leo the lion

i forgot how much i enjoyed reading leo buscaglia until last night. i'd loaned the book to dan, who wasn't in the mood to read it at the time, and just skimmed through it again last night while he was reading. it's always interesting to read because no matter where you are on this journey of life, it applies. the name of the book, since i seem to have left that out, is Love. buscaglia actually taught a class on love, and traveled around much in the manner of many other mental prophets trying to let the world know about his particular insight.

i was thinking about him yesterday, after reading nathan's blog--he was wondering where all the mystics have gone. i think there's a wealth of them out here now--just depends on your version of mystic.

but this book is something that moves and fits. one of the main ideas is that love is a learned phenomenon, that you learn it from your family, that if you didn't learn a good version, it doesn't mean that you cannot keep learning, or find a new way to view the life you have.

the last poem here isn't a leo buscaglia quote; i was trying to find the one about the plum and the banana, but to no success. i found this while searching for more information about christine quintasket, the first published native american woman. (don't ask, i got distracted on a quotes page...) of course, this isn't a quote from her, either. but it's interesting to me because it goes in the direction of leo buscaglia's works and ideas, but it's not his.

i think mysticism is shared out--everyone has a piece of it inside, waiting to be revealed. leo buscaglia is just as much a prophet or mystic as this unnamed person quoted below, just as much of a mystic as anyone i know. just my two cents on that subject. (;

***

"I think over again my small adventures
My fears, those small ones that seemed so big
For all the vital things I had to get and reach
And yet there is only one great thing
The only thing
To live to see the great day that dawns
And the light that fills the world."

- Unknown Inuit