Monday, June 29, 2015

SEAGULL FLYING FREE - by Melanie Ann Calvert



http://www.todayifoundout.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/seagulls.jpg

SEAGULL FLYING FREE

by Melanie Ann Calvert

A seagull perches on a rail
Surrounding the sea wall.
He's not afraid to look around,
He's not afraid to fall.

Eager to communicate,
He lets out a raucous cry.
He's not afraid of being judged
By people passing by.

The seagull's beady eyes observe
Everything in sight.
Curiosity is his fantasy.
His future's always bright.

Whenever he senses danger
He simply spreads his wings.
He doesn't hold onto his fears;
He lets them go, then sings.

He sees only the beauty
As he soars across the sky.
He lives only for each moment;
He's not afraid to die.

When nightfall creeps upon him,
The seagull does not fear;
He rests in peace until he feels
The morning sun appear.

Feeling fresh at sunrise,
He squawks loudly across the bay;
He's happy to wake up again
And greet a brand new day.

A greater key to happiness
There surely cannot be
Than to live a life of faith and peace
Like a seagull flying free.

 



My Blue World - by Lana M.



My Blue World

by  Lana  M.


I know a place where the world is still
where time and space have no hold
I know a place where my heart and soul are one
and there are stories left untold

I know a place where I rest in peace

where my body lies numbed to pain
where my eyes lie opened to the light above
And I've broken gravity's chain

I know a place

Where I must leave as seconds pass
my frail mortality cannot stand against its grave
and my lungs shatter like glass

I know a place so wonderful and deadly

It pulls me into deep
Oh my deep blue ocean world
I'll return to you after the surface pulls you from me.


 


WHAT COMES OF TOMORROW by Christine


 

WHAT COMES OF TOMORROW

Joy is what fills the heart of they
which hold within the mysteries of a friend
A passion unknown unto words
Within them fall the tears of all things they endure as one
And from their eyes diamonds fall,
So precious every one
Dear within, the memories they caress with sorrow
And gather them today, for what may come of tomorrow
Priceless
Priceless ever are these moments that we spend with those so dear
Comforting now to know that they are near
Yet there comes a day when they see the eagle soar
And feel within their hearts
A passion so much more
As we stand beside them when that gleam glows in their eyes
What comes of tomorrow
My friend's lost paradise
And though a distant barrier wells up within the heart
There is a joy inside
To know the joy of a dawning start
Standing there beside them on that road to paradise
We say farewell and weep
Knowing they must also compromise
And so we hold them close and whisper in their ear
Please take with you these memories.
Then from the eyes,
Your tear.





Friday, June 26, 2015

A GREAT AND WONDERFUL STATUE - The Guanyin of the South Sea of Sanya





The Guanyin of the South Sea of Sanya (Chinese: 南山海上观音圣像) is a 108-metre (354 ft) statue of the bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara (better known as Guanyin in East Asia), sited on the south coast of China's island province Hainan near the Nanshan Temple of Sanya.

 The statue has three aspects; one side faces inland and the other two face the South China Sea, to represent blessing and protection by Guanyin of China and the whole world. One aspect depicts Guanyin cradling a sutra in the left hand and gesturing the Vitarka Mudra with the right, the second with her palms crossed, holding a string of prayer beads, and the third holding a lotus. This is currently the fourth tallest statue in the world (many of which are Buddhist statues) and the tallest statue of Guanyin in the world.

The statue took six years to build and was enshrined on April 24, 2005, with the participation of 108 eminent monks from various Buddhist groups in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macao and Mainland China, and tens of thousands of pilgrims. The delegation also included monks from the Theravada and Vajrayana traditions











Groupama Sailing Team, skippered by Franck Cammas from France, sails past the Guan Yin of the South Sea of Sanya, at the start of leg 4 of the Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12, from Sanya, China to Auckland, New Zealand. (Credit: PAUL TODD/Volvo Ocean Race)

108-meter  three-aspect Bodhisattva Guanyin statue. Sanya Nanshan Buddhism Cultural Tourism Zone





Saturday, June 20, 2015

TROGONS - Lithigraphy by John Gould, 1830



1830s ornithological lithograph by John Gould Trogon narina (Narina Trogon)




1830s ornithological illustration by John Gould
Trogon reinwardtii (Reinwardt's Trogon)



T1830s ornithological lithograph by John Gould
Trogon variegatus (Purple-breasted Trogon)



1830s bird lithograph by John Gould
Trogon temnuris (Cuba Trogon)



19th century ornithological lithograph by John Gould
Trogon oreskios (Mountain Trogon)



bird illustration hand-coloured
Trogon neoxenus (Welcome Trogon)



1830s ornithological book illustration by John Gould
Trogon mexicanus (Mexican Trogon)



hand-coloured book illustration by John Gould of Trogon bird species
Trogon meridionalis (Little Trogon)



T1830s ornithological lithograph by John Gould
Trogon melanopterus (Black-winged Trogon)



19th cent. lithographic bird plate
Trogon massena (Prince Massena's Trogon)



bird lithograph 1830s, coloured by hand
Trogon gigas (Giant Trogon)



1830s ornithological lithograph by John Gould
Trogon erythrocephalus (Red-headed Trogon)



1830s ornithological book illustration by John Gould
Trogon elegans (Graceful Trogon)



1830s bird lithograph by J gould
Trogon diardii (Diard's Trogon)



Trogon species illustration 1830s natural history book
Trogon citreolus (Lemon-breasted Trogon)



1830s ornithological plate from science book by John Gould
Trogon atricollis (Black-throated Trogon)



1830s ornithological book lithograph by John Gould
Trogon ardens (Rosy-breasted Trogon)