Tag: inspiration

A prayer for Youth Day

Bless the Children of Earth
may they have the blessings of food and health
may their homes be peaceful, their world safe
may we adults, work to make these blessings real
by our actions, attention, and giving, we make it so.

Bless the Children of the earth
with the abundance of a happy, secure life
may they have a life with education and opportunity
each child deserves no less, each child is precious
they are the future, the living legacy of our ancestors.
Bless the Children of the Earth.

(Abby Willowroot)

Winter colors

It’s winter here in southern Africa, with temperatures sometimes dropping to almost zero degrees. And still, some butterflies are on their wings, providing contrasting colors. I think this one is called the soldier pansy.

Photo taken in the forest at Kurisa Moya lodge, South Africa

Praise

Glory to you for the feast-day of life

Glory to you for the perfume of lilies and roses

Glory to you for each different taste of berry and fruit

Glory to you for the sparkling silver of early morning dew

Glory to you for the joy of dawn’s awakening

Glory to you for the new life each day brings

–

Gregory Petrov

Otherworld

What would it be like to live in another world? A world with different laws of nature, or different moral codes? I’ve always been fascinated by books that explore this question – fantasy, science fiction, utopias and dystopias. I think these books have prepared me, maybe more than anything else, to live and settle in a different culture.

Photo taken somewhere between Kafue and Mazabuka, Zambia

Blessed be!

May the roads rise to meet you. 
May the wind be at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face;
The rain fall soft upon your fields 
And, until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand. 

Photo taken in Pilanesberg National Park, South Africa

Budding futures

“In a perfect world, there is no future,” I read yesterday in Sansal Boualem’s novel 2084. An interesting statement. When we think about the future, we almost automatically think about change, about things that are not yet here. “When I grow up, I want to be a doctor.” “Our day will come.” “Maybe later.”

That the future may be different than the now gives us hope. Maybe in the future we find a way to distribute wealth in a more equal manner. Maybe in the future we will find a cure. Maybe in the future we will learn that war is not necessary.

If everything is already perfect, it is not necessary to think about the future. Nothing needs to be solved. No solutions need to be delegated to a realm that has not yet manifested.

In a perfect world, there is no future.

But can a world without a future be perfect? No future is no development. No chance to become better at anything. No chance to become a better person. No buds growing into flowers.

To me, looking at the photography of the blossoms of the papaya tree implies a future. Next week, more flowers will have opened. The week after the first flowers will drop to the ground. After a month, on a different tree, the papaya fruit will start to grow, pollinated by this flower.

A world without a future is unthinkable to me. Look at these flowers. Who wants a world without a future, even if it is a perfect world?