Poppy
“A man can get discouraged many times,
but he is not a failure until he begins
to blame somebody else and stops trying.”
John Burroughs, 1837-1921
Naturalist instrumental in the early conservationist movement
Monthly Archives: April 2009
Feeling vs. Doing
“You cannot make yourself feel something you do not feel,
but you can make yourself do right in spite of your feelings.”
Pearl Buck, 1892-1973
Nobel & Pulitzer Prize winning writer
Courage and Listening
Jack in the Pulpit
“Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak;
courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.”
Anonymous
Pride of their Children
Rare Yellow Trillium, aka Little Sweet Betsy
“Children’s children are a crown to the aged,
and parents are the pride of their children.”
Solomon,
Book of Proverbs
REFLECTIONS
Congratulations to my parents, who both graduate from college on May 8. Today was their commissioning service at Gap Creek Christian Church in Knoxville. They are joining Pioneer Bible Translators, a mission organization in Dallas, Texas. Dad will be Director of Support Services and Mom will be Executive Assistant to their HR director. Their four years of college have gone quickly (probably not to them) and I can’t believe they’re moving on. I was blessed to be part of the service this morning and share the above scripture (ok, only after getting control of my emotions…I can do public speaking in front of hundreds without breaking a sweat, but talk about my family and I get choked up every time) on behalf of our family. We’re all really proud of them for taking this huge step at this point in their lives. After church, Mom and I took a walk down their trail next to the French Broad River and found some rare (but plentiful there) yellow trillium and lovely jack-in-the-pulpits (appropriate to find at a Bible college!). What a treat for me — I’d never seen yellow trillium. Afterward, I sat with Mom and Dad on their bench overlooking the river and relished the moment. I love you, Mom and Dad!
Trying to Please
“A ‘no’ uttered from deepest conviction
is better and greater than a ‘yes’ merely uttered to please,
or what is worse, to avoid trouble.”
Mahatma Gandhi, 1869-1948
Political and spiritual leader of India
An Educated Mind
“It is the mark of an educated mind
to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.”
Aristotle, 384-322 B.C.
Greek philosopher
Doing Something
Trout Lily
“In any moment of decision,
the best thing you can do is the right thing,
the next best thing is the wrong thing,
and the worst thing you can do is nothing.”
Theodore Roosevelt, 1858-1919
26th President of the U.S.
What We Are
“To become different from what we are,
we must have some awareness of what we are.”
Eric Hoffer, 1902-1983
Social writer and philosopher
You
“Today you are You, that is truer than true.
There is no one alive who is Youer than You.”
Dr. Suess
Irritation
“Everything that irritates us about others
can lead us to an understanding of ourselves.”
Carl Gustav Jung
Laughter
Poppy
“The most wasted of all days
is one without laughter.”
e. e. cummings
Let’s Go
“Life loves to be taken by the lapel and told:
‘I’m with you kid. Let’s go.’”
Maya Angelou, b. 1928
Poet, educator, actress, Civil Rights activist
A Leap in the Dark
Tulip
“All growth is a leap in the dark,
a spontaneous unpremeditated act
without benefit of experience.”
Henry Miller, 1891-1980
Novelist and Painter
Expression
“I quote others only in order
the better to express myself.”
Michel de Montaigne
Renaissance scholar
Integrity
“I never had a policy;
I have just tried to do my very best
each and every day.”
Abraham Lincoln, 1809-1865
Eyes on God
Basilica of St. Lawrence, Asheville, NC
“We have to pray with our eyes on God,
not on the difficulties.”
Oswald Chambers, 1874-1917
20th Century Scottish Protestant Christian minister and teacher
New Life
“Easter spells out beauty,
the rare beauty of new life.”
S.D. Gordon
The Promise
“Our Lord has written the promise of the resurrection,
not in books alone, but in every leaf in spring-time.”
Martin Luther, 1483-1546
German theologian
After the Rain
“I think of the garden after the rain;
And hope to my heart comes singing,
At morn the cherry-blooms will be white,
And the Easter bells be ringing!”
Edna Dean Proctor, “Easter Bells”
Sweet Time of Easter
Blood Root
“Well pleaseth me the sweet time of Easter
That maketh the leaf and the flower come out.”
Bertran de Born, c. 1140-1215
“Most famous of all troubadours”
Madness
Foamflower
“Madness takes its toll. Please have exact change.”
Author Unknown
Scratch It and Get Glad
Phlox
“Anger ventilated often hurries toward forgiveness;
and concealed often hardens into revenge.”
Edward G. Bulwer-Lytton, 1803-1873
English novelist, poet, playwright
Waiting for Inspiration?
Squirrel Corn
“We should be taught not to wait for inspiration to start a thing.
Action always generates inspiration.
Inspiration seldom generates action.”
Frank Tibolt, 1897-1989
“A Touch of Greatness”
Storytelling
Trout Lily
“It’s really important that, as women, we tell our stories.
That is what helps seed our imaginations.”
Ann Bancroft, 1931-2005
Actress
Understand
Rue Anemone
“To understand another human being
you must gain some insight
into the conditions which made him what he is.”
Margaret Bourke-White, 1904-1971
American photographer and photojournalist
