Since my visit to the Hermitage, I had become more aware of the four figures, two women and two men, who stood around the luminous space where the father welcomed his returning son. Their way of looking leaves you wondering how they think or feel about what they are watching. These bystanders, or observers, allow for all sorts of interpretations. As I reflect on my own journey, I become more and more aware of how long I have played the role of observer. For years I had instructed students on the different aspects of the spiritual life, trying to help them see the importance of living it. But had I, myself, really ever dared to step into the center, kneel down, and let myself be held by a forgiving God? The simple fact of being able to express an opinion, to set up an argument, to defend a position, and to clarify a vision has given me, and gives me still, a sense of control. And, generally, I feel much safer in experiencing a sense of control over an undefinable situation than in taking the risk of letting that situation control me. Certainly there were many hours of prayer, many days and months of retreat, and countless conversations with spiritual directors, but I had never fully given up the role of bystander. Even though there has been in me a lifelong desire to be an insider looking out, I nevertheless kept choosing over and over again the position of the outsider looking in. Sometimes this looking-in was a curious looking-in, sometimes a jealous looking-in, sometimes an anxious looking-in, and, once in a while, even a loving looking-in. But giving up the somewhat safe position of the critical observer seemed like a great leap into totally unknown territory. I so much wanted to keep some control over my spiritual journey, to be able to predict at least a part of the outcome, that relinquishing the security of the observer for the vulnerability of the returning son seemed close to impossible. Teaching students, passing on the many explanations given over the centuries to the words and actions of Jesus, and showing them the many spiritual journeys that people have chosen in the past seemed very much like taking the position of one of the four figures surrounding the divine embrace. The two women standing behind the father at different distances the seated man staring into space and looking at no one in particular, and the tall man standing erect and looking critically at the event on the platform in front of him--they all represent different ways of not getting involved. There is indifference, curiosity, daydreaming, and attentive observation; there is staring, gazing, watching, and looking; there is standing in the background, leaning against an arch, sitting with arms crossed, and standing with hands gripping each other. Every one of these inner and outward postures are all too familiar with me. Some are more comfortable than others, but all of them are ways of not getting directly involved," (pp. 12-13).
Henri J.M. Nouwen
Related I like to open for a band as it brings on sort of a challenge and it makes things more interesting. ... KELLY JONES I don't know if I have a favorite color. KATE MIDDLETON It's very special having a new little girl. KATE MIDDLETON It's all to do with the training: you can do a lot if you're properly trained. QUEEN ELIZABETH II Like all best families, we have our share of eccentricities, of impetuous and wayward youngsters and... QUEEN ELIZABETH II My husband has quite simply been my strength and stay all these years, and I owe him a debt greater ... QUEEN ELIZABETH II It is easy enough to define what the Commonwealth is not. Indeed this is quite a popular pastime. QUEEN ELIZABETH II I have to be seen to be believed. QUEEN ELIZABETH II I have in sincerity pledged myself to your service, as so many of you are pledged to mine. Throughou... QUEEN ELIZABETH II I hope that tomorrow we can all, wherever we are, join in expressing our grief at Diana's loss, ... QUEEN ELIZABETH II I myself prefer my New Zealand eggs for breakfast. QUEEN ELIZABETH II The British constitution has always been puzzling and always will be. QUEEN ELIZABETH II I have behind me not only the splendid traditions and the annals of more than a thousand years but t... QUEEN ELIZABETH II To what greater inspiration and counsel can we turn than to the imperishable truth to be found in th... QUEEN ELIZABETH II What were once only hopes for the future have now come to pass; it is almost exactly 13 years since ... QUEEN ELIZABETH II First, I want to pay tribute to Diana myself. She was an exceptional and gifted human being. In good... QUEEN ELIZABETH II I cannot lead you into battle. I do not give you laws or administer justice but I can do something e... QUEEN ELIZABETH II To all those who have suffered as a consequence of our troubled past I extend my sincere thoughts an... QUEEN ELIZABETH II Grief is the price we pay for love. QUEEN ELIZABETH II The upward course of a nation's history is due in the long run to the soundness of heart of its ... QUEEN ELIZABETH II At its heart, engineering is about using science to find creative, practical solutions. It is a nobl... QUEEN ELIZABETH II At Christmas, I am always struck by how the spirit of togetherness lies also at the heart of the Chr... QUEEN ELIZABETH II For many, Christmas is also a time for coming together. But for others, service will come first. QUEEN ELIZABETH II The lessons from the peace process are clear; whatever life throws at us, our individual responses w... QUEEN ELIZABETH II I declare before you all that my whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your s... QUEEN ELIZABETH II Therefore I am sure that this, my Coronation, is not the symbol of a power and a splendor that are g... QUEEN ELIZABETH II We lost the American colonies because we lacked the statesmanship to know the right time and the man... QUEEN ELIZABETH II Madam President, speaking here in Dublin Castle it is impossible to ignore the weight of history, as... QUEEN ELIZABETH II These wretched babies don't come until they are ready. QUEEN ELIZABETH II I know of no single formula for success. But over the years I have observed that some attributes of ... QUEEN ELIZABETH II The events that I have attended to mark my Diamond Jubilee have been a humbling experience. It has t... QUEEN ELIZABETH II In remembering the appalling suffering of war on both sides, we recognise how precious is the peace ... QUEEN ELIZABETH II Like all the best families, we have our share of eccentricities, of impetuous and wayward youngsters... QUEEN ELIZABETH II No one who knew Diana will ever forget her. Millions of others who never met her, but felt they knew... QUEEN ELIZABETH II I have been aware all the time that my peoples, spread far and wide throughout every continent and o... QUEEN ELIZABETH II The unfortunate thing is that, sometimes, we slip, but, fortunately, consciously or unconsciously, w... ERNEST AGYEMANG YEBOAH Clay in the hands of a good potter suffers so many good turns, but in the end, we see its real and t... ERNEST AGYEMANG YEBOAH We'll sort of get over the marriage first and then maybe look at the kids. But obviously we want... PRINCE WILLIAM Family is the most important thing in the world. PRINCESS DIANA You philosophers are lucky men. You write on paper and paper is patient. Unfortunate Empress that I ... CATHERINE THE GREAT With the right help, children have a good chance of overcoming their issues while they are still you... KATE MIDDLETON As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend. KING SOLOMON I don't mind a big fascinator. I think there is more scope for artwork in a fascinator rather th... ZARA PHILLIPS I was always told from the hat-makers that you should have your hair up because it shows the hat mor... ZARA PHILLIPS I don't think I'll still be riding at 40. There are a couple of people who are still riding ... ZARA PHILLIPS My dad's not a big talker. ZARA PHILLIPS My dad can be pretty critical sometimes. ZARA PHILLIPS I'd love to have kids, but not at the moment. ZARA PHILLIPS You cannot make horses 'safe.' ZARA PHILLIPS Virtually everything that gets printed about me is wrong anyway, so it doesn't really matter wha... ZARA PHILLIPS It's stupid to say that I don't like being in the public eye, but I don't like doing stu... ZARA PHILLIPS I'm an affectionate person. ZARA PHILLIPS People still text me to say that there is something about me in the paper, and what really annoys me... ZARA PHILLIPS Sometimes people will come up in the street and say: 'My daughter loves you, will you sign an au... ZARA PHILLIPS Taking part in an Olympics on home ground is something you dream about. ZARA PHILLIPS My brother and I have been able to get on and have been very lucky to do things with our family that... ZARA PHILLIPS I don't think about the media. ZARA PHILLIPS I love the sport and being competitive. ZARA PHILLIPS The horses are all characters, all personalities. Some you get along with, some you don't, some ... ZARA PHILLIPS I hate having my picture taken. ZARA PHILLIPS Unfortunately in sport it's either good or bad. You've got to take the highs and the lows. ZARA PHILLIPS My mother is massively into sailing, so we always had Musto clothes, and it went on from there, real... ZARA PHILLIPS The senior members of the royal family work very hard and I don't think people quite realise tha... ZARA PHILLIPS In our sport you're very lucky to find a horse of a lifetime and I found mine relatively early. ... ZARA PHILLIPS I don't have a stylist, and I do most of my shopping online, just because it's easier. I don... ZARA PHILLIPS I think Facebook's dangerous. So many people I know get into trouble with Facebook... I'd ra... ZARA PHILLIPS I'm not a princess anyway so I find that quite weird to be labelled as one. ZARA PHILLIPS Smoking is hateful to the nose, harmful to the brain, and dangerous to the lungs. KING JAMES I My dear mamma is quite right when she says that we must lay down principles and not depart from them... MARIE ANTOINETTE I never make a trip to the United States without visiting a supermarket. To me they are more fascina... WALLIS SIMPSON PS: It's all gossip about the prince. I'm not in the habit of taking my girlfriends' bea... WALLIS SIMPSON I am so anxious for you not to abdicate and I think the fact that you do is going to put me in the w... WALLIS SIMPSON I hate this place. I shall hate it to my grave. WALLIS SIMPSON I look a hundred and weigh 110 - you won't love me when you see the wreck England has made me. WALLIS SIMPSON A woman's life can really be a succession of lives, each revolving around some emotionally compe... WALLIS SIMPSON Never explain, never complain. WALLIS SIMPSON You have no idea how hard it is to live out a great romance. WALLIS SIMPSON I have always had the courage for the new things that life sometimes offers. WALLIS SIMPSON For a gallant spirit there can never be defeat. WALLIS SIMPSON Forgive me for not writing but this man is exhausting. WALLIS SIMPSON You can never be too rich or too thin. WALLIS SIMPSON A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adversity. KING SOLOMON It seems to me that man is made to act rather than to know: the principles of things escape our most... FREDERICK THE GREAT Addiction is a hugely complex and destructive disease, and its impact can be simply devastating. All... KATE MIDDLETON There is nothing new except what has been forgotten. MARIE ANTOINETTE I have seen all, I have heard all, I have forgotten all. MARIE ANTOINETTE I think change needs to be egoless. It's not about my leaving my fingerprints or a legacy. It... QUEEN RANIA OF JORDAN We are not interested in the possibilities of defeat. They do not exist. QUEEN VICTORIA I can make a lord, but only God can make a gentleman. KING JAMES I I speak Spanish to God, Italian to women, French to men, and German to my horse. CHARLES V I feel very, very lucky that George has got a little sister. KATE MIDDLETON It would be doing me great injustice to think that I have any feeling of indifference to my country;... MARIE ANTOINETTE I found Rome a city of bricks and left it a city of marble. AUGUSTUS A crown is merely a hat that lets the rain in. FREDERICK THE GREAT Nothing is more useless in developing a nation's economy than a gun, and nothing blocks the road... HUSSEIN OF JORDAN It is necessary to try to pass one's self always; this occupation ought to last as long as life. QUEEN CHRISTINA There's nothing like a jolly good disaster to get people to start doing something. PRINCE CHARLES We shouldn't judge people through the prism of our own stereotypes. QUEEN RANIA OF JORDAN I don't even know how to use a parking meter, let alone a phone box. PRINCESS DIANA What must it be like for a little boy to read that daddy never loved mummy? PRINCESS DIANA
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BARRIE Trivial facts are often the best hints to what is going on. J.M. ROBERTS What I’ve come to realize I that I don’t like action for action’s sake. Mindless explosions, s... J.M. RICHARDS A girl would be lucky to have you, but not like this, Carmine. Not the way you treat people now. You... J.M. DARHOWER His head exploded. I’d never seen someone’s head explode. I never thought I would. Maybe in the ... J.M. SULLIVAN Stacey muttered, "But I hate this school, and this city, and the sooner I leave, the better. I want ... J.M. REEP To live will be an awfully big adventure. J.M. BARRIE Shoot the Wendybird! J.M. BARRIE Mrs. Darling loved to have everything just so, and Mr. Darling had a passion for being exactly like ... J.M. BARRIE Peter was not with them for the moment, and they felt rather lonely up there by themselves. He could... J.M. BARRIE Feeling that Peter was on his way back, the Neverland had again woke into life. We ought to use the ... J.M. BARRIE Our heroine knew that the mother would always leave the window open for her children to fly back by;... J.M. BARRIE Of all the delectable islands the Neverland is the snuggest and most compact, not large and sprawly,... J.M. BARRIE I am the best there ever was! J.M. BARRIE He was a poet; and they are never exactly grown-up. J.M. BARRIE One could mention many lovable traits in Smee. For instance, after killing, it was his spectacles he... J.M. BARRIE Wendy, Wendy, when you are sleeping in your silly bed you might be flying about with me saying funny... J.M. BARRIE But where do you live mostly now?" With the lost boys." Who are they?" They are the c... J.M. BARRIE Tink was not all bad: or, rather, she was all bad just now, but, on the other hand, sometimes she wa... J.M. BARRIE Why can't you fly now, mother?" "Because I am grown up, dearest. When people grow up they forge... J.M. BARRIE She asked where he lived. Second to the right,' said Peter, 'and then straight on till m... J.M. BARRIE Build a house?" exclaimed John. "For the Wendy," said Curly. "For Wendy?" John... J.M. BARRIE Two is the beginning of the end. J.M. BARRIE Forever is a very long time Peter J.M. BARRIE After you have been unfair to him he will love you again, but he will never afterwards be quite the ... J.M. BARRIE Wendy," Peter Pan continued in a voice that no woman has ever yet been able to resist, "Wendy, one g... J.M. BARRIE When the first baby laughed for the first time, its laugh broke into a thousand pieces, and they all... J.M. BARRIE It was not really Saturday night, at least it may have been, for they had long lost count of the day... J.M. BARRIE Stars are beautiful, but they may not take an active part in anything, they must just look on for ev... J.M. BARRIE Can anything harm us, mother, after the night-lights are lit?" Nothing, precious," she said; "t... J.M. BARRIE I taught you to fight and to fly. What more could there be? J.M. BARRIE If you cannot teach me to fly, teach me to sing. J.M. BARRIE Stars are beautiful, but they may not take part in anything, they must just look on forever. J.M. BARRIE Do you believe in fairies?...If you believe, clap your hands! J.M. BARRIE Stars are beautiful, but they must not take an active part in anything, they must just look on forev... J.M. BARRIE I stretched out my arms and laid my palms on the earth, and, yes, the rocking persisted, the rocking... J.M. COETZEE Leah looked at her parents, lost in their own fantasies, and decided that the three of them were a p... J.M. REEP We walked to dinner, ate together, and talked nearly the whole time. I was amazed that I had as much... J.M. RICHARDS Sir, you are both ungallant and deficient! How am I deficient? You're just a boy. J.M. BARRIE I'm youth, I'm joy, I'm a little bird that has broken out of the egg. J.M. BARRIE David tells me that fairies never say 'We feel happy': what they say is, 'We feel dancey'. J.M. BARRIE I don’t know if you have ever seem a map of a person’s mind. Doctors sometimes draw maps of othe... J.M. BARRIE Become major, Paul. Live like a hero. That's what the classics teach us. Be a main character. Otherw... J.M. COETZEE If you have it [love], you don't need to have anything else, and if you don't have it, it doesn't ma... J.M. BARRIE Yes, you see, there’s no such thing as coincidence. There are no accidents in life. Everything tha... J.M. DARHOWER Peter,' she asked, trying to speak firmly, 'what are your exact feelings for me?' Those of a de... J.M. BARRIE (I)f we are going to be kind, let it be out of simple generosity, not because we fear guilt or retri... J.M. COETZEE All children, except one, grow up. They soon know that they will grow up, and the way Wendy knew was... J.M. BARRIE His own opinion, which he does not air, is that the origin of speech lie in song, and the origins of... J.M. COETZEE Go for it, while you can. I know you have it in you. And I can't promise you'll get everything you w... J.M. DARHOWER I'm not young enough to know everything. J.M. BARRIE You can play it safe, and I wouldn't blame you for it. You can continue as you've been doing, and yo... J.M. DARHOWER I did it again. Lying guilty in a hotel room for a woman I will fail for. J.M. AUGUST