When the well’s dry, we know the worth of water. Benjamin Franklin

I see in the near future a crisis approaching that unnerves me and causes me to tremble for the safety of my country. . . . Corporations have been enthroned, an era of corruption in high places will follow, and the money-power of the country will endeavor to prolong its reign by working upon the  Continue Reading

A society is defined not only by what it creates, but by what it refuses to destroy. John Sawhill, former president/CEO of The Nature Conservancy

We find ourselves ethically destitute just when, for the first time, we are faced with ultimacy, the irreversible closing down of the earth’s functioning in its major life systems. Our ethical traditions know how to deal with suicide, homicide and even genocide, but these traditions collapse entirely when confronted with biocide, the killing of the  Continue Reading

Use what talent you possess. The woods would be very silent if no birds sang except those that sang best. Henry Van Dyke

The diligent farmer plants trees, of which he himself will never see the fruit. Cicero

I believe that the great Creator has put ores and oil on this earth to give us a breathing spell. As we exhaust them, we must be prepared to fall back on our farms, which is God’s true storehouse and can never be exhausted. We can learn to synthesize material for every human need from  Continue Reading

I have a simple philosophy: Fill what’s empty. Empty what’s full. Scratch where it itches. Alice Roosevelt Longworth

He that cannot forgive others breaks the bridge over which he must pass himself; for every man has need to be forgiven. Thomas Fuller

It is a curious situation that the sea, from which life first arose should now be threatened by the activities of one form of that life. But the sea, though changed in a sinister way, will continue to exist; the threat is rather to life itself. Rachel Carson, (1907-1964) The Sea Around Us, 1951

Hearing that guitar legend Les Paul had passed away this week was pretty sad… his influence on the art of making a guitar sing was impossible to measure.

Earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s need, but not every man’s greed. Mohandas K. Gandhi

Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in  Continue Reading

Here’s song for a summer day – called “Summer Song,” just to connect the dots for ya – by Chad & Jeremy:

As a human, the only weapon you have is kindness. Sacrifice, patience and forgiveness are the tripod on which kindness rests. Yogi Bhajan

After I ran that bit about the garden behind Island Studios last week, I was surprised to see a guest in the garden last Thursday, reading Sports Illustrated (I didn’t check to see if it was the swimsuit edition). Claudia says all kinds of folks were posing with him & offering drinks from the Sweet  Continue Reading