tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4044311.post116662771457978298..comments2009-12-30T22:22:44.319-08:00Kymberleehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05484317586820198340noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4044311.post-1166716878854890292006-12-21T08:01:00.000-08:002006-12-21T08:01:00.000-08:00Therese: Thank you so much. :-)<BR/><BR/>John: Agreed.<BR/><BR/>Today's "daily tao" speaks of what I was saying here quite beautifully. It also speaks of the hope I have:<BR/><BR/>*Winter*<BR/><BR/>A homeless man dies in the gutter.<BR/>A tree cracks in the cold:<BR/> A shocking sound.<BR/><BR/><BR/>At the winter solstice, the day is shortest of all and night is longest.<BR/>It can also be the time of bitter cold. The wind blows with a frigid<BR/>ferocity, cutting all before it. Snow and ice become deadly. Those who<BR/>are homeless die of exposure. Even the mightiest of trees can split from<BR/>the drop in temperature.<BR/> The sound of a tree snapping is a sudden slap.<BR/> The horrors, the tragedies that this nadir brings! Winter tortures<BR/>the world with icy whips, and those who are weak are ground beneath its<BR/>glacial heels. Sometimes, we dare not even lament those who die in the<BR/>onslaught of winter, in fear that the tears will freeze upon our faces.<BR/>But we see, and hear. Huddling closer to the fire, we vow to survive.<BR/> No matter how affected we are by misfortune, we must remember that<BR/>this is the lowest turn of the wheel. Things cannot forever go downward.<BR/>There are limits to everything -- even the cold, and the darkness, and<BR/>the wind, and the dying.<BR/> They call this the first day of winter, but actually it is the<BR/>beginning of winter's death. From this day on, we can look forward to<BR/>warming and brightening.<BR/><BR/><BR/>----------------------------------------------------<BR/>from _365 Tao: Daily Meditations_ by Deng Ming-Dao<BR/>Copyright 1992 Deng Ming-Dao<BR/>Published by HarperSanFrancisco (ISBN 0-06-250223-9)Kymberleehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05484317586820198340noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4044311.post-1166714445536604532006-12-21T07:20:00.000-08:002006-12-21T07:20:00.000-08:00Unimaginable. It is like not seeing the color in spring. Unable to feel the warmth of the summer sun. It is death.Know Won Nosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03850013740284354028noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4044311.post-1166660285663859792006-12-20T16:18:00.000-08:002006-12-20T16:18:00.000-08:00Be warm, my friend...<BR/><BR/>*hugs*theresehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03044083618522151911noreply@blogger.com