I like it too.

It reminds me of a saying in a movie I watched last night "Missing in America" about the broken life of a viet nam vet(Danny Glover), and a little girl he got "stuck" caring for.

The saying was "Follow the raven into the shadow, and there you will find the light".

Through devastating loss, we can grow...it is through this pain which allows growth. It just doesn't happen without loss usually.

Oh and that reminds me of something I need to post as soon as I find it.

Ooooh and I am listening to Creed's "Weathered", and it goes right along with this theme. ..I choose to fight, I choose to fly <img src="/ubbt/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

" (Tibetan Ceremony) The Room of 1000 Demons

all about fear.....


"To fear is one thing.To let fear grab you by the tail and swing you around is another".



Imagine this: there is a room of a thousand demons. You open the door and walk in. The room is small. Once you have entered, the door will close behind you. On the inside of the door there is no handle to let you back out. In fact to get out, you will have to walk across to the other side of the room to another door.That's all you have to do, to become enlightened. This is called....

The Room of One Thousand Demons.


(A Tibetan Ceremony held every 100 years that buddhist students undergo) Those one thousand demons have the ability to take on the form of your fears. As soon as you walk into the room, those demons will show you your worst fears. If you are afraid of heights,when you walk in the room, it will appear as if you are standing on the narrow ledge of a tall building and so forth. These demons will take on those images from your mind and make them seem very real. In fact, they will be so compelling real, it will be hard to believe they are not. No one can come in and rescue you. That's the rule.

If you go into the room of a thousand demons, you have to make it out on your own. Some people never make it out to the other side. They go into the room of a thousand demons and become paralyzed with fear and they stay trapped in that room until they die. What happens is up to you. If you don't have to go through it you can wait until your next incarnation and come back in another hundred years and try again. But if you do want to go in,there are 2 hints that will help you.

The first hint is as soon as you go inside, remember, keep reminding yourself, that what those demons are showing you isn't real. It's all from your own mind. It is an illusion. Of course, most of the people go in there and stay trapped in there forget that. It is very difficult to keep it in mind when you see yourself surrounded by demons.

The second hint is that once you walk into that room, no matter what you see,hear, no matter what you feel, no matter what you think, keep your feet moving. If you keep your feet moving, you will eventually get to the other door.Adversity has a way of bringing those demons right into our lives. When things are going well we forget about these demons and ignore them. When things are not going well, they appear in fullforce, until we have learned how to manage them. So we have to remember to keep walking. Keep walking. Keep working your way through the demons. Stay on that path...
____________________________________________________________

No human relation gives one possession in another--every two souls are absolutely different. In friendship or in love, the two side by side raise hands together to find what one cannot reach alone.---Kahil Gibran

GC: I'm sorry. It'll hit you in a while. It'll feel better when it does.

The emptiness does bring forth the most profound creations. The entire universe in a single atom. Each moment all of creation, every bit of its potential, exists. All at once.

What you've lost will be reborn, its form changed and its substance eternal.

What you've gained will never be taken away from you.

Give car4love my love. She's a special and amazing person.

I love that J. Only the form changes... love can never, ever be taken away or lost.

Because it is inside US, only the form we project it on can change.

Once we realize this, we realize that we have lost nothing.

Hi all.

I read this thread on occasion, but I don't generally post. I know there are a lot of people that read here and I'm, uh, shy. <img src="/ubbt/images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbt/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" />

But when Weaver wrote this...

Through devastating loss, we can grow...it is through this pain which allows growth. It just doesn't happen without loss usually.

...it made me think of something that I came across the other week. I thought I'd share it.

GROWING PAINS

Life is about growth, which is wonderful, though not always easy. Indeed, many of life's lessons can be painful or difficult. Yet, such challenges are often the ones that present the most opportunity for spiritual growth. Initiations for growth come in many forms. In fact, we can view every challenge in life as an opportunity to learn and grow. While these disruptions in life are not easy, they are necessary.

The challenges the universe sends us can seem unbearable at times: a job we don't want to spend another day at, a broken heart that feels as if it will never heal, or a long and painful illness. And then, there are the challenges that can be just as scary because we are being called to step up to the plate in ways that we may think we are not yet ready for: overcoming our fears in order to realize a lifelong dream, leaving behind a situation or people in our life that we may have outgrown, or moving across the world for our dream job or life partner.

At such times, it can feel as if the world is testing us and that life is asking more of us than we think we can give. We may feel uncomfortable, frightened, and unsure of what to do. However, life isn't so much going against us as it is encouraging us to grow. During these periods, we can grow stronger by putting one foot in front of the other, as we work through our challenges. We may be asked to let go of old safety measures, shift old patterns of behavior, or step into the abyss of the unknown. When we do rise to the occasion, we end up better off for having made that journey. Not only do we end up learning and growing, but we inevitably become more compassionate to the challenges of others and wiser in the ways of the world. Our faith in the universe also grows because, ultimately, we can't help but realize how much we are supported and taken care of at all times. When we are in the midst of a growing period, it is not easy to see our reward, but it is there, waiting for us to grow big enough to reach it.

bump

SVB thank you.

GC

And here I thought Jennifer68 was interested in this thread.

I'm disappointed people get so exercised about all that nonsense going on out there.

Anyway...

I love all these stories and quotes.

GC

gray,

how are you doing?

I'm good, Loy. Thank you for asking.

GC

What nonsense?

I'm so confused.

Perhaps I'll see where else Jennifer posts?

svb1, that was a great quote. Thank you.

Hi svb! I read your thread and am so glad you stopped by here. Hi J, weaver, ss, AD, 2long, loy and especially GC <img src="/ubbt/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Well, I'm back from a quick perusal. Summary? Oh. THAT nonsense.

*sigh*

But I did see the timing of JustUss's lock of a particular thread. If you read it right, you might think that it was the epithet "witch" that got the thread locked. That's pretty funny, actually.

And, I'm sure, not why JustUss locked it.

Yes, ladies and gents, it's a holiday and I'm sitting in my office "working." The most urgent of the stuff I needed to do is done, so I'm relaxing more than I should.

Does anyone have any popcorn? I have a craving.

Mortarman and WAT are both in NVA. I s'pose I could mooch offa them, if they have any. Then again, they both might rant at me. <img src="/ubbt/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Hey, all!

GC - I have not read your story - but it sounds like an unfun day.

I will shoot a prayer up for you.

However agnostic I may feel at times (more, lately...) I still hang on to the idea that God does not give us more than we can handle. (I feel that I have seen circumstances handled poorly with certain a STBX in my life - but that is a different thread if I ever have the energy)

svb1's post made me think of a quote that i believe i have posted here before. My fil told me something like this: " you will not believe the growth in character you are going to experience from this. Who you will be at the other side of this will be amazing to you."

And i am beginning to understand what he was talking about.

You, GC, I am sure - know what i am talking about. Many of us do.

A friend told me a few weeks ago about his son that was left/divorced by his wife five years ago. The poor guy is still going through serious depression, and it is affecting the jobs he gets, and many other things. I thought - what a waste. (I asked him to steer him to me and MB...)

I am glad you (i) are (am) moving forward!

We have so much to look forward to in this life!!! I have three wonderful children, and the joy I get from them nearly brings me to tears! (no kidding - I am misting up right now!)

Life is exciting for us right now! Finish the songs! Sing 'em somewhere and see how they touch people!

Wow - seems every time I post i am all over the place. Oh well - so be it!

I can't wait to hear the next song!

far

Yup SS…..cowboy TV….nothing like it. I hope you’re well.


GC, I understand the empty feeling you had when you heard about the sparrow’s “marriage” to the tinman……I’ve seen the 1000 yard stare in a lot of people when they get “significant” news. I’ve also occasionally seen the aftermath when their mind finally decides to process the information. I hope this doesn’t describe what you are or will be going through. If I may quote a bright man:




I hope you apply these principals when dealing with yourself too.

FAR, I've had a great weekend. I spoke to car4love on Friday, during which conversation I leared about the APs getting married, then went out and had some unrelated laughs with a girl who said incredibly nice things to me while I fought her off.

I watched Hannibal. Stupid, but it was funny to see that the perfume shop in Florence where Hannibal Lechter buys scents is the same shop where sparrow bought soap for the tinman (while I stood there). That's amusing, don't you think?

I read some scholarly things about religion and ethics. I had band practice, watched football (the last few minutes of the Steelers-Colts game were insane!), had a drink with my friend Amelia. Today I celebrated MLK day, got all my finances straightened out, and listened to old Public Enemy CDs. My roommate and his GF went snowboarding, and while they were gone I played my band's album reeeeeally loud. I semi-finished a song about my divorce that I've been working on for about a year. I read reviews of one of my band's old tunes on garageband.com.

I took some brownie mix and experimented with it to the point where the finished product is at best similar to brownies, and is uuuuuugly.

Couldn't have asked for a better weekend.

GC

My favorites, Binder. We're getting better at doing them all at once, do you think?

GC

Good list, Binder. If we all applied those well - just think.....

Gray - I have not yet watched Hannibal - I need to get it and settle in one night.

Here is a fun trick - very easy - that impresses the kids: write stuff on top of the brownies with hershey's chocolate syrup before you cook the brownies. It looks real cool when it comes out. I did hearts one time - the girls loved it.

Scholarly writings about religion and ethics are sometimes hard to discern from BS about religion and ethics.

Glad you had a good weekend.

My son is 7 and just started riding his bike really well. We try to ride together every day. It is a total joy!

Have a great week, all!

GC,

Could you give me your e-mail address? I want to share something w/you off the boards about a fellow MB. I can't go into details here, but you & he had become very good friends & I think you should know something if you don't already. My e-mail is [email]thirteenyrs@yahoo.com.[/email] Thanks GC.

SS, read my update on my new thread

Hi Binder! FAR, you rock as a dad.