New Year – 2013.

2013 is on it’s way,
365 possibilities to live and play.
I wish you all the best next year,
Lose the negative and the fear.
Although it’s easier said than done,
 We are still capable of having fun.
Health, happiness and lots of love,
Strength and blessings from above.
Great accomplishments far and wide,
Family and dear ones by your side.
Thank you for all the support this year,
I needed it badly and it was near.
 Happy New Year...I love you all
Enjoy the journey....Have a ball!

Christmas/Natal 2012.

Festividades 2012.

Olha o Natal ai de novo
Como passa, né, meu povo?!
Carnaval, Páscoa e Finados
Dias e dias atarefados
Esse ano correu demais
Acontecimentos monumentais
Alegrias e tristezas intercaladas
Gargalhadas e choros desenfreadas
Estamos vivos pra continuar
Nossa estória a completar
É época de refletir
Agradecer a Deus e pedir
Que 2013 venha em paz
Com muito carinho em cartaz
Compaixão, amor e saúde
Bom caráter e atitude
Celebremos, sim, esses momentos
Pois não sabemos o que trazem os ventos?
Encaremos a vida com fervor
Felicidades, com todo meu amor.

The Flying Christmas Pud.

Lulu had a brainwave - 

She'd make a Christmas pud,

A Christmas pud so tasty,

The best pud that she could.

But when she tried to cut it,

It took off with a zoom,

And circled round the kitchen

And flew out of the room.

Christmas pud! Christmas pud!

Stop that Christmas pud!

Lulu wants to eat it,

It looks so blooming good.

Oh, Christmas pud! Christmas pud!

Flying on the breeze,

Lulu wants her pudding back,

Stop that pudding, please!

Lulu chased her pudding

Outside into the street,

A policeman tried to catch it,

It knocked him off his feet.

It circled round the town hall

And headed out of town,

Across the fields and forest

And up the hills and down.

The last time it was spotted

It was flying out to sea,

A ship's captain reported it

As it flew with magesty.

Christmas pud! Christmas pud!

Stop that christmas pud!

Lulu wants to eat it,

It looks so blooming good,

Oh, Christmas pud! Christmas pud!

Flying on the breeze,

Lulu wants her pudding back,

Stop that pudding, please!

Richard Edwards

Chris Fisher.

Nonsense Christmas Rhymes.

* Let's have some Christmas fun!

The Sun.

The sun is out again, HURRAY!

The sun is out, at least for today

The sun is out, come on, let's play

The sun is out, I'm off, "Good day"!

IF.....

IF you can keep your head when all about you 
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise:
If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;
If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings 
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breathe a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: 'Hold on!'

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
' Or walk with Kings - nor lose the common touch,
if neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son!

 Rudyard Kipling

* Most people love this poem, I am no exception....In my humble opinion, it is one of the best poems ever written.

For Lunch Today....

For lunch today I'd like to eat....

My favourite things...and still repeat!

A posh menu à la carte

A prawn cocktail, just to start

The main course must include

Full hearty and substantial food

Some English bangers and some meat

Beans and rice would go down a treat!

Not forgetting the quiche and salad

Waldorf would be very valid

A few snippets on the side

Croissants, rolls and paté supplied

A caipirofska to help things mingle

Makes me forget that I'm still single!

Oh! farofa, never to be forgotten

THAT would be just to damb rotten!

Would feel full but there's still the sweet

Something chocolatey  would be so neat

Leite moça or chocolate mousse?

Both available to seduce

I'd have them both!!! Scoff the lot

You'd think that's it... but it's not

Cheese and biscuits, very French

Frangelico my thirst to quench!

Back to reality...kitchen time

No imaginary à la carte sublime!

Open the ice-box just to see

Moldy old cheese staring at me! 

Why God made teachers.

When God created teachers,

He gave us special friends

To help us understand His world

And truly comprehend

The beauty and the wonder

or everything we see,

And become a better person

With each discovery.

When God created teachers, 

He gave us special guides

To show us ways in which to grow

So we can all decide

How to live and how to do

What's right instead of wrong,

To lead us so that we can lead

And teach others to be strong.

Why God created teachers

In His wisdom and His Grace,

Was to help us to learn 

To make our world a better, wiser

And  more compasionate place.... 

Children Poem.

Sticky fingers,  tangled hair,
scattered crayons, everywhere.
Fancy artwork, on the wall
drawn by midgets, three feet tall.
Tell me why, and tell me how
that was mine, I want it NOW!
Fix my bike. Buy me gum.
If you have it, I want some.
Dirty faces, grass-stained knees,
learning words, like pretty please.
Endless hugs & goofy wet kisses,
learning respect with 'Mr.' & 'Mrs.'
Scraped-up hands, from falling down.
Tender tugs - - on my night gown.
Need more paper, for Santa's letter?
I wasn't so bad, but I've been better.
Watching a movie,  again and again
Mommy, please... put the tape back in.
Messy fingers,  hair gone wild
all in the life of a precious child !!

Debra S. Higginbtham.

HAPPINESS...

Total happiness! As they say in this country, I am in "estado de Graça"- which translated means - that I'm in a state of Grace!! What a sensacional feeling to have one of the many dreams one has, come true! The two books are very sweet, even if I say so myself, and have had great acceptance by the children. Get your copy

Send me an email entitled BOOKS! Do it now.... The first edition is coming to an end!

One dream come true!

I am thrilled to announce the publication of my first two childrens' books. This is a fulfillment of a dream that I have had since I was twelve years old! If anyone is interested in a copy please get in touch via my email, I will be delighted. Meanwhile, those realizations that take the longest are definitely the most worthwhile.

J. Anderson.

Urgent note to my parents....

Don't ask me to do what I can't do

Only ask me to do what I can.

Don't ask me to be what I can't be

Only ask me to be what I am.

Don't one minute say "Be a big girl"

And the next, "you're to little for that"

Please don't ask me to be where I can't be

Please be happy with right where I'm at.

Hiawyn Oram.

* Well let's think about it!!! We adults are always asking the children to do things that, to them, are very contradictory ...a definite fact!!! Only yesterday I heard one of my students say ..."Humph, these adults are all crazy...none of them know what they really want"...!!!

Teacher's Prayer

Lord, Please help me

To strengthen their voices

bodies and minds.

To express their feelings and

control them sometimes.

To explore what's near

and venture afar,

But most important to love

who they really are.

*Don't know who wrote this....but I thought it was great.

Point of View

Have you lost the art of living?

Does the world seem cruel to you?

Try forgetting and forgiving

It may change your point of view.

Does the future look depressing?

Can't you see a bit of blue?

Start to count up every blessing

It may change your point of view.

Are you sunk in deep dejection?

Bored with what you have to do?

Try some honest introspection

It may change your point of view.

Do you crave for fun distractions?

Always out for something new?

Seek for simple satisfactions

It may change your point of view.

Tired of working? Tired of playing?

Wondering where Life's leading to?

Try a little quiet praying

God will change your point of view.

Patience Strong.

A Celtic Prayer

Many a time I wish I were other than I am.

I weary of the solemn tide;

Of the little fields;

Of this brooding isle.

I long to be rid of the weight of duty

And to have my part in ampler life.

O Thou, Who art wisdom and pity both,

Set me free from the lordship of desire.

Help me find my happiness

In my acceptance of what is my purpose:

In friendly eyes;

In work well done;

In quietness born of trust, and, most of all,

In the awareness of your Presence in my spirit. 

Balance

To be able to be fully in life, without being tossed this way and that by every passing mood and whim; to know a place of silence in oneself that subsists even when all around is chaos and confusion; to maintain equanimity in the face of doubt and despair: this perhaps, is the retreat of one's own mind, the aspiration of spiritual practitioners of every tradition and every way.

Roger Housden.

"An Old English Prayer"

"Give us Lord, a bit o´sun,

A bit o´work and a bit of fun,

Give us in all the struggle and splutter,

Our daily bread and a bit o´butter,

Give us health, our keep to make

And a bit to spare for other´s sake.

Give us, too, a bit of song,

And a tale and a book to help us along,

Give us Lord, a chance to be

Our goodly best, brave, wise and free,

Our goodly best, for ourselves and others

Till all men learn to live as brothers."

For mum...King John's Christmas.

KING JOHN'S CHRISTMAS.

King John was not a good man -

He had his little ways.

And sometimes no one spoke to him 

For days and days and days.

And men who came across him,

When walking in the town,

Gave him a supercilious stare,

Or passed with noses in the air - 

And bad king John stood dumbly there,

Blushing beneath his crown.

King john was not a good man,

And no good friends had he.

He stayed in every afternoon....

But no one came to tea,

And, round about December,

The cards upon his shelf

Which wished him lots of christmas cheer,

And fortune in the coming year,

Were never from his near and dear,

But only from himself.

King John was not a good man,

Yet he had his hopes and fears.

They'd given him no present now

For years and years and years.

But every year at christmas,

While minstrels stood about,

Collecting tribute from the young

For all the songs they might have sung,

He stole away upstairs and hung

A hopeful stocking out.

King John was not a good man,

He lived his life aloof;

Alone he thought a message out

While climbing up the roof.

He wrote it down and propped it

Against the chimney stack:

"TO ALL AND SUNDRY-NEAR AND FAR-

F. CHRISTMAS IN PARTICULAR."

And signed it not "Johannes R."

But humbly, "Jack."

"I want some crackers,

And I want some candy;

I think a box of chocolates

Would come in handy;

I don't mind oranges,

I do like nuts!

And I SHOULD like a pocket-knife

That really cuts.

And, oh! Father Christmas, if you love me at all,

Bring me a big, red india-rubber ball!"

King John was not a good man - 

He wrote this message out,

And gat him to his room again,

Descending by the spout.

And all the night he lay there,

A prey to hopes and fears.

"I think that's him a-coming now,"

(Anxiety bedewed his brow.)

"He'll bring one present, anyhow - 

The first I've had for years."

"Forget about the crackers,

And forget about the candy;

I'm sure a box of chocolates 

Would never come in handy;

I don't like oranges,

I don't want nuts,

And I have a pocket-knife

That almost cuts.

But, oh! Father Christmas, if you love me at all,

Bring me a big, red india-rubber ball!"

King John was not a good man-

Next morning when the sun

Rose up to tell a waiting world

That Christmas had begun,

And people seized their stockings,

And opened them with glee,

And crackers, toys and games appeared,

And lips with sticky sweets were smeared,

King John said grimly: "As I feared,

Nothing again for me!"

"I did want crackers,

And I did want candy;

I know a box of chocolates 

Would come in handy;

I do love oranges,

I did want nuts.

I haven't got a pocket knife - 

Not one that cuts

And, oh! if Father Christmas had loved me at all,

He would have brought a big, red india-rubber ball!"

King John stood by the window,

And frowned to see below

The happy bands of boys and girls

All playing in the snow.

A while he stood there watching,

And envying them all...

When through the window big and red

There hurtled by his royal head,

And bounced and fell upon the bed,

An india-rubber ball!

AND OH, FATHER CHRISTMAS

MY BLESSINGS ON YOU FALL

FOR BRINGING HIM 

A BIG, RED,

INDIA-RUBBER

BALL!

A. A. Milne.

* My mother, like myself, loved poetry. She introduced me to all the greatest children's classics, one of the many things that I will always be thankful for. She had many favourites, this was one of them...It's always good to relive the great classics....I hope you enjoy this poem as much as we did as a family....

Sit Beside Me.

This will not be easy Lord;

What I'm about to do

Will you sit beside me 

And hold me till I'm through?

I've lost my closest friend Lord

And I really need You now

I want to draw You closer

Come sit and show me how.

You are why I'm here Lord,

Through You I'm born again

So place Your hand on me Lord

So my heart can start to mend.

John Gorby. 

" I know that my death will not signify the end of my work. Wherever I am, I shall try to influence those who are destroying the planet to give nature a chance to suvive."

Margaret Mee.

Beautiful

The tide recedes but leaves behind

Bright seashells on the sand.

The sun goes down, but gentle warmth

still lingers on the land.

The music stops, and yet it

Echoes on in sweet refrains...

For every joy that passes,

Something beautiful remains.           

I don't know who wrote this. I found it in a little book filled with poems, prayers, quotes, psalms, stories and personal memories that belonged to my mother. I thought it was beautiful and wanted to share it with you...                                         

Protest!

This week I'd like to voice my total indignation towards the scientists in their race/quest at attempting to prove that God does not exist! Why do this? Why is this so important?...I am not a political being, far from it, but I passionately feel that every human should have a right to chose their particular line of faith or indeed, no faith at all, free choice. However, faith is still what the larger percentage of humanity chose and I wonder if the scientist truly realise the damage they can evoke on all the believers, by proving the non-existence of God?... After all, God means many different things, to many different people but when you get down to the "nitty-gritty" the core of it all, God, in general terms, is their center and stands for love and light...So what then happens, if you take away the best there is about humanity, all the good that is done through faith ????.....Is this the world, the future that the scientist want???? To plunge everybody into darkness!! What for???....Then there is the money being poured into this project....huge amounts, which could be used in a far more beneficial way. So many in need...

I am deeply saddened and actually think that what the scientists are doing is incredible dangerous....messing with what, to many humans is all they have left....

Loss.

Cry me all the rain clouds dry.

Cry me all the moisture in the sky.

Cry me the oceans, rivers and lakes.

Cry me this pain out, for God's sakes.

Cry me till no tears are left to cry.

Cry me death as I watch her die.

Cry me this image, imprisoned within.

Cry me, for I am next, yes next of kin.

Mum....

To live in hearts we leave,

Is not to die.

Thomas Campbell.

The lasting gift that any loved one gives us is their presence in our hearts. The memories and the very spirit of the person live on in us, and in the things we cherish and do, long after the person is no longer physically here. That is something no one can ever take away from us.

This presence can be a source of comfort or sustenance, of strength or beauty. It is up to us to dedicate ourselves to intergrating that loving spirit into our ongoing lives.

Taken from A Time to Grieve by Carol Staudacher.

Beaky...The Great Kiskadee.

                                       
 The Meeting.
It was a beautiful morning when he appeared.
A baby bird who could not yet fly.
His beak was so big, his chirp so strong,
That I imagined him to be a baby hawk.
Still surprised by this unexpected meeting,
I watched as he jumped from side to side,
And slowly I approached him.
Suddenly he stopped moving and froze,
Just eyeing me.....
With the intention of catching him, I got even closer. He did n’t try to escape as I thought he would. No, he let me pick him up and hold him in my hands.
I recognised him as a baby “ Bem-te-vi”,*and there and then christened him Beaky.
Intrigued by there being yet another bird in the story of my life, I also named him Messenger and waited for the message to be revealed.
A few days passed and accidently Haleluia! I discovered the message...
Because of it’s song the “Bem-te-vi”, in some countries in Latin America, is also referred to as “Christ- was”.
Hopefully the next time you hear the “Bem-te-vi’s” song you will remember this story and, like me, feel His presence in your life.
Today, I call Beaky “The Messenger of Light”.
And you?
How would you call him?  

*"Bem-te-vi"-  The Great Kiskadee is a large bird member of the fly catcher family. He can be found from extreme southern Texas all the way south to Argentina. He is named for his exuberant “Bee – tee – wee” call.

   This Story was written by Jorge Studart.

* The Christ referred to is Jesus Christ..."Christ was"...who was he?...He was Christ!

Hugh Michael Jackman.

He’s gorgeous...yes he is,

Inside and out he’s a whiz!

Love him to bits,

The way he talks, moves and sits!

He’s a multi-talented wonder,

Let no other man tear this fan and actor asunder!

A celebrity who lives a normal life,

The full package; pets, kids and wife.

A great example to look up to,

Nowadays it’s something accomplished by few.

Must be hard to be daily scrutinized,

Having the public and press constantly praise or criticize.

As much as his private life is an open book,

I’m sure there are times he’d like to be off the hook!

Such is the price one pays for great talent,

But hey,…even under pressure he’s still gallant.

Can’t wait to see what he’ll come up with next?

Some action film with a terrific text!

So Jackman…whatever you do, where ever you go,

Just know that THIS fan wishes you well and loves you so!

P.S. Wow! Re-reading this brings a tear to the eye,

“Corny” is the word I can’t lie!

Still it’s only in this simplest of ways,

That I can express what I feel and sing his praise.

So forgive me if I have offended the written word,

And I know that this sounds absurd.

But “Corny” can be good,

Because I feel that by now, you’ve all understood,

That I am a huge, huge fan,

And one day will be deeply honoured to meet the man.

Until then pray, Hugh keep us entertained,

If this ever gets to you then, I will have gained,

An amazingly talented friend.

So Debs please forgive me …if a kiss I send.

Bless your family and you dear,

Have a safe and fulfilling rest of year.

* I admit that my total admiration for Hugh is very much on the adolescent side, but hey....I'm not just a fan of the hunk...I am very much a fan of the way he conducts his life. I think he is a tremendous example of how such a well-known and popular person should behave. Together with his wife, they make an effort to try living the most normal way they can!...If that is in anyway possible with the press always breathing down your neck! There is also the fact that they've adopted 2 kids which in itself is absolutely awesome!... And what the hell I don't need to justify why I dig the man!!!!

Vespers.

Little Boy kneels at the foot of the bed,

Droops on the little hands little gold head.

Hush! Hush! Whisper who dares!

Christopher Robin is saying his prayers.

God bless Mummy. I know that's right.

Was n't it fun in the bath tonight?

The cold's so cold, and the hot's so hot.

Oh! God bless Daddy - I quite forgot.

If I open my fingers a little bit more,

I can see Nanny's dressing-gown on the door.

It's a beautiful blue, but it has n't a hood.

Oh! God bless Nanny and make her good.

Mine has a hood, and I lie in bed,

And pull the hood right over my head,

And I shut my eyes, and I curl up small,

And nobody knows that I'm there at all.

Oh! Thank you, God, for a lovely day.

And what was the other I had to say?

I said "Bless Daddy," so what can it be?

Oh! Now I remember it. God bless Me.

Little Boy kneels at the foot of the bed,

Droops on the little hands little gold head.

Hush! Hush! Whisper who dares!

Christopher Robin is saying his prayers.

* Here's another of my favourites!...The genius of  A.A.Milne...You can literally feel all the love in this father, surrounding this simple, but magic moment...