Monday, February 28, 2011

THE MONK

A man is driving down the road and breaks down near a monastery. He goes to the monastery, knocks on the door, and says, My car broke down. Do you think I could stay the night?

The monks graciously accept him, feed him dinner, and even fix his car. As the man tries to fall asleep, he hears a strange sound; a sound like no other that he has ever heard. The next morning, he asks the monks what the sound was, but they say, We can't tell you because you're not a monk.
The man is disappointed but thanks them anyway and goes about his merry way. Some years later, the same man breaks down in front of the same monastery.
The monks again accept him, feed him, and even fix his car..
That night, he hears the same strange mesmerizing sound that he had heard years earlier.
The next morning, he asks what the sound was, but the monks reply,
We can't tell you because you're not a monk.
The man says, all right, all right. I'm dying to know.
If the only way I can find out what that sound was is to become a monk, how do I become a monk?

The monks reply, you must travel the earth and tell us how many blades of grass there are and the exact number of sand pebbles. When you find these numbers, you will become a monk.

The man sets about his task. Some forty-five years later, he returns and knocks on the door of the monastery. He says, I have traveled the earth and devoted my life to the task demanded and have found what you had asked for. There are 371,145,236,284,232 blades of grass and 231,281,219,999,129,382 sand pebbles on the earth.

The monks reply, congratulations, you are correct, and you are now considered a monk
We shall now show you the way to the sound.
The monks lead the man to a wooden door, where the head monk says, the sound is behind that door.
The man reaches for the knob, but the door is locked. He asks, May I have the key?
The monks give him the key, and he opens the door.
Behind the wooden door is another door made of stone... The man requests the key to the stone door.
The monks give him the key, and he opens it, only to find a door made of ruby. He demands another key from the monks, who provide it. Behind that door is another door, this one made of sapphire. And so it went on until the man had gone through doors of emerald, silver, topaz, and amethyst.

Finally, the monks say, This is the key to the last door .

The man is relieved to be at the end. He unlocks the door, turns the knob, and behind that door he is astonished to find the source of that strange sound. It is truly an amazing and unbelievable sight.

.. But I can't tell you what it is because you're not a monk.

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

GREED IS GOOD?

Putin's $1 Billion Palace

The tsars would be proud: A Russian businessman has accused Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin of building a lavish, $1 billion Italianate palace near the Black Sea. The businessman Sergie Kolesnikov says he was involved in its construction until he was removed after raising concerns about construction. The 8-million-square-foot palace allegedly includes a vineyard, a movie theater, a casino, an amphitheater, a gym, and a clock tower. Koleshnikov says the palace was built using a state company and is therefore built on “corruption, bribery and theft.” Russian media have reported that Putin and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev have at least a dozen estates between them. Putin’s spokesman dismissed the charges.

Read it at The Telegraph

GREED IS GOOD?

Putin's $1 Billion Palace

The tsars would be proud: A Russian businessman has accused Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin of building a lavish, $1 billion Italianate palace near the Black Sea. The businessman Sergie Kolesnikov says he was involved in its construction until he was removed after raising concerns about construction. The 8-million-square-foot palace allegedly includes a vineyard, a movie theater, a casino, an amphitheater, a gym, and a clock tower. Koleshnikov says the palace was built using a state company and is therefore built on “corruption, bribery and theft.” Russian media have reported that Putin and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev have at least a dozen estates between them. Putin’s spokesman dismissed the charges.

Read it at The Telegraph

Friday, February 04, 2011

We are getting there, some of us...

Blessed In Aging.
By Esther Mary Walker.

Blessed are they who understand
My faltering step and shaking hand
Blessed are they who know my ears today
Must strain to hear the things they say.

Blessed are those who seem to know
My eyes are dim and my mind is slow
Blessed are those who look away
When I spilled tea that weary day.

Blessed are they who, with cheery smile
Stopped to chat for a little while
Blessed are they who know the way
To bring back memories of yesterday.

Blessed are those who never say
"you've told that story twice today"
Blessed are they who make it known
That I am loved, respected and not alone.

And blessed are they who will ease the days
Of my journey home, in loving ways.