Parts of John F. Kennedy's Inaugural Address

The world is very different now. For man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty and all forms of human life. And yet the same revolutionary beliefs for which our forebears fought are still at issue around the globe -- the belief that the rights of man come not from the generosity of the state, but from the hand of God.

Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, to assure the survival and the success of liberty. This much we pledge -- and more.

So let us begin anew -- remembering on both sides that civility is not a sign of weakness, and sincerity is always subject to proof. Let us never negotiate out of fear, but let us never fear to negotiate. Let both sides explore what problems unite us instead of belaboring those problems which divide us.

In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger. I do not shrink from this responsibility -- I welcome it. I do not believe that any of us would exchange places with any other people or any other generation. The energy, the faith, the devotion which we bring to this endeavor will light our country and all who serve it. And the glow from that fire can truly light the world.

And so, my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.

My fellow citizens of the world, ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.

Finally, whether you are citizens of America or citizens of the world, ask of us here the same high standards of strength and sacrifice which we ask of you. With a good conscience our only sure reward, with history the final judge of our deeds, let us go forth to lead the land we love, asking His blessing and His help, but knowing that here on earth God's work must truly be our own.

Theodore Roosevelt's Letter on Immigration to America

"In the first place we should insist that if the immigrant who comes here in good faith becomes an American and assimilates himself to us, he shall be treated on an exact equality with everyone else, for it is an outrage to discriminate against any such man because of creed, or birthplace, or origin. But this is predicated upon the man's becoming in very fact an American, and nothing but an American...There can be no divided allegiance here. Any man who says he is an American, but something else also, isn't an American at all. We have room for but one flag, the American flag, and this excludes the red flag, which symbolizes all wars against liberty and civilization, just as much as it excludes any foreign flag of a nation to which we are hostile...We have room for but one language here, and that is the English language...and we have room for but one sole loyalty and that is a loyalty to the American people."

Theodore Roosevelt 1907

My Adapted and Modifyed Quotes

I'm a big quote guy, I have been able to take quotes, and over time, adapt them to my life.

"Know what you don't know, because that is the most important thing you can know"

"Because I would not stop for Life, He kindly stopped for me, and it hurt, but I learned, if I never learned, I would always hurt"

So good, it doesn't need adjusting:

"Relationships don't work they way they do on television and in the movies. Will they? Won't they? And then they finally do, and they're happy forever. Gimme a break. Nine out of ten of them end because they weren't right for each other to begin with, and half of the ones who get married get divorced anyway, and I'm telling you right now, through all this stuff I have not become a cynic. I haven't. Yes, I do happen to believe that love is mainly about pushing chocolate covered candies and, y'know, in some cultures, a chicken. You can call me a sucker, I don't care, because I do believe in it. Bottom line: it's couples who are truly right for each other wade through the same crap as everybody else, but the big difference is they don't let it take them down. One of those two people will stand up and fight for that relationship every time. If it's right, and they're real lucky, one of them will say something." Dr. Cox

Stephen Christian's Blog (Anberlin)

Stephen is the lead singer in the band Anberlin. Aside from being a humble front man for the band, he is also a writer, humanitarian, and all around good influence. He has a blog http://modesty.blogspot.com/ where he writes his thoughts. It is refreshing to see a figure who is in the media spotlight with his priorities still set in stone.

Organized Thoughts on Humanity: The Start

All is Peaceful on the Mediterranean Sea

A light breeze
A soft light
A good book
All is peaceful on the Mediterranean Sea

A Vino Blanco
A meditating view
A warm beach
All is peaceful on the Mediterranean Sea



By and By

With no particular place to go
I watch and all is slow
Here I lie
By and By

I think of everybody at home
Back to the view I own
How I sigh
By and By



Name (What is in a)

He was tending the bar
Serving the people
Showing kindness
But I never caught his name

They were speaking English
But were from Sweden
Pleasant People
But I never caught their name

She was small
Afraid of the plane
Full of innocence
But I never caught her name

He is watching over
Like he always does
Though faithfulness
I have always known his name

Time

How we are imprisoned
After all, it owns us
However, we can escape

A quiet beach, a smooth train
A pretty girl, a warm friend
These seem to stop time, and free us for a moment

One cannot live this way for more than a while
Because the guards of reality will find you
But these escapes are necessary, and must be made a way of life (for it is life)

Most of all, find a contented heart
Meld it with these things and one finds happiness
‘This is what all the ages have struggled for’

Make yourself appreciate wine and love
For only a few find both
A good wine is not as difficult as a good love
But the bitterness to one of either gone bad is unparalleled

So go one and find your escape
I may recommend a coast with good weather to start
For the music of the waves is sweeter than a symphony
And of course, where there is good weathered coast, there are even better people

Away from the cold and murky imprisonment one can find himself
And be found by his very nature
For when we are slaves we loose ourselves
But how good it is when we are reacquainted



Numb (Comfortably Ignorant)

With no feeling or care
One employs itself to serenity

No want or desire
Just a contentment

The world could have no better cause
Find it, and one finds a relief from all the pressures created by man

Although unique is its method
Common is its desire

It mocks the stoic and feeling
But admires true peace and comfort

The aforementioned is only found by conscious decision
And the subject is the way of the ignorant

For the educated in this matter can attest
The courage to meet the demands of reality and the false escape cannot co-exist

One must come about this process naturally because that is reality
And those who fear it are shunned by the Most High



Tame (To)

How is one to do so?
With a lust for difference and the appeal of adventure
One cannot escape the desire

An influence may be brought upon by an institution
Or perhaps an attractive individual
But there will be but slight affect

Man is born to run
Maybe to chase the wind
But he cannot sit still

If he does so, he will die
All figuratively, physically, and spiritually
For the answer is in the question

The question being ‘can man be tamed?’
I propose the answer ‘can the tamed be man?’
Ponder and respond accordingly

Just like the zebra, he is unpredictable
He can be black with white stripes or white with black stripes at anytime
And thus is our blessing, never complacent but always driving to be

Either driving for desire or entitlement
Man will never sit still as long as the sun shines
He unsuccessfully attempts to resemble his Maker
(In making it good and being able to rest)



Intersection

I have reached a point
I can’t name it
But it exists somewhere between drinking champagne out of a bottle
And listening to Pink Floyd in a hostel in the middle of Barcelona



Go…(Onward)

We Go because we Know we Must
Putting Trust in our Lust we Chase
Having a Face with an Ace we Show
But No, still we must Go Go Go



Sipping Wine in a Foreign Language

As the door closes to freedom,
My taste faces the chase of a Winemaker
I don’t know what it is or says
All I know, is that it is the last of this time