The Irrepressibility of Hope Aflame

The Irrepressibility of Hope Aflame

by John S LES  (originally a doodle from 1984 in my college notebook)


The burning zeal, captured in a candles heat,
It's crackling sounds resound in the night air
The sweet smell of it's waxy feet
Gives substances to what our eyes shall bare
And those magnificent people affected utter fourth it's name
It's the irrepressibility of hope aflame


Some question if it would be fair for the vigils to lose their beat
After blood shed from four hundred years
Which fueled the fire to it's crimson peak
Yet those magnificent people still utter fourth it's name
It's the irrepressibility of hope aflame

A gallant call from  million of tears
People standing tall, born from the primordial progress of 10,000 years
Redressing the lies of history's pages, slavery, slaughter and low wages
The truth rises again, as it has throughout the ages

You must let my people go, when you form your new nations
for I am the Truth, and this - all around you is my creation.
Evil may star and steal the light of a single day...
But the truth will shine brighter and show progressive mankind the right way


So the People gathered in the dark or even the daylight
and said in one voice...
Freedom is inalienable birthright
to all men, it's God given, not a choice..

From every country side, to every mountain side
From every hamlet, to every big metropolis
From every nations' pride
No evil can ever topple this...

No tyrant or dictator can forever win the game
Not when you have the Irrepressibility of Hope...Aflame

New York City Monuments Aglow For Fourth of July 2013

For the first time in 12 years, in the city that never sleeps...a city that if you can make it here...you can make it anywhere...the Fourth of July night skyline was illuminated by some familiar monuments:  The Empire State Building and the new Freedom Tower.  The first two pictures were taken from a center point southeast of Empire State Building and northeast of Freedom Tower.

These next four pictures were taken while walking up to Freedom Tower until I was finally right next to it.  Just outside of the building and sort of in between Freedom Tower and the fully operational PATH station, there is a picture of a Calvary man seated on a horse.  I have yet to find out what his symbolism is to the building, but I will look further in a day or so and update this post.  Either way I took his picture, with the American flag flying next to him.

This last picture was taken with special camera effects to illuminate the picture.  It's a night photography setting.  This was my first time using this particular camera.  I was a little challenged by it's over abundance of camera effects.  But the building is beautiful none the less.  Happy Fourth of July New York.  May God watch over you and guide better men to find better ways to settle their differences around the world.

One Year Ago I Started This Blog

Exactly one year ago, I was pushed by many reasons to do what I've always loved to do - to write and share my positive thoughts, humor, real life and fictional stories with other people via the Internet and this blog.  Exactly one year ago I sat in a hotel room out of state and started a story of what it was like to be a traveling sports parent.  Certain events drove me to stop fiddling around with my desire to write after a few failed attempts at screenwriting and manuscript writing in years past.  Some real life events just pushed me emotionally to just stop wasting time and to get on with doing what I like to do.

12 months and well over 12,000 plus pageviews, plus 5 additional blogs later - I must say that this has been a fun and very rewarding experience.  I have been able to share smiles, laughs, fictional drama, retrospective memories as well as some thought provoking discussions.

When I started this blog I had no idea that a major hurricane striking my area would push me to some thought inspiring writings on what our society might be facing to when we lose one of the most simplest natural commodities - oil.

When I started this blog, I had no idea Google would continuously prompt and push their products and dare me to switch this blog over to their  Google Plus format - just so that myself and other writers could stimulate their new product.  I am a hold out.  I like this Google blogging format just fine.  So I balked at changing from this format.  I believed that with fresh ideas and challenging storylines - that this format was more suitable to people around the world and outside of the Google Plus format.

When I started this blog, I had no idea that one long time friend and a recent friend would get offended by my efforts to resource items, photographs to help push my writing.  Whatever the case, right or wrong, they decided to end a friendship.  Turned out to be just fine because others friends stepped in on multiple levels and helped me transform my  ideas into a reality right from the ground up.  They donated their time, resources, pictures, ideas - whatever I needed, and that they could give.  They did not judge me.  They waited to see what I would do with what they gave me.  THANK YOU!  That idea growth model then lead to similar approaches to other stories and ideas that I introduced in this blog.  With 12,000 pageviews and private feedback from people from around the country and around the world.  So in spite of the loss of friendships - I've gained so much, much more.  I found out who my real friends are.  I know who I can trust and who is willing to help push me to another level.

Their appreciation and commentary for the finished product is priceless.

When I started this blog, I had no idea that one of my other blogs:  WhereDidOurLoveGo.blogspot.com would go from a meager 120 pageviews in nearly four months to over 600 pageviews in just two and 1/2 months after I interacted with a fascinating new friend in the Netherlands.  Her thoughts on life, way of life and free energy inspired me to take my own emotional constraints off and fly free with my writings on love.  From that day on - my pageviews on that blog soared.  She knows who she is, and I thank her a million times over!

Not that my friend in the Netherlands, or close friends, work friends, neighbors who've helped me this year should be forgotten or overlooked.  Nor can I forget a friend I made along the way down in FL, who I promised I'd send her my first company t -shirt when I get it started.  I'm sorry darling, I haven't registered just yet, but I won't forget you.  I keep my promises to all my supporters.  One other friend who's name I'll just mention is Steve.  Steve, you know who you are - thanks for your support these last 12 months.  Printing up my fictional stories and making them into your own personal book is exactly the point I have been trying to make!

All of that being said, I feel like the glass is definitely only half filled.  There is more that I wanted to do within the last 12 months, but couldn't get to just yet.  More life stories, more fictional stories, more writings in some of the other blogs.  Some days and mostly nights, I would sit at my laptop or desktop and simply be so drained from my regular life, that I didn't even know how I got through the last thing that I wrote.  But it doesn't matter.  When I do get to putting something out and I see the pageviews go up and up, it's instant acknowledgement that all of you out there are getting it.

It would be nice to turn a profit in all of this and help pay some of my life bills.  But even if that never happens...all of you now and any future readers of my work...the 12,000 plus views (and growing) is a blessing.  It's a momentary fraction of time that we are connecting, in spirit, across many, many miles.  There simply is no way to put a price tag finding ways to connect with dozens, hundreds, thousands of people on a single positive thought.  It is truly, truly priceless.

Recently, I found out that a coworker at my workplace has cancer and hasn't been given very long to live.  He's a really wonderful guy, with one of the most positive outlooks on life.  I hope that he can beat the odds.  I will do what I can to help him.  He's situation is a sobering reminder that we all will be leaving this life eventually.  The last thing I wanted to do was to leave this life without having shared some of my positive thoughts, ideas and life stories with other people.  The responses from all of you out there who continuously read this and my other blogs...tells me that I am accomplishing my life goal.  Thank you!

Love Hurts

I know it's been said before by others and myself...And no matter the time, place or circumstances there's never going to be a doubt about this one fact of life: Love hurts.

Please Call Me Sexy - Men vs Women

In a recent conversation, a female friend of a friend stated that when a man (such man not being the woman's boyfriend) calls a woman "Sexy" it usually means he's on some level of interest of having sex with her.  This female friend of a friend then stated that when the opposite occurs - namely a woman calls a man (who's not her boyfriend) "Sexy" it is usually meant in a slightly different way, and that doesn't necessarily mean that she wants to have sex with that man.

Ohh boy!  This was right up my alley.

I replied to this woman that when I was a young man, if a girl called me sexy, yes it indeed made me feel confident, gave me a nice testosterone charged, chest pounding machismo for the day.  I also said that such a comment could mean that she was probably attracted to me in some form or fashion.  If I found her equally attractive - I knew that I was "in".  Now as I'm just two years away from 50yrs, if a woman starts calling me sexy, I start checking for my wallet to make sure that it's still "in" my pocket.

To be fair and flip the topic matter the other way around, I must admit that when men start calling a woman sexy, we usually do want some kind of favor - or yes - sex!  We certainly don't say it to a woman to give her a spiritual life?  Nor are we usually trying to help her through some 12 step confidence building program.  I usually call my wife "sexy" when the TV remote is out of reach, or I forgot to pick up my clothes from the cleaners, or I'm hungry and don't want to cook...

:-)

A Lost Cell Phone and This Younger Generation...

Yesterday at work, I found a cellular phone.  It was clear to me that it belong to a young woman probably in her late teens, early twenties.  Being the good guy that I am, I take the unlocked phone and proceed to send text messages to three of her contacts explaining who I was, and where my office was and how they could tell the owner how to reach me.  I sent that message to one of the parents listed and to two of the owner's friends.

Within three minutes one of her friends sent me back a text message: "So Jane  I see that your phone was found by some guy and he left information on where you reach him.  How funny is that?  Lucky you!"

Needless to say, I was stunned to receive this message.  But this female friend wasn't quite done in her cyber age faux pas.  This friend then proceeded to send back a copy of the message that I sent out to her, through the phone.

It took all that I had to keep from responding back and asking this friend if she realized that her friend was not receiving her message, but that it was indeed me, the finder of this lost phone.  All I wanted her to do was to find another way to email or word of mouth notify her friend of the location of the lost phone.  Nope.  There this friend was messaging me back as if I was the owner of the phone reading her humorous absorption of the situation.

Her parents did call and were updated.  The young woman did stop by several hours later and retrieved it.  But long after she was gone...I couldn't help but wonder what's happening to our younger generation...and their common sense...

There's No Place Like Home

Yes, the doors to the crypt are opening and I get to share some humor with you.

My college aged daughter was filling out a job application earlier today.  She read out loud one of the questions on the application: "Where was the best place that you ever received Customer Service?"

My immediate answer:  "Home!"