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Volume 17, # 9 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . May, 2002 |
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Volume 17, # 9 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . May, 2002 |
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Praise & Creativity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alex F. Osborn
"Creativity is so delicate a flower that praise tends to make it bloom, while discouragement often nips it in the bud. Any of us will put out more and better ideas if our efforts are appreciated."
Opportunity for Good . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F.W. Faber,
Positive Press"Remember that if the opportunities for great deeds should never come, the opportunities for good deeds are renewed day by day. The thing for us to long for is the goodness, not the glory."
The Aladdin Factor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jack Canfield & Mark V. Hansen
"Five Barriers To Asking Questions:
5. Pride. Many of us, especially men, get stuck in our pride. We become too arrogant to admit we need anyone or anything. We will not stop to ask for directions, advice or help."
We Need to Feel More . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Susan Polis Schultz,
Blue Mtn. Arts, 1989"We need to feel more to understand others.
We need to love more to be loved back.
We need to cry more to cleanse ourselves.
We need to laugh more to enjoy ourselves.
We need to establish the valley of honesty and fairness when interacting with people.
We need to establish a strong ethical basis as a way of life.
We need to see more than our own little fantasies.
We need to hear more and listen to the needs of others.
We need to give more and take less.
We need to share more and own less.
We need to realize the importance of the family as a backbone to stability.
We need to look more and realize that we are not so different from one another.
We need to need to create a world where we can all peacefully live the life we choose.
We need to create a world where we can once again trust each other."
Up Words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . William Arthur Ward
"Freedom’s enemies are waste, lethargy, indifference, immorality, and the insidious attitude of something for nothing."
"Learn and grow all you can; serve and befriend all you can; enrich and inspire all you can."
On Prayer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pope John Paul II, via Zenit.org
Pope John Paul II in his address to the clergy in Rome on Feb. 14, 2002 said, "Prayer is not a kind of delegating to the Lord so that he can act in our place. Instead it is confiding in him, putting ourselves in his hands, which makes us in turn confident and ready to do God’s work."
God’s Fool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mark Twain
"I am a fool. But I am God’s fool
and all of His works must be contemplated with respect."
Tree Planter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . James Russell Lowe,
Guidewords: Anthology of Inspiration & Humor, p. 81
"Who does his duty is a question
too complicated to be solved by me,
But he, I venture the suggestion,
Does part of his that plants a tree.
What though his memory shall have vanished,
Since the good deed he did survives?
It is not wholly to be banished
Thus to be part of many lives."
Look for the Good . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ralph Waldo Emerson
"An individual has a healthy personality to the exact degree to which they have the propensity to look for the good in every situation."
Gifts are Loaned . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Harry Marsh
(adapted)
The Creator does not give to those who will not spend; His gifts are loaned to those who will use them. Empty your lungs and breathe. Run, climb, work and laugh. The more you give out the more you shall receive. Participate. Men and women do not really live for honors or for pay; their happiness is not in the taking and holding, but in the doing, the striving, the building, the serving."
Life is Too Short . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Andre Maurois
"Life is too short to be little. Often we allow ourselves to be upset by little things we should forget…
We may lose many irreplaceable hours brooding over small grievances that in a year’s time will be forgotten.
So let us devote our lives to worthwhile actions and feelings—to great thoughts, real affection and enduring undertakings."
Live Happier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Earl Nightingale
"If we can augment our gift giving by giving more of ourselves to those we love, all the time and in various ways, we will have a good chance of helping them and ourselves live happier, better lives."
Storytellers’ Creed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Robert Fulghum
"I believe that imagination is stronger than knowledge,
That myth is more potent than history,
That dreams are more powerful than facts,
That hope always triumphs over experience,
That laughter is the only cure for grief,
And I believe that love is stronger than death."
Service was Joy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rabindranath Tagore
"I slept—and dreamed that life was joy.
I woke—and saw that life was but service.
I served—and understood that service was joy."
Envy’s Crushing Weight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Lloyd J. Ogilive
There’s an ancient Greek legend that tells of the plight of combative competition. In one important race, a certain athlete ran well, but he still placed second. The crowd applauded the winner noisily, and after a time a statue was erected in his honor. But the one who placed second came to think of himself as a loser. Corrosive envy ate away at him physically and emotionally, filling his body with the bile of bitterness. He could think of nothing else but his defeat and his obsession to be number one. He decided he had to destroy the statue that was a daily reminder of his lost glory.
A plan took shape in his mind, which he began to implement. Late each night, when everyone was asleep, he went to the statue and chiseled at the base hoping to so weaken the foundation that eventually it would topple over.
One night, as he was chiseling the statue with such intense anger and bitterness, he went too far. The heavy marble statue teetered on its weakened base and crashed on the disgruntled athlete. He died beneath the crushing weight of the marble likeness of the one he had grown to hate. But in reality he had been dying long before, inch by inch, chisel blow by chisel blow. He was the victim of his own envy and rage.
Prayer to Illuminate Our Understanding
Benjamin Franklin spoke to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia on May, 1787:
"How has it happened that we have not hitherto once thought of humbly applying to the Father of lights to illuminate our understanding? In the beginning of the Contest with Great Britain, when we were sensible of danger, we had daily prayer in this room for the divine protection. Our prayers, Sir, were heard, and graciously answered.
And have we now forgotten that powerful Friend? Or do we imagine that we no longer need His assistance? The longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth—that God governs in the affairs of men. I therefore beg leave to move that prayers imploring the assistance of Heaven be held in this Assembly every morning before we proceed to business."
May 2, 2002
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