“Being born in a stable does not make one a horse.”
The Duke of Wellington according to AZ Quotes [https://www.azquotes.com/author/15482-Duke_of_Wellington]
“Awe can mean many things. It can be witnessing a total solar eclipse. Or seeing your child take her first steps. Or hearing Lizzo perform live. But, while many of us know it when we feel it, awe is not easy to define. ‘Awe is the feeling of being in the presence of something vast that transcends your understanding of the world,’ said Dacher Keltner, a psychologist at the University of California, Berkeley. It’s vast, yes. But awe is also simpler than we think — and accessible to everyone, he writes in his book ‘Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life.’ While many of us associate awe with dramatic, life-changing events, the truth is that awe can be part of everyday life. Experiencing awe comes from what Dr. Keltner has called a ‘perceived vastness,’ as well as something that challenges us to rethink our previously held ideas.... In his book, Dr. Keltner writes that awe is critical to our well-being — just like joy, contentment and love. His research suggests it has tremendous health benefits that include calming down our nervous system and triggering the release of oxytocin, the ‘love’ hormone that promotes trust and bonding. ‘Awe is on the cutting edge’ of emotion research, said Judith T. Moskowitz, a professor of medical social sciences at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago.... So what is it biologically? Awe wasn’t one of the six basic emotions — anger, surprise, disgust, enjoyment, fear and sadness — identified back in 1972, Dr. Keltner said. But new research shows that awe ‘is its own thing,’ he said.... Dr. Keltner found that awe activates the vagal nerves, clusters of neurons in the spinal cord that regulate various bodily functions, and slows our heart rate, relieves digestion and deepens breathing. It also has psychological benefits. Many of us have a critical voice in our head, telling us we’re not smart, beautiful or rich enough. Awe seems to quiet this negative self-talk, Dr. Keltner said, by deactivating the default mode network, the part of the cortex involved in how we perceive ourselves. But, Dr. Keltner said, even his own lab experiments underestimate the impact of awe on our health and well-being.... Awe is something you can develop, with practice. Here’s how. Pay attention…. Focus on the ‘moral beauty’ of others…. spend time learning about inspiring people…. Practice mindfulness.... ‘Meditating, reflecting, going on a pilgrimage.’… Choose the unfamiliar path. Awe often comes from novelty…. We can work on developing this openness through everyday choices…. In his book, Dr. Keltner wrote that people who find awe all around them, ‘are more open to new ideas. To what is unknown. To what language can’t describe.’”
New York Times January 3, 2023 [yeah, I know it’s long, but I think it’s noteworthy how they go on and on about the materialist basis and never look up to the heavens].
“Omar Alghabra, Canada’s transport minister, once again showed himself to be the antithesis of dynamism. A smooth practitioner of political blatherspeak...”
Kelly McParland in National Post January 20, 2023
“I live by a mantra I first heard on a cartoon. ‘Your boos mean nothing to me. I have seen what you people cheer.’”
Email from a friend of a friend.
In my latest National Post column I say the “inclusive” teacher who told a Muslim kid to celebrate pride or get of Canada exposes not just reflexive intolerance but a deep, unresolvable contradiction in multiculturalism.
“Eddie Izzard likes pink. Pink coats, pink jackets – they’re all over the website promoting his failed bid to stand as a Labour candidate at the next general election. Labour’s colour is traditionally red but pink is for girls, and Izzard has been campaigning in what he coyly calls ‘girl mode’ for months now. Alas, all his efforts came to nothing at the weekend when he was soundly beaten by a local councillor who also happens to be a woman…. while people are ready to applaud an actor and comedian who challenges gender stereotypes, they may not be so keen on a man making demands that defy the evidence of their senses. Izzard’s claim to be trans highlights the problem at the heart of self-identification, which is that it requires so little of the individual – but so much of everyone else. Izzard is a man who likes to wear women’s clothes, favouring garments that are a parody of what actual women choose to wear.... The setback to Izzard’s attempt to become a Labour MP is a heartening sign of a return to sanity. After all, being a woman involves a great deal more than wearing pink.”
Joan Smith on Unherd December 5, 2022
“The truth that many people never understand, until it is too late, is that the more you try to avoid suffering the more you suffer because smaller and more insignificant things begin to torture you in proportion to your fear of being hurt.”
Thomas Merton quoted as standalone “WORDS OF WISDOM” in email teaser from Epoch Times January 18, 2023
“You can’t make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear. But you can make a sow’s ear carry just as much money as a silk purse.”
Horse trainer Ray Hunt on why every horse is a good horse, quoted in British Columbia Report December 5, 1994