“There are in this world blessed souls, whose sorrows all spring up into joys for others; whose earthly hopes, laid in the grave with many tears, are the seed from which spring healing flowers and balm for the desolate and the distressed.”

From Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe, author and abolitionist (1811 – 1896), born on this day

“Our lives are fashioned by our choices. First we make our choices. Then our choices make us.”

Anne Frank (1929 – 1945), born on this day

International Day of Play

“A master in the art of living draws no sharp distinction between his work and his play; his labour and his leisure; his mind and his body; his education and his recreation. He hardly knows which is which. He simply pursues his vision of excellence through whatever he is doing, and leaves others to determine whether he is working or playing. To himself, he always appears to be doing both.”

L.P. (Lawrence Pearsall) Jacks (1860 – 1955), educator, philosopher, and Unitarian minister

“The greatest treasures are those invisible to the eye but found by the heart.”

Judy Garland (1922 – 1969), born on this day

“Wisdom
is shouting in the streets.
It is simply not enough
for those seeking wisdom
merely to read about it.
Wisdom must be discovered.
And once discovered
it must be learned by heart.
You will not find wisdom in your books
for it is not of your books,
but of the books of our God/dess.
What are these books?
They are those which the Divine has written
with her own finger.
Where can they be found?
Everywhere!”

Nicolas of Cusa (1401 – 1464), quoted in Christian Mystics by Matthew Fox

World Oceans Day

“I am in love with Ocean
lifting her thousands of white hats
in the chop of the storm,
or lying smooth and blue, the
loveliest bed in the world.
In the personal life, there is
always grief more than enough,
a heart-load for each of us
on the dusty road. I suppose
there is a reason for this, so I will be
patient, acquiescent. But I will live
nowhere except here, by Ocean, trusting
equally in all the blast and welcome
of her sorrowless, salt self.”

Mary Oliver

“Time is something we created in order to measure the span of our lives. It’s not meant to create fear in you or paralyse you from moving forward. You are never too old and it is never too late to start over.”

Prince Rogers Nelson (1958 – 2016), born on this day

“The song of sacred truth is not a tuneless lay on one unvarying note; rather, it is a call sounding at all times for living beings to respond to its challenge in ways appropriate to the time and circumstances. Sacred truth resides in every living moment that we draw breath. We can only be soundboards of this truth, receiving its vibration and absorbing and reflecting its tonality. If we insist that ours is the only authorized song, then we cut across the frequencies of others.”

From The Celtic Spirit: Daily Meditations for the Turning Year by Caitlin Matthews

World Environment Day

“We pray to you, Mother Earth, with gratitude
For your holding and sustaining love
For the air, water, and soil that feed us
For the mountains and rivers and oceans that calm our spirits
For loving and supporting all beings and all creation.
We pray to you, Mother Earth, with humility
Help us to remember our place in the great web of life
Help us to remember that we are but a part of this great web,
and that we must do our part for all life.
We pray to you, Mother Earth, for forgiveness
For our ignorance and wilful disregard of the damage we have done to you, to the air and the waters,
and the soil and the life of this beautiful planet.
We pray to you, Mother Earth, for fortitude
to uphold our part in reversing the damage we have caused,
for fortitude to make and sustain a commitment to do our part to heal the planet.
Mother Earth, in gratitude and humility, we ask that you hold us and sustain us,
as we strive to live in connection with you and all life.”

Lucy Bunch

“Just by practising gratitude, we can find happiness. We must be grateful to our ancestors, our parents, our teachers, our friends, the earth, the sky, the trees, the grass, the animals, the soil, the stones. Looking at the sunlight or at the forest, we feel gratitude. Looking at our breakfast, we feel gratitude. When we live in the spirit of gratitude, there will be much happiness in our life.”

From Peace is This Moment by Thích Nhất Hạnh