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Groups > Helping Vegetarians go Vegan > Discussions > Topic: Inspiration, Wisdom, & Comic Relief II
Topic: Inspiration, Wisdom, & Comic Relief II

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Laurie E.	Inspiration, Wisdom, & Comic Relief II February 02, 2008 12:33 PM The first I,W & CR thread was getting pretty long, so I thought I'd start a new one! Share your good stuff here! Lord, disturb my peace, that I might bring peace to those who are disturbed. ~Haitian mountain prayer There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest. ~George Bernard Shaw Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it. ~Helen Keller Don't let life discourage you. Everyone who got where he is had to begin where he was. ~Richard L. Evans [ send green star]
Laurie E.	Your Moment of Zen :-) February 03, 2008 8:07 AM Because we enslave other beings, we are enslaved. Because we inflict pain on other beings, we are in pain. Because we drive them to madness we are carving the path to insanity. For they are not they, they are us. ~Zen teaching All beings tremble before violence. All fear death. All love life. See yourself in others. Then whom can you hurt? What harm can you do? ~The Buddha [ send green star]
Amalthea L.	February 03, 2008 9:25 AM A joke I made up: It is based on the mastercardcommercials. Going to the store "just" to pick up soymilk: $2.50 Leaving with: a watermelon, some nutritional yeast, a box of pasta, a bag of potatoes, a carton of oats and a bag of dried lentils: $21.16 One more person living cruelty-free: priceless Well... I thought it was funny [ send green star] [ accepted]
Laurie E.	:-D February 03, 2008 9:49 AM Well, I think it's brilliant! (Not to mention true! ) [ send green star]
Laurie E.	February 08, 2008 8:35 AM Some of these may be re-runs from I,W & CR #1 (and other threads), but Louise and Veronica's introduction posts on our "Getting to Know You Thread" inspired me to share these today.... When it comes to food choices, habit is stupendously powerful. Our familiar foods give us comfort, reassurance, and a sense of identity. They are there for us when the world may not be. They can be our best friends, loyal and true. It does not take effort or creativity to do the same thing over and over again. There is ease and relaxation in doing what we have always done. And if our habits are continually reinforced by the society around us, they can become even more powerful and alluring. On the other hand, it does take effort to question whether our conventional ways of thinking and acting truly serve us. it takes effort to ask whether our lives are in alignment with the prayers and deeper purpose of our hearts. It takes effort to consciously make choices that deviate from the cultural norms, yet bring us closer to our wholeness and true health. ~John Robbins, The Food Revolution Nothing determines who we will become so much as those things we choose to ignore. ~Sandor McNab Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do. ~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe All the mind's activity is easy, if it is not subjected to reality. ~Marcel Proust ...What I learned to do many years ago was to forgive myself. It is very important for every human being to forgive herself or himself because if you live, you will make mistakes- it is inevitable. But once you do and you see the mistake, then you forgive yourself and say, 'well, if I'd known better I'd have done better,' that's all. So you say to people (and other sentient beings!) who you think you may have injured, 'I'm sorry,' and then you say to yourself, 'I'm sorry.' If we all hold on to the mistake, we can't see our own glory in the mirror because we have the mistake between our faces and the mirror; we can't see what we're capable of being.... The real difficulty is to overcome how you think about yourself. If we don't have that we never grow, we never learn, and sure as hell we should never teach. ~Maya Angelou (italicized, parenthetical insert is mine! ) There is nothing noble about being superior to some other man. The true nobility is in being superior to your previous self. ~Indian Proverb So far as past errors are concerned, forget them and start afresh, as if it were your first day in this body; but so far as your present contacts are concerned, be kind to them, as if it were your last day in this body. ~Paul Brunton [ send green star]
Louise L.	Very Funny! February 10, 2008 4:17 AM Very funny Amalthea and soooo true...it happens everytime I pop in to pick one thing up! LOL [ send green star] [ accepted]
Louise L.	February 10, 2008 4:18 AM Thanks for sharing Laurie... [ send green star] [ accepted]
Amalthea L.	February 16, 2008 5:39 PM Animals' Saint If God would grant me a day, and a role that I could play, Without pause or a complaint, I'd be the animals' saint. Many species would abound whenever I'd be around. They'd understand what I say, in their telepathic way. A language unlike human words is understood by deer and birds. By feeling my heartfelt plea, Fantail doves would land on me. Wild rabbits would lose their fear I would always have them near. Paws and hands would intertwine, Paws of theirs and hands of mine. I would learn to glide and fly from a Monarch butterfly. With their innocence, I'd live. I'd be more inspired to give. As a saint, what I would do is free creatures in a zoo. From their barred cages and pens, I would free imprisoned hens. Mammals, fishes, birds and all; freed from their restraining stall. I would hold the magic key that would let them all be free. If God would grant me a day, and a role that I could play, Without pause or a complaint, I'd be the animals' saint. http://www.veganpoet.com [ send green star] [ accepted]
Laura P.	February 16, 2008 6:47 PM Amalthea, I love your "Mastercard ad"! That reminds me, there is actually a real Mastercard ad I wanted to post in one of these threads but I couldn't find it on Youtube or anywhere online. It's about a bunch of guys going on fishing trip...they list all the fishing gear (ie. fishing rods: so many $$, tackle box: so many $$) and then they show their first "catch" lying on the wharf gasping for breath. One of the guys picks it up and puts it back in the water and it goes something like "Having the courage to show your true feelings: priceless." Anyone else seen that one? It was a couple of years ago I think, I haven't seen it recently. This post was modified from its original form on 16 Feb, 18:50 [ send green star] [ accepted]
Rene F.	Christmas ads February 19, 2008 4:45 PM Not being a TV watcher, and having a lousy memory, besides, I just know that there was one that had, as its closing line, "Having your first Tofurkey come out right..." [ send green star] [ accepted]
Laurie E.	February 24, 2008 7:45 AM I for one have never seen that ad you described, Laura, and I hope you (or someone) is able to locate a video of it so you can post it here! Thank you for sharing that poem and web site link, Amalthea. It made me think of this quote... Not to hurt our humble brethren (the animals) is our first duty to them, but to stop there is not enough. We have a higher mission -- to be of service to them whenever they require it... If you have men who will exclude any of God's creatures from the shelter of compassion and pity, you will have men who will deal likewise with their fellow men. ~St. Francis of Assisi [ send green star]
Laurie E.	February 25, 2008 8:04 AM These quotes appeared in emails from a couple of friends recently, and I shamelessly snagged them! Life is too short. So don't dream up thousands of reasons why you can't do something you want; Find one reason why you can. ~Unknown (with thanks to Kelly!) One can choose to go back toward safety or forward toward growth. Growth must be chosen again and again; fear must be overcome again and again. ~Abraham Maslow (with thanks to Glenn!) [ send green star]
Laurie E.	Farm Sanctuary Intern Video February 26, 2008 7:22 AM A while back when a bunch of us were voting for Farm Sanctuary at Vote4Cause, we were frequently joined by Ashley, a remarkable young woman from Minnesota who had spent last summer as an intern at the California Farm Sanctuary. Ashley had created this slideshow of her experience and shared it with us and it's so delightful and sweet (and inspiring, wise and even comic at times!) that it's perfect to share here. The music is great, so make sure your speakers are on, and enjoy! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIqIQs4gFCU By the way, Ashley submitted her slideshow as her answer to a recent VegNews contest whose theme was "How Do You Show Your Veggie Pride?" and she won! [ send green star]
Laurie E.	March 29, 2008 10:19 AM There is an Indian legend that says that when a human dies there is a bridge they must cross to enter into heaven. At the head of that bridge waits every animal that human encountered during their lifetime. The animals, based upon what they know of this person, decide which humans may cross the bridge.... and which are turned away. [ send green star]
Laurie E.	MLK quotes April 04, 2008 5:47 PM Quotes by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Jan 15, 1929 - April 4,1968 He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps to perpetrate it. He who accepts evil without protesting against it is really cooperating with it. Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter. The time is always right to do what is right. (And check out Blactivegan's blog entry "MLK's Dynamic Legacy and Veganism.") [ send green star]
River R.	April 05, 2008 6:45 AM MLK - a very good man I'd like to bet that everyone who is old enough remembers exactly where they were and what they were doing when they heard of his assassination. [ send green star] [ accepted]
Amalthea L.	April 05, 2008 10:00 AM Yes, he was very wise too. I have the "Our lives begin to end..." quote on my binder for school along with graphics I printed for the causes that are important to me. (Which, includes animal issues of course!) [ send green star] [ accepted]
Laurie E.	April 15, 2008 6:07 PM Kindness and compassion towards all living beings is a mark of a civilized society. Racism, economic deprival, dog fighting and cock fighting, bullfighting and rodeos are all cut from the same defective fabric: violence. Only when we have become nonviolent towards all life will we have learned to live well ourselves. ~Cesar Chavez [The ethical person] shatters no ice crystal that sparkles in the sun, tears no leaf from its tree, breaks off no flower, and is careful not to crush any insect as he walks. ~Albert Schweitzer, "Philosophy of Civilization: Civilization and Ethics" (With thanks to Glenn for the picture!) [ send green star]
Laurie E.	Vision of a Gentler World April 24, 2008 3:46 AM Frequently, situations arise where our actions make a statement about our true feelings towards life. What we order in a restaurant to eat, from what material the shoes, belts and wallets we choose to buy are made, what soap we buy to wash our hands - all these actions make statements about how much we care about life. The vegan person says, "I care." "It does matter what I do.” "It matters how much harm I create or do not create." "It matters how much healing I can bring into the world around me". It is from such a vegan ideal that the healing of the world can come. ~Michael Klaper, MD, exerpted from “Vision of a Gentler World” (Printed in Vegan Views, Winter 1993-94) Dr. Klaper's web site [ send green star]
Laurie E.	Offerings April 26, 2008 8:37 AM I read this book a few years ago, and so loved the passage with which she concludes the book that I copied it down, and it always makes me remember what a powerful, enriching offering being vegan is! Here is part of the quote... "Let us infuse our lives with this thought. It is our job on this earth to make the world a nicer place when we leave it than it was when we entered it. Think of all the good you can do in a lifetime ~ create a happy world for yourself, with the happiness radiating to those around you; raise a decent, responsible, productive child; tend a plot of land; be a loving friend; participate in your community; do a good and ethical job in your life’s work; help strangers in need; vote and volunteer for what you believe in; give money to charity. In every action, we are making an offering to the world. If you litter, you are making an offering, and if you pick up litter, you also are making an offering, though one of a very different kind. Yelling at a child is making an offering to the world, and taking time to be patient with a child is an offering, too. Expressing curtness in the simplest daily transactions is an offering, as is showing kindness in those very same deeds. Thousands of times a day we tell the world who we are ~ our thoughts, words, and actions resonate and affect others as well as ourselves. In this respect we can live a rich life or a poor one, and it won’t make one bit of difference whether we have lots of money or none at all." -Suze Orman, "The Courage To Be Rich" [ send green star]
Laurie E.	Non-conformity May 28, 2008 7:24 AM The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man. ~George Bernard Shaw Conformity is the jailer of freedom and the enemy of growth. ~John F. Kennedy The conventional view serves to protect us from the painful job of thinking. ~John Kenneth Galbraith Do not cringe and make yourself small if you are called the black sheep, the maverick, the lone wolf. Those with slow seeing say a nonconformist is a blight on society. But it has been proven over the centuries, that being different means standing at the edge, means one is practically guaranteed to make an original contribution, a useful and stunning contribution to her culture. ~Clarissa Pinkola Estes [ send green star]
Amalthea L.	July 29, 2008 9:51 PM "It seems to me of great importance to teach children respect for life. Towards this end, experiments on living animals in classrooms should be stopped. To encourage cruelty in the name of science can only destroy the finer emotions of affection and sympathy, and breed an unfeeling callousness in the young towards suffering in all living creatures." – Eleanor Roosevelt, former First Lady of the United States of America [ send green star] [ accepted]
Amalthea L.	February 27, 2009 8:19 AM Ok, I have a cheesy sense of humour so I don't know if others will find this funny... Last week I had a dream that I was a vegan vampire and that I sucked the juice out of bloodoranges! Haha, I woke up laughing! [ send green star] [ accepted]