Word of the day

Abnegate – renounce or reject something desired or valuable, to renounce or surrender a right or privilege; to deny oneself something valuable, cherished, or desired;

Milne muses

“A party for Me?” thought Pooh to himself. “How grand!” And he began to think how awful it would be if nobody knew what the party was for; and the more he thought like this, the more the party got muddled in his mind, like a dream when nothing goes right. ~A.A.Milne #party pic.twitter.com/BXOcVkzfEt

— A.A.Milne (@A_AMilne) January 13, 2022

When I Am Among the Trees

WHEN I AM AMONG THE TREES
by Mary Oliver

When I am among the trees,
especially the willows and the honey locust,
equally the beech, the oaks and the pines,
they give off such hints of gladness.
I would almost say that they save me, and daily.
I am so distant from the hope of myself,
in which I have goodness, and discernment,
and never hurry through the world
but walk slowly, and bow often.
Around me the trees stir in their leaves
and call out, “Stay awhile.”
The light flows from their branches.
And they call again, “It’s simple,” they say,
“and you too have come
into the world to do this, to go easy, to be filled
with light, and to shine.”

Hat tip: The Marginalian

Maya muses

"When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time." #MayaAngelou pic.twitter.com/5vaYeATRBn

— Maya Angelou (@DrMayaAngelou) January 6, 2022

Sunday soapbox

Sunday’s soapbox is yours to use as you will – within the bounds of decency and absence of defamation. You’re welcome to look back or forward, discuss issues of the moment, to pontificate, ponder or point us to something of interest, to educate, elucidate or entertain, amuse, bemuse or simply muse but not to abuse.

Arrogance really comes from insecurity. And in the end our feeling that we are bigger than others is really the flip side of our feeling that we are smaller than others. – Desmond Tutu