tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17197120287855212862024-03-13T20:52:01.545-07:00Barakah for BarackA daily chronicle of Barack Obama's presidency from a positive point of view. Posts of encouragement including letters, poems, and quotes of support plus articles and columns that track the course of his historic presidency. A potpourri of positive propaganda.Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.comBlogger50125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-45326724703000850672009-01-02T17:21:00.008-08:002009-01-03T10:01:09.591-08:00Signs of Optimism - Imagine That!<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SV7FXmJdPGI/AAAAAAAAAT4/KgKzYMgyLHw/s1600-h/john-lennon-statue_of_liberty.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5286880021747416162" style="WIDTH: 226px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SV7FXmJdPGI/AAAAAAAAAT4/KgKzYMgyLHw/s320/john-lennon-statue_of_liberty.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><span style="color:#000000;"><strong>The Statue of Liberty is closer to being fully opened to tourists</strong> (</span>since its closure after 9/11), due to Barack Obama's pick for Secretary of Interior, Ken (<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/02/opinion/02fri1.html"><strong>Mr. Nice Guy</strong></a>) Salazar. </div><br /><div></div><div><strong><span style="color:#000000;">From the Washington Post today:</span></strong> </div><br /><div></div><div><em>"In the Senate, </em><a href="http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/members/o000167/" target="" aptureproxy="14"><em>Barack Obama</em></a><em>, now president-elect, was one of the co-sponsors of the bill to reopen the statue. The Senate sponsor of the bill was Sen. </em><a class="aptureLink snap_noshots" href="http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/members/s001163" aptureproxy="17"><em>Ken Salazar</em></a><em> (D-Colo.), now Obama's nominee to be interior secretary, whose department has control over the Park Service and Lady Liberty. </em></div><br /><div><em>When Salazar was nominated by Obama in mid-December, (New York Democratic Congressman Anthony) </em><a href="http://weiner.house.gov/news_display.aspx?id=1212" target=""><em>Weiner said in a statement</em></a><em>, "Finally, we have a Secretary who understands that the only obstacle to opening the crown is a lack of courage and imagination." He added: "Today we are a step closer to providing safe access to the heights of Lady Liberty."</em> <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/01/AR2009010102046.html?hpid=artslot"><strong>read the whole story here</strong></a></div><br /><div></div><div><strong><span style="color:#000000;">Other promising news</span></strong> came on the economic front, with the Dow Jones industrial average closing above 9,000 for the first time since November 5, the day after Obama's election. <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/03/business/03markets.html?hp"><strong>The New York Times has the scoop. </strong></a></div><br /><div></div><div><strong><span style="color:#000000;">Good news cannot shield the bad.</span></strong> We pray for good sense to prevail in the <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/03/world/middleeast/03mideast.html?hp"><strong>current conflict</strong> </a>between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. Maybe Secretary of State Clinton will be able to make a difference, and move all parties towards peace in that land of miracles.</div><br /><div></div><div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imagine_(song)"><strong>Imagine</strong></a></div><div>by John Lennon</div><div></div><br /><div><em>Imagine there's no Heaven </em></div><div><em>It's easy if you try </em></div><div><em>No hell below us </em></div><div><em>Above us only sky </em></div><div><em>Imagine all the people </em></div><div><em>Living for today </em></div><div><em></em></div><br /><div><em>Imagine there's no countries </em></div><div><em>It isn't hard to do </em></div><div><em>Nothing to kill or die for </em></div><div><em>And no religion too </em></div><div><em>Imagine all the people </em></div><div><em>Living life in peace </em></div><div><em></em></div><br /><div><em>You may say that I'm a dreamer </em></div><div><em>But I'm not the only one </em></div><div><em>I hope someday you'll join us </em></div><div><em>And the world will be as one </em></div><div><em></em></div><br /><div><em>Imagine no possessions </em></div><div><em>I wonder if you can </em></div><div><em>No need for greed or hunger </em></div><div><em>A brotherhood of man </em></div><div><em>Imagine all the people </em></div><div><em>Sharing all the world </em></div><div><em></em></div><br /><div><em>You may say that I'm a dreamer </em></div><div><em>But I'm not the only one </em></div><div><em>I hope someday you'll join us </em></div><div><em>And the world will live as one </em></div><div></div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-9564484965731125322009-01-01T18:01:00.018-08:002009-01-02T12:11:03.218-08:00Happy New Year!<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SV19e-UA3tI/AAAAAAAAATw/aRhPlpm0hy8/s1600-h/elk+new+year.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5286519508679319250" style="WIDTH: 222px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SV19e-UA3tI/AAAAAAAAATw/aRhPlpm0hy8/s320/elk+new+year.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><strong><span style="color:#000000;">I'm back in the Good News business</span></strong> after the Big Thaw in the Pacific Northwest and several days of weather enforced, but welcome, contemplation. I came to the conclusion that despite mounting domestic and international concerns, there is Only Optimism for Obama in the Offing. We can only look up and look ahead, our desire for better times buoyed by hope and anchored with possibility.</div><br /><div></div><div>So, I begin 2009 with this: The Obama family is on <a href="http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/12/30/moving-day-for-the-obamas/"><strong>their way to their new home</strong> </a>in Washington, DC because school starts on Monday and serious <a href="http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01/01/the-early-word-new-years-day-edition/"><strong>business awaits</strong></a> the President elect. In the meantime, thousands are volunteering to help at the inauguration, because, as reported in the <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/31/AR2008123103082.html?nav=hcmodule"><strong>Washington Post today</strong></a>, "There's a hunger out there. People want to get involved. People want to be a part of this thing . . . a part of history."</div><br /><div></div><div>Today would have been Poet/Philosopher <a href="http://johnodonohue.com/"><strong>John O'Donohue's</strong> </a>53rd birthday. Here is a New Year's Day Blessing from his book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw_1_10?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=benedictus+by+john+o%27donohue&sprefix=benedictus"><strong>Benedictus</strong></a>. This is also for my father, Kelsey, who is celebrating his 75th birthday today. <em>Happy Birthday, Dad!</em></div><br /><div></div><div><strong><span style="color:#333399;">A New Year Blessing</span></strong></div><div><strong><span style="color:#333399;">BEANNACHT</span></strong></div><div><span style="font-size:85%;color:#000000;"><strong>by John O'Donohue for his mother, Josie</strong></span></div><br /><div></div><div><em>On the day when</em></div><div><em>The weight deadens</em></div><div><em>On your shoulders</em></div><div><em>And you stumble,</em></div><div><em>May the clay dance</em></div><div><em>To balance you.</em></div><br /><div><em></em></div><div><em>And when your eyes</em></div><div><em>Freeze behind</em></div><div><em>The grey window</em></div><div><em>And the ghost of loss</em></div><div><em>Gets into you,</em></div><div><em>May a flock of colours,</em></div><div><em>Indigo, red, green</em></div><div><em>And azure blue,</em></div><div><em>Come to awaken in you</em></div><div><em>A meadow of delight.</em></div><br /><div><em></em></div><div><em>When the canvas frays</em></div><div><em>In the currach of thought</em></div><div><em>And a stain of ocean</em></div><div><em>Blackens beneath you,</em></div><div><em>May there come across the waters</em></div><div><em>A path of yellow moonlight</em></div><div><em>To bring you safely home.</em></div><br /><div><em></em></div><div><em>May the nourishment of the earth be yours,</em></div><div><em>May the clarity of light be yours,</em></div><div><em>May the fluency of the ocean be yours,</em></div><div><em>May the protection of the ancestors be yours.</em></div><br /><div><em></em></div><div><em>And so may a slow</em></div><div><em>Wind work these words</em></div><div><em>Of love around you,</em></div><div><em>An invisible cloak</em></div><div><em>To mind your life.</em></div><br /><div></div><div><span style="color:#000066;">I miss you, John . . . rest peacefully. Your spirit is alive.</span></div><div></div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-88788113428136551972008-12-25T05:26:00.020-08:002008-12-25T14:46:26.827-08:00Peace on Earth, Goodwill to Everyone!<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SVORrdjVz-I/AAAAAAAAATo/kCFk1e-0qw4/s1600-h/ChristmasBellsS.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5283726963688984546" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 253px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SVORrdjVz-I/AAAAAAAAATo/kCFk1e-0qw4/s320/ChristmasBellsS.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><strong><span style="color:#000000;">Merry Christmas Day!</span></strong> Icy weather in Seattle unexpectedly finds me in Denver with my immediate family, but my thoughts are also with friends and family at home around the various nooks and crannies of Puget Sound, and with the Obama family on <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/25/us/politics/25obama.html?em"><strong>holiday in Hawaii</strong></a>. I hope he is getting the rest that he needs and time with his family that he deserves!</div><br /><div></div><div>"<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Heard_the_Bells_on_Christmas_Day"><strong>I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day</strong></a>" is my absolute favorite Christmas song. Written by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow as a poem during the American Civil War and set to music later, its message is profoundly hopeful in the face of horrific war. It inspired me several years ago to make <a href="http://www.clognition.org/peace.htm"><strong>this music video</strong> </a>with images of 9/11 intermingled with bells of many religions, angels, and symbols of a peaceful world.</div><br /><div>Written 144 years ago during another period of great national trauma, Longfellow's beautiful words capture the hope and promise the Obama victory gives to so many people in the United States and around the globe.</div><br /><div></div><div><strong><span style="color:#333399;">I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day</span></strong></div><div><em>a poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow</em></div><div>(stanzas 2, 4 & 5 are usually omitted in the song version)</div><br /><div></div><div><em>I heard the bells on Christmas day</em></div><div><em>Their old familiar carols play</em></div><div><em>And mild and sweet the words repeat,</em></div><div><em>Of peace on earth, good will to men.</em></div><br /><div><em></em></div><div><em>I thought how as the day had come,</em></div><div><em>The belfries of all Christendom</em></div><div><em>Had roll'd along th' unbroken song</em></div><div><em>Of peace on earth, good will to men.</em></div><br /><div><em></em></div><div><em>And in despair I bow'd my head:</em></div><div><em>"There is no peace on earth," I said,</em></div><div><em>"For hate is strong, and mocks the song</em></div><div><em>Of peace on earth, good will to men."</em></div><br /><div><em></em></div><div><em>Then from each black, accursed mouth</em></div><div><em>The cannon thundered in the South,</em></div><div><em>And with the sound the carols drowned</em></div><div><em>Of peace on earth, good will to men.<br /><br />It was as if an earthquake rent</em></div><div><em>The hearth-stones of a continent,</em></div><div><em>And made forlorn, the households born</em></div><div><em>Of peace on earth, good will to men.</em></div><br /><div><em></em></div><div><em>Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:</em></div><div><em>"God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;</em></div><div><em>The wrong shall fail, the right prevail,</em></div><div><em>With peace on earth, good will to men.</em></div><br /><div><em></em></div><div><em>"'Til ringing, singing on its way,</em></div><div><em>The world revolved from night to day,</em></div><div><em>A voice, a chime, a chant sublime,</em></div><div><em>Of peace on earth, good will to men.</em></div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-91001653052495936302008-12-24T19:48:00.006-08:002008-12-25T09:52:32.768-08:00Christmas Eve<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SVMGk86LVeI/AAAAAAAAATg/GMasSuXUBog/s1600-h/santa_sleigh_1024.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5283574019730920930" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SVMGk86LVeI/AAAAAAAAATg/GMasSuXUBog/s320/santa_sleigh_1024.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><strong><span style="color:#000000;">It Came Upon a Midnight Clear</span></strong></div><br /><div></div><div><em>It came upon the midnight clear,</em></div><div><em>That glorious song of old,</em></div><div><em>From angels bending near the earth,</em></div><div><em>To touch their harps of gold:</em></div><div><em>"Peace on the earth, goodwill to men</em></div><div><em>From heavens all gracious King!"</em></div><div><em>The world in solemn stillness lay</em></div><div><em>To hear the angels sing.</em></div><br /><div><em></em></div><div><em>Still through the cloven skies they come,</em></div><div><em>With peaceful wings unfurled;</em></div><div><em>And still their heavenly music floats</em></div><div><em>O'er all the weary world:</em></div><div><em>Above its sad and lowly plains</em></div><div><em>They bend on hovering wing,</em></div><div><em>And ever o'er its Babel sounds</em></div><div><em>The blessed angels sing.</em></div><br /><div><em></em></div><div><em>O ye beneath life's crushing load,</em></div><div><em>Whose forms are bending low,</em></div><div><em>Who toil along the climbing way</em></div><div><em>With painful steps and slow;</em></div><div><em>Look now, for glad and golden hours</em></div><div><em>Come swiftly on the wing;</em></div><div><em>Oh rest beside the weary road</em></div><div><em>And hear the angels sing.</em></div><br /><div><em></em></div><div><em>For lo! the days are hastening on,</em></div><div><em>By prophets seen of old,</em></div><div><em>When with the ever-circling years</em></div><div><em>Shall come the time foretold,</em></div><div><em>When the new heaven and earth shall own</em></div><div><em>The Prince of Peace, their King,</em></div><div><em>And the whole world send back the song</em></div><div><em>Which now the angels sing.</em></div><br /><div></div><div><strong><span style="color:#333399;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It_Came_Upon_the_Midnight_Clear">"It Came Upon a Midnight Clear"</a></span></strong> was written by Edmund Hamilton Sears in 1849. The carol started life as a poem written by its author who was a minister living in Massachusetts at the time. The music was composed by the American musician Richard Storrs Willis in 1859, who was inspired by the words of the poem. Although it is a religious song, it always fills my mind with images of Santa and his reindeer on their midnight mission.</div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-61753760156813202362008-12-24T19:34:00.006-08:002009-01-01T20:15:06.577-08:00Tuesday, December 23: Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SVMBG1kVOsI/AAAAAAAAATQ/K4nrQhL21oU/s1600-h/stlouis1.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5283568004806032066" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 210px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SVMBG1kVOsI/AAAAAAAAATQ/K4nrQhL21oU/s320/stlouis1.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><strong><span style="color:#333399;">Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas</span></strong></div><br /><div></div><div><em>Have yourself a merry little Christmas,</em></div><div><em>Let your heart be light</em></div><div><em>From now on,</em></div><div><em>Our troubles will be out of sight</em></div><br /><div><em></em></div><div><em>Have yourself a merry little Christmas,</em></div><div><em>Make the Yule-tide gay,</em></div><div><em>From now on,</em></div><div><em>Our troubles will be miles away.</em></div><br /><div><em></em></div><div><em>Here we are as in olden days,</em></div><div><em>Happy golden days of yore.</em></div><div><em>Faithful friends who are dear to us</em></div><div><em>Gather near to us once more.</em></div><br /><div><em></em></div><div><em>Through the years we all will be together</em></div><div><em>If the Fates allow</em></div><div><em>Hang a shining star upon the highest bough.</em></div><div><em>And have yourself a merry little Christmas now.</em></div><br /><div></div><div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Have_Yourself_a_Merry_Little_Christmas"><strong>"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas"</strong></a> was written by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane, and made famous by Judy Garland in the 1944 film "Meet Me in St. Louis." I love its message about friendship lasting through the years despite separations of time and distance, and the image of the star-as-beacon on the tree.</div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-27075803328919788392008-12-24T19:21:00.009-08:002009-01-02T09:38:19.275-08:00Monday, December 22: Christmas Favorites<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SVMCSfsbBXI/AAAAAAAAATY/2G4ctBzeOto/s1600-h/jinglebellrock.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5283569304604444018" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SVMCSfsbBXI/AAAAAAAAATY/2G4ctBzeOto/s320/jinglebellrock.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><strong><span style="color:#000000;">We are stuck in Denver due to bad weather in Seattle.</span></strong> Am dreaming of the white Christmas we could be having at home, thinking of my favorite Christmas songs, and sharing them here for the next few days. This one is for my Elizabeth, no longer three years old and laughing in my lap while we sing this song - but still just as delightful (in her own, seriously serious, 20 year old way)!<br /><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jingle_Bell_Rock"><strong><span style="color:#333399;">Jingle Bell Rock</span></strong> </a><br />Lyric by Bobby Helms<br /><br />Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock<br />Jingle bells swing and jingle bells ring<br />Snowing and blowing up bushels of fun<br />Now the jingle hop has begun<br /><br />Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock<br />Jingle bells chime in jingle bell time<br />Dancing and prancing in Jingle Bell Square<br />In the frosty air.<br /><br />What a bright time, it's the right time<br />To rock the night away<br />Jingle bell time is a swell time<br />To go gliding in a one-horse sleigh<br /><br />Giddy-up jingle horse, pick up your feet<br />Jingle around the clock<br />Mix and a-mingle in the jingling feet<br />That's the jingle bell<br />That's the jingle bell<br />That's the jingle bell rock!</div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-15842104818205978982008-12-21T08:00:00.006-08:002008-12-21T08:52:26.612-08:00Happy Winter Solstice!<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU50EdOo4vI/AAAAAAAAATI/HdqVSjOKhnQ/s1600-h/solstice3.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5282287032866497266" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 232px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU50EdOo4vI/AAAAAAAAATI/HdqVSjOKhnQ/s320/solstice3.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU5s6ACU2rI/AAAAAAAAATA/9GWOVGA1AOM/s1600-h/solstice+2.jpg"></a><strong><span style="color:#000000;">The 2008 Winter Solstice occurred at 5:04 a.m. Mountain Standard Time.</span></strong> This picture was taken from my parents' deck in the Denver area this morning just after sunrise.<br /><div><br /><div>A new <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/20/AR2008122001498.html?hpid=topnews"><strong>ABC/Washington Post poll</strong> </a>shows that people are optimistic about the coming Obama administration.</div><br /><div><em><span style="color:#333399;">Cheers for the return of the Sun and good things to come!</span></em></div><br /><div><strong><span style="color:#333399;">The Shortest Day</span></strong></div><div><em>And so the Shortest Day came and the year died</em></div><div><em>And everywhere down the centuries of the snow-white world</em></div><div><em>Came people singing, dancing,</em></div><div><em>To drive the dark away.</em></div><div><em>They lighted candles in the winter trees;</em></div><div><em>They hung their homes with evergreen;</em></div><div><em>They burned beseeching fires all night long</em></div><div><em>To keep the year alive.</em></div><div><em>And when the new year's sunshine blazed awake</em></div><div><em>They shouted, revelling.</em></div><div><em>Through all the frosty ages you can hear them</em></div><div><em>Echoing behind us - listen!</em></div><div><em>All the long echoes, sing the same delight,</em></div><div><em>This Shortest Day,</em></div><div><em>As promise wakens in the sleeping land:</em></div><div><em>They carol, feast, give thanks,</em></div><div><em>And dearly love their friends,</em></div><div><em>And hope for peace.</em></div><div><em>And now so do we, here, now,</em></div><div><em>This year and every year.</em></div><br /><div><a href="http://www.thelostland.com/biography.htm"><strong><em>~ Susan Cooper</em></strong></a></div></div></div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-73656895706694824942008-12-20T21:53:00.009-08:002009-01-02T08:07:31.849-08:0012th Day: Twelve Drummers Drumming<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3aRNXFbfI/AAAAAAAAASw/tuW824NdKNI/s1600-h/12drummers.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5282117927154576882" style="WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 150px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3aRNXFbfI/AAAAAAAAASw/tuW824NdKNI/s200/12drummers.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>On the twelfth day of Christmas</div><div>my true love sent to me:</div><div><strong>Twelve Drummers Drumming</strong></div><div>Eleven Pipers Piping</div><div>Ten Lords a Leaping</div><div>Nine Ladies Dancing</div><div>Eight Maids a Milking</div><div>Seven Swans a Swimming</div><div>Six Geese a Laying</div><div>Five Golden Rings</div><div>Four Calling Birds</div><div>Three French Hens</div><div>Two Turtle Doves</div><div>and a Partridge in a Pear Tree</div><br /><div><em><strong><span style="color:#000000;">(I have been visiting family in Colorado these past 12 Days of Christmas, for those who have inquired; hopefully home tomorrow night if the weather doesn't interfere!)</span></strong></em></div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-56610700286799249582008-12-20T21:51:00.002-08:002008-12-21T07:18:28.278-08:00Friday, December 19: 11th Day: Eleven Pipers Piping<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3ZqK69vtI/AAAAAAAAASo/Kh6TZhgzR8g/s1600-h/11thday.gif"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5282117256484863698" style="WIDTH: 126px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3ZqK69vtI/AAAAAAAAASo/Kh6TZhgzR8g/s200/11thday.gif" border="0" /></a><br /><div>On the eleventh day of Christmas</div><div>my true love sent to me:</div><div><strong>Eleven Pipers Piping</strong></div><div>Ten Lords a Leaping</div><div>Nine Ladies Dancing</div><div>Eight Maids a Milking</div><div>Seven Swans a Swimming</div><div>Six Geese a Laying</div><div>Five Golden Rings</div><div>Four Calling Birds</div><div>Three French Hens</div><div>Two Turtle Doves</div><div>and a Partridge in a Pear Tree</div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-24178345848188599892008-12-20T21:49:00.004-08:002008-12-21T07:17:50.145-08:00Thursday, December 18: 10th Day: Ten Lords a Leaping<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3ZIT2IKqI/AAAAAAAAASg/N-WFzGlNitU/s1600-h/10lords.bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5282116674764941986" style="WIDTH: 155px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3ZIT2IKqI/AAAAAAAAASg/N-WFzGlNitU/s200/10lords.bmp" border="0" /></a><br /><div>On the tenth day of Christmas</div><div>my true love sent to me:</div><div><strong>Ten Lords a Leaping</strong></div><div>Nine Ladies Dancing</div><div>Eight Maids a Milking</div><div>Seven Swans a Swimming</div><div>Six Geese a Laying</div><div>Five Golden Rings</div><div>Four Calling Birds</div><div>Three French Hens</div><div>Two Turtle Doves</div><div>and a Partridge in a Pear Tree</div><br /><div><em>(Happy Birthday, Kim!)</em> <div></div></div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-3434912915116922052008-12-20T21:47:00.004-08:002008-12-21T07:16:08.328-08:00Wednesday, December 17: 9th Day: Nine Ladies Dancing<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3YpAfk8yI/AAAAAAAAASY/gyJTLVWgvBw/s1600-h/DancingLadies.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5282116136994140962" style="WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 194px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3YpAfk8yI/AAAAAAAAASY/gyJTLVWgvBw/s200/DancingLadies.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>On the ninth day of Christmas</div><div>my true love sent to me:</div><div><strong>Nine Ladies Dancing</strong></div><div>Eight Maids a Milking</div><div>Seven Swans a Swimming</div><div>Six Geese a Laying</div><div>Five Golden Rings</div><div>Four Calling Birds</div><div>Three French Hens</div><div>Two Turtle Doves</div><div>and a Partridge in a Pear Tree</div><br /><div></div><div><em>(December 17: Happy Birthday Greg W & Michele M!)</em></div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-53669131451156923592008-12-20T21:45:00.002-08:002008-12-21T07:12:58.051-08:00Tuesday, December 16: 8th Day: Eight Maids a Milking<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3YRVmDpZI/AAAAAAAAASQ/VGRtxgbhvq0/s1600-h/8maids.bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5282115730341602706" style="WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 154px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3YRVmDpZI/AAAAAAAAASQ/VGRtxgbhvq0/s200/8maids.bmp" border="0" /></a><br /><div>On the eighth day of Christmas</div><div>my true love sent to me:</div><div><strong>Eight Maids a Milking</strong></div><div>Seven Swans a Swimming</div><div>Six Geese a Laying</div><div>Five Golden Rings</div><div>Four Calling Birds</div><div>Three French Hens</div><div>Two Turtle Doves</div><div>and a Partridge in a Pear Tree</div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-27293291736075647022008-12-20T21:43:00.002-08:002008-12-21T07:12:04.260-08:00Monday, December 15: 7th Day: Seven Swans a Swimming<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3X01kbLjI/AAAAAAAAASI/xEJzesb4Aqk/s1600-h/7swans.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5282115240708484658" style="WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 147px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3X01kbLjI/AAAAAAAAASI/xEJzesb4Aqk/s200/7swans.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>On the seventh day of Christmas</div><div>my true love sent to me:</div><div><strong>Seven Swans a Swimming</strong></div><div>Six Geese a Laying</div><div>Five Golden Rings</div><div>Four Calling Birds</div><div>Three French Hens</div><div>Two Turtle Doves</div><div>and a Partridge in a Pear Tree</div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-28895379361300212412008-12-14T23:13:00.001-08:002008-12-20T21:43:21.936-08:006th Day: Six Geese a Laying<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3XYppQmtI/AAAAAAAAASA/1FqBrHw-jpY/s1600-h/6geese.bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5282114756471200466" style="WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 134px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3XYppQmtI/AAAAAAAAASA/1FqBrHw-jpY/s200/6geese.bmp" border="0" /></a><br /><div>On the sixth day of Christmas</div><div>my true love sent to me:</div><div><strong>Six Geese a Laying</strong></div><div>Five Golden Rings</div><div>Four Calling Birds</div><div>Three French Hens</div><div>Two Turtle Doves</div><div>and a Partridge in a Pear Tree</div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-12000539299549454652008-12-13T22:06:00.001-08:002008-12-20T21:41:05.270-08:005th Day: Five Golden Rings<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3W3P17L0I/AAAAAAAAAR4/UuQwLd8YEjg/s1600-h/Christmas_Ornaments_5_golden_rings.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5282114182609317698" style="WIDTH: 188px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3W3P17L0I/AAAAAAAAAR4/UuQwLd8YEjg/s200/Christmas_Ornaments_5_golden_rings.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>On the fifth day of Christmas<br /><div>my true love sent to me:</div><div><strong>Five Golden Rings</strong></div><div>Four Calling Birds</div><div>Three French Hens</div><div>Two Turtle Doves</div><div>and a Partridge in a Pear Tree</div></div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-60031531269095014662008-12-12T09:14:00.001-08:002008-12-20T21:38:02.656-08:004th Day: Four Calling Birds<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3WJxSs60I/AAAAAAAAARo/zHmbcJipJTI/s1600-h/4callingbirds.bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5282113401314405186" style="WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 158px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3WJxSs60I/AAAAAAAAARo/zHmbcJipJTI/s200/4callingbirds.bmp" border="0" /></a><br /><div>On the fourth day of Christmas</div><div>my true love sent to me:</div><div><strong>Four Calling Birds</strong></div><div>Three French Hens</div><div>Two Turtle Doves</div><div>and a Partridge in a Pear Tree</div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-77055412143098557162008-12-11T21:43:00.001-08:002008-12-20T21:35:57.132-08:003rd Day: Three French Hens<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3VhYJDHsI/AAAAAAAAARg/SWHs5dWQA3U/s1600-h/1HENS.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5282112707368263362" style="WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 199px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3VhYJDHsI/AAAAAAAAARg/SWHs5dWQA3U/s200/1HENS.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>On the third day of Christmas<br /><div>my true love sent to me:</div><div><strong>Three French Hens</strong></div><div>Two Turtle Doves</div><div>and a Partridge in a Pear Tree<br /></div><div><br /><em>(Happy Birthday, Peter!)</em></div></div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-79944750699031721842008-12-10T23:42:00.003-08:002008-12-20T21:32:39.328-08:002nd Day: Two Turtle Doves<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3U5iME0CI/AAAAAAAAARQ/A7RiuvktquI/s1600-h/TurtleDoves.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5282112022870544418" style="WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 152px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3U5iME0CI/AAAAAAAAARQ/A7RiuvktquI/s200/TurtleDoves.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>On the second day of Christmas<br /><div>my true love sent to me:</div><div><strong>Two Turtle Doves</strong></div><div>and a Partridge in a Pear Tree</div></div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-675393732448371192008-12-09T21:55:00.002-08:002008-12-20T21:28:49.257-08:001st Day: Partridge in a Pear Tree<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3T21N9ejI/AAAAAAAAARA/uQKJzqsL1q0/s1600-h/pear-tree.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5282110876927490610" style="WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/SU3T21N9ejI/AAAAAAAAARA/uQKJzqsL1q0/s320/pear-tree.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />On the first day of Christmas<br />my true love sent to me:<br /><strong>A Partridge in a Pear Tree</strong>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-73860623547807978922008-12-08T14:27:00.005-08:002008-12-08T18:14:50.043-08:00A Great Republican Triumph - No Kidding!<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/ST2ilBn2pzI/AAAAAAAAAQw/FZsgLwnoUOM/s1600-h/anhjosephcaolarepap.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5277553095322543922" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 212px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/ST2ilBn2pzI/AAAAAAAAAQw/FZsgLwnoUOM/s320/anhjosephcaolarepap.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><strong><span style="color:#000000;">History & Amazement</span></strong></div><br /><div></div><div>Vietnam refugee Anh Cao defeated William Jefferson in Louisiana for a seat in the 111th Congress. Jefferson, a Democrat, had served for nine terms and been found with $90,000 in his freezer (9 must be Jefferson's unlucky number); the FBI is still investigating.</div><br /><div></div><div>In the meantime, Cao, only recently declaring himself a Republican after years as a registered Independent, came to the U.S. as an 8-year-old refugee, and is a community activist attorney with a love for philosophy.</div><br /><div><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/08/us/politics/08cao.html"><strong>read the whole story in the New York Times.</strong></a></div><div></div><br /><div>Rising tides raise all boats! In this case, I mean, let's hear it for worthy, ethical, and inspirational candidates on both sides of the aisle!</div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-8518781900623743062008-12-07T21:22:00.004-08:002008-12-08T15:03:41.997-08:00Pearl Harbor Anniversary<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/ST2lrdGHaQI/AAAAAAAAAQ4/5KKTUJfgOl8/s1600-h/Shinseki.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5277556504311326978" style="WIDTH: 250px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 312px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/ST2lrdGHaQI/AAAAAAAAAQ4/5KKTUJfgOl8/s320/Shinseki.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><strong><span style="color:#000000;">President Elect Barack Obama nominates retired 4-star general, Eric Shinseki, to head the Department of Veterans' Affairs.</span></strong></div><br /><div></div><div><strong><span style="color:#333399;"><em>From Bloomberg.com:</em></span></strong></div><br /><div></div><div>"Shinseki’s appointment won bipartisan praise from lawmakers, with Republican Senator <a href="http://search.bloomberg.com/search?q=Richard+Shelby&site=wnews&client=wnews&proxystylesheet=wnews&output=xml_no_dtd&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&filter=p&getfields=wnnis&sort=date:D:S:d1" t_above="true" t_static="true" t_fontcolor="#000000" t_fontface="Verdana,sans-serif" t_bgcolor="#ddedd9" t_width="110" t_delay="50">Richard Shelby</a> of Alabama pledging his support and saying the former general was correct in his 2003 assessment.</div><br /><div>“He’s a great soldier, he’s a great leader,” Shelby said today on the “Fox News Sunday” program. “We should have listened to him,” Shelby said. “We didn’t and look where we are today.”<br /></div><br /><div>Democratic Senator <a href="http://search.bloomberg.com/search?q=Carl+Levin&site=wnews&client=wnews&proxystylesheet=wnews&output=xml_no_dtd&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&filter=p&getfields=wnnis&sort=date:D:S:d1" t_above="true" t_static="true" t_fontcolor="#000000" t_fontface="Verdana,sans-serif" t_bgcolor="#ddedd9" t_width="110" t_delay="50">Carl Levin</a> of Michigan said on the Fox program that “it was wrong for the Bush administration to mistreat him the way they did.” Levin added that Obama’s choice of Shinseki shows that the president-elect “will welcome people who disagree with him to express those views to him.”<br /></div><br /><div> </div><div>Obama announced Shinseki’s appointment on the 67th anniversary on the attack on Pearl Harbor. On Dec. 7, 1941, Japanese planes attacked the U.S. Naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, leaving more than 2,400 servicemen dead. The surprise strike drew the U.S. into World War II."</div><br /><div><a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=atnHIlqi.9Es&refer=home"><strong>read the whole thing here</strong></a></div><br /><div>From my point of view, our vets deserve everything we can give them - the best support in the field, and, especially, the best care upon return. <a href="http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/traumatic-brain-injury/DS00552"><strong>Traumatic head injuries</strong> </a>are particularly troubling.</div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-58555450187933058372008-12-06T06:23:00.003-08:002008-12-06T06:54:19.201-08:00Working Our Way to Economic Recovery<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/STqRdVK7cTI/AAAAAAAAAQg/g7dHQgpCYFo/s1600-h/WPA%20Work%20Promotes%20Confidence.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5276689846503174450" style="WIDTH: 222px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/STqRdVK7cTI/AAAAAAAAAQg/g7dHQgpCYFo/s320/WPA%2520Work%2520Promotes%2520Confidence.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><strong><span style="color:#000000;">According to this blog's countdown clock, there are still 45 days until the Inauguration.</span></strong> So while we wait to pop the cork (see yesterday's entry), President Elect Obama is doing what he can to calm national economic jitters while not taking over for an increasingly disengaged President Bush.</div><br /><div></div><div>Today in his radio and <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/12/06/obama-discusses-economic-_n_148928.html"><strong>YouTube address</strong></a>, Obama announced that his administration plans to invest in really, really big infrastructure projects to repair ailing national buildings and roads and in the process, create jobs. Kind of like the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Works_Progress_Administration"><strong>WPA in the Great Depression</strong></a>, only BIGGER (liberal and conservative economists seem to agree that huge spending by the Government is the only thing that will put us back on the road to economic recovery). <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/07/us/politics/07radio.html?hp"><strong>Read about it in the New York Times today.</strong></a></div><br /><div></div><div>Not wasting anytime to think about other ways to spend our way out of trouble, a national conversation about Health Care Reform is already underway on the website <a href="http://www.change.gov/"><strong>www.change.gov</strong></a>. Take a minute or two to give the powers that be your own two cents worth of advice; it is <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/05/AR2008120503322.html?hpid=topnews"><strong>reported that they are paying attention!</strong></a></div><br /><div></div><div>Should we have expected anything less?</div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-75802662795252072732008-12-05T23:16:00.004-08:002008-12-06T04:51:47.656-08:00Worth Celebrating - Cheers!<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/STp1U3au4EI/AAAAAAAAAQY/o7R7OTInt0c/s1600-h/champagne.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5276658914751864898" style="WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 159px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/STp1U3au4EI/AAAAAAAAAQY/o7R7OTInt0c/s200/champagne.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><div><strong><span style="color:#000000;">Today is the</span></strong> <a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-1673-Baltimore-Food-Fun-Examiner~y2008m12d5-The-75th-anniversary-of-Prohibitions-repeal-how-will-you-celebrate"><strong>75th Anniversary of the Repeal of Prohibition</strong></a>. <strong><span style="color:#000000;">Good thing, because what is a real celebration without champagne?</span></strong> </div><br /><div>If you will be in Washington, DC for the Inauguration on January 20, the good news is that <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/02/AR2008120203063.html">local bars will be open 24/7</a> for the extended weekend, serving alcohol until 5:00 a.m. Let the good times roll!</div></div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-59822519132046026762008-12-04T23:09:00.002-08:002008-12-05T10:18:52.994-08:00The Robinson Family's Incredible Journey<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/STlwHDXSfyI/AAAAAAAAAQI/SkAQad0DOTQ/s1600-h/slave+cabin.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5276371704905629474" style="WIDTH: 296px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 198px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/STlwHDXSfyI/AAAAAAAAAQI/SkAQad0DOTQ/s320/slave+cabin.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><strong><span style="color:#000000;">Michelle Obama's family: From slavery to White House</span></strong><br /></div><br /><div>By Dahleen Glanton and Stacy St. Clair<br />Chicago Tribune<br /></div><br /><div>GEORGETOWN, S.C. —<br /></div><br /><div>Tiny wooden cabins line the dirt road once known as Slave Street as it winds through Friendfield Plantation.<br /></div><br /><div>More than 200 slaves lived in the whitewashed shacks in the early 1800s, and some of their descendants remained for more than 100 years after the Civil War. The last tenants abandoned the hovels about 30 years ago, and even they would have struggled to imagine a distant daughter of the plantation one day calling the White House home.<br /></div><br /><div>But a historical line can be drawn from these Low Country cabins to Michelle Obama, charting an American family's improbable journey through slavery, segregation, the civil-rights movement and a historic presidential election.<br /></div><br /><div>Their documented passage begins with Jim Robinson, Michelle Obama's great-great-grandfather, who was born about 1850 and lived as a slave, at least until the Civil War, on the sprawling rice plantation. Records show he remained on the estate after the war, working as a sharecropper and living in the old slave quarters with his wife, Louiser, and their children. He could neither read nor write, according to the 1880 census.<br /></div><br /><div>Robinson would be the last illiterate branch of Michelle Obama's family tree.<br /></div><br /><div>Census records show each generation of Robinsons became more educated than the last, with Michelle Obama eventually earning degrees from Princeton University and Harvard Law School. Her older brother, Craig, also earned an Ivy League education. <a href="http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/politics/2008466925_obamaslavery04.html"><strong><em>read the entire article here</em></strong></a></div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1719712028785521286.post-5153689595819946282008-12-03T21:32:00.001-08:002008-12-06T07:19:44.388-08:00Thought for the Day: Empathy<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/STqYAxuW8cI/AAAAAAAAAQo/eK77g0KC5KQ/s1600-h/xavier+commencement.gif"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5276697052533158338" style="WIDTH: 150px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 212px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_n7ipVDF6naE/STqYAxuW8cI/AAAAAAAAAQo/eK77g0KC5KQ/s320/xavier+commencement.gif" border="0" /></a><br /><div><strong><span style="color:#000000;">"You know, there's a lot of talk in this country about the federal deficit. But I think we should talk more about our empathy deficit</span></strong> - the ability to put ourselves in someone else's shoes; to see the world through the eyes of those who are different from us – the child who's hungry, the steelworker who's been laid-off, the family who lost the entire life they built together when the storm came to town. When you think like this – when you choose to broaden your ambit of concern and empathize with the plight of others, whether they are close friends or distant strangers – it becomes harder not to act; harder not to help."</div><br /><div></div><div><strong><span style="color:#000000;">~ Barack Obama, New Orleans, LA,</span> </strong><a href="http://www.barackobama.com/2006/08/11/xavier_university_commencement_address.php"><strong>Xavier University Commencement, August 11, 2006</strong></a></div>Barakah for Barackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17803777884755190839noreply@blogger.com0