2024, The Baboon Congress, Uncategorized

Inspiration in Time of Sadness

51 Comments

Today’s post comes to us from Barb in Rivertown

I’m thinking it might be a healing thing to have a day where we each post something that gives you peace or hope. I’ve seen tons of good stuff lately, and it feels good to share it. These already showed up on Wednesday’s blog:

Do something you can do and enjoy doing to focus your mind on the positive.      Chris

Remember, be the light you want to be, shine it on others.    Ben

Love for others and ourselves are acts of resistance to oppression and fascism. Let us begin there.     Renee

I’m sure there’s more from out there in Baboonland…

Please share today:

– a poem, phrase, or quote
– a song
– a book, author,  or story that inspires you, or calms you
– a random act of kindness performed
– a random act of kindness you’ve been the recipient of
– a link to some beautiful piece of art
– a meditation, prayer, or other piece of wisdom

51 thoughts on “Inspiration in Time of Sadness”

  1. Oh, this is going to be such a wonderful day on the Trail. Unfortunately, I’m driving up to Two Harbors today, after getting remedial help with my knitting (socks with heels – my first pair). I won’t be settled in up there until supper time or later. I’ll return later.

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  2. YA posted this yesterday ….

    The fight for a more just and compassionate world doesn’t end with one outcome. The work continues. (We The Urban)

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  3. And I’ve always loved this one by Maya Angelou:

    You may shoot me with your words,
    You may cut me with your eyes,
    You may kill me with your hatefulness,
    But still, like air, I’ll rise.

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    2. LOVE that song! How can you not dance when you hear it? Besides the original, I’ll always remember the hilarious scene in the movie “Back to School” where Rodney Dangerfield hosts a party at his son’s college (and where he’s now a student too!), has the band play this, and Rodney sings lead vocals. If you love Rodney, this is hilarious.

      Chris

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  6. My mother passed away recently. She loved Rachmaninoff’s piano music. I played it often for her on my Bluetooth speaker when I visited her in the rehab center or when she finally got home for her last month. (Piano Concerto #2; Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini)

    Many times she’d smile when the music started, close her eyes, tilt her head back ,and just absorb the beautiful music. A few times, she started moving her hands to mimic playing the piano. It was the last music she heard the day she died and I KNOW it gave her some peace.

    So listen to some music you love, in a quiet room, with no multitasking or other distractions, and absorb it. Let it soak it. Notice how you feel. What fond memories that song brings back. What was your reaction the first time you heard the piece? Why is it one of your favorites?

    Music has proven to be therapeutic in so many ways for so many people. I have dozens of songs I turn to for comfort and hope. Number one will always be Eva Cassidy’s “Over the Rainbow.” But second on that list will be the two classic Rachmaninoff piano pieces.

    Chris in Owatonna

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    3. Sincere condolences on the loss of your mother, Chris. Glad you were able to be with her as she was departing; hope you find some comfort in that.

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  7. Husband had lost, but then found and downloaded Thomas Merton’s “Wisdom of the Desert” onto his phone. And it has provided him guidance since he was in his 20’s.

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  8. Mother Nature especially Lake Superior, classical music, the musical She Loves Me (which always makes me smile as I sing along), and for peace, most of all, the Ashokan farewell. I will try to post this but not sure that WP will allow.

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  9. Chris – thanks for your comment. It made me think of my grandmother’s favorite – Clair de Lune.

    My Nana played the organ but she could adjust the settings so that it sounded like a piano for this song. I heard her play it many many times when I was growing up and it is very calming to me. I have her sheet music for this somewhere – I’ll try to dig it out today!

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  10. I think today is a good day to listen to Irish traditional music. The Irish have struggled woth such upheaval and strife over the centuries and have never given up.

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  11. Rise and Shine Baboons,

    I rarely quote scripture because I find that habit manipulative and disingenuous. But today is the day for it.

    Psalm 23 A Psalm of David.

    The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
    2 He makes me lie down in green pastures.
    He leads me beside still waters.[a]
    3 He restores my soul.
    He leads me in paths of righteousness[b]
    for his name’s sake.
    4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,[c]
    I will fear no evil,
    for you are with me;
    your rod and your staff,
    they comfort me.
    5 You prepare a table before me
    in the presence of my enemies;
    you anoint my head with oil;
    my cup overflows.
    6 Surely[d] goodness and mercy[e] shall follow me
    all the days of my life,
    and I shall dwell[f] in the house of the Lord
    forever.[g]

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  12. It’s another gorgeous, sunny, fall day here in St. Paul. I intend to enjoy every minute of it. The brightness helps revive my sagging spirit. I contemplate how lucky I am to live in a place that has been spared the natural disasters of various kinds that have hit other areas.

    After the devastating outcome of Tuesday’s election, I’m slowly returning to my “normal” state of mind. I focus on all that I have to be grateful for rather than dwelling on the struggles that lie ahead. I’ll deal with them as they arise. I also actively look for things that inspire me, bring me joy, and calm me.

    This video of Ry Cooder’s recording of Johnny Cash’s “Get Rhythm” falls in the category of things that bring me joy. I love it.

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  16. UUUURRRRGGGHHH. OK. I guess I am subscribed under a different email. I apologize for the mess I have made here. I think I’m in a bit of a fog…
    But the tune is still relevant. “World is Always Turning Towards the Morning.”

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  17. Also going back to The Morning Show, the Stan Rogers classic “Mary Ellen Carter” always inspires me in hard times.

    And you, to whom adversity has dealt the final blow
    With smiling bastards lying to you everywhere you go
    Turn to, and put out all your strength of arm and heart and brain
    And like the Mary Ellen Carter, rise again.

    Rise again, rise again—though your heart it be broken
    Or life about to end.
    No matter what you’ve lost, be it a home, a love, a friend,
    Like the Mary Ellen Carter, rise again.

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  21. I’m up by Lake Superior tonight. Today the sky was blue, the air cool and refreshing. The big lake is like a sweet kitten today, not at all the gales of November.

    I’m grateful for the lake. It doesn’t give a damn about me or anyone else, and yet I sense its aliveness. I love that it is its own master.

    I’m still so devastated. I’m so grateful for friends and this community. We will need each other. I feel a need for like-minded people around me, and we can help each other as the storm approaches.

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  25. “The work will remain the work. To love your neighbor. To be generous with a stranger. To protect the water, the air, the soil. To heal old wounds. To not make new ones. The work remains the work. In fact it has all become, suddenly, even more important.”
    David Miller (on FB)

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  26. Permanence

    I will still turn my eyes to the sky
    To the stars and the moon
    And the great sun
    I will hear the loud silence of the forest
    And the roar of the raging big lake
    The small animals surviving the deep winter snow
    Will still bring me comfort and hope
    These things bring me joy
    And peace
    This is what will remain
    The small fire of compassion
    In my soul

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