“
You know that place between nightmares and dreams? The place where tomorrows never come and yesterdays don't hurt anymore? The place where your heart beats in sync with mine? The place where time doesn't exist, and it's easy to breathe?
I want to live there with you.
”
”
Brittainy C. Cherry (The Air He Breathes (Elements, #1))
“
For me, running is both exercise and a metaphor. Running day after day, piling up the races, bit by bit I raise the bar, and by clearing each level I elevate myself. At least that’s why I’ve put in the effort day after day: to raise my own level. I’m no great runner, by any means. I’m at an ordinary – or perhaps more like mediocre – level. But that’s not the point. The point is whether or not I improved over yesterday. In long-distance running the only opponent you have to beat is yourself, the way you used to be.
”
”
Haruki Murakami (What I Talk About When I Talk About Running)
“
I will live this day as if it is my last. …I will waste not a moment mourning yesterday’s misfortunes, Yesterday’s defeats, yesterday’s aches of the heart, for why should I throw good after bad?”
I will live this day as if it is my last. This day is all I have and these hours are now my eternity. I greet this sunrise with cries of joy as a prisoner who is reprieved from death. I lift mine arms with thanks for this priceless gift of a new day. So too, I will beat upon my heart with gratitude as I consider all who greeted yesterday’s sunrise who are no longer with the living today. I am indeed a fortunate man and today’s hours are but a bonus, undeserved. Why have I been allowed to live this extra day when others, far better than I, have departed? Is it that they have accomplished their purpose while mine is yet to be achieved? Is this another opportunity for me to become the man I know I can be?
”
”
Og Mandino (The Greatest Salesman in the World)
“
Take a shower. Wash away every trace of yesterday. Of smells. Of weary skin. Get dressed. Make coffee, windows open, the sun shining through. Hold the cup with two hands and notice that you feel the feeling of warmth.
You still feel warmth.
Now sit down and get to work. Keep your mind sharp, head on, eyes on the page and if small thoughts of worries fight their ways into your consciousness: threw them off like fires in the night and keep your eyes on the track. Nothing but the task in front of you.
Get off your chair in the middle of the day. Put on your shoes and take a long walk on open streets around people. Notice how they’re all walking, in a hurry, or slowly. Smiling, laughing, or eyes straight forward, hurried to get to wherever they’re going. And notice how you’re just one of them. Not more, not less. Find comfort in the way you’re just one in the crowd. Your worries: no more, no less.
Go back home. Take the long way just to not pass the liquor store. Don’t buy the cigarettes. Go straight home. Take off your shoes. Wash your hands. Your face. Notice the silence. Notice your heart. It’s still beating. Still fighting. Now get back to work.
Work with your mind sharp and eyes focused and if any thoughts of worries or hate or sadness creep their ways around, shake them off like a runner in the night for you own your mind, and you need to tame it. Focus. Keep it sharp on track, nothing but the task in front of you.
Work until your eyes are tired and head is heavy, and keep working even after that.
Then take a shower, wash off the day. Drink a glass of water. Make the room dark. Lie down and close your eyes.
Notice the silence. Notice your heart. Still beating. Still fighting. You made it, after all. You made it, another day. And you can make it one more.
You’re doing just fine.
You’re doing fine.
I’m doing just fine.
”
”
Charlotte Eriksson (You're Doing Just Fine)
“
Memories are dangerous things. You turn them over and over, until you know every touch and corner, but still you’ll find an edge to cut you.” I looked into my own darkness. I knew what it was to be trapped, and to watch ruination. “Each day the memories weigh a little heavier. Each day they drag you down that bit further. You wind them around you, a single thread at a time, and you weave your own shroud, you build a cocoon, and in it madness grows.” The lights pulsed beneath my fingers, ebbing and flowing to the beat of my voice. “You sit here with your yesterdays queuing at your shoulder. You listen to their reproach and curse those that gave you life.
”
”
Mark Lawrence (Prince of Thorns (The Broken Empire, #1))
“
Red and raw like my heart, pried from your's, the two beating, no longer together, but a thousand miles between them when only yesterday they thumped in unison.
”
”
Ellen Hopkins (Crank (Crank, #1))
“
You know that place in between nightmares and dreams? The place where tomorrows never come and yesterdays don’t hurt anymore? The place where your heart beats in sync with mine? The place where time doesn’t exist, and it’s easy to breathe? I want to live there with you. –TC
”
”
Brittainy C. Cherry (The Air He Breathes (Elements, #1))
“
THE WILD ROSE” – BY WENDELL BERRY
Sometimes, hidden from me in daily custom and in ritual
I live by you unaware, as if by the beating of my heart.
Suddenly you flare again in my sight
A wild rose at the edge of the thicket where yesterday there was only
shade
And I am blessed and choose again,
That which I chose before.
”
”
Wendell Berry
“
You, yesterday’s boy,
to whom confusion came:
Listen, lest you forget who you are.
It was not pleasure you fell into. It was joy.
You were called to be bridegroom,
though the bride coming toward you is your shame.
What chose you is the great desire.
Now all flesh bares itself to you.
On pious images pale cheeks
blush with a strange fire.
Your senses uncoil like snakes
awakened by the beat of the tambourine.
Then suddenly you’re left all alone
with your body that can’t love you
and your will that can’t save you.
But now, like a whispering in dark streets,
rumors of God run through your dark blood.
”
”
Rainer Maria Rilke (Rilke's Book of Hours: Love Poems to God)
“
I'll teach you later, but for now I just need someone to watch the signs for me. Come on up to the copilot chair."
I jerked a thumb in the direction of Chubs.
Liam only shook his head. "Are you kidding me? Yesterday he thought a mailbox was a clown."
I unbuckle my seat belt with a sigh. As I climbed over Chubs's outstretched legs to the front, I glanced over my shoulder, my eyes going to his too-small glasses. " Is his eyesight really that bad?"
"Worse," Liam said. "So, right after we got the hell out of Caledonia, we broke into this house to spend the night, right? I woke up in the middle of the night hearing the most awful noise, like a cow dying or something. I followed the wailing, clutching some kid's baseball bat, thinking I was going to have to beat someone's head in for us to make a clean getaway. then I saw what was sitting at the bottom of a drained pool."
"No way," I said.
"Way," he confirmed. "Hawkeye had gone out to relieve himself and had somehow missed the giant gaping hole in the ground. Twisted his ankle and couldn't climb out of the deep end.
I tried so hard not to laugh, but it was impossible. The mental image was just too damn good.
”
”
Alexandra Bracken (The Darkest Minds (The Darkest Minds, #1))
“
Hey. Just to make sure I beat everyone to it, I wanted to write in this first. I hope that’s some more proof of how much I’m in love with you. I still can’t believe it. How did three years go by so fast? It feels like yesterday I was sitting on the bus behind you trying to build the courage to say something. It’s crazy to think there was a time before we knew each other. A time before “Sam and Julie.” Or “Julie and Sam”? I’ll let you decide that one. I know you can’t wait to leave this place, but I’m gonna miss it. I get it, though. Your ideas were always too big for a small town, and everyone here knows it. But I’m happy your path somehow made you stop in Ellensburg along the way. So you and I could meet each other. Maybe it was supposed to happen, you know? I feel like my life didn’t start until I met you, Julie. You’re the best thing to happen to this small town. To me. I realize it doesn’t matter where we’re going next, as long as we’re together. I’ll be honest. I used to be scared of leaving home. Now I can’t wait to move on and make new memories with you. Just don’t forget the ones we made here. Especially when you make it big. And whatever happens, promise you won’t forget me, okay? Anyway, I love you, Julie, and always will. Yours forever, Sam
”
”
Dustin Thao (You've Reached Sam)
“
Sometimes I feel proud of myself, not because of any success I’ve achieved, but because I’m aware of all the difficulties that I have suffered or went through.
I’m an eyewitness at all the fear, weakness, frustration, failure, depression, refraction and bad luck moments that I’ve been through alone and which affected significantly but never was able to beat me for so long.
This is why I’m proud, because I’m here now stronger that yesterday, I'm still able to stand and continue on my way, still following up my dreams, still trying my best to build better future for me and my family and I will never ever give up!
”
”
Shadi Kamal Kandil
“
Anne, look here. Can’t we be good friends?”
For a moment Anne hesitated. She had an odd, newly awakened consciousness under all her outraged dignity that the half-shy, half-eager expression in Gilbert’s hazel eyes was something that was very good to see. Her heart gave a quick, queer little beat. But the bitterness of her old grievance promptly stiffened up her wavering determination. That scene of two years before flashed back into her recollection as vividly as if it had taken place yesterday. Gilbert had called her “carrots” and had brought about her disdain before the whole school. Her resentment, which to other and older people might be as laughable as its cause, was in no whit allayed and softened by time seemingly. She hated Gilbert Blythe! She would never forgive him!
”
”
L.M. Montgomery
“
No parent should have to bury a child ... No mother should have to bury a son. Mothers are not meant to bury sons. It is not in the natural order of things.
I buried my son. In a potter's field. In a field of Blood. In empty, acrid silence. There was no funeral. There were no mourners. His friends all absent. His father dead. His sisters refusing to attend. I discovered his body alone, I dug his grave alone, I placed him in a hole, and covered him with dirt and rock alone. I was not able to finish burying him before sundown, and I'm not sure if that affected his fate ...
I begrudge God none of this. I do not curse him or bemoan my lot. And though my heart keeps beating only to keep breaking--I do not question why.
I remember the morning my son was born as if it was yesterday. The moment the midwife placed him in my arms, I was infused with a love beyond all measure and understanding. I remember holding my son, and looking over at my own mother and saying, "Now I understand why the sun comes up at day and the stars come out at night. I understand why rain falls gently. Now I understand you, Mother" ...
I loved my son every day of his life, and I will love him ferociously long after I've stopped breathing. I am a simple woman. I am not bright or learn-ed. I do not read. I do not write. My opinions are not solicited. My voice is not important ... On the day of my son's birth I was infused with a love beyond all measure and understanding ... The world tells me that God is in Heaven and that my son is in Hell. I tell the world the one true thing I know: If my son is in Hell, then there is no Heaven--because if my son sits in Hell, there is no God.
”
”
Stephen Adly Guirgis (The Last Days of Judas Iscariot)
“
Twenty-five years, and it still felt like yesterday he’d ripped her heart out of her chest. While it had still been beating.
”
”
Kelly Moran (Mistletoe Magic (Redwood Ridge, #6))
“
Although people call love a capricious and unaccountable emotion that arises like an illness, nonetheless it has its own laws and reasons, like everything else. If these laws have been little studied so far, that is because a person struck down by love is in no condition to observe with a scholar's eye as the impression steals into his soul and shackles his emotions like a dream, as first his eyes go blind, at which moment his pulse and then his heart begin beating harder, all of a sudden there arises as of yesterday an undying devotion, the desire to sacrifice oneself; one's I gradually vanishes and crosses over into him or her; the mind becomes wither unusually dull or unusually sharp; the will surrenders to the will of another; and the head bows, the knees shake and the tears and fever come.
”
”
Ivan Goncharov (Oblomov)
“
Sometimes hidden from me
in daily custom and in trust,
so that I live by you unaware
as by the beating of my heart,
Suddenly you flare in my sight,
a wild rose blooming at the edge
of thicket, grace and light
where yesterday was only shade,
and once again I am blessed, choosing
again what I chose before.
”
”
Wendell Berry (The Selected Poems of Wendell Berry)
“
Yesterday had started out with so much promise, but between then and now, she had taken a beating.
”
”
Rebecca Roanhorse (Black Sun (Between Earth and Sky, #1))
“
If the heart that matches the beat of your own comes in the body of a man, so be it. Doesn't change anything. You're the same man you were yesterday. Better, even.
”
”
L.C. Chase (Long Tall Drink)
“
Nothing has changed, Claire. You're still as beautiful as you were when we met first and I am still in love with everything about you. We may be worlds apart but this doesn't keep our hearts at distance. I feel your breath in every breath of mine and I hear your heartbeat in every beat of my heart. I traveled to far away lands, rivers, forests, mountains, glaciers, deserts and skyscrapers but wherever I go I find you there. My dreams aren't illusions but visions of a beautiful yesterday; I play with your hair-locks, I kiss your eyes, I embrace your hands and you giggle in my arms blossoming like a flower. My love, you're my only reality, my only fantasy, my only celebration and my only refuge. I have waited a thousands suns and I can wait a thousand more to witness the moment you call out to me. That day you'll find me and even if I don't live up to see that day I will be with you forever, just remember me.
”
”
Huseyn Raza
“
Yesterday's rain had left a bitter, springlike smell in the air; the vehemence that beat against her in the street and hummed above her had something a little wistful in it tonight, like a plaintive hand-organ tune. All the lovely things in the shop windows, the furs and jewels, roses and orchids, seemed to belong to her as she passed them. Not to have wrapped up and sent home, certainly; where would she put them? But they were hers to live among.
”
”
Willa Cather (Lucy Gayheart)
“
The point is whether or not I improved over yesterday. In long-distance running the only opponent you have to beat is yourself, the way you used to be.
”
”
Haruki Murakami
“
You are so warm, Fleur.
I can feel your heart beat.
It's like a million butterfly wings,
giving life to my fleeting soul.
”
”
Susan L. Marshall (Fleur of Yesterday)
“
At some point, loneliness become less a condition than a habit. In time, you stop looking at your phone wondering why you can't think of anyone to call, stop getting you hair cut, stop working out, stop thinking that tomorrow is the first day of the rest of your life. Because tomorrow is today, and today is yerterday, and yesterday beat the shit out of you and brought you to your knees. The only way to stay sane is to stop hoping for something better.
”
”
Jonathan Tropper (One Last Thing Before I Go)
“
Yesterday I lay with you in a bed of glass We broke together trying to survive your past Still, in your pain I found magic The beauty in something so raw and tragic When life feels banal and ordinary and beat Run to me, my blue-eyed girl, to the place where pleasure and pain meet
”
”
L.J. Shen (Midnight Blue)
“
You know that place in between nightmares and dreams? The place where tomorrows never come and yesterdays don’t hurt anymore? The place where your heart beats in sync with mine? The place where time doesn’t exist, and it’s easy to breathe? I want to live there with you.
”
”
Brittainy C. Cherry (The Air He Breathes (Elements, #1))
“
Coming of age in a fascist police state will not be a barrel of fun for anybody, much less for people like me, who are not inclined to suffer Nazis gladly and feel only contempt for the cowardly flag-suckers who would gladly give up their outdated freedom to live for the mess of pottage they have been conned into believing will be freedom from fear.
Ho ho ho. Let's not get carried away here. Freedom was yesterday in this country. Its value has been discounted. The only freedom we truly crave today is freedom from Dumbness. Nothing else matters.
”
”
Hunter S. Thompson (Kingdom of Fear: Loathsome Secrets of a Star-Crossed Child in the Final Days of the American Century)
“
Anita Johnston, Ph.D., author of Eating in the Light of the Moon, taught me to look in the mirror with curiosity rather than fear. So I may look at my reflection and think, ‘That’s interesting. I wonder why my body seems bigger today than it did yesterday. Maybe it’s water weight. Maybe it’s my outfit. Or maybe my eyes are just playing tricks on me.’ I know it’s not possible for me to gain a noticeable amount of weight overnight, so I will go no further than that. I move on with my day without skipping a beat—and definitely without missing a meal.
”
”
Jenni Schaefer (Goodbye Ed, Hello Me: Recover from Your Eating Disorder and Fall in Love with Life)
“
In the midst of an enchanted, crystal forest
lies my soul,
beneath a weeping willow
tree.
On the shadowed side of this
mystical haven,
heart beats as thunder warns of a
raging storm!
Yesterday went well in deeds, but
silence
fell upon me...
words could not express these
lonesome thoughts.
I closed my eyes to shut the doors of reality.
Must you always need to understand me;
shan't I keep a bit of mystery for my sake?
These eyes plead,
as I look up to you
for such moments of
peace and tranquility.
Tears have fallen to the earth--
drops that glisten on blades of grass,
even in the dark of night;
stars shine brighter in my sight!
Today, I remember sharing my life
with you;
Vows of love and friendship, forever
spoken;
and now,
I lie alone beneath a
weeping willow tree.
Tommorrow, I shall walk alongside a
never-ending creek.
”
”
monika arnett
“
1. Success is a choice. -Rick Pitino
2. Success in life comes not from holding a good hand, but in playing a poor hand well. -Warren Lester
3. I shall tell you a great secret, my friend. Do not wait for the last judgment; it takes place every day. -Albert Camus
4. If you're not fired up with enthusiasm, you'll be fired with enthusiasm. -Vince Lombardi
5. There is no security on this earth; there is only opportunity. -Douglas MacArthur
6. Yesterday's the past and tomorrow's the future. Today is a gift, which is why they call it the present. -Bill Keane
7. Show me a thoroughly satisfied man and I will show you a failure. -Thomas Edison
8. When you get to the end of your rope tie a knot and hang on. -Franklin D. Roosevelt
9. The best way to predict your future is to create it. -Author unknown
10. I always remember an epitaph which is in the cemetery at Tombstone, Arizona. It says, "Here lies Jack Williams. He done his damnedest." I think that is the greatest epitaph a man can have. -Harry S Truman
11. Triumph? Try Umph! -Author unknown
12. You hit home runs not by chance but by preparation. -Roger Maris
13. If you don't have enough pride, you're going to get your butt beat every play. -Gale Sayers
14. My mother taught me very early to believe I could achieve any accomplishment I wanted to. The first was to walk without braces. -Wilma Rudolph
15. You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it. -Margaret Thatcher
”
”
Samuel D. Deep (Close The Deal: Smart Moves For Selling: 120 Checklists To Help You Close The Very Best Deal)
“
Our hearts are real, Sherwin,
they continue to beat
even through buried time.
”
”
Susan L. Marshall (Fleur of Yesterday)
“
Getting honest with ourselves does not make us unacceptable to God. It does not distance us from God, but draws us to Him—as nothing else can—and opens us anew to the flow of grace. While Jesus calls each of us to a more perfect life, we cannot achieve it on our own. To be alive is to be broken; to be broken is to stand in need of grace. It is only through grace that any of us could dare to hope that we could become more like Christ. The saved sinner with the tilted halo has been converted from mistrust to trust, has arrived at an inner poverty of spirit, and lives as best he or she can in rigorous honesty with self, others, and God. The question the gospel of grace puts to us is simply this: Who shall separate you from the love of Christ? What are you afraid of? Are you afraid that your weakness could separate you from the love of Christ? It can’t. Are you afraid that your inadequacies could separate you from the love of Christ? They can’t. Are you afraid that your inner poverty could separate you from the love of Christ? It can’t. Difficult marriage, loneliness, anxiety over the children’s future? They can’t. Negative self-image? It can’t. Economic hardship, racial hatred, street crime? They can’t. Rejection by loved ones or the suffering of loved ones? They can’t. Persecution by authorities, going to jail? They can’t. Nuclear war? It can’t. Mistakes, fears, uncertainties? They can’t. The gospel of grace calls out, Nothing can ever separate you from the love of God made visible in Christ Jesus our Lord. You must be convinced of this, trust it, and never forget to remember. Everything else will pass away, but the love of Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Faith will become vision, hope will become possession, but the love of Jesus Christ that is stronger than death endures forever. In the end, it is the one thing you can hang onto.
”
”
Brennan Manning (The Ragamuffin Gospel: Good News for the Bedraggled, Beat-Up, and Burnt Out)
“
For me, running is both exercise and a metaphor. Running day after day, piling up the races, bit by bit I raise the bar, and by clearing each level I elevate myself. At least that’s why I’ve put in the effort day after day: to raise my own level. I’m no great runner, by any means. I’m at an ordinary—or perhaps more like mediocre—level. But that’s not the point. The point is whether or not I improved over yesterday. In long-distance running the only opponent you have to beat is yourself, the way you used to be.
”
”
Haruki Murakami (What I Talk About When I Talk About Running)
“
*** You know that place in between nightmares and dreams? The place where tomorrows never come and yesterdays don’t hurt anymore? The place where your heart beats in sync with mine? The place where time doesn’t exist, and it’s easy to breathe? I want to live there with you.
”
”
Brittainy C. Cherry (The Air He Breathes (Elements, #1))
“
I'm no great runner, by any means. I'm at an ordinary -- or perhaps more than mediocre -- level. But that's not the point. The point is whether or not I improved over yesterday. And long distance running the only opponent you have to beat is yourself, the way you used to be.
”
”
Haruki Murakami (What I Talk About When I Talk About Running)
“
Unless death is made a lesson for the living, the life lived is wasted.
Why should life come into existence only to be destroyed? One dies and another is born—for what? A few miserable hours of life—then oblivion!
With this recognition of the finality of death, no one should willingly withhold acts that would bring benefits, joy or happiness to others. In death, the hesitant act can no longer be performed—the word of praise is as impossible as yesterday's return.
What perversity justified inflicting pain, suffering and death upon others who have done no wrong? If death ends all, why fight while we are living? Why shorten life with unnecessary pain and suffering? How futile are the petty problems of individuals, with their hates and jealousies, when all vanish with death?
All the prayers in the world cannot wipe out one injustice.
Every wrong is irreparable.
The dead cannot forgive.
All the tears and sighs are of no avail.
Forgiveness cannot be granted when lips cannot move.
Praise cannot be heard when ears cannot hear; joy cannot be experienced when the heart no longer beats; and the happiness of an affectionate embrace can no longer be felt when arms are limp and the eyes are forever closed.
”
”
Joseph Lewis (An Atheist Manifesto)
“
[...] she had written Clare a letter in school yesterday afternoon and delivered it herself on the way home. In this letter she had mildly said, «Everyone thinks I am sullen, surly, sulky, grim; but I am the two hemispheres of Ptolemaic marvels, I am lost Atlantis risen from the sea, the Western Isles of infinite promise, the apples of the Hesperides and daily make the voyage to Cytherea, island of snaky trees and abundant shade with leaves large and dripping juice, the fruit that is my heart, but I have a thousand hearts hung on every trees, yes, my heart drips alone every fence paling. I am mad with my heart which beats too much in the world and falls in love at every instant with every reflection that glimmers in it.» And much more of this, which she was accustomed to write to Clare, stuff almost without meaning, but yet which seemed to have the entire meaning of life for her, and which made Clare exclaim a dozen times,
«Oh, Louie, I can’t believe it, when I get your letters, you are the same person: when I meet you at school I keep looking at you in surprise!»
”
”
Christina Stead (The Man Who Loved Children)
“
All yesterday it poured, and all night long
I could not sleep; the rain unceasing beat
Upon the shingled roof like a weird song,
Upon the grass like running children’s feet.
And down the mountains by the dark cloud kissed,
Like a strange shape in filmy veiling dressed,
Slid slowly, silently, the wraith-like mist,
And nestled soft against the earth’s wet breast.
But lo, there was a miracle at dawn!
The still air stirred at touch of the faint breeze,
The sun a sheet of gold bequeathed the lawn,
The songsters twittered in the rustling trees.
And all things were transfigured in the day,
But me whom radiant beauty could not move;
For you, more wonderful, were far away,
And I was blind with hunger for your love
”
”
Claude McKay
“
When left alone, the typical teenager begins to wonder: “What is my girlfriend doing now? Am I getting zits? Will I get to finish the math assignment on time? Are those dudes I had a fight with yesterday going to beat me up?” In other words, with nothing to do, the mind is unable to prevent negative thoughts from elbowing their way to center stage. And unless one learns to control consciousness, the same situation confronts adults. Worries about one’s love life, health, investments, family, and job are always hovering at the periphery of attention, waiting until there is nothing pressing that demands concentration. As soon as the mind is ready to relax, zap! the potential problems that were waiting in the wings take over.
”
”
Mihály Csíkszentmihályi (Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience)
“
I love you, Asher Daniox. You are the breath in my lungs and the beat of my heart. And I am yours. I was yours yesterday, I am yours today, and I will be yours every day after. Even if you do not choose me, I will spend the rest of my life choosing you. I will love you until my final breath and long after. I would crawl from my grave to find you once more if it meant even a single moment with you.
”
”
Brea Lamb (Of Night and Blood (The Coveted, #1))
“
And numerous indeed are the hearts to which Christmas brings a brief season of happiness and enjoyment. How many families, whose members have been dispersed and scattered far and wide, in the restless struggles of life, are then reunited, and meet once again in that happy state of companionship and mutual goodwill, which is a source of such pure and unalloyed delight; and one so incompatible with the cares and sorrows of the world, that the religious belief of the most civilised nations, and the rude traditions of the roughest savages, alike number it among the first joys of a future condition of existence, provided for the blessed and happy! How many old recollections, and how many dormant sympathies, does Christmas time awaken!
We write these words now, many miles distant from the spot at which, year after year, we met on that day, a merry and joyous circle. Many of the hearts that throbbed so gaily then, have ceased to beat; many of the looks that shone so brightly then, have ceased to glow; the hands we grasped, have grown cold; the eyes we sought, have hid their lustre in the grave; and yet the old house, the room, the merry voices and smiling faces, the jest, the laugh, the most minute and trivial circumstances connected with those happy meetings, crowd upon our mind at each recurrence of the season, as if the last assemblage had been but yesterday! Happy, happy Christmas, that can win us back to the delusions of our childish days; that can recall to the old man the pleasures of his youth; that can transport the sailor and the traveller, thousands of miles away, back to his own fireside and his quiet home!
”
”
Charles Dickens (The Pickwick Papers)
“
Ca ne manque, les chambres. The work is full of rooms—big rooms, little rooms, round rooms, square ones, rooms high up, rooms low down—all kinds of rooms! What kind of room do you think Giovanni should be living in? How long do you think it took me to find the room I have? And since when, since when'—he stopped and beat with his forefinger on my chest—‘have you so hated the room? Since when? Since yesterday, since always? Dis-moi.
”
”
James Baldwin (Giovanni’s Room)
“
We write these words now, many miles distant from the spot at which, year after year, we met on that day, a merry and joyous circle. Many of the hearts that throbbed so gaily then, have ceased to beat; many of the looks that shone so brightly then, have ceased to glow; the hands we grasped, have grown cold; the eyes we sought, have hid their lustre in the grave; and yet the old house, the room, the merry voices and smiling faces, the jest, the laugh, the most minute and trivial circumstances connected with those happy meetings, crowd upon our mind at each recurrence of the season, as if the last assemblage had been but yesterday! Happy, happy Christmas, that can win us back to the delusions of our childish days; that can recall to the old man the pleasures of his youth; that can transport the sailor and the traveller, thousands of miles away, back to his own fireside and his quiet home!
”
”
Charles Dickens (Delphi Christmas Collection Volume I (Illustrated) (Delphi Anthologies Book 6))
“
Why not?” I asked, letting my tears spill over. It was easy to cry. All I had to do was look at Alex’s limp body, and the tears came effortlessly. “You were happy enough to do it to me.”
There was a beat. Then John said cautiously, “What do you mean?”
“The consequences, John?” I let out a bitter laugh. “Persephone wasn’t doomed to stay in the Underworld because she ate a pomegranate. She was doomed to stay there because she did with Hades what we did last night. That’s what the pomegranate symbolizes, right?”
John stared, speechless. But I could tell I was right by the color that slowly started to suffuse his cheeks…and the fact that he didn’t try to contradict me.
And of course the fact that the whole thing was spelled out right in front of me by the statue Hope was sitting on. I didn’t get why the Rectors were so obsessed by the myth of Persephone that they’d put a statue of it in their mausoleum, but it was clear enough they were involved in an underworld of one kind or another.
“Don’t worry,” I said, lowering my voice because I didn’t want Frank to overhear. “I don’t blame you. You asked me if I was sure, despite the consequences. I said I was. But I thought by consequences you meant a baby, and I already knew that could never happen. I guess Mr. Smith must have told you last night that he found out the pomegranate symbolized something completely different than babies or death-“
“Pierce.” John grasped my hand. His fingers were like ice, but his voice and his gaze had an urgency that was anything but cold. “That isn’t why I did it. I love you. I’ve always loved you, because you’re good…you’re so good, you make me want to be good, too. But that’s the problem, Pierce. I’m not good. And I’ve always been afraid that when you find out the truth about me, you’d run away again-“
I sucked in my breath to tell him for the millionth time that this wasn’t true, but he cut me off, not allowing me to speak until he’d had his say.
“Then you almost died yesterday,” he went on, “and it was my fault. I wanted to show you how much I loved you, and things…things went further than I expected. But you didn’t stop me”-his silver eyes blazed, as if daring me to deny what he was saying-“even though I told you we could slow down if you wanted to.”
“I know,” I said softly, dropping my gaze to look down at our joined fingers. We’d each kept a hand on Alex. “I know you did.”
“I don’t want to lose you again,” he said fiercely. “I lost you once and I couldn’t bear it. I won’t go through that again. I…I know I did the wrong thing. But it didn’t feel wrong at the time.”
I raised my gaze to his. “You’re right about that, at least,” I said.
“So am I forgiven?” he asked.
I hesitated, confused by the myriad of emotions I was feeling. John had known. He’d known the whole time we had been together the night before that he was forever sealing my destiny to his.
Of course, he’d thought I’d known, too. He’d asked if I was sure it was what I wanted, despite the consequences. I might have misunderstood what those consequences were, but I’d been very adamant in my response. I’d said yes. And I’d meant it.
“Excuse me,” called Frank’s voice from the opposite wall of vaults. “But you might want to take a look at the boy.”
John and I both glanced down. Beneath the hands we’d left on Alex, he’d come back to life.
”
”
Meg Cabot (Underworld (Abandon, #2))
“
How are you enjoying Thorne Abbey?"
Cal took a long sip of orange juice before replying. "It's great."
I don't think it was possible for Cal to sound less enthusiastic, but either Lara didn't pick up on it, or she didn't care, because she sounded awfully perky as she said, "Well, I'm sure the two of you are welcoming the chance to spend some time together."
Cal and I both stared at her. I tried to will her to stop talking, but apparently that power wasn't in my repertoire. Lara flashed us a conspiratorial grin. "Nothing makes me happier than seeing an arrangement that's a real love match."
All the awkwardness that had vanished between me and Cal yesterday seemed to swoop back into the room with an audible whoosh.
I dared a quick look in his direction, but Cal, as usual, was doing his whole Stoic Man thing. His expression didn't even waver. But then I noticed his hand tightening around his glass.
"Cal and I aren't...we don't...there's not any, um, love," I finally said. "We're friends."
Lara frowned, confused. "Oh. I'm sorry." She turned to Cal, eyebrows raised. "I just assumed that was the reason you turned down the position with the Council."
Cal shook his head,and I think he was about to say something, but I beat him to it. "What position with the Council?"
"It was nothing," he said.
Lara gave a delicate snort before saying to me, "After his term at Hecate ended, Mr. Callahan was offered a position as the Council's chief bodyguard. Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't you initially accept the assignment?" she asked Cal.
It was the closest I'd ever seen Cal to angry. Of course, on him, that meant that his brow furrowed a little. "I did, but-" he started to say.
"But then you heard Sophie was coming to Hecate, and you decided to stay," Lara finished, and her lips twisted in the triumphant smile I'd seen on Mrs. Casnoff's face dozens of times. I stood there, frozen in place, as she turned back to me and said, "Mr. Callahan gave up a chance to travel the world with the council so that he could be little more than a janitor on Graymalkin Island. For you.
”
”
Rachel Hawkins (Demonglass (Hex Hall, #2))
“
What meaning has an hour when that hour is indistinguishable from any other? A new day dawns, another season comes and goes, a year passes and then another, and another, until twenty-three years have slipped into oblivion. Ah, Hezekiah, no wonder you remember your final voyage as if just yesterday you had thrown yourself upon the mercy of the briny deep! The intervening years are sucked down these acheronian halls like light into a black hole while you helplessly teeter upon the event horizon, where time is measured by the beating of a fly’s wing in the stagnant air.
”
”
Rick Yancey (The Monstrumologist (The Monstrumologist, #1))
“
On a sleepy morning that I keep waking up to pull my necktie tight
And when I pass through my classroom door
I can start walking with my chest puffed out just a little
The wind blows through such ordinary days
I realized I heard it
I realized I felt it
Now in my chest that started to tremble
I realized it was coming already
I saw off
The millions of stars that were disappearing
I waved my hand
Saying, "Good for you"
I look down at the corner of the hallway in middle of cleaning
I think it's a strange thing
Even though the time inside of me has stopped
It feels like I'm living through different days
Dust falls and accumulates like snow
I realized you're waiting
I realized you're calling
Now in this time that started to tremble
I realized I found it
My lost memories recalled
My story
Of eternity
It's ending
I started running before I knew it
My hand was being pulled along by you
Yesterday was far away, tomorrow was right ahead
That natural fact made my heart dance
I realized I heard it
I realized I felt it
Now in my chest that started to tremble
I realized it was coming already
A new sun overcame thousands of mornings
I realized you're waiting
I realized you're calling
My soul is trembling
I realized I found it
I saw off
The day that's able to disappear like millions of dreams
I waved my hand
Saying, "Thank you
”
”
Lia
“
TO MY BELOVED,
Its neither a piece of paper nor a letter, rather it's my small heart which I'm gifting it to you darling.It seems time stood still without ur presence around me. My days and nights have gone worthless. All my heart could do is to recall the memories of time which we have spend together. My heart gets rejoiced whenever your beautiful face comes before my eyes. Your mesmerizing eyes drive me to another world. Your flowing hair looks tantalizing and your rosy lips seems to be meant only for saying lovely words.
While having a cup of coffee yesterday, numerous moments striked my heart. Our first meeting, when you were looking like a fairy in white salwar-suit. Still fresh in my mind, your pretty smile and bowing your head down to laugh with your hand on your lips. I confess that your every action was stealing my heart and I couldn't withdraw myself from lookig you.
The gift you presented me on my birthday gives me a sigh of relief that you are always there with me. Sweetheart, In the classroom, I cracked useless jokes and PJ's just to see your charming smile. Kept gazing your lips, just to heat some golden words. You had stolen my heart.
Dedicated '' I don't know when and how you arrived in my life,
Don't know when my heart star beating for you, day n night....
My eyes kept staring the window pane,
Wishing one day u'll come in my lane....
Darling you're the only one whom I admire,
It's you whom my heart desperately desires...
Being with you is my only need,
You are now the medicine of my heartbeat...
I Craved your name on my heart,
The day when I decided not to loose you ever,
And I promise you sweetheart that,
I love you & i'll love you for ever, ever n ever......
It's true my baby that, i love you like anything. Miss you from very morning 2 the night. MY senses are active to feel you, to hear you, to see you, to taste every sorrow and happiness of your life. Jaana, get embedded in me, in my soul so that i can live with you, for you........
Dying to have your reply.....
Truly Your's
PK
”
”
Prabhat Kumar
“
It lies in human nature that deep emotion cannot be prolonged indefinitely, either in the individual or in a people, a fact that is known to all military organizations. Therefore it requires an artificial stimulation, a constant “doping” of excitement; and this whipping up was to be performed by the intellectuals, the poets, the writers and the journalists, scrupulously or otherwise, honestly or as a matter of professional routine. They were to
beat the drums of hatred and beat them they did, until the ears of the unprejudiced hummed and their hearts quaked. In Germany, in France, in Italy, in Russia, and in Belgium, they all obediently served the war
propaganda and thus the mass delusion and mass hatred, instead of fighting against it.
”
”
Stefan Zweig (The World of Yesterday)
“
Seconds turn into minutes and minutes into hours. It is all still the same. Or it no longer is. If I were to ask what has changed, perhaps nothing, but conceivably everything would be the befitting reply. I no longer feel the same.
Loss preceded me, alienating my soul from the body. I feel I am gliding through an alley making a journey from the known towards the unknown. There is a deep abyss inside where sometime back, my heart used to beat and a noisy, rusty old machine has replaced my mind; solitarily creating useless noise.
I don’t remember what day it is and since when have I been lying here. It must have been yesterday… or was it day before. I cannot recollect anything except the dull throbbing pain inside my brain. I can see the time, almost 9: 45, difficult to say which time of the day it is.
The bigger hand is soon going to overshadow the smaller hand. It looks like a game of cat and mouse; the bigger hand chasing the smaller one. Anyone stronger in terms of physical appearance, money, power, fame or name tramples upon the weak ones - that is the rule of the world. There are only two possible reasons behind it, love or hate. When you love someone you want to control everything that person does and hence, sometimes, knowingly or unknowingly you squash them like melons.
While on the other hand in the case of hate, there is no need to specify the reason for walking over someone like that. Hate is a strong reason in itself. I am confused as to what crushed me, was it love or hate? I somehow don’t like the sound of it – love, it in itself smells of treachery, for love is not a pure emotion. Lust and hatred are the only pure emotions. Love is camouflaged, for needs and desires.
Desires – they are magical in their own way. They can be innocent. They can be monstrous. But they exist, no matter what, and many such needs and desires make us helpless slaves of the same. We hide these desires either in the realms of our mind or in the dusty corners of our hearts for we are scared…what if someone finds out what we desire. We give them identities so as to not let the real thing show. The only thing visible on the front is a mask we wear to deceive people or that’s what I thought. For I was deceived while I believed I am the deceiver. Or was I not? I debated as my mind once again tried to enter a sleep-induced trance.
”
”
Namrata (Time's Lost Atlas)
“
You didn’t inoculate yourself yesterday,” I say to Peter.
“No, I didn’t,” Peter says.
“Why not?”
“Why should I tell you?”
I run my thumb over the vial and say, “You came with me because you know I have the memory serum, right? If you want me to give it to you, it couldn’t hurt to give me a reason.”
He looks at my pocket again, like he did earlier. He must have seen Christina give it to me. He says, “I’d rather just take it from you.”
“Please.” I lift my eyes up, to watch the snow spilling over the edges of the buildings. It’s dark, but the moon provides just enough light to see by. “You might think you’re pretty good at fighting, but you aren’t good enough to beat me, I promise you.”
Without warning he shoves me, hard, and I slip on the snowy ground and fall. My gun clatters to the ground, half buried in the snow. That’ll teach me to get cocky, I think, and I scramble to my feet.
”
”
Veronica Roth (Allegiant (Divergent, #3))
“
Whenever Elliot Norther’s wife was nervous she baked. With the murder of Harriet Mason, her husband’s close colleague at the Faculty, she had been unable to resist a couple of Victoria sponges. During the frenzied press speculation about the identity of the murderer, a Dundee cake had appeared, followed swiftly by a Battenberg and a Lemon Drizzle. Since news of the Wildencrust murder broke, the kitchen, dining room and study had come to resemble the storerooms of an industrial bakery, every surface heaving with the weight of sponge and cream. Yesterday, having at last been overwhelmed by the fear and rumour that swept the town, she had taken herself off to her mother’s house in Hampstead, leaving her husband to soldier on alone. When he had last seen his wife, Elliot Norther noticed that she had been putting the finishing touches to an impressive, triple-tiered wedding cake, beating a batch of royal icing into a sickly paste.
”
”
Robert Clear (The Cambridge List)
“
EXCERPT FROM CHAPTER ONE
MY LIFE ON CRAIGSLIST
Stars and Cards Never Lie
Date: 2011-04-1, 9:17PM EST
Reply to: sev-rgddta-26664852@craigslist.org
Life and the economy beating you down? The accuracy of the Rider Waite Tarot cards and my Astrology consultations will amaze you. The insight you’ll gain from these readings will be a fantastic catalyst for spiritual growth and personal advancement. Available by phone and skype. Alternative decks and house calls can be arranged upon request.
•Location: New York City, MANHATTAN
•it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests
Chapter 1
Four Cookies and a Funeral
Yesterday I went on Craigslist and hired a Tarot reader to tell me whether I was in any danger of losing my job. I wasn’t really worried because last week, an astrologer I’d also found on Craigslist, had told me there was no major movement in the sixth house, which is the area of my chart that governs work. But just in case, I met with the Tarot card reader who told me everything was going to be okay.
Today I got canned.
”
”
Alexandra Ares (My Life on Craigslist: A Fictitious Diary)
“
Last Thoughts On Woody Guthrie
When yer head gets twisted and yer mind grows numb
When you think you're too old, too young, too smart or too dumb
When yer laggin' behind an' losin' yer pace
In a slow-motion crawl of life's busy race
No matter what yer doing if you start givin' up
If the wine don't come to the top of yer cup
If the wind's got you sideways with with one hand holdin' on
And the other starts slipping and the feeling is gone
And yer train engine fire needs a new spark to catch it
And the wood's easy findin' but yer lazy to fetch it
And yer sidewalk starts curlin' and the street gets too long
And you start walkin' backwards though you know its wrong
And lonesome comes up as down goes the day
And tomorrow's mornin' seems so far away
And you feel the reins from yer pony are slippin'
And yer rope is a-slidin' 'cause yer hands are a-drippin'
And yer sun-decked desert and evergreen valleys
Turn to broken down slums and trash-can alleys
And yer sky cries water and yer drain pipe's a-pourin'
And the lightnin's a-flashing and the thunder's a-crashin'
And the windows are rattlin' and breakin' and the roof tops a-shakin'
And yer whole world's a-slammin' and bangin'
And yer minutes of sun turn to hours of storm
And to yourself you sometimes say
"I never knew it was gonna be this way
Why didn't they tell me the day I was born"
And you start gettin' chills and yer jumping from sweat
And you're lookin' for somethin' you ain't quite found yet
And yer knee-deep in the dark water with yer hands in the air
And the whole world's a-watchin' with a window peek stare
And yer good gal leaves and she's long gone a-flying
And yer heart feels sick like fish when they're fryin'
And yer jackhammer falls from yer hand to yer feet
And you need it badly but it lays on the street
And yer bell's bangin' loudly but you can't hear its beat
And you think yer ears might a been hurt
Or yer eyes've turned filthy from the sight-blindin' dirt
And you figured you failed in yesterdays rush
When you were faked out an' fooled white facing a four flush
And all the time you were holdin' three queens
And it's makin you mad, it's makin' you mean
Like in the middle of Life magazine
Bouncin' around a pinball machine
And there's something on yer mind you wanna be saying
That somebody someplace oughta be hearin'
But it's trapped on yer tongue and sealed in yer head
And it bothers you badly when your layin' in bed
And no matter how you try you just can't say it
And yer scared to yer soul you just might forget it
And yer eyes get swimmy from the tears in yer head
And yer pillows of feathers turn to blankets of lead
And the lion's mouth opens and yer staring at his teeth
And his jaws start closin with you underneath
And yer flat on your belly with yer hands tied behind
And you wish you'd never taken that last detour sign
And you say to yourself just what am I doin'
On this road I'm walkin', on this trail I'm turnin'
On this curve I'm hanging
On this pathway I'm strolling, in the space I'm taking
In this air I'm inhaling
Am I mixed up too much, am I mixed up too hard
Why am I walking, where am I running
What am I saying, what am I knowing
On this guitar I'm playing, on this banjo I'm frailin'
On this mandolin I'm strummin', in the song I'm singin'
In the tune I'm hummin', in the words I'm writin'
In the words that I'm thinkin'
In this ocean of hours I'm all the time drinkin'
Who am I helping, what am I breaking
What am I giving, what am I taking
But you try with your whole soul best
Never to think these thoughts and never to let
Them kind of thoughts gain ground
Or make yer heart pound
...
”
”
Bob Dylan
“
His light blue shuma and silver torque did nothing to hide the mass of cuts, scrapes, and purple bruises that covered his body and made his iridescent tattoos practically glow by contrast. He had a dark bruise under one eye that ran all the way down to the ulumi-lia tattoo on his cheekbone, and another on his jaw.
“This?” He gestured to his battered frame. “Ono, moa halea.I was invited to partake in a wrestling match yesterday afternoon.”
“A wrestling match with whom? Kukuna the Stone God?”
His grin flashed, then faltered as the gesture tugged at his split lip. “It was a very intense match. And you have been reading the legends of my people. You are curious about Calberna. This is good.”
She grimaced. “Don’t jump to conclusions. I read most of those legends before I met you so I could teach the children at the school about Calberna.” Then, because curiosity got the best of her, she asked, “So which one of Wynter’s men beat you to a pulp?”
His brows rose. “I am unpulped.”
“Not from where I’m standing. Or are you saying the other fellow looks worse?”
He cocked his head to one side, as if considering, then gave that charming half grin again and said, “About the same. We declared it equal contest.”
“Who did you leave unpulped then?”
“It is of no concern. We had our match. We tested each other’s skill and resolve, and came away with a new understanding of each other.”
”
”
C.L. Wilson (The Sea King (Weathermages of Mystral, #2))
“
Where are you from?" She asked without thinking.
"I was born in the mountains." Runach said with a shrug. "The place doesn't matter."
"Do you have siblings?"
"Yes, several. Not all are still living. He smiled faintly. "You are full of questions this afternoon."
"The library was a bad influence on me."
Runach smiled briefly. "And I believe that was three questions you asked me, which leaves me with three of my own for you to answer."
"That was two."
"I don't count very well."
"I think you count very well," she said grimly.
He only smiled again. "I'll contemplate which answers I'll have and let you know." Aisling thought she just might be dreading them, but couldn't bring herself to say as much.
"What was your home like?" she asked.
"Another question."
"You look distracted."
He smiled and a dimple peeked out at her from his unscarred cheek. "You are more devious than I give you credit for being. I am keeping a tally, you know. I will expect a like number of answers from you."
She stared at him for a moment or two. It was difficult not to, but he didnt seem to mind. "Why?" She asked finally.
"Beacause you are a mystery."
"And do you care for a mystery?"
"I am obsessed by a good mystery," he said frankly. "More than enough to pry a few answers out of you, however I am able."
"And what if I am not inclined to give them?" She asked, her mouth suddenly dry.
"Then I will wonder about you silently."
"In truth?" she asked, surprised.
Runach smiled, looking just as surprised. "What else would I do? Beat the answers from you?"
"I don't know." She said slowly. "I don't know what soldiers do."
He shook his head. "Hedge all you like, if you like."
"Your mother must have been a well-bred lady." She said, frowning.
"Why do you say that?"
"She seems to have taught you decent manners, for your being a mere soldier."
"She tried," he agreed, looking out over the sea.
Aisling turned and looked at him. "How long ago did you lose her?"
Runach took a deep breath and dragged his hand through his hair, before he bowed his head and slid her a look. "That answer will cost you dearly."
Her first instinct, as always, was to say nothing. But the truth was, she lived and breathed still. She could tell him perhaps a bit about herself, without bringing the curse down upon her head. Aisling took her own deep breath. "Very well."
"My mother died twenty years ago, though I vow it feels like yesterday."
"How did she die?"
Runach was very still. "My father slew her and half my siblings. Time has done the rest of that terrible work I suppose.
She shut her mouth, and put her hand on his arm. "I'm sorry."
"I am too," he agreed. Runach shook his head, then reached for her hand to draw it through his arm. "Let's walk whilst you spew out the answers you owe me. You'll be more comfortable that way, I'm sure."
"I'm not sure you should worry about my comfort" Aisling managed, "not after those questions."
"But I do. And now that I have bared my soul, I think you should worry about my comfort and do the same.
”
”
Lynn Kurland (Dreamspinner (Nine Kingdoms #7))
“
After I left Uriah’s side last night, I wandered the compound without any sense of direction. I should have been thinking of my friend, teetering between this world and whatever comes next, but instead I thought of what I said to Tobias. And how I felt when I looked at him, like something was breaking.
I didn’t tell him it was the end of our relationship. I meant to, but when I was looking at him, the words were impossible to say. I feel tears welling up again, as they have every hour or so since yesterday, and I push them away, swallow them down.
“So you saved the Bureau,” Cara says, turning to me. “You seem to get involved in a lot of conflict. I suppose we should all be grateful that you are steady in a crisis.”
“I didn’t save the Bureau. I have no interest in saving the Bureau,” I retort. “I kept a weapon out of some dangerous hands, that’s all.” I wait a beat. “Did you just compliment me?”
“I am capable of recognizing another person’s strengths,” Cara replies, and she smiles. “Additionally, I think our issues are now resolved, both on a logical and an emotional level.” She clears her throat a little, and I wonder if it’s finally acknowledging that she has emotions that makes her uncomfortable, or something else. “It sounds like you know something about the Bureau that has made you angry. I wonder if you could tell me what it is.”
Christina rests her head on the edge of Uriah’s mattress, her slender body collapsing sideways. I say wryly, “I wonder. We may never know.”
“Hmm.” The crease between Cara’s eyebrows appears when she frowns, making her look so much like Will that I have to look away. “Maybe I should say please.”
“Fine. You know Jeanine’s simulation serum? Well, it wasn’t hers.” I sigh. “Come on. I’ll show you. It’ll be easier that way.”
It would be just as easy to tell her what I saw in that old storage room, nestled deep in the Bureau laboratories. But the truth is, I just want to keep myself busy, so I don’t think about Uriah. Or Tobias.
”
”
Veronica Roth (Allegiant (Divergent, #3))
“
In all the seconds of life that beat solemnly from my heart, in all the hours of waiting for the release that binds us, in all the months of moons that guided our hopes, of all the years of yesterday that taught us the path of which we walk today:
Today, I am true. Today I will write without release; without questions or care of the minds that do not understand the words that will lie before me in this letter.
Licentia. The release of anything that covers my ears or blinds my eyes. Oh, licentia.
The people shall call me insane because I have proven to remain unrelenting in the belief that freedom and justice and truth are all subject to change, but that the ideas are the spark which light the fire to continue my journey. These words have no value unless given an idea, and that is the only part that is bounded in this world: the idea.
The idea to be free; no matter the cost of autonomy and decisions and conscious state of mind.
The idea to have justice; without a governance to proclaim what it defines.
The idea to seek truth; no matter how many lies claim to hold the reality.
Licentia. The release of anything that covers my ears or blinds my eyes. Oh, licentia.
It is the fear that controls the grip which lacerates our brains and chains our souls. It is the fear that without power or an entity that seeks it, that we will be dangerous. It is the fear of our ourselves that binds us. But once we are no longer afraid of the mirror that grants us our reflection, we begin to understand that the fear was simply an illusion.
It is the pain that scares us into submission and breaks our vows to our hearts. It is the pain that makes an honest man beg on his knees to the wolves that seek to devour his ideas. It is the pain that creates the stage to which only fools applaud and puppets play. It is the pain that makes us see the ugliness of our soul. But once we are in pain, we realize that it was never the worst feeling to behold, but that the betrayal of our minds and the minds of others is.
Licentia. The release of anything that covers my ears or blinds my eyes. Oh, licentia.
”
”
Kylee Carrier
“
The birds?’
‘Yes. Brent geese from Svalbard and bar-tailed godwits from the Arctic tundra. Thousands of them, loads of different species. They’ve flown from Scandinavia to spend the winter here. At night, I can hear them honking. Pink-footed geese from Iceland, barnacle geese from Norway. When I lie in bed at night, I imagine I can hear the beat of their wings.
Yesterday I walked along the beach. It was clear, for once, and the sun was starting to set. I saw a murmuration of plovers. Hundreds of them, making these strange, unearthly shapes across the sky; the light caught their wings, and the whole flock shone like gold.
Every day I think about filling my pockets with stones and walking into the sea. I will aim for Iceland. I will never stop. But then I see a flock of golden plovers wheeling in the sunlight and, for a few brief moments, I forget who I am and why I’m here and what I’ve lost.
”
”
Sanjida Kay (My Mother's Secret)
“
Activities to Develop the Auditory System Simplify your language. Speak slowly, shorten your comments, abbreviate instructions, and repeat what you have said. Reinforce verbal messages with gestural communication: facial expressions, hand movements, and body language. Talk to your child while she dresses, eats, or bathes, to teach her words and concepts, such as nouns (sunglasses, casserole), body parts (thumb, buttocks), prepositions (around, through), adjectives (juicy, soapy), time (yesterday, later), categories (vegetables/fruits), actions (zip, scrub), and emotions (pleased, sorry). Share your own thoughts. Model good speech and communication skills. Even if the child has trouble responding verbally, she may understand what you say. Take the time to let your child respond to your words and express his thoughts. Don’t interrupt, rush, or pressure him to talk. Be an active listener. Pay attention. Look your child in the eye when she speaks. Show her that her thoughts interest you. Help your child communicate more clearly. If you catch one word, say, “Tell me more about the truck.” If you can’t catch his meaning, have him show you by gesturing. Reward her comments with smiles, hugs, and verbal praise, such as, “That’s a great idea!” Your positive feedback will encourage her to strive to communicate. (Don’t say, “Good talking,” which means little to the child and implies that all you care about is words, rather than the message the child is trying to get across.) Use rhythm and beat to improve the child’s memory. Give directions or teach facts with a “piggyback song,” substituting your words to a familiar tune. Example: To the tune of “Mary Had a Little Lamb,” sing, “Now it’s time to wash your face, Brush your teeth, comb your hair, Now it’s time to put on clothes, So start with underwear!” Encourage your child to pantomime while listening to stories and poems, or to music without words. Read to your child every day!
”
”
Carol Stock Kranowitz (The Out-of-Sync Child: Recognizing and Coping with Sensory Processing Disorder)
“
it was a lie that time healed all wounds. Whoever said it originally never lost a child. The wound cuts too deep to ever go away. I felt the magnitude of his loss as if it was yesterday—the paralyzing grief of losing a child. It came in waves, spastic sobs reverberating throughout my entire body, shaking me to my core. It was unrelenting and constant in the beginning. It held me in its grips and refused to let go. I felt like I would die, but I didn’t because you can’t die from grief even if it feels like you might. I stayed alive because my lungs kept breathing and my heart kept beating through no effort of mine. I didn’t have any other choice.
”
”
Lucinda Berry (Saving Noah)
“
You should focus on what you can change, not what you cannot change. What’s done is done. If somebody offended you, mistreated you, or disappointed you, the hurts can’t be undone. You can get bitter--pack it in a bag and carry it around and let it weigh you down--or you can forgive those who hurt you and go on.
If you lost your temper yesterday, you can beat yourself up--put the guilt and condemnation in a bag--or you can ask for forgiveness, receive God’s mercy, and do better today.
If you didn’t get a promotion you wanted, you can get sour and go around with a chip on your shoulder, or you can shake it off, knowing that God has something better in store.
No matter what happens, big or small, if you make the choice to let it go and move forward, you won’t let the past poison your future.
A woman I know went through a divorce years ago. We prayed several times in our services, asking God to bring a good man into her life. One day she met a fine Godly man, who was very successful. She was so happy, but she made the mistake of carrying all her negative baggage from her divorce into the new relationship. She was constantly talking about what she had been through and how she was so mistreated.
She had a victim mentality. The man told me later that she was so focused on her past and so caught up in what she had been through that he just couldn’t deal with it. He moved on. That’s what happens when we hold on to the hurts and pains of the past. It will poison you wherever you go. You can’t drag around all the personal baggage from yesterday and expect to have good relationships. You’ve got to let it go.
Quit looking at the little rearview mirror and start looking out the great big windshield in front of you. You may have had some bad breaks, but that didn’t stop God’s plan for your life. He still has amazing things in your future.
When one door closes, stay in faith and God will open another door. If a dream dies, don’t sit around in self-pity talking about what you lost, move forward and dream another dream. Your life is not over because you lost a loved one, went through a divorce, lost a job, or didn’t get the house you wanted. You would not be alive unless God had another victory in front of you.
”
”
Joel Osteen (You Can You Will: 8 Undeniable Qualities of a Winner)
“
Forgive me, but," he begins, and I know this can be going nowhere good, "what about the men who watch our channel? Do we really want to look so biased? We can't alienate half our viewership."
I see Katherine open her mouth to respond, but then I must enter some kind of alternate reality in which I think I'm the best one to take these questions, as I open my big mouth and beat her to the punch. "Who's to say they'll be alienated, though? Men watch plenty of TV shows and movies led by women. Or if they don't, they certainly should. We've been put through five million Fast and the Furious and James Bond movies, for goodness' sake. And if they're opposed to watching and learning from women, because they think we're boring or don't get our perspectives, well, I reckon they're part of the problem."
I fold my arms over my chest defiantly, then lose my remaining nerve and avert my eyes from those of the CEO. When I look at the other women instead, they're all staring at me with some measure of shock, some looking amused and impressed on top of that.
Katherine is the first one to shake herself out of it and narrows her gaze on Geoffrey Block, CEO, once more. "It may also be of interest to you that if this series doesn't happen at Friends of Flavor, I plan on hosting it on my personal site, the Kat's Muse. I have advertisers who have long expressed interest in helping me launch my own videos, but I've been reluctant to take any of FoF's thunder. I would feel obligated to make it clear, though, that I was only hosting the series because this channel had rejected the proposal."
My jaw drops along with Katherine's figurative mic. She kept that little contingency plan from us yesterday, but damn. Of course she had a secret weapon in her back pocket.
Lily pipes up, "And if you all didn't know, men do not make up half of Friends of Flavor viewers. More like thirty percent. Meaning women are seventy percent. Maybe worth looking at who's really getting alienated."
Well okay, Lily. For someone who spends so much of the time off in her own mental universe, she sure knows how to pop back down to earth and spit facts when needed.
”
”
Kaitlyn Hill (Love from Scratch)
“
We’ll roll back the chains they put on you, today, tomorrow, in a generation’s time. Because the generation that held those chains are yesterday’s men, trying to hold on to power by whipping up fear of the other, just like always. But we’ll beat them. And yes, I will continue to do my part in that.
”
”
Adrian Tchaikovsky (Bear Head (Dogs of War, #2))
“
They were quiet for a long time and Day felt like he could fall asleep again until God’s rough voice broke into his haze.
“You want to talk about it?”
Day took a deep breath and thought carefully about his answer. God massaged his shoulders with his strong hands and Day almost said “he didn’t want to talk, he just wanted keep being massaged.” But there was something really important he needed to say.
“Cash. Thank you for yesterday.” Day spun around in God’s arms and faced him. “I’ve never been that scared in my life. At first I felt that if I died now, then it’s okay, because I died while I was in love and I died staring into your eyes. But when you said what you said.” Day placed his palm over God’s heart and felt the rapid beat there and he closed his eyes. “You said you’d have no soul, no conscience, and you’d take your revenge. That’s when I got scared.”
God cast his eyes down.
“You have to promise me. If anything ever happens to me that you’d go on. That’s the only way I’d die in peace. You’d live for me. That you’d mourn me and then go on and love again. You’ve come so far in your life. The things you’ve endured and been through made you strong. Some men have gone through less and it drove them to do unthinkable things because they couldn’t handle the hand life dealt them. But you lived through it and now you’re a highly respected detective.” Day gripped God’s chin and lifted his head. He kissed him passionately. “And you’re the man I love.”
Day didn’t need God to answer him in words, his eyes and his kiss said it all. He told Day that he’d live for him.
”
”
A.E. Via
“
To her surprise, Linc was waiting around the first curve on the road, listening to the radio. She could see his hand tapping a beat on the back of the other seat. Kenzie slowed her car to a stop when their windows lined up.
He rolled his down. “Hey. How’d it go?”
“No big deal. I handed the papers to his temp assistant. What the hell are you doing here?”
Linc studied her face. “I wanted to see if the beacon I put on your car was working.”
She should have known. “Is that necessary?”
“The readout is on this.” He tapped the face of his watch.
“I can’t see. And I don’t believe you.” Kenzie put her car into park, got out, and walked around.
He turned his wrist to show her. “Check it out. Your dot merged into my dot.”
“Isn’t that sweet.”
He grinned. “It’s not a problem to remove the beacon if you don’t like it.”
“No. It’s all right. You’re the only person who knows where I am most of the time now.”
That didn’t seem to have occurred to him. “Really?”
She nodded.
“So where are you off to?”
Kenzie shot him a mocking look. “You don’t have to ask, do you?”
Linc laughed. “The beacon can’t read your mind.”
She rolled her eyes. “Thank God for that. If you want to know, I was heading to the drugstore to print out some of the photos for Mrs. Corelli. Where are you going?”
“Just running errands,” he said. “Need anything from the electronics store?”
“I don’t think so.”
“Okay. I’m just picking up a couple of components.”
Kenzie gave a little yelp. “Yikes--that reminds me. Yesterday my boss asked me to pick something up for him out in the boondocks. I forgot until you said that. So if my dot falls off your watch, you’ll know why.”
He smiled at her warmly as he bent his arm and rested it on the bottom of the window frame. The bicep under the flannel rounded up very nicely as he lifted a hand and chucked her gently under the chin. “Funny.”
The friendly touch was unexpectedly intimate.
In fact, it triggered a dangerous sensation of giving in. She smiled at him, feeling weak. His brown eyes were dark and warm. She felt herself blush under his steady gaze.
Linc was the real deal. Maybe she didn’t have to be so tough all the time. It was okay to be protected. More than okay.
Back when she’d had Tex at her side, she’d actually liked the feeling. Like all military working dogs, he’d been trained to maintain an invisible six-foot circle around her, and woe to anyone who crossed into it without her permission. Including guys she was dating.
“Kenzie?”
She snapped out of it. “Sorry. You knocked on my stupid spot.”
“I’ll have to remember that.”
She shook her head in mock dismay. “Please don’t. Let’s touch base around four or five o’clock.”
He nodded and turned the key in the ignition. “Works for me.” His gaze stayed on her a moment longer. “Call me if you need anything.”
“I will. Thanks.” She glanced back at the gray monolith a little distance behind them and her mouth tightened. But when her green gaze met Linc’s brown eyes, she managed a quick smile.
He raised his left hand in a quick good-bye wave and eased his car ahead of hers, rolling up the window again. She watched him go, then got back into hers and drove on, turning off on the road to the firing range.
”
”
Janet Dailey (Honor (Bannon Brothers, #2))
“
Today, we pause to remember and honour the Canadian men and women who have served our country and fought for freedom around the world.
Time may fade, but our memories cannot. We all have a duty to hold the torch high, and to keep its flame alight. Liberty’s cause beats deeply within our hearts, and every generation of Canadians has answered the call to serve.
We must remember that, during the First and Second World Wars, Canada and Newfoundland fought side by side. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Beaumont-Hamel, when a generation of Newfoundlanders laid down their lives in defence of the freedom, democracy, and diversity that we enjoy today.
From Ypres to Vimy Ridge, Dieppe to Juno Beach – we will not forget. From Korea to the Suez, Cyprus to Kandahar – we will not forget. We remember yesterday’s youth, far from home, who fought for reason and progress. They stood up to tyranny and stood for liberty, and sacrificed their future for the future of so many.
We honour Canada’s bravest, who stand shoulder to shoulder with our allies around the world. Every day, they face down the threat of terrorism, and protect the values we cherish most.
At 11:00 am, I encourage all Canadians – no matter where you are – to observe the two minutes of silence. When we remember, we must remember war as it was and as it is. Freedom’s terrible price is known but to the few who have fought for it.
That is why today we stand sombre and silent, with poppies close to our hearts, and take the time to remember.
Lest we forget.
”
”
Justin Trudeau
“
Don't judge people by their appearance cos if all it takes to beat your INTELLIGENCE is appearing with glittering and flashy money display swags then you will remain slaves to others forever until your only focused in life because only to appear better than your Yesterdays and even much more prepared for your present and future
”
”
Chief-Icons Rashid Bawah
“
At some point, loneliness becomes less a condition than a habit. In time, you stop looking at your phone wondering why you can’t think of anyone to call, stop getting your hair cut, stop working out, stop thinking that tomorrow is the first day of the rest of your life. Because tomorrow is today, and today is yesterday, and yesterday beat the shit out of you and brought you to your knees. The only way to stay sane is to stop hoping for something better
”
”
Jonathan Tropper
“
Remember now your Creator in the days of your youth, before the difficult days come, and the years draw near when you say, “I have no pleasure in them.” —Ecclesiastes 12:1 (NKJV) I was making rounds at the veterans hospital where I work, when an elderly gentleman in a wheelchair pointed his cane to a sign on a bulletin board. “Look, hon,” he said to his wife, “they’re having an old-fashioned Easter egg hunt on Saturday. It says here that the kids can compete in a bunny-hop sack race for prizes.” He barely came up for air. “Remember when we used to have those Easter egg hunts on our farm? The kids would color eggs at our kitchen table and get dye all over everything.” Just then, his wife noticed the smell of popcorn in the air. Volunteers sell it for a bargain price—fifty cents a sack. The veteran didn’t miss a beat. “Remember when we used to have movie night and you would pop corn? We’ve got to start doing that again, hon. I love popcorn. Movies too.” As I took in this amazingly joyful man, I thought of things I used to be able to do before neurofibromatosis took over my body. It was nothing to run a couple of miles; I walked everywhere. Instead of rejoicing in the past, I too often complain about my restrictions. Rather than marvel how I always used to walk downtown, shopping, I complain about having to use a handicap placard on my car so I can park close to the mall, which I complain about as well. But today, with all my heart, I want to be like that veteran and remember my yesterdays with joy. Help me, dear Lord, to recall the past with pleasure. —Roberta Messner Digging Deeper: Eph 4:29; Phil 2:14
”
”
Guideposts (Daily Guideposts 2014)
“
SpottieOttieDopaliscious
[Hook]
Damn damn damn James
[Verse 1: Sleepy Brown]
Dickie shorts and Lincoln's clean
Leanin', checking out the scene
Gangsta boys, blizzes lit
Ridin' out, talkin' shit
Nigga where you wanna go?
You know the club don't close 'til four
Let's party 'til we can't no more
Watch out here come the folks (Damn - oh lord)
[Verse 2: André 3000]
As the plot thickens it gives me the dickens
Reminiscent of Charles a lil' discotheque
Nestled in the ghettos of Niggaville, USA
Via Atlanta, Georgia a lil' spot where
Young men and young women go to experience
They first li'l taste of the night life
Me? Well I've never been there; well perhaps once
But I was so engulfed in the Olde E
I never made it to the door you speak of, hardcore
While the DJ sweatin' out all the problems
And the troubles of the day
While this fine bow-legged girl fine as all outdoors
Lulls lukewarm lullabies in your left ear
Competing with "Set it Off," in the right
But it all blends perfectly let the liquor tell it
"Hey hey look baby they playin' our song"
And the crowd goes wild as if
Holyfield has just won the fight
But in actuality it's only about 3 A.M
And three niggas just don' got hauled
Off in the ambulance (sliced up)
Two niggas don' start bustin' (wham wham)
And one nigga don' took his shirt off talkin' 'bout
"Now who else wanna fuck with Hollywood Courts?"
It's just my interpretation of the situation
[Hook]
[Verse 3: Big Boi]
Yes, when I first met my SpottieOttieDopalicious Angel
I can remember that damn thing like yesterday
The way she moved reminded me of a Brown Stallion
Horse with skates on, ya know
Smooth like a hot comb on nappy ass hair
I walked up on her and was almost paralyzed
Her neck was smelling sweeter
Than a plate of yams with extra syrup
Eyes beaming like four karats apiece just blindin' a nigga
Felt like I chiefed a whole O of that Presidential
My heart was beating so damn fast
Never knowing this moment would bring another
Life into this world
Funny how shit come together sometimes (ya dig)
One moment you frequent the booty clubs and
The next four years you & somebody's daughter
Raisin' y'all own young'n now that's a beautiful thang
That's if you're on top of your game
And man enough to handle real life situations (that is)
Can't gamble feeding baby on that dope money
Might not always be sufficient but the
United Parcel Service & the people at the Post Office
Didn't call you back because you had cloudy piss
So now you back in the trap just that, trapped
Go on and marinate on that for a minute
”
”
OutKast
“
I'm no great runner, by any means. I'm at an ordinary - or perhaps more like mediocre- level.But that's not the point. The point is whether or not I improved over yesterday, In long distance running, the only opponent you have to beat is yourself, the way you used to be.
”
”
Haruki Murakami
“
Sometimes hidden from me/in daily custom and in trust,/so that I live by you unaware/as by the beating of my heart,/Suddenly you flare in my sight,/a wild rose blooming at the edge/of thicket, grace and light/where yesterday was only shade,/and once again I am blessed, choosing again what I chose before.
”
”
Wendell Berry
“
For the second Monday in February, Sara had this joke: I was in the pub yesterday when I suddenly realized I desperately needed to fart. The music was really, really loud, so I timed my farts with the beat. After a couple of songs, I started to feel better. I finished my beer and noticed everyone was staring at me. Then I suddenly remembered that I was listening to my iPod.
”
”
Dale Waller (Sh*t I Hear at Work)
“
I know I need to keep living while I wait for you to come home But I don't know how to tell my heart to stop hurting since you're the reason it keeps beating on My days are empty, my eyes full of tears but the sound of your voice and the promise of your smile make it all disappear You're the other half of my soul the light that shows me the way You're my yesterday and my tomorrow The Angel that keeps me safe.” I
”
”
Sloane Kennedy (Retribution (The Protectors, #3))
“
Hey Today"
Hey today, you're lookin' fine,
Got that new dawn, that new shine.
I'm kickin' off the dust of the old times,
Soakin' up the rays, I'm feelin' prime.
(I'm all in, takin' you in stride,
Yesterday's gone, let's enjoy the ride.
I'm lovin' life, with every breath I take,
Cherishin' each moment, wide awake.
I'm feelin' the love, it's all around,
In every beat, in every sound.
Livin' for me, oh can't you see,
Demons in the rearview, finally free.
The journey's been wild, the nights were long,
But my spirit's fierce, and my will is strong.
Step by step, I've made my claim,
In this life, I've found my fame.
The future's callin', sweet and clear,
I'm steppin' up, got nothin' to fear.
My own tune, my own refrain,
I'm singin' loud, in the pourin' rain.
So hey today, let's make some noise,
In the here and now, I've found my poise.
Today's the day, it's all about me,
Shed those demons, I'm finally free.
”
”
James Hilton-Cowboy
“
GODMAN QUOTES 10
***Words to remember ***
What is not as long as a Key will not be long enough for a Padlock.
Determination unlocks achievement.
Trace all flow to a source, all bitters, tastes from origin.
What is done in harmony doesn’t bear clusters.
The sweetest water is tasteless in a sip.
Beware… the area of time is not in measurable dimension.
Whatever that didn’t allow you to work will never grant you the mercy for a pay…it’s a dividend of duty and time.
A daint on your knee is not by kneeling, but an observation we got when we are faint begging our fate to the floor.
We beat live where it stops others we challenge destinies where it dumps lives.
Judge him not by his yesterday that was him testing the future.
”
”
Godman Tochukwu Sabastine
“
Sometimes hidden from me in daily custom and in trust, so that I live by you unaware as by the beating of my heart, Suddenly you flare in my sight, a wild rose blooming at the edge of thicket, grace and light where yesterday was only shade, and once again I am blessed, choosing again what I chose before
”
”
Wendell Berry
“
I'm sorry about your yesterday. "Yesterdays happen. Wash away every trace of yesterday. "Notice your heart. Still beating. Still fighting. You made it, after all. You made it, another day. And you can make it one more. You’re doing just fine. You're doing fine.
”
”
James Hilton
“
Stairway of desires
Loving you feels like loving my own desires,
All of them; and this feeling of loving my own desires,
Feels like a stairway of unending passions and wishes,
Where you and your love is the only wish of all my wishes,
As my heart climbs these steps, one at a time,
I wish the stairs never ended, for loving you is the loveliest time,
And when every step gets me closer to you,
I suddenly miss you, and I sink in the feeling of loving you without you,
For these might be the steps of desires and passions,
But as long as they do not arise from you they are only lesser passions,
That feel red, like the most beautiful red rose,
But what is a red rose worth if it doesn't smell like a rose,
So, I have stopped climbing the staircase of passions and desires,
Because they lead to a conduit feeling which is alien to my love’s true desires,
And if it continues like this, it will become my pernicious act,
Where I will forever be climbing the steps of desires, because it is a never ending act,
A staircase of passions and desires can last forever,
So let me stop on the step where I am now, and love you as if there were no forever,
There were just this step and just this moment, we call now,
Let me know you today, just like I had know you yesterday, to love in better ways now,
For who knows where the staircase might lead,
But I am sure, my wishes and all my desires, just unto you lead,
To you, to your heart, to your desires too,
And let me wait to hear that you feel the same too,
My penitent heart beats tirelessly, as if it has been cursed to throb endlessly,
Just to seek that one wish, one desire, that it loves so endlessly,
It created subsequent ripples of desires to keep finding a reason to throb,
The reason to love you Irma, is what you shall find if you probe the melody of my heart’s every throb,
So here I am standing on the stairway that is made of my desires and endless wishes,
Where every step is nothing but a representation of my desires arising from my wishes,
The wishes that seek you in everything,
Even in the fire that kills the moth, because the fire of passions burns brighter than everything,
Brighter than all stars, brighter than the moon too,
You would indeed feel the same when you fall in love, someday you shall too!
”
”
Javid Ahmad Tak (They Loved in 2075!)
“
Stairway of desires
Loving you feels like loving my own desires,
All of them; and this feeling of loving my own desires,
Feels like a stairway of unending passions and wishes,
Where you and your love is the only wish of all my wishes,
As my heart climbs these steps, one at a time,
I wish the stairs never ended, for loving you is the loveliest time,
And when every step gets me closer to you,
I suddenly miss you, and I sink in the feeling of loving you without you,
For these might be the steps of desires and passions,
But as long as they do not arise from you they are only lesser passions,
Which feel red, like the most beautiful red rose,
But what is a red rose worth if it doesn't smell like a rose,
So, I have stopped climbing the staircase of passions and desires,
Because they lead to a conduit feeling which is alien to my love’s true desires,
And if it continues like this, it will become my pernicious act,
Where I will forever be climbing the steps of desires, because it can be a never ending act,
A staircase of passions and desires can last forever,
So let me stop on the step where I am now, and love you as if there were no forever,
There were just this step and just this moment, we call now,
Let me know you today, just like I had know you yesterday, to love you in better ways now,
For who knows where the staircase might lead,
But I am sure, my wishes and all my desires, just unto you lead,
To you, to your heart, to your desires too,
And let me wait to hear that you feel the same too,
My penitent heart beats tirelessly, as if it has been cursed to throb endlessly,
Just to seek that one wish, one desire, that it loves so endlessly,
It created subsequent ripples of desires to keep finding a reason to throb,
The reason to love you Irma, is what you shall find if you probe the melody of my heart’s every throb,
So here I am standing on the stairway that is made of my desires and endless wishes,
Where every step is nothing but a representation of my desires arising from my wishes,
The wishes that seek you in everything,
Even in the fire that kills the moth, because the fire of passions burns brighter than everything,
Brighter than all stars, brighter than the moon too,
You would indeed feel the same when you fall in love, and someday you shall too!
”
”
Javid Ahmad Tak (They Loved in 2075!)
“
Stairway of desires
Loving you feels like loving my own desires,
All of them; and this feeling of loving my own desires,
Feels like a stairway of unending passions and wishes,
Where you and your love is the only wish of all my wishes,
As my heart climbs these steps, one at a time,
I wish the stairs never ended, for loving you is the loveliest time,
And when every step gets me closer to you,
I suddenly miss you, and I sink in the feeling of loving you without you,
For these might be the steps of desires and passions,
But as long as they do not arise from you they are only lesser passions,
Which feel red, like the most beautiful red rose,
But what is a red rose worth if it doesn't smell like a rose,
So, I have stopped climbing the staircase of passions and desires,
Because they lead to a conduit feeling which is alien to my love’s true desires,
And if it continues like this, it will become my pernicious act,
Where I will forever be climbing the steps of desires, because it can be a never ending act,
A staircase of passions and desires can last forever,
So let me stop on the step where I am now, and love you as if there were no forever,
There were just this step and just this moment, we call now,
Let me know you today, just like I had known you yesterday, only to love you in better ways now,
For who knows where the staircase might lead,
But I am sure, my wishes and all my desires, just unto you lead,
To you, to your heart, to your desires too,
And let me wait to hear that you feel the same too,
My penitent heart beats tirelessly, as if it has been cursed to throb endlessly,
Just to seek that one wish, one desire, that it loves so endlessly,
It created subsequent ripples of desires to keep finding a reason to throb,
The reason to love you Irma, is what you shall find if you probe the melody of my heart’s every throb,
So here I am standing on the stairway that is made of my desires and endless wishes,
Where every step is nothing but a representation of my desires arising from my wishes,
The wishes that seek you in everything,
Even in the fire that kills the moth, because the fire of passions burns brighter than everything,
Brighter than all stars, brighter than the moon too,
You would indeed feel the same when you fall in love, and someday you shall too!
”
”
Javid Ahmad Tak (They Loved in 2075!)
“
Her face and the garden
Her face is like a summer garden,
By divine beauty tended and by grace never forsaken,
There bloom roses many, and lilies too,
And I keep looking at it, for in spell bound state what else can I do,
Yesterday she was a garden of roses,
Last year she was the entire spring, where once in bloom, the beauty’s flower never closes,
This year she has transformed into a garden blooming with new flowers,
Daisies, daffodils, and sunflowers standing like beauty’s radiant towers,
Rendered more radiant in the never ending splendour of her eyes,
And the garden of beautiful roses growing all over her, even time defies,
While I watch the garden of beauty grow over her face,
My heart beats assume a new and lovely pace,
That draw my mind into this world of endless beauty,
And I know not whether it obeys my heart’s yearnings or it too has grown fond of her pure serenity,
The summer has found a permanent residence in her face, infact within her,
Because I still see the roses blooming over her face although it is late November,
And when sometimes she brushes her hair with her fingers,
The roses peek from her face to feel her finger tips and their magical wonders,
And when she rests her eyelids upon her eyes,
The pollen dust of million flowers, upon her waiting eyelashes, a perfect sheen applies,
That neither sparkles nor glows,
But in the garden of her face it simply in its splendour grows,
And when the winter sun gets tired and retires finally,
The lilies apply the mask of radiance on her tenderly,
While the violets and narcissus seep deep into her brow,
And what a wonder she is to look at now,
A beauty with no end, where waves of summer flow interminably,
As she rests her head on the pillow and closes her eyes slowly,
The morning glory turns into the night glory,
And then begins our own love story,
Where the lovely and winding creepers grow all over us, over her and over me too,
Finally the garden of beauty grows all over us, and now it shall be so, no matter what you do,
I in the garden of her beauty where flowers bloom everywhere,
And then my heart confesses, “Irma, let us hide in this garden somewhere,
To be never found by time, and never felt by any season,
Because finally we have found love in each other that defies every reason,”
And this is how it has been for many years now,
I and my every feeling of love sinking deep into her beauty’s eternal brow!
”
”
Javid Ahmad Tak (They Loved in 2075!)
“
(35) About “One Strike” (一、一つの打と云事) “One strike”13 is the surest way to victory. It cannot be understood without a solid grounding in strategy. Training diligently in “one strike” will lead to the embodiment of the combat mind and you will win in any fight. Training is the key. (36) About “Direct Transmission” (一、直通のくらひと云事) “Direct transmission” is what I convey to he who has mastered the true Way of the School of Two Swords as One. Temper your body so that it becomes [a weapon for] strategy. Study this well. Other details will be conveyed orally. This scroll is a summary of the teachings of my school. To beat people with swords in combat, you must first study the “five external forms” in conjunction with knowing the “five stances” and master the “pathway” of the sword. This way your body will move spontaneously and nimbly. Your mind will perceive the striking rhythms of combat, and the flow of your sword and techniques will be instinctively flawless as you have learned to move unrestrainedly with your body, feet and mind in unison. The principles of strategy will be realized when you defeat one foe or two, and you will come to understand what are strengths and weaknesses in combat. Analyze the content of this scroll article by article as you train and test yourself against various opponents. You will gradually become familiar with the principles of the Way. Be relentless in your study and be patient as you learn the virtue of all phenomena utilizing every opportunity to accumulate actual experience. Engage all and sundry and know their minds. Traverse the thousand-mile road one step at a time. Haste not in your training in the knowledge that this is the warrior’s calling. Seek victory today over the self of yesterday. Tomorrow, conquer your shortcomings and then [build] your strong points. Practice all I have written here, mindful of not veering from the path. Even if you defeat the most daunting of adversaries, if your victories are not in accord with the principles contained within these scrolls, then they cannot be considered true to the Way. Embracing the principles of the Way, you can prevail over dozens of men. With the accretion of wisdom in sword work, you will master the art of combat for individual duels and large-scale strategy for battle. One thousand days of training to forge, ten thousand days of training to refine. Be mindful of this.
”
”
Alexander Bennett (The Complete Musashi: The Book of Five Rings and Other Works)
“
You and your thoughts!
The vagueness of the future, the memories of yesterday and the promises of today,
Remind me of you, everyday, and whenever it is today,
In the last moment of wakeful mind before falling asleep,
It is you I think of and you I dream of when I am fast asleep,
In the view of the busy and at times relaxed world and the perspectives thereof,
I look for you in everything, in its corners, in its open spaces, and live off the memories thereof,
In the mind’s silence and in the heart’s endless beatings to keep kissing life,
I listen to them both while thinking of you in my every passing moment of life,
In the present that rushes to meet the future and shorten my span of dreams and desires,
I smile silently because it does not know my life is but an endless bloom of your memories and your desires,
In this moment while I am thinking of you Irma and my mind weaves a tapestry of known feelings,
I wish you knew, I wish you realised, that all of them are our feelings, those beautiful bygone feelings,
In the moments when I exist and yet feel maybe I don’t at all belong in the present,
I roll my memories, I wrap my desires, and I slumber in the past, where you and your feelings are the only present!
In this state I never realise when it is midday, when it is night and when it is today,
Because now you become my only dream, my only memory, my only feeling and an everlasting today!
”
”
Javid Ahmad Tak (They Loved in 2075!)
“
Yesterday she was here, a beating and broken heart, a mind with secrets and desires she kept to herself. But today, every memory she’d accumulated across a lifetime has vanished. They simply don’t exist anymore.
”
”
Julie Clark (The Last Flight)
“
Chapter 2 After stopping for a hot breakfast, Dad and I were ready to hit the mountain and now our anticipation was really building. My heart was beating a little faster and my eyes were alert watching the headlights paint a mountain picture in front of us. We pulled off the highway and made our way up a narrow two-lane road that ran through a little old mining town. About a half mile past the last house, we came to our turn. The road was pretty quiet on this Saturday morning. We only passed two or three trucks on our way to the dirt road. “Here we go!” Dad said, turning the wheel. The blacktop was behind us and we were now on a well-packed gravel road. It started by winding right, then left, and then back right again. It was like riding a rollercoaster up the mountain. We finally came to the end of the gravel and now we were heading up a true back country mountain road. The road was littered with huge rocks Dad had to swerve around and plenty of big gullies where rain had washed the road away. The truck growled in low gear as we crawled our way up the mountain, heading to our camp. I could feel butterflies of excitement building in my stomach with each turn. I rolled down my window to get some fresh air and the crisp mountain breeze instantly sent chills down my back. “Whoa, it’s pretty cold out,” “The truck thermometer says its thirty-six degrees. That sure is a change from the sixty-five degrees we had yesterday at home. But don’t you worry, that Colorado sun always warms it up around noon,” Dad explained. That last half hour seemed to take forever because we could only manage about five or ten miles per hour on the steep, rugged road. The last thing we wanted to do, after all the hours we spent on the journey to elk camp, was get a flat tire or bust a shock. Dad patiently and expertly guided the truck through the obstacle course as we kept climbing up, up, up. Finally we leveled off and I could tell we had reached the top. We made our way around the back side of the mountain and headed down a dead-end road to a grassy field where we have camped before. “I sure hope no one is in our spot.” “I’m not worried. There are plenty of areas to pitch a tent,” Dad replied. “That’s true, but I really like our old spot. It’s flat, which is perfect for the tent, it’s
”
”
Kevin Lovegreen (The Muddy Elk (Lucky Luke's Hunting Adventures #6))
“
The stars make me feel like yesterday
They don’t mean to
The light makes me feel like tomorrow
Does not mean to
This energy flowing through the cosmos crashes into me
Quite by accident
My heart beats on the horizon
Lost in sunshine It don’t mind
”
”
Joseph Small (Bare Witness: Collected Works)
“
I think it would be for the best if we both pretend yesterday afternoon- in the woods- it never happened. Wouldn't you agree?"
"I would." He takes a step closer, his eyes still locked on hers. He is no longer smiling.
"And I think we should avoid any future situations that put us in close proximity to each other."
"Like this one?"
"Yes."
Jack nods, still holding her eye, and she tries hard to control the rise of blood to her face as a fragment of something from the woods comes back to her- the sensation of his fingers running down the curve of her collarbone, his mouth against her neck.
"Good." She clears her throat. "I'm glad we understand each other."
"We do." He takes another step towards her, so close now that she wonders if it is the breeze through the open window she can feel on her skin, or his warm breath. "I think that is our problem, Lillian. We understand each other. You and I, we seem to share something."
Lillian can hear her heart beating in her ribcage.
"I felt it that first moment I saw you... at the party."
Lillian swallows.
"You feel it too, don't you?" he asks.
The sun, now low in the sky, filters through the trees outside in the arboretum, casting them both in a burnished glow. She knows she must go. She knows she must turn and leave the room, but something in his eyes holds her fixed to the spot.
"Tell me that it's not just me, that I'm not imagining this," he says in a low voice.
There is a stillness in the room, as if they both await the next breath, the next word.
She swallows. "I feel it, too."
She isn't sure who takes the next step but it doesn't really matter; she is in his arms again and he is kissing her, pulling her close and all reason and rational thought- all the jumbled arguments she has agonized over- fly away like a flock of birds startled from the branches of a tree. Her arms are wrapped around his waist and his hands are on her face and in her hair as they stumble backwards. She meets the edge of the desk, and then he is lifting her onto its surface, several brushes clattering to the floor as he presses against her.
"We mustn't," she sighs, but already her fingers are tugging at the buttons of his shirt. She parts her legs and his hands move under her skirt, his fingertips grazing the bare skin above her silk stockings.
"Do you want me to stop?" he asks, his breath hot against her neck.
But she draws him to her again, pressing her mouth against his ear to whisper her answer. "Don't stop. I don't want you to stop.
”
”
Hannah Richell (The Peacock Summer)
“
Even when a writer seems to be out of touch with the spirit of the age or voluntarily hostile to it, he will usually be found to represent either an underground current of opposition or the rising tide of tomorrow beating on the crumbling cliffs of yesterday.
”
”
Arthur Osborne (My life and quest)
“
Some women sit around in bars after they get dumped, complaining about the jerks who treated them like yesterday’s dog squeeze. Miranda Steele didn’t go to bars. She didn’t have friends to complain to. But she did have the dog squeeze beat out of her regularly by the jerk she was married to.
”
”
Linsey Lanier (Someone Else's Daughter (Miranda's Rights, #1))
“
The shadows are lengthening for me. The twilight is here. My days of old have vanished tone and tint; they have gone glimmering through the dreams of things that were. Their memory is one of wondrous beauty, watered by tears, and coaxed and caressed by the smiles of yesterday. I listen vainly for the witching melody of faint bugles blowing reveille, of far drums beating the long roll. In my dreams I hear again the crash of guns, the rattle of musketry, the strange, mournful mutter of the battlefield. But in the evening of my memory, always I come back to West Point. Always there echoes and re-echoes Duty—Honor—Country. Today marks my final roll call with you, but I want you to know that when I cross the river my last conscious thoughts will be of The Corps, and The Corps, and The Corps. I bid you farewell.
”
”
Nelson DeMille (Word of Honor)
“
Well, come on in for crying out loud. How long you gonna stand here and study this door? He ain’t in here, so you can’t will him to walk out of it.”
Beau wasn’t here, either, but maybe she knew where he was. I hurried after her as she spun around and headed back inside.
The bar was different at three o’clock in the afternoon. The curtains were pulled open, letting sunlight inside, and the windows were open too, allowing a fresh, cool breeze to waft through the place, almost taking away the stench of stale beer and cigarettes…almost.
“He left yesterday. Ain’t been home, neither. You messed those two boys up good, girl.” Honey shook her head as she wiped glasses off and hung them back up above the bar.
“I know. I need to fix it.”
She shook her head and let out a hard laugh. “I reckon that would be nice, but the damage is done. Those boys about beat the shit outta each other in here yesterday. You’ve made them both crazy. Never thought I’d see a girl come between them two, but then I never figured you’d ever look Beau’s way either. Once you started showing him some interest, I knew this was all going to Hell in a handbasket real quick. You’ve always been my boy’s weakness.”
I sank down onto a stool across the bar from her. My stomach churned with guilt. What had I done to Beau? How could I say I love him and hurt him so badly? Love wasn’t selfish.
“I’m an awful person. I’d take it all away if I could. I can’t believe I’ve done this to him.”
Honey paused and raised an artfully sculpted brow. “Him who?”
“Beau,” I replied, frowning.
A sad smile touched her lips and she shook her head. “Well, I guess he ain’t as stupid as I thought he was. I figured the boy’d thrown everything away for some little gal looking to have a good time. I didn’t think you’d actually care about him, too.
”
”
Abbi Glines (The Vincent Boys (The Vincent Boys, #1))
“
and you’re a good match.’ ‘You have a very precise memory.’ ‘It was yesterday.’ ‘I should have told you he keeps a mistress and ignores me.’ Reacher smiled. He said, ‘Good night, Mrs Mackenzie.’ She left him there, the same as the night before, alone in the dark, on the concrete bench, looking at the stars. At that moment a mile away, Stackley clicked off a phone call and parked his beat-up old pick-up truck in a lot behind an out-of-business retail enterprise three blocks from the centre of town. Earlier in his life he had favoured expensive haircuts, and one time when waiting in the salon he had read a magazine that said success in business depended entirely on ruthless control of costs. Thus wherever possible he slept in his truck. Hence the camper shell. A motel would take what he made on two pills. Why give it away? The old gal across the Snowy Range had bought a box of fentanyl patches, but he had given her one he had already opened, an hour before, very carefully, so he could skim out a patch all his own, for his pocket, for later. The old gal would never notice. If she did, she would assume she was too stoned to count right. A natural reaction. Addicts learned to blame themselves. The same the world over. He took scissors from his glove box, and he cut a quarter-inch strip off the patch, and he slipped it under his tongue. Sublingual, it was called. Another magazine in the same salon said it was the best method of all. Stackley couldn’t argue. At that moment sixty miles away, in the low hills west of town, Rose Sanderson was putting herself to bed. She had pulled down her hood, and taken off her silver track suit top. Under it was a T-shirt, which she took off, and a bra, likewise. She peeled the foil off her face. She used her toothbrush handle to scrape excess ointment off her skin. She buttered it back on the foil. With luck she might get one more day out of it. She ran her sink full of cool water. She took a breath, and held her face under the surface. Her record was four minutes. She came up and shook her head. Her
”
”
Lee Child (The Midnight Line (Jack Reacher, #22))
“
Though it has been a long time, it sometimes feels like it was yesterday. I can hardly remember the names of the girls who came before her, and after her there was only Liz. But I can recall with unbelievable clarity almost everything that happened during the time I spent with Annika.
Probably because no one has ever loved me as fiercely and unconditionally as she did.
I look over at Nate. "Did you ever fall in love with a girl who was different? Not just from any girl you'd ever dated before, but from most people in general?"
Nate signals the bartender for another beer. "Marched to the beat of a different drum, did she?"
"She marched to the beat of an entirely different band. One you've never heard of and under no circumstances ever expected to like.
”
”
Tracey Garvis Graves (The Girl He Used to Know)
“
For one thing, I was breathing more easily than I had been even yesterday. I was sick to death at the prospect of more suffocatingly lonely nights. The idea that they would be repeated, that was just how life was, made me shudder with horror. Still, having tasted for myself that moment when I suddenly could breathe easy again made my heart beat faster.
”
”
Banana Yoshimoto (Kitchen)
“
Hong Kong’s a lawful place now, Feng baby. Even we need evidence before charging anyone. Yesterday, my inspector told us no more forced signatures on blank statements or bathroom beatings until further notice. Otherwise, we’re on our own. Imagine. Crime rate’s gonna soar.
”
”
Jason Y. Ng (Hong Kong Noir)
“
I've been living like a blind man. A blind man. Now, for the first time, I realize that beauty exists. And that I went right by it."
She merged in his mind with music and paintings, with a realm in which he had never set foot, she merged with the multicolored foliage around him, and all of a sudden he no longer saw in it any messages or significance (images of fire or incineration) but only the ecstasy of beauty mysteriously awakened by the
beat of her footsteps, by the touch of her voice.
"I'd do anything to win you. I'd abandon everything and live my whole life differently, only for you and because of you. But I can't, because at this moment I'm no longer really here. I should have left yesterday, and I'm only here now through my own delay."
Ah yes! Now he understood why it had been given him to meet her. This meeting was taking place outside his life, somewhere on the hidden side of his destiny, on the reverse of his biography. But he spoke to her all the more freely, until he suddenly felt that, even so, he would be unable to say everything he wanted to say.
”
”
Milan Kundera (Farewell Waltz)
“
I Killed Poe
Hearken now I do confess:
That I killed Poe (I could do no less).
After all, he murdered the dear Fortunato,
And then wrote of it in arrogant bravado.
Thus, upon the midnight drear I did go,
To greet the poet upon the stroke.
Indeed, the time had long been set,
To meet the man upon his step.
Misfortunes thus, had made him say,
"You look well friend," only yesterday.
Yet, wrote he falsehoods as to my concern,
About my actions that he loathed and spurned.
But alas, the man had bared the door,
And thus I tapped - ta-ta tap-tap - and nothing more.
It was some moments or so it seemed,
That I demoned to the window to watch him dream.
It amused me so to hear him talk,
To run his gamut of raving thought.
To watch the terror slow creep in,
Bedevil the mind that harbored sin.
Soon I entered into his graven room,
And perched atop his timely tomb.
A beating of wings and he lay on the floor,
And this by merely tapping - ta-ta tap-tap - forevermore.
--Poems on the Run Vol. I
”
”
Douglas M. Laurent