Proverbs & Truth(s)

Actions speak louder than words.
Better late than never.
Every why has a wherefore.
Failure teaches success.
Knowledge is power.
These are some of the many proverbs that constitute popular wisdom throughout the world. At different stages of our lives these provers make more or less sense ... or no sense at all. Truth be said, some sayings say it all. Not sure if there is a saying that summarises the sentence that I recurrently hear in my mind as well as from other people: It all (good or bad things) comes at the same time, in 'packages', and when we least expect. Days, weeks, months and even years can go by in one's life without much happening. However, when it happens ... Well it all happens at the same time. Risks are that one may panic, feel overwhelmed, hesitate, make wrong choices, or just go ecstatic. But that is how life is, right? After all,
All things are difficult before they are easy.

A Theory of [Humanitarian] Obligation

This article presents a theory of obligation in the context of humanitarianism. Its foundational assumption is that there exists a moral imperative to assist the structurally dispossessed and functionally abused... Humanitarianism is defined as "crossing a boundary;" risk usually is encountered by the service provider as scarce resources are used to help the vulnerable. Obligation is defined, in part, as "what one should do." A theory emerges as the "morally possible" and the "materially possible" intersect. Notions of human dignity are shown not to be appropriate in orienting the real-world work of humanitarians; notions of fairness are more appropriate as humanitarian work is organized and implemented.

The article A Theory of Obligation, by By Regina A. Nockerts and Peter W. Van Arsdale, was published by the Journal of Humanitarian Assistance and can be found here. Interesting reading for field practitioners.

Sons of Cambodia

They are the salt of the Earth, it is said about children. These sons of Cambodian spend their day on the other side of the fence smiling and singing in return for a couple of bucks from tourists. Fair enough.

Photo by BeyondTeresaE at the Genocide Memorial in Phnom Pehn, Cambodia.

The Old Man

At the Silver Pagoda, in Phnom Pehn - Cambodia: the statue of an old man who seemingly lived a long and uneasy life ...

Photo by BeyondTeresaE, in Phnom Pehn - Cambodia. A place to not miss in your life time!

Standing Buddha

Oh, Buddha ... I wish I had your wisdom right now ...

Photo by BeyondTeresaE, in Bangkok - Thailand

La Luna On Fire

Lacking inspiration for writing, and since a picture is worth a million words is one of my mottoes, I'll share with you one my favourite photos: 'La Luna On Fire'. Author: moi même, who else? :) Graffiti found in a garage door in the (in)famous Koh Phangan, in Thai(I_love_ya)Land!

MayDay

It's the 1st of May :))))))))))))))))))))

Sailing Ashore

Just a little boat again. The boat that insists in going in one direction while the tide and the wind keep pushing it in another direction. The little boat departed on a long trip, during the trip the captain picked its favourite map, highlighted the way he wishes to follow and is now doing all that he can to keep in the right track. But then the nasty, unexpected wind comes and blows the little boat away. Leaving the captain looking at different maps again, hoping that the little boat will still be able to keep the initial plan. But knowing that probably that wind will blow stronger than the captain's wishes. Wondering whether the best is actually to let the wind blow the little boat in another direction ... Fighting the irresistible wish to keep the aimed track, hoping that it will still be possible to do so with small collateral damage. There's a crazy wind blowing things away out there.

Knocking on Heaven's Door

By Beyond Teresa
Ouro sobre azul. Gold on blue.
Saved by the bell at the Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep Rajvoravihara, in Chiang Mai - Thailand

Team Spirit ... What Brings You Together?

(Heard in conversation ... )

X.: I am so glad about what happened today. How everyone sticked to each other, the support unexpectedly coming from those you'd never say ... It was actually a bit weird, but great.
Y.: Hhhmmm. The question is ... these people stick together because they are really close to each other, or because they all have just one thing in common that keeps them together?
X.: What do you mean? I guess it's just a lucky coincidence that a bunch of people who get along really well were brought together. Not that it was always like this, but ...
Y.: Aha! So it is not necessarily so that this group of people would stick together out of simply liking each other. What if the only or main reason for this proximity is the fact that they all have a common enemy? And to fight that one enemy, to fight the same problems that all of them are faced with, that is what creates the solidarity and closeness. Know what I mean? That if no enemy, no common issues existed maybe, just maybe there would be no strong bond between the group.
X.: Hhhhmmm, it's hard to accept such crude perspective of the situation. I mean, I think people would be close even without the common problem. But now that you mention that ...

This reminded me of the philosophy teacher who would say what will really make your brain boil when thinking about it is the possibility that ... The possibility that this crude perspective may actually not be so crude, illogical, or far from reality as X. would hope for. Interesting thought, very interesting.

Photo ! Photo !

Photo ! Photo ! Is what I say when I see something that I like and want to make someone stop and wait for me to click the magic button of my camera. My interest in photography is growing too fast. I had decided not to put photos in the blog, but apparently I have changed my mind. Probably bad influence of a friend's blog that I love and always looks great with the amazing photos that she takes. FlickR has been updated (see right panel) and I will now and then put some pics directly on the blog. Pictures from countries and places where I lived, studied, or just visited. Some recent some ... not so recent :) While going through my vast collection of photos (way tooooo many for any sane person to have not my case, so no problem there) I just noticed the stupidity of having dated many of the photos. Yes, a while ago I thought that for the sake of knowing when I took the photos I should set the camera to the photos automatically. And, of course, now I see that it was not at all the brightest idea I ever had. Pank, pank, pank. That's the noise of my head bumping on the wall after realising how many good photos are ruined because the date is so in the wrong place. Mistake done, registered and hopefully never to be repeated again. Hope you will enjoy my photos. I know I do, modesty apart ;)

Ways Apart that Come Close

A divorce separates a nuclear family. The separation of this family entails a geographical separation. This, in turn, creates a huge emotional and physical distance between relatives. More than the nuclear family, the rest of the family is also affected. All go ways apart. The gap grows bigger as years and decades pass by. No news from those loved ones. Time makes the family love shrink. The afternoons once spent thinking about how M. and R. are doing, how much they grew up, what they will be when they 'grow up' are replaced with an absence of thoughts about them. The long afternoons once spent with M. and R. teaching them how to ride their bikes are replaced with seldom moments looking at the many scars left in these legs result of wanting to be their teacher and support. Years of asking about them are replaced with silence. The thoughts are hidden in the back of the mind and the heart. Then, all of the sudden ...
A birth brings a family closer. The birth happens at the same time as another birth. Those who are around celebrate. The ones missing ... well, they are missing. Time goes by and in the back of the mind one asks whether these births will not bring all the family together once again, eventually. Time goes by...
Then one day M. decides to take a step. It was in M.'s hands to do so as none of the others could find M. M. sort of disappeared and was unable to contact the family. Out of shyness, anger with the family, lack of interests, or even because M. was forbidden to do so, only M. knows. But M. knew where to find the others. They are where they've always been. M. now, after decades of silence, wants to see who was born. After all they are family. Contacts that had drastically ended rekindle. Again the mind is full of questions about how M. and R. grew like and what they came to be, whether it will be possible to recognise them, whether they still remember those summer afternoons ridding our bikes. After all, over a decade passed. Actually, well over a decade passed without having news, hearing their voices or seeing their photos.
I hope M.'s courageous step is/will not (be) in vain.
- Stories of the once know as La Famelga :)

Every Human Has Rights - 60th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

2008 is the Universal Declaration of Human Rights 60th anniversary.

It's a time for a global conversation about human rights. To consider the values that unite us as one human family, and one global village. But it can be more. For the last 60 years it‘s been governments that have been asked to sign the Universal Declaration. We hope that 2008 can be the year that individuals, not just governments, sign the declaration. We're hoping for one billion signatures from across the world. We want yours to be one of them. We urge you to embrace the values and goals of the declaration. To protect the rights of your fellow global villagers. And encourage others to do the same in your communities, workplaces and schools. Please sign the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Make your personal pledge to live your life by its principles. Every human has rights.

The initiative Every Human Has Rights departs from The Elders - a group that includes names such as Mary Robinson, Nelson Mandela, or Aung San Suu Kyi. You can read more about The Elders here. You can also visit the Every Human Has Rights blog here.
Again, it is a worthy of support initiative and takes you as much as visiting the website Every Human Has Rights and in the main page (at the right bottom side of the page) select your country and write down your name. This is one of those occasions when you should be happy to be 'just another number'!

Stay Safe - ICRC Manual

Stay Safe: The International Federation’s Guide to a Safer Mission - Understanding the different types of security situation you may face in the field and how to behave in order to minimize risks to your safety and that of your fellow colleagues is vital to staying safe in the field. Aimed at Red Cross and Red Crescent personnel, Stay safe: The International Federation’s guide for security managers, together with the accompanying publication, Stay safe: The International Federation’s guide to a safer mission, provide the necessary tools to implement and maintain a well-functioning security framework, adapted to the specific context, in each of the International Federation’s operational areas around the world.

Parabens a C.!

PARABENS C---A!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! A OutraVoz que continua a falar bem alto a distancia :))))))) Um Feliz Aniversario cheio de coisas boas, muito boas, e melhores :D

Stand By Me

If the sky that we look upon
Should tumble and fall
And the mountains should crumble to the sea
I won't cry, I won't cry, no I won't shed a tear
Just as long as you stand, stand by me
Whenever you're in trouble won't you stand by me, oh now now stand by me
Oh stand by me, stand by me, stand by me...
- in Stand By Me, Ben E. King

Photo: Waterfall, Chiang Mai - Thailand. The song Stand By Me occurred to me immediately as I saw the four kids seating next to each ... just like in the movie with the same name. Photo for posterity :)

Thailand's Best Paintings

These paintings immortalise some of the best known names of the world's music in the walls of one of the coolest bars in Koh Phangan 'The Beach', Thailand: Hendrix 'The Guitar', Morrison 'The Door(s)', and Marley 'Reggae's Father'. Well worth a visit and, of course, a photoshoot ;) Don't miss the buckets, the snorkeling and, of course, The Beach!

That is What Life is ...

D.: Is that all life is? We just go through it replacing people?
Dad: Pretty much. Some people just do it faster and more often than others.
- in Six Feet Under.