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 I am not one for adulation of other people - I simply do not understand
how anyone gets so involved in a 'celebrity' that they become the focus
of their life. However, there are a few, not including some of my family
and friends, whom I have a great deal of admiration for.
Making the choice for this album of people was surprisingly difficult. Many names came to mind, but few could be justified. As I reduced the number I became surprised that so many of them are religious people, even though I am not myself religious (despite having being told on more than one occasion that I am one of the most Christian people that the person has met). Deciding on the chosen few meant thinking carefully about each one, and I had to think seriously of the characteristics that made me admire a person. The list is varied: goodness; determination; true humility; gentleness; ability to accept when you are wrong; an enquiring mind. I believe that the people who made it onto my list have some of these characteristics, though no doubt someone will disagree with me. Here is my list (you can click on the name to go directly to them, or scroll through them all): Pope John Paul II; the Dalai Lama; Mother Theresa; Cardinal Newman; Siegfried Sassoon; Leonardo da Vinci; Elizabeth I. No doubt at sometime in the future I will add to the list.
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| I admire His Holiness John Paul II. I do not agree with everything that he has to say about the world, but he has done more to promote the Catholic Church during his term of office than anyone else before him. Despite his obvious frailties, the goodness shines out, and in my opinion there are too few really good people around. Despite not being a Catholic, I find much to admire in this man. |
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| His Holiness the Dalai Lama is another good man whom I find an inspiration. Peace and tranquility seem to radiate from the man despite having to deal with the problems of maintaining the cohesion of the Tibetan people in exile. He is a spiritual leader of a religion in which I find much to admire, even though the Tibetan version is perhaps not the one I would personally choose. |
"Old friends pass away, new friends appear. It is just like the days. An old day passes, a new day arrives. The important thing is to make it meaningful: a meaningful friend - or a meaningful day."
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| For sheer humility and goodness, Mother Theresa must be regarded as one of the great figures of the Twentieth Century. Although thought already by many to be a saint, she had her doubts, but over came them. It is this which I find so admirable. |
"Every act of love is a work of peace, no matter how small"
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| Cardinal John Henry Newman, is, like Mother Theresa, on his way to sainthood. During his life he managed the balancing act of intellect and humility. He was determined but at the same time gentle, and all of the images I have seen show this side of his character. My interest in Newman began when I attended Newman College to study for my degree. |
"May
He support us all the day long,
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| Amongst the religious figures this person looks at first glance to be out of place - a soldier. However, this is Siegfried Sassoon, the poet from the First World War. At first a supporter of the war his experiences turned him against it, and his work reflected his deep feelings about the unacceptability of war. I admire his willingness to stand up and go against the establishment, but more, I admire his willingness to admit he was wrong. |
"The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary." |
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| Leonardo da Vinci appears on my list because I admire the huge breadth of his interests. He was a true Renaissance Man who was keen to understand everything. Well even then I imagine that was impossible, but who wonderful to keep such an enquiring mind into adulthood. So many lose the childlike wonder at the world and in my opinion this is a great pity. As an artist I like his work - but when I visited the Louvre a few years ago, I was determined to dislike the Mona Lisa because I knew it from so many copies. I walked into the gallery where it is kept and amazingly there was no one else there, not even a security guard. At that moment I fell in love with Mona Lisa. |
"Patience serves as a protection against wrongs as clothes do against cold. For if you put on more clothes as the cold increases, it will have no power to hurt you. So in like manner you must grow in patience when you meet with great wrongs, and they will then be powerless to vex your mind."
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| Although I am not royalist, I had to include Elizabeth I, Queen of England. Not the mature queen though, but the young princess whose life was so at risk from the plans of her father, brother, step-father and sister. She was a true survivor who used her wit, guile and intelligence to ensure that she did not lose her head, literally or figuratively. |
"Brass shines as fair to the ignorant as gold to the goldsmiths." |
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