I have a notebook on my kitchen counter.  It (or one like it) has been in residence
there for a long time.  This is where I keep my things-to-do list and other very
important stuff that I might forget if I don't refer to it every day.
Please don't use the "Send page" feature of your computer to
send this entire page in an e-mail message, document or pdf
format.  This distorts the layout and separates the page from
its source.  If you'd like to share it, please just send the link.
The link to this page is:
http://www.thepastwhispers.com/Wonder.html
Sense of Wonder
The photos on this page are from Denmark, Belgium and the Netherlands.
Once in awhile, after my granddaughter, Sarah, has been here for a visit, I'll
open the notebook and discover a note she's left for me to find.  It usually
goes something like this:  
"Nini, this note is for you.  I love you.  Sarah"
This page is for all of you, but, it was Sarah who inspired it.
"Sarah, the words on this page are for you.  I love you.  Nini"
I hope you never lose your sense of wonder,
Get your fill to eat, but always keep that hunger;
May you never take a single breath for granted,
God forbid love ever leave you empty-handed.
Give the sky above more than just a passing glance
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance,
Dance...
I hope you dance.
I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance,
Never settle for the path of least resistance;
Promise me that you'll give faith a fighting chance,
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance,
I hope you dance...I hope you dance.
I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean,
Whenever one door closes, I hope another opens;
Above all, don't let anyone ever make you bitter,
When you come close to selling out, please reconsider.
Be grateful for mistakes.  If you are making mistakes, that means you're making new
things, trying new things, learning, living, changing yourself, changing your world.
You're doing things you've never done before.  Don't stop.  Don't worry that it
isn't good enough, that it isn't perfect.  People who aren't making mistakes
aren't making anything at all.  
-- Neil Gaiman
-- Mark Sanders and Tia Sillers
Listen to the 'mustn'ts', child, listen to the 'don'ts',
Listen to the 'shouldn'ts', the 'impossibles', the 'won'ts',
Listen to the 'never haves', then listen close to me,
Anything can happen, child, anything can be.
-- Shel Silverstein
To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something
else is the greatest accomplishment.  --
Ralph Waldo Emerson