Treasure

"When ignorance is our master, there is no possibility of real peace." Dalai Lama

Well today will be my first day back at work after a week of serious illness. I am still very weak and shaky but I have to work for a living so I'll be heading out into the cold snow. I'll probably have an avalanche of stuff on my desk to do when I get there.

I got a note from my Chinese friend yesterday who was thrilled that I had remembered Chinese New Year. She had taken flowers to the grave for her Dad and other relatives and had dinner with her mother. It was nice to hear from her since she is one of my nurses from my old job and we became friends durring the course of the time I worked with her. She and the patients still remember me with love.

Friendship is such a wonderful treasure. I was thinking of treasure when I did today's picture. For many treasure is limited to wealth in gold and jewels and other tangible stuff that says "hey I've got money." I think there are bigger and better treasures that money has no part of.

The biggest treasure in life is love. It comes in so many forms the love of a parent and a child, the love of husband and wife or partners, the love of a pet, and any attachment that has beings who are alive that can interact with each other with love.

There is a treasure in the arts. I love music and listen to it all the time. My tastes are eclectic and you can find U2, Elvis, Beethoven, and the Lord of the Rings sound track at one time on my stereo. Celtic music is a huge favorite of mine especially Clannad and Lorena McKennit.

Words and books are a passion of mine. What a treasure there is in reading. I have been to places that in real life I will never see through my reading. I have seen the red sun of Darkover in Marion Zimmer Bradley's books. I have been to Middle Earth with Tolkien. I have watched crimes being solved in Hong Kong, the Middle East, jolly old England, the underbelly of New York and Los Angeles. I have been to ancient China and the Wales of the Druids.

There is a treasure in the craftsmanship of artisans. I am an artist and I love to look at the work of other artists. I love to see the various mediums that can be used. I appreciatethe hand made wooden furniture that has been crafted with loving care. I love to look at pottery and glass work that has been hand made. I collect porcelain dolls and the beauty of that work brightens my day as I gaze upon it. I love photography and the images that a camera can capture forever. I spent last night putting up some of my nature photographs on my web site.

The biggest treasure is life itself. We have been given a brief time on this earth and we owe it to ourselves and the God who made us to use that time wisely. A heart filled with love is a treasure worth more then any jewel.

The picture is part of the Guardian series and is called Guardian of Treasure.

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