Here You Are

Here You Are... Wondering... About The Earth Expanding? Really?

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 04:00:00 +0000

Neal Adams - thinks the earth is expanding!

The idea and the animation is compelling enough to have collected over a million views and followers on YouTube! Scientists are appalled, though - and one of them at least went through the extensive and entertaining trouble to debunk this outdated theory to keep it real for our kids.

It is great that "the common man" - people who may not have had the circumstances or desire in their youth to spend decades studying geology or astrophysics (most of us) - are fascinated enough by the earth, space, nature, religions, and philosophies to spend hours researching the Internet for information and putting together videos and blogs to share their discoveries and opinions. It's a good start, and a great alternative to reality TV shows! All we need is a bit of civility in the conversation now to move this along to the point where all of us get a bit more educated about everything.

It is equally as wonderful that someone more knowledgeable will take the time to respond to faulty thinking, albeit with quite a bit of mocking - but, I love the British accent - it can't be beat! "The common man, woman and child" - generally have no idea as to the true rigors of science. The endless measuring, observing, building theory after theory only to have it destroyed by someone smarter. The ridicule, disdain and teasing one has to endure from other scientists - even if proven right a hundred years later and never getting to reap the glory - can be quite excruciating. It's a tough business to be in - and endlessly fascinating and humbling. Great scientists can be some of the humblest people, and I am lucky to know a few of them. "Religious believers", on the other hand - be it believers in actual religions, or scientific theories - are always going to be a problem for the advancement of human understanding.

A scientist starts wondering about things, comes up with an idea or theory - and then does painstaking research to prove or disprove it to himself and others. It reminds me of the time I was scolded by my geography teacher in 6th grade (1969) for "blabbering nonsense" when I proclaimed that "Africa fits into America perfectly and must have been stuck together at some point in the past". There are things plain to see, that nonetheless completely elude some of the experts. Or take poor Dr. Ignaz Semmelweiss, who tried to get doctors to wash their hands before delivering babies and was ignored for another 100 years at great cost to women and children. The ignorance and arrogance of the experts often enough equals the ignorance and arrogance of the lay people looking into things. This alone keeps things moving forward and will keep "YouTubers" going, even if debunked with ridicule. If they want to be "researchers and scientists" they are going to have to suffer like them.

In sixth grade, I took the easy way out. "I knew I was right" - but didn't move on to study geology to prove this to myself and others. Now I just watch people fight it out on line or in books - also very efficient for me, if still far less disciplined than a true scientist or researcher.

Don't despair Neal Adams - you, Aristotle, and 19th century thinkers - at least can be said to be thinking alike, so you're in good company. Keep wondering - and try to catch up. My gratitude goes to both Neal Adams for sticking his neck out, AND "Potholer", the debunker, as I found out more about the earth sciences, as well as the history of earth science this way. It's all about the conversation! One thing one needs to develop when "getting into research" and science is a great sense of humor in order to handle the frequent humiliations.

But, hey, "Potholer" - "this flies into the face of everything we know" - is not a logical argument! Anything new would do exactly that. Where are we now with the speed of light - has that been settled yet? I have "known" for years that there couldn't possibly be a limit to the speed of light other than "from our perspective" and in our bubble of experience, just as "the flat earth" once was. A flat earth that you could fall off of, made no sense - neither does a vast universe were you can't go everywhere and meet everybody. Just waiting for the scientific evidence. Hippie science... lazy science - and on the cutting edge :-)

Humility and wisdom come from being painfully wrong thousands of times - so there is no problem with being painfully wrong, either! All of you lay people and hippies out there - keep going! And all of you scientists out there - thank you for your time when obvious mistakes in thinking have been made, need correcting, and you respond with great data that has passed rigorous scientific thought - it's important and very much appreciated.

It's a win/win for everybody :-) Certainly for me today -

Here You Are... Wondering... About The Moon Going Crazy, Feb 6, 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 09:07:00 +0000

Tonight I was "wondering" about the moon. So I got my binoculars and stepped out into the crystal clear, bright night.

And the moon looked a little strange to me. I couldn't tell why, though. So onto the Internet I went to visit all those nice people who post videos on YouTube and enlighten us on Wikipedia. Thanks, everyone!!!!

Maybe I only "discovered" something that is normal, and everyone is going to have a good chuckle. At least I found out, though, that I wasn't imagining things.

First we need to clarify "the man in the moon". Or the "rabbit", or "the pretty lady"... but especially, what I will call "the little dog". See the small crater behind the "man in the moon carrying sticks" - that's "his little dog" following him.

Well - who let the dog out?

In "official" pictures of the moon, "the little dog crater"- which I am sure has a proper Greek or Latin name, hangs around at the position of about 2 o'clock.

Well - not tonight!!! Or last night!!! The moon is dancing, and fast!!!

Last night that "little dog" crater hung out at the position way down by 5 o'clock! And tonight it is way up at about 3 minutes past midnight. That's a lot of rolling around in 24 hours!

Here is yesterday's moon, filmed by Chucky - Thanks, Chucky!!! A full view of the moon is at the (1:51) spot in the video, and at the end.

Feb 5, 2012 Video: http://youtu.be/RiaaTvcnxFs

This is the moon a day later - tonight (2/06/2012) - and tonight's video posted by Mike - Thanks Mike!!! Nice to know I haven't lost my mind, imaging the moon taking a half spin since yesterday.

Feb 6, 2012 Video: http://youtu.be/ybHQ4G2LTVM

Something to consider - the moon has what's called Libration. Yet - the video below is a one month time lapse - not an overnight, full moon event!

This may not be normal - but it may be the "new normal" as this happened last November 19-23/2011 , as well as in December 2011 - and not just during the full moon. It supposedly "prompted a response" - certainly an article on the phenomenon, from Cornell University.

Here is the video of the November 2011 rotations, and the Cornell document (in the video, also):

I love the Cornell response which basically says: "This, and this, and this, does not explain the moon's behavior, and the only thing that could possibly explain it is a huge object in our solar system, but that would be too crazy an idea." Bet they know the real name of the "little dog" crater, though!

Well - we do, too, now - "Mare Crisium", or "Sea of Crisis"!

The poster "Medusa Media" seems to have a plausible explanation:

"Every millenium the sun has to adjust to accomodate mass burn off.

The sun shrinks in size

It's gravitational pull on the moon relaxes

Earths gravity during this phase exerts a little more pull

The moon wobbles. Given a year or so everything goes back to normal.

Strange effects such as new planets spotted or objects in front of the sun are optical illusions caused by this same gravitational effect on light within the solar system. No end of the world or alien invasion just plain old optics."

That seems simple enough. The sun has been extremely active lately. "Every millennium"? At least that would qualify as an unusual event. Who knew the sun could shrink and let the earth make the moon go crazy - sideways? Somebody write a letter to Cornell! (But spell millennium with two n-s and accommodate with two m-s).

As I am writing this - it is now 2am here in Utah - "Mare Crisium" is at almost the 3 o'clock position. And now, an hour later, it is in at the 4 o'clock position. Dancing fast! This must at least be unusual enough, that it could have been explained on the news so more people and kids could watch and understand it. If it were indeed understood and explainable.

Moon hasn't rolled any further in the last 20 minutes - so I am going to bed.

Good Night, YouTube! Good Night, Wikipedia! Good Night, MacBookPro!
Good Night, MOON!!!

Here You Are... And You Smile, And You Are Happy

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 18:00:00 +0000

Well - posting on this blog by taking every line from "Here You Are" and following where it would lead on the Internet has taken me all over the place - some stories - I still have to figure out how to write about. And I learned so much - even just discovering who has written old songs we all know so well.

UFOs, Morgellons, embryonic stem cell use in vaccine production and food flavor enhancement research so we can be made to eat even more, cancer cures, smarter energy solutions, solar flares, the compromised earth magnetic field, pollution - it is endless. So many controversial issues, so much tragedy as well as fear mongering, so much surprise, so many hoaxes, and in the good news departments the amazing inventions we already have and most people don't know about, are mind-boggling.

How to keep track, how to figure out what is true and what is spin? TMI - too much information, maybe - then again - we all need to wake up to how all our decisions affect everything around us. We are still young when it comes to the Internet age. And we all need to learn how to evaluate information. Deception and exploitation for power and profit as well as delusions of righteousness - as old as the earth - seem nonetheless unscientific and short sighted and something we should grow out of in a big hurry if we want to progress as a species.

One needs to keep wondering, and wondering and wondering - searching and searching and searching for the truth of things - and then let it go... to find solace, serenity, peace, and joy in the here and now where what Buddhists call "right action" and true creativity can take place.

Keep wondering... keep searching... keep letting go (that's the secret, and why we need to remember... who we are)... and then keep smiling, no matter - what we know, no matter what we don't know, no matter what is going on. Once you remember who you are, you are free. Until then - practice. Some people suffer and cry in silence while others complain. Some people suffer, and keep smiling. The one who is free cries and smiles, but is finished with suffering.

I didn't know that Charlie Chaplin had written this song :-)

Here You Are... Wondering... Until Suddenly... You Remember... Amnesia and Reincarnation

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 19:00:00 +0000

We forget where we came from - where we were before conception - and where we will return to after death. This forgetting - or even remembering, if it happens during our lifetime - has a reason and a purpose that eludes us, much like some forms of Amnesia. Amnesia both protects us from, and also urges us on, due to our fundamental longing for the truth. There is a gift in forgetting, and a gift in remembering.

"Believe me, you will find more lessons in the woods than in books. Trees and stones will teach you what you cannot learn from masters."

Bernard of Clairvaux

Trees and stones - and our children.

Here You Are... Wondering... Where do I go?... Libera "Going Home"

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 17:00:00 +0000

We go home, of course. Our life is just a short flash of time in eternity. We return to where we come from - there is no other possibility. It is totally familiar and known to us.

Here You Are...Wondering...Where Do I Come From...Branes Before The Big Bang

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 16:00:00 +0000

I love Branes - and these great BBC videos of them.

As a child, whenever I had a high fever and was lying in bed almost unconsciously - just when I knew in my feverish head "one more step and I'm dead" - or, nowadays, when I meditate - I "experience" these branes, or maybe, what these physicists call, the 11th dimension. The floating into "each other" and around each other feels very, very strange and pleasurable in a hard to explain brain and upper spine related way - both vacuously nonresistant and "thick" at the same time.

I have wondered about them for many decades and tried to describe the experience to people over the years to see if anyone could relate. Now, all I have to do is show them these videos and encourage them to somehow identify with and "become" the branes they are watching.

"Who lives in the 11th dimension?"

We do! - whether we know it or not.

M Theory works for me in terms of finally explaining a familiar meditation experience - and the physicists make me chuckle when they look so serious and surprised - with just as much trouble trying to explain what they have discovered.

Before the Big Bang - Branes!

And before Branes?

It's a Koan with a definite answer beyond words or formulae.

It's where we came from. How? You'd have to go to the "God Dimension" to find out. That dimension is beyond thought, feeling, or experience - pure, crystal clear consciousness - and "there" it becomes obvious who we are, where we came from and where we'll go. Once physicists discover this dimension they will again ask "who lives in the God dimension?" and the answer will again be: "We do! Whether we know it or not." Much like people lived in the solar system in this galaxy long, long before they knew it.

Here You Are... Wondering ... Who am I? Ramanah Maharshi Verus Jackie Chan

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 04:53:00 +0000

Here you can find the subtle and sophisticated method of inquiry as taught by Ramanah Maharshi in order to answer that question - or rather - to BECOME the answer to that question. How do you become the answer to that very question? It is very simple. Every child can do it, only adults find it close to impossible to forget in order to remember.

If you don't know who you are, all kinds of trouble can show up in your life!

Here You Are... Wondering ... How Everything Vanishes, Into Nothing... BBC DocumentaryPhilosophy

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 17:00:00 +0000

... Like The Waves, On A Calm Summer's Day, Into The Mirror-Like Lake.

Nothing has been debated and fought over for centuries. Philosophers have the greatest difficulty with it as their minds are in the way, ending up in nihilistic hell. True "nothing" has been experienced only by the few - and they do not attempt to define it.

Where does the flame go when the wind takes it? Where does the child go when cancer takes it? This heaven, this nothing is absolute non-resistance as in absolute trust and love. Something to practice in life and find in death. This is Heaven, this is the Great Nothing - God herself, beyond time and space, pregnant with all there ever was, is, and will be. Even Atheists are right - God does not exist in our limited understanding of existence. And they are wrong also. God contains all possibilities - even his non-existence.

Alice: "I see nothing."Cheshire Cat: "My. You have good eyes. (Lewis Carrol)

Here You Are...Wondering... How Everything Appears Out Of Nowhere ... Lawrence Krauss Lecture

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 00:54:00 +0000

...Like The Waves Rise Up From The Sea...

Lawrence Krauss is one of our brilliant physicists. Brilliant physicists can make you laugh like Buddhist masters can, as they try to put into words the nature or existence. Why we even try to do this for each other is the mystery of love - mutually "destructive" enlightenment to balance the constructs of our minds.

Here You Are...Wondering...About Wisdom And Foolishness...May 21, 2011, End of the World

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 22 May 2011 07:36:00 +0000

Doomsday May 21, 2011 has come and gone and the mocking of the gullible, trusting souls is in full swing. I am not sure, though, what is worse - the prophets or the arrogant?

NASA's warning of guaranteed solar flares of worrisome magnitude and consequence are enough to keep me humble as far as dooms days in general are concerned. I have more faith in scientific than in religious guesswork - but look what that is getting me. A more certain doomsday scenario? A better reason to prepare? Do we trust in God but tether our camel? Or do we just trust?

Trust - is both foolish and wise - and so is "preparedness".

Here You Are...Wondering...About Fearing and Wishing...Death Be Not Proud

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 10 May 2011 00:43:00 +0000

When we fear things I think that we wish for them ... every fear hides a wish.
DAVID MAMET, Edmond

Since our greatest fear is our fear of death it must also be our greatest wish. Here are two poems to shed some light on the nature of death, and a Sufi's explanation of the teaching "to die before you die", which sheds light on why our greatest fear would also our greatest wish.

The Holy Longing
Poem by Johann W. Von Goethe

Tell a wise person, or else keep silent,
because the mass man will mock it right away.
I praise what is truly alive,
what longs to be burned to death.

In the calm water of the love-nights,
where you were begotten, where you have begotten,
a strange feeling comes over you,
when you see the silent candle burning.

Now you are no longer caught in the obsession with darkness,
and a desire for higher love-making sweeps you upward.

Distance does not make you falter.
Now, arriving in magic, flying,
and finally, insane for the light,
you are the butterfly and you are gone.
And so long as you haven't experienced this: to die and so to grow,
you are only a troubled guest on the dark earth.

Death Be Not Proud
By John Donne

Death be not proud, though some have called thee
Mighty and dreadfull, for, thou art not soe,
For, those, whom thou think'st, thou dost overthrow,
Die not, poore death, nor yet canst thou kill mee.
From rest and sleepe, which but thy pictures bee,
Much pleasure, then from thee, much more must flow,
And soonest our best men with thee doe goe,
Rest of their bones, and soules deliverie.
Thou art slave to Fate, Chance, kings, and desperate men,
And dost with poyson, warre, and sicknesse dwell,
And poppie, or charmes can make us sleepe as well,
And better then thy stroake; why swell'st thou then?
One short sleepe past, wee wake eternally,
And death shall be no more; death, thou shalt die.

Here You Are...Wondering...About Weak And Strong...Live Cam On Eagles Nest In Iowa.

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 16 Apr 2011 18:45:00 +0000

This is a live camera watching over an eagles' nest in Iowa. My parents in Germany just called to tell me all about what happened last week - egg by egg, so to speak. We used to watch seagull parents take care of their babies on our dock in California, but now we live high in the mountains in the snow. There is a coyote we see looking for food in the mornings. The puppies most likely hiding in a cave near by. Maybe a bit risky to go and install a camera... but I'll think about it.

Happy spring!

It may take a while to load. You can also go to http://www.ustream.tv/decoraheagles directly.

Live video by Ustream

Here You Are...Wondering...About Sad And Happy...Tokyo Pool

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 04:41:00 +0000

This video made me both sad and happy today.

Here You Are...Wondering...About Bitter And Sweet - Babies Eating Lemons

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 23:38:00 +0000

Here You Are...Wondering...About Loud and Quiet - Eric Whitacre's Virtual Choir

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 05:25:00 +0000

This is beyond brilliant and wonderful... maybe it is how we all become what we only used to be able to imagine... angels in heaven... voices in harmony flying through infinite space on our little water planet...

Funny how ordinary people making a small contribution from their little offices and bedrooms suddenly make us think of angels. I love how the root cause of this whole project was gratitude.

Here is Eric's Website if you want to keep up with his projects.

Here You Are...Wondering...About Earthquakes and Hurricanes - Band Of Brothers

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 18:00:00 +0000

Best Report from Japan out of all YouTube videos - Thank You, AlJazeera! These boys are my youngest son's age. A great and noble band of brothers, indeed. Love and Compassion will conquer all suffering!

Here You Are...Wondering...About Mountains and Oceans - Love Poems

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 04:48:00 +0000

"Mountains and Oceans" interestingly took me mostly to blogs. People writing about the vastness of experience, the ups and downs of life...

Here is one of my favorites - a lovers blog with lots of poetry and wonderful photos of mountains and oceans.

Here You Are...Wondering...About Sunshine and Rain...The Day Before

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 04:33:00 +0000

Sunshine and Rain make Rainbows ! I will never forget this day.

The next day my neighbor's healthy and vibrant mother, who was visiting from Hawaii, fell down the stairs carrying a laundry basket, and was paralyzed for life. The day before, the day this picture was taken, we had all been standing on our decks enjoying this beautiful rainbow for a long time - a kind of neighborhood meditation.

Both my neighbor and her husband have cancer and are struggling through Chemo while faithfully visiting and taking care of her perfectly healthy, but paralyzed mother, at her nursing home. This accident moved the mother from Hawaii to California, and mother and daughter see each other far more than they would ever have seen each other otherwise during what maybe the last years of their being able to do so. Happiness and sadness weaving the rainbow of our existence.

Here You Are...Wondering...About Winter And Summer...Antonio Vivaldi

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 18:25:00 +0000

A little Antonio Vivaldi for today -

The minds that can compose this kind of music, or can play this kind of music are truly astounding. Music is my favorite kind of math - as in "The Language of the Universe". Music may be the bridge between religion and science, silencing the preacher as easily as the evolutionist.

Silence is the only way to "describe" both infinity and eternity, or God, if you will, although music can come close, while mathematicians as well as philosophers get very confused at this point.

Even the most exquisite music therefore - I am always glad when it ends, and returns me to silence. Like a mother kissing her baby "Good Night".

Winter -

Summer -

Here You Are...Wondering...About Friends And Enemies...Best Friends, Worst Enemies

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 19:00:00 +0000

This line in Here You Are, every time I read it to five-year-olds in Kindergarten or in First Grade, makes everyone sit up straight. Eyebrows go up, mouths open, accompanied by wriggling and looking around the classroom. It seems to be the main thing to wonder about at that age, while out in the big wide world for the first time on a regular basis. It is quite something to have to figure out who is on your side and who is trying to hurt you when you are five years old, and suddenly find yourself among dozens, if not hundreds of strangers every day at school.

Here You Are's magic does not come from clever advice on the subject of friends and enemies or any other questions raised, but from confirming this "wondering" about things, that we all do. Readers who do not wonder about anything, or who, if they do, want others to give them answers, find Here You Are boring, if not "offensive". Those who wonder and try to see with their own eyes and decide with their own hearts, on the other hand, are often so deeply touched that they start crying and putting their hands on their hearts.

Some Christians wrongly assume this book is based on Hinduism or Buddhism when it clearly is about "the kingdom within" we all share and that all religions talk about. Nobody is closer to it than children, no matter their religion. People forget this major teaching of Jesus. And he did not mean only Christian children. This kingdom within is the answer to all questions arising in the material world of opposites. Here You Are shows the way - which has been called the long journey from here to here. That's what's so much fun about it. Here we are, and nowhere else for all of eternity, no matter whether "here" looks like heaven or looks like hell or like nothing at all. "Here" is the truth that sets us free. A person who can remain "here" fully, without wanting to be anywhere else, even in the middle of being crucified, like Jesus, is home, free, and "at-one" with God. God is here, eternal, infinite, perfect. And it is so simple, and so obvious, that you have to chuckle.

Here You Are...Wondering...About Animals And Trees...Shearwater Bird Japan

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 00:16:00 +0000

Sometimes even birds have to climb trees before being able to fly.

It reminds me of my sister's divorce last year, and the promising new life ahead for her.

And it reminds me of the present struggle of the Japanese people. What a tall, and difficult tree to climb. May the Cherry Blossoms of spring soon bring hope to everyone. Life is so fragile. Every moment we are given is just that. A precious moment in time that contains all of eternity. What good messengers these Cherry Blossom are!

Here You Are...Wondering...About Darkness And Light...Richard Avedon

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 19:00:00 +0000

Photographers explore darkness and light not just in terms of contrast for their images, but even more so in regards to the light and the dark side of life. Richard Avedon is one of the best and most famous. Here a wonderful nine part documentary - each video is about 9 to 10 minutes long.

If you don't have time for the documentary skip down to the tenth video which is a sampling of his photographs over the last several decades.

Here You Are...Wondering...About Neckties (not an actual line in Here You Are)

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 20:34:00 +0000

Meet Mat

Matt looks like a happy guy. He is a college student who writes a blog about...neckties! Every post is about neckties - one way or another. It's pretty funny and entertaining. He asked me to let my readers know about his blog, so, here you are! Father's Day is just around the corner - you may need a necktie and can buy one from him, too.

I liked the post showing the many ways one can alternatively make a necktie cake for those Dads who don't need any more ties for Father's Day, or the post about what your necktie color choice may communicate about you - whether you planned it or not. Check it out. There may be a few colors missing in your rainbow!

And, Matt - don't forget to tell all your readers about Here You Are :-). If you wrote: "Thanks for being my Dad. I wouldn't be here without you" in the front of the book, it, too, would make a great Father's Day Present. Maybe Amazon can still get it delivered by Sunday.

Here You Are...Wondering...About Day And Night...Bill Cosby

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 19:00:00 +0000

...or Night and Day.

The better version of the video below that includes Bill Cosby, had the embedding code disabled so you have to go directly to YouTube for this classic treat.

Mrs Huxtable...hmmm...sexy, fun, smart, fiercely loving mother and wife, lawyer...Michelle Obama comes to mind. Couple that with our first black president...no, not Bill Clinton, but Fox's David Palmer ( Dennis Haysbert)...and you know why even Republicans voted for Barack Obama.

The Cosby Show contributed greatly to breaking down racial stereotypes in this country... and so did Fox. We live in interesting times. Day and Night keeps turning into Night and Day. Newsmax, for example, another part of the Fox empire, is outright revolutionary when it comes to Alternative Medicine information, taking on the medical and pharmaceutical industry and their many scams, even exposing the harm done to our health by meat consumption, vaccines and antibiotics. Something old hippies could only dream of, thirty years ago. It takes the powerful to challenge the ones in power.

Or, just a great sense of humor.

Here You Are...Wondering...Why Am I Here?

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 19:00:00 +0000

"To love, of course."

This was the answer from a little five year old girl in the middle of the night at 2am when she couldn't sleep and had picked Here You Are off her bookshelf for her mother to read to her.

Her mother, who was going through a violent divorce, reconciliation, and second divorce with the father of the girl, had never taught this to her daughter - except in the way she lived her life. Both mother and daughter were loving people. They loved the father who was violent and a drug user, but needed to get him out of their lives. The mother feeling badly about the constant fights was surprised that her daughter knew that life was about love in spite of all the fighting she had had to witness since babyhood.

Here You Are doesn't really teach children anything as so many children's books try to do. It simply puts out the fundamental human questions, and confirms in children what they already know - and so often to the utter surprise of their parents. My own son - in spite of declaring by third grade that he was too old for Here You Are - kept asking sheepishly for it until the end of fourth grade whenever he woke up from nightmares.

Then there are the tattooed, Oxycontin popping teenagers who love Here You Are - but that's another story - for the next "Why Am I Here?" post.