To stand emotionally open before the world & give of our hearts without fear of hurt or demand of reciprocity - this is the ultimate act of human courage.
In front, the sun climbs slow, how slowly, but westward, look, the land is bright.
Put forth thy leaf, thou lofty plane, East wind and frost are safely gone; With zephyr mild and balmy rain The summer comes serenely on; Earth, air, and sun and skies combine To promise all that's kind and fair: But thou, O human heart of mine, Be still, contain thyself, and bear.
Each for himself is still the rule We learn it when we go to school The devil take the hindmost, O!
Be but faithful, that is all; Go right on, and close behind thee There shall follow still and find thee Help, sure help.
That out of sight is out of mind is true of most we leave behind.
Afloat. We move: Delicious! Ah, What else is like the gondola?
There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do.
One of the most mawkish of human delusions is the notion that friendship should be eternal, or, at all events, life-long, and that any act which puts a term to it is somehow discreditable.
If you wait for your natural soul mate to meet with you, it will be just like waiting for lightning with which to read your Bible. And you will not be able to read much either. For a moment it is there, and by the time you have opened the Bible it is gone.
The West would be well advised to change its approach towards failing states. At present, no major power can find the correct ways and means - and the numbers of failing states are increasing. This year we watched the collapse of Mali, a consequence of the Libyan civil war. The south of Libya and Mali, and Niger too, are well on the way to becoming a no-man's land. After 911, George W. Bush and Tony Blair made the promise that they would not tolerate failed states because they could become a haven for terrorists. And today? The number increases.