O Tannenbaum

It's almost Christmas . . . how is that even possible?  I'll miss Christmastime when it's over.  But what's really sad is that there are a lot of awful things going on in the world right now even though the holidays are supposed to be a time of love and peace.  I always think of the "O Tannenbaum" story when times are hard like this.  It was 1914, and World War I had been a horrible reality for several long and bloody months, but Christmastime somehow brought with it a feeling of beneficence between soldiers on both sides of the trenches.  Their shared appreciation for the beauty and sentiment of the holiday season is equal parts touching and heartbreaking because, while it did bring a sort of peace to the battlefront, the peace was only temporary, and men who had once shared in carols and football games were soon forced to return to killing each other.  In the words of Pvt. Albert Moren:

“First the Germans would sing one of their carols and then we would sing one of ours, until when we started up ‘O Come, All Ye Faithful’ the Germans immediately joined in singing the same hymn to the Latin words Adeste Fideles. And I thought, well, this is really a most extraordinary thing ­– two nations both singing the same carol in the middle of a war.” (from TIME)

I can only hope that maybe we'll be able to find peace this year for people all over the world and that the peace will last.  Every time I see footage from Aleppo or think of what just happened at one of Berlin's beautiful Christmas markets, I'm overcome with sadness and pain and an overwhelming longing for peace. Shouldn't we be able to learn from the past and see that love is the most important thing? 

 

<3 Frances  

All the People...

Imagine all the people, living life in peace...

John Lennon: "Imagine"

<3 Frances

Strawberry Moon

I'm working at a camp all week and am completely exhausted after yesterday, but fatigue didn't stop me from getting excited about the Strawberry Moon.  The June full moon happened on the Summer Solstice this year (yesterday), and that hasn't happened since 1948, the year my grandmum was born.  It's truly amazing to have gotten to see a rare astronomical event like that (even if through a fog of clouds) because, for all I know, I may not even be here the next time it happens. And "Strawberry Moon" is an adorable name for an astrological occurrence, isn't it?  Native Americans used the moon cycles as a reference for farming, and the "Strawberry Moon" meant berries were ripe.  #funfact
I'm sending love for everyone's day today!

http://northendwaterfront.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Strawberry-Moon-June-2016-59.jpg

<3 Frances

Jill's Library: World War I Poets

I once got so excited talking to historical archaeologists and special collections librarians during a field trip to a career expo that I didn't even realize that my school had moved to a different exhibit until I looked around and didn't recognize anyone.  Needless to say, it was a bit scary, but hearing about historical gardens and Edgar Allan Poe's transcript made the momentary fear entirely worth it. If you're a bibliophile, too, I'm sure you understand where I'm coming from :).

I'm sharing this anecdote because this post is a more literature/history-focused one.  I recently rediscovered my mum's collection of World War I poems and poets, and I fell totally in love with it (again).  There is something so moving about reading a poem by someone and then reading their story, and it's particularly tragic to learn that they died shortly after said poem was written.  Reading the beautiful words of Wilfred Owen, for instance, it was difficult to imagine he was killed only a week before the armistice was signed in 1918.  Writing keeps people alive by preserving voices and thoughts and moments, and the fact that so many of the early 20th century's greatest writers had their lives cut short by the very subject they wrote about--war--is so incredibly horrible. Reading about the war also really helps to put into perspective all of the things going on in the present.  While it is crucial to think about the good in the world, it's also necessary to recognize the bad, and there is a lot of struggle and suffering right now.  I often wonder what poetry--be it written or merely felt (because, yes, you can just "feel" a poem)--will arise from all that is happening today.

(Siegfried Sassoon)

 

 

<3 Frances

 

 

 

 

Wednesday Music and Prayers for 804

Hi, everyone!  The end of the academic year is approaching really quickly (as in next week is my last week quickly), and I can't believe it's almost here.  Summers are very busy, too, but it's nice to get to spend more time at home with books and living room dance sessions.
Summer plans aside, though, today I wanted to talk a little bit about the victims of the EgyptAir crash. I know it happened almost a week ago, but I've been thinking about it a lot, and I can't shake how horrible it is.  No one can really understand what the families of those on board Flight 804 are going through, and it's so unfair that they're having to suffer the unimaginable right now.  I still feel traumatized by the other crashes that have happened over the recent years, and I know the families of those victims will never be able to recover from the horror of losing a loved one in such a tragic way with so many unanswered questions.  My thoughts and prayers go out to everyone affected <3.

Birdy: "Skinny Love"

These Brittle Bones: "Flecks"

M83: "Outro"

<3 Frances 

Chernobyl Children International

As you may have seen on the news, yesterday marked thirty years since the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster, a dreadful accident in Ukraine that continues to affect people even today.  Radioactive material is still being found in the milk of cows in Belarus, and children are still being born with illnesses related to radiation exposure.  The whole Chernobyl cause is very close to my heart, and I actively follow the efforts of Chernobyl Children International, an Ireland-based charity dedicated to helping families and individuals hurt by Chernobyl.  All of CCI's projects are incredibly moving and inspiring, and the organization has improved the lives of children at the Vesnova Children's Asylum greatly.  Chernobyl was one of history's most tragic events, but CCI shows that, even in the face of catastrophe, "there is hope."

<3 Frances

Happy Spring!

Spring is officially here!  Yay!  It may be cold and rainy this morning, but I'm excited just thinking about the warmer days and pretty flowers ahead.  I love winter and autumn, but after the holidays things can get a little bleak, and the sunshine is always welcome.  To get the season started off on the right foot, here are some rather generic pictures of baby animals in nature.  As always, photo creds to their respective photographers.

<3 Frances

Fukushima Five Years On

Five years ago, on March 11, 2011, a 9.0 magnitude earthquake struck near the coast of Japan, devastating the island nation with a tsunami and causing a meltdown in three of the reactors at the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant. Though by now life has regained a level of normalcy for some, others continue to suffer the direct effects of the disaster, unable to return to their homes due to radiation and destruction and still in mourning over those that died.  Today, take a moment to send some support and loving-kindness to those brave souls continuing to suffer the effects of the Japan disaster.  As with other tragedies (Bhopal, Chernobyl...), the immediate incident may be over, but its impact lives on, and it's important to think of and honor the heroes and survivors every day.  If you're like I am and want to learn more about Japan five years on, check out this article.

Credits: Toru Yamanaka

<3 Frances 

Happy Leap Day

Happy Leap Day!  It's amazing to think that "February 29th" didn't exist last year, but, given that it's here this year, why don't we try to make the most of it?  I spent yesterday studying like crazy for the SAT (with a short Oscars break thrown in around dinnertime), and, while the studying continues today, it's also very pretty outside, so I'm trying to focus on more than just school/work/work/work and to reduce stress. I know I've posted about this before, but cortisol isn't something you want to be living on. Cortisol shouldn't be your primary energy source!  It's a backup reserve saved for situations that demand it--not for round-the-clock pick-me-ups.  Fortunately, if you've been running on cortisol, today is a great day to try to get grounded again.

“According to numerology the number 11 possesses the qualities of patience, honesty, spirituality, sensitivity, intuition and is idealistic and compassionate. Those people who are drawn to 11, operate on a different level of energy than most, and when two people come together who both have this type of energy it’s almost combustible. 11:11 is the universe’s way of urging us to pay attention to our heart, our soul and our inner intuition. It’s serving as a wake-up call to us so that opportunities are not missed in this lifetime.”

 ~ Kate Rose, Elephant Journal

See?  View today as a day to connect with yourself and your intuition and inner creativity so you can find JOY in things again as opposed to just going through the daily motions.  And if you're looking for something to make you smile, here's a video of Mobula Rays belly flopping:

<3 Frances 

P.S.  Today is the last day for donations to Smile Train to have 5x the impact!  That means a $10.00 donation becomes $50.00!  www.smiletrain.org

Year of the Monkey

Happy Chinese New Year!  It is *officially* the Year of the Monkey, and, to get even more specific, this year's monkey is the Fire Monkey. Yes, you read that correctly: FIRE Monkey.  Personally, I think that's quite possibly one of the most inspiring power animals ever, and it gives me a lot of hope as far as making this year a positive one.  Channel your inner Fire Monkey!
Anyway, because it's the Chinese New Year and because we do so very much love astrology here at Moth Bird, here is your 2016 Fire Monkey horoscope from Suzanne White via AstroStyle.  She says that the Monkey "is like a sunrise full of hope," and she gets into the details of what it means as far as everything from love to real estate is concerned. 

The influence of the Fire Monkey in 2016 will cause many of our preconceived notions to hit the fan. It’s going to be a scurrying kind of year. Individuals can accomplish great deeds. But extremist group movements will have less and less effect on the world at large. Fire Monkey years are chockablock with wakeup calls for all and sundry. Fire Monkeys have no time for ostriches.
Sweeping global shifts are afoot. Whether it’s climate change which brings everything from volcanic eruptions to cyclones, drought, floods and unbearable heat and cold spells, or it’s the prevalence now of religious wars when enemies fight each other over whose God is the best God and whose God doesn’t count—these, we know, are futile wars. But they exist and will persist and even try to worsen in the Fire Monkey Year.The Monkey is the problem solver. The arrival of a Monkey year, just at this juncture, is like a sunrise full of hope.
Another planetary niggle in 2016 will be about massive exodus and immigration of desperate refugees from the above-mentioned conflicts. Many war-torn countries today can do nothing for their people who are homeless and frightened and hungry. So these same people (understandably) need to leave their stricken lands and find a place where they can live in safety and peace and try to make a better life for themselves.Trouble is, where can they go? Where will they be welcomed and accepted? Looks like 2016 will be chockablock with trials and tribulations. In other words, 2016 might be the perfect time to Dial-A -Monkey.Because 2016 is a Fire Monkey Year, progress will be accelerated in all the above areas. Wars might not stop being fought and tornadoes and earthquakes may not desist. But the Monkey is the problem solver. The arrival of a Monkey year, just at this juncture, is like a sunrise full of hope. Monkeys find solutions to even the most labyrinthine of issues. And they do it in subtle ways that other less wily and crafty signs would find impossible. Everybody’s life will be somehow altered because of the Monkey’s know-how in 2016.In 2016, alternative energies to dangerous pollutants will suddenly be taken seriously and developed quickly. Populations everywhere will begin calling for reforms to delay the progress of global warming. Detractors and fanatics who have resisted the idea of climate change will be forced to accept that the consequences of their faulty beliefs are grave and they can no longer hide behind reactionary rhetoric. Let’s face it: When the underpinnings of their million dollar seaside villas begin eroding and their houses teeter on the brink and threaten to topple into the ocean, even the most conservative climate change dinosaurs will begin to pay attention to what reforms are necessary to save the earth from self destruction.In 2016, unconventional medical advances and a new respect for naturopathic cures will also thrive. Already we see that scads of people are fed up with allopathic remedies that not only make people sicker, they don’t always cure them. Instead they treat the symptoms—not the cause. The Fire Monkey will see to it that this trend changes. In 2016, more and more patients will be drawn to homeopathy, acupuncture, osteopathy, naturopathy, traditional Chinese medicine, Ayurveda and many other nonconformist techniques. Health maintenance and disease prevention products such as food supplements and natural healing methods will begin to be taken seriously. 2016 could be just the right time to invest in the stocks of laboratories which make vitamins, homeopathic remedies, food supplements and the like.During this Fire Money year more and more countries will be outlawing toxic insecticides and refusing to allow farmers to use genetically modified seeds (GMOs). It’s the Monkey’s job to clean up what has gotten muddled and soiled through greed. Monkey years are famous for making order out of chaos. Monkeys are forever seeking novel solutions for all the world’s problems.The Monkey, instead of looking at the problem, looks through it, calculates the risks and then begins to pick it apart. This unique method of sorting out predicaments gives the Monkey an edge. Monkeys have few hostile verbal confrontations because their enemies know full well that they are up against a superior Monkey mind.This is not to say that the Monkey year will always favor your side. If you are a Dragon or a Rat, you might have an easier row to hoe in 2016. Not so the Rooster or the Dog who consider Monkeys scatty and inconsequential. And by comparison to the hardworking Horse or the slog and drudge Ox person, Monkeys look like lightweights. But they are not. Monkeys achieve their goals. But often they don’t succeed merely through sheer toil and trudge. Monkeys get what they want by adapting their behavior to the situation and then setting about dismantling it in order to fix it.On a personal level, everyone will be called upon this year to take stock of the condition of their bodies. Some of us have developed chronic conditions such as carpal tunnel syndrome, trick knees or tennis elbow. Some people ache in every joint. 2016 will be the perfect year to start a regimen and perform at least one detox. Simultaneously, get yourself to a physical therapist who can guide you through exercises to heal even the most painful and debilitating complaints.  Too, you should either join a gym, swim four times a week, jog or sign up for courses in Pilates, Yoga, Zumba or cycling. If you can afford it, hire a coach to assist you in building and maintaining muscle. If you’re feeling sluggish, see a nutritionist and follow their instructions. If all of the above approaches are also above your means, grab a throw rug and download an exercise video. The Fire Monkey year urges and even pushes us to find original ways to remain healthy and strong.Love in the Fire Monkey year? Well… it’s iffy. There are some New Astrology™ signs whose love lives will float along without incident this year. Others of you will encounter snag after snag, often having to do with one of the members of the couple evolving and growing in a direction that both frightens and alienates the other. If you are planning to improve your life and/or make huge personal changes this year, don’t forget to inform your partner and, if they so desire, take them along for the ride. The more you do together, the closer you will become. No matter how passionate you are about your bodywork and cures for chronic ills, remember to maintain a satisfactory level of passion between the sheets.The real estate markets will improve in 2016.  Low interest bank loans for mortgages will become more available. The banks themselves will show more flexibility with the people they lend money to. In all 50 U.S. States, same-sex couples can now be married. This breakthrough alone means that 2016 will see new approaches to fusty old obstacles. As Bob Dylan warned way long ago: The times they are a-changin’. Banks will become more user-friendly. And if you are buying or selling property, don’t hesitate to negotiate the price. Monkeys applaud and encourage the haggler in us.In the Fire Monkey year you can get ahead, create new concepts, start a business or leave a job. This is a time to be bolder and cleverer than the next guy. But remember that this Fire Monkey year will also be rife with chicanery and deceit. You must play each opportunity deftly. Do not barrel ahead on any project or make any investments that you have not thoroughly researched. Study each situation and pore over complex documents ‘til your eyes are popping out of your head. Just because 2016 is a leap year doesn’t mean you should leap before you take a good hard objective look at all the details. Nonetheless, forge onward. Take charge and dare in the Fire Monkey year.But before you rush into any enterprise—be it personal, romantic, professional or social—do your homework. The Monkey encourages the spunky, audacious you. But he or she might also be hanging out on a neighboring branch, waiting for you to show weakness. When you do, the Monkey may swing right on over and snatch your banana. 

<3 Frances

Last Day of November Playlist

With holidays and sicknesses and the general events of life, it's been a while since the last post, and I can't believe it's already the last day of November!  At least that means it's officially acceptable for me to listen to Christmas music and put the tree up.  

The Rockettes are my favorite part of the Macy's Parade. 

Even though I'm very grateful to be so fortunate as to have a school to go to and a home to go home to, going back to the "daily grind" after the extended break is proving to be challenging.  And I think I'm coming down with something, too, because getting up and out was particularly difficult.  But all that aside, Mondays are always made better by music.

Vance Joy: "Riptide"

Sia: "Elastic Heart"

New Politics: "Harlem"

Arctic Monkeys: "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor"

And, because it's now the holiday season...

Darlene Love: "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)"

<3 Frances 

Halloweeen and Getting My Wisdom Teeth Out

I had my birthday, Halloween, and wisdom teeth surgery all within three days of each other, and I currently look a lot like a chipmunk.  Apparently, swelling is worst around a few days after the surgery operation, and for some reason one side of my face has decided to be particularly swollen despite the fact that I had teeth out on both sides.  Safe to say, it's not very fun, but it went well with my last-minute dormouse costume, LOL.  Halloween was spent inside with Charlie Brown and my mum and brother and pureed pumpkin.  A LOT of pureed pumpkin.

My Halloween inspiration (pic: telegraph.co.uk)

It's been difficult not getting to have "real"-feeling foods like a bowl of warm brown rice and broccoli (oh, how I miss that!), but my mum and I have been making the best of the blender.  My chosen birthday meal was "pudding" made of pumpkin puree, a banana, and a tablespoon of carob powder.  It actually tastes quite fun :).  I've also been having baby food.  Whoever decided to combine apple sauce and blueberries into a little container of mush is my hero.
Back to Halloween, though...when I was little, two of my all-time favorite movies were The Nightmare Before Christmas and Corpse Bride. My mum remembers hearing "This is Halloween," the intro theme from the former, playing in the background while she was working.  I realize now how creepy the song actually is, but I was super excited to see the DWTS dance cover of it.  The dance moves are as creepy and spidery as the lyrics! 


 

 

Happy November!

<3 Frances



Bat Week

Oh, my goodness--it's almost Halloween!  (Which means it's also almost my birthday and the day of my dental surgery.)  As someone who loves this holiday of changing leaves and cobwebs and spooky movies (Corpse Bride is a must-see), I'm incredibly excited for Saturday.  I won't be trick-or-treating this year (dental surgery recovery plus wandering around late at night is apparently a big no, LOL), and I don't know if anyone will come to my house looking for little pretzel bags, but that doesn't really matter because this post isn't about candy.  It's about bats!

This face is SO adorable!

The bat is one of nature's most misunderstood animals, and many species of bat are endangered now due to human activity and a horrible fungal infection called "white-nose syndrome."  Not only are they crucial members of the ecosystem (pollination, bug control, etc.), but they're also adorable, wonderful little animals that desperately need our help.  As they're associated with Halloween, I think now is the perfect time to raise awareness about their struggles to survive so that more people understand their situation.  For more information on bats and what you can do to help them (and the planet), visit www.batcon.org.  Happy Bat Week!

<3 Frances

Supermoon Eclipse Tomorrow

Hi, Fellow Earthlings!  I hope everyone's Saturday has been nice.  I'm excited because tomorrow night will be a special one for the moon.  It's going to be a "supermoon," meaning it will look larger and brighter than it normally does, and then it will disappear into an eclipse for about an hour.  This won't happen again until 2033 (2033!!!), so, if you get the opportunity to look up at the sky tomorrow night, take it!  The eclipse will start at about 8:00 PM Eastern U.S. Time, peak at 10:00 PM, and be over by midnight.  You can also watch it online if you want to, too, via NASA or Slooh. 

Canterbury Times



 Happy star-gazing!
<3 Frances

First Day of Fall

There was a certain crispiness to the air this morning, and, even though it'll be warm today, the temperatures are still much cooler than they were during the summer.  And some of the leaves are starting to change colors, too, signaling a transition in the seasons.  It's amazing when you think that we're already into the second-to-last season of 2015.  Sometimes I think time just goes by so fast. We're too distracted thinking that everything's moving slowly to realize how quickly it's going, and then it's over, and we wonder what happened.  This season, maybe we should try to be less distracted and focus more on what's around us as it's happening.  I have a bad habit of spiraling into my own thoughts, but I'm working on doing that less so I can put energy towards the things that are actually important.  #zen
In honor of the new season, here's an entirely necessary Snoopy pic (because what's more seasonal than Snoopy?):

What are you all excited for this season?  It lasts until December, so we better makes friends with it. I know I'm totally thrilled to get my wisdom teeth out, LOL.  Okay, maybe not so much. But I am excited for pumpkins and leaves and the little moments that make harder times less difficult. Sweaters and knee socks are good things about the fall, too.  

I'm sending the force for everyone's day today!

<3 Frances

Groundhog Day Playlist

I hope everyone's weekend didn't go by too quickly! 

www.musictimes.com

We've made it to another February....and another Groundhog Day.  Apparently Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow this morning and predicted six more weeks of winter.  I'm torn between feeling sorry for New England and feeling hopeful that we may actually get some snow where I live.  We've had zero snowmen this year.  Zero.  *cry, cry*

Aside from weather, though, I also wanted to share some music that will hopefully be a bit of a cheer-up on another cold Monday morning. It's more upbeat than some of the other stuff I share and will therefore hopefully aid in easing the return-to-work feels so many of us are experiencing.

Vance Joy: "Riptide"

The Vamps feat. Demi Lovato: "Somebody to You"

The White Stripes: "The Hardest Button to Button" 

The Jesus and Mary Chain: "Just Like Honey"

<3 Frances 

Second Semester

Midterms are over!  Thank God.  Now comes the painful "wait" period between turning tests in and getting them back, and as much as I'd like to leave my study-coma, I'm tempted to remain within it because I know that I can't let myself study any less vigorously than I did for the midterms.  #APproblems
Complaints aside, though, I hope that everyone had a nice Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.  I did some homework (and a little procrastinating, LOL), attempted to actually draw backgrounds for the characters that I draw (usually I just leave everything behind them on the paper completely blank--not any more!), and helped my mum around the house (folding laundry is surprisingly therapeutic!).  I also got to keep up with my running streak.  I've gone running for about 20 minutes every day for the past few weeks, and it's done a lot as far as anxiety is concerned.  Though I did still get one new acne for each midterm I took last week....

Because it's another back-to-work/school morning, here's some music:

The Postal Service: "Such Great Heights"

The Cure: "Pictures of You"

Jasmine Thompson: "Demons" (Cover of Imagine Dragons)

<3 Frances

2015!

 

Another year has officially just begun, friends, and that means a fresh start.  Think about it like this:  2015 has never met you until now.  You have the chance to be who you want to be and lead your life the way you want to lead it.  I know all this sounds a bit cliched, but it's true, and it's important that you go into the new year on the bright side with the very best intentions for yourself. 
Also...here's an adorable cover of "What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?" by Zooey Deschanel and Joseph Gordon-Levitt.  I know NYE is over by now, but still...

<3 Frances

2014 Review: Events

Oh, wow...four more days! 

Some really happy things (Malala Yousafzai and Kailash Satyarthi share the Nobel Peace Prize) and some really terrible things (Malaysia Flight 370 disappears) happened this year.  Here's a brief rundown of 2014's events, as seen on Wikipedia:

January

• January 1 – Latvia officially adopts the euro as its currency and becomes the 18th member of the Eurozone.

February

• February–ongoing – The Ebola virus epidemic in West Africa begins, infecting over 19,000 people and killing at least 7,000 people, the most severe both in terms of numbers of infections and casualties.
• February 7–23 – The XXII Olympic Winter Games are held in Sochi, Russia.
• February 13 – Belgium becomes the first country in the world to legalise euthanasia for terminally ill patients of any age.
• February 22 – The Ukrainian parliament votes to remove President Viktor Yanukovych from office, replacing him with Oleksandr Turchynov, after days of civil unrest left around 100 people dead in Kiev.
• February 26–ongoing – The pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine leads to the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation and an insurgency in the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts.

March

• March 5 – Nicolás Maduro, the President of Venezuela, severs diplomatic and political ties with Panama, accusing Panama of being involved in a conspiracy against the Venezuelan government.
• March 8 – Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, a Boeing 777 airliner en route to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur, disappears over the Gulf of Thailand with 239 people on board. The aircraft is presumed to have crashed into the Indian Ocean.
• March 16 – A referendum on the status of Crimea is held.
• March 21 – Russia formally annexes Crimea after President Vladimir Putin signed a bill finalizing the annexation process.
• March 24 – During an emergency meeting, the United Kingdom, the United States, Italy, Germany, France, Japan, and Canada temporarily suspend Russia from the G8.
• March 27 – The United Nations General Assembly passes Resolution 68/262, recognizing Crimea within Ukraine’s international borders and rejecting the validity of the 2014 Crimean referendum.
• March 31 – The United Nations International Court of Justice rules that Japan's Antarctic whaling program is not scientific but commercial and forbids grants of further permits.

April

• April 10 – In response to the 2014 Crimean crisis, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) passes a resolution to temporarily strip Russia of its voting rights; its rights to be represented in the Bureau of the Assembly, the PACE Presidential Committee, and the PACE Standing Committee; and its right to participate in election-observation missions.
• April 14 – An estimated 276 girls and women are abducted and held hostage from a school in Nigeria.
• April 16 – Korean ferry MV Sewol capsizes and sinks after an unmanageable cargo shift, killing more than 290 people, mostly high school students.
• April 27 – The Catholic Church simultaneously canonizes Popes John XXIII and John Paul II.
• April 28 – United States President Barack Obama's new economic sanctions against Russia go into effect, targeting companies and individuals close to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

May

• May 5
• The World Health Organization identifies the spread of poliomyelitis in at least 10 countries as a major worldwide health emergency.
• Boko Haram militants kill approximately 300 people in a night attack on Gamboru Ngala.
• May 20 – Terrorists in Nigeria detonate bombs at Jos, killing 118 people.
• May 22 – The Royal Thai Army overthrows the caretaker government of Niwatthamrong Boonsongpaisan after a failure to resolve the political unrest in Thailand.

June

• June 5–ongoing – A Sunni militant group called the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (also known as the ISIS or ISIL) begins an offensive through northern Iraq, aiming to capture the Iraqi capital city of Baghdad and overthrow the Shiite government led by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
• June 12 – July 13 – The 2014 FIFA World Cup is held in Brazil, and is won by Germany.
• June 19 – King Juan Carlos I of Spain abdicates in favor of his son, who ascends the Spanish throne as King Felipe VI.

July

• July 8–August 26 – Amid growing tensions between Israel and Hamas following the kidnapping and murder of three Israeli teenagers in June and the revenge killing of a Palestinian teenager in July, Israel launches Operation Protective Edge on the Palestinian Gaza Strip starting with numerous missile strikes, followed by a ground invasion a week later. In 7 weeks of fighting, 2,100 Palestinians and 71 Israelis are killed.
• July 17
• After a five-hour humanitarian ceasefire, Israel confirms the beginning of a ground offensive in Gaza.
• Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, a Boeing 777, crashes in eastern Ukraine after being shot down by a missile. All 298 people on board are killed.
• July 21 – The United Nations Security Council adopts Resolution 2166 in response to the shootdown of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17.
• July 24 – Air Algérie Flight 5017 crashes in Mali, killing all 116 people on board.

August

• August 7 – Khmer Rouge leaders Nuon Chea and Khieu Samphan are found guilty of crimes against humanity and are sentenced to life imprisonment by the Khmer Rouge Tribunal.
• August 8 – The United States military begins an air campaign in northern Iraq to stem the influx of ISIS militants.

September

• September 22 – The United States and several Arab partners begin their airstrike campaign in Syria.
• September 26 – The 2014 World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates, to be held in Cape Town from 13 to 15 October, is suspended after a boycott of Nobel Laureates to protest the third time refusal of a visa to the 14th Dalai Lama by a South African Government "kowtowing to China".

October

• October 19 – The Roman Catholic Church beatifies Pope Paul VI.
• October 31 – Burkina Faso President Blaise Compaoré resigns after widespread protests in response to the attempt in abolishing presidential term limits.

November

• November 2 – The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) releases the final part of its Fifth Assessment Report, warning that the world faces "severe, pervasive and irreversible" damage from global emissions of CO2.
• November 12 – The Rosetta spacecraft's Philae probe successfully lands on Comet 67P, the first time in history that a spacecraft has landed on such an object.

December

• December 17 – U.S. President Barack Obama announces the resumption of normal relations between the U.S. and Cuba.

<3 Frances