The Ultimate Vampire Resource and Directory

Santa and Sarah
14:51 Nov 27 2008
Times Read: 668

Three years

ago, a little boy and his grandmother came to see Santa



At the

Mayfair Mall in Wisconsin.

The child climbed up on his lap

holding a

picture of a little girl.. 'Who is this?' asked Santa, smiling.



'Your

friend? Your sister?'' 'Yes, Santa,' he replied. 'My sister,

Sarah,

who is very

sick,' he said sadly.



Santa

glanced over at the grandmother who was waiting nearby, and



saw her

dabbing her eyes with a tissue. 'She wanted to come with me to see

you, oh, so

very much, Santa!' the child exclaimed.

'She misses

you,' he added softly.



Santa tried

to be cheerful and encouraged a smile to the boy's face,



asking him

what he wanted Santa to bring him for Christmas.

When they

finished their visit, the Grandmother came over to help



the child

off his lap, and started to say something to Santa, but halted.











'What is

it?' Santa asked warmly.









'Well, I

know it's really too much to ask you, Santa, but ..' the

old woman began,

shooing her grandson over to one of Santa's elves to

collect the

little gift which Santa gave all his young visitors.



'The girl

in the photograph... my granddaughter well, you see ...

she has

leukemia and isn't expected to make it even through the

holidays,'

she said through tear-filled eyes. 'Is there any way, Santa



any

possible way that you could come see Sarah? That's all she's asked

for,



for

Christmas, is to see Santa.'



Santa

blinked and swallowed hard and told the woman to leave

information

with his elves as to where Sarah was, and he would see

what he

could do. Santa thought of little else the rest of that afternoon.



He knew

what he had to do.

'What if it

were MY child lying in that hospital bed, dying,' he

thought

with a sinking heart, 'This is the least I can do.'





When Santa

finished visiting with all the boys and girls that

evening, he

retrieved from his helper the name of the hospital where Sarah

was

staying. He asked the assistant location manager how to get to





Children's

Hospital.





'Why?' Rick

asked, with a puzzled look on his face.

Santa

relayed to him the conversation with Sarah's grandmother

earlier

that day. 'C'mon.....I'll take you there.' Rick said softly.







Rick drove

them to the hospital and came inside with Santa.









They found

out which room Sarah was in. A pale Rick said he would wait out in the hall.







Santa

quietly peeked into the room through the half-closed door and





saw little

Sarah on the bed,



The room

was full of what appeared to be her family; there was the









Grandmother

and the girl's brother he had met earlier that day.









A woman

whom he guessed was Sarah's mother stood by the bed, gently pushing









Sarah's

thin hair off her forehead.







And another

woman who he discovered later was Sarah's aunt, sat in a chair









near the

bed with a weary, sad look on her face. They were talking quietly,









and Santa

could sense the warmth and closeness of the family, and their love





and concern

for Sarah.



Taking a

deep breath, and forcing a smile on his face, Santa entered









the room,

bellowing a hearty, 'Ho, ho, ho!' 'Santa!' shrieked little









Sarah

weakly, as she tried to escape her bed to run to him, IV









tubes

intact. Santa rushed to her side and gave her a warm hug.









A child the

tender age of his own son -- 9 years old -- gazed up at him with

wonder and excitement.







Her skin

was pale and her short tresses bore telltale bald patches









from the

effects of chemotherapy. But all he saw when he looked at her was









a pair of

huge, blue eyes. His heart melted, and he had to force himself to choke back tears.









Though his

eyes were riveted upon Sarah's face, he could hear the



gasps and

quiet sobbing of the women in the room.



















As he and

Sarah began talking, the family crept quietly to the









bedside one

by one, squeezing Santa's shoulder or his hand gratefully,









whispering

'Thank you' as they gazed sincerely at him with shining eyes.









Santa and

Sarah talked and talked, and she told him excitedly all









the toys

she wanted for Christmas, assuring him she'd been a very good girl that year.





As their

time together dwindled, Santa felt led in his spirit to pray for









Sarah, and

asked for permission from the girl's mother. She nodded in









agreement

and the entire family circled around Sarah's bed, holding hands.









Santa

looked intensely at Sarah and asked her if she believed in









angels. 'Oh,

yes, Santa... I do!' she exclaimed.



















'Well, I'm

going to ask that angels watch over you..' he said. Laying









one hand on

the child's head, Santa closed his eyes and prayed. He









asked that

God touch little Sarah, and heal her body from this disease.



















He asked

that angels minister to her, watch and keep her. And when









he finished

praying, still with eyes closed, he started singing, softly,









'Silent

Night, Holy Night..... all is calm, all is bright...'







'The family

joined in, still holding hands, smiling at Sarah, and









crying

tears of hope, tears of joy for this moment, as Sarah beamed at them all.







When the song

ended, Santa sat on the side of the bed again and held



Sarah's

frail, small hands in his own. 'Now, Sarah,' he said



authoritatively,

'you have a job to do, and that is to concentrate on



getting

well. I want you to have fun playing with your friends this

summer,





and I

expect to see you at my house at Mayfair Mall this time next year!'



He knew it

was risky proclaiming that to this little girl who had





terminal

cancer, but he 'had' to. He had to give her the greatest









gift he

could -- not dolls or games or toys -- but the gift of HOPE.



'Yes,

Santa!' Sarah exclaimed, her eyes bright. He leaned down and





kissed her

on the forehead and left the room.



Out in the

hall, the minute Santa's eyes met Rick's, a look passed



between

them and they wept unashamed.



Sarah's

mother and grandmother slipped out of the room quickly and





rushed to

Santa's side to thank him.



'My only

child is the same age as Sarah,' he explained quietly.





'This is

the least I could do.' They nodded with understanding and hugged him.









One year

later, Santa Mark was again back on the set in Milwaukee





for his

six-week, seasonal job which he so loves to do. Several weeks





went by and

then one day a child came up to sit on his lap.







'Hi,

Santa! Remember me?!' 'Of course, I do,' Santa

proclaimed (as





he always

does), smiling down at her. After all, the secret to being a





'good'

Santa is to always make each child feel as if they are the 'only'





child in

the world at that moment.







'You came

to see me in the hospital last year!' Santa's jaw dropped.









Tears

immediately sprang in his eyes, and he grabbed this little





miracle and

held her to his chest. 'Sarah!' he exclaimed. He scarcely





recognized

her, for her hair was long and silky and her cheeks were





rosy --

much different from the little girl he had visited just a year





before. He

looked over and saw Sarah's mother and grandmother in the



sidelines

smiling and waving and wiping their eyes..





That was

the best Christmas ever for Santa Claus.





He had

witnessed --and been blessed to be instrumental in bringing





about --

this miracle of hope. This precious little child was healed.





Cancer-free. Alive

and well. He silently looked up to Heaven and





humbly

whispered, 'Thank you, Father. 'Tis a very, Merry Christmas!'

PRIVATE ENTRY
02:04 Nov 25 2008
Times Read: 671


• • • • PRIVATE JOURNAL ENTRY • • • •

Congratulations, you're Elizabeth Bathory!
12:51 Nov 21 2008
Times Read: 676


Which Evil Criminal are You?A Rum and Monkey crime.



Congratulations, you're Elizabeth Bathory!



Hailing from sunny Transylvania, your first blood-related incident was when you stabbed a servant girl in the face with a pair of scissors for underperforming. Some of the red spray landed on your hands, and as you washed it off, you noticed that it left your skin fresh and young looking. From then on you were convinced that the blood of young girls was the secret to eternal youth.



Rather than killing girls outright by stabbing them or slitting their throats, you enjoy torturing them for weeks on end by pricking them with needles or prodding with sharp spikes - all to bathe in their blood. You've killed over six hundred women, all without raising a peep from the authorities.

Mother Teresa
03:09 Nov 12 2008
Times Read: 680






*Mother Teresa was born Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu in Skopje*, Macedonia, on August 26**, 1910. Her family was of Albanian descent. At the age of twelve, she felt strongly the call of God. She knew she had to be a missionary to spread the love of Christ. At the age of eighteen she left her parental home in Skopje and joined the Sisters of Loreto, an Irish community of nuns with missions in India. After a few months' training in Dublin she was sent to India, where on May 24, 1931, she took her initial vows as a nun. From 1931 to 1948 Mother Teresa taught at St. Mary's High School in Calcutta, but the suffering and poverty she glimpsed outside the convent walls made such a deep impression on her that in 1948 she received permission from her superiors to leave the convent school and devote herself to working among the poorest of the poor in the slums of Calcutta. Although she had no funds, she depended on Divine Providence, and started an open-air school for slum children. Soon she was joined by voluntary helpers, and financial support was also forthcoming. This made it possible for her to extend the scope of her work.



On October 7, 1950, Mother Teresa received permission from the Holy See to start her own order, "The Missionaries of Charity", whose primary task was to love and care for those persons nobody was prepared to look after. In 1965 the Society became an International Religious Family by a decree of Pope Paul VI.



Today the order comprises Active and Contemplative branches of Sisters and Brothers in many countries. In 1963 both the Contemplative branch of the Sisters and the Active branch of the Brothers was founded. In 1979 the Contemplative branch of the Brothers was added, and in 1984 the Priest branch was established.



The Society of Missionaries has spread all over the world, including the former Soviet Union and Eastern European countries. They provide effective help to the poorest of the poor in a number of countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America, and they undertake relief work in the wake of natural catastrophes such as floods, epidemics, and famine, and for refugees. The order also has houses in North America, Europe and Australia, where they take care of the shut-ins, alcoholics, homeless, and AIDS sufferers.



The Missionaries of Charity throughout the world are aided and assisted by Co-Workers who became an official International Association on March 29, 1969. By the 1990s there were over one million Co-Workers in more than 40 countries. Along with the Co-Workers, the lay Missionaries of Charity try to follow Mother Teresa's spirit and charism in their families.



Mother Teresa's work has been recognised and acclaimed throughout the world and she has received a number of awards and distinctions, including the Pope John XXIII Peace Prize (1971) and the Nehru Prize for her promotion of international peace and understanding (1972). She also received the Balzan Prize (1979) and the Templeton and Magsaysay awards.



*Mother Teresa died on September 5, 1997.

Joan of Arc
02:57 Nov 12 2008
Times Read: 683




Saint

Born c. 1412, Domrémy, France

Died 30 May 1431, Rouen, France

Venerated in Roman Catholic Church

Beatified 18 April 1909, Notre Dame Cathedral by Pope Pius X

Canonized 16 May 1920, St. Peter's Basilica, Rome by Pope Benedict XV

Feast 16 May

Patronage France; martyrs; captives; militants; people ridiculed for their piety; prisoners; soldiers; Women Appointed for Voluntary Emergency Service; Women's Army Corps





*Joan of Arc[1] (c. 1412[2] – 30 May 1431) also known as "the Maid of Orleans," was a 15th century Catholic saint, and national heroine of France. A peasant girl born in Eastern France, Joan led the French army to several important victories during the Hundred Years' War, claiming divine guidance, and was indirectly responsible for the coronation of King Charles VII. She was captured by the English, tried by an ecclesiastical court and burned at the stake when she was nineteen years old. Twenty-four years later, the Holy See reviewed the decision of the ecclesiastical court, found her innocent, and declared her a martyr. She was beatified in 1909 and later canonized in 1920.[2]



Joan asserted that she had visions from God that told her to recover her homeland from English domination late in the Hundred Years' War. The uncrowned King Charles VII sent her to the siege at Orléans as part of a relief mission. She gained prominence when she overcame the dismissive attitude of veteran commanders and lifted the siege in only nine days. Several more swift victories led to Charles VII's coronation at Reims and settled the disputed succession to the throne.



Joan of Arc has remained an important figure throughout Western culture. From Napoleon to the present, French politicians of all leanings have invoked her memory. Major writers and composers who have created works about her include Shakespeare, Voltaire, Schiller, Verdi, Tchaikovsky, Twain, and Shaw. Depictions of her continue in film, television, video games, song, and dance.

GUNGNIR (Odin's Spear)
12:23 Nov 09 2008
Times Read: 687

GUNGNIR (Odin's Spear)



Odin's spear Gungnir ("The Spear of Heaven") is an artifact made of a metal unique to the dimension of Asgard, uru. The three-pronged spear is of unknown origin, predating the current incarnation of Odin himself. At Odin's "birth" at the dawn of the current age of Asgardians, he found Gungnir on the Plains of Ida and used it to focus his power to fashion Asgard as it is known today. Gungnir possesses no known powers of its own; it seems to be a simple conduit for the channeling of personal energies. Like anything made of uru, the spear holds enchantments well. Odin has enchanted the spear to return to his hand when thrown, just as he enchanted his son Thor's uru hammer to do so.

Cerberus
22:09 Nov 06 2008
Times Read: 701

(Κέρβερος Kérberos) is the name given to the entity which, in Greek and Roman mythology, is a multi-headed dog which guards the gates of Hades, to prevent those who have crossed the river Styx from ever escaping. Cerberus featured in many prominent works of ancient Greek and Roman literature and in works of both ancient and modern art and architecture. As with most creatures from classical mythology, the depiction and background surrounding Cerberus often differed across various works by different authors of the era, the most notable difference being his number of heads; while most sources describe or depict three heads, others show him with two, a lesser number show a variable amount, sometimes as high as 50.



: Mythology:



Cerberus was the son of Echidna, a hybrid half-woman, half-serpent and Typhon, a fire-breathing giant whom even the Olympian gods feared. His brother is Orthrus, always depicted as a two-headed hellhound.[5] The common depiction of Cerberus in Greek mythology and art is as having three-heads, a mane of live serpents (similar to Medusa's hair) and a serpent's tail. In most works the three-heads each respectively see and represent the past, the present and the time yet to come, while other sources suggest the heads represent birth, youth and old age.[6] Each of Cerberus' heads is said to have an appetite only for live meat and thus allow the spirits of the dead to freely enter the underworld, but allow none to leave.[7] Cerberus was always employed as Hades' loyal watchdog, and guarded the gates that granted access and exit to the underworld (also called Hades).

Anubis.....Also known as:Anpu
18:38 Nov 06 2008
Times Read: 708






God of:



Patron god of Embalmers



Great god of Necropolis



God of Mummification



**Anubis was a god associated with death. He was a jackal headed god, one of several, but the one gaining most popularity and importance in the Egyptian religion. He was a guide to the dead and also was part of the judgment of the dead. During the Opening of the Mouth ceremony and mummification, priests often wore masks representing Anubis.



Anubis was originally a local god of an area in Upper Egypt. Anubis was prayed to as a god of the dead in the Old Kingdom. In the middle Kingdom he became credited with helping Isis embalm her husband Osiris. In all, Anubis played a large role in the very important afterlife of the Egyptians.

The Lady of the Lake
18:27 Nov 06 2008
Times Read: 710

The Tradition:



The Lady of the Lake was the foster-mother of Sir Lancelot and raised him beneath the murky waters of her Lake. She is, however, best known for her presentation to King Arthur of his magical sword Excalibur, through the intervention of the King's druidic advisor, Merlin (Myrddin) who was constantly worried that his monarch would fall in battle.



Merlin had met the Lady at the Fountain of Barenton (Brittany) and fallen so deeply in love with her that he agreed to teach her all his mystical powers. The lady became Merlin's scribe, who recorded his prophecies, as well as his lover. Unfortunately however, over the years, the Lady became so powerful that her magical skills outshone even her teacher and she imprisoned him in Glass Tower (or similar dungeon). To some extent she stepped into Merlin's role at King Arthur's side, but the old man's removal contributed considerably to the great monarch's downfall. The Lady of the Lake was eventually obliged to reclaim her sword when Arthur was fatally wounded at the Battle of Camlann and Excalibur was hurled back to misty waters. She was later one of the three Queens who escorted the King to Avalon.



Her Name:



The Lady of the Lake is usually referred to by various spellings of the names Nimue or Vivienne. Nimue is thought to be related to Mneme, the shortened form of Mnemosyne, one of the nine water-nymph Muses of Roman and Greek Mythology who gave weapons, not unlike Arthur's sword, to the heroic Perseus. Vivienne betrays the Lady's Celtic form, for "Vi-Vianna" probably derives from "Co-Vianna", a variant of the widespread Celtic water-goddess, Coventina. Remembering Latin pronunciation, this name probably relates to Merlin's original partner in early poetry, his wife Gwendoloena. Thus Gw-end(-ol)-oena = Cov-ent-ina. There have also been attempts to show Vivienne as a corrupt form of Diana or Rhiannon. Though possible, these theories seem unlikely.



Ancient Origins:



Water deities were extremely popular with Celtic Society for they controlled the essential essence of life itself. The spontaneous movement of springs, rivers and lakes clearly showed the supernatural powers of the goddesses who lived within; and offerings at such aquatic features were commonplace, especially of weapons and other valuables. The practice continues today at wishing wells across the country, and the Lady of the Lake is remembered as "Lady Luck"!



Her names clearly reveal this Lady to have been the Celtic Water-Goddess Coventina (presumably identified by the Romans with their Mnemosyne). This lady was worshipped throughout the Western Roman Empire, in Britain, the Narbonne area of Gaul and North-Western Iberia too. She is most celebrated for her shrine at Brocolitia (Carrawburgh) on Hadrian's Wall. Here a quadrangular temple surrounded a central pool fed by a sacred spring. Coin, jewellery and small bronze figurine offerings have been excavated as well as numerous altars dedicated by the local soldiers.



Since the Lady of the Lake's place as Merlin's student and lover was largely overtaken by Morgan Le Fay, a lady whose very name in Breton indicates a water-nymph, it seems that the two were aspects of the same character. Indeed, as both appear among the three queens who escort Arthur to Avalon, she no doubt had a third aspect making up the well-known theme of a Celtic Triple-Goddess.

Spear of Destiny
13:00 Nov 06 2008
Times Read: 714

Spear of Destiny













Hitler's successes as Nazi dictator have given way to a number of occult theories. One of the most common of these is the story of the Spear of Destiny.



Also called the Holy Lance, this spear was believed to have been the weapon used to pierce the side of Jesus Christ at the Crucifixion.



Legend has it that whoever possesses the lance will rule the world.



The lance appears both in factual history and in fiction.



In the Wagner opera Parsival, Klingsor was a despicable adversary of the Knights of the Holy Grail.



The fiend sought to capture the Spear of Destiny from them and use it in his practice of black magic.



In history, no figure was more feared than the black magician Landulph II of Capua. He, too, was obsessed with the power of the Spear of Destiny.



Hitler identified the similarities between Wagner's character and the magician. He saw their struggles as parallel to his own quest for the holy icon.



To Hitler, the blood purity of the Grail Knights and the maniacal quest of Klingsor and Landulph for the spear was the blueprint for world conquest by Nazi power.



Hitler believed he would one day fulfill a historic destiny. How he would do this was not clear until he was 21.



While in the Hapsburg Treasure House in Vienna, Austria, Hitler heard the words which he said were to change his whole life.



A museum tour guide stopped in front of a display of an ancient spear and told of a legend that whoever possessed it would hold the destiny of the world.



The guide said the spear was supposedly the one which a Roman Centurion thrust into the side of Jesus Christ at the Crucifixion. After the group departed, Hitler stepped forward for a closer look.



"I knew with immediacy that this was an important moment in my life, and yet I could not divine why an outwardly Christian symbol should make such an impression on me," he said later.



After his initial experience with the Spear of Destiny, Hitler studied the history of the ancient relic. He was intrigued and amazed at its incredible story.



For more than 1,000 years, the spear had been a symbol of power to the emperors of the Holy Roman Empire. Century after century, the legend of the Spear had been fulfilled for good or evil.



Constantine the Great claimed the spear guided him through providence.



The Frankish General Karl Martel used the spear in battle.



Emperor Charlemagne lived and slept within reach of the spear, and attributed 47 battle victories to its powers.



In all, 45 emperors over 1,000 years claimed the Spear of Destiny as a possession.



Hitler decided he had to possess it.



Over the next three years, he made countless trips to the museum to gaze in awe at the spear.



He recalled that one day as he stood in front of the display, he went into a trance.



"I slowly became aware of a mighty presence around it -- the same awesome presence which I had experienced inwardly on those rare occasions in my life when I had sensed that a great destiny awaited me."



In 1933, when Hitler rose to power, his 25-year obsession to possess the spear could be realized.



In April, 1938, he marched his army into Vienna and took possession of the spear and took it to Nuremberg. One year later, he invaded Poland.



On April 30, 1945, the same day Hitler supposedly killed himself, the American army invaded Nuremberg and took possession of the spear.



In the months that followed, America unleashed the most destructive force ever known to man: the atomic bomb.



While in possession of the Spear of Destiny, America became the undisputed ruler of the world.



The spear now once again resides in the Hapsburg Treasure House Museum in Vienna.