sometimes paradise smells like piss

AND SO THEY FASHIONED THIS SPIRITUAL SYNCRETICISM FROM THE CHITLINS OF COLONIAL GLUTTONY. EVERY INCANTATION A CRY OF REMEMBRANCE, EVERY SPIRIT INVOKED A SUCCESSFUL REPATRIATION. THE VESTIGES OF CONTINENTAL TRAVESTY GLISTENING IN THE PASTEL FACADES OF PELOURINHO, THE COBBLESTONE HILLS, ROADS OF ROCK AND RHYTHM, A PARADISE NESTLED WITHIN.

COCONUT WATER AT 10:45 am , nature heals itself if you let it.

and this women sells the sweetest homemade toasted coconut sweet. i can hear her coming from around the bend. OLHA, COCADA, COCADA, 1 REAL. thank you sister. no, thank you brother. Go with God, until the next time.

left turn. smiley woman selling phone cards, two inch plastic motorcyles for boys and hair grooming kits for girls. reggae tunes from my man selling plants and herbs that i will never come to know. break. mulch that sugar cane for me and make a nice cold refreshing treat. these exotic fruits for so cheap. free tasting. i'll take 3 of those and 4 of those. more reggae, differents song. yes, peoples still repair shoes and sharpen scissors.

right turn. main street. no arms, no legs, nestled against the crumbling yet newly whitewashed facade of a church. Um, God bless i guess. big asses and street kids juggling for motorists praying for green. mmmmm. popcorn, salty or sweet. salty please, yes my friend you can have the rest. so sit with me and we will eat together. that was satisfying. i am a great guy, pat, pat on the back back. beauty queen, coke addict, looking for escapes to greener pasteurs. oh brasil, how did we get back to what you really are.

descend 150 meters. arrival. take a pull, cheesy commercials, Teen Wolf in Portuguese, samba from the alleyway, how the breeze carries the sea to your bedside at just the right moments. who could that be. 50 kids beating drums of all sizes, shapes and colors. just olodum.

hope to take another walk tomorrow. backflips into small waves nearly nude.

TRAPPIST REFLECTIONS

the following is a meditation from a dear friend and trappist monk, Fr. Jerome Machar, O.C.S.O. Abbey of the Genesee. peace to all from Salvador de Bahia, a marvelous city. Lots of Love here.

Judges 9:6-15

Mt 20:1-16

As I read today’s first reading, my mind drifted the scene in the book of Exodus where Moses was confronted by his countrymen. “Who made you our ruler and judge?” (Ex. 2:14) I think this question is of paramount importance in an age that celebrates the virtues of democracy. At the heart of the study of political science is the question of the source of power to govern. Does authority come from God or the electorate? Do voters confer power on the person for whom they cast the ballot or does God? Contrary to some of the rumblings that have come out of the Supreme Court, authority truly does come from God. This means that we should use the election process as a way of discerning the individuals God has anointed for the purpose of governing our land. It is not my intention to enter into a political debate. Rather, I invite each of you to explore the possibility of living a faith-filled life in a secularized democracy. Do we settle for groveling in the dirt under the branches of some buckthorn (CF. Jdgs. 9:15)? Or do we call forth leaders that will challenge us to live in the greatness and dignity that is ours as the Children of God?
Mother Teresa once said, “[As the Children of God we are] to count on our heavenly Father for everything in a spontaneous movement of abandonment, remaining convinced of our radical nothingness, but nevertheless sure of his paternal goodness, if necessary with boldness.”

It is God’s love that makes us who we are and keeps us in existence.

At the dawning of each day, it is the God of love that invites us to be coworkers with him in the vineyard of his kingdom. It is of utmost importance that we never forget that it is God who first approaches us. This is stated quite clearly in the words St. John wrote in his first letter. “In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he first loved us” (1 Jn. 4:10). It is the God of Love who planted the vineyard, as we read in the book of Isaiah the prophet. “Let me sing for my beloved my love song concerning his vineyard. My beloved had a vineyard on a very fertile hill. He dug it and cleared it of stones, and planted it with choice vines” (Is. 5:1-2). Through the mystery of the Incarnation, the image of the vineyard becomes even more intimate and inclusive. We have Jesus words for it. “I am the vine and you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing” (Jn. 15: 5). It is Love that made us. It is Love that sustains us. It is Love that makes us fruitful.
In the Prologue to his Rule, St. Benedict wrote this: “Seeking his workman in a multitude of people, the Lord calls out to him and lifts his voice again: Is there anyone here who yearns for life and desires to see good days? (Ps 33[34]: 13) If you hear this and your answer is “I do,” God then directs these words to you: If you desire true and eternal life, keep your tongue free from vicious talk and your lips from all deceit; turn away from evil and do good; let peace be your quest and aim (Ps 33[34]: 14–15)” (RB Prol. 14-17). Those who accept employment in the vineyard of the Lord willingly accept the challenges of living in the greatness and dignity of the children of God. Those who accept employment in the vineyard of the Lord refuse to grovel in the dirt under the shade of any buckthorn bush. Those who accept employment in the vineyard of the Lord look up to the heights as did Abraham our Father in the Faith. “Look up to the heavens and count the stars, if you can” (Gen. 15: 5). We are to look beyond the horizon because our homeland is in heaven and not of this world.
God is generous in calling people to enter his vineyard. He is extravagant in his payment to all who have labored, whether they have worked a lifetime for him and or only come to know him with their last gasp. Consider the words of the seer of Patmos. “To everyone who conquers [enters the vineyard] I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give a white stone, and on the white stone is written a new name that no one knows except the one who receives it” (Rev. 2: 17). The Lord calls his disciples to serve God and neighbor with generosity and joy. Do we perform our work and duties with cheerfulness for the Lord's sake? And do we give generously to others, especially to those in need? May we always serve the Lord and our neighbors with cheerful and generous hearts. When the Master of the vineyard comes at the end of time may we be found worthy of receiving the secret manna of eternal life.

Thongs, Big Christ, Samba, Rich (gap) Poor, Capoeira, Smiles

OFF to RIO.

be your own EXODUS. You've got to move. Heaven is not a particular place on Earth. Paradise is not necessarily palm tree bikini beach bumming, for every coconut there is a catastrophic hurricane/tsunami awaiting to demolish your grass-is-greener outlook. Everything you 'have' you do not own. Including your body, you have been given things that will surely be taken away from you. hell is rebellion against the inevitablity of continous material flux, attachment to matter that doesn't matter. be still, not a professional somebody. paradise is the ever-flowing, inexhaustable stream of Love that is your decision to give of yourself in new and glorious ways here and now, now and forever.

If your out there trying to maximize your own pleasure, please be prepared to give thanks for the pain. no man is above Jah balance.

at some point all the seeking must yield to acceptance and it is in the acceptance of one's own smallness that the grandiosity of inherent divinity can be made manifest. God is in control.

Love gives not to get but to revel in the freedom of Self-sufficiency.

Peace in your homes, lives, minds and hearts.

LEST YE BECOME CHILDREN THOU SHALT NOT KNOW THE KINGDOM OF GOD

"If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate"
Nikka - age 6

"Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen." Bobby - age 7

"Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well." Tommy - age 6


"When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you."
Karen - age 7

"You really shouldn't say 'I love you' unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget." Jessica - age 8

"When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You just know that your name is safe in their mouth." Billy - age 4