There’s Light

A very happy, and holy Christmas to everyone.

I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old, familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

Longfellow.

 

 

Photograph ©Francis Moloney.

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Be Prepared

 

Here we are with part two, gazing once again at sleek and shiny machines. Mercedes Benz World is located in Surrey, England. Here you can learn how cars work, take advanced driving courses, or just have a go in a fast car. You can even step inside a grounded Concorde and look around.

Because I am housebound, Amanda holds the keys to the family car. That’s her in the red jacket. I haven’t been able to drive since I became disabled, and I miss it a lot. During the work and school runs, every red light was an opportunity for a silent prayer. Every long traffic jam, a chance to catch up on some reading. Phone calls were private, and I always got to choose the music that best suited my mood – bonus.

When I was a boy scout, a very long time ago, I was told a story about a boy who took the trouble to ask himself how he might respond if he should witness an accident. It happened that one day, when he was riding in a bus, it crashed, and although he wasn’t hurt, many elderly passengers were. It was he who ran immediately to the nearest telephone, and called 999. He then administered first aid to the injured passengers – using shirts for bandages, and neckties for slings, etc. He worked until the emergency services arrived. Tributes aside, I feel that this boy’s greatest reward was in the satisfaction of knowing that he had successfully marshalled an effective, and well prepared response to the emergency.

In my job, I worked with injured and disabled people every day. I met many good folk whose active lives had come to an abrupt end. And, as I mentioned some time back, I grew up with a severely disabled brother, (who is coming to see me later today to celebrate my 66th). Therefore, and not that I don’t complain aplenty, I do endeavour to face my own trials perhaps more stoically than I otherwise might have.

Ok, I hope you enjoyed our two parter, and that you are also enjoying things in general. The world may be a sad place today, but nothing lasts forever. ‘For sudden the worst turns the best to the brave’ – and universal balance will return. We know this because circumstances have called us to stand firmly in the light of humanity’s highest values. The darker the shadow, the brighter the light. Those who know that heaven is real, can love their way across the battlefield, and then we, as one family together will light up the skies of dawn.

I think I’ve written enough for now. Thank you to all who read, follow, and comment. I hope to return soon. Until then, peace from Amras.

Do not place treasures for yourselves on the earth, where moths and corrosion disfigure and where thieves break in and steal. But place treasures for yourselves in Heaven, where neither moths nor corrosion disfigure and where thieves neither break in nor steal. For where your treasure is, there is your heart also.

Matthew 6 – 19

 

Photography ©Amanda Moloney.

Yet Beauty Prevails

 

 

Hello again. One day later, and twelve months sooner – we return with part two. Today’s pics were taken only days ago.

In those sacred corners of this world, where peace prevails, and nature is allowed to practice its art, a thoughtful soul might, even if only for a moment, feel their connection to the divine.

The words, “Sic Transit Gloria Mundi” apply to those who would build monuments to themselves. From empty boastings, all the way up to the legacies of kings – whatever is built upon dust must fall. Yet beauty prevails wherever it can, never needing the help of kings, or commoners. For me, when this wider world of green and living wonders is allowed to practice its art, it never loses so much as an inch of its glory, no matter the season.

I took a tumble a few days ago, and am working my way through some consequences. Any healing wishes sent my way will be received with gratitude.

With that said, it’s time to rest. Namaste, and peace to every reader.

A long time ago, before we arrived, the stage was all set for matter alive. Each one, a rung on the spiralling stair, we all belong in each other’s care.

Photography ©Amanda Moloney.

Brushwork in The Concrete Jungle

Top of the time of day to you. These are the final pics in our London collection, I really hope you enjoy them. Todays assortment pay tribute to a Grange Hotel manager clearly blessed with a good eye for art. I featured the print of Kandinsky’s “Small Pleasures” because a copy graced the study in our favourite Glastonbury holiday retreat.

I’m sure that the views from the hotel window are pleasing to lovers of cityscapes. If I found myself there though, I suspect that the remoteness of forests, meadows, hills, streams, and birdsong would overwhelm me as surely as the old Christian church appears to be overwhelmed by the bloated cathedrals of commerce which dominate every inch of surrounding space.

Having written that, it must be said the hotel is impressive, and I dare say a welcome retreat from those cacophonous streets.

With thanks to our readers, as always. Namaste from Amras.

We who strive to think, speak, and behave according to our best understandings of dignity, truth, and honesty, can serve our confused brethren very well, I think, if we all pray most earnestly now for the establishment on earth of the following sentence:

No More Lies! 

 

Photography ©Amanda Moloney.

The Freshly Waxed Sled

We were treated to a heavy snowfall. It stayed for a week, but now is gone. It was a nice lead up to the seasonal festival here in the hills, where the soundless blanket of frozen crystals fell from the air. It seemed as if we were living in a scene from a Christmas card.

I am old enough to remember snowfalls that almost completely buried the houses where I lived, and which endured for many months. Temporary ski slopes were created in the unlikeliest of places, and I used to go sledding almost every day. Most of the roads were impassable for traffic, so walking to school and back was akin to embarking on an arctic expedition, which came complete with freezing flurries, and howling winds. Also ambushes, and pitched snowball battles with rivals from other schools. That was 62/3. Winters have never been so good since.

One day, I was having a go on my best friend’s freshly waxed sled on the street where he lived. Face first, and like a torpedo, I flew down the hill unstoppably towards the junction at the end, accompanied only by the cold wind singing in my ears. The road down there must have been gritted that morning, because I realised suddenly as I cleared the street, that my head was about to collide with the front wheel of a moving car. He must have been the first driver on that road in months. I just glimpsed the shock on his face, when at the instant his wheel should have crushed my head, I was lifted up by the collar of my coat, still clutching the sled, and was placed standing safely on the side of the icy road. This all happened in the blink of an eye. Thinking that my friend had somehow rescued me, I turned and shouted a heartfelt thanks, but there was nobody there. My friend was a quarter of a mile away. The car slid to a halt, and the driver got out. He said nothing, just gawked at me in what looked like complete disbelief, tinged perhaps with a little bit of fear. Cognitive dissonance, I suppose. Then he drove away, and I never saw him again.

My friend was greatly puzzled, but after an excited debriefing session, we agreed that for us, angels are proven, and nothing would ever take that knowledge away from us. We were nine.

Countless, I’m sure, are the numbers of people, who have, and who will experience such things, and although we live in a world that prefers us to keep it all to ourselves, we will alway know what is really true – and so will our angels. And that has to be a blessing.

I wish you all a blessed Christmas, and a safe and holy season in the arms of the giver of life. Let us remember in our hearts, all those who will not have it so good, and perhaps find time to reflect on the ebb and flow of things that cannot be quantified by any organ other than the heart.

On the Eve of the Winter Solstice, Peace from Amras.

Soundlessly they go,
the herons passing by:
arrows of snow
filling the sky.

― Yamazaki Sōkan (1464-1552), loose translation by Michael R. Burch