my mom's collection of purple bottles
Three passions have governed my life:
The longings for love, the search for knowledge,
And unbearable pity for the suffering of [humankind].
Love brings ecstasy and relieves loneliness.
In the union of love I have seen
In a mystic miniature the prefiguring vision
Of the heavens that saints and poets have imagined.
With equal passion I have sought knowledge.
I have wished to understand the hearts of [people].
I have wished to know why the stars shine.
Love and knowledge led upwards to the heavens,
But always pity brought me back to earth;
Cries of pain reverberated in my heart
Of children in famine, of victims tortured
And of old people left helpless.
I long to alleviate the evil, but I cannot,
And I too suffer.
This has been my life; I found it worth living.
adapted by Bertrand Russell
When I was a little girl, as far back as I can remember, I have always felt a sadness and thought something was wrong with me. In Junior High, I understood what and where this sadness was and where it came from. I then knew that there wasn't anything wrong with me at all. It was a blessing that I felt this way.
My mother always saw that in me too Angela, even when I was a child. As you know I recently went through treatment for depression, but this is a different thing altogether.
ReplyDeleteYour post stuck a chord with me, thank you..
hugs
xx
what a great post. you my dear are
ReplyDeleteand have always been a caring person with a carrying soul.
Love ya
sorry about the typo I meant to say caring soul not carrying soul!
ReplyDeletethat is what I get for typing to fast!
Oh Angela...one of the many reasons I love you, and will miss your caring gentle spirit on a personal basis.
ReplyDeleteAngela, I love this. I felt that way for most of my life -- and it wasn't until I went through breast cancer that I realized what a blessing it truly has been -- that this is a gift...I wasn't "wrong", there wasn't something "wrong" with me -- it was the kind of heart I have and who I am. Thank you for posting this.
ReplyDeleteThis is a soul stirring post my friend...
ReplyDeleteIt leaves me breathless,
Thank you Thank you
With love, M
Great photo. Great post.
ReplyDeletebeautiful you! and i love the gentleness of that photo, the purple bottles are lovely, i collect blue ones but think i may have to search out some bruised delicate purple hues, xox
ReplyDeleteYour three passions show how wonderful you are. :)
ReplyDeleteHello :)
ReplyDeleteCame here through Andrew's blog.
I agree with what he says about this post and yes, it is indeed a blessing to feel the way you did [do]
I can see the compassion in your eyes. Mirror of your soul.
GBU
Arti
We are to bear one another's burdens. . . and sometimes it is a heavy burden for us to have a soft heart.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed the post so much. As always you inspire me.
ReplyDeleteI want to thank you all for such sweet comments you left about me.
ReplyDeleteIt is also nice to know that I am not the only one who feels this way in the world.
:)
XoX