in this time of religious...

in this time of religious holiday sentiment it is easy to forget about the people outside of our own little world.

in this time of religious holiday revelry, it is easy to forget about the things in our lives that matter outside of the festivities.

in this time of religious holiday happenings it is easy to forget that there are others out there maybe less fortunate than ourselves in one of many ways.

in this religious holiday season, whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, or Quanza you can never forget what those days represent.

How we are with our spirits

How we are with our spirits

How we are with our spirits we soar way up high, as high as the eagles glide

How we are with our spirits we can run with the wolves

How we are with our spirits we can out fox, the fox

How we are with our spirits we can show the raven the same intuitive stare that it has that shows that we are figuring things out as well

How we are with our spirits we can take on the boldest of the bullying blue jays

How we are with our spirits we can make the grizzly bear our brother

How we are with our spirits we can be as strong as the mighty oak and the hearty maple or
As wondrously beautiful as the paper birch and the weeping willow

How we are with our spirits we can be as focused as the salmon swimming up against the river

How we are with our spirits our touch can be as soft and gentle as the late spring breeze or as fiercely powerful as the mighty river during the early spring thaw

How we are with our spirits we can get the ever careful deer to lay down beside us in friendship

How we are with our spirits we can get the chipmunk to trust us enough to sit in our hand or to get the squirrel to be friendly enough to eat out of the same hand

How we are with our spirits we can hear the voices of experience talking to us in the wind

How we are with our spirits we can hear the trees talking to us as if we are brothers
Holding a grand conversation together

How we are with our spirits we find that the ground leads us to where we
Need to be just when we are needed there

How we are with our spirits we will find ourselves, find out who we are and find
Our destiny when we are ready or when we need to know

Memories

a single moment can create a that can be so good that

you cannot help but reminisce years later or wish that, that

moment never happened

a memory can be a great source of comfort in a time of need

or it can be a great source of pain when things are at their worst

a memory can give you solice in knowing that you helped

someone out in a time of need

a memory can be something that can drive you to be your

best when no one expects you to be there

a memory can push people away or draw them in when

you share it with them

a memory when shared can be a source of strength

to others that need a moral boost

in the end our memories are the stories of our lives that

make us who we are and enrich our lives

Hearts and minds

Hearts and minds

As we go about our daily lives, why is it the we close our minds and never open our hearts when
We see families on the street

As we go about our daily routine why is it that we turn a blind eye to the people on the street
Selling drugs, selling them to our children

How is it that we allowed money to be our incentive for everything we do now

How will I know that someone will be there for me when no one is willing to open up, will you be there for me, can you be there for me when I open my mind and my heart to the families on
The street

Will you be there to stand by me when no one else will be there in my time of need

When will we open up our minds to new and better things and how do we open our hearts
Without getting hurt

When will we learn that money isn’t the answer for everything we do

Taking a Stand

Taking a Stand

As each day goes by, you see and hear stuff that makes you feel like
All you can do is sit by watching it all happen

As the plight of others gets worse you start wondering to yourself is this what
My life is for and asking why the world has to be the way it is

When the turmoil appears to be at its worst, you wonder if your life was meant to be
Wasted in a world full of pain and sorrow

As the outlook looks bleak and no one appears to be doing anything at all you start
Feeling as if you can no longer just sit around anymore forcing you to stand up and fight

You see others who feel the same way then you notice that for many of those you see, your
Actions are a rallying call in coming out and saying we’re not going to take it anymore

As each person stand up to fight it says in a unifying voice that we cannot go quietly into the night
Forcing the shake up of the status quo while showing others that there is something better, something far better then what they have been shown that life should be or needs to be
Which gives you the diligence to do more and do your best

Daphne's trip to Castle Island (pages 9 - 11 final 3 pages) childrens story

While trying to chew her stuffed mouth she could see her best friend an her mom trying to look for Daphne and her mom tried to get their attention by waving and jumping up and down hoping that they would see her but she ended having to swallow what she had in her mouth which made her mouth throat hurt but she then ran up to her best friend almost tackling her. She then led them to where they were sitting talking up a storm to the point that they could not make any sense of what Daphne was saying.

When they got to where Daphne’s mom was sitting, both Daphne’s mom and her best friends mom started to catch up on a few things while the girls ate while they trying to play with each other. After they were done eating the girls went down the ramp to the small section of beach to play on the sand and in the water. Since there was only one way on and off of the beach and it a small section of beach with a retaining wall on two of the tree sides both of their moms didn’t have to worry too much as they watched them play. After a little while, their moms called them back up off of the beach and Daphne’s mom asked “her if she wanted to go around the castle one last time to spend a little time with her friend”.

Daphne replied by asking “just one more time” in way that suggested that it was a stupid question and then ran up the ramp with her best friend. With that they went towards the playground so that the girls could play in it for a little while and as they walked towards the playground Daphne and her best friend was playing with each other on the bottom of the grassy hill that the castle sat on top of and running circles around the trees taking turns trying to catch each other. When they came around the bend in the sidewalk which went around the hill the playground came into view and the girls made a break for it grabbing the only two swings that were available.

The whole time they were on the swings they were giggling and trying to twist the swings to hit each other while swinging until one of them fell off, and then they cracked up laughing and ran off to play on the jungle gym part of the playground. As the got to the ladder to climb up to the top of the jungle gym like the other kids there they were in a hurry to get up on the ladder and after they got up there they started running back and forth on the various pieces linking the pieces of the jungle gym. As other kids walked away from different activities on the jungle gym they went and played imaginary games with each thing with their favorite being the tic-tac-toe activity.

As they got bored with those activities, they noticed that instead of the normal poles between the bars to go back and forth there were handles that dangled and also a handle that let you slide across between the two segments of the jungle gym and tried to climb across on the dangling handles and played with the sliding handle trying to see who could send it back to the other one fastest even if they had to push someone that wanted to go across. After about an hour they had their fill of the jungle gym and went to rest for a few minutes on the little wall that made up the boundary for the playground.

After a few minutes they started playing on and around the wall which got old real quick which both of their moms noticed and got them moving again and while they were moving along they seen people walking their dogs, stopping to pat the ones the were friendly and getting lots of kisses from the overly friendly ones which were the really hyper ones. They ended up running back and forth between their moms and the furthest tree for which their moms could still see them. They ended up seeing a barbeque pit and started running after each other around it and as the got close to catching each other they would turn away from the barbeque pit instead of going around it.

After a few minutes their moms moved them along and they started walking and playing with each other as little girls did when they were walking with each other when there was nothing they could do but walk. As they were following their moms the came upon a bust of a firefighter for which they both asked “why is this here” for which they were told “it’s a statue to remember some firefighters that dies while fighting a fire” for which all either one of them could say was “wow” and then they started walking again.

As they moved along they made their way up to the leading edge of the retaining wall which also had a decorative fence that was pretty much two decorative poles between two decorative posts along the top of the retaining wall. They ended standing there for a few minutes commenting on the different boats and ships that passed by, they even seen some sailboats with some of them being rather large. As they commented on the boats especially the larger sailboats the mother of Daphne’s best friend pointed to a specific sailboat and said that, “that boat is called a tall ship and goes around the world training people how to sail and to be paraded in the waterways”.

They all stood there watching the tall ship pass by and after it so far passed them Daphne’s mom said “ok, lets go” so they started up again. The girls started walking but lagged behind because they wanted to continue watching the boats and were hurried along by their moms. They then started running to catch up and ended up tripping themselves up causing their moms to stop and wait for them. After they got up and brushed themselves off they were a little subdued from being embarrassed from falling and just walked holding their moms hands for a couple minutes.

Shortly after that they came upon another statue and Daphne asked “why does that one look like a soldier?” for which her mom said “it is a soldier, it is a statue remembering people who came from this area that died in the Korean War.” They stopped in front of the statue just long enough for her mom to say that and then kept walking and after a minute or two the girls got a second wind and started sticking their tongues out at each other and acting as if they didn’t see each other doing it and then took off running again. This time they ran up the hill and decided to race each other by rolling down the hill a couple times as their moms watched as they continued walking.

As they came around the bend Daphne’s best friends older brother came out of the back of Sullivan’s and just caught sight of his and Daphne’s mom and waited there for them, while looking for the girls which he did. He was watching to see if they had noticed him and after he realized that he hadn’t been noticed by the girls he went and hid behind the dumpster by the back door making sure that he could still see them so he would know when to jump out. After they got a little past him he came out and motioned to their moms to keep quiet which let them know that he was going to scare them.

He then snuck up behind them and scared them by getting down to their level, walking up behind them quietly and said “boo”, they jumped and screamed causing him to fall to the ground with laughter, their moms even had a good laugh at how much they jumped and screamed. The girls ended getting a little mad at him and going over to him and kicking him saying “that wasn’t nice” as he was laughing he tried to say “but it was worth it” but could not get the words out because he was laughing too hard. After he was done laughing, he got up and said hold on let me get my backpack.

After he got his backpack, they started walking along the parking lot in front while the girls told him about what they had been doing. They followed the parking lot away from the castle making their way towards the car that Daphne’s best friend and her mom came in which was down the street about halfway between the parking lot they were at and the one the Daphne and her mom parked in. when they came up on the car which was across the street, Daphne asked “how are you going to cross here with all that traffic” for which her best friends older brother said “don’t worry about it” as their moms said their good byes and then the girls did that.

After that Daphne and he mom continued walking and Daphne said “this is a big beach” for which her mom said “this isn’t big, I have seen much, much bigger.” While they were walking Daphne started showing that she was tired and with in a couple minutes started lagging behind the way little girls do causing her mom to pick her up. By the time they got to their car Daphne was fast asleep causing her mom to gently put her in the back seat of the vehicle. After putting Daphne in the back seat her mom just sat there in the front seat for a few minutes to relax while listening to the radio before driving home.

A little under halfway home Daphne woke up and was surprised to see that they were in the car driving home and asking in a voice that showed that she was still half asleep along with a little whiney “where are we going?” with that her mom said “well, look who woke up” and then let her know that they were on their way home, then proceeded to ask “are you thirsty, we can stop somewhere if you are?” for which Daphne replied “I am hungry” for which her mom said “ok, we will stop at the when get to the next rest stop” after a few minutes they came to a rest stop that had a fast food place and went stopped there to get something quick.

Instead of going through the drive thru Daphne’s mom decided to go right into the place to allow them to stretch their legs. As they waited in line Daphne’s mom was trying to get her to decide what she wanted for which she was taking her time because she just wanted to look around the restaurant. By the time they got the cashier, Daphne’s mom had taken it upon herself to order for her and decided to order a kids meal for her which would also give her a little toy to play with. After they got their food, Daphne’s mom asked “do you want to eat here or in the car?” for which Daphne said “in the car” then immediately started picking at her French Fries as they walked back to the car.

After settling back into their seats the were off again while Daphne ate her food so fast that you would have thought she hadn’t eaten all day, while her mom was picking at hers while driving and trying to tell Daphne not to eat so fast or to put so much into her mouth. After Daphne finished her food she realized that she had forgotten to check to see what her toy was which ended up being a little figurine from the newest animated movie out and had wanted to see. Daphne’s mom was happy that she was playing with the figurine since she was lost in her own little world using her imagination to have it interact with imaginary characters and with other toys which lasted for the rest of the trip home.

As they got home, Daphne could see that her best friend was already home because she could see he best friend playing outside in her yard as her best friends brother was getting the last of the stuff that her best friend and her mom had brought to Castle Island to entertain themselves while waiting for her best friends brother. Daphne started getting excited to the point that she was squirming in her seat and realizing this, her mom said after you get changed you can go play if you want. As they pulled into their driveway Daphne’s best friend seen them and rushed over to meet them and to ask if Daphne could come out and play since they were next door neighbors for which Daphne’s mom said she just has to get changed before going over there.

With that Daphne hurried her mom up to the front door to unlock it and after her mom opened the door she ran upstairs to change, changing in a hurry so she could go play with her best friend and let her know about her day before they ran into each other at Castle Island. As Daphne’s mom was bringing in the last of the stuff that she had brought but never used, she was almost knocked over by Daphne as she ran out of the house over to her best friend and immediately started talking about her day.

Daphne’s mom finishing up with bringing the stuff into the house sat down in her favorite chair looking out the window watching Daphne and her best friend thinking to herself thankfully the day is over and hoping that Daphne will be to bed early from having a full day of activities at Castle Island.

Daphne's trip to Castle Island (pages 7 & 8 ) children's story

As the group of people walked back to the entrance through the courtyard, Daphne and a few others looked around in awe and taking it all in before the went back through the two sets of double doors that were two to three stories high that made up the front entrance. As they walked out Daphne’s mom said “let’s go this way” and directed her to the left and started walking around the fort and down the hill towards the harbor side of the beach which also had a fishing pier on it. As they get close to the fishing pier she can see that people were actually fishing and starts running the rest of the way to the fishing pier.

While Daphne ran her mom said “don’t run to far” then she stopped over my the monument right across from the fishing pier and started looking at the depictions on the monument while fidgeting about while waiting for her mom. When she got there she called out to Daphne for which she responded “it’s about time you caught up” for which Daphne’s mom just stuck out her tongue, then they walked out onto the fishing pier and Daphne was amazed at how close the boats and ships were to the pier and how big they were.

They walk out onto the fishing pier which was named for a firefighter who had died in the line of duty. When they got to the first person who was fishing Daphne asked “have you caught anything yet?” for which the guy replied “just a few crabs that ate my bait”. Then she went up to the next guy asked the same question but this time the guy said “open up my cooler and you can see but just don’t touch” Daphne then opened up the cooler and seen a couple small fish and asked “are those real fish” for which the guy said “yep they are, one of them is what I am using for bait and the other is a fish I caught using a sea worm and if you want to look at some open that little box inside my cooler”.

Daphne opened up the box and seen the worms and said “ewe those can’t be worms they are too ugly” for which her mom said “they really are worms” and then asked the guy if she could pick one up to show her. Daphne’s mom then picked one up and showed her the worm and said “they even have small teeth that are really sharp” then she forced the worm to open up its mouth. Daphne then said “gross I don’t like those worms” and then shuttered from getting the chills then she ran down to the end of the fishing pier because she seen someone fighting with their fishing rod and wanted to see the fish as it came up.

After a few minutes of just staring down at the water waiting for the fish to come up she seen the silhouette of the fish and it was fighting to free itself from the fishing hook and the guy. As the fish got closer to the surface she could see it was a big fish. After the guy had gotten it up to the fishing pier Daphne asked “what type of fish is it” and he said “this is a blue fish and don’t really know why they call it a blue fish”. Then she watched the fish flop around the fishing pier as the guy took the hook out of the fish’s mouth and asked “what’s going to happen to it?” for which the guy just looked at her and then at her mom.

Daphne’s mom getting the hint asked “are you ready for lunch?” for which Daphne replied “mommy no because I don’t want to leave the beach” then her mom replied back “we don’t have to there is a place just out of sight called Sullivan’s but everyone just calls it Sully’s and they have cheeseburgers, hot dogs, French fries and even your favorite ice scream” for which she replied “ok” and then started walking almost skipping along as she went. As they walked along towards Sullivan’s Daphne asked “how come you didn’t bring me here before” for which her mom said “I waited until I knew that you would like coming here.”

As they turned the bend, Sullivan’s came into view and Daphne’s mom pointed it out saying “there it is” for which Daphne said “cool”. As they got to the front of Sullivan’s Daphne said “wow, that’s an awfully big line” for which her mom said “during the summer there is always a long line like this as long as it ain’t raining”. As they made their way through the sea of people trying to find the end of the line Daphne was amazed by all of the people there trying to get into the small take out restaurant and every she seen another kid around her age she would try to run up to them and play but her mom would not allow it.

As they finally found the end of the line Daphne asked in a whiny tone “I’m hungry, how long will we have to wait here?” for which her mom replied “should only be a few minutes” with in a few minutes Daphne was fidgeting as they slowly made their way towards the front door of Sullivan’s with the line getting longer and longer behind them. With Daphne’s fidgeting causing her to bounce around and look all over the place she would occasionally look from one end of the line to the other in amazement especially with the endless stream of people coming out of the restaurant.

As they inched their way closer Daphne got more and more fidgety and by the time they got close to the doors of Sullivan’s, Daphne started playing on the large granite rectangular planters that were just high enough and deep enough for someone to sit on. She kept doing figure eights between one of the planters and one of the concrete supports, sometimes walking, sometimes skipping and sometimes running stopping just long enough to let someone by and to smell the flowers. After a few minutes Daphne’s mom told her “here we go come on” and Daphne ran up to her mom and started holding her moms hand still somewhat fidgeting.

As they entered Sullivan’s she looked around taking it all in as they slowly moved further into the restaurant. She started looking at the glass cabinets and the stuff inside of them while trying to ask her mom what each thing was for which some things she knew and some things she didn’t. as the made their way up to the front of the line to wait on the next register Daphne’s mom had to call her back into line one last time and said “you will know who is at our register” as the walked up to the cashier. When the walked up to the cashier Daphne having to stand on her tippy toes looked up over the counter and was surprised to see her best friends older brother there.

With a surprised look she jumped back and asked “what are doing here?” for which he replied “it’s my summer job and I get to come to the beach every day” with that said Daphne’s eyes widened up and she said “wow”. After that her best friends older brother chuckled and asked “do you want a hot dog or cheeseburger?” and she looked up at her mom and before she could ask her mom said” she’ll take both and make it two of each” and then he looked down and asked “do you want your strawberry ice cream in a cup or cone?”

Already knowing what she was going to say and then he said without her saying anything “a cup it is” and then asked “what size Pepsi do you want” for which Daphne’s mom said “a large for me and a medium for her”. Daphne’s mom then handed her the money and said you can give him the money, she then struggled to hand him the money so he reached over the counter so she could hand him the money, by this time a few of the customers with children and the other cashiers were chuckling a little bit. As Daphne and her mom walked over to the order pick up area they could hear the other cashiers teasing him a little bit.

After only about two or three minutes their order was up and Daphne and her mom grabbed their order and started walking out of Sullivan’s and ran into her best friend and her best friends mom who was just entering Sullivan’s. When Daphne realized who it was she was happily surprised to see her friend and almost dropped her lunch. As Daphne ran over to her friend she almost lost tripped out of giddiness and barely held onto her lunch, when she got to her friend she asked “when did you get here” for which her friend said we just got here and wanted to let my brother know we were here so he can come find us when he gets off work”.

As they started talking, Daphne’s mom said to her “let’s wait outside for them” and then told her friends mom we will be over by the ramp leading to the small section of beach by the parking lot” and then motioned Daphne outside and her friends mom nodded ok. As they walked out Daphne not wanting to leave started at first walking backwards towards the doors while watching her friend and her friends mom and bumping into a guy who then just looked down at her and said “hi little one” and then continued walking as Daphne turned and ran to catch up with her mom almost running into people crossing her path.

When they got to the ramp, Daphne’s mom said “put the food on here so you can eat” talking about the wooden guardrail that was on one side of the ramp. Daphne then put it down and showed that she was real giddy due to her best friend showing up there by pacing back and forth and getting really fidgety while waiting for her best friend while saying out loud to no one “what’s taking them so long?” and trying to look for her friend to come out of Sullivan’s while nibbling on her food. Her mom ended up telling her “hurry up and eat, your ice scream is melting” for which she replied by stuffing her mouth with the cheeseburger she had been nibbling on and having trouble chewing because of it.