James Pyles's Blog, page 101

From Up in the Sky

“What the hell?” Sixty-two year old millionaire Warren Hollister stared down the long gully carved in his quarry terminating at an unconscious man being put on a wheeled gurney by ambulance attendants. “It’s like I was saying. Thought he was dead, but when I checked, he was breathing,” gasped Jake Fischer, the Foreman. “Not a […]

Quoting: Turn Criticism into a Blessing

The biggest blessing for a person is when someone points out to him not only his strengths and virtues, but also his weaknesses and shortcomings. We see this in the Torah when Yaakov blessed his children before he died. Yet we see that he reprimanded some sons for having faults such as impulsiveness and acting […]

Dreaming on Such a Winter’s Day

William Blake knew he was in trouble when he saw the zebra unraveling like a ball of twine, especially since there shouldn’t be any free roaming zebras in the high desert southeast of Boise. “Get a grip, get a grip, get a grip,” he muttered to himself, pressing his hands on each side of his […]

Quoting: Never Give Up Hope

“Even if you are in the midst of great suffering, do not give up hope” (Pirkei Avos 1:7; Rashi). Life situations might at times seem so bleak and desperate that you see no hope for the future. You might tell yourself things like, “My life is a terrible mess, and I don’t think it will […]

Cult: A Brief Commentary on Actress Allison Mack’s Descent into Darkness

Guilty pleasures confession time. I used to be a huge fan of the television series Smallville (2001-2011). I’ve watched every episode at least once, and I love the theme song (YouTube). In case you don’t know, “Smallville” followed the adventures of young High School student Clark Kent for the ten years before he put on […]

Across the Hell Land

Gray-haired, burnt-skinned Santos had forgotten the number of times he had appealed to the Glow for an end to his journey through the hell lands. He couldn’t fool himself with the placebo anymore, and so as he put out the campfire and slipped on his rucksack, the dull pain in his right knee became his […]

Quoting: Don’t Despair

Even if a doctor says there is no chance of recovery, one should not despair. There are an extremely large amount of cases when doctors have given up hope and nevertheless the patient recovered. While it is irresponsible to disregard reliable medical advice when something practical can be done, doctors are only human and are […]

A Hero in Harare

“I want to meet this Miles Morales,” twelve-year-old Miriro murmured spontaneously as he and his eleven-year-old sister Anesu did their maths homework at the kitchen table, warm afternoon sunlight streaming in the western window. “What are you talking about,” she replied in irritation. “He doesn’t even exist. He’s a cartoon.” “Uncle Tongai took me and […]

Quoting: Courage Builds Self Respect

Courage builds self-respect. When you sacrifice for principles and ideas, you increase your self-respect. When you face a painful situation and react with dignity, you increase your self-respect. When you say, “No,” to temptation even though others will try to persuade you to say, “Yes,” you increase your self-respect. When you don’t allow opposition to […]

Film Review of “Spider-Man: Into the Spider Verse” (2018)

About an hour ago as I write this, my son, grandson, and I were walking out of the theater after watching Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018). This animated film chronicles the coming of age and origin of the Miles Morales Spider-Man (voiced in the film by Shameik Moore), who, in the movie, looks about 13 […]