderful time in nature, mountains. I love flowers and green so much. No work of Art can ever replace natures beauty.
MY RANDOM REFLECTION ON HAPPINESS. After many years of living and reflection, I have found out that happiness is really a state of mind. It is a by-product of how a person looks at things, people, and events around him. Or stated otherwise, it is the result of how a person interprets the events that happen to him, or how he relates with people near or close to him, or how he view things with attachment or detachment. A famous quote attributed to the famous Chinese sage Gautama Buddha goes something like this: Blessed are those who do not expect, for they shall not be disappointed (unhappy). For I have found out that disappointments and frustrations, like happiness, are also states of mind. A person may be poor in material things but happy. While another person may be rich in material things but unhappy. Money does not bring happiness, although it is a means to fulfill material needs and wants which, to some persons, can contribute to their being satisfied. But happiness is a state of mind, a feeling of the heart. So, how does a person becomes happy? The answer is, to me, is – it depends. It depends on how he would look at things and relates with persons in his world, his world being also his mental creation. It means to look at the world with detachment, and not be emotionally involved in persons and on the things and events that happened to him or her. It means letting go. Letting go of oneself, of people, of attachment to material things. When that happens, a person can be calm, less stressful, relaxed, and can be view things in their proper perspectives. This is a prelude to happiness. For happiness is not an end in itself, it is a means to an end, which is spiritual and emotional maturity and well-being.
Apologies – on the translation on breast cancer, the research was conducted in China instead of Perth.
“Australian researchers from the University of Perth have compared the diet and lifestyle of more than 2,000 women who attended a breast clinic in China.”
“Chinese women who eat mushrooms on a regular basis and drink green tea daily have an 89% less risk of getting cancer than the ones who do not eat or drink either of these.
Australian researchers from the University of Perth have compared the diet and lifestyle of more than 2,000 women who attended a breast clinic in Perth”
Read more on:
http://www.guerir.fr/Members/david_servan_schreiber/anticancer-1
Le Blog de David Servan Schreiber-Cancer: mieux le guerir et le
(In French0 under:
The vert et champignons :89% de cancer du sein en moins.(3rd story down)
I’m enjoying my morning coffee on the porch. Summer had arrived to Skandinavia and that makes us happy. The nature brings us the green grass, trees with leaves, flowers and all it’s colours that is gone during the cold winter. Nature is quite a great artist. :)
…and I am still waiting for a letter of apologies or other form of compensation….
Mon dernier vol Air France a ete quelque chose. Que je vous raconte un peu.
J’adore arriver a l’aeroport C.D.G. – Le chaos me rappelle que je “suis chez moi”
Cette arrivee n’a pas ete l’exception a la regle.
Au moment d’embarquer il n’y avait qu’un membre du personnel, une autre personne est arrivee et est repartie tout de suite apres – besoin urgent d’aller aux toilettes certainement – Puis un autre membre du personnel annonce qu’il y aurait un delai de 10/15 mns.
Les passagers se rassemblaient et vas-y que je te pousse , marchant sur les pieds, vous bousculant et a vous mettre les bagages sur les orteils, etc,etc.
Enfin, on va embarquer. Ah! Il y a un autre delai. Les personnes avec les numeros de 15 a 25 sont pries d’avancer. C’est alors qu’ une vague humaine deferle vers le comptoir a une vitesse epoustouflante- 70 personnes se presentent toutes avec le numero entre 15 et 25 –
Voila nous arrivons dans l’avion. Chacun trouve sa place. Je me trouve entre deux hommes – prise en sandwich – Un doit etre d’origine hollandaise – il lisait une revue hollandaise – l’autre un natif du pays.
J’observe les passagers, les stewards qui vous laissent mettre vos bagages – sans vous aider – mais sous disent “Bonjour Monsieur, Madame” “Welcome on board” . Ils etaient trois “on board” plus Francoise, the purser.
Tiens le bonhomme qui controlait les cartes d’embarquement est de retour – avec la liste des passagers – Commotion! Commotion!
Qu’est ce qui se passe?
Il consulte avec Francoise, les stewards et meme avec le Capitaine.On fait les cent pas le long du couloir. Un des stewards – du genre YMCA – passe avec un compteur et ajoute minitieusement les nombres un par un. On consulte la liste des passagers et vous demande si vous etes bien Madame ou Monsieur Untel.Priceless! – comme la carte Visa -
The man in charge of controlling the tickets then announce that one passenger is missing – a baby -
Meantime, plane still on the tarmac and the passengers are going in and out of the toilet for a quick relief I guess.
Temperature is rising – No drinks offered either -
We are still counting. Consultations after consultations Francoise, the Captain ,the “Boys” and the other ground man agreed. Phew ! an hour has passed and we are finally ready for departure.
Wait a minute! We are now doing the routine of the
“Safety procedures” This was quite something.
I was in stitches from the time I sat on the plane till the time I landed. I had not had such a good laugh for such a long time.
Un vrai film – genre Louis de Funes was taking place right in front of my eyes – The passenger sitting next to me was laughing just to hear me laughing – What spectacle! If there was an Academy Award, they would have been on top of the list.
A few other incidents occurred –
The man sitting behind me kept rubbing my shoes – that was a signal I am sure about that – Those French you know – they certainly have a way – even if they have not seen your face – It is in their blood! caressing my hair from time to time as well. Oh What a thriller!”Ca plane pour moi” all right”
I enjoyed the show very much.
Oh!? Nah and to top it all up, my suitcase got lost on arrival. Would you believe it?
Just as well I am always prepared – as my Mum said – I always pack extra undies in my hand luggage –
P.S. It took one week for my suitcase to arrive at destination.
Had some fun talking with the Air France ‘ Lost luggage Dept.
Proposed myself for doing some advertising for them.
One of them – a foreigner – the person in charge needs a bit of working on her manners though.
She seemed to forget that I was the customer and she was selling me the product – A better sense of humour is required there.
:)
Anna M, my heart goes out to you…depression is awful…I have experienced that many times in my life…I am learning how connected my thoughts are to my emotions and that is helping me to live a happier and depression-free life…sometimes just doing one positive thing, like taking a walk, can jolt you out of it…hoping and praying for uplifting for you in the days to come…
Rogie, I can feel the love you have for you children coming through.
I could envision you and your children having fun together…you asked how you can get them ready for the big world…and I think you are doing just that because you are spending precious time with them playing together…that is preparing them for life…keep on doing what you are doing…
Last Friday, he began a ‘personal development’ course which concluded on Sunday. Monday he left his wife and very young family to continue his search for self. Alone. Because that’s the way one finds oneself. Apparently.
Why is it that so often the quest to ‘find oneself’ results in the loss of so much for so many? The discarding of partner; friends and those bothersome little dependants we call our children. Why, in the noble name of personal development, do we seem to find it so easy to damage the life of another when at any other time such behaviour would be considered selfish or reckless or irresponsible? Expand; grow; learn … Sure. Explore oceans, internal and external, we never knew existed … Definitely. Love life… Absolutely. But more than that … love the life you’ve got. Endeavour to enhance that which you’d already begun. Take responsibility for all the decisions that have come before ~ led you to this place ~ and all the people you’ve drawn towards you along the way. Shift your focus on self to a perspective which encompasses all. Instead of asking how you can get the most out of life; ask instead how you can give to life.
The state of the world will not be improved by the uprising of a mass of self-centred; inward focused individuals. But rather by moving forward as a collective of loving; responsible and nurturing human beings … able to place value on the feelings; needs; beliefs and differences of others.
So easy to pretend that the ME quest hands us a cloth to simply wipe the slate clean and start again. Surely we must take responsibility for the person we chose, at some point, to accompany us on the journey. Surely we must take responsibility for the children, innocent and unaware of questions about the ‘meaning of life’. Surely there must be room for compromise. Surely there must be balance. Care. Before decisions to run off into the sunset with self are made.
Ultimately, there can be no lasting joy in your heart if your actions have caused the death of a child’s sweet innocence so that you may live as you wish. Ultimately, the pendulum of self discovery will swing back and smack you square between the eyes.
I believe 100% in discovering the light and shade of me; the dr Jekyll and mr hyde of me; the beauty of mother; the sensuality of lover of me. However, my life already created has me as sole parent to three boys. Sole parent which means that sometimes ‘beauty of mother’ is actually very frustrating … ugly even … and times spent as sensual lover are restricted and prone to late night interruptions by a nightmare, a wheeze in need of attention or a lonely little cry. But this journey and the effort required to squeeze ‘self’ somewhere in amongst the demands of parenting, have presented me with more lessons than a path which would have had me abandon it all. This struggle to juggle all that I am and all that I do with the need to just sit and be with me … has taught me to value my time; seize the treasure that is quiet; and hold my sons ~ who did not ask that I divorce their father and therefore have to do it all on my own ~ who did not ask that there be three instead of one ~ who, in the case of my eldest boy, did not ask to be born with Cerebral Palsy ~ just that little bit tighter. It is in the sacrifice and challenges and not in the easy flow that I have learned the most of myself. In the depths of despair that I have discovered the dizzying heights of my happiness. In the far flung reaches and outer extremes of my emotions that I have finally discovered my centre.
Perhaps if we chose not just to find out about ourselves; but to find out about ourselves in the context of real life … We would discover depths of character and reserves of courage of which we didn’t know we were capable. Perhaps we would surprise and delight ourselves and feel darn proud. Perhaps instead of finding our self we would go that bit further and find our self respect.
That would be development … not just for one but for all.
Labor Day, a holiday. I should be spending this day with my family but today im taking two work shift. Working overtime inorder to save money for my kids school tuition fee. But when i got home i still have time for my two kids. Have fun with karaoke, watching tv, and go biking. And they love walking with them in a near by market. I love spending time with my kids. Sometimes, their innocents makes me smile. How can i get them ready for the big world?
Dear Heart, thanks for you interesting and encouraging reply. Very interesting theory, indeed. I bet is true, for I feel so well each time I play with kids. It happened while I prepared my private student I said things near joke, so she laughed a lot. I felt was relaxing, and get her near to me, not losing her respect, because she notice I am serious in the study. Anyways, Homo Ludens does exist…Thanks a lot for your kind words,dear Heart. Wish you only beautiful moments. Have much fun. Love
Alexandra
Hello everyone,
Today I’m kind of depressed. I don’t know what’s going on with me: I just feel like I’d rather sleep all day long.
I just want to feel happy again…
=(
Thank you all. Alexandra I wish I could play tennis!
I have read in a book that the English aristocracy used to send their children to learn playing tennis because it gives them a proud and aristocratic way of walking and .. air!!;]
Very wise comments, dearest Heart! Thank you.
Since I was a child I used to take everything so seriously and with responsibility. Now that the years have passed I have become a child again, I enjoy jokes,laughing and I am thrilled with new things, new people, new technology and … Internet. ;]
Today 1st of May we went to the mountains.. The weather was warm, sunny and there were so many flowers in bloom.. May is the month of flowers.
LOVE,
Thelma.
Hi Alexandra,
I often read your comments in this blog and want to wish you a Happy May 1st! Playing with your niece and nephew, in my opinion, is one of the most important thing you can do in this life, as I believe playing keep adults sane. I have studied play in dept. There was a great anthropologist and sociologist called Gregory Bateson who created a new theory about Play, after he had observed monkeys when they play. He discovered when the apes were playing, they sent each other some signals, letting the other participants know; ‘this is play, we are not in the real world anymore’. Bateson called it ‘Playsignal’, and say we take a meta-perspective in our brains when we play. Our brain changes setting so to speak from being serious to the matter of fact, to going into a play mood, where we joke and make funny faces and allow ourselves to be silly. Bateson also thought this is what schizophrenic patients lack, this ability to pretend and be silly. In my work with adult parents one of my focus has been to teach adults how to play with their babies. You know many of us perhaps didn’t play much as children, and how can we then give it to our children? Just start. Blow raspberries on that baby’s belly, tickle the child gently and get down on the floor with the toddlers and let them show us the way to play. I actually believe adults have to tease babies for them to develop a great ability to though themselves into play later. So, I admire you spending time with your niece and nephew and having a good time. You go for it Alexandra! Go Alexandra, Go! ;)
Do we need assurances? Beurk assurances.
We don’t trust assurances at all.
1st of may. A holiday, usually. But today I saw much fewer person having fun, maybe less money in circulation. I was playing tennis with my niece and nephew, and was thinking that maybe I am a really modern aunt. I dont remember my aunts were ever playing anything with me. I dont blame them, just an observation. I have to write, so the silence of a holiday day is really what I need now.
While visiting my mom, I talked about how weird some literary critical reviews are,and mom wondered : Why a literary critic, talking about a book, they criticize also the private life of the author. They are not suppose to talk about the book, the work?
Guess mom has right. But this is the world we live in.
Another topic curios for me is the so called molecular kitchen. Some criticize, others praise it. They use to change the status of the food, serving for example spaghetti in a cup and looking as a pudding…? Pretty weird, but very expensive. And I heard they use additives. Natural ,no?