Since I’m entirely out of energy and don't see a re-up happening before tomorrow, I’m reverting to my thievin’ ways for today’s post, three quotes I stole from The Sun. (Which in turn stole them from the speakers. Guilt loves company!)
“Money is a dream. It is a piece of paper on which is imprinted in invisible ink the dream of all the things it will buy, all the trinkets and all the power over others.” – David T. Bazelon
“Privilege, almost by definition, requires that someone pay the price for its enjoyment.” – Paula Ross
“It is very wrong for people to feel deeply sad when they lose some money, yet when they waste the precious moments of their lives, they do not have the slightest feeling of repentance.” – The Dalai Lama
Enjoy the weekend's precious moments, everyone. (I don’t mean the ceramic figurines, though I suppose there is a place for porcelain children about to leap out of high chairs and claw one's eyes out while a possessed teddy bear looks on. And that would be hell.)
Thursday, February 18, 2010
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4 comments:
Precious Moments figurines make me want to hurl. And I just ate lunch. Thanks for that visual. :-P
Camping (probably in the rain) this weekend in Petaluma with friends coming for lunch on Saturday because she is OBSESSED with Airstreams. Should be interesting. ;)
Hope you're feeling better, thief!
The quote about privilege reminds me of a Buddhist teaching -- that we all must come to terms with the fact that we WILL cause harm, simply because in order for us to live and thrive, others must go without or have less -- whether that's the animals or plants we feed on, the timber we cut to provide our paper so we can write our words, or the people providing labor so we can pursue a literary life...The trick is to acknowledge that debt and (rather than just wallow in guilt) live in complete humility and gratitude, trying every moment to give back to the world and our fellow humanoids...
When Shakespeare is charged with debts to his authors, Landor replies: "Yet he was more original than his originals. He breathed upon dead bodies and brought them into life" This is the type of man that doesn't move the world's way, but who moves the world his way.
On Money:
"Fearing lest I lose even what I have I hide it away in a napkin. Very well. I must then pay the price of my "fearing lest I lose."
"This above all, to thine own self be true; and it must follow, as the night the day, Thou canst not then be false to any man."
Stolen from Ralph Waldo Trine
Deborah - I have a fantasy of buying some sort of trailer (have you heard of the Scamp? that's the one I want) and traveling the country for a year. It may happen. I hope you had some sun for your camping trip.
Michelle - Thanks for this. I agree, there's always a cost, and it's up to each of us to try to balance it out by giving something back.
Tusk - Thanks for the quotes. The "fearing lest I lose" especially resonated for me. When I'm afraid I move into lockdown mode, clinging tightly to whatever it is I fear losing. But it rarely works and only makes me feel small and weak, whereas my life flows best when I let go and quit worrying about loss. Something new always appears to make up for any lack.
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