taking a break

i'm taking a break from posting as manfromplaid on lj and as redsaucer on blogger. for a while, i'll post as my alter ego, mild-mannered peterladage.

double whammies

it's hard reading through the prophets of the old testament and repeatedly watching an inconvenient truth (AIT). lots of doom and gloom. even the director and producers of AIT admit that the film doesn't have enough room at the end for the good news, the good spiel; hence, the marvelous credits.

there's bits of good news in the prophets, and in AIT, but i'm anxious for the real good news. because i'm reading the bible from genesis forwards, i'm not too far away from the gospels, and on the internet there's much good news about what we are doing and can do. and i'm hungry for that too.

aren't we all?

here's some good news: Sustainability within a Generation: A new vision for Canada

five minutes to midnight: the doomsday clock moves two minutes closer

"The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists’ Doomsday Clock conveys how close humanity is to catastrophic destruction--the figurative midnight--and monitors the means humankind could use to obliterate itself. First and foremost, these include nuclear weapons, but they also encompass climate-changing technologies and new developments in the life sciences and nanotechnology that could inflict irrevocable harm." ... More...

Climate Change Denial: "Wacky Weather" is Deadly Global Heating (lj xpost)

birdwoman sent me this blog-link on Climate Change Denial: "Wacky Weather" is Deadly Global Heating. as she said, it's long and depressing, but there's hope at the end. kind of like reading Jeremiah.

two poems

THE JOURNEY

the walk

the hill

up

down

the morning

light

heat

the path

the paths

the choice

the others

the source

the beginning is the end and the end is the beginning

the centre is the edge and the edge is the centre

the door of fear

the path of love




DESPAIR
are these the dying days?
are these the days we receive
the shards of our broken covenant?
are these the days of false prophets and false platitudes?
false counselors and false comforts?
are these the days when we do the wrong thing
and do it earnestly?
or the right thing doubtfully?
dear lord
i don't mean to abandon you
show me the way to a greater heart
to love you
and all of your creation
may the fear in me
be the source of true wisdom
and guide me in the path of righteousness
for your name's sake
and may others come to know
your peace and love
(of which i am a poor reflection)
and may all be healed
in perfect community with you

"we're in this together"

Celebration Speech at the Resurgence 40th Anniversary event by Annie Lennox

If we view the world as an interdependent global village, then we avoid taking action at our own peril.

WE LIVE IN complicated times. We seek, but we don’t necessarily find, the ultimate things we long to experience – contentment, joy, love, inner peace. Our lives are too often overloaded with demands: that we should be successful, rich, beautiful and famous; but this just adds to our inner stress and turmoil. The media constantly bombard us with images reminding us of our ‘lack’ … and we so often feel like failures.

read more...

simplicity

in eleven days i take possession of a little house. my resolution for 2007 is:

simplify the unecessay and make room for the necessary

**********************

packed away in my treasure box is a little journal bound in red cordurouy. in it i recorded on that day 25 years ago that i read thoreau for the first time. here's a taste of what i read:

"Most of the luxuries, and many of the so-called comforts of life, are not only not indispensable, but positive hindrances to the elevation of mankind. With respect to luxuries and comforts, the wisest have even lived a more simple and meagre life than the poor."

"We are happy in proportion to the things we can do without."

"Our life is frittered away by detail... Simplify, simplify, simplify! ... Simplicity of life and elevation of purpose."

more quotes on simplicity


*************************

"Simple Gifts" was written by Elder Joseph while he was at the Shaker community in Alfred, Maine in 1848. These are the lyrics to his one verse song:

'Tis the gift to be simple, 'tis the gift to be free,

'Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be,

And when we find ourselves in the place just right,

'Twill be in the valley of love and delight.

When true simplicity is gain'd,

To bow and to bend we shan't be asham'd,

To turn, turn will be our delight,

Till by turning, turning we come round right.

[source:wikipedia]