Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Love is...

Love is beautiful, love is sweet;
Love is emotional, it's hard to beat.
Love is crazy, love is blind;
Love is mean, love is kind.

Love inspires, it gives you wings;
Love races on to better things.
So run fast and don't be late,
Or you're gonna have to wait.

Love hurts, it cries for tears,
But love heals through the years.
Love touches, love hears,
So push away all your fears.

Love is confusing, it really is;
Especially with a wandering kiss.
Yet love is special, it is special.
It is irreplaceable.

Love is human, it is alive.
It makes you strong,
It makes you whole,
So hold your head high.

Live, laugh, love, breathe.
Stand steadfast, never leave.
Hold your heart, know yourself.
Know that all will be well.

Compassion

A person's nobility is manifested in compassion for others. Kindness and consideration for others resonate with both the Buddhist concept of compassion and the core Christian concept of love. When viewed from a larger perspective, we exist here thanks to the warmth, kindness and support, not only of the people around us but of everything on this Earth and in the entire universe.

All living things - flowers, birds, the sun, the soil - support one another in a beautiful symphony of life. Since the birth of this planet more than four billion years ago, life form after life form has been conceived and nourished. Human life is a part of that chain. If at any point a link were missing from this chain, none of us would be alive today. We are all proof that the chain hasn't been broken.

Life produces new life - surely this is consideration in its most basic form. Delving deeper into this idea, I think we can say that the Earth itself is a giant living organism filled with consideration. The activity of the entire universe is essentially a function of compassion.

Truly commendable people have the spirit to improve and grow, and continually striving to develop ourselves above all else is true consideration for others.

Daisaku Ikeda, The Way of Youth, Buddhist Common Sense for Handling Life's Questions, p.146

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

The colors of Summer!






My grandmother's beach place is home to many fond family memories. Birthdays, holidays, simple sundays, or lazy days, Amah's beach house is THE place to be. We're ever so lucky to have such a place! (Or rather, to have an amazing grandma who owns such a place!)
I have a very close family. I have a HUGE family, in both sides! And we're very close-knit. It amazes me how we all remain close despite the busy work weeks, the classes, businesses, and the distant living arrangements. And now that we [the cousins] are all grown up, we don't spend as much time together like we used to when we were kids. But when we do get together, it's as if no time has passed at all. It's a gift really! But it can be a pain sometimes. In a family like mine, it's as if everyone has to know everything about everyone. And you really can't tell them to mind their own business, because we're, well, family.
Ah well.. You gotta take the good with the bad!
That's family for ya! :)