The World Is Beautiful

Today I am feeling proud.  Being proud is a beautiful thing. My kids were so excited they were going to be able to watch the inauguration on television in school.  They are all old enough to be aware of what is happening politically and socially and they are embracing this opportunity.  I am really proud of all of them. 

I remember the first inauguration I witnessed.  It was Bill Clinton’s.  I was so young and ambitious.  Working in New York, ( I did the take the bus to the train, get off at 33rd street and walk over three blocks). There was a TV in the meeting room and we all stood, huddled close around the little 13 inch.  There were so many women in the room we were looking over each others shoulders.  I remember the mix of perfumes in the room and red polished fingernails on shoulders. 

I remember the feeling of awe, all of us just so overwhelmed with feeings of promise for a better tomorrow.   Some of the women even had tears in their eyes. 

I never felt an impact like that in my life, I haven’t felt an impact like that since then. 

I talk about pride today because there appears to be such similarity between the promises of yesterday and the promises of today.  In about two short hours, President-Elect Barack H. Obama will be on the very same steps being sworn in to uphold the laws of Constitution of the United States of America. 

It was 2004 at the Democratic Natinal Convention for Al Gore when I first saw the keynote speaker from Illinios.  I was at my friends house watching and when I came home I said, “Honey, I don’t know what his name was, but I just saw the President of the United States for 2008.” 

His name was Barack Obama. 

 2004.

This was his speech: Click here to listen to the actual speech. Courtesy of American Rhetoric Online Speech Bank.

Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much. Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Dick Durbin. You make us all proud.

On behalf of the great state of Illinois, crossroads of a nation, Land of Lincoln, let me express my deepest gratitude for the privilege of addressing this convention.

Tonight is a particular honor for me because, let’s face it, my presence on this stage is pretty unlikely. My father was a foreign student, born and raised in a small village in Kenya. He grew up herding goats, went to school in a tin-roof shack. His father — my grandfather — was a cook, a domestic servant to the British.

But my grandfather had larger dreams for his son. Through hard work and perseverance my father got a scholarship to study in a magical place, America, that shone as a beacon of freedom and opportunity to so many who had come before.

While studying here, my father met my mother. She was born in a town on the other side of the world, in Kansas. Her father worked on oil rigs and farms through most of the Depression. The day after Pearl Harbor my grandfather signed up for duty; joined Patton’s army, marched across Europe. Back home, my grandmother raised a baby and went to work on a bomber assembly line. After the war, they studied on the G.I. Bill, bought a house through F.H.A., and later moved west all the way to Hawaii in search of opportunity.

And they, too, had big dreams for their daughter. A common dream, born of two continents.

My parents shared not only an improbable love, they shared an abiding faith in the possibilities of this nation. They would give me an African name, Barack, or ”blessed,” believing that in a tolerant America your name is no barrier to success. They imagined — They imagined me going to the best schools in the land, even though they weren’t rich, because in a generous America you don’t have to be rich to achieve your potential.

They’re both passed away now. And yet, I know that on this night they look down on me with great pride.

They stand here — And I stand here today, grateful for the diversity of my heritage, aware that my parents’ dreams live on in my two precious daughters. I stand here knowing that my story is part of the larger American story, that I owe a debt to all of those who came before me, and that, in no other country on earth, is my story even possible.

Tonight, we gather to affirm the greatness of our Nation — not because of the height of our skyscrapers, or the power of our military, or the size of our economy. Our pride is based on a very simple premise, summed up in a declaration made over two hundred years ago:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

That is the true genius of America, a faith — a faith in simple dreams, an insistence on small miracles; that we can tuck in our children at night and know that they are fed and clothed and safe from harm; that we can say what we think, write what we think, without hearing a sudden knock on the door; that we can have an idea and start our own business without paying a bribe; that we can participate in the political process without fear of retribution, and that our votes will be counted — at least most of the time.

This year, in this election we are called to reaffirm our values and our commitments, to hold them against a hard reality and see how we’re measuring up to the legacy of our forbearers and the promise of future generations.

And fellow Americans, Democrats, Republicans, Independents, I say to you tonight: We have more work to do –  more work to do for the workers I met in Galesburg, Illinois, who are losing their union jobs at the Maytag plant that’s moving to Mexico, and now are having to compete with their own children for jobs that pay seven bucks an hour; more to do for the father that I met who was losing his job and choking back the tears, wondering how he would pay 4500 dollars a month for the drugs his son needs without the health benefits that he counted on; more to do for the young woman in East St. Louis, and thousands more like her, who has the grades, has the drive, has the will, but doesn’t have the money to go to college.

Now, don’t get me wrong. The people I meet — in small towns and big cities, in diners and office parks — they don’t expect government to solve all their problems. They know they have to work hard to get ahead,  and they want to. Go into the collar counties around Chicago, and people will tell you they don’t want their tax money wasted, by a welfare agency or by the Pentagon. Go in — Go into any inner city neighborhood, and folks will tell you that government alone can’t teach our kids to learn; they know that parents have to teach, that children can’t achieve unless we raise their expectations and turn off the television sets and eradicate the slander that says a black youth with a book is acting white. They know those things.

People don’t expect — People don’t expect government to solve all their problems. But they sense, deep in their bones, that with just a slight change in priorities, we can make sure that every child in America has a decent shot at life, and that the doors of opportunity remain open to all.

They know we can do better. And they want that choice.

In this election, we offer that choice. Our Party has chosen a man to lead us who embodies the best this country has to offer. And that man is John Kerry.

John Kerry understands the ideals of community, faith, and service because they’ve defined his life. From his heroic service to Vietnam, to his years as a prosecutor and lieutenant governor, through two decades in the United States Senate, he’s devoted himself to this country. Again and again, we’ve seen him make tough choices when easier ones were available.

His values and his record affirm what is best in us. John Kerry believes in an America where hard work is rewarded; so instead of offering tax breaks to companies shipping jobs overseas, he offers them to companies creating jobs here at home.

John Kerry believes in an America where all Americans can afford the same health coverage our politicians in Washington have for themselves.

John Kerry believes in energy independence, so we aren’t held hostage to the profits of oil companies, or the sabotage of foreign oil fields.

John Kerry believes in the Constitutional freedoms that have made our country the envy of the world, and he will never sacrifice our basic liberties, nor use faith as a wedge to divide us.

And John Kerry believes that in a dangerous world war must be an option sometimes, but it should never be the first option.

You know, a while back — awhile back I met a young man named Shamus in a V.F.W. Hall in East Moline, Illinois. He was a good-looking kid — six two, six three, clear eyed, with an easy smile. He told me he’d joined the Marines and was heading to Iraq the following week. And as I listened to him explain why he’d enlisted, the absolute faith he had in our country and its leaders, his devotion to duty and service, I thought this young man was all that any of us might ever hope for in a child.

But then I asked myself, “Are we serving Shamus as well as he is serving us?”

I thought of the 900 men and women — sons and daughters, husbands and wives, friends and neighbors, who won’t be returning to their own hometowns. I thought of the families I’ve met who were struggling to get by without a loved one’s full income, or whose loved ones had returned with a limb missing or nerves shattered, but still lacked long-term health benefits because they were Reservists.

When we send our young men and women into harm’s way, we have a solemn obligation not to fudge the numbers or shade the truth about why they’re going, to care for their families while they’re gone, to tend to the soldiers upon their return, and to never ever go to war without enough troops to win the war, secure the peace, and earn the respect of the world.

Now — Now let me be clear. Let me be clear. We have real enemies in the world. These enemies must be found. They must be pursued. And they must be defeated. John Kerry knows this. And just as Lieutenant Kerry did not hesitate to risk his life to protect the men who served with him in Vietnam, President Kerry will not hesitate one moment to use our military might to keep America safe and secure.

John Kerry believes in America. And he knows that it’s not enough for just some of us to prosper — for alongside our famous individualism, there’s another ingredient in the American saga,  a belief that we’re all connected as one people. If there is a child on the south side of Chicago who can’t read, that matters to me, even if it’s not my child. If there is a senior citizen somewhere who can’t pay for their prescription drugs, and having to choose between medicine and the rent, that makes my life poorer, even if it’s not my grandparent. If there’s an Arab American family being rounded up without benefit of an attorney or due process, that threatens my civil liberties.

It is that fundamental belief — It is that fundamental belief: I am my brother’s keeper. I am my sister’s keeper that makes this country work. It’s what allows us to pursue our individual dreams and yet still come together as one American family.

E pluribus unum: “Out of many, one.”

Now even as we speak, there are those who are preparing to divide us — the spin masters, the negative ad peddlers who embrace the politics of “anything goes.” Well, I say to them tonight, there is not a liberal America and a conservative America — there is the United States of America. There is not a Black America and a White America and Latino America and Asian America — there’s the United States of America.

The pundits, the pundits like to slice-and-dice our country into Red States and Blue States; Red States for Republicans, Blue States for Democrats. But I’ve got news for them, too. We worship an “awesome God” in the Blue States, and we don’t like federal agents poking around in our libraries in the Red States. We coach Little League in the Blue States and yes, we’ve got some gay friends in the Red States. There are patriots who opposed the war in Iraq and there are patriots who supported the war in Iraq. We are one people, all of us pledging allegiance to the stars and stripes, all of us defending the United States of America.

In the end — In the end — In the end, that’s what this election is about. Do we participate in a politics of cynicism or do we participate in a politics of hope?

John Kerry calls on us to hope. John Edwards calls on us to hope.

I’m not talking about blind optimism here — the almost willful ignorance that thinks unemployment will go away if we just don’t think about it, or the health care crisis will solve itself if we just ignore it. That’s not what I’m talking about. I’m talking about something more substantial. It’s the hope of slaves sitting around a fire singing freedom songs; the hope of immigrants setting out for distant shores; the hope of a young naval lieutenant bravely patrolling the Mekong Delta; the hope of a millworker’s son who dares to defy the odds; the hope of a skinny kid with a funny name who believes that America has a place for him, too.

Hope — Hope in the face of difficulty. Hope in the face of uncertainty. The audacity of hope!

In the end, that is God’s greatest gift to us, the bedrock of this nation. A belief in things not seen. A belief that there are better days ahead.

I believe that we can give our middle class relief and provide working families with a road to opportunity.

I believe we can provide jobs to the jobless, homes to the homeless, and reclaim young people in cities across America from violence and despair.

I believe that we have a righteous wind at our backs and that as we stand on the crossroads of history, we can make the right choices, and meet the challenges that face us.

America! Tonight, if you feel the same energy that I do, if you feel the same urgency that I do, if you feel the same passion that I do, if you feel the same hopefulness that I do — if we do what we must do, then I have no doubt that all across the country, from Florida to Oregon, from Washington to Maine, the people will rise up in November, and John Kerry will be sworn in as President, and John Edwards will be sworn in as Vice President, and this country will reclaim its promise, and out of this long political darkness a brighter day will come.

Thank you very much everybody. God bless you. Thank you.

The Lionfish.  Swimming the oceans with grace and beauty.  Like snowflakes, each one slightly different from the next with one exception, a single snowflake isn’t deadly…but a single Lionfish, IS.

Dramatic enough for ya?  I couldn’t help it!  I think these creatures are just lovely!

 Keep your distance though, as beautiful as they are, there’s more to them that meets the eye.   As I stated, life will find a way and the Lionfish is doing just that:

As reported on TCNews.com: Top scientists are warning about an impending invasion of a poisonous fish into Florida’s waters.

The lionfish, a native of the Pacific Ocean, is both gorgeous and dangerous. Many people may have never seen a lionfish in the waters surrounding Florida, but that will soon change.

Scientists don’t use the word “invasion” lightly, but that’s exactly what they are predicting of the exotic-looking lionfish.

The poisonous tips on the lionfish’s fins could present a danger to people who swim, dive or work in Florida waters.

Aquarium manager Anthony Bartolome said he has been stung five times by lionfish.

“It pretty much burns like fire,” Bartolome said. 

The pain from a lionfish sting lasts for about 15 to 20 minutes. The lionfish’s sting is so serious it can send victims to the hospital and even kill them.

“There is no anti-venom for this,” said Lad Akins, executive director of Reef Environmental Education Foundation (REEF).

Experts are so concerned about the impending invasion of lionfish they are desperately trying to warn the public.

“They’re also very bold fish, especially in this new Atlantic range where it appears that they have few, if any, predators,” Akins stated.

Lionfish have no predators because they do not belong in the Atlantic Ocean. There is nothing here to eat them or stop them from eating Florida’s reef fish.

When lionfish grow too big, aquarium owners begin dumping the fish right into the Atlantic Ocean.

Now they are breeding at a rapid pace, experts said.

Scientists and volunteers are feverishly trying to fight the invasion of lionfish.

The Don’t Quit presentation is based on a famous poem which was written many years ago. The author of this poem is unknown. Sadly, in recent years a number of people have claimed ownership of the poem and some have even claimed to have written it themselves! Encouragement is a Beautiful thing. We all need a little push now and then.

Here is the original poem in it’s entirety:

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you’re trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest, if you must, but don’t you quit.

Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about,
When he might have won had he stuck it out;
Don’t give up though the pace seems slow–
You may succeed with another blow.

Often the goal is nearer than,
It seems to a faint and faltering man,
Often the struggler has given up,
When he might have captured the victor’s cup,
And he learned too late when the night slipped down,
How close he was to the golden crown.

Success is failure turned inside out–
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far,
So stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit–
It’s when things seem worst that you must not quit.

- Author unknown

The Don’t Quit presentation was created by Anthony Fernando who is an author and public speaker living in Melbourne, Australia. When he is not writing, Anthony enjoys keeping fit, playing the saxophone, swing dancing and helping out with the children’s program at his local church.

Go to the don’t quit poem for more information and how to obtain it for ipod and slideshow usage.

 There’s one thing I know for sure, Life will find a way.  I learned that when watching Jurrasic Park the movie and I find that statement to be very much true.  It is irresponsible of us to believe we are the only creatures in the universe when all around us life forms are being discovered and what is already here, is evolving to adapt to the environmental changes we are experiencing.  So  it should come as not suprise to anyone to find that Scientists have discovered a new life form in Australia!

Found on Yahoo Science, written by Amy Coopes:

SYDNEY (AFP) – Scientists said Sunday they had uncovered new marine animals in their search of previously unexplored Australian waters, along with a bizarre carnivorous sea squirt and ocean-dwelling spiders.

A joint US-Australian team spent a month in deep waters off the coast of the southern island of Tasmania to “search for life deeper than any previous voyage in Australian waters,” lead researcher Ron Thresher said.

What they found were not only species new to science — including previously undescribed soft corals — but fresh indications of global warming’s threat to the country’s unique marine life.

“Our sampling documented the deepest known Australian fauna, including a bizarre carnivorous sea squirt, sea spiders and giant sponges, and previously unknown marine communities dominated by gooseneck barnacles and millions of round, purple-spotted sea anemones,” Thresher said.

Using a submersible car-sized robot named Jason, the team explored a rift in the earth’s crust known as the Tasman Fracture Zone, a sheer two kilometre (1.24 mile) drop to 4,000 metres (13,200 feet) below the ocean’s surface.

Blogging on board the ship, researcher Adam Subhas said the team witnessed some “cool biology” as they descended the fracture, including the sea squirt, which he described as “basically an underwater Venus fly trap, but much bigger.”

The sea squirt, also known as an ascidian, stands 50 centimetres tall on the sea floor at a depth of just over 4,000 metres. It traps prey in its funnel-like front section if they touch it when they swim past.

“The geology was fascinating too — the sediment was incredibly fine and lightly packed; it made me think of powder snow,” Subhas wrote.

Fossil coral fields were found, dating back more than 10,000 years. Thresher said samples taken would provide ancient climate data for use in global warming projections.

“Modern-day deep-water coral reefs were also found, however, there is strong evidence that this reef system is dying, with most reef-forming coral deeper than 1,300 metres newly dead,” he said.

Though close analysis of samples was still required, Thresher said modelling suggested ocean acidification could be responsible.

“If our analysis identifies this phenomenon as the cause of the reef system’s demise, then the impact we are seeing now below 1,300 metres might extend to the shallower portions of the deep-reefs over the next 50 years, threatening this entire community,” he said.

Rising sea temperatures are blamed on global warming caused by the build-up in the atmosphere of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide — which is also blamed for higher acidity in sea water.

A UN report warned in 2007 that Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, described as the world’s largest living organism, could be killed by climate change within decades.

The World Heritage site and major tourist attraction, stretching over more than 345,000 square kilometres (133,000 square miles) off Australia’s east coast, could become “functionally extinct”, the report said.

Love all of God’s creatures. This includes rodents. Yes, unfortunately our lovable, wonderful new weeks old half Persian Guinea Pig adoringly named Dr. Pepper is classified as a rodent.  But love him nonetheless, yes we do!

And, here is something you probably did not know. March in Milwaulkee is “adopt a Guinea Pig Month.”  Come on, you have to love that.

  I thought it would be nice to give a little history on this adorable, quite lovable creature:

Guinea pigs originated from South America where several different species can still be found. The ancestor of the domesticated guinea pig is thought to be the restless cavy, Cavia cutleri. The restless cavy lives in big family groups in the long grass, being protected from preditors by overhanging stems. They don’t burrow for themselves but instead use abandoned burrows from other animals. 

They can be attacked by meat-eating enemies so they are shy and get scared very quickly. Young cavies are not born in the safety of a burrow but out in the open. They are born fully furred with their eyes open and within two days after being born they are eating the same food as their parents.

Before the Spanish conquest of South America in the 16th century, the Incas kept them for food and even today the Peruvians breed them for their meat. Sailors, who were probably the first people to do so, kept them as pets and brought them to Europe from South America. Many people believe that is how they got their name the ‘guinea pig’, because the sailors sold them for one guinea and they make squeaking noises like a pig. Today many different breeds of guinea pig exist through the careful breeding and selection carried out over many years. Guinea pigs are nosey, friendly characters but they still retain some of their original habits, for example, very few guinea pigs will dig and they will rumage around looking for food.  (Found on Pimms-Pages).

What would the world be like without our precious furry animals to snuggle up to and adore? Lonely, that’s for sure.

For the East, the past two days have been well, slippery! When I woke this morning, my world was covered in ice. This is the view from my bathroom window.  The air is crisp and clean!

When the weather gets like this, we always try to feed the deer in the area. The deer in my community travel in little packs. They’ve learned to be aware of the cars on the road and trust people enough to be hand fed. It could be that they are hungry enough to come close to man, but I feel it is our responsibility to help take care of God’s creatures during the hard times.  There is a momma we’ve named Big Momma because she travels with 4 young deer. I don’t know if they are all her children as I have never seen a Doe with more than two babies, but we’ve named them all.

He took it right from her hand! Connecting with nature is a beautiful thing!

What is your favorite place in the whole entire world? Is it Niagra Falls, The Grand Canyon, or Yellowstone National Park? Or maybe your own backyard perhaps?  How about where the air is warm and the cacti are prickly? It’s your choice now!

Boyoma Falls, Congo

I found the following Associate Press article on Yahoo and it just goes to prove that BEAUTY IS everywhere! 

GENEVA – The Grand Canyon, Mount Everest and Loch Ness will vie with more than 200 other spectacular places in the next phase of the global competition for the New 7 Wonders of Nature, organizers said Wednesday. The 261 nominees from 222 countries include some of the most famous mountain peaks, lakes, and other attractions, such as the Great Barrier Reef and Niagara Falls.

Over a billion people are expected to join in Internet voting that will nominate 77 semifinalists for the top natural wonders, which will share in the glory already enjoyed by the seven man-made wonders chosen 18 months ago.

“We are calling on people all over the world to actively show their appreciation for our … natural world by joining together to celebrate the most extraordinary sites on our planet,” said Tia Viering, spokeswoman of the New 7 Wonders campaign. To read the entire article,  click here!

Tubbataha Reef    Chocolate Hills

This is very exciting! There are numerous photographs to view and vote for, we only have 7 votes each, so make them count! You can also receive a certificate stating you voted!

The New 7 Wonders of Nature Campaign!

beau⋅ti⋅ful  ˈbyutəfəl/  [byoo-tuh-fuhl] 

–adjective

–noun

5.	(used with a plural verb) beautiful things or people collectively (usually prec. by the): the good and the beautiful.

–interjection

I needed to write this. I need to bring the wonders of the world to anyone who cares to see it.  I have learned from my numerous years of blogging that there is a lot of negativity in cyberspace.  We have to be careful not to be “scammed”, we delete spam email, we have to take measures to prevent identity theft, we discuss our problems, complain, try to avoid viruses, and just so much more…

Yet I find that in many cases, people will leave inspiring comments to even the most devistating of posts.  “Hang in there!” “Look here for help on that issue…” and it made me realize that there are places we might never see, people we may never know, situations which beauty can be found in even death if you look hard enough. 

While discussing the topic of today’s blog with my Hubby, I told him this. He asked me the following question:

“If I put the most unique, never seen before flower, newly discovered with brilliantly amazing colors on a table, how long would you look at it?”

I had to think for a minute.  I can’t honestly put a time frame on how long…I know I would study it, look at it, smell it, investigate and appreciate it, maybe three to five minutes for a number.  Throughout the day I would look at it again, talk about it, touch it. So then he asked:

“If there was a car accident, how long would you stay and look at it?”

That was easy, I would probably if I could, stay for the whole thing. 

“What do you think the percentage is of people who would do the same?”

I would think about 80 %.  However, I tried to agrue the fact that a beautiful, rare never seen before flower is not the same as watching an accident. The flower would sit there, it wouldn’t move until it began to wilt if it did wilt; an accident is well, a Verb in a sense. Its an action and there is action taking place.  The positive, the beauty of the accident is the way people and emergency workers will come together to help, the people who walk away without a scratch, that’s the positive. Hubby feels people would be more intrigued by the accident because it is negative, its a tragedy and people are drawn to negative.  

This entire conversation stemmed from watching the History Channel and the special on Nostradamus 2012. There are many, many scenarios regarding the predictions he left us, (and how they are interpreted), could December 21, 2102 be the beginging of the end of the world as we know it? The philosophers, scientists and other experts who gave commentary on the documentary refered all the way back to the begining of time, when Satan was exiled from Heaven by GOD.  When this happened, Satan’s rebellion continued and he vowed to spoil man. How does he do this? with temptation. 

I know this much, the struggle to be good is just that, a struggle and it doesn’t go away ever. I need beautiful. I hope you all do too.

I am not sure what the actual percentage is, but I would like to know what the rest of you think.