I Take Off The Mask!

I am a tree
sprouting forth and reaching out
for the glorious sunny sky
strengthening my stance
drawing forth life
from the warm womb of the ground
bearing forth what fruit
i may offer to all
giving my shade
to those who may want to rest awhile
Not all men may notice me
when they pass by
not all may taste the fruit
that i have whole-heartedly offered
nor avail of the [...]

Pride, even if it be of righteousness, takes us away from love.
It blinds us with a false strength
and erodes our heart with a fear
of losing the things which we attach our self-worth unto,
things which can easily be lost.
Love, on the other hand,
can never be truly lost,
but needs only to be found
again
and again
and again…

The most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious. It is the fundamental emotion that stands at the cradle of true art and true science. Whoever does not know it and can no longer wonder, no longer marvel, is as good as dead, and his eyes are dimmed. It was the experience of mystery— [...]

At times the wisest of answers
lies in these simple words:
i do not know
I do not know what happens after death
of whether the soul remains awake
of whether soul and body awaits
to be awakened in the last day
I do not know what judgment looms before us
or what mercies await us in our Father’s
loving arms
I only believe in [...]

Life is not at all a game of accumulating everything you need and maintaining a certain level of happiness, for happiness after all cannot be maintained.  Life is a constant flow, of touching and growing and moving on.  Life is either experienced or not, in joy and in sadness, in anger and in despair.  Those [...]

What keeps a person from
receiving a gift,
a very precious
and significant gift?
Given the chance to accept such a gift,
a brand new car perhaps
a beautiful house and lot
a precious jewel,
how many among us would refuse
something totally for free?
Following are some of the things I thought would prevent us from receiving the blessings/ gifts the good Lord has [...]

It is only by being confident enough to face the present can you move on and look forward to whatever it is that lies ahead. - www.itakeoffthemask.com

Herein is the secret to the fullness of life - that one be born again, and again, and again…  - www.itakeoffthemask.com

I would like to share a beautiful story I read this morning from the works of T.S. Arthur about some of the small things we neglect without full awareness of its effect upon our neighbors:
MY WASHERWOMAN.
SOME people have a singular reluctance to part with money. If waited
on for a bill, they say, almost involuntarily, “Call [...]

It used to be so easy to rest, back in those days when “recess” was our favorite subject in school, or when Friday was our favorite day of the week because we’d finally have a hard-earned weekend to indulge in a lazy Saturday afternoon.
Yet have you noticed how many people today find no more satisfaction in the [...]

I would like to share with you the most touching poem I have ever received.  No, it did not come from my boyfriend.  And No, it was not even an original composition.  Yet the way it was able to come to me was no ordinary thing in my life, certainly nothing I’ve ever expected to [...]

 
I saw that boy yet again
sitting by the stairs near the street
his little hand raised infront of me
his clothes tattered
his feet with no slippers
his future bleak and beyond my reach
 
What can I do for you dear boy?
I cannot give you work with which to eat
Neither can I send you to school
for my pay is just [...]