Bird Droppings September 18, 2015 The constraints of surmounting learning difficulties “Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.” Dr. Seuss “There are two ways of meeting difficulties. You alter the difficulties or you alter yourself to meet them.” Phyllis Bottome An…

September 17, 2015 Do we need a bit more soul? “Soul is different from spirit; the deep soul is the way we live every day, our longings and our fears.” Thomas Moore It has been nearly twenty years since I first read a book written by Thomas Moore. I picked up a copy of The…

Bird Droppings September 16, 2015 Sometimes history is a teacher and others only a memory On Facebook yesterday I shared a photo and article that briefly explained an event in our nation’s history. On September 15, 1963 an explosion tore through the African-American 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, it was a Sunday. People…

Bird Droppings September 15, 2015 Who would have thought of a buffalo snort in the dark? “Life is no brief candle to me. It is a sort of splendid torch which I have got a hold of for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on…

Bird Droppings September 14, 2015 I have found that real forgiveness is difficult work “The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.” Mahatma Gandhi I spent the morning just about two years ago on a field tip of sorts for a graduate school class. We visited the MLK Jr. Memorial Center…

Bird Droppings September 11, 2015 Why can we not really get a handle on this day? I start with a word I am sitting here making up ponderingerest. Perhaps a good definition is that there is far too much to ponder today, it is a ponderingerest day. In 1938 sixty six percent of the world’s…

Bird Droppings September 10, 2015 So much difference in people’s perceptions For some people Friday the thirteenth is a day of foreboding and others it is simply another sunrise and sunset. European culture brought the foreboding element of this day to the Americas. Some argue it has metaphysical properties and is not just the day…

Bird Droppings September 9, 2015 Checking the toes for mittens It has been some time since one of my granddaughters was showing off her new hat and mittens. It was quite a sight clad in a t-shirt, diaper, mittens and ski cap that looked like a penguin she was showing off for us. Finally she…

Bird Droppings September 8, 2015 Our perceptions vary greatly about life “Life is 10 percent what you make it and 90 percent how you take it.” Irving Berlin It was almost fifteen years ago I was waiting to go teach again after having spent nearly twenty three years in the publishing business. I was anxious…

Bird Droppings August 4, 2015 On a chilly morning it is hard to kiss a frog. It is was a bit chilly out in northeast Georgia with nighttime temperatures still hanging in the high fifties or low sixties but rumor of a nice weekend hanging out there. Many of us gardeners are bringing plants in.…