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And a poet said, Speak to us of Beauty.

And he answered:

Where shall you seek beauty, and shall you find her unless she herself be your way and your guide?

And how shall you speak of her except she be the weaver of your speech?

The aggrieved and injured say, “Beauty is kind and gentle.

Like a young mother half-shy of her own glory she walks among us.”

And the passionate say, “Nay, beauty is a thing of might and dread.

Like the tempest she shakes the earth beneath us and the sky above us.”

The tired and the weary say, “Beauty is of soft whisperings. She speaks in our spirit. Her voice yields to our silences like a faint light that quivers in fear of the shadow.”

But the restless say, “We have heard her shouting among the mountains.

And with her cries came the sound of hoofs, and the beating of wings and the roaring of lions.”

At night the watchmen of the city say, “Beauty shall rise with the dawn from the east.” And at noontide the toilers and the wayfarers say, “We have seen her leaning over the earth from the windows of the sunset.”

In winter say the snow-bound, “She shall come with the spring leaping upon the hill.”

And in the summer heat the reapers say, “We have seen her dancing with the autumn leaves, and we saw a drift of snow in her hair.”

All these things have you said of beauty.

Yet in truth you spoke not of her but of needs unsatisfied,

And beauty is not a need but an ecstasy.

It is not a mouth thirsting nor an empty hand stretched forth.

But rather a heart enflamed and a soul enchanted.

It is not the image you would see nor the song you would hear,

But rather an image you see though you close your eyes and a song you hear though you shut your ears.

It is not the sap within the furrowed bark, nor a wing attached to a claw,

But rather a garden for ever in bloom and a flock of angels for ever in flight.

People of Orphalese, beauty is life when life unveils her holy face.

But you are life and you are the veil.

Beauty is eternity gazing at itself in a mirror.

But you are eternity and you are the mirror.

What you eat affects more than physical health. Two new studies have added to thegrowing evidence linking the stomach and the brain.

In a report in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers studied how junk food can trigger addiction behaviors. The brain chemical corticotropin-releasing-factor, CRF, is linked to motivation, and plays a role in drug and alcohol withdrawal and relapse. Researchers had rats eat normal food, then binge on sugar and chocolate-flavored snacks. When the rats went off the junk, they expressed CRF, just as do rats going through withdrawal. The rodents also had more anxiety and were less interested in normal food.

Another study, published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, looked at human moods. Researchers followed 106 overweight people. Half followed a low-carb, very high-fat diet, and half ate a high-carbohydrate, low-fat diet. After a year, both groups averaged about 30 pounds weight loss. And though both groups’ moods improved after two months, only the low-fat, high-carb group kept up the good feelings. So what we eat doesn’t just go to our waists—it also goes to our brains.

If you treat people with kindness and respect, they'll be more flexible and responsive. We all want love and respect but sometimes we don't want to give love and respect, especially when we are at odds with someone and we're feeling hurt and angry.

    If you want a better relationship with anyone "Stroking" is mandatory. If you look down on people and treat them badly, they'll retaliate and appear just as annoying and hostile as you expected. If, in contrast, you treat people with kindness and respect in spite of your anger, they'll nearly always be far more flexible and responsive to your feelings and point of view.

    Some people are resistant to this technique. "I shouldn't have to be nice to him. He doesn't deserve it." is a common opinon. Others are "I'm just too angry to be nice to her", "I can't think of anything positive to say about him", and " Why should I be nice to her when she's treated me like this". But if you decide to convey genuine respect in the heat of battle, your efforts will be far more effective.

    How to use "Stroking"

    * Give the other person a genuine compliment. Comment on some positive quality or trait they have.

    * Let the other person know that you like, respect, or admire them, and value their friendship even though you're both feeling angry or disagreeing with each other right now.

    * Convey warmth and caring through your body language, showing that you're interested, open and receptive, as opposed to frowning, crossing your arms across your chest, and shaking your head in a judgemental way.

    But do you have to stroke people who really are jerks? Isn't it better to be honest and let people know what idiots they are? The answer is that you don't have to treat anyone with respect. You can respond to people any way you want to. It just depends on the kinds of relationships you want.

    The Power of Admiration

    Sometimes we all have to express negative feelings and tell people something that may upset them. Stroking is invaluable in this situation as well. We all have a deep need to feel admired and respected. If you treat people with kindness and make sure that your comments will never hurt or humiliate them, you can get away with saying just about anything. If you have to criticise someone, but you convey liking or respect at the same time, that person won't be so tempted to get defensive and dismiss your comments.

    Here's a useful exercise that will help you develop greater skill in this technique:

    Over the next week, make it a point to give out at least twenty-five compliments. Make sure that you include friends, family, shop assistants, and even strangers. I do this all the time. You will be amazed at how people, even strangers will light up when you say something next to them.

Macedon and Thessaly of eastern Greece there stood a high mountain．Its cloudy top rushed into the very heavens．On the top of the mountain， the home of the gods was bathed in brightness． At Olympus Zeus ruled as the father of gods and men． Zeus was not a crude ruler by any standards．All the gods listened to his final words，it was true．But Zeus made them all sit on a committee of twelve members，including six gods and six goddesses． The first in the Olympian crowd sat Zeus himself． He was the overlord of gods and men and the operator of the thunderbolt ．Next to him was Hera，his proud and greeneyed queen．Poseidon was ruler of the sea，And Hades，king of the lower world，had no seat in the committee．Apollo was the god of the sun，music and poetry，while his twinsister Artemis was the goddess of the moon and the chase． Athena was the goddess of wisdom and patroness of house holdarts．Hestin，the goddess of the family，represented home life and family happiness．The frightening Ares was the god of war，and the charming Aphrodite the goddess of love and beauty．The god of fire，Hephaestus，was the forger of the thunderbolts of Zeus．The wing footed messenger Hermes was the god of invention and commerce；and the goddess of grains and harvests，Demeter，looked after agriculture and stood for mother ofcivilization．

All the chief gods mentioned above took human forms of incomparable beauty and grace． Often moved by human feelings and desires，they frequently gave way to anger and jealousy．They became involved in ceaseless battles with the world of man． Among themselves at Olympus they plotted and struggled for power．In the human world they experienced competitions and difficulties．They enjoyed earthly friendships and loves．Acrowd of everlasting gods looked and acted in a perfectly human fashion that is what all gods at Olympus actually were．

If I were a boy again, I would practice perseverance more often, and never give up a thing because it was or inconvenient. If we want light, we must conquer darkness. Perseverance can sometimes equal genius in its results. “There are only two creatures,” says a proverb, “Who can surmount the pyramids — the eagle and the snail.”

If I were a boy again, I would school myself into a habit of attention; I would let nothing come between me and the subject in hand. I would remember that a good skater never tries to skate in two directions at once.

The habit of attention becomes part of our life, if we begin early enough. I often hear grown up people say, “I could not fix my attention on the sermon or book, although I wished to do so”, and the reason is, the habit was not formed in youth.

If I were to live my life over again, I would pay more attention to the cultivation of the memory. I would strengthen that faculty by every possible means, and on every possible occasion. It takes a little hard work at first to remember things accurately; but memory soon helps itself, and gives very little trouble. It only needs early cultivation to become a power.

If I were a boy again, I would cultivate courage. “Nothing is so mild and gentle as courage, nothing so cruel and pitiless as cowardice,” says a wise author.

We too often borrow trouble, and anticipate that may never appear.” The fear of ill exceeds the ill we fear.” Dangers will arise in any career, but presence of mind will often conquer the worst of them. Be prepared for any fate, and there is no harm to be feared.

If I were a boy again, I would look on the cheerful side. Life is very much like a mirror: if you smile upon it, I smiles back upon you; but if you frown and look doubtful on it, you will get a similar look in return.

Inner sunshine warms not only the heart of the owner, but of all that come in contact with it. “Who shuts love out, in turn shall be shut out from love.”

Importance of learning very early in life to gain that point where a young boy can stand erect, and decline.

If I were a boy again, I would school myself to say no more often. I might write pages on the doing an unworthy act because it is unworthy.

If I were a boy again, I would demand of myself more courtesy towards my companions and friends, and indeed towards strangers as well. The smallest courtesies along the rough roads of life are like the little birds that sing to us all winter long, and make that season of ice and snow more endurable.

Finally, instead of trying hard to be happy, as if that were the sole purpose of life, I would, if I were a boy again, I would still try harder to make others happy.