Peace
We will have to want peace, want it enough to pay for it, before it becomes an accepted rule. Eleanor Roosevelt Eleanor Roosevelt’s words really resonate on this anniversary of the World Trade Center attack, one of so many in human history. Think of Pearl Harbor. Think of Germany’s Gypsy, Homosexual, Jewish Holocaust. Think of the decimation of this hemisphere’s first people. A 100,000 year war waged by our species now leaves us without another. See How Neanderthals and Humans Battled. Also see The Neanderthals War. While wars between humans have been brief by comparison, the longest include: The 781-year-long Christian invasion of the Iberian Peninsula The 681-year-long Greco-Roman vs. Persian [Iran] battles The 675-year-long Byzantine-Bulgarian wars in the Balkans The 602 years, five months, one week and four days of the Christian Crusades Here’s More Whew! Mrs. Roosevelt believed, ”The basis of world peace is the teaching which runs through almost all the great religions of the world. Love thy neighbor as thyself.” And some have also, historically advocated the conquest and killing of those viewed as different. Eleanor Roosevelt asked, “When will our consciences grow so tender that we will act to prevent human misery rather than avenge it?” Personal peace is a start. What if more and more: Resisted guilt. Didn’t compare themselves to others. Challenged their ‘musts’ and converted ‘shoulds’ to ‘coulds.’ Took breaks from the hustle-bustle and visited tranquil places. See More Ways to Find Peace of Mind and Inner Calm. Predator-Prey is Earth’s MO [Modus Operandi, Method of Operating]. All animals and some plants kill other living things to live. That said, here’s a thought [illustrated in part by playing the original Super Mario]: What if Earth’s kill-or-be-killed conditions are a kind of test, a puzzle? What if a blissful after life is the reward for figuring out how to create on Earth all that’s promised in heaven, Eden, Paradise? What if Earth is, as some suggest, Purgatory where failure-flunking requires a re-do? Here’s another question: What price would you pay for more peace? Succeed and Soar! Remember September 11 is also “Make Your Bed Day” September 12 is Grandparents Day September 15 is International Day of Democracy September 17 is National Constitution Day Image by pikepicture Eleanor’s Insights Collection Succeed and Soar’s “Eleanor’s Insights” series is illustrated with photographs of ‘wild places.’ Art is available as prints, framed and on canvas as well as on journals, greeting cards, weekender bags, shower curtains, puzzles and much more. Shop Here
Love 1: Key to The Gates of Happiness
Love is the master key that opens the gates of happiness. – Oliver Wendell Holmes What does love mean? The ancient Greeks identified several types. Philautia: the ability to love oneself and be concerned with ones happiness Storge: an empathetic love that exists in families Philia: the fondness found in friendships Eros: romantic, passionate love Agape: open-hearted, unconditional and world-embracing spiritual love I do believe that existing within these experiences grows our personal heavens on Earth. The opposite [intolerance, stinginess, meanness, prejudice, etc.] are like fire and brimstone. As this year approaches the season that calls for Good Will toward all, Succeed and Soar’s next postings present meditations on love. In the meantime, share a favorite love experience. Comment below. * Which LOVE quote is matched to the right movie or television show? “I believe that we can be extraordinary together rather than ordinary apart.” — Titanic “You are the perfect verse over a tight beat.” — Brown Sugar “And I’d choose you; in a hundred lifetimes, in a hundred worlds, in any version of reality, I’d find you and I’d choose you.” —Buffy The Vampire Slayer * Five versions of my “Love Seed” Illustrated Wisdom art have been created with Adobe Photoshop. See them in upcoming posts. Support and encourage Succeed and Soar. Purchase the art as prints, ready-to-display canvas or framed. Visit gallery. *** Quiz Answers “I believe that we can be extraordinary together rather than ordinary apart.” — [Television] Meredith Grey, Grey’s Anatomy “You are the perfect verse over a tight beat.” — [Movie] Andre Ellis, Brown Sugar “And I’d choose you; in a hundred lifetimes, in a hundred worlds, in any version of reality, I’d find you and I’d choose you.” — [Television] The Vampire Diaries