31 August 1941 - Marina Ivanovna Tsvetaeva, a Russian and Soviet poet, died

Marina Tsvetaeva was born on 1892 in Moscow, Russia. She was a well-known poet in Russian, considered as one of the greatest and most original Silver Age poets of the 20th Century, even though her work did not gain international visibility.

Tsvetaeva spent her childhood and early youth in Moscow where her mother discouraged her early efforts in poetry and wanted Tsvetaeva to become a pianist instead. After her mother's death, at the age of 16, she went to Paris to study literary history at the Sorbonne. Her first poetry book, Evening Album, came out in 1910 and attracted the attention of Maximilian Voloshin, a Russian critic and poet that later became her mentor and friend. It was in Voloshin's home, in the Black Sea, that she met her future husband Sergei Yakovlevich Efron, at the age of 19. They married in 1912 and from then on Tsvetaeva is known to have had plenty of affairs including fellow poets Osip Mandelstam and Sofia Parnok, affairs that inspired her writings as in the collection Milepost (in relation to Osip) and a cycle of poems entitled initially The Girlfriend and laterThe Mistake (in relation to Sofia).

29 August - the Feast of the Transfer of the Wonderworking Icon of Christ “Not Made by Hands” (“Third Spas” and “Walnut Spas”)

The earliest image of Jesus Christ "Not Made by Hands"
from all extant images, XIIth century

The Transfer from Edessa to Constantinople of the Icon of our Lord Jesus Christ Not-Made-by-Hands occurred in the year 944. Eusebius, in his HISTORY OF THE CHURCH (I:13), relates that when the Savior was preaching, Abgar ruled in Edessa. He was stricken all over his body with leprosy. Reports of the great miracles worked by the Lord spread throughoutSyria (Mt.4:24) and reached even Abgar. Without having seen the Savior, Abgar believed in Him as the Son of God. He wrote a letter requesting Him to come and heal him. He sent with this letter to Palestine his own portrait-painter Ananias, and commissioned him to paint a likeness of the Divine Teacher. 

Ananias arrived in Jerusalem and saw the Lord surrounded by people. He was not able to get close to Him because of the large throng of people listening to the preaching of the Savior. Then he stood on a high rock and attempted to paint the portrait of the Lord Jesus Christ from afar, but this effort was not successful. The Savior saw him, called to him by name and gave him a short letter for Abgar in which He praised the faith of this ruler. He also promised to send His disciple to heal him of his leprosy and guide him to salvation. 

28 August - Dormition of the Mother of God

 The Most-holy Mother of God after the Ascension of Jesus Christ continued to live on earth several years. One Christian historian says — ten years, and another — twenty-two years. Apostle John the Theologian, according to the instructions of Jesus Christ, took Her into his home and cared for Her with great love as Her own son until the end of Her life. The Most-holy Mother of God became a mother to all twelve of the apostles in general. They prayed with Herwith great joy and were comforted to listen to Her instructive conversations about the Saviour. When the Christian faith had spread to other lands, many Christians came from distant countries to see and listen to Her voice.

27 August - Global Forgiveness Day

Our world is full of unresolved conflicts: internationally, locally and in our homes. It's not just in distant lands where angry thoughts turn to angry words and then angry actions. The nature and history of human experience is intertwined with conflict and resolution. Confrontation is often our best attempt to resolve conflict, yet a more productive and satisfying solution stares us in the face.

In countless cases, justice has rightly extracted a high price from the guilty party. Whether justified or not, at some point, the human condition - when pushed - will want to push back. Our human nature is to respond in kind, or to respond with greater effect and intent (we want revenge). Obviously this type of escalation can not continue unabated.

It is a clear issue that as citizens of this global village we must stand in opposition to tyranny and injustice, to protect the helpless from the abuser and the innocent from the selfish manipulator.

We need to look closer at the situations where misunderstood words and actions lead to wasted time, energy and resources on unnecessary conflict. And most painfully, there are situations where one party is clearly, even admittedly, guilty of an offense against an intimate friend or family member. Much hangs in the balance in the resolution - past, present and future. This all begs the question, " What is the answer ? What is the solution ? Is it possible to restore a sense of ease and intimacy between those involved ?". To answer these questions in a positive way is difficult. But the solution is the same for each question. Forgiveness is the key. Forgiving allows us to lay down the right to claim retribution (openly or inwardly in our hearts and minds). Forgiving allows us to deal with, and then look past all the hurt and consequences of the offense. Forgiving pardons the offender
and the offense. This does not mean to forget, in fact, we must remember as a way to remind ourselves that we too might be guilty of the same offense.

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27 August 1871 - Theodore Herman Albert Dreiser, an American novelist and journalist of the naturalist school, was born

Theodore Dreiser was born on August 27, 1871 in Terre Haute, Indiana. Part of a large German-American family, and the ninth of ten children, his childhood was marked by poverty. His father, John Paul, had previously been a cotton mill manager, but a series of unfortunate accidents caused his fortunes to dwindle. In 1864 the cotton mill burned down, and during the reconstruction John Paul was hit in the head with a beam. He never fully recovered and as a result become deeply religious. He further was soon cheated by his business partners. The family was forced to move from one Indiana town to another in order to survive. Theodore Dreiser later resented his father for the family's poverty.

26-27 August - Notting Hill Carnival (Great Britain)

The Notting Hill Carnival has been taking place in London, on the last weekend in August, for the past forty seven years; Carnival 2013 will be the 49th. This great festival began initially from the energies of Black immigrants from the Caribbean, particularly from Trinidad, where the Carnival tradition is very strong, and from people living locally who dreamed of creating a festival to bring together the people of Notting Hill, most of whom as immigrants, were facing racism, lack of working opportunities, poor housing conditions resulting in a general suppression of good self-esteem. 

There had been racial tensions in the late 50s and Black people were subjected to constant pressures. Dances were organised in halls in North London and elsewhere by Claudia Jones, where Black people, mainly Trinidadians, could come together freely. At the same time steel band music was being played each Sunday at the Colherne Pub in Earls Court by Trinidadians who had immigrated to England after World War II to help develop the 'Mother Country'.