From 398 to 444 Members

[Edina]

Why don't you start it? After reading your website, I've come to the conclusion that you must have a lot to share!

[Edina]

Oh and btw, congratulations on becoming a Senior Member! ;D

[Dwayne]

Yes, congratulations Bluebird.
And congratulations on 400 members.
And congratulations to Edina ...
for staying just ahead[/i] of me!

Truthfully, we briefly tied post #s @ 137 & 138 ...
& then this artist/writer/tortured soul has strived
to remain just behind your post count #. Why? Am
not sure ... except to say it feels related to respect.

Am meaning this here now: ~ I love you all ~
Thank you for all that you all are.

Blessings ...

~Dwayne~

[Grave]

WOW! and no one could have thought JT would also be the 4ooth member.. (HE HE)

1) JT .. Congratulations.
According to number theory 400= 4+0+0 =4 that symbolises GOD(no, I don't mean Dwayne's Forum )
Where's the PARTY ?

2) BLUE BIRDS RISING- KEEP FLYING FRIEND(CONGRATULATIONS)

3) And the best part is not the numebr of posts Edina and Dwayne, the great thing is- 95% of your posts successfully make sense

4) Thanks Dwayne: Love Is

5) I'l start anyway

a) I do business-we manufacture Welding Machinery (A.C Transformers as well as D.C Rectifiers, MIG, TIG, SMAW, Inverter and Thyrestorized Based Welding Machines

And I don't know how we manage this..

b) I love to sing and play keyboards(have a band that never et together-we email)

c) Write some poetry, Can satnd for hours in rain. Lightning and I share an intimate realtionship (electrifying) (I modified my company logo to lightning)

d) At night I read books and then think for half an hour
and dream ( Mostly I remember what I dream)

c) How I got to read Richard ?(Every one tell this one please)

I was not much of reader and niether had any choice. I never knew what to read(fiction or nonfiction). Then one day I was just going through this section of non-fiction in the bookstore, an old chinese guy(may be a tourist) came to me and said:

"I see that You are young but you are old- What you are looking for is near you, but do you know what are you looking for?"

I said "I am looking for a good book"

"Can I reccomend "GOOD" book to you?"

"Sure" I said
And he picked a copy of illusions and presented to me the back side of the cover-it was written

"how would.....if you are still living it isn't over"(What were the xact wrds any one?)

That was year 2000, I bought it without ever looking back at him. I feel the lucky one and wonder who was he? (its so much like a movie-I still cant shake it though)

It was a miracle in my life that changed my whole world

d) Thats all I have: now I am adding all that cannot be said.


Grave(szzmilling)

[Bluebird]

Edina, did you leave a message in my guestbook? Please do!

Alright, I'll start. Currently I live in Helsinki region, Finland, but I have a tendency to be restless, so I'm probably not staying for many years to come. I work in biomedical research, busy with my PhD. When I'm not working (when is that, actually? ;D) I love culture: books, movies, music, cooking, art etc... I used to paint a lot, but I rarely get the time and inspiration simultaneously. My weaknesses are shopping, chocolate, lipstick and my cat.

I believe I've met (one of) my soulmate(s). How funny it ever is, I met him on the internet many years ago, and now we're going to get married. It was really hard to live separated for several years, but boy did we learn a lot from it. I think both me and him experienced spiritual development at the speed of light. It taught us to understand and see things from a perspective very different from what we were used to. What really matters and what doesn't, in the end.

Now... please continue, folks! And if you haven't posted a single message on this forum, now is a good time to present yourself!


*edit: Grave squeezed in-between! Even better, I get to read someone else's story!
How I got to read Richard Bach? I don't remember... it was 1994 or 1995 I think, and I think I just found his book the bridge across forever in a bookstore. After that I devoured every single book by him, even found the older ones that were out of print at the time. I still like the bridge most.

[Edina]

Bluebird, I did about 3 days ago.

Well, if it's my turn, I don't know what you want to know about me. Like Dwayne would say, this soul has been through hell of a lot in her 26 years.
Ok, let's start with where I'm at today.
I've been living in Toronto, Canada since 1997. Currently enrolled as a full-time student in a Business Administration program, majoring in Marketing. Last time worked for Piaggio, promoting and reintroducing their new Vespa. Despite my wish, I always end up working as an event planner or promoter for little or no money. ;D In my previous Canadian years, I was a Jazz and Classical Ballet teacher (also a member of the National Dance of Canada), then one day realized I couldn't go any further nor could I make a living out of it, therefore decided to go back to school and pursue another dream that I couldn't in my home country, Hungary. After getting my Masters, I'm planning to get a job at Sony, Unilever or Procter&Gamble, depending on my contacts. I'll see, I'm not taking anything for granted.
In my leisure time, I like to read, dance, go out with friends. I love movies and music--anything from the 80's and classics. As you can tell, I'm also an Internet addict. ;D When I was introduced to RB's work and philosophy, I was only 15. Thanks to Tamas Mester, who's a well-known Hungarian pop singer and was brave enough to talk&sing about it. Since then I'm an avid reader. Mmmm, what else, what else... Oh, I love CATS! Big cats, small cats, wild cats. Anything to do with CATS!

[Dwayne]

In Grave's response he recalls a question asked by a Chinese elder:

[glow=orange,2,300]"I see that You are young but you are old- What you are looking for is near you, but
do you know what are you looking for?"[/glow]

[shadow=teal,left,300]What a lovely question![/shadow]



Looks as if this man is up next to become a little more transparent. This may take a while ...


~Dwayne~

[Dwayne]

Part 1


Once not that long ago, in the spiritual flatlands of central Indiana, there was a human boy
conceived in the back seat of a '37 Dodge on the banks of Geist Reservoir. The child was
crazy in the womb & was born at year's mid-point by some calanders, the last day of June,
1953. When coming fully into this world he breathed not for in excess of 2 minutes until the
doctor's slaps to Dwayne's buttocks while dangling upside down finally convinced him to draw
his first searing breath of air, his skin turning from gray-blue to ruddy-cheeked mauve quickly
as he wailed his confusion over what was happening. His first 48 hours were in an incubator.

The little boy was rather odd his first few years & grew mildly stranger as he grew to begin
to, at last, speak after a very slow start, though walking came earlier than most. The young
boy grew to begin public schools in a small town east of Indianapolis & at once began indoc-
trinations into American society by learning to daily recite the Pledge of Allegiance in class:


[glow=orange,2,300]"I pledge allegiance to the flag
of the United States of America
and to the Republic for which it stands:
one nation under God, indivisible,
with liberty & justice for all."[/glow]


& learning not to draw birds like this ...




but to draw birds like all the other children were taught, like this ...




... & though so many things were confusing to him, he was always thinking about God ...
trying to understand more about good & light & love. While most of the other children would
be playing with their toys, Dwayne would seek out any place that was even remotely wild. It
mattered not if hills covered with flowers, a grassy field covered lightly with snow, a deep
woods full of the sounds of Life all around him. It was there that felt most comforting ...
more like home.



to be continued ...

[Michael13]

Beautiful story, Dwayne. Sounds like there was/is some tension.

In the Pledge, there is no comma between - "one nation under God". Its like at an early age we teach children to disconnect from God/True Is/One.

Do you suppose this is the case?

[Edina]

Dwayne, if Saint-Exupery was still living, he'd pat you on the back after seeing those beautiful drawings.
Nice start, my friend. ;D

Just be careful with those numbers.

[Dwayne]

Thanks Micheal,

It has been edited to reflect a more common way of reciting it.
Many have various capitalizations, a comma over colon in one part, etc.

www.homeofheroes.com/hallofheroes/1st_floor/flag/1bfc_pledge.html


& thanks, Edina. What #s to be careful with? Number of part #s?

Peace ...

~Dwayne~

[Edina]

Never mind, I was just joking.

[Dwayne]

Apology to Michael, as his question was temporarily overlooked. He ponders:

"Its like at an early age we teach children to disconnect
from God/True Is/One. Do you suppose this is the case?"

Whether intentional or non-intentional, the effect seems to be the same.
Yes, sir, am believing so.


~Dwayne~

[Dwayne]

For Edina: a few qoutes from A. de Saint-Exupery ...



A goal without a plan is just a wish.


He who would travel happily must travel light.


Life has taught us that love does not consist in gazing at each
other, but in looking outward together in the same direction.


One man may hit the mark, another blunder; but heed not
these distinctions. Only from the alliance of the one, working
with and through the other, are great things born.


Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more
to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.


What saves a man is to take a step. Then another step.
It is always the same step, but you have to take it.


Grown-ups never understand anything for themselves, and it is tiresome
for children to be always and forever explaining things to them.


Antoine de Saint-Exupery



Blessings ...

~Dwayne~

[Grave]

I wonder if writing about ourselves good ever be seen as "Finally Perfect" , but its beautiful the way dwayne introduced himself...

And Dwyane: May be that bird you drew as a kid is a Seagull that you already knew you'd read about years later (Nothing BY Chance) -Inspiring

Grave(joyful)

[402 memebers! why do I feel happy? ]