Faith

RCC_9640, a photo by rchoephoto on Flickr.


       You have to have trust in your own self. ... 
     The importance of having faith is to see it 
     concretized in your own self. 

        Esperanza Ortega in Birthing God: Women's Experiences of the Divine by Lana Dalberg

Bearing witness

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Originally uploaded by rchoephoto

If I have one duty in these times,

it is to bear witness.

Etty Hillesum

Poet

RCC_9638
Originally uploaded by rchoephoto

The poet furnishes the world with fresh knowledge, combining the gift of speech (oratio) with he gift of reason (ratio), creating figures on the page that becomes a substance themselves, interpreting reality as much as reflecting it.

Jay Parini, Why Poetry Matters

Nobility

RCC_9700
Originally uploaded by rchoephoto

The word nobility does not refer to medieval knights and courts.  It drives from the Greek gno (as in gnosis), meaning "wisdom" or "inner illumination."  In English, nobility is defined as human excellence, as that which is illustrious, admirable, lofty, and distinguished in values, conduct, and bearing.

Jack Kornfield, The Wise Heart from The Best Buddhist Writing 2009

Grief

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Originally uploaded by rchoephoto

Winter is come and gone,

but grief returns with the evolving year.

P.B. Shelley, Adonais