A very special teacher in high school many years ago had a husband who unexpectedly died suddenly of a heart attack. About a week after his death, she shared some of her insight with a classroom of students. As the late afternoon sunlight came streaming in through the classroom windows and the class was nearly over, she moved a few things aside on the edge of her desk and sat down there.
With a gentle look of reflection on her face, she paused and said, "Before class is over, I would like to share with all of you a thought that is unrelated to class, but which I feel is very important. Each of us is put here on earth to learn, share, love, appreciate and give of ourselves... and none of us knows when this fantastic experience will end. It can be taken away at any moment. Perhaps this is God's way of telling us that we must make the most out of every single day."
Her eyes beginning to water, she went on, "So I would like you all to make me a promise... from now on, on your way to school, or on your way home, find something beautiful to notice. It doesn't have to be something you see - it could be a scent - perhaps of freshly baked bread wafting out of someone's house, or it could be the
sound of the breeze slightly rustling the leaves in the trees, or the way the morning light catches one autumn leaf as it falls gently to the ground. Please, look for these things, and cherish them.
For, although it may sound trite to some, these things are the "stuff" of life. The little things we are put here on earth to enjoy. The things we often take for granted. We must make it important to notice them, for at any time ... it can all be taken away."
The class was completely quiet. We all picked up our books and filed out of the room silently. That afternoon, I noticed more things on my way home from school than I had that whole semester. Every once in a while, I think of that teacher and remember what an impression she made on all of us, and I try to appreciate all of those things that sometimes we all overlook.
Take notice of something special you see on your lunch hour today. Go barefoot. Or walk on the beach at sunset. Stop off on the way home tonight to get a double dip ice cream cone. For as we get older, it is not the things we did that we often regret, but the things we didn't do.
Archives: http://heaven-showers.blogspot.com/
Friday, February 23, 2007
Look Around You
Recipe For Love
Never sleep on an angry word.
Never make the other feel absurd.
Always believe in each other's dreams.
Keep communication flowing like a stream.
Speak to each other with a tender heart.
Remember each day how you felt at the start.
Treat each other with kindness and respect.
Love grows only with care not neglect.
Never forget a special day.
Never miss a chance to say,
All the good things that you feel,
A loving kiss can always heal.
Desire should make you swoon,
Each and everyday should be a honeymoon.
Nothing can ever be more important than your lover.
Never give a passionate thought to any other.
To make love last for all eternity,
The "ME" must become "WE".
When your heart is full of affection,
Love will always know the right direction.
Share Love. Spread Love. - Lovely Wishes for Valentines
Never make the other feel absurd.
Always believe in each other's dreams.
Keep communication flowing like a stream.
Speak to each other with a tender heart.
Remember each day how you felt at the start.
Treat each other with kindness and respect.
Love grows only with care not neglect.
Never forget a special day.
Never miss a chance to say,
All the good things that you feel,
A loving kiss can always heal.
Desire should make you swoon,
Each and everyday should be a honeymoon.
Nothing can ever be more important than your lover.
Never give a passionate thought to any other.
To make love last for all eternity,
The "ME" must become "WE".
When your heart is full of affection,
Love will always know the right direction.
Share Love. Spread Love. - Lovely Wishes for Valentines
The Power Of Positive Thinking
The famous author of The Power of Positive Thinking once told this story.
A man once telephoned Norman Vincent Peale. He was despondent and told the reverend that he had nothing left to live for. Peale invited the man over to his office. Everything is gone, hopeless, the man told him. I'm living in deepest darkness. In fact, I've lost heart for living altogether.
Norman Vincent Peale smiled sympathetically.
Let's take a look at your situation, he said calmly. On a sheet of paper he drew a vertical line down the middle. He suggested that they list on the left side the things the man had lost, and on the right, the things he had left. You won't need that column on the right side, said the man sadly. I have nothing left, period.
Peale asked, When did your wife leave you
What do you mean She hasn't left me. My wife loves me!
That's great! said Peale enthusiastically. Then that will be number one in the right-hand column—Wife hasn't left. Now, when were your children jailed
That's silly. My children aren't in jail!
Good! That's number two in the right-hand column—Children not in jail, said Peale, jotting it down.
After a few more questions in the same vein, the man finally got the point and smiled in spite of himself. Funny, how things change when you think of them that way, he said.
A man once telephoned Norman Vincent Peale. He was despondent and told the reverend that he had nothing left to live for. Peale invited the man over to his office. Everything is gone, hopeless, the man told him. I'm living in deepest darkness. In fact, I've lost heart for living altogether.
Norman Vincent Peale smiled sympathetically.
Let's take a look at your situation, he said calmly. On a sheet of paper he drew a vertical line down the middle. He suggested that they list on the left side the things the man had lost, and on the right, the things he had left. You won't need that column on the right side, said the man sadly. I have nothing left, period.
Peale asked, When did your wife leave you
What do you mean She hasn't left me. My wife loves me!
That's great! said Peale enthusiastically. Then that will be number one in the right-hand column—Wife hasn't left. Now, when were your children jailed
That's silly. My children aren't in jail!
Good! That's number two in the right-hand column—Children not in jail, said Peale, jotting it down.
After a few more questions in the same vein, the man finally got the point and smiled in spite of himself. Funny, how things change when you think of them that way, he said.
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
I Love You
Roses are red, Violets are blue,
Nothing is sweeter, than loving you.
The things you say, they make me smile.
I re-read all your letters, every once in a while.
The things you write, with all the rhymes,
They brighten my day a thousand times.
Valentines days, in years gone passed,
none of the boys, to date me they asked.
The dances at school, before I went home,
I'd stand at the side, all alone.
Then you came along, and said three words,
and of those three, I'm glad I heard.
So hear is a poem, from me to you,
it's simply to say, how much I love you!
Nothing is sweeter, than loving you.
The things you say, they make me smile.
I re-read all your letters, every once in a while.
The things you write, with all the rhymes,
They brighten my day a thousand times.
Valentines days, in years gone passed,
none of the boys, to date me they asked.
The dances at school, before I went home,
I'd stand at the side, all alone.
Then you came along, and said three words,
and of those three, I'm glad I heard.
So hear is a poem, from me to you,
it's simply to say, how much I love you!
Share Love. Spread Love. - Lovely Wishes for Valentines
Sunday, February 11, 2007
Promise Yourself
To be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind;
To talk health, happiness, and prosperity to every person you meet;
To make all your friends feel that there is something in them;
To look at the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true;
To think only the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best;
To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own;
To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future;
To wear a cheerful countenance at all times and give every living creature you meet a smile;
To give so much time to the improvement of yourself that you have no time to criticize others;
To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear; and too happy to permit the presence of trouble;
To think well of yourself and to proclaim this fact to the world, not in loud words, but in great deeds;
To live in the faith that the whole world is on your side so long as you are true to the best that is in you.
To talk health, happiness, and prosperity to every person you meet;
To make all your friends feel that there is something in them;
To look at the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true;
To think only the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best;
To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own;
To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future;
To wear a cheerful countenance at all times and give every living creature you meet a smile;
To give so much time to the improvement of yourself that you have no time to criticize others;
To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear; and too happy to permit the presence of trouble;
To think well of yourself and to proclaim this fact to the world, not in loud words, but in great deeds;
To live in the faith that the whole world is on your side so long as you are true to the best that is in you.
Archives: http://heaven-showers.blogspot.com
Monday, February 05, 2007
Seize The Moment
I have a friend who lives by a three-word philosophy: Seize the moment. Just possibly, she may be the wisest woman on this planet.
Too many people put off something that brings them joy just because they haven't thought about it, don't have it on their schedule, didn't know it was coming or are too rigid to depart from their routine.
I got to thinking one day about all those women on the Titanic who passed up dessert at dinner that fateful night in an effort to cut back. From then on, I've tried to be a little more flexible.
How many women out there will eat at home because their husband didn't suggest going out to dinner until after something had been thawed? Does the word "refrigeration" mean nothing to you?
How often have your kids dropped in to talk and sat in silence while you watched Jeopardy on television?
I cannot count the times I called my sister and said, "How about going to lunch in a half hour?" She would gasp and stammer, "I can't."
Check one:
"I have clothes on the line."
"My hair is dirty."
"I wish I had known yesterday."
"I had a late breakfast".
"It looks like rain".
And my personal favorite: "It's Monday".
She died a few years ago. We never did have lunch together.
Because Americans cram so much into their lives, we tend to schedule our headaches. We live on a sparse diet of promises we make to ourselves when all the conditions are perfect. We'll go back and visit the grandparents when we get Stevie toilet-trained. We'll entertain when we replace the living-room carpet. We'll go on a second honeymoon when we get two more kids out of college.
Life has a way of accelerating, as we get older. The days get shorter, and the list of promises to ourselves gets longer. One morning, we awaken, and all we have to show for our lives is a litany of "I'm going to," "I plan on" and "Someday, when things are settled down a bit."
When anyone calls my 'seize the moment' friend, she is open to adventure and available for trips. She keeps an open mind on new ideas. Her enthusiasm for life is contagious. You talk with her for five minutes, and you're ready to trade your bad feet for a pair of Roller blades and skip an elevator for a bungee cord.
My lips have not touched ice cream in 10 years. I love ice cream. It's just that I might as well apply it directly to my hips with a spatula and eliminate the digestive process. The other day, I stopped the car and bought a triple-decker. If my car had hit an iceberg on the way home, I would have died happy.
Now...go on and have a nice day. Do something you WANT to .... Not something on your SHOULD DO list.
Archives: http://heaven-showers.blogspot.com
Too many people put off something that brings them joy just because they haven't thought about it, don't have it on their schedule, didn't know it was coming or are too rigid to depart from their routine.
I got to thinking one day about all those women on the Titanic who passed up dessert at dinner that fateful night in an effort to cut back. From then on, I've tried to be a little more flexible.
How many women out there will eat at home because their husband didn't suggest going out to dinner until after something had been thawed? Does the word "refrigeration" mean nothing to you?
How often have your kids dropped in to talk and sat in silence while you watched Jeopardy on television?
I cannot count the times I called my sister and said, "How about going to lunch in a half hour?" She would gasp and stammer, "I can't."
Check one:
"I have clothes on the line."
"My hair is dirty."
"I wish I had known yesterday."
"I had a late breakfast".
"It looks like rain".
And my personal favorite: "It's Monday".
She died a few years ago. We never did have lunch together.
Because Americans cram so much into their lives, we tend to schedule our headaches. We live on a sparse diet of promises we make to ourselves when all the conditions are perfect. We'll go back and visit the grandparents when we get Stevie toilet-trained. We'll entertain when we replace the living-room carpet. We'll go on a second honeymoon when we get two more kids out of college.
Life has a way of accelerating, as we get older. The days get shorter, and the list of promises to ourselves gets longer. One morning, we awaken, and all we have to show for our lives is a litany of "I'm going to," "I plan on" and "Someday, when things are settled down a bit."
When anyone calls my 'seize the moment' friend, she is open to adventure and available for trips. She keeps an open mind on new ideas. Her enthusiasm for life is contagious. You talk with her for five minutes, and you're ready to trade your bad feet for a pair of Roller blades and skip an elevator for a bungee cord.
My lips have not touched ice cream in 10 years. I love ice cream. It's just that I might as well apply it directly to my hips with a spatula and eliminate the digestive process. The other day, I stopped the car and bought a triple-decker. If my car had hit an iceberg on the way home, I would have died happy.
Now...go on and have a nice day. Do something you WANT to .... Not something on your SHOULD DO list.
Archives: http://heaven-showers.blogspot.com
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
