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Volume 32, # 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . April 2017 |
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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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Ordinary Virtues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . John C. Bogle
"Rely on the ordinary virtues that intelligent, balanced human beings have relied on for centuries: common sense, thrift, realistic expectations, patience, and perseverance."
A Good Sweat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Arthur Dobrin
"A good sweat, with the blood pounding through my body, makes me feel alive, revitalized. I gain a sense of mastery and assurance. I feel good about myself. Then I can feel good about others."
Be of Good Cheer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Christophers News Notes, 284
"Humor, mirth, and playfulness are all divinely created to serve God’s purpose in us, to balance the pain, the heartaches, and the tears that assuredly will come."
On Commitment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe
"Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative and creation, there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one’s favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it. Begin it now."
On Prayer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . St. Theresa of Avila
"There are more tears shed over answered prayers than over unanswered prayers."
On Leadership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bart Giamatti,
former president of Yale University"Leadership is an essentially moral act, not – as in most management – an essentially protective act. It is the assertion of a vision, not simply the exercise of a style."
Urgency of Doing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Leonardo da Vinci
"I have been impressed with the urgency of doing. Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do."
Afire With God . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Elizabeth Barrett Browning
"Earth’s crammed with heaven.
And every common bush afire with God;
But only he who sees takes off his shoes,
The rest sit round it and pluck blackberries."
On Forgiveness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Christopher News Notes, # 471
"Forgive, derived from the Old English ‘forgiefan’, means ‘To give up, cease to harbor (resentment, wrath; To remit (a debt); to give up resentment or claim to requital for, to pardon (an offence)’ (OED).
"To say ‘I forgive you’ frees the mind & the soul from the burdens of a grudge. Forgiveness neither condones the wrong nor shows weakness. One must be strong to forgive.…"
Team Unity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Paul "Bear" Bryant
"In order to have a winner, the team must have a feeling of unity; every player must put the team first – ahead of personal glory."
Lateral Thinking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Earl Nightingale, Insight, # 57
"…It’s been said that the solution to every problem is so close, you can reach out and touch it. But you can’t touch it with your hand until you touch it with a bit of lateral creative thinking.
"Children seem to be better at lateral thinking than grown-ups, unless grown-ups work at it, practice it. And they can learn the knack – or perhaps, relearn it would be more appropriate. We all were highly creative children at one time, before we had it worn off or knocked out of us by unimaginative, dull adults."
Great Persons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alfred Armand Montapert
"Great persons are great because of good, strong foundations on which they were able to build a character."
Fill Important Places . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Robert Fulghum,
All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten, p. 79
"Without realizing it, we fill important places in each other’s lives. It’s that way with a minister and congregation. Or with the guy at the corner grocery, the mechanic at the local garage, the family doctor, teachers, neighbors, co-workers. Good people, who are always ‘there’, who can be relied upon in small, important ways. People who teach us, bless us, encourage us, support us, uplift us in the dailyness of life. We never tell them. I don’t know why, but we don’t."
On politics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Will Rogers,
11/4/1928"Times have only proven one thing, and that is that you can’t ruin this country, even with politics."
On Character . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Coach Vince Lombardi
"Character rather than education is man’s greatest need and man’s greatest safeguard because character is higher than intellect."
"Love Brings Trouble" . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sower’s Seeds of Encouragement, p. 22It’s been said that when we love people and go out of our way to help them, we become vulnerable. That’s what the wealthy industrialist Charles M. Schwab declared after going to court and winning a nuisance suit at age 70. Given permission by the judge to speak to the spectators, Schwab made the following statement: "I’d like to say here in a court of law, and speaking as an old man, that nine-tenths of my troubles are traceable to my being kind to others. Look, you young people, if you want to steer away from trouble, be hard-boiled. Be quick with a good loud ‘no’ to anyone and everyone. If you follow this rule, you will seldom be bothered as you tread life’s pathways. Except you’ll have no friends, you’ll be lonely, and you won’t have any fun!"
Schwab made his point – love may bring heartache, but it’s worth it!
Parable of Brother Leo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Michael Josephson
(CharacterCounts.org)A legend tells of a monastery well-known throughout Europe for the extraordinary leadership of a man known only as Brother Leo. Several monks began a pilgrimage to visit Brother Leo to learn from him. Almost immediately, they began to bicker about who should do various chores.
On the third day they met another monk going to the monastery, and he joined them. This monk never complained or shirked a duty, and whenever the others would fight over a chore, he would gracefully volunteer and do it himself. By the last day, the others were following his example, and from then on they worked together smoothly.
When they reached the monastery and asked to see Brother Leo, the monk who greeted them laughed. ‘But our brother is among you!’ And he pointed to the fellow who had joined them.
Today, many people seek leadership positions, not so much for what they can do for others but for what the position can do for them: status, connections, perks, advantages. They do service as an investment, a way to build an impressive resume.
The parable about Brother Leo teaches another model of leadership, where leaders are preoccupied with serving rather than being followed, with giving rather than getting, with doing rather than demanding.
It’s a form of leadership based on example, not command. This is called servant leadership.
Can you imagine how much better things would be if more politicians, educators, and business executives saw themselves as servant leaders?
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