QOTW 18 - 24 August 2024

Image description: a blue chair from my chairs of Ottawa series on Instagram.

Sunday

I believe that the purpose of life is to be happy.  From the moment of birth, every human being wants happiness and does not want suffering.  Neither social conditioning nor education nor ideology affect this.  From the very core of our being, we simply desire contentment.  I don't know whether the universe, with its countless galaxies, stars and planets, has a deeper meaning or not, but at the very least, it is clear that we humans who live on this earth face the task of making a happy life for ourselves.  Therefore, it is important to discover what will bring about the greatest degree of happiness.

His Holiness the 14^th Dalai Lama of Tibet

Monday

What profit has a man from all his labor

In which he [b]toils under the sun?

4 One generation passes away, and another generation comes;

But the earth abides forever.

Ecclesiastes 1, New King James Bible

Tuesday

The more tension or fear we operate under, the harder it is to get the results we want. Sometimes this is as simple as becoming too discouraged to try. Other times? We don’t notice gifts that come our way because we have shut ourselves off from the flow. How do we open up again? We start small. We relax one set of muscles. We find ways to regulate our nervous systems. We find help in unwinding the knots in heart and mind.

We light a candle. We take a breath. We notice the sunlight on a flower, or the clarity of water.

Sometimes, that starting small is as simple as feeling grateful for anything at all.

This isn’t about denying hardship or pain. This is about noticing that, even in the midst of hardship or pain, there is often one small moment of grace.

T. Thorn Coyle, from On Taking the Win

T. Thorn Coyle is creating stories, magic, justice, and a world worth fighting for. Support them on their Patreon.

Wednesday

I feel like a time traveler:

June, July, August.

Summer dissolves in my mouth and I can't remember what it tasted like.

Zoë Lianne, Erasure as quoted by Jason Logan in Calamine, Deep Summer, Slipping away

in his wonderful newsletter the Colour, which you should subscribe to. While you’re at it, please buy his amazing book on foraging and making inks:

Make Ink: A Forager’s Guide to Natural Inkmaking.

I read this book aloud to Charles over a few months as he was making us breakfast.

There are books that are essential for the poet. I believe this is one of them.

Thursday

We’re talking about art here, people. We’re not selling USB cables or homeowner insurance, we’re channeling the divine, spending time in the fog, smelling the flowers, jumping in puddles, and walking around museums.

That’s our business.

Seth Werkheiser, Social Media Escape Club, Start Saying “Not My Business.”

Friday

If I want to take a guy home with me tonight

It's none of your business

And she want to be a freak and sell it on the weekend

It's none of your business

Hurby Azor for Salt n Pepa, None of Your Business

Saturday

Joy is my business.

Amanda Earl

If you have inspiring and intriguing quotes to share, please reach out. I’d love to include them here.

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