“There is nothing on this earth more to be prized than true friendship.” – Thomas Aquinas
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Thought For the Day: There Is Nothing On This Earth More To Be Prized Than True Friendship
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Tagged Earth, Nothing, Prize, Thomas Aquinas, Thought For the Day, True Friendship
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First Principles: Laws, To Be Just, Must Give A Reciprocation of Right; That Without This, They are Mere Arbitrary Rules of Conduct, Founded In Force, And Not In Conscience
“We lay it down as a fundamental, that laws, to be just, must give a reciprocation of right; that, without this, they are mere arbitrary rules of conduct, founded in force, and not in conscience.” – Thomas Jefferson (1782)
Posted in First Principles
Tagged Arbitrary, Conscience, First Principles, Force, Fundamental, Just, Law, Reciprocation of Right, Rules of Conduct
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I Thought Myself An Eagle
I Thought Myself An Eagle
by Michael Doyle
I thought myself an eagle
And built me a nest in solitude
Above where I could watch beauty
And very few might intrude
The disappointments I've known
Have dried up my springs of hope
I retreat to that comfort shown
And survive by learning to cope
Music is a refuge between the notes
Being inside myself is what I own
Where imagination is better than rote
And all my private sins I might atone
There is something in the discovery
In these times that my soul walks
Searching for all that is life's beauty
And the wordless words that talk
Revealing secrets that offer their surprise
Waffled in moments needing a decision
It's not an absence of love in my steady eyes
But the need for studied precision
It is a leap of faith to make a connection
And at times, my faith feels shattered and broken
It's not a defect to wait for the right direction
But the complement to my love quietly spoken
In this hypertensive world, we are pulled apart
As would-be travelers set out on life's journey
I sometimes seek shelter deep within my heart
Hoping against all hope for a bit of beauty
(c) January 30, 2025 Michael Doyle
All Rights Reserved
Posted in Poetry and Poems
Tagged Absence of Love, Atone, Beauty, Broken, Comfort, Complement, Connection, Cope, Decision, Defect, Disappointments, Discovery, Eagle, Heart, Hope, Hypertensive World, Imagination, Inside Myself, Intrude, Jouney, Known, Leap of Faith, Life, Moments, Music, My Love, Nest, Notes, Own, Poetry and Poems, Precision, Private Sins, Pulled Apart, Refuge, Retreat, Revea;, Right Direction, Rote, Search, Secrets, Shattered, Shelter, Shown, Solitude, Soul, Spoken, Springs of Hope, Steady Eyes, Surprise, Survive, Talk, Thought, Times, Walk, Watch, Wordless Words, Would-Be Travelers
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First Principles: By Our Form of Government, the Christian Religion Is the Established Religion
“Religion is of general and public concern, and on its support depend, in great measure, the peace and good order of government, the safety and happiness of the people. By our form of government, the Christian religion is the established religion; and all sects and denominations of Christians are placed upon the same equal footing, and are equally entitled to protection in their religious liberty.” – Samuel Chase, Runkel v. Winemiller (1799)
(It seems to go without saying that the principles of religious liberty has since this decision greatly expanded the doctrine of equal footing to other belief systems, too.)
Posted in First Principles
Tagged Christian Religion, Equal Footing, Established Religion, First Principles, Form of Government, Government, Happiness, Peace and Good Order, Protection, Public Concern, Religion, Religious Liberty, Runkel v. Winemiller (1799), Safety, Samuel Chase, Sects and Denominations of Christians, The People
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Thought For the Day: Creativity Is A Wild Mind and A Disciplined Eye
“Creativity is a wild mind and a disciplined eye.” – Dorothy Parker
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Tagged Creativity, Discipline, Dorothy Parker, Eye, Thought For the Day, Wild Mind
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The Truth of Why We Fight
The Truth of Why We Fight
by Michael Doyle
In different times
How might it end?
Could it have been
We might have been good friends?
Your job and mine
Here on the frontline
It's a killing job to be done
Yet, you are somebody's son
There is the truth of why we fight
Mostly, it hasn't been about wrong or right
It's more about doing as told
But doesn't this killing business get old?
A string quartet plays its shame
Good guys, bad guys; it's just a name
We clean the rubble out of the courtyard
As life becomes death and hits us hard
It's a heck of a way to die
Jumping into glory without the question why
Beware of enemy territory
At least that's the moral of my story
(c) January 29, 2025 Michael Doyle
All Rights Reserved
Posted in Poetry and Poems
Tagged Bad Guys, Beware, Courtyard, Death, Die, Different Times, Done, End, Enemy Territory, Fight, Frontline, Glory, Good Friends, Good Guys, Hard, Jumping, Killing Business, Killing Job, Life, Mine, Moral, My Story, Name, Old, Poetry and Poems, Question Why, Rubble, Shame, Somebody's Son, String Quartet, Told, Truth, Wrong or Right, Your Job
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Happy Lunar New Year!
January 29, 2025, marks the new year for the lunar calendar for China and many other Asian nations. It is also referred to as the Spring Festival. This is the Year of the Snake. We have to love a tradition that celebrates the New Year for a month, right?
To be more precise, this is the Year of the Wood Snake. What does that mean? I am glad you asked this.
A cursory look at the 12 animals and their related elements suggests an emphasis on adaptability, diversity, and lateral growth. In this tradition, the Snake is a symbol of wisdom. What could be wiser than shedding old habits, embracing intuition above overthinking, and viewing change as the opportunity to evolve that it can be and is if we allow it to be so. The element Wood represents growth, much like any plant in Spring. The snake overall is linked with wisdom, mystery, introspection, and elegance. That seems to point to a very interesting year ahead. Doesn’t it? Come on and join me in this second celebration of the new year. Let’s make the most of it!
Posted in Thought For the Day
Tagged Adaptability, Asia, Astrology, Change, China, Chinese New Year, chinese-astrology, chinese-zodiac, Diversity, Elegance, Element, Emphasis, Growth, Healing, Introspection, Intuition, January 29 2025, Lateral Growth, Lunar Calendar, Lunar New Year, Month, Old Habits, Opportunity, Spirituality, Spring Festival, Thought For the Day, Wisdom, Wood, Wood Snake
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First Principles: A Good Moral Character Is the First Essential In A Man
“[A] good moral character is the first essential in a man…It is therefore highly important that you should endeavor not only to be learned but virtuous. ” – George Washington (1790)
Posted in First Principles
Tagged Character, First Essential, First Pirnciples, George Washington, Good, Important, Learned, Mankind, Moral, Virtuous
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Thought For the Day: Wealth and Rank Are What Man Desires, But Having Contentment Is the Greatest Wealth and Highest Rank
“Wealth and rank are what man desires, but having contentment is the greatest wealth and highest rank.” – Confucius
Posted in Thought For the Day
Tagged Confucius, Contentment, Desire, Greatest Wealth, Highest Rank, Mankind, Rank, Thought For the Day, Wealth
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A Call For the Nation’s Unity
A Call For the Nation's Unity
by Michael Doyle
For God's good satisfaction
Prayers must be followed by the right actions
This is true in our way of government
Especially if we are seeking after our improvement
We know we care for our family
We must, therefore, seek toward unity
Everywhere we look, we see adversity
Let us love one another with dignity
Seeking God's help in all we do
Solid foundations are needed for me and you
We must build our house on sand
If our nation is to continue to stand
All of us share an inherent dignity
Debate should be had to find common ground
This is the mandate from God's divinity
If a lasting peace is to be found
Our unity must be based on honesty
Truth is the unifier of our family
Speaking the truth must be had despite the costs
Steadying the storms through, we are tossed
If we want unity, we must embrace humility
To work together as people filled with possibility
The line that unifies is found centered in each heart
We have needed each other since our nation's start
Without unity, we build our houses on sand
It is with humility that we come to understand
All of life must be treated with mercy
If America is to be the shining light of history
(c) January 28, 2025 Michael Doyle
All Rights Reserved
Posted in Poetry and Poems
Tagged Adversity, America, Call, Center, Common Ground, Cost, Debate, Dignity, Divinity, Family, Foundation, God, God's Help, Government, Heart, History, Honesty, Humility, Improvement, Lasting Peace, Mandate, Mercy, Nation, Poetry and Poems, Possibility, Prayer, Right Action, Satisfaction, Shining Light, Speak, Stand, Start, Steady, Storm, Treat, Truth, Understand, Uniffier, Unity
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ALOHA PROMISES FOREVER 