Prayer Thread
- Primula Baggins
- Living in hope
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Re: Prayer Thread
Jewel, I am so sorry.
“There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
Re: Prayer Thread
I am so sorry, JS.
'You just said "your getting shorter": you've obviously been drinking too much ent-draught and not enough Prim's.' - Jude
- Impenitent
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Re: Prayer Thread
: ( . I'm so sorry, Jewel.
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Mornings wouldn't suck so badly if they came later in the day.
Re: Prayer Thread
So very sorry to hear, Jewel.
If there was anything that depressed him more than his own cynicism, it was that quite often it still wasn't as cynical as real life.
Terry Pratchett, Guards! Guards!
Terry Pratchett, Guards! Guards!
Re: Prayer Thread
That's such terrible and sad news, Jewel. I'm sorry!
“Wilbur never forgot Charlotte. Although he loved her children and grandchildren dearly, none of the new spiders ever quite took her place in his heart. She was in a class by herself. It is not often that someone comes along who is a true friend and a good writer. Charlotte was both.” E. B. White, who must have had vison in mind. There's a reason why we kept putting the extra i in her name in our minds!
- JewelSong
- Just Keep Singin'
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Re: Prayer Thread
Thank you, all. It just sucks. I went to the funeral service and today went to one of the shivas held at a friend's house. I was able to visit a little bit with one of Barbara's daughters and her sister and brother-in-law, who had flown in from Israel as soon as they heard the news. It will take me a long time to get used to her being gone, because I didn't see her all the time.
It's rare that you gain a new friend in your 50s, and I don't have that many real friends. Barbara was one-of-a-kind and lived life to the fullest. May I continue to follow her example.
It's rare that you gain a new friend in your 50s, and I don't have that many real friends. Barbara was one-of-a-kind and lived life to the fullest. May I continue to follow her example.
"Live! Live! Live! Life is a banquet, and most poor suckers are starving to death!" - Auntie Mame
- Primula Baggins
- Living in hope
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Re: Prayer Thread
Jewel, you already are that kind of example for me.
“There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
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Re: Prayer Thread
Sending you love, Jewel. You are my role model for how to embrace life and live it to the full.
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Mornings wouldn't suck so badly if they came later in the day.
Re: Prayer Thread
IAWI
I'm sorry for your loss, Jewel. Barbara sounds like the kind of a friend whose absence can never be filled.
I'm sorry for your loss, Jewel. Barbara sounds like the kind of a friend whose absence can never be filled.
If there was anything that depressed him more than his own cynicism, it was that quite often it still wasn't as cynical as real life.
Terry Pratchett, Guards! Guards!
Terry Pratchett, Guards! Guards!
- Voronwë the Faithful
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Re: Prayer Thread
Sending prayers and what good energy I can muster to the good people of Brussels.
"Spirits in the shape of hawks and eagles flew ever to and from his halls; and their eyes could see to the depths of the seas, and pierce the hidden caverns beneath the world."
Re: Prayer Thread
Me too, Voronwë. Me too.
Re: Prayer Thread
And now Lahore.
How do we stop them?
How do we stop them?
If there was anything that depressed him more than his own cynicism, it was that quite often it still wasn't as cynical as real life.
Terry Pratchett, Guards! Guards!
Terry Pratchett, Guards! Guards!
Re: Prayer Thread
I know. Somehow Lahore has just tipped me into despair. What can be done? Really. What can we do, apart from not repeating the mistake of the Iraq War in the future? And how likely is it that we will not repeat that?
Those poor kids playing in the park!
Those poor kids playing in the park!
“Wilbur never forgot Charlotte. Although he loved her children and grandchildren dearly, none of the new spiders ever quite took her place in his heart. She was in a class by herself. It is not often that someone comes along who is a true friend and a good writer. Charlotte was both.” E. B. White, who must have had vison in mind. There's a reason why we kept putting the extra i in her name in our minds!
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Re: Prayer Thread
There is no longer any corner of the world where one can feel truly secure from this kind of violent act of hate, nowhere where one can hide, no sanctuary.
Probably, this was always the case but it feels like the ground has shifted, that the maelstrom has intensified.
Probably, this was always the case but it feels like the ground has shifted, that the maelstrom has intensified.
Mornings wouldn't suck so badly if they came later in the day.
- Voronwë the Faithful
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Re: Prayer Thread
Not to downplay the horror of Lepore, or Brussels, or Ankara, or Paris, or the Grand-Bassam Ivory Coast beach attack, or San Bernardino, or Charleston, or any of the other recent horrendous acts of cowardly, despicable violence, but this type of thing has been going on for a long time. Think about the IRA's bombing campaign as well as other splinter groups on both sides, which probably involved more attacks than al-Qaeda and ISIS and other Islamic terrorist groups combined have committed. The biggest difference now is that the world is so much a smaller place that anything that happens anywhere seems more immediate. But to paraphrase a bad movie line, there is still good in the world, and it worth fighting for. Even if the "fight" involves no more than (to quote another bad movie line) "the small every day deeds of ordinary folk that keep the darkness at bay. Small acts of kindness and love."
"Spirits in the shape of hawks and eagles flew ever to and from his halls; and their eyes could see to the depths of the seas, and pierce the hidden caverns beneath the world."
Re: Prayer Thread
The Taliban have promised more Lahore-type horrors to come. *shudder* Persecution of Christians in that region has been going on for a LONG time, and the Taliban now say they will deliberately target schools. They seem to be gunning particularly for the Christian community at the moment, but obviously other groups will get caught in the crossfire.Teremia wrote:I know. Somehow Lahore has just tipped me into despair. What can be done? Really. What can we do, apart from not repeating the mistake of the Iraq War in the future? And how likely is it that we will not repeat that?
About 3,000 people died in the Troubles over a period of thirty years: that's pretty much the same number who were murdered in such a monstrous fashion on 9/11. The bestial horror of 9/11 surpassed all the horror I'd ever felt over the IRA bombings. I remember very well the fear and disgust engendered by the IRA's campaign, but honestly, I regard the current crop of Islamist terrorists as far, far worse. I will never, ever, excuse the IRA (and their nutty successors, the Real IRA, who are still out there) but those guys never did suicide bombings or mass shootings. Ever. (We have a dark joke here in the UK about the IRA, "Well, at least those guys gave warnings!" It's true: they used to call the police before timing the explosions.)Voronwë the Faithful wrote:Think about the IRA's bombing campaign as well as other splinter groups on both sides, which probably involved more attacks than al-Qaeda and ISIS and other Islamic terrorist groups combined have committed.
Also: it turned out that we could actually negotiate with the IRA, in the end. (Some of them became respectable politicians as a result. )
Yes. Just goes to show that even bad movie lines can be redeemed.... But to paraphrase a bad movie line, there is still good in the world, and it worth fighting for. Even if the "fight" involves no more than (to quote another bad movie line) "the small every day deeds of ordinary folk that keep the darkness at bay. Small acts of kindness and love."
Jesus said, 'blessed are the peacemakers'. That's a good thing to aim to be, on an individual, community and global level. I want to be one of those.
"Frodo undertook his quest out of love - to save the world he knew from disaster at his own expense, if he could ... "
Letter no. 246, The Collected Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien
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Letter no. 246, The Collected Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien
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- Voronwë the Faithful
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Re: Prayer Thread
I saw this chart today which I think helps illustrate the point I was trying to make:
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"Spirits in the shape of hawks and eagles flew ever to and from his halls; and their eyes could see to the depths of the seas, and pierce the hidden caverns beneath the world."
Re: Prayer Thread
Thank you for that, V-man. I so very very very much wish the media would mention stuff like this when major attacks happen. If they did, maybe so many people wouldn't be making decisions based on irrational fears.
I wanna love somebody but I don't know how
I wanna throw my body in the river and drown
-The Decemberists
I wanna throw my body in the river and drown
-The Decemberists
- Voronwë the Faithful
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Re: Prayer Thread
Thanks, yov. I'm glad you said that, because I had some trepidation about posting that here, but I think it is important to keep things in perspective.
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"Spirits in the shape of hawks and eagles flew ever to and from his halls; and their eyes could see to the depths of the seas, and pierce the hidden caverns beneath the world."