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Volume 31, # 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . December 2015 |
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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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Valuable Riches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B.C. Forbes, F
ORBES, 12/14/87"By becoming better educated than the average and by keeping your mind on the helpful subjects, you will not only qualify for higher…rewards and for positions of wider responsibility and influence and power, but you will lay up for yourself riches which will become valuable beyond price to you in later life when the things which money can buy cease to satisfy and one must find pleasure and satisfaction and joy from the inward, not the outward life."
Confidence Builder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Christophers, #23
"Building confidence is the work of a lifetime. A word of reassurance at the right moment could be the difference between success or failure for someone. Become a confidence builder."
A Mature Person . . . . . . . . . . . . . Eleanor Roosevelt, It Seems to Me: Selected Letters
"A mature person is one who does not think only in absolutes, who is able to be objective even when deeply stirred emotionally, who has learned that there is both good and bad in all people and in all things, and who walks humbly and deals charitably with the circumstances of life, knowing that in this world no one is all knowing and therefore all of us need both love and charity."
Human Wisdom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alexandre Dumas
"All human wisdom is summed up in two words –
wait and hope."
How to Give Advice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rabbi Zelig Pliskin, Daily Lift #459
"Giving positive advice to people who are open to hearing it, is one of the greatest acts of kindness you can do.
Be careful not to give advice when it is unwanted, even if you are well-meaning. A prerequisite for giving advice is to have the humility not to give advice unless you are certain it will have a positive outcome.
How you give advice is often a key factor in whether or not it will be appreciated. Giving positive advice takes great skill."
Experience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . D.W. Williams
"Past experience should be a guidepost, not a hitching post."
Personal Choices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . M. Scott Peck, The Road Less Traveled, p. 43-44
"Dr. Hilde Bruch, Learning Psychotherapy, states that basically all patients come to psychiatrists with ‘one common problem: the sense of helplessness, the fear and inner conviction of being unable to cope and to change things.’
Sooner or later, if they are to be healed, each one must learn that the entirety of ones adult life is a series of personal choices, decisions. If they can accept this totally, then they become free people. To the extent that they do not accept this they will forever feel themselves victims."
Gift of Wonder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rev. Alfred McBride, O. Praem., The Priest, Oct. ‘87, p.26
"Each year, God asks us to shed one more coat of awareness, one more dream state and come alive to the vision of God’s plan for each of us and the world-at-large.
The older we get, the harder this is to do. As children we had a sense of wonder. Our eyes were wide open and drinking in the fascinating gifts we beheld…Our thirsty souls could not have enough of the wonders of creation.
Then, somehow, we grew too old to dream. We tired of the abundance of the world, or at least grew weary of keeping up with the feast of life, and stepped away from the banquet of life.
The natural gift of wonder God gave us as children was meant to be kept alive.…Instead we let wonder go to sleep. We entered the typical dream state of most humans.
Why else does Jesus tell us today, ‘Stay awake!’…Advent says, ‘Wake up and realize the gifts of love you have received.’
…Psychology says, ‘Let go.’ Spirituality says, ‘Wake up.’ In both cases there is a withdrawal from the busyness of daily life (our dream state) and a waking up to the subconscious and spiritual depths of ourselves."
‘Under’ and ‘Over’. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Will Rogers, Will Rogers Speaks, p. 212
"I must tell you the past year was a year of ‘under- and over-estimation.’
Nothing was guessed right all year. Optimism was overrated and pessimism was underrated."
Full Listening . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Fr. Ed Hays, A Pilgrim’s Almanac, p. 192
"Full listening demands an openness to communication through our eyes as well as our ears. Indeed, messages are received through all senses. Communications come by way of another’s voice, eyes, posture, dress, attitudes, and it comes in most concentrated form in silence.
To hear another, we must be very still. Not only do we need to be still exteriorly, but we must be free of hearing only ourselves and our needs.…And if we are aware of what’s really happening, then something real is likely to happen! Our awareness opens out into caring, into concern externalized."
Let Light Shine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Marianne Williamson
"As we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."
Bearing Grudges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Anonymous
"No matter how long you nurse a grudge, it won’t get better."
The Little Things . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Source Unknown
The story has been told of a bank employee who was due for a good promotion. One day at lunch the bank president happened to be standing behind the clerk in the cafeteria line and saw him slip two pats of butter under his plate so that they wouldn’t be seen by the cashier.
That little act of dishonesty cost him his promotion. Just a few pennies worth of butter made the difference. The bank president reasoned that if an employee cannot be trusted in little things he cannot be trusted at all.
A Gift That Will Last. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Fresh Packet of Sower’s Seeds, p. 9
"One of the greatest gifts we can bring to the world, bring to each man, woman or child we meet this Christmas season, is to ‘practice random kindness and senseless acts of beauty.’ I’m reminded of the B.C. comic strip from several years ago in which cartoonist Johnny Hart has the character Wiley searching for answers to one of life’s great questions. It is a question so simple and yet so timely. In the first panel Wiley asks, ‘Whatever happened to kindness?’ He then proceeds to write the following verse:
Why do people go to the trouble
to give other people some trouble?
Why do they burst someone’s bubble,
when they know it comes back to them double?
Why do we go to the effort to hurt
someone we actually love?
Why can’t we say something sweet
‘stead of curt?
A push only leads to a shove.
Why can’t we treat other folks with respect?
With a smile or a kind word or two.
Treat them with honor, the way you’d expect
they should act when they’re dealing with you.
Why can’t we overlook others’ mistakes?
We’ve all surely been there before.
Love and forgiveness is all that it takes,
to boot Satan’s butt out the door.This Christmas season, give a gift that will last, a gift that will endure long after you are gone. ‘Practice random kindness and senseless acts of beauty.’ Go ahead, try it! It will only shock you a bit. I’m sure it will astound others, too, and I am certain it will startle the world around you. Go ahead, practice kindness anyway. The world could use a jolt such as this.
Apple images are from ClickArt Incredible Image Pak 65,000 Broderbund, Inc.
Graphics used with permission from ChurchArt Online. They are not to be copied or downloaded.