reading

I love to read, once i open a book I'm interested in, it's near impossible to get me to put it down, & my eyes have to actually be physically unopenable to make me stop at night. Reading is an irreplaceable form of self-development & once you discover the joy of reading, you'll never want to stop. I found some really good quotes on reading which I liked, maybe they'll appeal to the reader in you as well...


I have often reflected upon the new vistas that reading opened to me. I knew right there in prison that reading had changed forever the course of my life. As I see it today, the ability to read awoke in me some long dormant craving to be mentally alive. ~ Malcolm X ~

It is with books as with men - a very small number play a great part, the rest are lost in the multitude. ~ Voltaire ~

I've traveled the world twice over, Met the famous; saints and sinners, Poets and artists, kings and queens, Old stars and hopeful beginners, I've been where no-one's been before, Learned secrets from writers and cooks All with one library ticket To the wonderful world of books. ~ Unknown ~

Show me the books he loves and I shall know the man far better than through mortal friends.
~ Dawn Adams ~

Books are the legacies that a great genius leaves to mankind, which are delivered down from generation to generation as presents to the posterity of those who are yet unborn,
~ Joseph Addison ~

Of all the diversions of life, there is none so proper to fill up its empty spaces as the reading of useful and entertaining authors. ~ Joseph Addison ~

Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body. ~ Joseph Addison ~

Reading is a basic tool in the living of a good life. ~ Mortimer J. Adler ~

That is a good book which is opened with expectation and closed in profit.
~ Amos Bronson Alcott ~

Reading maketh a full man, conference a ready man, and writing an exact man. ~ Francis Bacon ~

Books are men of higher stature; the only men that speak aloud for future times to hear.
~ E.S. Barrett ~

He that loves a book will never want a faithful friend, a wholesome counselor, a cheerful companion, an effectual comforter. By study, by reading, by thinking, one may innocently divert and pleasantly entertain himself, as in all weathers, as in all fortunes. ~ Barrow ~

A book is good company. It is full of conversation without loquacity. It comes to your longing with full instruction, but pursues you never. ~ Henry Ward Beecher ~

The power of a text is different when it is read from when it is copied out. Only the copied text thus commands the soul of him who is occupied with it, whereas the mere reader never discovers the new aspects of his inner self that are opened by the text, that road cut through the interior jungle forever closing behind it: because the reader follows the movement of his mind in the free flight of day-dreaming, whereas the copier submits it to command. ~ Walter Benjamin ~

There are worse crimes than burning books. One of them is not reading them. ~ Joseph Brodsky ~

Children are made readers on the laps of their parents.(1994) ~ Emilie Buchwald ~

Books are masters who instruct us without rods or ferules, without words or anger, without bread or money. If you approach them, they are not asleep; if you seek them, they do not hide; if you blunder, they do not scold; if you are ignorant, they do not laugh at you. ~ Richard De Bury ~

All that Mankind has done, thought, gained or been-- it is lying as in magic preservation in the pages of Books. ~ Thomas Carlyle ~

Happy is he who has laid up in his youth, and held fast in all fortune, a genuine and passionate love of reading. ~ Rufus Choate ~

The world of books is the most remarkable creation of man: nothing else that he builds ever lasts monuments fall; nations perish; civilization grow old and die out; new races build others. But in the world of books are volumes that have seen this happen again and again and yet live on. Still young, still as fresh as the day they were written, still telling men's hearts, of the hearts of men centuries dead. ~ Clarence Day ~

If we encounter a man of rare intellect, we should ask him what books he reads.
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson ~

Our high respect for a well read person is praise enough for literature. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson ~

To read is to empower To empower is to write To write is to influence To Influence is to change To change is to live. ~ Jane Evershed ~

If the riches of the Indies, or the crowns of all the kingdom of Europe, were laid at my feet in exchange for my love of reading, I would spurn them all. ~ Francois FéNelon ~

When I discovered libraries, it was like having Christmas every day. ~ Jean Fritz ~

The greatest gift is the passion for reading. It is cheap, it consoles, it distracts, it excites, it gives you knowledge of the world and experience of a wide kind. It is a moral illumination.
~ Elizabeth Hardwick ~

To use books rightly, is to go to them for help; to appeal to them when our own knowledge and power fail; to be led by them into wider sight and purer conception than our own, and to receive from them the united sentence of the judges and councils of all time, against our solitary and unstable opinions. ~ John Ruskin ~

Books are the treasured wealth of the world and the fit inheritance of generations and nations.
~ Henry David Thoreau ~

No matter how busy you may think you are, you must find time for reading, or surrender yourself to self-chosen ignorance. ~ Atwood H. Townsend ~

arwen

Hey, it's been a while since i posted any pictures, heres a few of Arwen from the last few weeks...

be remembered...

“I maybe here for a shortwhile, gone tomorrow into oblivion or until the days come to take me away. But, in whatever part you play, be remembered as part of a legacy...of sharing dreams and changing humanity for the better. It's that legacy that never dies”

my sleeping child...

Oh my sleeping child the world's so wild

but you've build your own paradise
That's one reason why I'll cover you sleeping child
If all the people around the world
they had a mind like yours
we'd have no fighting and no wars
there would be lasting peace on Earth
If all the kings and all the leaders
could see you here this way
they would hold the Earth in their arms
they would learn to watch you play

Oh my sleeping child the world's so wild
but you've build your own paradise
That's one reason why I'll cover you sleeping child
I'm gonna cover my sleeping child

Keep you away from the world so wild

edification

Edification is, simply put, the practice of exalting & promoting someone else instead of yourself. The concept is that anybody can promote anybody. Meaning that while it's hard to promote yourself, it's easy to promote another person no matter who you are. An illustration that I've heard on this topic pointed out that whenever you see a review written for either a movie or a book or even a shop, maybe you'll notice that the comments are put in very big print, while the peoples names who made the statements are in much smaller print. Plus most of the time we have no notion of who the person is, but for some reason we take notice of what they are saying anyway. i mean think about it-it's true. So then no matter who said it, right away we have this impression that the thing they are trying to promote is GREAT!
Another analogy is in business, like in mine-when i try to promote it to people, they may question it. However, if i promote a colleague as being very smart, or successful or highly influential, - right away, all that person has to do is say a few words about why what i have to offer is a good idea & it holds way more credibility. do you see what i mean?
I suppose this also falls in line with just simply speaking constructively of others. In fact, it says a lot about you when you talk about someone else & in what manner. AND if you're always speaking constructively of other people, others will start speaking that way of you & will be promoting YOU.
So, if you want to promote yourself, promote others.

You are what you think you are

It's obvious, much human behavior is puzzling. Watch. You'll observe that some people command confidence, loyalty, and admiration while others do not.
Look closer still, & you'll also observe that those persons who command the most respect are also the most successful.
Other's see in us what we see in ourselves We receive the kind of treatment we think we deserve. Thinking does make it so. The fellow who thinks he is inferior, regardless of what his real qualifications may be. is inferior. For thinking regulates actions. The person who feels he isn't important, isn't.
Ont the other side, a fellow who really thinks he is equal to the task, is.
To be important, we mist think we are important, really think so; then others will think so too.
How you think determines how you act.
How you act in turn determines:
How others react to you.

LOOK IMPORTANT-IT HELPS YOU THINK IMPORTANT.
Remember, your appearance "talks." Be sure it says positive things about you. Never leave home without feeling certain you look like the kind of person you want to be.
Use clothing as a tool to lift your spirits, build confidence. Look sharp because it will help you think sharp.
Your physical exterior affects your mental interior. How you look on the outside affects how you think and feel on the inside.
We look at some people and respond with the "Hey, Mac" attitude. We look at others and respond with the "Yes, sir" feeling.
A person's appearance definitely talks. The well-dressed person's appearance says positive things. It tells people, "Here is an important person: Intelligent, prosperous, and dependable. This man can be looked up to, admired, trusted. He respects himself, and I respect him."
Pay twice as much & buy half as many. Commit this answer to memory. Then practice it. Apply it to hats, suits, shoes, socks, coats-everything you wear. Insofar as appearance is concerned, quality is far more important than quantity. When you practice this principle, you'll find that both your respect for yourself and the respect of others for you will zoom upward.
You owe it to others-but more important, you owe it to yourself-to look your best.
You are what you think you are. If your appearance makes you think you're inferior, you are inferior. If it makes you think small, you are small. Look your best and you will think and act your best.
You are what you think you are, what your thought power directs you to become. Think you're weak, think you lack what it takes, think you will lose, think you are second-class-think this way, and you are doomed to mediocrity.
Think instead, I am important. I do have what it takes. I am a first-class performer. My work is important. Think this way, and you're headed straight to success.
The key to winning what you want lies in thinking positively toward yourself. The only real basis other people have for judging your abilities is your actions. And your actions are controlled by your thoughts.
You are what you think you are.
We've all noticed how children quickly pick yp the attitudes, habits, fears, and preferences of their parents. Whether it be food preferences, mannerisms. religious ad political views. or any other type of behavior, the child is a living reflection of how his parents or guardians think; for he learns through imitation.
And so do adults. People continue to imitate others through out life. And they imitate their leaders and supervisors; their thoughts and actions are influenced by these people.
Consider just one characteristic of successful people; enthusiasm.
If you have enthusiasm, those around you will have it, too.
Think enthusiastically. Build in yourself an optimistic, progressive glow, a feeling that "this is great and I'm 100% for it."
Think enthusiasm and you'll be enthusiastic. To get high-quality work, be enthusiastic about the job you want done. Other's will catch the enthusiasm you generate and you'll get first-class performance.
Practice uplifting self-praise. Don't practice belittling self-punishment.
You are what you think you are. Think more of yourself and there is more of you.
Build your own "sell-yourself-to-yourself" commercial.
Every day you and I see half-alive people who are no longer sold on themselves. They lack self-respect for their most important product-themselves. These folks are indifferent. They feel small. They feel like nobodies, and because they feel that way, that's what they are.
The half-alive person needs to be resold on himself. He needs to realize that he's a first-class person. He needs honest, sincere belief in himself.
"I thought I was inferior to just about anybody and everybody. I realize that I've got what it takes to win and I'm winning. And I'm always going to win."
Remind yourself that you are a first-class person.

How to think & dream creatively

When you believe, your mind finds ways to do. When you believe something is impossible, your mind goes to work for you to prove why. But when you believe, really believe, something can be done, your mind goes to work for you and helps you find the ways to do it.
Believing something can be done paves the way for creative solutions. Believing something can't be done is destructive thinking. This point applies to all situations, little & big.
You can find ways to like a person if you believe you can. You can discover solutions to personal problems if you believe you can. Belief releases creative powers. Disbelief puts the brakes on. Believe, and you'll start thinking-constructively.
Your mind will create a way if you let it. Where there's a will, there is a way. Believe it can be done. Eliminate the word impossible from your thinking and speaking vocabularies. Impossible is a failure word. The thought "it's impossible" sets off a chain reaction of other thoughts to prove you're right.
The traditional thinker's mind is paralyzed. "Average" people have always resented progress. There is no one best way to do anything. There are as many best ways as there are creative minds. Absolute perfection in all human undertakings from building missiles to rearing children is unattainable. This means there is endless room for improvement. Successful people know this, and they are always searching for a better way.
The I-can-do-better philosophy works magic. When you ask yourself, "How can i do better?" your creative power is switched on & ways for doing things better suggest themselves.
Capacity is a state of mind. How much we can do depends on how much we think we can do. When you really believe you can do more, your mind thinks creatively and shows you the way.
In business, in the home, in the community, the success combination is do what you do better & do more of what you do.
As a personal policy I have accepted fully the concept: If you want it done, give it to a busy man. I refuse4 to work on important projects with persons who have lots of free time. I have learned from painful, expensive experience that the fellow who has plenty of time makes an ineffective work partner.
Big people monopolize the listening. Small people monopolize the talking.
Top-level leaders in all walks of life spend much more time requesting advice than they do in giving it.
Your ears are your intake valves. They feed your mind raw materials that can be converted into creative power. We learn nothing from telling. But there is no limit to what we can learn by asking and listening.
A mind that feeds only on itself soon is undernourished, becoming weak and incapable of creative progressive thought. Stimulation from others is excellent mind food.
Association with people who have different job interests broadens your thinking and helps you to see the bg picture. You'll be surprised how mixing regularly with people outside your occupational area will stimulate your on-the-job thinking.
Ideas are fruits of your thinking. But they've got to be harnessed and put to work to have value.
Ideas are highly perishable. If we're not on guard, negative-thinking people will destroy most of them. Ideas require special handling from the time they are born until they're transformed into practical ways for doing things better.
Don't let ideas escape. Write them down. Everyday lots of good ideas are born only to die quickly because they aren't nailed to paper. Memory is a weak slave when it comes to preserving and nurturing brand-new ideas.
Believe it can be done. When you believe something can be done, your mind will find the ways to do it. Believing a solution paves the way to solution.
Don't let tradition paralyze your mind. Be receptive to new ideas. Be experimental. Try new approaches. Be progressive in everything you do.
Ask yourself daily, "How can I do better?" There is no limit to self-improvement. When you ask yourself, "How can I do better?" sound answers will appear. Try it and see.
Ask yourself, "How can I do more?" Capacity is a state of mind. Asking yourself this question puts your mind to work to find intelligent shortcuts. These success combination in business is: Do what you do better & do more of what you do.
Stretch your mind. Get stimulated. Associate with people who can help you think of new ideas, new ways of doing things. Mix with people of different occupational and social interestsl

sdkfljhaekljfru

hi guys, i realise i've been a bit absent the last while, ...i'd love to blog more often, but i guess at the moment, i'm a bit busy with other projects & my blog was taking a lot of my focus. so for now, i may just post at leisure & keep you updated with any important events or any recent pictures & also continue with the book summaries. i hope that won't be a let down for anyone. thanks for reading & i hope i can become a regular contributer again soon. until then, enjoy whatever i manage to post. lots of love.....

run...

I'll sing it one last time for you
Then we really have to go
You've been the only thing that's right
In all I've done

And I can barely look at you
But every single time I do
I know we'll make it anywhere
Away from here

Light up, light up
As if you have a choice
Even if you cannot hear my voice
I'll be right beside you dear

Louder louder
And we'll run for our lives
I can hardly speak I understand
Why you can't raise your voice to say

To think I might not see those eyes
Makes it so hard not to cry
And as we say our long goodbye
I nearly do

Light up...

Slower slower
We don't have time for that
All I want is to find an easier way
To get out of our little heads

Have heart my dear
We're bound to be afraid
Even if it's just for a few days
Making up for all this mess

howzit

sorry i've been absent, siblings have been blowing through the house, - i say that because just as soon as they came, it seemed like they were gone. it's almost hard to decide whether one is supposed to experience emotion on any level in this situation. and then i was in joburg for a seminar over the weekend, so i wasn't here. ha, now i am.
okay it was brought to my attention that people don't want to be convicted, they want to be inspired & someone mentioned that they wouldn't be too inspired to return to a blog that displayed uninspiring stuff. so, i'll try to keep it positive in future.
well, my family being photo phobic as it turns out, it's next to impossible to pin anyone down for a decent picture. plus, my very life was threatened at the last attempt at publishing one on here. but i am sure i can gather a cluster & post them with permission. so, look out for those.
i'm due to post quite a bit. just been preoccupied actually getting a life. talk to you soon...