Raindrops fill the oceans and Water the fields They give birth to glaciers and Feed towering trees. Teardrops fill the heart and Cleanse the mind They give birth to forgiveness and Feed the soul. Both are beauty One is born of pain. Both are truth One demands it. Both are goodness One comes from a taste of death. Serene Black and White Barbados Seascape · Free Stock Photo If you can, please donate by clicking here .

My dear St. Theoctistus of Sicily, you served God and His people by raising up a monastery that became a place of refuge, rest, and protection for people suffering and dying under the tyranny of iconoclasm. Your compassionate tears, your unrelenting labor, and your constant prayer brought forth the uncreated silence of the Holy Spirit and the uncreated light of Christ for those you served. O Righteous One, I ask your intercession today for a brotherhood of men who commit them

It is getting late and My head hangs low. It is darker now and My tears begin to flow. It is desperate all round so My hands grasp Because they know. The divine language of love, Played on a rope Made of silence. With humility and love, I implore you. Give me shelter, So I may pray through the nights. "O Mistress, Empress and Lady, Defend all who are in danger and misfortune Or weak from many sins, And who stand before your holy Icon Praying with tears, humility, repentance,