Earth's Little Sunburst

The flower which is single need not envy 

the thorns that are numerous.
~Rabindranath Tagore

A weed is no more than a flower in disguise,
Which is seen through at once, 

if love give a man eyes.
~James Russell Lowell

That though the radiance which was once 

so bright be now forever taken from my sight. Though nothing can bring back the hour of splendor in the grass, glory in the flower. We will grieve not,
rather find strength in what remains behind.
~William Wordsworth

A flower cannot blossom without sunshine,
and man cannot live without love.
~Max Muller 

Trumpet Vision

With the pride of the artist, you must blow
against the walls of every power that exists
the small trumpet of your defiance.
~Norman Mailer

The very essence of leadership is that you have to have vision. You can't blow an uncertain trumpet.
~Theodore Hesburgh

Leadership is an opportunity to serve.
It is not a trumpet call to self-importance.
~J. Donald Walters
 

If you wish in this world to advance your merits
you're bound to enhance; You must stir it
and stump it, and blow your own trumpet,
Or, trust me, you haven't a chance.
~William Gilbert

Passion in the Garden

There is no passion to be found playing small
in settling for a life that is less than the one
you are capable of living.
~Nelson Mandela

Passion rebuilds the world for the youth.
It makes all things alive and significant.
~Ralph Waldo Emerson
 

If passion drives you, 

let reason hold the reins.

~Benjamin Franklin

It is obvious that we can no more explain 

a passion to a person who has never experienced
it than we can explain light to the blind.

~T. S. Eliot

Sun Wings

May the wings of the butterfly kiss the sun

And find your shoulder to light on,

To bring you luck, happiness and riches

Today, tomorrow and beyond.

~Irish Blessing

Beautiful and graceful, varied and enchanting, small but approachable, butterflies lead you to the sunny side of life. And everyone deserves a little sunshine. ~Jeffrey Glassberg

But these are flowers that fly and all but sing:

And now from having ridden out desire

They lie closed over in the wind and cling

Where wheels have freshly sliced the April mire.

~Robert Frost

"Just living is not enough," said the butterfly,
"one must have sunshine, freedom and a little flower." ~Hans Christian Andersen

Independence Blues

The beauty of independence, departure,
actions that rely on themselves. ~Walt Whitman

True character of liberty is independence,
maintained by force. ~Voltaire

Do not destroy that immortal emblem of humanity,
the Declaration of Independence. ~Abraham Lincoln

Independence in the end is the fruit of injustice. ~Voltaire

Life, Liberty & Happiness...

Liberty, according to my metaphysics 

is a self-determining power in an intellectual agent. 

It implies thought and choice and power. ~John Adams

Liberty is slow fruit. It is never cheap; 

it is made difficult because freedom 

is the accomplishment and perfectness 

of man. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Liberty, when it begins to take root, 

is a plant of rapid growth. ~George Washington

Liberty will not descend to a people; 

a people must raise themselves to liberty; 

it is a blessing that must be earned before 

it can be enjoyed. ~Charles Caleb Colton

Seeing Freedom in Colors

Freedom is the last, best 

hope of earth. ~Abraham Lincoln

There can be no real freedom without 

the freedom to fail. ~Eric Hoffer

Freedom is nothing else but a chance 

to be better. ~Albert Camus

We, and all others who believe 

in freedom as deeply as we do, 

would rather die on our feet 

than live on our knees. ~Franklin D. Roosevelt