How long can the Moon eclipse the Sun? ---- Random thoughts of a straying mind...

A few days have passed and my mind has been straying from one thought to another, much like a monkey, in a jungle, swinging from one branch of a tree to another.

These reflections have touched on the good times in the past, the golden moments that I would love to relive, to the aspirations for the future and the events of today, which may not seem all that pleasant and those that seem to have a potential to impact (positively or negatively) the achievement of aspirations for the future.

Life can be unfair sometimes, we meet a lot of wrong people, have quite a few unpleasant experiences. And the result is that I (as with most of us) end up feeling down and out.

The biggest irony of life is what I find most surprising -- the good times pass off in a jiffy -- a split second, but the tough times last an eternity. It seems that the night will never end.

And the most surprising fact of all -- these circumstances recur with an amazing frequency.

But then there are hopes for the future. These thoughts are like lifesavers -- the ropes that one holds on to for dear life.

And then these times also teach us about our friends -- those who stand by us and those who pass us by. As we go along, most old friends fall by the wayside, but those who remain are there for good.

And one becomes so vulnerable, so sensitive at times that it becomes so easy to hurt those who love you dearly. It's like what Forrest Gump said "Shit happens".

And one better count one's blessings in tough times -- that I have love and support of family, am physically able to take life head on, have a mind to think, weigh options, etc. etc. If one starts counting one's blessings, the list will be endless.

But then then the Sun does rise and rise it will, rise it must! And it happens so fast that seldom does one realise that it's happening. And that's probably because its darkest before dawn, as one song once said -- which one I forget.

What will see us through - it's all about faith - faith in God Almighty (one can believe in God, irrespective of whether one believes in religion or not), faith in oneself and faith in love.

To sign off for now, I will mention what the dollar bill says -- "In God we Trust"