Some Things Worth Remembering

Liking you seems to be so difficult because I don't know how to make someone appreciate me. But then, I realized that it's not the thought of admiring you and expecting something in return. It's being contented in watching your every move from one corner and seeing your smile which makes me more fond of you…


I wish it need not have happened in my time. But that is not for us to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us. – JRR Tolkien, Fellowship of the Ring


To look for a lost collar button is not a true quest: to go in quest means to look for something of which one has, as yet, no experience; one can imagine what it will be like but whether one's picture is true or false will be known only when one has found it. – WH Auden, The Quest Hero


Faithless is he who says farewell when the road darkens. – JRR Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings


When Good can imagine what it would be like to be Evil, Evil cannot imagine what it would be like to be Good. – WH Auden


10 Things I Hate About You
I hate the way you talk to me
And the way you cut your hair
I hate the way you drive my car
I hate it when you stare
I hate your big dumb combat shoes
And the way you read my mind
I hate you so much it makes me sick
It even makes me rhyme
I hate the way you're always right
I hate it when you lie
I hate it when you make me laugh
Even worse when you make me cry
I hate it when you're not around
And the fact that you didn't call
But mostly I hate the way I don't hate you
Not even close, not even a little bit, not even at all.


All that is gold does not glitter
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost.

From the ashes a fire shall be woken,
A light from the shadows shall spring;
Renewed shall be the blade that was broken:
The crownless again shall be king. -JRR Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings


Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky,
Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone,
Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die;
One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.
One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them,
One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them.
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie. -JRR Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings


The Road goes ever on and on
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
And I must follow, if I can,
Pursuing it with eager feet,
Until it joins some larger way
Where many paths and errands meet.
And whither then? I cannot say. -JRR Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings


The Sorting Hat
JK Rowling, Harry Potter
You may not think I'm pretty,
But don't judge on what you see,
I'll eat myself if you can find
A smarter hat than me.
You can keep your bowlers black,
Your top hats sleek and tall,
For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat
And I can cap them all.
There's nothing hidden in your head
The Sorting hat can't see,
So try me on and I will tell you
Where you ought to be.
You might belong in Gryffindor,
Where dwell the brave at heart,
Their daring, nerve, and chivalry
Set Gryffindors apart;
You might belong in Hufflepuff,
Where they are just and loyal,
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true
And unafraid of toil;
Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,
If you've a ready mind,
Where those of wit and learning,
Will always find their kind;
Or perhaps in Slytherin
You'll make your real friends,
Those cunning folk use any means
To achieve their ends.
So put me on! Don't be afraid!
And don't get in a flap!
You're in safe hands (though I have none)
For I'm a Thinking Cap!


Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hoggy Warty Hogwarts,
Teach us something please,
Whether we be old and bald
Or young with scabby knees,
Our heads could do with filling
With some interesting stuff,
For now they're bare and full of air,
Dead flies and bits of fluff,
So teach us things worth knowing,
Bring back what we've forgot,
Just do your best, we'll do the rest,
And learn until our brains all rot.
-JK Rowling, Harry Potter


The Privilege of Growing
Joshua Liebman
The great thing about life is that as long as we live we have the privilege of growing. We can learn new skills, engage in new kinds of work, devote ourselves to new causes, make new friends, if only we will exercise a little initiative and refuse to become fixed, rigid… before our time.
Let us then learn how to accept ourselves – accept the truth that we are capable in some directions and limited in others, that genius is rare, that mediocrity is the portion of almost all of us, but that all of us can contribute from the storehouse of our skills to the enrichment of our common life.
Let us accept our emotional frailties, knowing that every person has some phobia lurking within his mind and that the normal person is he who is willing to accept life with its limitations and its opportunities joyfully and courageously.
Not only must we accept ourselves, but we must also change ourselves. Until the day of our death we can change, we can tap hidden resources in our make-up. We can discipline ourselves to turn from the morbid circle of useless self-pity your enslavement to childish frustration and begin to give of our energy to other people, to a cause, a movement, a great social enterprise. In such service we can find freedom from ourselves and liberty from our fears.


A thousand years or more ago,
When I was newly sewn,
There lived four wizards of renown,
Whose names are still well known:
Bold Gryffindor, from wild moor,
Fair Ravenclaw, from glen,
Sweet Hufflepuff, from valley broad,
Shrewd Slytherin, from fen.
They shared a wish, a hope, a dream,
They hatched a daring plan
To educate young sorcerers
Thus Hogwarts School began.
Now each of these four founders
Formed their own house, for each
Did value different virtues
In the ones they had to teach.
By Gryffindor, the bravest were
Prized far beyond the rest;
For Ravenclaw, the cleverest
Would always be the best;
For Hufflepuff, hard workers were
Most worthy of admission;
And power-hungry Slytherin
Loved those of great ambition
While still alive they did divide
Their favorites from the throng,
Yet how to pick the worthy ones
When they were dead and gone?
'Twas Gryffindor who found the way,
He whipped me off his head
The founders put some brains in me
So I could choose instead!
Now slip me snug about your ears,
I've never yet been wrong,
I'll have a look inside your mind
And tell where you belong!


Never marry a drinker! Ask around about how he treated the women he grew up with, and that's how he'll treat you. Marry a man who loves children and animals. And relatives.
Marry a man who cries.
Don't tolerate someone who won't wash his car or clean his ears or take a bath at least once a day in the summertime.
Marry a devout man, a decent man, a Christian, someone who's real, not a hypocrite. Someone who knows how to forgive, who doesn't hold grudges, or remember hurts. Someone who has never hit a woman, much less a child. Someone who loves flowers, is proud of his home. Someone who likes to cook. When a man cooks, it's a blessing.
See if he loves nature, not the inside of a bar in the middle of the afternoon. Notice if he's honest and reliable and trustworthy. If he lies, or gossips, forget him.
Is he career-oriented?
Does he love his work more than his family?
What was his father like? His mother?
Does he accept you the way you are, not wanting to change you?
Is he oversexed?
Does he pay attention to other women, read dirty magazines, pick his nose?
Does he stay out late, rise early?
Can you sit with him for a long time saying nothing and not get nervous?
Another thing, can he laugh?
Don't expect him to support you. Those days are gone. Always have your own money. Don't depend on any man to ration it out to you.
Be yourself, do what you have to do, do what you love, and share with him, each of you doing your part.
Otherwise, it's hard…
-Denise Chavez, Face of An Angel


The Gift of Acabar
Og Mandino/Buddy Kaye

Loneliness is one of the prices they must pay for greatness.

A life must change from within.

No accuser lives who is as powerful as the conscience which dwells within us.

To become a shining star in the Kingdom of Forever is to use the talent that God has given you to make this a better world.

Adversity is not a curse, it is a blessing.

The brightest stars in heaven are those who have been tested in the furnace of tribulation.

Wealth and fame are as fleeting as the wind, and those things doomed to perish bring pleasure to no one.

The greatest lie has even circulated on this planet is that money can make you happy! The second greatest lie is that success and fame are worth any sacrifice.

Greed is what caused this tragedy.

Nothing is ever lost.

We are rich only through what we give and poor only through what we keep.

What belongs to God must be returned to God.

All that earth people need is a light to guide them: a star of hope.