Poetry Like Fire: The Pursuit of What Matters by JJC

The Pursuit of What Matters
by JJC

Day in and day out, we strive to keep up with our families and friends
We want the big car, the suburban home and lifestyle, the new gadgets
What has life come to mean these days?
Despite our affluence, our moods are darkened.
We worry about everything as if we could change something
Core values are long abandoned. Mistrust is everywhere.
We compete against others and ourselves. Happiness is hard to come
We seem to forget that people's ability to act on behalf of
What matters to them is fundamental to happiness

It is time to get out of this false sense of comfort and security
It is time to explore our environments and appreciate the small things
That are keen on bringing the most joy to us
It is time to fall in love once again with our childhood games and stories
It is time to realize that happiness is not a given. It is a goal that can set us free
But pursuing what truly matters is worth the effort

Healing Art Touch: Touch Me Here, Do Not Touch Me There

Healing Art Touch: Touch Me Here, Do Not Touch Me There


Touch is connecting

Touch is bonding. It is healing and communicative

Even newborns can relate to it

Touch is an essential form of human communication

We touch to support and comfort

We poke; we nudge; we hug; we grip elbows

We tap knees and pat others' back

We fling our arms around others

We give bear hugs


Friends, acquaintances, and colleagues giggle, dole out hugs

Give shoulder rubs and high fives

"Keep your hands to yourselves" cry the corporate lawyers and HR managers.

It is just a reminder of what the kindergarten teacher taught years ago

When is touching appropriate in our world these days?

When is it a friendly sign of affection at school, church or at the workplace?

HR managers cringe it may interpreted as a sexual come on.

Yet, the psychologist agrees touch is a great way to express empathy, sympathy.

We embrace those who are grieving the loss of their loved ones

We back slap a player on the gridiron and baseball field

Keep your hands off; keep them to yourself!

In politics and at the workplace, keep your hands off of pretty interns,

pregnant women and your boss

How long will it take you to understand and appreciate all the huggings

going on in the next cubicle? How long will it take you to fall for

all the arm pattings, shoulder squeezing and stroking going on around us?

Are you petrified yet? Then just remain frozen by inaction.

Our actions reverberate and touch others whether we want it or not

We are interdependent in this global village

New Book on Rosa Parks: "Witnessing Rosa Parks on the Bus"

Overview of the book: "Witnessing Rosa Parks on the Bus"

Rosa Parks pioneered change and leadership. She sat on the bus so men and women could fight for their dignity and their human rights. This book is a tribute to this amazing civil rights leader and many others. It is a flashback, a focus on all the men and women who marched and stood up so we can now enjoy the fruits of freedom. Barack Obama championed what Martin Luther King promised in his famous speech "I Have a Dream."

Use Paypal to buy this book right now:

Buy "Witnessing Rosa Parks on the Bus" right on this site.

The Pursuit of What Matters by JJCharles

The Pursuit of What Matters
by JJCharles, author of various books
http://bestsellerpicks.blogspot.com

Day in and day out, we strive to keep up with our families and friends
We want the big car, the suburban home and lifestyle, the new gadgets
What has life come to mean these days?
Despite our affluence, our moods are darkened.
We worry about everything as if we could change something
Core values are long abandoned. Mistrust is everywhere.
We compete against others and ourselves. Happiness is hard to come
We seem to forget that people's ability to act on behalf of
What matters to them is fundamental to happiness

It is time to get out of this false sense of comfort and security
It is time to explore our environments and appreciate the small things
That are keen on bringing the most joy to us
It is time to fall in love once again with our childhood games and stories
It is time to realize that happiness is not a given. It is a goal that can set us free
But pursuing what truly matters is worth the effort

"Witnessing Rosa Parks on the Bus" Book Published at SmashWords.com: Get Your Copy Today and Read Free Sample!

You have been reading the poems. Now you can buy the book, the e-book:

Here are some quick links you can use:

Quick links:

* Witnessing Rosa Parks on the Bus's book page:

http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/2183

* Javascript online reader: http://www.smashwords.com/reader/read/2183
* HTML online reader: http://www.smashwords.com/extreader/read/2183

Book synopsis (provided by the author):

Determination, dedication, hard work, the "can do" American spirit, and hope of a new season of change inspired this woman to sit on the bus. Rosa Parks sat so all the others could stand up. She remained seated despite all the stares and bad comments. Today, we find a lot of Rosa Parks in all socio-economic strata. We find the hard-working men and women all over the country.

"On the Bus with Rosa Parks by and With Rita Dove" Interview

Portrait of Hope and Courage: Harriet Tubman's Escape to Freedom, Underground Conductor and Heroine

She is one of the women who changed modern America.

New Orleans Running of the Bulls

The Running of the Bulls in New Orleans, Louisiana


In Las Vegas, we already have the Taj Mahal, Les Champs Elysees
Paris already has a replica on the famous Vegas strip
Venice, Italy, is already copied many times;
New York has the statue of Liberty
Why not the San Fermin, Pamplona, Spain-style Running of the Bulls?
After all, Ernest Hemingway brought its pleasures to us in his writings
Papa knew New Orleans would be a good fit
What's next? A replica of Brazilian or Caribbean-style carnival?
New Orleans is already famous for its Mardi Gras celebration

Every year in July, the big Easy Rollergirls become the menacing bulls
Chasing revelers dressed in white shirts and shorts or pants
with some cloth of red about their neck or waist
From one bar to the next, the pre-party is getting started with a few drinks
To cool down the nerves and the rising heat
The Rolling Elvi are leading the parade. Onlookers are asking for favors
They want to be hit by the plastic horns of the Big Easy Rollergirls
The Encierro has been going on for quite a while. Everyone is having fun

All the street's a stage at San Fermin in Nueva Orleans
Los pastores, founding fathers of the Running of the Bulls are happy
Tourists have a new appreciation for the city of fun
Between Mardi Gras and the Running of the Bulls season, they have a lot
To be thankful for. After all, New Orleans is unlike any other city in the U.S.A.
It's gumbo time. The mixture of Creole, Caribbean, Spanish, Irish, Jewish and countless others gives Nueva Orleans its potpourri flavor.
Long live New Orleans, Long Live Running of the Bulls, New Orleans style!
Let the big party get started in the French Quarter, on Bourbon Street and others!




Other resources you can browse:

Read about the Running of the bulls in New Orleans in the Atlantic Monthly




Get more information about Nolabulls and the encierro right here

PoetryBusinessblog Supports Rihanna and Stands Against Domestic Violence

Just think

Could this be Rosa Parks's face?

Could this be Myrlie Evers-williams's body?

Could this be any of the famous Black pioneers

Who fought for our freedom?

There can not be any blame from any system here

Just think about the self-destruction, the drive-by shooting

The violence that exists in our home and neighborhood

Just think that this incident brings tears to Obama's eyes

Bill Cosby can not eat when he witnesses this type of self-hatred

Just think about who is going to value you first?

A chimp did not do this to this young woman's face

A lover, not a stranger, caused this much pain

Self-love and self-respect should be the names of the game

From now on. will you join hands and be a role model?

1965 Mug Shot: Freedom Riders' Twist in Time

Freedom Riders

Volunteers who were willing to risk their lives to cause change
White as well as black college students participated in sit-ins and rides
They wanted to leave a legacy. They were tired of the separate bathrooms and lunch counters.
John Lewis was among them. He got stepped on, beaten, thrown into jail.
Now he rises up to represent all those who walked with him.
The cycle of hatred was broken once for all. The Greyhound buses bear testimony to these old habits.

Farewell Wall Street, Hello to the Next Financial Center

Farewell Wall Street
by JJC

The world wakes up and says hello to
Hong Kong, Shangai, Lisbon, Singapore and Tokyo
After all, 17th-century Amsterdam has long given
Way to 19th-century London which ceded to
20th-century New York.
There is a shifting of the financial centers
Bust follows boom in all financial capitals
Nobody knows whom to trust any more
Rich today, but poor tomorrow
There is Madoff Ponzi scheme to deal with
The dot-com boom is followed by the real estate bust
Foreclosures destroy the American Dream
In the midst of the recession, homeowners get depressed
Nobody remembers the recent good times: easy credit, equity, remodeling etc
First came bailout, then the stimulus package arrived on the scene

Shame on The New York Post Cartoonist and Editor for Chimp Cartoon: New York Post Regrets Cartoon

Department of Justice Director, Eric Holder, is asking for an end to racism and other stereotypes. The New York Post's cartoon causes many people to wonder about its motive. Now it is issuing an apology to all those it offended.

"The New York Post apologized on Thursday to those offended by an editorial cartoon that critics said was racist because it likened President Barack Obama to a chimpanzee.
The newspaper acknowledged that the cartoon published on Wednesday had drawn controversy because African-Americans and others saw it as a depiction of Obama.
"This most certainly was not its intent; to those who were offended by the image, we apologize," the paper said in an editorial on its website headlined "That Cartoon."