INSPIRATION.....on the road

(Comments/Questions? janefinley@yahoo.com)

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We were all children once
Children who asked questions,
Children for whom the world was so new.
We were children full of wonder,
Children full of wishes,
Children who believed.
We were children tender in spirit,
Giving our small gifts,
Singing our shapeless song.
We were children longing for love,
Children needing safety,
Children wanting reason.
We are all children who had to grow up.

unknown from Unitarian Church service

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Song of the Open Road......by Walt Whitman

Afoot and light-hearted, I take to the open road,
healthy, free, the world before me.
Henceforth I ask not good fortune -
I myself am good-fortune;
strong and content,
I travel the open road.
I inhale great draughts of space;
the east and the west are mine,
and the north and the south are mine.
All seems beautiful to me;
I can repeat over to men and women,
You have done such good to me,
I would do the same to you.
Whoever you are, come travel with me!
However sweet these laid-up stores -
however convenient this dwelling,
we cannot remain here;
However sheltered this port,
and however calm these waters,
we must not anchor here;
Together! the inducements shall be greater;
We will sail pathless and wild seas;
We will go where winds blow, waves dash,
and the Yankee clipper speeds by under full sail.
Forward! after the great Companions!
and to belong to them!
They too are on the road!
Onward! to that which is endless,
as it was beginningless,
to undergo much,
tramps of days, rests of nights,
to see nothing anywhere
but what you may reach it and pass it.
To look up or down no road
but it stretches and waits for you -
To know the universe itself as a road -
as many roads -
as roads for traveling souls.

(Responsive reading #645 in the back of the Unitarian Church hymnal)

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From the Unitarian Fellowship of Key West, Florida.....4/02

Look to this day!
For it is life, the very life of life.
In its brief course lie all the verities
and realities of your existence.
The bliss of growth,
The glory of action,
The splendor of beauty;
For yesterday is but a dream,
And tomorrow is only a vision,
But today, well lived,
Makes every yesterday
A dream of happiness
And every tomorrow a vision of hope.
Look well, therefore, to this day.

Attributed to Kalidasa

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From the Nature Coast Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in Decanto, Florida.....1/02

We are the seekers, we are the travelers in our quest for the truth.
We learn courage and fulfillment.
In the wisdom of those around us we discover understanding and compassion.
In the love and respect of this community, we find life.
And so it is that, where there is pain, we will lend our hands and our hearts.
Where there is work to be done, we will bear the burden.
Where there is music, we will dance.
And where there is joy, we will celebrate.
In this deeply evocative life we love,
We will come to know ourselves, our world and one another.

Robert B. Keim

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WORDS TO LIVE BY

The following was read by a practicing Buddhist at a Unitarian Church Service I attended near Homasassa Springs, Florida. This is from a wall hanging which Mother Teresa placed in an orphanage.

ANYWAY (anonymous)

People are unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered.
Love them anyway.
If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives.
Do good anyway.
If you are successful, you win false friends and true enemies,
Succeed anyway.
The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.
Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.
Be honest and frank anyway.
People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs.
Fight for some underdogs anyway.
What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.
People really need help, but may attack you if you help them.
Help people anyway.
Give the world the best you have, and you'll get kicked in the teeth.
Give the world the best you've got anyway.

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