As You Once Did

A L O H A !

DO Listen [Trust Me]

" If 

you pass 

by the colour purple

 in a field 

and don't notice it, 

God gets 

real pissed off. "

Alice Walker

" Are not flowers

 the stars of the earth,

 and are not our stars

 the flowers

 of the heaven? "

A.J. Balfour 

" All objects lose

 by too familiar

 a view. "

John Dryden 

What Familiar person,
thing, or situation
do YOU no longer
appreciate
as you once did?

Is it Yourself?

" If seeds 

in the black earth

 can turn into such

 beautiful roses,

 what might not

 the heart of man become

 in its long journey

 toward the stars?  "

G.K. Chesterton

=^..^=

 > < } } (°>

' Take Peace & Smiles - 
Leave Your Comment Dear Friend '

Thanks for visiting!

                       Warmly, cloudia

Orange Mystic Ramble

A  L  O  H  A !
 
                                            "Click" does the pic trick!

"No Pretty Clouds" lament the flyers

" There is an eagle in me 

that wants to soar, 

and there is a

 hippopotamus 

in me that wants 

to wallow in the mud. "

Carl Sandburg

"What happened to my pink elephants? "

"You drink like a fish!"

“ Write what disturbs you,

 what you fear, 

what you have not been 

willing to speak about. 

Be willing 

to be split open. ”  

Natalie Goldberg

Castle Cloud Pow Wow - Los Indios Del Cielo

" The Great Spirit 

is in all things,

 he is in the air we breathe. 

The Great Spirit 

is our Father, 

but the Earth

 is our Mother. "

Big Thunder 

 Wabanaki Algonquin

Layered, but not Trifling

" Be on the alert

 to recognize your prime 

at whatever time 

of your life

 it may occur."  

Muriel Spark

" I paint self-portraits

 because I am so often

 alone, 

because I am

 the person

 I know best." 

Frida Kahlo


Dear Friend,
Thank YOU!
                                                cloudia

Meander

A  L  O  H  A !

"Giant" C-17 Globemaster

" If you can 

break down those walls

 you’ve spent so many years 

building to protect yourself, 

you can achieve 

anything. "

Jennifer Hudson

Do click this photo for magic details & enchantments

Streamered Clouds

 in Cream & Buff with Ship

" We are not held back 

by the love we didn't receive

 in the past,

 but by the love

 we're not 

extending in the

 present.  "

Marianne Williamson 

Haze Gaze Plays

" Things need not

 have happened 

to be true. 

Tales and adventures

 are the shadow truths

 that will endure 

when mere facts 

are dust and ashes 

and forgotten. "

Neil Gaiman 

=^..^=

' Take Peace & Smiles - Leave Your Comment '

Thanks for visiting!

                            Warmly, cloudia

Miracle Cure

A  L  O  H  A !

" Flowers... 

are a proud assertion 

that a ray of beauty 

out-values 

all the utilities 

of the world. "

Ralph Waldo Emerson

 "People need friends, 

like one hand 

needs another to clap."

James Coan

 University of Virginia

" In the cherry blossom's shade

There's no such thing

As a stranger. "

 Kobayashi Issa

Hope you are well today!

I just made a discovery

that works

almost too well

to be true.

But it is:

ARNICA Gel

(or cream)

significantly reduces

bruising

and muscle pain.

I haven't had any bruises,

recently

but almost

immediately

after applying Arnica

to sore muscles

my pain is GONE!

Arnica is a homeopathic

all star

made from a flower.

Plastic surgeons

recommend it,

as do trainers

on professional sports 

teams.

This stuff is Amazing!

Here's to a 

pain-free day-

                                    Warmly, cloudia

Diana Nyad

A  L  O  H  A !

" Oh God!

The Ocean is SO Vast,

and I am SO small! "

Every Offshore Sailor EVER

myself included

"  The sea

 - this truth must be confessed - 

has no generosity. 

No display of (hu)manly qualities - 

courage, hardihood, endurance, 

faithfulness - has ever 

been known to touch

 its irresponsible consciousness

 of power. "


Joseph Conrad 

" Heroism

 is endurance

 for one moment 

more. "



George F. Kennan 

" Endurance 

is patience 

concentrated. "



Thomas Carlyle 

" Endurance is nobler 

than strength, 

and patience

 than beauty. "


John Ruskin 

Arriving in Key West
is always an occasion,
but especially so
when you are Diana Nyad
completing
what you have attempted,
and failed,
for 35 years.

5 Failures;
Now Preparatory
Efforts.

Most of us
feel wise
for accepting
our limitations
and uncompleted
dreams.

That is the hallmark
of maturity
we assure ourselves.

But Diana
(a goddess's name)
at age 64
became the 
First Human
to swim the Florida Straits
from Cuba.

110 Miles.

53 Hours.

Swimming.

She also set a
New Record:
Longest ocean swim
 without a shark cage
 or flippers.

The only other person,
(also a woman)
to  "swim" the straits:

Australian Susie Maroney,

in 1997 at age 22
in a shark cage.

"The cage glided on ocean currents
 and enabled Maroney
 to make the journey
 in just 25 hours."

Chicago Tribune
LINK.


Diana's first attempt
was in 1978
at age 28.

It was the agonizing stings
of Jellyfish,
not sheer distance
that defeated her before.
This time she wore
protective (constricting?)
gear.

" Endure and persist;

 this pain will turn

 to good

 by and by. "

Ovid 

This has been SO true

in my life.

Wishing YOU

all that is Good,

by and by.

"If it's not right,

it's not over."

                                     Fondly, cloudia

Angels, Dogs, Babies

A  L  O  H  A !

Angels nurture dogs and babies.

As we grow up - they let us be,

watching like anxious parents,

while we learn, act,
 and Be

in this world.

Later in life,

when we grow 

reflective,

sadder and gladder

and wiser in so many

inexpressible ways

the Angels return;

Suggestions, Hunches,

Insights, and the rest:

Progressively,

our Angels,

grasping our hand

as it weakens.

Angels nurture babies 

and dogs,

then walk us back home

babes once more.


=^..^=

Thanks,
Dear Friend.

Can't tell YOU
how very much
our friendship
means to me.
                                                 cloudia

SPORTS Quotes?

A  L  O  H  A !

Oh click on this picture!

" No person 

was ever honored

 for what he received. 

Honor has been the reward

 for what he gave. "

John Calvin Coolidge

Working People Play Every Day

They deserve a little respect;

Not to mention a living wage!

" Somewhere behind 

the athlete you've become 

and the hours of practice 

and the coaches 

who have pushed you

 is a little girl 

who fell in love with the game 

and never looked back... 

play for her. "

Mia Hamm

" Just play. Have fun. 

Enjoy the game. "

Michael Jordan 

"  Half the lies they tell about me

 aren't true. "

Yogi Berra 

" Most people never

 run far enough

 on their first wind 

to find out 

they've got

 a second. "

William James 

(-'.'-)>

Have a Sweet Day,

F R I E N D

                                                           cloudia