I will get this right out of the way-- There is no way that I am even remotely God to anyone but possibly my fish. Definitely not the cat, because he believes that he is God. But the fish are a different matter altogether. Am i God to my fish? I have three fish tanks in my home One big one with many fish, And two smaller, each containing a combative betta, also known as the Siamese Fighting Fish. It is said by experts that fish recognize their owners, (But out of respect, let

There is no chance encounter. Credit fate, kismet, nature, God, the alignment of the stars, whatever you choose, The chance encounter does not happen. You can think of encounters that you handled badly or that seemed pointless. You can think of encounters where you fell in love or had your heart broken. You can think of encounters that brought you good fortune Or broke you down to weep. But past encounters are past, And today’s encounters could take you almost anywhere in you

https://www.learnturkishwithseda.com/ Those of you who know me well know of my study of Turkiye and annual visits there. One of the highpoints of those visits is to be in Istanbul and see my teacher, dear friend, and adopted daughter, Seda Surel. She has a structured learning program for learning the Turkish language, but that isn't all. Visit her website and an Aladdin's Cave of treasures are to be found! Information on Turkish customs, literature, history, cuisine, atti

Summer heat still prevails. The endless days of triple-digit temperatures has led me to prefer Centigrade. The cicadas appear to be praying for rain. Still, I see the first appearance of birds with northern accents, Entirely indifferent to trade policy. The school bus has begun making rounds, And I look wistfully at my sweaters.

I wrote this haunted by some of the poetry that the Chinese Tang Dynasty poet Du Fu wrote in his old age. He lived a life of wealth, then poverty; power, then powerlessness and hunger. Yet his poem retained sweetness. Grasping, I never had. Climbing, I tripped on every rung. Once I grew old and stretched out an empty hand. I was continually amazed at how full my heart had become. Honor, loyalty, friendship wonder, and love are never grasped in the hand. Because they reside i

The James Webb telescope is capturing images of things said to be millions, even billions of light years away from earth. It is transmitting images of the birth of stars beyond our galaxy, Including Stephan’s Quintet, a group of five galaxies beyond our own. a mere 5,500 light years from earth. How do we look from Stephan’s Quintet? How do our controversies, dramas, egos, and strife look from the Lobster Nebula? How does the birth of a star compare with great power rivalries

We are said to be created from dust or mud, albeit the dust may be stardust. Mud is used to make pottery, actually, even valuable porcelain. Just mud. Wet dirt. Nothing could be more humble. But pottery can last for thousands of years. Some of it is quite beautiful and valuable. Yet it started as mud. Tradition says that we started as mud, all of us. We can become beautiful and valuable, and fashioned into something useful But we are all the more beautiful and valuable if

A friend of more than fifty years gave me an old clock. The clock is 130 years old. It sits in my study like an altar to time, What changes and what does not. The wave that washes up on the shore and returns to the sea whence it came. Time advances and recedes. While it gets always later, it leaves something on the shore of memory that never washes away. When it leaves us and reverts back to the great sea of time, we know the wave will return And find us the same and differe

It was my birthday a few weeks ago, and the best birthday I have ever had. Why? I was surprised by how many kind messages I received, and I realized the vast wealth I have in friends. I had surprise visits from my family, who traveled a goodly distance to be there. Had a birthday party with a 5-year-old and am about to go to a birthday party for a 2-year old, which is perfect for a 70-year-old like me. I read something by a Turkish writer that said, “As one grows old, the

If your flame starts to flicker and dim, 'Take some of my fire, and a miracle will happen. We will both burn brighter and cast so much light That others will find their way.

There is the Hebrew word, tzedakah , which is often translated as “charity” or almsgiving, But it ultimately means “justice.” So. think justice flavored with generosity. And there is Chesed , which simply means “kindness.” Take Chesed and Tzedakah together and you have justice and kindness, flavored with generosity. Imagine being at the corner of Chesed and Tzedakah . and join me there. Now which comes first? If you start with chesed, tzedakah follows close behind. And it

For Seda In Hawaiian, there are two kinds of family. Ohana is biological family. Hanai signifies adopted family members, or more precisely people placed in your care. And we can be placed in the care of others. I think of Ohana as the room you are born into, Hanai consists of beautiful things that present themselves to adorn the room. Ohana is biology. Hanai is a gift from God, fate, or the universe— Wherever you may wish to attribute it. The two together are necessary for a

君子成人之美 As a Christian, I observe Lent. Instead of doing something easy like giving up chocolate or alcohol. I am going to take something on rather than give something up. This year I will observe it by trying to be a Junzi. A Junzi is described many ways, but the most useful is “a person of virtue.” A Junzi is a person who is noble by character, not by birth, wealth, or influence. To be a Junzi, one must demonstrate— Ren (benevolence), Yi (righteousness), Li (propriety), Zh

Did you ever feel that charge, that current? Did you ever feel the charge that transforms strangers into friends? Did you ever feel the power of that current that carries fire? That is the current that charges two solitudes! You cannot know when two eyes meet Whether two souls will connect. You cannot know when two fingers touch, Whether it will ignite a fire that warms you both or not. It could be a lover or just a welcome fellow traveler With whom you navigate through life

Paying Attention? We say that we “pay” attention, as if it were a currency. Finitude gives it value. Or perhaps attention might be a bill that is due. I think that we acknowledge that attention has value How we spend it or pay it makes our priorities clear. There is a big and noisy marketplace for our attention. A clamoring bazaar of competing voices and clanging noise, All eager to have this currency of ours. You can easily waste it, throw it away. You don’t have that much t

Even an agnostic can pray this prayer, Doing it even if not certain that the call will go through. But here goes-- Deliver me from everything stupid I have said or done Deliver me from every lie I have told, especially the ones I told myself. Deliver me from my Egypt, Where I was in slavery to blindness to those around me. Where the shiny sun of ego made me not see the needs of others. Building pyramids of illusions and pointless self-deception. Deliver me from indifference,

The most profound truth is always wrapped in paradox. There is something eternal in impermanence There is something infinite in finitude There is something flawless in the flaw There is something timeless in the passing of seasons. That “something” is love—eternal, infinite, flawless, and timeless. It persists when two young shoots sprout on the tree, On the same branch, but each on its own stem. When the shoots blossom into fragrant flowers, When the flowers form fruit, They

Does might make right? Does the belief that might makes right make anything right? Has might makes right ever improved the human condition? Even for those who “benefit" from might makes right, what do they really win? Oh, I understand that they win power. But what holes in their being does power fill? Or does it just perhaps create a bigger hole? Sadly, power never fills the holes in the soul like love can. Might makes blight.

Looking at my life,m I'll have the usual. The usual good health, loved ones, work and rest, and laughter, The usual tears and armchair reveries, The usual memories that make me smile, And even those that do not. There have been times when life did not serve me the usual, But those times lasted only long enough to awaken me to treasure them. Gratitude is stopping and saying, "I think I'll have the usual."

If you look at a gravestone, you will see a hyphen before the date one enters the world and when one leaves it. (Is it a hyphen or a dash? I, for one, would not want to dash through life). And that little straight line is a total lie. For the ark between birth and death is a squiggly line that loops, goes backward, Up and Down Stalls And so on, but it is anything but a straight line! If it is a straight line, then you haven't done much' And face your Maker with empty hands. F