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Volume 27, # 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . April 2012 |
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![inspiration, motivation, Apple Seeds, [Apple]](AppleSeeds-1c.jpg)
![inspiration, motivation, Apple Seeds, [Apple]](AppleSeeds-2c.jpg)
Plant these "seeds" well and water often. Enjoy!
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Life of Wisdom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . M. Scott Peck, The Road Less Traveled, p. 51
"The life of wisdom must be a life of contemplation combined with action."
Test of Character . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . John Holt
"The true test of character is not how much we know how to do, but how we behave when we don’t know what to do."
A Dangerous Citizen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Charles Austin Beard
"You need only reflect that one of the best ways to get yourself a reputation as a dangerous citizen these days is to go about repeating the very phrases which our founding fathers used in the struggle for independence."
Temper – Pride . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Anonymous
"Temper is what gets most of us into trouble.
Pride is what keeps us there."
On Enthusiasm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Enthusiasm is one of the most powerful engines of success. When you do a thing, do it with all your might. Put your whole soul into it. Stamp it with your own personality. Be active, be energetic, be enthusiastic and faithful, and you will accomplish your object. Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm."
Our Deepest Fear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Marianne Williamson, A Return to Love, p. 190
"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn’t serve the world. There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we’re liberated from our fear, our presence automatically liberates others."
Successful Person . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ruth Smeltzer
"The successful person is the one who went ahead and did the thing I always intended to do."
What Makes a Saint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Guidewords
"Why were the saints saints? Because they were cheerful when it was difficult to be cheerful; patient when it was difficult to be patient. And because they pushed on when they wanted to stand still; and kept silent when they wanted to talk. And because they were agreeable when they wanted to be disagreeable.
That was all. It was quite simple, and always will be."
Lofty Dreams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . John Ruskin
"Dream lofty dreams, and as you dream, so shall you become. Your vision is the promise of what you shall at last unveil."
Tea Bag Wisdom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Salada tea bag
"When in doubt, do the friendliest thing."
Magnanimous People . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Van Wyck Brooks, A Chilmark Miscellany
"How delightful is the company of generous people, who overlook trifles and keep their minds instinctively fixed on whatever is good and positive in the world about them. People of small caliber are always carping. They are bent on showing their own superiority, their knowledge or prowess or good breeding. But magnanimous people have no vanity, they have no jealousy, and they feed on the true and the solid wherever they find it. And what is more, they find it everywhere."
The Quality of Courage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mickey Mantle, p. 19
"Be yourself – don’t pretend to be what you’re not in order to avoid criticism. Be yourself; improve yourself by study and practice and common sense. But don’t fake it just to keep on the good side of somebody who spends all his time picking apart other people."
Wisdom Seeds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . William Arthur Ward
"It is wise to inventory and insure our valuables;
it is vital to examine and ensure our values."
Sense of Gift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ernest Kurtz, et al, The Spirituality of Imperfection, p. 175
"Gratitude can best be defined and understood as the only possible response to a gift, to something recognized as utterly, freely given. Gratitude is the vision – the way of seeing – that recognizes ‘gift.’
Our culture seems on the verge of losing the meaning of the experience of gratitude, in part because we have lost all sense of ‘gift.’"
Used by God’s Love . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Thomas Merton, The Catholic Digest, June ‘91, p. 74
"All the good that you will do will come not from you but from the fact that you have allowed yourself, in the obedience of faith, to be used by God’s love. Think of this more and gradually you will be free from the need to prove yourself, and you can be more open to the power that will work through you without your knowing it."
Goals of Leadership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . John Gardner
"The four moral goals of leadership are:
- Releasing the human potential.
- Balancing the needs of the individual and the community.
- Defending the fundamental values of the community.
- Instilling in individuals a sense of initiative and responsibility."
Highest Courage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Successories
"The highest courage is to dare to be yourself in the face of adversity. Choosing right over wrong, ethics over convenience, and truth over popularity…these are the choices that measure your life. Travel the path of integrity without looking back, for there is never a wrong time to do the right thing."
Easter Monday . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Fellowship of Merry Christians
"In early Christianity, Easter Monday traditionally was a Day of Joy and Laughter. Also called, Bright Monday, it was a day when Christians went to church to celebrate the practical joke that God played on Satan by raising Jesus from the dead.
On Easter Monday, the early Christians – filled with the joy of the risen Christ – went to church to frolic, to tell clean jokes, to play merry pranks on one another, to feast on lamb, to sing and dance, and to have a lot of fun. With Eastertide, wrote Jurgan Moltmann, began ‘the laughing of the redeemed, the dancing of the liberated.’
The tradition may have been inspired by the famous Easter sermon of John Chrysostom who described a vision of Christ confronting the Devil and laughing at him"
What ‘We’ Means . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Source Unknown
A well-known organist was performing a concert on the huge, antique organ in the local Presbyterian church. The bellows were hand-pumped by a boy who was behind a screen, unseen by the audience. The first part of the performance was well received. The audience was thrilled by the organist’s ability at the keyboard of the old instrument. After taking his bows and accepting the ovation, the musician walked triumphantly into a side passageway. As he passed the boy he heard him say, "We played well, didn’t we, sir?"
The organist haughtily replied, "And what do you mean, we?"
After the intermission, the organist returned to his seat at the impressive five-keyboard console and began to play. But nothing happened; not a sound was heard. Then the organist heard a youthful voice whisper from behind the screen, "Say, mister, now do you know what ‘we’ means?"
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