Zizzle-Zot, etc.: In Memoriam

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

In Memoriam

In light of yesterday’s tragedy at Virginia Tech I’ve decided to postpone the newest installment of “A (Very) Brief History of the Middle East” until tomorrow. I’d like to invite you all instead to take some time to reflect. Maybe say a prayer, maybe observe a moment of silence; pay your respects to the victims and their loved ones, everyone affected by this horrible incident. Don’t ignore their pain as too far removed from us to impact our lives. As children of God, their suffering is ours.

Elegy

A prayer for the departed,
For those taken too soon,
Let us forever remember you.

We weep for small indecencies,
Melodies in minor keys.
But of this loss, what to say?
So much heartbreak, so much pain.

We kneel, wrapped in shattered silence,
Grieve, remind ourselves to breathe
As we whisper tragic elegies.

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Good Quotes

“I submit to you that if a man hasn’t discovered something he will die for, he isn’t fit to live.” - Martin Luther King Jr.
"When you feel in your gut what you are and then dynamically pursue it - don't back down and don't give up - then you're going to mystify a lot of folks." - Bob Dylan
"I need no warrant for being, and no word of sanction upon my being. I am the warrant and the sanction." - Ayn Rand
"It's amazing that the amount of news that happens in the world every day always just exactly fits the newspaper." - Jerry Seinfeld
"If you knew what I know about the power of giving, you would not let a single meal pass without sharing it in some way." - Buddha
"When we remember we are all mad, the mysteries disappear and life stands explained." - Mark Twain
"Be still when you have nothing to say; when genuine passion moves you, say what you've got to say, and say it hot." - D.H. Lawrence
"Do I contradict myself? Very well then I contradict myself, (I am large, I contain multitudes)" - Walt Whitman
"Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." - Benjamin Franklin
"All of us learn to write in the second grade. Most of us go on to greater things" - Bobby Knight
"What we become depends on what we read after all of the professors have finished with us. The greatest university of all is a collection of books." - Thomas Carlyle
"The trouble with jogging is that the ice falls out of your glass." - Martin Mull
"Only the shallow know themselves." - Oscar Wilde
"Eat a live toad first thing in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day" - Unknown

Flicks You Should See (And Maybe Haven't)

--Invisble Children: A powerful documentary about the children of Uganda who face the constant threat of being abducted and turned into child soldiers by the Lord's Resistance Army.
De Fem Benspaend (Five Obstructions): Legendary filmmaker Lars von Trier challenges legendary filmmaker Jorgen Leth to remake his seminal short film "The Perfect Man" five times, each time placing an obstacle to test Leth's limits. Fascinating film for anyone interested in the filmmaking process.
Todo Sobre Mi Madre (All About my Mother): A single mother in Madrid watches her son die on his 17th birthday, causing her to seek out the boys father (who doesn't know he has a child.) Not what you might expect.
--Mitt Liv Som Hund (My Life as a Dog): Story about a young boy coming to terms with the fact that his mom is dying. If you don't find this movie touching, you probably have no soul.
--Krzysztof Kieslowski's "Trois Couleurs:" Kieslowski uses blue, white and red to meditate on the themes of grief (and ensuing catharsis), resurrection, and life and death (respectively). The cinematography is sick and the stories are universal.
--City of God: A look at youths facing poverty, violence, and death in Rio de Janeiro. Incredible story, great narration and groundbreaking style.