I wish you Enough

I read this on someone else's blog and thought it was too beautiful to not share.  

I wish you enough sun to keep your attitude bright no matter how gray the day may appear.

 I wish you enough rain to appreciate the sun even more..

 I wish you enough happiness to keep your spirit alive and everlasting. 

 I wish you enough gain to satisfy your wanting…

 I wish you enough hellos to get you through the final good- bye.

I wish you enough pain so that even the smallest of joys in life may appear bigger.

I wish you enough loss to appreciate all that you possess.

Life is full of dichotomies: day and night, love and loss, joy and pain.  This poem captures the notion that experiencing a little bit of suffering or lacking only enhances the positive and the reality.  Without rain there is not greenery, nor fruit or flowers.  The sadness or pain is all a part of the cycle of life; although we may not understand it or we may be blinded by our grief.  Grief and sadness are not bad, they are meant to be embraced as they will only serve in the future to appreciate the joys in life. 

Monterey Bay Aquarium Sip & Sea

Last night was the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Sip & Sea Event.  A member's (and members' guests) event for the 21+.  The Aquarium was open after hours so that attendees could explore the exhibits, enjoy a drink and listen to live music.  I went with some friends and had a blast!  We enjoyed local beers and wines while admiring the jellyfish, fish, sharks, sea turtles, sea horses, otters, star fish, etc.  Did you know that sea horses dance while courting and before mating (see video)?

Jelly fish!

Sardines

Sandra, me and Shandy with a sea turtle in the background! (#MontereyBayAquarium)

The "Bang" outside the Aquarium

"Growing your own food is like printing your own money"

For those of you who are not familiar with TED, you ought to be.  The notion is "ideas worth spreading."  People come together for TED talks and give a short blurb about just that, an idea worth spreading.  It can be anything from coping with an ill partner to an innovative business design.  There are conferences and all the TED talks are available online.  I recently attended an independently organized TEDx event, TEDx Monterey - it was so inspiring.  A fantastic reminder that there are people in our community doing super cool things, you just have to be willing to hear about it.   

At TEDx Monterey, they played this TED talk about gardening.  You know, growing your own food.  Have a look and see what you think.  Maybe you'll plant a garden?  Even if it's just a container garden - plants in old milk jugs or cleaned out paint buckets.  Plants are a form of life and life wants to live.  Give it the bare minimum to survive and it will thrive... 

"To love another person is to know God in the face"

I just saw Les Miserables, the movie, based on Victor Hugo's 1862 novel.  Many of you may not have read the book, too bad Monsieur Hugo was paid by the word as the novel is a good 1000 pages, but well worth it!  The book was made into a musical and came out today (25 December 2012) on the big screen.  I saw the movie at Lighthouse Cinemas, in Pacific Grove, a quaint theatre nestled in the downtown of our sleepy town.

It was fantastic!  It really follows the passion that life can possess and the endurance of the human spirit - both for good and for bad.

If you don't know the story, Jean Valjean (Hugh Jackman) is enslaved (his punishment for stealing) and then released but violates his parole -  he assumes a new identity and starts a new life as an honest man, but he is not free as he is hunted from that point on by Javert (Russell Crowe), the unwavering face of the law who has made it his personal vendetta to seek justice.  Now we also have Fantine (Anne Hathaway), a mysterious factory worker who we discover from the other jealous co-workers, has a child, Cosette, whose father left and is being taken care of by an inn-keeper and his wife, although it is unbeknownst to Fantine that her Cosette is not treated very well.  After it is revealed that Fontine has a child, illegitimately, she is kicked out of her job and forced into prostitution to provide money to the inn-keepers for Cosette.  She falls ill and is discovered by Valjean who takes her to a hospital and promises to raise her child.  All the while, Javert has discovered Valjean's true identity and is determined to see justice served.  Doesn't happen.  Valjean finds the innkeepers (TheThenardiers), who feign the role of caring parents and pays them to take the child and Valjean and young Cosette escape into hiding.    

Much later, we see the grown Cosette, indeed under the (great) care of Valjean but living in secrecy as they are still hiding from Javert.  We are now in the midst of the French Revolution and the young revolutionaries are out in full force, including Marius Pontmercy (Eddie Redmayne) who sees the grown Cosette (Amanda Seyfried) in town one day and falls in love immediately.  Now in between the revolution, we also have a love story, a hopeless love and a secret (as Valjean's true identity is unknown to Cosette).

I will leave it at that because I really don't like spoiling the end of stories.

The music from the musical is fantastic and it was very well done in the movie. Who knew Russell Crowe could sing?  Anne Hathaway, who lost 25 lbs. for her role as Fantine does an excellent job looking miserable, half dead and defeated.  We, the audience, as we often do, find ourselves sympathizing with the underdog - having hope for true love, for true justice, not just the legal type, and believing in the goodness of humanity.

Beautiful

I was talking to a dear friend on the phone.  Upon inquired about her life and how she is doing, she joyfully said "Sally, I'm so happy.  I'm in love."  She let out a sigh/giggle and said "you know, being in love makes your good days even better, and your bad days not so bad."

How beautiful!

I wish that for everybody.