tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83794337033751584672024-02-20T20:35:21.482-05:00The Alaskan MuseInspiration for your journey forward.Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comBlogger90125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-50718329790990103182020-09-24T12:09:00.000-04:002020-09-24T12:09:32.969-04:00Don't Give Up Hope — The Future Is As Bright As Your Faith<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW7khm_HlyRrWkF-rD5CUi4EghNRNE0Dk0-pnRMPIPEkpSO1FrFiQ8pAQRaRUHw6_WkX2A3nLviu84dEruos6RVQW1irRK6UKT_N1DpAkr4I47eSagBE32f6zO92mSD3MvA5vZA_E1yqKV/s2048/The+Miracle+of+Hope.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1116" data-original-width="2048" height="347" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW7khm_HlyRrWkF-rD5CUi4EghNRNE0Dk0-pnRMPIPEkpSO1FrFiQ8pAQRaRUHw6_WkX2A3nLviu84dEruos6RVQW1irRK6UKT_N1DpAkr4I47eSagBE32f6zO92mSD3MvA5vZA_E1yqKV/w640-h347/The+Miracle+of+Hope.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>2020 has been a pretty intense year, hasn't it? With everything that's happened—a pandemic, civil unrest, political strife, rioting, violence, food shortages, mass unemployment, and death—it's difficult for a lot of us to feel hopeful or optimistic.</p><p>In the midst of my own anxiety for the future, I watched this video of a talk by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland's. It gave me hope, peace, and filled me with resolve to move forward. I hope it does the same for you.</p><p>Through trials, turmoil, and even when facing the most insurmountable odds, our spiritual longings can help us discover the miracle of hope that is found through the perfect brightness of the Savior’s love for each and every one of us.
</p><center><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/s3IVijgPWMk" width="560"></iframe></center>
<p></p><p><i>Taken from Elder Jeffrey R. Holland’s April 2020 general conference address: “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/redirect?q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.churchofjesuschrist.org%2Fstudy%2Fgeneral-conference%2F2020%2F04%2F43holland%3Flang%3Deng&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbF9WU2xaNE1tQ3B2elVhTF9leGF5ZTA5YVdTQXxBQ3Jtc0tuWmdkT1RSbkcxczE2NkRpMnNrQmdIa2ZBaFFkSXRnS193X3RfakJHWXVoT2VuS2dGczRTN3NrNE1qMkZfZm9JSFVUYmZTdERkV1hsUndEOVlldnpqQ3RZdWVJbnRtc0haU2hUSmJWdTlNazNmZk5EUQ%3D%3D&event=video_description&v=s3IVijgPWMk" target="_blank">A Perfect Brightness of Hope</a>.”</i></p>Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-38538669270374646722016-11-17T14:25:00.001-05:002016-11-29T15:56:59.972-05:00DIY Mountain Mural<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I do a lot of work for <a href="http://www.anasazi.org/" target="_blank">ANASAZI Foundation</a>, a Wilderness Therapy program for at-risk youth and I frequently visit their lobby. Now, as much as I love ANASAZI, I <i>hated</i> their lobby—its main wall was particularly offensive to mine eyes. Every time I thought about it, I would get an Edgar-Allan-Poe-esque twitch.<br />
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<i>The wall was driving me mad! Mad, I tell you!</i><br />
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Something had to be done. It was either me or the wall and it CERTAINLY wasn't going to be me! I decided to paint a mountain mural over it. And so, eye-a-twitching, I waited until everyone left work—until it was just me and the wall...<br />
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Then, I created THE MOUNTAIN MURAL! ~Thunder clap in the background~<br />
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<b><i>Supplies Needed:</i></b></div>
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<li><b>Black Paint</b></li>
<li><b>White Paint</b></li>
<li><b><i>Sahara Desert Sand </i>Paint</b> (Wal-Mart)</li>
<li><b><i>Warm Caramel </i>Paint</b> (Wal-Mart)</li>
<li><b>Lots of Painters Tape</b> (for outlining the mountains)</li>
<li><b>A Few Paint Brushes</b> (for painting the outlines of the mountains)</li>
<li><b>Lots of Rollers</b> (for most of the painting)</li>
<li><b>Paint Trays</b> (in which you roll your rollers)</li>
<li><b>Paint Sticks</b> (for mixing the paint in which you will roll your rollers)</li>
<li><b>Plastic Cover</b> (or something to lay down on the floor to protect it from paint and blood splatter)</li>
<li><b>Candy Bars</b> (This mural will test your stamina. You will require candy bars to provide you with vital energy and essential nutrients.)</li>
<li><b>A Good Sense of Balance</b> (Believe it or not, it is hard to paint a Mountain Mural if you're falling down all the time.)</li>
<li><b>Excuses</b> (You will need many excuses in order to rationalize why it is taking you so BLEEPIN' long! It looked so easy on Pinterest!)</li>
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">
DIY Mountain Mural</h2>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOjx0Wv57fMRwHz-ITPfSZOaIW9nnrY73z6_OOnhhg6z21Xz_BW3nfjYkYnYiYHWgNnvXbEScAZgU4l3UfU3inJHN4Z5Eb6euAdPhzMRPNMA5Fs73dInkva-DP_WyLNTvlmRDryzInZLaW/s1600/00+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOjx0Wv57fMRwHz-ITPfSZOaIW9nnrY73z6_OOnhhg6z21Xz_BW3nfjYkYnYiYHWgNnvXbEScAZgU4l3UfU3inJHN4Z5Eb6euAdPhzMRPNMA5Fs73dInkva-DP_WyLNTvlmRDryzInZLaW/s400/00+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Behold the hideous wall! Do not be deceived by the candy cane furniture! There is nothing sweet about this lobby. Behind the furniture are ghastly gouges and disgusting dents. This will not stand. "Mr. Gorbachov, PAINT A PRETTY MOUNTAIN MURAL ON THIS WALL!"</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_7pTn5POMRUKHs5mtTCbawdqEoJWv2zGOjZR8YTWGt6cYjsIVPOQNSGdc5KjPM8HpSv2NR-QuojexmKV011y_hcMdKYh6b7hr8WGA1OZxsyRva_-y6lTfjQx4wk1Obr7NikZzIo3kCbZz/s1600/01+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_7pTn5POMRUKHs5mtTCbawdqEoJWv2zGOjZR8YTWGt6cYjsIVPOQNSGdc5KjPM8HpSv2NR-QuojexmKV011y_hcMdKYh6b7hr8WGA1OZxsyRva_-y6lTfjQx4wk1Obr7NikZzIo3kCbZz/s400/01+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">And it came to pass, that I did kick away the chairs so as to tackle the wall in all of its ugliness. </span><span style="font-size: small;">Additionally, I put down some tape so as to paint the frame. I used a plain </span><span style="font-size: small;">white paint (from Wal-Mart) with a semi-gloss luster.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijAjylHYyVF70VStkX-ZPFjsQqeyMV993ruf817rhAznTiVb8gAZQLM16WlX0t6QMlZnxqa8d_mKz8MunfYyRYYA5fpcaog2s2qvKgQ8i1eXIa1kd46DwyCkO7_LjD2uAnYoyoTZYdwYLU/s1600/03+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijAjylHYyVF70VStkX-ZPFjsQqeyMV993ruf817rhAznTiVb8gAZQLM16WlX0t6QMlZnxqa8d_mKz8MunfYyRYYA5fpcaog2s2qvKgQ8i1eXIa1kd46DwyCkO7_LjD2uAnYoyoTZYdwYLU/s400/03+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Here, I used a pencil and traced out a few layers of mountains. I didn't use anything as a reference, I just sort of eye-balled it. In some cases, I erased some lines and started over, but for the most part, it was pretty easy. If you want a particular mountain range, go ahead and use a picture as a reference, but I think this works just as well. <br /><br />I did have people tell me—<b>when I was half-way to nearly-finished</b>—"Oh, you know what would be cooler than what you're doing? If you did it and it looked like a different set of mountains!"<br /><br />I wasn't a fan of those comments.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_4HaEuATB1pjD96IUenDkVw4tciKAgU_SoSIn8Y5EEMYFVNGgbKDlFbB8zkUUKLo7vEBHUMFY9pDt0-ptleODMAj_IOBYtTFVt6Ic5tVUBBthLXBpZuGORfLtFVTMSKNlAOR2RT-W_iX5/s1600/04+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_4HaEuATB1pjD96IUenDkVw4tciKAgU_SoSIn8Y5EEMYFVNGgbKDlFbB8zkUUKLo7vEBHUMFY9pDt0-ptleODMAj_IOBYtTFVt6Ic5tVUBBthLXBpZuGORfLtFVTMSKNlAOR2RT-W_iX5/s400/04+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I put numbered stickies on the wall to help me keep the mountain ranges separate. Because sometimes, I got lost in these mountains. And not in the enchanting, "The mountains are calling and I must go," kind of way. It was more like, "I'm lost, frustrated, and I'll probably have to eat this couch in order to survive," kind of way. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVb2hY9aKJ5v0zhEgKnzelqlC9tH3xUAFH1wMnzVhCSgAFCIYy718EOPSkHGEyA86fafebI_Sn9RIIPDz1I8LAfNFNMin3OV7TwWNfvU92g9wcIYA9w0rqm-K95JsWmULJCQNfe0Mil69m/s1600/06+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVb2hY9aKJ5v0zhEgKnzelqlC9tH3xUAFH1wMnzVhCSgAFCIYy718EOPSkHGEyA86fafebI_Sn9RIIPDz1I8LAfNFNMin3OV7TwWNfvU92g9wcIYA9w0rqm-K95JsWmULJCQNfe0Mil69m/s400/06+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">And so begins the most rewarding/frustrating part of the DIY Mountain Mural—painting it! I figured it would take me a really, really, really long time to carefully, tediously, paint around each mountain. So, instead of dealing with that, I used blue painters tape (Wal-Mart) to outline each mountain range.<br /><br />As it turns out, it takes a really, really, really long time to carefully, tediously outline each mountain range with blue painters tape. (But it looks really good when you pull off the tape!)</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz3_prc0Kux_WRadeOlu6v_s1fhEXEc3IhX5kK1faisNoxBPuUP5DhK3nlHqTfNVAAieeqgzwURKQZkGLEInUnQ0DIx4u7-u2tXMM9iXbiwGlqpPHxfYVvjTuagwmhh0HiZt2gytgCVyDS/s1600/08+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz3_prc0Kux_WRadeOlu6v_s1fhEXEc3IhX5kK1faisNoxBPuUP5DhK3nlHqTfNVAAieeqgzwURKQZkGLEInUnQ0DIx4u7-u2tXMM9iXbiwGlqpPHxfYVvjTuagwmhh0HiZt2gytgCVyDS/s400/08+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Technically, this is the first mountain range I painted (if you don't count the white paint I put down as the background). The paint I used is called "Sahara Desert Sand" and I got it from Wal-Mart. Perspective-wise, this mountain range will appear to be the second-farthest back. Taping it off was a beast, but it's nothing compared to the other mountain ranges...</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ4_UCBmn6rDjgPD1WWHxEujX2v5OOiIAKmyoivREdm8f9mvoMGQ6Mbz33JsDQllzmAsnfFg9hRrEp7D-RfapyBEStG00Zwl8U5a7N2LXFTIR4oF8aBef54R_fK3zHoLztaUCkufexCAP5/s1600/09+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ4_UCBmn6rDjgPD1WWHxEujX2v5OOiIAKmyoivREdm8f9mvoMGQ6Mbz33JsDQllzmAsnfFg9hRrEp7D-RfapyBEStG00Zwl8U5a7N2LXFTIR4oF8aBef54R_fK3zHoLztaUCkufexCAP5/s400/09+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Here's where I started to paint the mountain range that appears closest to the viewer. I taped it off and used black paint (again, from Wal-Mart). Initially, it was just going to be a stand-alone mountain, but then I <strike>got frustrated with how long it was taking </strike>made a creative decision to connect it to another set of mountains. (See below). </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHFvySZmsaoyL-Uvg05JeVoxeSMuO2RYn26zKe9WcYOOl6WkSRRgIojn7tTdmtQwjq_MMDhWsxNkPdhn6x1F649WfrwJnHCUSmR1tVRq6r2AumagxKQ1-npnp-BxdFC_1PeRXk-3dXkTzP/s1600/10+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHFvySZmsaoyL-Uvg05JeVoxeSMuO2RYn26zKe9WcYOOl6WkSRRgIojn7tTdmtQwjq_MMDhWsxNkPdhn6x1F649WfrwJnHCUSmR1tVRq6r2AumagxKQ1-npnp-BxdFC_1PeRXk-3dXkTzP/s400/10+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Here is a ~cough~ non-staged photograph ~cough~ of me painting the mountain that is the furthest back. I mixed the Sahara Desert Sand with white paint to lighten it up. If I could, I would travel back in time and tell myself to "Quit now, you fool! This project is going to take WAY more time than you think it is!"<br /><br />At which point, my past-self would ask me why I traveled back in time to this moment, and not to when I was in high school, so as to save myself from a bunch of stupid mistakes. Present-self will consider this for a moment and then show past-self the Flux Capacitor and explain to him the complications of time travel. He and I will have a few laughs and order a burger. When asked who will pay for said burger, we both become confused. If one of us pays, then don't both of us pay?</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiot8V6xfkPGsDTF7NF7y50LDM4YLFHB2ETl7NT05Ysl8CDfR8hgv5RTC1gI63Esgj3dFUwXuO0YZLmzEGq69BOgmwQFzG7qkLD1bBHmRmEDvMZ3qHD27SFlkLeBGz-_oJ5Abqq3Mw1HkrT/s1600/13+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiot8V6xfkPGsDTF7NF7y50LDM4YLFHB2ETl7NT05Ysl8CDfR8hgv5RTC1gI63Esgj3dFUwXuO0YZLmzEGq69BOgmwQFzG7qkLD1bBHmRmEDvMZ3qHD27SFlkLeBGz-_oJ5Abqq3Mw1HkrT/s400/13+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">After waiting for all the other mountain ranges to dry, I taped off these two. But they are not two distinct mountain ranges. They are the same! Behold...</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDaJ516LBBYHXUfFVF5hzJPDCXvWycOcAwl46OWZz0i25kDgE5P7XqPsiR60-F_tNUcTwRLpdDp3xRyFwbCifdggEZsOnRLEUIpIl2wAmRzGTVTOhTYeVZU2VvsWb1NsAY50g286IRCpcL/s1600/15+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDaJ516LBBYHXUfFVF5hzJPDCXvWycOcAwl46OWZz0i25kDgE5P7XqPsiR60-F_tNUcTwRLpdDp3xRyFwbCifdggEZsOnRLEUIpIl2wAmRzGTVTOhTYeVZU2VvsWb1NsAY50g286IRCpcL/s400/15+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Oh Sweet Moses! Magic is real! Also and/or I used the "Warm Caramel" paint found at—you guessed it—Wal-Mart. But don't be fooled! The paint tastes NOTHING like warm caramel!!! I learned this the hard way.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQrV_Y75rM6g0pmc2GmrDU8rwy3vM7I5jxtMslZydUFpJOymdYJHa5BTuP726tLuGA4qsLM5Ub9aldwpRClkiCJ7M8XnLJr7MyH87ymUq_f1LaZp7NBOMvKbNSI8HeGYc94nJ-NeXQR6Mp/s1600/16+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQrV_Y75rM6g0pmc2GmrDU8rwy3vM7I5jxtMslZydUFpJOymdYJHa5BTuP726tLuGA4qsLM5Ub9aldwpRClkiCJ7M8XnLJr7MyH87ymUq_f1LaZp7NBOMvKbNSI8HeGYc94nJ-NeXQR6Mp/s400/16+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">C'mon, you know where this is going. Do I really need to explain it to you?</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkky8JJn1v9SWzaKKfn4YENABKUEvT0iXvY6j6YBSR1BSYcJU_JCo0cWdbmC_dESTeRyWO7ZXwz2xVD335QzmbuNxMRwPNiKhCOAmPEzqiR1Hl3UXjMhAaCrkSek6klWdQILIEUemadtvN/s1600/17+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkky8JJn1v9SWzaKKfn4YENABKUEvT0iXvY6j6YBSR1BSYcJU_JCo0cWdbmC_dESTeRyWO7ZXwz2xVD335QzmbuNxMRwPNiKhCOAmPEzqiR1Hl3UXjMhAaCrkSek6klWdQILIEUemadtvN/s400/17+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">For this layer, I mixed the "Warm Caramel" paint with some of the black paint. I call it "Tin Man's Blood."</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP6Z9tGAkHt6L_ecS9EVhTTHxOLq2Ut2Fj46PHrRvHd1alSI9al8-JK2H-1Imuw-yYp3op8TZrFi4z6evEHxLRT3yNMh62FRAYFtFLsm0-zBDhl7PC3hLO_PZbhnyo3wrx1geifFYhPHUB/s1600/18+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP6Z9tGAkHt6L_ecS9EVhTTHxOLq2Ut2Fj46PHrRvHd1alSI9al8-JK2H-1Imuw-yYp3op8TZrFi4z6evEHxLRT3yNMh62FRAYFtFLsm0-zBDhl7PC3hLO_PZbhnyo3wrx1geifFYhPHUB/s400/18+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Here is where I realized that I didn't want to create two additional shades. What's this? The "Lonely Mountain" has long-lost family? Bring them in! </span></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgifNernl3fWjCX8QwbbNd7h0kmVaivdsDjJTNktGyDQ2FW4cvY5ibbRw8h2pFD8X8cYw_R_mNUPuGBIWbHuLm0sXszQ27ihvA9xRmDIIV65EW943cypT8nSce9Rf82VrkufImjzkb7cBtT/s1600/19+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgifNernl3fWjCX8QwbbNd7h0kmVaivdsDjJTNktGyDQ2FW4cvY5ibbRw8h2pFD8X8cYw_R_mNUPuGBIWbHuLm0sXszQ27ihvA9xRmDIIV65EW943cypT8nSce9Rf82VrkufImjzkb7cBtT/s400/19+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">And to think: I could wasted my time creating an additional layer of mountain ranges. Oh well, I guess I'll just have to finish this mural so I can make it home in time for dinner!</span></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE2E26KzKjmOKMYScPjkkjxRHPh8bJRxRN1h2rVcd463AvHYGqF2e111geQ2QyPj0BohTj02-wGFgjvMVlgp0a_oZzc85EK-1gBrXEgB-3JXUQPEoe7p7C-LsrDFhDAZm1gQETmMDfp4ZH/s1600/21+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE2E26KzKjmOKMYScPjkkjxRHPh8bJRxRN1h2rVcd463AvHYGqF2e111geQ2QyPj0BohTj02-wGFgjvMVlgp0a_oZzc85EK-1gBrXEgB-3JXUQPEoe7p7C-LsrDFhDAZm1gQETmMDfp4ZH/s400/21+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">And here be the last mountain range. I call it: "The Three Sisters and Their Weird Brother Who Stands off to the Side." I should probably change that to French, it might sound better: "Les Trois Sœurs et le Frère Maladroit."</span></td></tr>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu6OnRWktt4q9DR3G4vOK1dIT5PaFULLZ8bQWUhJXLjwR8_Qr4uwxrK7LK4Dy9w1IH98GeFhC6djyiCc3N5UF4hzkjiIgviLtUqJi2bbr_MGFVZJ4CF371bK_a6eTFpkprCocWuHizqwZx/s1600/24+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu6OnRWktt4q9DR3G4vOK1dIT5PaFULLZ8bQWUhJXLjwR8_Qr4uwxrK7LK4Dy9w1IH98GeFhC6djyiCc3N5UF4hzkjiIgviLtUqJi2bbr_MGFVZJ4CF371bK_a6eTFpkprCocWuHizqwZx/s400/24+-+DIY+Mountain+Mural.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">There you have it, folks! A DIY Mountain Mural. I hope this little tutorial was helpful (or at least entertaining). I defeated the wall by painting mountains. How hippie is that?</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-19031456469910351262016-06-08T11:51:00.001-04:002016-06-08T11:51:25.233-04:00Hope for Resistance?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTgjn2X9Lu4-_1Hbj-5mKxImb4iHtmCw5yK9mf0TdYpEaUs9xXFofzw4IPhlhyphenhyphenvbegFMpYPlrLivvcAc8BcqeTBnSSANKx1RZFvAH71F1Y8-vMlE9MA6EWZBPhrtCk0-KrtYxDOV382QWT/s1600/The-Boys-in-the-Boat-race-finish.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTgjn2X9Lu4-_1Hbj-5mKxImb4iHtmCw5yK9mf0TdYpEaUs9xXFofzw4IPhlhyphenhyphenvbegFMpYPlrLivvcAc8BcqeTBnSSANKx1RZFvAH71F1Y8-vMlE9MA6EWZBPhrtCk0-KrtYxDOV382QWT/s400/The-Boys-in-the-Boat-race-finish.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px;">Opposition is a curious thing. We frequently lament and complain about the presence of opposition in our lives, yet opposition—or resistance—is the </span><i style="color: #181818; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px;">only</i><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px;"> force by which we can improve our lives.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="color: #181818; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">While on a drive across the country, I was listening to </span><a href="http://amzn.to/1Ufjeie" target="_blank"><i style="font-size: 14px;">The Boys in the Boat</i><span style="font-size: 14px;"> by Daniel James Brown</span></a><span style="font-size: 14px;">. <i>The Boys in the Boat</i> is </span></span><span style="font-size: 14px;">the remarkable story of the University of Washington’s eight-oar crew and their quest for gold in the 1936 Berlin Olympics. About a third of the way through the book, I heard a profound quote about resistance and how it actually supports us:</span></span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px;">It is hard to make that boat go as fast as you want to. The enemy, of course, is resistance of the water, as you have to displace the amount of water equal to the weight of men and equipment, but that very water is what supports you and that very enemy is your friend. So is life: the very problems you must overcome also support you and make you stronger in overcoming them. (George Yeoman Pocock)</span></blockquote>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">We talk of heroes like Winston Churchill, George Washington, Nelson Mandela—and so many others—and glorify them because of their accomplishments. But their accomplishments were made possible by the resistance they encountered. Who would Winston Churchill be without World War II? Who would George Washington be without the Revolutionary War? Who would Nelson Mandela be without the struggle against Apartheid?</span></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">It should be noted, however, that encountering resistance doesn't automatically make us stronger. It is our determination to struggle against that resistance—to overcome our challenges—that makes us stronger. If we are to overcome our challenges, then we need to develop a certain measure of determination and grit—which, incidentally, <a href="http://amzn.to/1TVRE64" target="_blank">is the next book on my list</a>.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">Strangely enough, if we want to move forward in life we should not only expect resistance but hope for it—for resistance is the <i>only</i> thing that can make us stronger.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><br /></span></span></span>Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-78512772923111823662016-06-07T11:42:00.001-04:002016-06-07T11:42:29.840-04:00With Strong and Active Faith<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRjZp8FB7p7bO7hVXQ3yQmi-brhZWJYv-ZgLSFN-3ryviTIt9_mYozuBuo0OSeR2uWXuawj9b_jJFH9C663cNih2qewlKpPTMyiWBlLPDNTO4J9I02gL9VpmYLTD8grncUs8FKjrqdT8Gb/s1600/FDR+Memorial.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRjZp8FB7p7bO7hVXQ3yQmi-brhZWJYv-ZgLSFN-3ryviTIt9_mYozuBuo0OSeR2uWXuawj9b_jJFH9C663cNih2qewlKpPTMyiWBlLPDNTO4J9I02gL9VpmYLTD8grncUs8FKjrqdT8Gb/s320/FDR+Memorial.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Franklin D. Roosevelt</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
It's been a long time since I've written (or done) much of anything. I've reached a crossroads in my life—two distinct paths have opened up to me: one appeals to my wandering soul, while the other requires a great deal of persistence and hard work.<br />
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One path would be a comfortable road for me—while the other would be extremely uncomfortable. There are voices (in the world and within myself) that would urge me to take the comfortable road. "Do what makes you happy," the voices would say. "Follow your bliss." As nice as that sounds, I feel compelled to reject those voices. I have sat, quite comfortably, at the crossroads for a long time and I can tell you that <b>comfort isn't happiness</b>. Fulfillment is a product of labor. Joy comes after the exercise faith.<br />
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I recently finished watching the Ken Burns documentary on the Roosevelts. I was struck by how much each of the Roosevelts (Teddy, Eleanor, FDR), successful as they were, struggled with depression and heartache. As each episode detailed their secret struggles, I marveled at how each of them found the strength to persist—to move forward.<br />
<br />
I was particularly inspired by Franklin D. Roosevelt, who, after being crippled by Polio at age 39, was able to tap into an inner faith that led him onward. He became the President of the United States and led the nation through the Great Depression and on to victory against Nazi Germany. Any way you look at it, his story is absolutely remarkable.<br />
<br />
A few days before FDR's death, he worked on a speech—which he never delivered. Those words have become known as Roosevelt's last words—and they're a testament to the kind of life he lived. Here is the final part of <a href="http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=16602" target="_blank">that speech</a>:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Today, as we move against the terrible scourge of war—as we go forward toward the greatest contribution that any generation of human beings can make in this world- the contribution of lasting peace, <b>I ask you to keep up your faith.</b> I measure the sound, solid achievement that can be made at this time by the straight edge of your own confidence and your resolve. And to you, and to all Americans who dedicate themselves with us to the making of an abiding peace, I say: </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today. Let us move forward with strong and active faith.</b></blockquote>
We often refer to Roosevelt's generation of Americans as "the Greatest Generation." I think we do that because of how they moved forward with faith even though everything seemed to suggest that the world was collapsing around them (the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl, and World War II).<br />
<br />
I have many reasons to doubt myself and to search for an easier road. But after reading Roosevelt's words, I feel compelled to move forward with strong and active faith.<br />
<br />
Perhaps you, too, are searching the strength to move forward. I urge you to continue onward. The road may be hard, but the reward of faith is great. Hellen Keller put it this way: "Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved."<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisu0XkEp3765kmMyRbWuKmFRffgpN4nBUhoFmLO1ureXwolbgTkRumWfK7NjahW3bw71dmq6equFVQsVyGiUS7p-3xbeuk-jcors9iTOgvcQyDQZ2turAffqRdMcR-bw1KCis2V7Wv23Xe/s1600/Strong+Active+Faith+FDR.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="356" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisu0XkEp3765kmMyRbWuKmFRffgpN4nBUhoFmLO1ureXwolbgTkRumWfK7NjahW3bw71dmq6equFVQsVyGiUS7p-3xbeuk-jcors9iTOgvcQyDQZ2turAffqRdMcR-bw1KCis2V7Wv23Xe/s640/Strong+Active+Faith+FDR.PNG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">FDR's last, undelivered speech.</td></tr>
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<br />Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-6003494448791084442016-04-27T01:48:00.003-04:002016-04-27T01:48:54.429-04:00Have You Ever Wanted A New Beginning?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZJD4kSzn28mM6xh452VE1ANUvoQ9AmdhhnfylGsUzGpP4JUBvFrfo0XmjJNVHV_PtauhDjlh_QgeRbHsasDUQiiJq9aU7V9d2mdKNNL9uLYu_3nUTGNH5vKF3_EDCQfLMOpPW700ljfrU/s1600/ANASAZI+Foundation+New+Beginning.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZJD4kSzn28mM6xh452VE1ANUvoQ9AmdhhnfylGsUzGpP4JUBvFrfo0XmjJNVHV_PtauhDjlh_QgeRbHsasDUQiiJq9aU7V9d2mdKNNL9uLYu_3nUTGNH5vKF3_EDCQfLMOpPW700ljfrU/s640/ANASAZI+Foundation+New+Beginning.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
I've always been impressed by the symbolism associated with wakefulness—that is to say, the power of being awake.<br />
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Wakefulness is about so much more than just getting up in the morning—it's about rising up, being attentive, alert, and alive. The process of waking up every morning is, in and of itself, a symbol for being born again. To wake up is to have a new beginning.<br />
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In my life, I have been fortunate to associate with the <a href="http://www.anasazi.org/" target="_blank">Anasazi Foundation</a>. Anasazi is a pioneer wilderness therapy program that is rooted in Native American traditions. The basic idea behind Anasazi Foundation is to take participants into the Arizona wilderness for 50+ days, give them a space that is free from the distractions and noise of the world—and in so doing, help them find a new beginning.<br />
<br />
The other day, I spoke with Ezekiel Sanchez (also known as Good Buffalo Eagle). Ezekiel is a Native American and a co-Founder of the Anasazi program. He told me that one of the primary messages of Anasazi is to give others a new beginning. His son, Lehi Sanchez, recently published a video of Ezekiel which I think is incredible. I've included it below and I hope that it motivates you to wake up tomorrow and have a new beginning.<br />
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<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/wd4muq9gTvw" width="560"></iframe></center>
Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-65683160628343127742016-04-21T11:16:00.000-04:002016-04-21T11:16:52.203-04:00Are You Following a Calf-Path of the Mind?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieOizfaTl6Jmz2FxK9zJx-SBUxLXh1sMsTfnCEvHIDPxDI80AYV7smqW4mvI39Tx-0bekoWehjtTQSLwL01G9og8QujBsmP_9GvdKZI3wrtpAdHwg9B3rjWllP_ZKyFr6d0Dqldf0lbDqv/s1600/The+Calf-Path+Sam+Foss.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieOizfaTl6Jmz2FxK9zJx-SBUxLXh1sMsTfnCEvHIDPxDI80AYV7smqW4mvI39Tx-0bekoWehjtTQSLwL01G9og8QujBsmP_9GvdKZI3wrtpAdHwg9B3rjWllP_ZKyFr6d0Dqldf0lbDqv/s400/The+Calf-Path+Sam+Foss.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
This thought-provoking poem by Sam Foss is a bit on the long-side, but well worth the read! It tells the story of a calf who made a path that others would follow. The author ends the poem with a profound moral lesson on "calf-paths of the mind."<br />
<h2>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Calf-Path</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
by Sam Foss</div>
</h2>
<div style="text-align: center;">
I.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
One day through the primeval wood</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
A calf walked home as good calves should;</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
But made a trail all bent askew,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
A crooked trail as all calves do.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Since then three hundred years have fled,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And I infer the calf is dead.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
II.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
But still he left behind his trail,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And thereby hangs my moral tale.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
The trail was taken up next day,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
By a lone dog that passed that way;</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And then a wise bell-wether sheep</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Pursued the trail o’er vale and steep,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And drew the flock behind him, too,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
As good bell-wethers always do.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And from that day, o’er hill and glade.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Through those old woods a path was made.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
III.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And many men wound in and out,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And dodged, and turned, and bent about,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And uttered words of righteous wrath,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Because ‘twas such a crooked path;</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
But still they followed—do not laugh—</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
The first migrations of that calf,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And through this winding wood-way stalked</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Because he wobbled when he walked.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
IV.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
This forest path became a lane,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
that bent and turned and turned again;</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
This crooked lane became a road,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Where many a poor horse with his load</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Toiled on beneath the burning sun,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And traveled some three miles in one.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And thus a century and a half</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
They trod the footsteps of that calf.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
V.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
The years passed on in swiftness fleet,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
The road became a village street;</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And this, before men were aware,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
A city’s crowded thoroughfare.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And soon the central street was this</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Of a renowned metropolis;</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And men two centuries and a half,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Trod in the footsteps of that calf.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
VI.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Each day a hundred thousand rout</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Followed the zigzag calf about</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And o’er his crooked journey went</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
The traffic of a continent.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
A Hundred thousand men were led,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
By one calf near three centuries dead.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
They followed still his crooked way,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And lost one hundred years a day;</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
For thus such reverence is lent,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
To well established precedent.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
VII.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
A moral lesson this might teach</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Were I ordained and called to preach;</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
For men are prone to go it blind</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Along the calf-paths of the mind,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And work away from sun to sun,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
To do what other men have done.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
They follow in the beaten track,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And out and in, and forth and back,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And still their devious course pursue,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
To keep the path that others do.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
They keep the path a sacred groove,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Along which all their lives they move.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
But how the wise old wood gods laugh,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Who saw the first primeval calf.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Ah, many things this tale might teach—</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
But I am not ordained to preach.</div>
Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-60575520856385671232016-04-16T14:02:00.001-04:002016-04-16T14:02:49.948-04:00BE STRONG! | Poetry to Give You Strength<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfU-Rt3Mlbdcyh0103dzX_63hVFMfDSwsSdrE7rr3u65EpKvwOBNoLPQihuFnljSK4bwqAysTM5XI3oHh27r99dsElqeFt42_KjqlGV0HLPRAHsufeKca7_g9EPIwYbniCv_BAlAMF4_nC/s1600/Sisyphus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="205" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfU-Rt3Mlbdcyh0103dzX_63hVFMfDSwsSdrE7rr3u65EpKvwOBNoLPQihuFnljSK4bwqAysTM5XI3oHh27r99dsElqeFt42_KjqlGV0HLPRAHsufeKca7_g9EPIwYbniCv_BAlAMF4_nC/s400/Sisyphus.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
Here is a marvelous little poem that will inspire you to press on! <b>The struggle you are fighting today is God's gift to you.</b> It's like the legend of the man, cursed by the gods to push a large boulder over a mountain. Going uphill was arduous, painful work, but as soon as the man reached the summit, he realized that the task given to him by the gods had actually blessed him with strength.<br />
<br />
So press on and be strong!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
BE STRONG!</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
by Maltbie D. Babcock</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Be strong!</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
We are not here to play, to dream, to drift,</div>
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We have hard work to do, and loads to lift.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Shun not the struggle, face it, 'tis God's gift.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Be strong!</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Say not the days are evil—who's to blame!</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And fold the hands and acquiesce—O shame!</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Stand up, speak out, and bravely, in God's name.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Be strong!</div>
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It matters not how deep entrenched the wrong,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
How hard the battle goes, the day, how long;</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Faint not, fight on! To-morrow comes the song!</div>
Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-33613106966829087452016-04-07T00:27:00.000-04:002016-04-07T00:27:33.529-04:00Can One Person Make a Difference?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd4nnzNTIAvI4sY_htIMtOt9LadrmBO7zH1JPUrS_JF9-oIbLVLVRbXX4VdewzaKFGTOwjvxShpAKRPpokx-qEn8PFXugV1Ccnkj78dz6OTL5MAAzHlphsufXL6JD5SOn68cybMJs0Kry7/s1600/Forward+Walking+Depression.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd4nnzNTIAvI4sY_htIMtOt9LadrmBO7zH1JPUrS_JF9-oIbLVLVRbXX4VdewzaKFGTOwjvxShpAKRPpokx-qEn8PFXugV1Ccnkj78dz6OTL5MAAzHlphsufXL6JD5SOn68cybMJs0Kry7/s320/Forward+Walking+Depression.png" width="240" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<h2>
Can One Person Make a Difference?</h2>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I love these lyrics from the musical <i>Dear World</i>. I'm about to launch several new projects and I've been looking for some encouragement. I'm particularly inspired by the line "one person can hold a touch and light up the sky again."</div>
<br />
"One Person" </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>From the musical Dear World</i></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
One person can beat a drum</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And make enough noise for ten;</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
One person can blow a horn</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And that little boom</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And that little blare</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Can make a hundreds others care.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And one person can hold a torch</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And light up the sky again.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And one little voice that's squeaking a song,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Can make a million voices strong.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
If one person can beat a drum,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And one person can blow a horn,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
If one person can hold a torch,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Then one person can change the world!</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
There may be an army of them</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And only a handful of us,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And how can a poor little band fight a mighty regime.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
There may be a legion of them,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
And only a parcel of us,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
But it isn't the size of the first,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
It's the size of a dream!</div>
Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-47816640923812189032015-07-20T21:58:00.000-04:002015-07-20T21:58:04.119-04:00The Winds of Fate - Ella Wheeler WilcoxThis short little poem reminds us that it's not the storms of life that tell us where to go—it's the direction we set our sails...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_kseIHOtJTQru8GOyQXDGa2pGdNNwUgGa1HBRdAV2KHRSNYPggvGjg_VuMc9NWVkbyywYmq_Z_xD5IyJSNWrs0wY9DgqUpozax6oG0wLFh35EdavsEFYh90rBZ77lziEGZWpO_xOlx1O_/s1600/Sir+Francis+Drake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_kseIHOtJTQru8GOyQXDGa2pGdNNwUgGa1HBRdAV2KHRSNYPggvGjg_VuMc9NWVkbyywYmq_Z_xD5IyJSNWrs0wY9DgqUpozax6oG0wLFh35EdavsEFYh90rBZ77lziEGZWpO_xOlx1O_/s320/Sir+Francis+Drake.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"><b>"The Winds of Fate"</b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"><b>by Ella Wheeler Wilcox</b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">One ship drives east and another drives west</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">With the selfsame winds that blow.</span></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
Tis the set of the sails</div>
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
And not the gales</div>
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
Which tells us the way to go.</div>
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
Like the winds of the seas are the ways of fate,</div>
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
As we voyage along through the life:</div>
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
Tis the set of a soul</div>
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
That decides its goal,</div>
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
And not the calm or the strife.</div>
</span>Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-14670403267627240752015-07-16T12:49:00.001-04:002015-07-20T21:53:48.002-04:00Two Kinds of People - Ella Wheeler Wilcox<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHaabMSMpMERbnHE0K_gXfagrKHE9MRTXYkOTb6OPwBZLJk1BiIoomgphUmmLSg4JZyYIj4cpM4xrN8DUagXw5_koQNaUVRlDs9lFoO2MP0eBiPP2Y8YKpu_rVJ-12wNowemIse-y6-Vq7/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-07-30+at+2.58.54+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="167" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHaabMSMpMERbnHE0K_gXfagrKHE9MRTXYkOTb6OPwBZLJk1BiIoomgphUmmLSg4JZyYIj4cpM4xrN8DUagXw5_koQNaUVRlDs9lFoO2MP0eBiPP2Y8YKpu_rVJ-12wNowemIse-y6-Vq7/s400/Screen+Shot+2014-07-30+at+2.58.54+PM.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What kind of person are you?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br />
I love this poem by Ella Wheeler Wilcox. (But let's face it, I pretty much love <i>anything</i> written by Ella Wheeler Wilcox.) In this poem, Ella says that there are basically two kinds of people in the world and then asks the inescapable question: what kind of person are <i>you</i>?<br />
<br /></div>
<h2>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
<b>"Two Kinds of People"</b></div>
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
<b>by Ella Wheeler Wilcox</b></div>
</span></h2>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">There are two kinds of people on earth today,</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">Two kinds of people no more I say.</span></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">Not the good or the bad, for it's well understood,</span></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"></span>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">The good are half bad, the bad are half good.</span></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">
</span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">Not the happy or sad, for in the swift-flying years,</span></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">Bring each man his laughter, each man his tears.</span></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"></span>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">Not the rich or the poor, for to count a man's wealth,</span></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
You must know the state of his conscience and health.</div>
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">Not the humble and proud, for in life's busy span,</span></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">Who puts on vain airs is not counted a man.</span></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"></span>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">No! the two kinds of people on earth I mean,</span></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
Are the people who lift, the people who lean.</div>
</span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">Wherever you go you'll find the world's masses</span></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">Are ever divided into these two classes.</span></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"></span>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">And, strangely enough, you will find, too, I mean,</span></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
There is only one lifter to twenty who lean.</div>
</span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">In which class are you? Are you easing the load</span></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">Of the overtaxed lifters who toiled down the road?</span></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"></span>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">Or are you a leaner who lets others bear,</span></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
Your portion of worry and labor and care?” </div>
</span>Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-4323853087753070452015-01-19T07:44:00.000-05:002015-01-19T07:44:16.525-05:00POWERFUL! Martin Luther King Jr.'s LAST Speech<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfC8ogTCxqwZCM1Xl7975M_dJdoBPyia9yOr0mIAFI9xTFAhNGR2sDp_yGBXbUtBm19eGbdxY4ahlT5fvFsGvJ2q-RWNRMeNnzyl2OAZTvYC83LeZelyMlq9jZmhXhWlpToUYHm5KFKAsF/s1600/Martin_Luther_King_Jr_NYWTS_6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfC8ogTCxqwZCM1Xl7975M_dJdoBPyia9yOr0mIAFI9xTFAhNGR2sDp_yGBXbUtBm19eGbdxY4ahlT5fvFsGvJ2q-RWNRMeNnzyl2OAZTvYC83LeZelyMlq9jZmhXhWlpToUYHm5KFKAsF/s1600/Martin_Luther_King_Jr_NYWTS_6.jpg" height="266" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Martin Luther King Jr.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Here is a selection from Martin Luther King Jr.'s last public speech "I've Been to the Mountaintop." It's gives me chills when I hear him say some of these things. It's almost as if he knew he was going to be assassinated...<br />
<br />
<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Oehry1JC9Rk" width="420"></iframe><center>
</center>
</center>
Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-15698624304357749962015-01-03T07:48:00.002-05:002015-01-03T07:48:42.808-05:00Thoughts Are Things<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNGyDoFnbD734ej43dUr55yq7a3ADBgZmmDsORXQIF7cm-1jUw_4F27-8YbpucLVXNRY6SOkgo7RS8Y9u8MCnkTVPDD8iL6ow4wqSzwRWrFToYDUPmlrBnxCkJBSNowNE3UReAfAXDYkFW/s1600/Thoughts+Are+Things.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNGyDoFnbD734ej43dUr55yq7a3ADBgZmmDsORXQIF7cm-1jUw_4F27-8YbpucLVXNRY6SOkgo7RS8Y9u8MCnkTVPDD8iL6ow4wqSzwRWrFToYDUPmlrBnxCkJBSNowNE3UReAfAXDYkFW/s1600/Thoughts+Are+Things.jpg" height="320" width="256" /></a></div>
<br />
I've read a lot lately about the power of our thoughts. I definitely believe that our thoughts have power—that they exert a kind of gravitational pull on what we perceive to receive in life. I also believe that others have a kind of sixth sense about how we feel about them. I love this poem by Ella Wheeler Wilcox about how our thoughts can make a difference.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-size: large;">"Secret Thoughts"</span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-size: large;">by Ella Wheeler Wilcox</span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>I hold it true that thoughts are things</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Endowed with bodies, breath, and wings,</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>And that we send them forth to fill</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>The world with good results---or ill.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>That which we call our secret thought</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Speeds to the earth's remotest spot,</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>And leaves its blessings or its woes</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Like tracks behind it as it goes.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>It is God's law. Remember it</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>In your still chamber as you sit</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>With thoughts you would not dare have known,</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>And yet made comrades when alone.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>These thoughts have life; and they will fly</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>And leave their impress by and by,</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Like some marsh breeze, whose poisoned breath</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Breathes into homes its fevered breath.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>And after you have quite forgot</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Or all outgrown some vanished thought,</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Back to your mind to make its home,</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>A dove or raven, it will come.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Then let your secret thoughts be fair;</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>They have a vital part and share</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>In shaping worlds and moulding fate---</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>God's system is so intricate.</i></div>
Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-19882998297562699662015-01-01T15:55:00.002-05:002015-01-01T15:55:39.710-05:00I Choose to Live By Choice, Not By Chance...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH0Hfk4SzXsbySdCh7NzRHb3ZnXIIbw61ZOaAH-uSzcoX8TwWkcCspSiT3UL8cbXuuymka7F9_4U5BxbZojaMwEMRHjleLDXUdZuH2NwUwByF5Ur5qRvHFTQSB46su_0UC9X881nGB_yae/s1600/Today+Choice.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH0Hfk4SzXsbySdCh7NzRHb3ZnXIIbw61ZOaAH-uSzcoX8TwWkcCspSiT3UL8cbXuuymka7F9_4U5BxbZojaMwEMRHjleLDXUdZuH2NwUwByF5Ur5qRvHFTQSB46su_0UC9X881nGB_yae/s1600/Today+Choice.jpg" height="311" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Today I choose to live by choice, not by chance.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>To make changes, not excuses.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>To be motivated, not manipulated.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>To be useful, not used.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>To excel, not compete.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>I choose self-esteem, not pity.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>I choose to listen to the inner voice,</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>not the random opinion of others.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>-Author Unknown</i></div>
Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-72992269058006928482014-12-28T18:05:00.001-05:002014-12-28T18:05:36.024-05:00If You Think You Are Beaten, You Are<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6EXmPsPrzt0YqT46713e8XS-lCLpAMDmV6Sx3zpkejZO3MdPE25F21qg5emCpq_T6B7wjG4ZMeTdzxHkN2MzAjd07br8qXjJ7ooRGKmhYzsk6nihDVtK17Vr3p8cT_yWNlohvYJKe3cXn/s1600/22577_327591709046_626474046_4580409_2760683_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6EXmPsPrzt0YqT46713e8XS-lCLpAMDmV6Sx3zpkejZO3MdPE25F21qg5emCpq_T6B7wjG4ZMeTdzxHkN2MzAjd07br8qXjJ7ooRGKmhYzsk6nihDVtK17Vr3p8cT_yWNlohvYJKe3cXn/s1600/22577_327591709046_626474046_4580409_2760683_n.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
This short poem is a powerful reminder that our thoughts are the architects of our destiny.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>"Thinking"</b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>by Walter D. Wintle</b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>If you think you are beaten, you are</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>If you think you dare not, you don't,</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>If you like to win, but you think you can't</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>It is almost certain you won't.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>If you think you'll lose, you've lost</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>For out of the world we find,</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Success begins with a fellow's will</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>It's all in the state of mind.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>If you think you are outclassed, you are</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>You've got to think high to rise,</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>You've got to be sure of yourself before</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>You can ever win a prize.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Life's battles don't always go</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>To the stronger or faster man,</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>But soon or late the man who wins</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Is the man WHO THINKS HE CAN!</i></div>
Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-83257147161292591582014-12-09T20:07:00.001-05:002014-12-09T20:07:38.316-05:00This Little Girl Just Restored My Faith in Humanity...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQb2PvypxOPr647XJIH8CRkozNlCYeg6xZPwlFYJJji4QXEZHk_SXtptP3XsQPyYD8orq2IUtNSVx3KlT-9MVZzlOD-lobfyCatjQhvA_iXfZlljhjPx7loMCU4luG_KgscLg0-M1LlWSY/s1600/Girl+Dancing+Subway+Funny.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQb2PvypxOPr647XJIH8CRkozNlCYeg6xZPwlFYJJji4QXEZHk_SXtptP3XsQPyYD8orq2IUtNSVx3KlT-9MVZzlOD-lobfyCatjQhvA_iXfZlljhjPx7loMCU4luG_KgscLg0-M1LlWSY/s1600/Girl+Dancing+Subway+Funny.png" height="222" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
This little girl started a dance party at an NYC Subway stop...and it restored my faith in humanity. Watch the video below!
<br />
<br />
<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/g1tVbD2aQ7E" width="560"></iframe></center>
Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-48474529205593020332014-12-06T15:24:00.001-05:002014-12-06T15:30:50.577-05:00Do You Have Room for the Savior?This is one of my favorite Christmas songs. It has a powerful message.<br />
<br />
<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/cOX5z5QJ_dY" width="560"></iframe></center>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>"Do You Have Room" Lyrics</b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>They journeyed far, a weary pair</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>They sought for shelter from the cold night air</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Some place where she could lay her head</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Where she could give her babe a quiet bed</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Was there no room? No corner there?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>In all the town a spot someone could spare?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Was there no soul come to their aid?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>A stable bare was where the family stayed.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Chorus:</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Do you have room for the Savior?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>And do you seek Him anew?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Have you a place for the one who lived and died for you?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Are you as humble as a shepherd boy</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Or as wise as men of old?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Would you have come that night?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Would you have sought the light?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Do you have room?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>A star arose, a wondrous light</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>A sign from God -- this was the holy night.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>And yet so few would go to see</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>The babe who came to rescue you and me.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>This child divine is now a King;</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>The gift of life to all the world He brings</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>And all mankind He saves from doom,</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>But on that night, for Him, there was no room</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Chorus</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Will you come tonight?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Will you seek the light?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Do you have room?</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNjUXJmKdv6SmXHYL9nOB9F2-HVsoqvaH4aXjrxTCo8Sf6pzv6sldtcom5sjKmnqL4Lm-DMeWIMrrrH_t1bnRh7kYLxg3dqbCsqUuTcD2S_cSihxcPyPSfGPy9O0_2fCPdipt0u9LV4Cpg/s1600/Do+You+Have+Room.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNjUXJmKdv6SmXHYL9nOB9F2-HVsoqvaH4aXjrxTCo8Sf6pzv6sldtcom5sjKmnqL4Lm-DMeWIMrrrH_t1bnRh7kYLxg3dqbCsqUuTcD2S_cSihxcPyPSfGPy9O0_2fCPdipt0u9LV4Cpg/s1600/Do+You+Have+Room.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Would you have come that night?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<i><br /></i></div>
Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-74605097353785782072014-12-01T07:00:00.000-05:002014-12-01T07:00:11.622-05:00Insecurity: The Greatest Threat to Progress<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwXy1CVHUqPtR2nMwnWXoZ3Eff1Ykv82GXDhH0fDf9fxIgLRLXQIPsy-vEPhIDTlTB9-CTbuv3DC1DLHfx5u4tyweD8vG5aI7PxrIhpUgOnaco7aEzgokA6s5utvezm7vBK-eY1qR0eG_l/s1600/angela-johnson-because-of-love1.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwXy1CVHUqPtR2nMwnWXoZ3Eff1Ykv82GXDhH0fDf9fxIgLRLXQIPsy-vEPhIDTlTB9-CTbuv3DC1DLHfx5u4tyweD8vG5aI7PxrIhpUgOnaco7aEzgokA6s5utvezm7vBK-eY1qR0eG_l/s1600/angela-johnson-because-of-love1.jpeg" height="320" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Sculpture of Christ by Angela Johnson</td></tr>
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Some time ago, I went to a presentation on leadership given by Jonathan Johnson, the President of the More Good Foundation. He made a very strong point when he said that failures in leadership and in organizations all seem to stem from one thing: insecurity.<br />
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“The greatest single personnel issues that I have ever faced [within organizations],” said Jonathan, “…have come because of…insecurity. Insecurity fosters emotional responses, selfish ideals [but] if you know who you are, is there a need to be insecure?”<br />
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He then discussed, in detail, a talk by Spencer W. Kimball entitled <i><a href="https://www.lds.org/ensign/1979/08/jesus-the-perfect-leader?lang=eng" target="_blank">Jesus: The Perfect Leader</a></i>, from which I pull this awesome quote:<br />
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<i>Jesus knew who he was and why he was here on this planet. That meant he could lead from strength rather than from uncertainty or weakness. </i></blockquote>
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<i>Jesus operated from a base of fixed principles or truths rather than making up the rules as he went along. Thus, his leadership style was not only correct, but also constant. So many secular leaders today are like chameleons; they change their hues and views to fit the situation—which only tends to confuse associates and followers who cannot be certain what course is being pursued. Those who cling to power at the expense of principle often end up doing almost anything to perpetuate their power.</i></blockquote>
Jon suggested that since we know who we are (children of God) and since we have taken upon ourselves the name of Christ, we should not feel insecure about who we are and what we have been called to do. We should walk forward in faith.<br />
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A great presentation on leadership!Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-52758625427695201852014-11-28T19:42:00.000-05:002014-11-28T19:42:49.762-05:00So You Want to Publish A Book? Here's How...<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdJAlJCTm2QXUhrWyfvA8mVtLuN0f3P9t0CEfEoBMWW3BVyEeqZwTwpnBhEmyImDpHV2dZ6KHQDrN4fRGw6Kl07WymGRUU79iC5y-CmFNJpOuBKajksedqZla21Ualm3X_IgWueSPluVY_/s1600/Seth+Adam+Smith+TEDx+Talk.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdJAlJCTm2QXUhrWyfvA8mVtLuN0f3P9t0CEfEoBMWW3BVyEeqZwTwpnBhEmyImDpHV2dZ6KHQDrN4fRGw6Kl07WymGRUU79iC5y-CmFNJpOuBKajksedqZla21Ualm3X_IgWueSPluVY_/s1600/Seth+Adam+Smith+TEDx+Talk.png" height="223" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Books Don't Create Movements, Movements Create Books"</td></tr>
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Some time ago, I had the incredible opportunity to speak at TEDx in Sarasota, Florida. The title of my talk was "Books Don't Create Movements, Movements Create Books."<br />
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In my presentation, I shared some ideas on how to start a movement that will help you achieve your dreams and I even reveal my own childhood dream...
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/YU5hgkyDsC0?rel=0" width="560"></iframe></center>
Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-20340524630584047052014-11-22T08:25:00.000-05:002014-12-28T14:27:14.798-05:00When Nature Wants A Man - by Angela Morgan<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOqSDNmBlyKD-UYHz-Z2gOg5cOyLjyZ2zZ650xx6UoMBfTcRVgkHS-_Pak9XxpRes_wmoBeH0OgBgLYHbV31BhQ6-_fgR_KL8YM63ooA0n4-G0XaOMG-F2sO7ry9B40LCPFSNXMGhmIT8Q/s1600/168029_815286048239_7128291_n.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOqSDNmBlyKD-UYHz-Z2gOg5cOyLjyZ2zZ650xx6UoMBfTcRVgkHS-_Pak9XxpRes_wmoBeH0OgBgLYHbV31BhQ6-_fgR_KL8YM63ooA0n4-G0XaOMG-F2sO7ry9B40LCPFSNXMGhmIT8Q/s1600/168029_815286048239_7128291_n.jpeg" height="220" width="400" /></a></div>
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This inspiring poem is a powerful reminder that our obstacles in life are the very things which make us stronger and wiser.</div>
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<b>When Nature Wants A Man</b></div>
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<b>by Angela Morgan</b></div>
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<i>When Nature wants to drill a man, </i></div>
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<i>And thrill a man,</i></div>
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<i>And skill a man.</i></div>
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<i>When Nature wants to mould a man </i></div>
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<i>To play the noblest part;</i></div>
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<i>When she yearns with all her heart </i></div>
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<i>To create so great and bold a man </i></div>
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<i>That all the world shall praise –</i></div>
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<i>Watch her method, watch her ways! </i></div>
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<i>How she ruthlessly perfects </i></div>
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<i>Whom she royally elects;</i></div>
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<i>How she hammers him and hurts him, </i></div>
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<i>And with mighty blows converts him</i></div>
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<i>Into trial shapes of clay which only Nature understands</i></div>
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<i>While his tortured heart is crying and he lifts beseeching hands!</i></div>
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<i>How she bends, but never breaks, </i></div>
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<i>When his good she undertakes. . . . </i></div>
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<i>How she uses whom she chooses </i></div>
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<i>And with every purpose fuses him, </i></div>
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<i>By every art induces him</i></div>
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<i>To try his splendour out –</i></div>
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<i>Nature knows what she's about.</i></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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<i>When Nature wants to take a man, </i></div>
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<i>And shake a man,</i></div>
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<i>And wake a man;</i></div>
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<i>When Nature wants to make a man </i></div>
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<i>To do the Future's will;</i></div>
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<i>When she tries with all her skill </i></div>
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<i>And she yearns with all her soul </i></div>
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<i>To create him large and whole . . . </i></div>
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<i>With what cunning she prepares him!</i></div>
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<i>How she goads and never spares him, </i></div>
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<i>How she whets him, and she frets him, </i></div>
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<i>And in poverty begets him . . .</i></div>
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<i>How she often disappoints </i></div>
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<i>Whom she sacredly anoints, </i></div>
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<i>With what wisdom she will hide him, </i></div>
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<i>Never minding what betide him </i></div>
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<i>Though his genius sob with slighting and his pride may not forget!</i></div>
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<i>Bids him struggle harder yet. </i></div>
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<i>Makes him lonely</i></div>
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<i>So that only </i></div>
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<i>God's high messages shall reach him, </i></div>
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<i>So that she may surely teach him </i></div>
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<i>What the Hierarchy planned. </i></div>
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<i>Though he may not understand, </i></div>
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<i>Gives him passions to command. </i></div>
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<i>How remorselessly she spurs him </i></div>
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<i>With terrific ardour stirs him</i></div>
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<i>When she poignantly prefers him</i></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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<i>When Nature wants to name a man </i></div>
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<i>And fame a man</i></div>
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<i>And tame a man;</i></div>
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<i>When Nature wants to shame a man </i></div>
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<i>To do his heavenly best . . .</i></div>
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<i>When she tries the highest test </i></div>
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<i>That she reckoning may bring</i></div>
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<i>When she wants a god or king! </i></div>
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<i>How she reins him and restrains him </i></div>
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<i>So his body scarce contains him </i></div>
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<i>While she fires him</i></div>
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<i>And inspires him!</i></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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<i>Keeps him yearning, ever burning for a tantalizing goal –</i></div>
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<i>Lures and lacerates his soul. </i></div>
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<i>Sets a challenge for his spirit, </i></div>
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<i>Draws it higher when he's near it</i></div>
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<i>Makes a jungle, that he clear it; </i></div>
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<i>Makes a desert that he fear it</i></div>
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<i>And subdue it if he can – </i></div>
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<i>So doth Nature make a man. </i></div>
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<i>Then, to test his spirit's wrath </i></div>
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<i>Hurls a mountain in his path</i></div>
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<i>Puts a bitter choice before him</i></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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<i>And relentlessly stands o'er him.</i></div>
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<i>"Climb, or perish I" so she says. . . . </i></div>
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<i>Watch her purpose, watch her ways!</i></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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<i>Nature's plan is wondrous kind </i></div>
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<i>Could we understand her mind . . . </i></div>
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<i>Fools are they who call her blind. </i></div>
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<i>When his feet are torn and bleeding </i></div>
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<i>Yet his spirit mounts unheeding, </i></div>
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<i>All his higher powers speeding, </i></div>
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<i>Blazing newer paths and fine; </i></div>
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<i>When the force that is Divine</i></div>
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<i>Leaps to challenge every failure and his ardour still is sweet</i></div>
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<i>And love and hope are burning in the presence of defeat . . .</i></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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<i>Lo, the crisis! Lo, the shout </i></div>
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<i>That must call the leader out. </i></div>
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<i>When the people need salvation </i></div>
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<i>Doth he come to lead the nation. . . . </i></div>
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<i>Then doth Nature show her plan </i></div>
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<i>When the world has found - a MAN!</i></div>
Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-57220220388181389302014-09-20T20:11:00.000-04:002014-09-20T20:11:14.935-04:00The Legend of the Northern Lights<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkQ6zOzE5DBoglrRDobaX3zHO_9CHmj8PSmNHAWDOfU5QQk7I9nmojR_2oiPwn5s3WLrml9BmOJ1eAT6tW6OwpdnnjO0jTqS29QcqnMGY2SdO13WwUeSNQvs91iz7FvjEV14e-dOhwiG4O/s1600/The+Northern+Lights+Polar+Bear.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkQ6zOzE5DBoglrRDobaX3zHO_9CHmj8PSmNHAWDOfU5QQk7I9nmojR_2oiPwn5s3WLrml9BmOJ1eAT6tW6OwpdnnjO0jTqS29QcqnMGY2SdO13WwUeSNQvs91iz7FvjEV14e-dOhwiG4O/s400/The+Northern+Lights+Polar+Bear.png" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"If you look upward and fight onward, you can conquer the Great Mountain."</td></tr>
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I'm not sure if I can take credit for this story because it was given to me in a moment of pure inspiration. I was camping in Arizona, and staring up at the stars with some friends when it suddenly struck me (True story. I have witnesses!).<br />
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Using the light of the fire, I sat up and hurriedly wrote it down.
I've included it in my book, <a href="http://goo.gl/nInAsZ" target="_blank"><em>Your Life Isn't For You</em></a>, with the sincere hope that it will help guide others forward. I've worked on the video featured below for a long time. If it inspires you, please—as a special favor to me—share it with others.<br />
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I am profoundly grateful for <a href="http://ashleycollettdesign.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Ashley Collett</a> (for creating such amazing illustrations) and for <a href="http://www.davidtolk.com/" target="_blank">David Tolk</a> (for allowing me to use his beautiful music).
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/ljLbeISADzo" width="560"></iframe></center>
Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-73724743506919280002014-09-05T07:42:00.000-04:002014-09-05T07:42:33.097-04:00Go To The Limits of Your Longing<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1573225851/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1573225851&linkCode=as2&tag=thealamus-20&linkId=7FCEHVAVLKCTNLJP" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJn1SlnCYF46sRDl-g9cl1YL_WA87P3RYylGTws84AHJMtDePjkHUguc7RGilFQ-bswAhx8RKJmKJcD3cFa4C0J0f_zq9hpzKcGKYgvzV0l7dLcrFGsjSVfDjFkNNpixLfi4RENQhy4HLd/s1600/Northern+Lights.jpg" height="260" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1573225851/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1573225851&linkCode=as2&tag=thealamus-20&linkId=7FCEHVAVLKCTNLJP" target="_blank">Flare up like a flame...</a></td></tr>
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<br />
My wife recently showed me this poem. I think its absolutely wonderful. They come from Rainer Maria Rilke's <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1573225851/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1573225851&linkCode=as2&tag=thealamus-20&linkId=7FCEHVAVLKCTNLJP" target="_blank">Book of Hours: Love Poems to God</a></i><br />
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<b>"Go To The Limits of Your Longing" </b></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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<i>God speaks to each of us as he makes us,</i></div>
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<i>then walks with us silently out of the night.</i></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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<i>These are the words we dimly hear:</i></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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<i>You, sent out beyond your recall,</i></div>
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<i>go to the limits of your longing.</i></div>
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<i>Embody me.</i></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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<i>Flare up like a flame</i></div>
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<i>and make big shadows I can move in.</i></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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<i>Let everything happen to you: beauty and terror.</i></div>
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<i>Just keep going. No feeling is final.</i></div>
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<i>Don't let yourself lose me.</i></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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<i>Nearby is the country they call life.</i></div>
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<i>You will know it by its seriousness.</i></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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<i>Give me your hand.</i></div>
Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-64094097907046626512014-07-31T11:58:00.004-04:002014-07-31T11:58:45.549-04:00Benjamin Franklin Invented "Paying It Forward"<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0h3l7E6Og5EhooqUH0ReB1jL-ECwy0IHitbrqx1WsqXkGNFzwvMlLfvT-Hxcu4k0iA97crbXFo7CyBNOkGORvrX787ZOdKAWhUN7ZcDMZU-tXctYsK0YOfCKRUZNd83SYNAEv6vf1hNTc/s1600/Ben+Franklin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0h3l7E6Og5EhooqUH0ReB1jL-ECwy0IHitbrqx1WsqXkGNFzwvMlLfvT-Hxcu4k0iA97crbXFo7CyBNOkGORvrX787ZOdKAWhUN7ZcDMZU-tXctYsK0YOfCKRUZNd83SYNAEv6vf1hNTc/s1600/Ben+Franklin.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ben Franklin and "Pay It Forward"</td></tr>
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This totally blows my mind, but Benjamin Franklin essentially invented the concept of "paying it forward," as we know it.<br />
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In <a href="http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Franklin_to_Benjamin_Webb" target="_blank">a letter to Benjamin Webb</a>, Franklin wrote this:<br />
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"I do not pretend to give such a deed; I only lend it to you. When you [...] meet with another honest Man in similar Distress, you must pay me by lending this Sum to him; enjoining him to discharge the Debt by a like operation, when he shall be able, and shall meet with another opportunity. I hope it may thus go thro' many hands, before it meets with a Knave that will stop its Progress. This is a trick of mine for doing a deal of good with a little money.</blockquote>
Although he was the son of an impoverished candle-maker, Ben grew to become one of the wealthiest men in America—yet he never forgot his roots and constantly strove to better society. He founded America's first hospital, organized the world's first fire department, and dedicated the remaining years of his life to the abolition of slavery. It truly amazes me how prodigiously charitable this man was.<br />
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I challenge you to honor Ben's legacy by "paying it forward" today. Do a good service for someone in need—because the world is in desperate need of goodness.Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-52593451641780811292014-07-30T15:04:00.000-04:002014-07-30T15:04:12.052-04:00Suicide & The Hope of God's Light<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVKMchvRhDBEmeScbc9R4wXlOJX54CyJaSZv5cheKNTX27iUiT8LkcJ_NEujnwFNy2TSELARAWDj6l_ZTknHqjg0I3yaZIEZ7jQy8QourpA5_ei1jcJ_b0d5JTZWBsI1ww2N5nS7vUj-YD/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-07-30+at+2.58.54+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVKMchvRhDBEmeScbc9R4wXlOJX54CyJaSZv5cheKNTX27iUiT8LkcJ_NEujnwFNy2TSELARAWDj6l_ZTknHqjg0I3yaZIEZ7jQy8QourpA5_ei1jcJ_b0d5JTZWBsI1ww2N5nS7vUj-YD/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-07-30+at+2.58.54+PM.png" height="165" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>"I realized that it is part of our condition as mortals to sometimes <br />feel as though we are surrounded by darkness..."</i></td></tr>
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As someone who struggled (and occasionally still struggles) with suicidal thoughts and feelings, this wonderful video hit really close to home. I am <i>so</i> grateful for the people who made it.<br />
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<i>"Many of us have wondered if God knows us or if He even exists. Todd was someone who made fun of people who thought God was real, and he wasn’t surprised when he didn’t get an immediate answer to a prayer. But could God be giving us small but obvious answers? And how patient do we need to be to get those answers?"</i><br />
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Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-55777616755854397382014-07-29T21:48:00.000-04:002014-07-29T21:52:27.126-04:00Children With Down Syndrome Answer A Mother's Question...<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg7DU184kEkapuCKtYlI8tPxg0918Er8bYpycgIIGTU8BZAponE3sQwbghhf8XrSVizMnELRv1j-NFCq37GenLOuLj6gfURl2AsrEKtiQxiMhgYy75eDV3R2J47xIWLZ0XFJbUY-DIEg6T/s1600/Down+Syndrome.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg7DU184kEkapuCKtYlI8tPxg0918Er8bYpycgIIGTU8BZAponE3sQwbghhf8XrSVizMnELRv1j-NFCq37GenLOuLj6gfURl2AsrEKtiQxiMhgYy75eDV3R2J47xIWLZ0XFJbUY-DIEg6T/s1600/Down+Syndrome.jpg" height="240" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"My baby has Down Syndrome..."</td></tr>
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If any of you know about my family life, you'll know that I have a tender spot in my heart for those who have "disabilities."<br />
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In this heartwarming video, 15 people with Down syndrome share a message to a future mother. I still have tears in my eyes...<br />
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Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379433703375158467.post-33219426587607829462014-07-28T17:35:00.000-04:002014-07-28T17:35:01.587-04:00A Touching Story From the American Revolutionary War <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUPTt5XqH6DsZ8wNjIhoCOkByOZikJdBHLY7Palw_LcQQ3J53838cbo2aajmKOsSjxKFLW0m1HYUwe5S9ZIFvZk4YjyvKYSZVzmP0jsE_fiVYL8sj3DV270BgLfyMlSnAOPrJ-gUZMEbev/s1600/Revolutionary+War.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUPTt5XqH6DsZ8wNjIhoCOkByOZikJdBHLY7Palw_LcQQ3J53838cbo2aajmKOsSjxKFLW0m1HYUwe5S9ZIFvZk4YjyvKYSZVzmP0jsE_fiVYL8sj3DV270BgLfyMlSnAOPrJ-gUZMEbev/s1600/Revolutionary+War.jpg" height="263" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The surrender of Cornwallis</td></tr>
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In a wonderful speech about American history, David McCullough, author of <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0743226720/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0743226720&linkCode=as2&tag=thealamus-20&linkId=OR5ZTSG4H6MEIJQL" target="_blank">1776</a></i> and <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0743223136/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0743223136&linkCode=as2&tag=thealamus-20&linkId=NDC5V2ORLP2XSLDP" target="_blank"><i>John Adams</i></a>, shared a powerful story about General George Washington's troops, after they had suffered several heavy defeats:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>The next morning a unit from Pennsylvania rode in—militiamen, among whom was a young officer named Charles Willson Peale, the famous painter. He walked among these ragged troops of Washington’s who had made the escape across from New Jersey and wrote about it in his diary. He said he’d never seen such miserable human beings in all his life—starving, exhausted, filthy. One man in particular he thought was just the most wretched human being he had ever laid eyes on. He described how the man’s hair was all matted and how it hung down over his shoulders. The man was naked except for what they called a blanket coat. His feet were wrapped in rags, his face all covered with sores from sickness. Peale was studying him when, all of a sudden, he realized that the man was his own brother.</i> </blockquote>
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<i>I think we should feel that they were all our brothers, those brave 3,000, and remember what they went through, just as Abigail Adams stressed in her letter. And that they didn’t quit!</i></blockquote>
Truly, our world only expands as we reach out to those who are suffering and struggling.Seth Adam Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11404644644184200881noreply@blogger.com