Green Mountain Meandering Missives

Recently, I had purchased and watched the movie "Conclave" on Saturday (via YouTube) and then watched it again, twice over, afterwards, in following days: Yes, it is that good. Truly. The investment in buying the movie, rather than merely renting it for 48 hours, was definitely worth it. In my opinion, it is an excellent and very well done film and, believe it or not, one that I will more than likely view yet again in the future. It is a film that, for those who have not already viewed it, I highly recommend. It should be noted that I am neither Catholic, nor necessarily religious either.

  Mountains and Valleys of Hope Why are hopes merely lofty mountains, otherwise, far-off beautiful scenic valleys, somewhere in the distant and hazy horizon, only to be gazed upon, be dreamed about or imagined by those  who have the faith or vision to do so, elsewise eventually scaled or ventured toward by those few souls daring to risk the arduous, lengthy, trek or otherwise be left to either  artists to draw, paint or sketch panoramics, as well as poets and writers to pen and publish flowery sonnets, prose, articles, novels or books, never to be truly experienced and lived by most, save by those willing to make their hopes reality for both themselves as well as others, dreaming, envisioning and seeking something much better and different for all of humanity. This has been a question, among others, too often gone unanswered, through the ages, at least until a future generation finally does so. Morgan W. Brown Monday, March 4, 2024 Montpelier, Vermont, USA Photo: Camel's ...

After having come across my recent blog posts concerning Spiritual Matters , yesterday (Saturday, February 24, 2024), a neighbor of mine was inspired to graciously gift me with a brand new copy of Thomas Merton's autobiography, The Seven Mountain   (Fiftieth Anniversary Edition; published by HarperOne), a book that I had not previously come across or read before. Have since read both the Introduction to the book written by Robert Giroux as well as A Note to the Reader by William H. Shannon, both of these recommended reading in my opinion. However, given that reading books often comes hard as well as slow on my part, I have  begun listening to an audiobook version of the book available via video on YouTube (view embedded video player, below):

Had ordered three used hard copy books on Quakerism earlier this month (via Thrift Books ) and, after receiving two of the books on Saturday (February 17th), received the third one yesterday (Thursday, the 22nd). The latter book is  Quaker Faith and Practice  (second edition; 1999; fifth edition available, here ): The book of Christian discipline of the Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) in Britain. Excerpts from the Introduction (last two paragraphs):  We are seekers but we are also the holders of a precious heritage of discoveries. We, like every generation, must find the Light and Life again for ourselves. Only what we have valued and truly made our own, not by assertion but by lives of faithful commitment, can we hand on to the future. Even then, we must humbly acknowledge that our vision of the truth will, again and again, be amended.   In the Religious Society of Friends we commit ourselves not to words but to a way .  To that, I ...

Have never considered myself to be a religious person per se (i.e., one to practice religion), however, I have tended to view myself as being a spiritual or rather to be a spiritually motivated person and, speaking for myself only (of course), have usually not felt comfortable in most churches or attending formal church services.  In fact, my church of choice has been the outdoors, found among nature. Yet, when someone I know and well respect mentioned about their being a Quaker last week, something that I had not previously known, I felt drawn to seriously consider becoming a Quaker myself, particularly after having done some online research about being a Quaker and, finding that Quaker way of life as well as core beliefs, principles and values appear to mirror as well as closely align with my own, seeking information about where Quaker meetings are held in the area as well. Not only did I email the person about it, but I also posted on Montpelier's Front Porch Forum (FPF) askin...

When it comes to dreams, from my youth onward, I have never unnecessarily put much if any energy, faith, need or time in finding meaning, symbolism, nor a message in them; because, for me, sometimes a dream is only that, a dream, merely something to entertain us while we are asleep, nothing more. However, whether or not there is meaning, symbolism or a message to be ascertained from a particular dream, I have always found it best to not allow it to overly dominate my thoughts or behavior one way or another. Instead, I might sometimes allow it to slowly brew on the backburner within my mind and, if there is something pertinent to eventually be applied, use it to help be an informational guide concerning how, where and when it could be needed either at the moment or somewhere down the road. In addition, having long been a fan of quality science fiction (sci-fi) books and movies, it is no surprise that during my sleep this morning I found myself in the midst of what could be defined as a ...

First photo taken by a neighbor last weekend. For those who might have missed it, after posting the previous days reports and updates (12/22nd and 12/23rd), there was a follow-up update posted and also later edited, regarding Saturday’s events and related matters, as well, here . As had been previously mentioned in yesterday’s report and update, tentative plans for today (Sunday, December 24th), Christmas Eve Day, are yet to be determined, however Roaming Santa does plan to get out and about when he is able to do so. Second photo (taken by Ken Russell; shared with permission): Roaming Santa out front of the Vermont State House on Thursday evening. Roaming Santa’s Wish List : Recently, during one of the greet and waves in downtown Montpelier, Santa had asked someone what they wanted for Christmas and, after answering, the person asked him what he wanted as well. After pausing to think about it for several seconds, the reply was that what the person had mentioned sounded good to him too....

  Terrible State It can be far too easy to end up in a rather terrible state, living unhoused, on the streets, without doing much  if anything to get there on one's own, let alone knowing how or why it happened, nor how or where next to flee; whether it be while wide awake or otherwise lost within an unending nightmare when asleep; unable to escape, feeling unsafe,  even after finally waking; being  reminded how easy it is to get there, how difficult and hard it is to get away; particularly when there is nowhere else to turn, nor no one around to help; languishing alone within an empty abyss, amid great misery and immense suffering, an hour or more later, even several years  after the last actual, lengthy, occurrence.  What is one to do? Where is one to go? How does one find enough hope,  faith and strength to continue onward, when there doesn't appear to be any left, either within or outside oneself? There has never been any easy or simple answers to ...