“
The second thing you have to do to be a writer is to keep on writing. Don't listen to people who tell you that very few people get published and you won't be one of them. Don't listen to your friend who says you are better that Tolkien and don't have to try any more. Keep writing, keep faith in the idea that you have unique stories to tell, and tell them. I meet far too many people who are going to be writers 'someday.' When they are out of high school, when they've finished college, after the wedding, when the kids are older, after I retire . . . That is such a trap You will never have any more free time than you do right now. So, whether you are 12 or 70, you should sit down today and start being a writer if that is what you want to do. You might have to write on a notebook while your kids are playing on the swings or write in your car on your coffee break. That's okay. I think we've all 'been there, done that.' It all starts with the writing.
”
”
Robin Hobb
“
Know yourself and go in swinging, if it hurts when you hit, it might be real, too.
”
”
Patrick Ness (More Than This)
“
Sometimes in life confusion tends to arise and only dialogue of dance seems to make sense.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
A conscience is easier to swallow on an empty belly, simpler to swing with a broken wrist
”
”
Jay Kristoff (Stormdancer (The Lotus Wars, #1))
“
The doorway to success swings outward not inward.
”
”
Robin S. Sharma (The Greatness Guide: Powerful Secrets for Getting to World Class)
“
If movements were a spark every dancer would desire to light up in flames.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
Caution not spirit, let it roam wild; for in that natural state dance embraces divine frequency.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
Dance as the narration of a magical story; that recites on lips, illuminates imaginations and embraces the most sacred depths of souls.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
If spirit is the seed, dance is the water of its evolution.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
Dance is the timeless interpretation of life.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
Show me a person who found love in his life and did not celebrate it with a dance.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
If you opened the dictionary and searched for the meaning of a Goddess, you would find the reflection of a dancing lady.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
Don't breathe to survive; dance and feel alive.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
Life is an affair of mystery; shared with companions of music, dance and poetry.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
Dance to inspire, dance to freedom, life is about experiences so dance and let yourself become free.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
Through synergy of intellect, artistry and grace came into existence the blessing of a dancer.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
DANCE – Defeat All Negativity (via) Creative Expression.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
What is the use of living, if it be not to strive for noble causes and to make this muddled world a better place for those who will live in it after we are gone? How else can we put ourselves in harmonious relation with the great verities and consolations of the infinite and the eternal? And I avow my faith that we are marching towards better days. Humanity will not be cast down. We are going on swinging bravely forward along the grand high road and already behind the distant mountains is the promise of the sun.
”
”
Winston S. Churchill
“
She who is a dancer can only sway the silk of her hair like the summer breeze.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
One step, two steps, three steps; like winds of time experience joy of centuries, when movements become revelations of the dance of destinies.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
Dance is the ritual of immortality.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
He was decisive and wholehearted in everything he did, so intent non the task at hand that he never looked over his shoulder, even if his cloak got caught in a thorny bush. When he did turn to speak to somebody, he used to swing his entire body and dress him full face. When he shook hands, he was never the first to withdraw his own. He inspired such confidence that he was known as al-Amin, the Reliable One.
”
”
Karen Armstrong (Muhammad: A Prophet for Our Time (Eminent Lives))
“
I have believed the best of every man, and find that to believe it is enough to make a bad man show him at his best or even a good man swing his lantern higher.
”
”
W.B. Yeats
“
It is only when our fate hangs in the balance, when our very life depends on something, that we see whether or not we trust that the rope to which we are clinging will support us. If we do not, then we let of of the ledge and swing on it with our full weight.
”
”
Margaret George (The Memoirs of Cleopatra)
“
If you are standing in one place waiting for something to change, you may be there for a while. You've got to move. Step up and take a swing. Make something happen
”
”
Amaka Imani Nkosazana (Release The Ink)
“
Burdened no more is soul for whom life flows through dance and not breath.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
Dance is that delicacy of life radiating every particle of our existence with happiness.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
The spirit is beyond pleasure and pain; it’s outside them. They are swings of opposites. The spiritual is in the here and now. It’s not pleasure nor is it pain. It is its own substance, its own kind.
”
”
Belsebuub (Gazing into the Eternal: Reflections upon a Deeper Purpose to Living)
“
If you stand a lantern under a tree every insect in the forest creeps up to it—a curious assembly, since though they scramble and swing and knock their heads against the glass, they seem to have no purpose—something senseless inspires them.
”
”
Virginia Woolf (Jacob's Room)
“
And as an artist, as someone who writes stories and tries to make words into beautiful forms, it's vitally important to me, especially in a culture that's forgotten the value of beauty. It's a primary source or inspiration, I guess, when so much of what goes on around you is only about money and big swinging dick capitalism. It's important for blokes to be able to do beautiful stuff, impractical stuff, that adds to life. That's an early life-lesson from surfing.
”
”
Tim Winton
“
Transcend the terrestrial; surpass the celestial, from nature’s hands when you receive the sublime pleasures of dance.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
She wanted to go back. She wanted to be a little girl again, the one who thought getting high meant being pushed on the swings and pain was falling off her bike.
”
”
Amy Zhang
“
One swing set, well worn but structurally sound, seeks new home ... With this swing set, your child(ren) will be introduced to the ups and downs of human life gently and safely, and may also learn the most important lesson of all: No matter how hard you kick, no matter how high you get, you can't go all the way around.
”
”
John Green (The Fault in Our Stars)
“
I think how much depends upon a best friend. When you wake up in the morning you swing your legs out of bed and you put your feet on the ground and you stand up. You don't scoot to the edge of the bed and look down to make sure the floor is there. The floor is always there. Until it's not.
”
”
John Green (Will Grayson, Will Grayson)
“
When a dancer performs, melody transforms into a carriage, expressions turn into fuel and spirit experiences a journey to a world where passion attains fulfillment.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
If you can hear the bell for the next round, then you are still in the fight! Get off your stool and start swinging...never give up & never quit on your dream!
”
”
Paul Guildea (The Pebble)
“
If you’re living in the present...you only have to deal with what’s actually going on in that moment.
”
”
Sheri Van Dijk (Don't Let Your Emotions Run Your Life for Teens: Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills for Helping Teens Manage Mood Swings, Control Angry Outbursts, an)
“
Be good. Be great. Come out swinging
”
”
Emilia Finn
“
Your call to power is to slow down and reflect within. Gather the peace within yourself before you go out and act among the world. The feel good feeling that lasts is only achieved when you yourself know peace. Nothing is more powerful. This is why you have the highs and lows, the mood swings, the transcendent ecstasy followed by the crash. It is because you have yet to develop a foundation of peace for yourself that acts as an unmovable anchor in your life. Establish this peace in your life and you will experience a whole new reality of the world that flows with you in every way possible, rather than against you.
”
”
Alaric Hutchinson (Living Peace: Essential Teachings For Enriching Life)
“
Desire For Thee"
My desire to love thee
is just like a tree,
must have one root
but several branches of fruit
I want to make you feel
as if you are horizon i steal
you are as free as wind
where my love flows in swing
i see thee in glaze shadow around
a graceful presence on passion ground
that is "THEE" you spark everywhere
Everywhere am far and near.
”
”
Seema Gupta
“
We teach our children to study hard, to strive to succeed but do we teach them that it's okay to fail? That life is about accepting yourself? That there is no stigma in seeking help? Our Indian culture is based on worshipping our parents. We grow up listening to words like respect, obedience and tradition. Can we not add the words communication, unconditional love and support to this list?
I look at the WHO research. The highest rate of suicide in India is among the age group of 15 to 29. Do we even talk to our teens about this?
That evening, I am standing in the balcony, sipping some coffee and looking at the sunset. The children have taken the dogs and gone down to play on the beach. I spot my son. He is standing on the sand, right at the edge of the ocean and is flying a blue kite.
The kite goes high and then swings low till it almost seems to fall into the water and all I want to say to him is that soon he will see that life is just like flying a kite. Sometimes you have to leave it loose, sometimes you have to hold on tight, sometimes your kite will fly effortlessly, sometimes you will not be able to control it and even when you are struggling to keep it afloat and the string is cutting into your hand, don't let go.
The wind will change in your favour once again, my son. Just don't let go..
”
”
Twinkle Khanna (Mrs Funnybones)
“
I am the interpretation of the prophet
I am the artist in the coffin
I am the brave flag stained with blood
I am the wounds overcome
I am the dream refusing to sleep
I am the bare-breasted voice of liberty
I am the comic the insult and the laugh
I am the right the middle and the left
I am the poached eggs in the sky
I am the Parisian streets at night
I am the dance that swings till dawn
I am the grass on the greener lawn
I am the respectful neighbour and the graceful man
I am the encouraging smile and the helping hand
I am the straight back and the lifted chin
I am the tender heart and the will to win
I am the rainbow in rain
I am the human who won’t die in vain
I am Athena of Greek mythology
I am the religion that praises equality
I am the woman of stealth and affection
I am the man of value and compassion
I am the wild horse ploughing through
I am the shoulder to lean onto
I am the Muslim the Jew and the Christian
I am the Dane the French and the Palestinian
I am the straight the square and the round
I am the white the black and the brown
I am the free speech and the free press
I am the freedom to express
I will die for my right to be all the above here mentioned
And should threat encounter I’ll pull my pencil
”
”
Mie Hansson (Where Pain Thrives)
“
what you loses on the swings you gain on the roundabouts
”
”
Gertrude Lawrence (A Star Danced)
“
Spirit is a child, the tune of dancing feet its lullaby.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
A good shell has to have life and resiliency to get in harmony with the swing of the crew.
”
”
Daniel James Brown (The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics)
“
Make dance the mission every moment seeks to accomplish.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
Burdened no more is soul for whom life flows through dance like breath.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
What happens in my next chapter depends on whether I wake up feeling creative or murderous.
”
”
Joyce Rachelle
“
Over thinking, over analyzing separates the body from the mind.
Withering my intuition leaving all these opportunities behind.
Feed my will to feel this moment urging me to cross the line.
Reaching out to embrace the random.
Reaching out to embrace whatever may come.
I embrace my desire to
feel the rhythm, to feel connected
enough to step aside and weep like a widow
to feel inspired, to fathom the power,
to witness the beauty, to bathe in the fountain,
to swing on the spiral
of our divinity and still be a human.
With my feet upon the ground I lose myself
between the sounds and open wide to suck it in.
I feel it move across my skin.
I'm reaching up and reaching out.
I'm reaching for the random or what ever will bewilder me.
And following our will and wind we may just go where no one's been.
We'll ride the spiral to the end and may just go where no one's been.
Spiral out. Keep going...
”
”
Tool
“
Swear to me that no matter what happens,
no matter how hurt you get,
you'll still be
that serial killer writer,
that strong, beautiful chick
I was obsessed with
in high school. Promise me
you'll always go down swinging,
and that you'll get back up
with that smile that
can corrupt a saint
”
”
Marie Jaskulka (The Lost Marble Notebook of Forgotten Girl & Random Boy)
“
A bull doesn’t go wrong in predicting an upswing in a falling market. He goes wrong when he predicts a down swing in a rising market.
”
”
Vijay Kedia
“
Pain like trust, swings from place to place. Sometimes it is present and other times it's absent without our knowledge.
”
”
Mwanandeke Kindembo
“
Limit not to only five, when the divine gifts the supreme sixth; the sense of dance
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
Help, Remy, help!
Emile! Start swinging the light!
”
”
Walt Disney Company
“
haphazard gallop at which it swings along, sometimes indeed jerking almost intolerably over the cobbles.
”
”
Virginia Woolf (Virginia Woolf: Complete Works (OBG Classics): Inspired 'A Ghost Story' (2017) directed by David Lowery)
“
She who holds a pen is more powerful than he who swings a sword.
”
”
Giovannie de Sadeleer
“
After knowing that the sun neither sets nor rises except for our imaginations and the limitations of our planet Earth, there can be no more mood swings in the heart and mind.
”
”
Mwanandeke Kindembo
“
Everyone thinks and imagines that life is easier on the other side. Their minds swing like a pendulum.
”
”
Mwanandeke Kindembo
“
Manny has swung with many men, but many men never seen Manny's blissful swing.
”
”
Anthony Liccione
“
Keep a song in your heart and may you always be swinging on a star!”
-Skye Taylor
”
”
Skye Taylor (My Life Without a Parachute)
“
I see, and sing by my own eyes inspired.
O let me be thy Choir and make a moan
Upon the midnight hours;
Thy voice, thy lute, thy pipe, thy incense sweet
From swinged Censer teeming;
Thy Shrine, thy Grove, thy Oracle, thy heat
Of pale-mouthe'd Prophet dreaming!
Yes, I will be thy Priest and build a fane
In some untrodden region of my Mind,
Where branched thoughts, new grown with pleasant pain
Instead of pies shall murmer in the wind
”
”
John Keats (The Complete Poems of John Keats)
“
Contrast is not ‘bad’ since the contrast we experience still causes us to learn and grow. Expansion never ceases, and that is a beautiful thing. Contrast allows us to see what is not in alignment with our Authentic Selves, and then presents us with opportunity after opportunity to respond from a place of compassion, forgiveness, acceptance, love, joy, gratitude, etc. Thus, when we break the karmic loop we swing back into alignment with Spirit.
”
”
Alaric Hutchinson (Living Peace: Essential Teachings For Enriching Life)
“
Audience of angels descend in the ambiance reciting praises in your glory, when you wear your dance shoes, when you arrive at the stage and with every step you take beneath your feet heaven moves. That is the power of dance.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
I see, and sing, by my own eyes inspir'd.
So let me be thy choir, and make a moan
Upon the midnight hours;
Thy voice, thy lute, thy pipe, thy incense sweet
From swinged censer teeming;
Thy shrine, thy grove, thy oracle, thy heat
Of pale-mouth'd prophet dreaming.
Yes, I will be thy priest, and build a fane
In some untrodden region of my mind,
Where branched thoughts, new grown with pleasant pain,
Instead of pines shall murmur in the wind:
- Ode to Psyche - Excerpt
”
”
John Keats (Ode to Psyche and Other Poems)
“
...If you stand a lantern under a tree every insect in the forest creeps up to it—a curious assembly, since though they scramble and swing and nock their heads against the glass, they seem to have no purpose—something senseless inspires them. (28)
”
”
Virginia Woolf (Jacob's Room)
“
(Episode 9. Hijikata finds Gintoki on a rooftop and challenges him to a duel to avenge Kondo's defeat earlier. Gintoki doesn't want to fight him, so breaks Hijikata's sword easily, and leaves. It's then revealed that Okita and Kondo had been watching them clash, from another rooftop.)
Okita Sougou:
"He's an interesting man.
I'd like to cross swords with him, myself."
Kondo:
"Don't bother. He'll kick your ass, Sougou."
"He's the kind of guy fighting another battle far away,
even as a sword swings at his throat."
"Fair or unfair, it doesn't matter to him."
(Not knowing that Kondo & Okita were watching his duel from a high vantage point, Hijikata lights a cigarette and sits back.)
Hijikata (watching the blue sky above him):
"Sorry, Kondo-san. I lost to him, as well ...
”
”
Kondo Gintama
“
I turned to go home. Street lights winked down the street all the way to town. I
had never seen our neighborhood from this angle. There were Miss Maudie’s,
Miss Stephanie’s—there was our house, I could see the porch swing—Miss
Rachel’s house was beyond us, plainly visible. I could even see Mrs. Dubose’s.
I looked behind me. To the left of the brown door was a long shuttered window. I
walked to it, stood in front of it, and turned around. In daylight, I thought, you
could see to the postoffice corner.
Daylight… in my mind, the night faded. It was daytime and the neighborhood
was busy. Miss Stephanie Crawford crossed the street to tell the latest to Miss
Rachel. Miss Maudie bent over her azaleas. It was summertime, and two children
scampered down the sidewalk toward a man approaching in the distance. The man
waved, and the children raced each other to him.
It was still summertime, and the children came closer. A boy trudged down the
sidewalk dragging a fishingpole behind him. A man stood waiting with his hands
on his hips. Summertime, and his children played in the front yard with their
friend, enacting a strange little drama of their own invention.
It was fall, and his children fought on the sidewalk in front of Mrs. Dubose’s. The
boy helped his sister to her feet, and they made their way home. Fall, and his
children trotted to and fro around the corner, the day’s woes and triumphs on their
faces. They stopped at an oak tree, delighted, puzzled, apprehensive.
Winter, and his children shivered at the front gate, silhouetted against a blazing
house. Winter, and a man walked into the street, dropped his glasses, and shot a
dog.
Summer, and he watched his children’s heart break. Autumn again, and Boo’s
children needed him.
Atticus was right. One time he said you never really know a man until you stand
in his shoes and walk around in them. Just standing on the Radley porch was
enough.
”
”
Harper Lee (To Kill a Mockingbird: York Notes for GCSE (New Edition))
“
Some energies are not as potent. The only way to develop a potent energy is to spend an existence on the earth. There, one can develop a compassionate nature so that when passing onto other dimensions, one can be of help. When one leaves one’s earth body one will need to fully understand compassion to be helpful, effective. On earth, you are encapsulated in flesh...No soul is forced into an assignment upon the earth. Instead they go to their ‘rightful space’. When you leave the earth you have a lot more power. It won’t be ego-based power. Rather it will be beyond ego, beyond good and evil. In fact, ‘evil’ is just a label as everything is intermixed. The pendulum just appears to swing back and forth.”...
"Kuan Yin is showing me a person running with sandbags. She’s telling me that when the person finally lets-go of the sandbags, she or he is faster, stronger. Oh. I get it! That’s what the earth existence is like. In many ways living on earth is an ‘artificial’ burden. Once one is free of one’s body, they are not only lighter but also stronger, more powerful. I’m reminded of a time when I was a child. I felt so limited. I remember thinking, ‘Why can’t I just be wherever I want to be and physically not have to walk or use transportation? Why do I have to physically cross the street?’”-Lena Lees
”
”
Hope Bradford (Oracle of Compassion: The Living Word of Kuan Yin)
“
Daily alone time
My ability to embrace stillness and meditation was the momentum swing in my health transformation. I breathed in and out with the musical sounds of the Pacific Ocean. I breathed in life, energy, and the universe and as I breathed out, I felt every red and white blood cell washing the cancer cells out to sea with the waves.
”
”
Gregory Q. Cheek (Three Points of Contact: A Motivational Speaker's Inspirational Methods of Success from Homeless Teen Through Cancer.)
“
After tripping a couple of times, she realized that the only was she was going to make progress and safely get through her section of the race was to stay completely in the moment. She quickly figured out that the only way to get to the end of the dark, unknown trail was to keep looking straight ahead. It was when she was focused only on the trail in front of her that she could take each secure step.
”
”
Ashleigh Renard (Swing)
“
The Working Song
by Breton Braley
Oh, we're sick to death of the style of song
That's only a sort of a simpering song,
A kissy song and a sissy song
Or a weepy, creepy, whimpering song.
So give us a lift of a lusty song,
A boisterous, bubbling, boiling song,
Or a smashing song and a dashing song,
Oh, give us the tang of a toiling song,
The chanty loud of the working crowd,
The thunderous thrall of a toiling song!
Ay, sing us a joyous daring song,
Not a moaning, groaning, fretting song,
But a ringing song, and a swinging song,
A rigorous, vigorous, sweating song.
We have had enough of the gypsy song,
Which is only a lazy, shirking song,
So toughen your throat to a rougher note
And give us the tune of a working song,
A tune of strife and the joy of life,
The beat and throb of a working song!
”
”
Berton Braley
“
People in danger typically try to put as much distance as possible between them and their attacker. They believe that space equals safety. But they are wrong, and often get hurt as a result. You see, when your enemies are close, when their bodies are pressed flush against yours, at that range they can do very little damage. They need distance to swing a punch, to extend their hands and choke your neck. Distance to reach down and unzip a zipper. The lesson is simple: Dictate your space. Keep your enemies as close as possible until you are ready to give them space. And when you give them that space, use it to destroy them.
”
”
Alessandra Torre (End of the Innocence (Innocence, #3))
“
It’s time to take some risks. It’s time to shake off the dull sloth of what this world gives us and dare to master the stuff in our control. If you’re a mother, then be one that breaks the mold. If you’re a teacher, then be one that truly inspires. If you’re a preacher, then be the best damn preacher you can be. And if you fail, who cares? At least you went down swinging. Besides, your salvation does not hang in the balance; your eternity is not fashioned by your hands. Only the blood of the Lamb decided that. You are saved by grace alone: so you are free to work, free to fail, and free to get up again and again. So get out the toolbox, roll up your sleeves, and do the work our Lord has given you to do. Rev. Paul Koch
”
”
Scott Keith (Being Dad: Father as a Picture of God's Grace)
“
Never play the princess when you can
be the queen:
rule the kingdom, swing a scepter,
wear a crown of gold.
Don’t dance in glass slippers,
crystal carving up your toes --
be a barefoot Amazon instead,
for those shoes will surely shatter on your feet.
Never wear only pink
when you can strut in crimson red,
sweat in heather grey, and
shimmer in sky blue,
claim the golden sun upon your hair.
Colors are for everyone,
boys and girls, men and women --
be a verdant garden, the landscape of Versailles,
not a pale primrose blindly pushed aside.
Chase green dragons and one-eyed zombies,
fierce and fiery toothy monsters,
not merely lazy butterflies,
sweet and slow on summer days.
For you can tame the most brutish beasts
with your wily wits and charm,
and lizard scales feel just as smooth
as gossamer insect wings.
Tramp muddy through the house in
a purple tutu and cowboy boots.
Have a tea party in your overalls.
Build a fort of birch branches,
a zoo of Legos, a rocketship of
Queen Anne chairs and coverlets,
first stop on the moon.
Dream of dinosaurs and baby dolls,
bold brontosaurus and bookish Belle,
not Barbie on the runway or
Disney damsels in distress --
you are much too strong to play
the simpering waif.
Don a baseball cap, dance with Daddy,
paint your toenails, climb a cottonwood.
Learn to speak with both your mind and heart.
For the ground beneath will hold you, dear --
know that you are free.
And never grow a wishbone, daughter,
where your backbone ought to be.
”
”
Clementine Paddleford
“
See that vine?" I said to Tobble. "My siblings and I used to swing out from it, then land in the lake." I gave a small laugh. "Well, they did anyway. I was too afraid."
"You? Afraid?"
"Always and forever," I said. "I'm beginning to think that's how life works."
"Are we stopping here?" Tobble asked. "The horses are well watered."
"Yes, but I'm not. Do you know what I need, Tobble? I need a swim."
I checked the icy water with a long stick to be sure it was as deep as I recalled. Two silver fish darted past. As I clambered to a low-hanging branch, I felt a familiar shiver of anticipation and dread, and for a moment, I was the old Byx, with all her hopes and fears and longings. Then I kicked off as hard as I could, swung far out over the pond, and let go.
”
”
Katherine Applegate (The Only (Endling, #3))
“
Men sitting doubled up in the upper bunks smoked short pipes, swinging bare brown feet above the heads of those who, sprawling below on sea-chests, listened, smiling stupidly or scornfully. Over the white rims of berths stuck out heads with blinking eyes; but the bodies were lost in the gloom of those places, that resembled narrow niches for coffins in a white-washed and lighted mortuary. Voices buzzed louder. Archie, with compressed lips, drew himself in, seemed to shrink into a smaller space, and sewed steadily, industrious and dumb. Belfast shrieked like an inspired Dervish: — ‘... So I seez to him, boys, seez I, “Beggin’ yer pardon, sorr,” seez I to that second mate of that steamer — “beggin’ your-r-r pardon, sorr, the Board of Trade must ‘ave been drunk when they granted you your certificate!” “What do you say, you — !” seez he, comin’ at me like a mad bull... all in his white clothes; and I up with my tarpot and capsizes it all over his blamed lovely face and his lovely jacket... “Take that!” seez I. “I am a sailor, anyhow, you nosing, skipper-licking, useless, sooperfloos bridge-stanchion, you! That’s the kind of man I am!” shouts I... You should have seed him skip, boys! Drowned, blind with
”
”
Joseph Conrad (Joseph Conrad: The Complete Novels)
“
Now that we've come up with all the obvious answers to our problem, it's time to come up with some truly ridiculous ones."
"Ridiculous?" asked Brasque.
"Yes, ridiculous. Think of something impossible, improbable or downright ridiculous and go from there."
"Like we all flap our arms and fly out of here," said Katherine.
"Exactly!" said Spider.
"How about we form a long line all the way to the mountains and pass the charges along it?" said Brasque.
"Excellent," said Spider. "Keep it coming."
"What if we each carry one charge, run back, carry another, and so on?" said Tom, getting into the swing of things.
"Lovely!" laughed Spider. "Now we're cooking."
The shower of sparks shot out of the top of the Amadragon. Joe shielded his eyes with his hand.
"Yeah, and we can all climb on the Amadragon and ride out of here," he said.
"What was that, Joe?" said Spider, suddenly dropping the jokey manner. "What's the Amadragon?"
Katherine's eyes glittered. "He means that," she said, pointing at the excavator. Everyone except Spider turned and looked. "He's talking about the giant machine, the one that keeps shooting sparks in the air."
Spider cocked his ear and listened to the rumble of the Amadragon's engine. "So Orlemann built the dragon, did he?" he said. "I'd been wondering what the noise was. If they built it to the original specifications, it should get us out of here within an hour. Let's pray that will give us enough time!
”
”
Carol Hughes (Dirty Magic)
“
Dear Spider web,
Why won’t you let me go? I will not accept your silky web as my resting place. Your web might be soft, but there is nothing comfortable about you. You have my mind entangled with doubts. You have me feeling helpless as you tie down my hands and feet. Let me go! I am not your prey! Spider web, you captured me, and then you abandoned me in your web. You are just like my mother; she left Kace and me in her old and damaged cobweb. She selfishly left us to figure out life.
Furthermore, just like you, she will not let us go. You covered me in your web to the point you made me invisible and empty inside. Partly because of you, people used a broom to swat me here and there because they see the webs all over me. They look at me as a nobody, an invasion, a pest, or a rodent who is trying to destroy their home. You confuse me because I know that I am not damaged and used, but there are many days I feel like I am no good for myself or anyone. Your web has cluttered my mind; I am disturbed mentally because I have never felt complete or good enough. I’ve been fighting so long to get out of your web—I am tired. However, I have come this far, and I am going to hold on a little while longer. When I hold on to your thin web tightly, something or someone uses the sharpest knife to cut it down. While it is swinging left and right, I try to jump and break free, but you catch me and wrap me back in your web again. I’ve been fighting for so long, and I will continue to fight because you cannot keep me here forever.
I am creating thicker skin.
”
”
Charlena E. Jackson (Pinwheels and Dandelions)
“
There are many types of teachers out there from many traditions. Some are very ordinary and some seem to radiate spirituality from every pore. Some are nice, some are indifferent, and some may seem like sergeants in boot camp. Some stress reliance on one’s own efforts, others stress reliance on the grace of the guru. Some are very available and accessible, and some may live far away, grant few interviews, or have so many students vying for their time that you may rarely get a chance to talk with them. Some seem to embody the highest ideals of the perfected spiritual life in their every waking moment, while others may have many noticeable quirks, faults and failings. Some live by rigid moral codes, while others may push the boundaries of social conventions and mores. Some may be very old, and some may be very young. Some may require strict commitments and obedience, while others may hardly seem to care what we do at all. Some may advocate very specific practices, stating that their way is the only way or the best way, while others may draw from many traditions or be open to your doing so. Some may point out our successes, while others may dwell on our failures.
Some may stress renunciation or even ordination into a monastic order, while others seem relentlessly engaged with “the world.” Some charge a bundle for their teachings, while others give theirs freely. Some like scholarship and the lingo of meditation, while others may never use or even openly despise these formal terms and conceptual frameworks. Some teachers may be more like friends or equals that just want to help us learn something they happened to be good at, while others may be all into the hierarchy, status and role of being a teacher. Some teachers will speak openly about attainments, and some may not. Some teachers are remarkably predictable in their manner and teaching style, while others swing wide in strange and unpredictable ways. Some may seem very tranquil and mild mannered, while others may seem outrageous or rambunctious. Some may seem extremely humble and unimposing, while others may seem particularly arrogant and presumptuous. Some are charismatic, while others may be distinctly lacking in social skills. Some may readily give us extensive advice, and some just listen and nod. Some seem the living embodiment of love, and others may piss us off on a regular basis. Some teachers may instantly click with us, while others just leave us cold. Some teachers may be willing to teach us, and some may not.
So far as I can tell, none of these are related in any way to their meditation ability or the depths of their understanding. That is, don’t judge a meditation teacher by their cover. What is important is that their style and personality inspire us to practice well, to live the life we want to live, to find what it is we wish to find, to understand what we wish to understand. Some of us may wander for a long time before we find a good fit. Some of us will turn to books for guidance, reading and practicing without the advantages or hassles of teachers. Some of us may seem to click with a practice or teacher, try to follow it for years and yet get nowhere. Others seem to fly regardless. One of the most interesting things about reality is that we get to test it out. One way or another, we will get to see what works for us and what doesn’t, what happens when we do certain practices or follow the advice of certain teachers, as well as what happens when we don’t.
”
”
Daniel M. Ingram (Mastering the Core Teachings of the Buddha: An Unusually Hardcore Dharma Book)
“
Any group of people, who will empower others in all ways, must breathe the atmosphere of cooperation that swings on the hinges of sustainable development.
”
”
JOEL NYARANGI AKOYA
“
Plodding along what barely passed for a trail, I had an eerie feeling. There was still snow on the ground but the air had become warmer, causing a mist to form. We trudged under large trees to a place that I finally recognized. The thick forest ended as we continued, walking across an open field up the side of a hill. Once again our trail entered the woods, however now there were only low bushes, which surrounded the limestone quarry. I hadn’t really noticed but the snow was getting deeper, and now almost obliterated the worn pathway. The young man told me that I was close to my destination and that he would turn back now. I think he felt it would be better if we were not seen together, since the locals loved to gossip and seeing me with a single young man would certainly cause them to talk. Swinging his lantern as a farewell gesture, he disappeared into what had now become a heavy fog. I really felt uneasy now that the fog had settled in. There I stood, knowing that I still had to walk through the rock cut and past some trees before I could get back onto the paved road. There wasn’t anything I could do except continue on!
”
”
Hank Bracker
“
Below cascading breaths of storming sighs
Shudder the petals of the desert skies;
Gentle blossom, nestled flame atop thorns
Savors languid sunbeams after gust storms,
Breeze parted clouds afford warmth to the bud
Softly caressing limbs windswept in mud,
Draped spider tinsel on pin blades verdant
Peacefully swing in the mellowed current,
As raised arms pine for the sun’s strengthened gaze
That’s nurtured generations long lost days,
From arid desert sands, to seeds in soil
From rainfall of winter, to summer’s toil,
Stemmed firm to withstand changing tides time brings
Cactus being ‘neath the winds flowing wings.
”
”
Marie Helen Abramyan
“
This trip to Niagara was the family’s second; the first had occurred nine years earlier, when Lincoln returned home from his Massachusetts campaign swing. The majesty of the falls inspired him to meditate on “the indefinite past.” He marveled that when “Columbus first sought this continent—when Christ suffered on the cross—when Moses led Israel through the Red-Sea—nay, even, when Adam first came from the hand of his Maker—then as now, Niagara was roaring here.” Mastodons and mammoths, “now so long dead, that fragments of their monstrous bones, alone testify, that they ever lived, have gazed on Niagara. In that long—long time, never still for a single moment. Never dried, never froze, never slept, never rested.
”
”
Michael Burlingame (Abraham Lincoln: A Life)
“
The dragon is withered,
His bones are now crumbled;
His armour is shivered,
His splendour is humbled!
Though sword shall be rusted,
And throne and crown perish
With strength that men trusted
And wealth that they cherish,
Here grass is still growing,
And leaves are yet swinging,
The white water flowing,
And elves are yet singing
Come! Tra-la-la-lally!
Come back to the valley!
”
”
Tolkien J.R.R
“
...A majestic wahine with small, bare feet, a grand, swinging, deliberate gait, hibiscus blossoms in her flowing hair, and a lei of yellow flowers flowing over her holoku, marching through these streets, has a tragic grandeur of appearance, which makes the diminutive, fair-skinned haole, tottering along hesitatingly in high-heeled shoes, look grotesque by comparison.
Isabella Bird
”
”
Mary Kawena Pukui (Nā Wahine: Hawaiian Proverbs and Inspirational Quotes Celebrating Women in Hawai'i)
“
The sweet spot is a term used by audiophiles and recording engineers to describe the focal point between two sources of sound, where an individual is fully capable of hearing the audio mix the way it was intended to be heard by the musicians. Different static methods exist to broaden the area of the sweet spot.
Sound engineers also refer to the sweet spot of any sound-producing body that may be captured with a microphone. Every individual instrument and voice has its own sweet spot, the perfect location to place the microphone or microphones in order to obtain the best sound.
In tennis, baseball, or cricket, a given swing will result in a more powerful impact if the ball strikes the racquet or bat on the sweet spot, where a combination of factors results in a maximum response for a given amount of effort. The actual sweet spot on a racquet or bat is a very small area, where dispersing vibrations and spin in multiple directions are canceled out, resulting in a perfect contact point between incoming and outgoing energies.
”
”
Darrell Calkins
“
Don’t just timidly swing at the problems in your life, swing hard enough to knock them out! Small efforts produce small results, big efforts produce big results!
”
”
DeWayne Owens
“
This was the place where I fell in love with you Harlow, and even though I had a lot of bad memories here, I had the best memories here too. Memories of when we would sit on the swings and talk about the future when times were innocent, what do you want now Harlow? What are your dreams for the future? ~Beckett
”
”
S.M. Stryker
“
Recipes of Sita People have to be fed during a war. And so the kitchens of Lanka were busy. Those who were going to the war had to be fed; those who were returning from the war had to be fed. Food had to inspire, comfort and stir passions. The smell of rice boiling, vegetables frying and fish roasting filled the city streets, mingling with the smell of blood, rotting flesh and burning towers. The aromas reached Sita’s grove. ‘Don’t you like that smell?’ asked Trijata noticing Sita’s expression as she inhaled the vapours. Trijata, Vibhishana’s daughter, had become a friend. ‘If I was cooking, I would change the proportion of the spices,’ Sita said. She gave her suggestions to Trijata, who promptly conveyed them to the royal kitchen. Mandodari followed these instructions and soon a different aroma wafted out of the kitchen. So enticing was the resulting aroma that other rakshasa cooks came to the Ashoka grove and asked Sita for cooking tips. Without tasting the food, just by smelling what had been prepared, like a skilled cook, Sita gave her suggestions. ‘Add more salt.’ ‘Replace mustard with pepper.’ ‘Mix ginger with tamarind.’ ‘Less cloves, more coconut milk.’ These suggestions were promptly executed, and before long Lanka was full of the most delightful aromas and flavours, so delightful that sons and brothers and husbands and fathers wanted to stay back and relish more food. They wanted to burp, then sleep, then wake up and eat again. They wanted to chew areca nuts wrapped in betel leaves and enjoy the company of their wives on swings. No war, no fighting, just conversations over food. Ravana noticed the lethargy in his men, their reluctance to fight. They were not afraid. They were not drunk. They were just too happy to go to war. Furious, he ordered the kitchens to be closed. ‘Starve the soldiers. Hungry men are angry men. In anger they will kill the monkeys. The only food they can eat is monkey flesh.
”
”
Devdutt Pattanaik (Sita: An Illustrated Retelling of the Ramayana)
“
You are American,” he says, as if I’m a mythical creature.
I nod. “Yes. And, uh, we have different dances where I come from.”
“Can you show us one?” The second boy, a dark-haired kid, steps forward, looking intrigued.
I stifle a laugh. “Oh, uh, no. I’m a horrible dancer.”
“Please?” the redheaded boy asks. “I have never seen an American dance.”
I just laughed at them thirty seconds ago. Wouldn’t that make me mean if I just blow them off now?
“I doubt you’d want to see these dances,” I say, stalling. I feel kind of bad. But I really can’t dance. I’ll make a fool of myself.
“Oh, but I do. Most certainly.”
“Oh.” Well, then.
I could try, right? Just some tiny little thing?
But what do I share? MC Hammer? The Running Man? The Electric Slide? A little Macarena?
“Uh,” I say, stepping forward. “How about, um, the Robot?”
“The Robot?” the two boys ask in unison.
Did the word robot even exist in 1815?
“Yeah. You, uh, hold your arms out like this,” I say, demonstrating the proper way to stand like a scarecrow. I can’t believe I’m doing this. “And then relax your elbows and let your hands swing. Like this.”
I’m really not doing it well, but by the way their eyes widen, you’d think I just did a full-on pop-and-lock routine with Justin Timberlake. They mimic my maneuver, making it look effortless.
The drummer guy stands up and gets in on the action, swinging his arms freely. The guy’s better than me after a two-second demo. Figures.
“Okay, then, uh, you sort of walk and you try to make everything look stiff and, uh, unnatural. Like this.” I show him my best robotic walk, my arms mechanical in their movements.
The two boys and the drummer immediately copy me, and by the time they’ve taken four or five steps, they seriously look like robots.
In no time they’re improvising, and their laughter trickles up toward the rafters of the barn.
Yeah. That’s my cue to leave before inspiration strikes and I try to show them how to break-dance but only succeed in breaking my neck.
I slip out of the barn unnoticed, grinning to myself as I walk the gravel path back toward the house, my skirts brushing the dirt.
At least somewhere, I’m not Callie the Klutz. Even if it’s just some smelly old barn.
There’s hope for me after all.
”
”
Mandy Hubbard (Prada & Prejudice)
“
The performance of Astenbeck could not have been good during the downturn in oil prices in 2014, but in early 2015, after formally leaving Phibro entirely, Mr. Hall came out of hiding to again predict a major demand-based spike in oil prices: “Prices at current levels (or lower) are not sustainable for very long,” Hall wrote in his yearly letter to investors. “The current surplus could thus easily set the stage for a future deficit.” Mr. Hall predicts both an increase of demand from lower oil prices, but also a very significant fall in production: he believes 2.4 million barrels a day of conventional oil is likely to disappear. Further, he accentuates the strength of shale producers as swing producers by noting the differences between 2015 and 1986, the last time a major drop in prices inspired a demand-based rally.
”
”
Dan Dicker (Shale Boom, Shale Bust: The Myth of Saudi America)
“
Success swings Inwards and not Outwards
”
”
Chirayu
“
The heart doesn't know it's expanding with compassion anymore than a hawk spreading its swings knows it's being a hawk. Nor does someone acting out of love often realize they are being kind.
”
”
Mark Nepo (The Book of Awakening: Having the Life You Want by Being Present to the Life You Have)
“
Jeffers stretched up on his toes to see the back of the mob, “But James, we’re doing all this for you... We need this gold to build a united Alba. We need it to fund an army and to forge decisive leadership.” His voice was almost plaintive. “We want to hand your generation a real empire rather than just a loose collection of competing Families. We want to give you the foundations to achieve glory! What could possibly be wrong with that?”
“Rubbish!” cried Tristan, not about to let honey-coated nonsense dissolve the glue that bound his army. “Absolute codswallop!” he let his calm facade slip for the first time that day. “What you’re actually trying to do is to build a legacy that you don’t deserve! You want to swan around as an armchair General for the next twenty years while your precious army strives and dies for hollow victories that do nothing more than feed your ego! And do you know who strives and dies in this picture?” He waved one arm at the figures behind him. “We do! We here in this alley, along with other young men and women just like us!”
Tristan watched Jeffers from the corner of his eye, as he shook his fist towards deGroot, “Well we’re not having it! If you want us to fight and die, then we’re going to fight now, and we’re going to fight you! So come on down deGroot and take a swing!
”
”
Aaron D'Este (Weapon of Choice)
“
Passive Mind generates mood swings and active mind generates Ideas
”
”
Rajesh Walecha
“
My life was full of drama, with the highs and lows of Tyler’s daily mood swings and my private innuendos with Vandenberg. There’d never been a movie made that could permanently shift my mood away from my disappointment with myself.
”
”
J.C. Patrick (A Hollywood Classic)
“
O wayfarer! Yearn finds quench, not in meadows, seashores or altitude of mountain peaks; but when being and dance are one.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
O wayfarer! Yearn finds quench, not in meadows, seashores or altitude of mountain peaks; but when being becomes dance.
”
”
Shah Asad Rizvi
“
Inspiration struck Cade as he dismounted and crossed the field. Lily was doing her best to ignore him, but that couldn't go on forever. He took the sack from her shoulder and waited for her to straighten. He half expected her to come up swinging, but she merely raised her fists to her hips and glared at him coldly. "Why did you bother returning? Didn't your squaw stroke your masculine pride?" He didn't know whether to kiss her or hit her. Judging neither to be appropriate, Cade shouldered the bag and threw a damper on her hostility. "The child will need clothes. I have come to ask if you will go to town with me to buy the appropriate materials. Perhaps you would like some for yourself also. And Roy." Lily stood there for a full minute, staring at him. She supposed other men would have come with a mouthful of apologies and a handful of flowers. Cade simply skipped all the in-between arguments and pleas and went on to the next subject. She might as well try arguing with herself. "You're not forgiven," she informed him. "And I'm not going anywhere until I gather the rest of this." "Me and Roy will do it tomorrow," Ephraim intruded, seeing Roy's crestfallen expression. In the end it was easier to surrender than to fight. Lily gave in to the majority and agreed to accompany Cade to town. She knew perfectly well that the trip could wait until Saturday, but now that it had been mentioned, she was as eager to go as Roy was. Not
”
”
Patricia Rice (Texas Lily (Too Hard to Handle, #1))
“
I think I have grown wise enough
To not to wish to climb up the stairs
'M gonna sit, walk, crawl, swing by on the step I am
And let the upper ones have their stare
”
”
Mansi Laus Deo