A friend emailed me this poem and I really liked it that I want to share this with everybody.
NEVER SAY GOODBYE
Never say goodbye
if you still want to try
Never give up
if you feel you can go on
Never say you don't love a person anymore
if you feel you can't let go
For love comes to those who still hope
although they've been disappointed
To those who still believe
although they've been betrayed
To those who still need love
although they've been hurt before
And to those who still have the courage
and faith to build trust again
It takes only a minute
to get a crush on someone
an hour to like someone
and a day to love someone
But it takes a lifetime to forget someone
Maybe God wants us to meet a few wrong people
before meeting the right one
So that when we finally met that right person
We will learn how to be grateful for that gift.
Anonymous
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Monday, September 29, 2008
proud of being Pinoy
What I love being a Filipino
1. hot pandesal in the morning
2. the smell of tuyo
3. mango and bagoong
4. waiting in line for the midnight sale
5. best buys at UK (ukay-ukay)
6. my Lola's guinataang kuhol
7. getting free samples hehehe
8. crying while watching Filipino movies
9. balot and balot pinoy
10. riding in a calesa, jeepney,sikad-sikad,tricycle
and the list can go on and on and on....
1. hot pandesal in the morning
2. the smell of tuyo
3. mango and bagoong
4. waiting in line for the midnight sale
5. best buys at UK (ukay-ukay)
6. my Lola's guinataang kuhol
7. getting free samples hehehe
8. crying while watching Filipino movies
9. balot and balot pinoy
10. riding in a calesa, jeepney,sikad-sikad,tricycle
and the list can go on and on and on....
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Love according to...
Albert Einstein:
Gravitation is not responsible for people falling in love
Amy Bloom:
Love at first sight is easy to understand; it's when two people have been looking at each other for a lifetime that it becomes a miracle.
Anais Nin:
Love never dies a natural death. It dies because we don't know how to replenish its source. It dies of blindness and errors and betrayals. It dies of illness and wounds; it dies of weariness, of witherings, of tarnishings.
Ann Landers:
If you have love in your life it can make up for a great many things you lack. If you don't have it, no matter what else there is, it's not enough.
Carl Jung:
Where love rules, there is no will to power; and where power predominates, there love is lacking. The one is the shadow of the other.
Richard Bach
Can miles truly separate you from friends... If you want to be with someone you love, aren't you already there?
Saint Augustine
Love is the beauty of the soul.
Different Faces of Love
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.
—I Corinthians 13:4-8a (NIV)
Love is like an eternal flame,
Once it is lit, it will continue to burn for all time.
Love gives naught but itself and takes naught but from itself.
Love possesses not nor would it be possessed;
For love is sufficient unto love.
Love is broad; if you love someone, you love all things,
not just their beauty.
Love is narrow; you love one and only one, compared to them, no one matters.
Love is something eternal; the aspect may change,
but not the essence.
“There is nothing stronger than true love. You must believe to understand, and you must understand to believe. If you don't believe, you can't understand, and, if you don't understand, you can't believe.”
“True love is eternal, infinite, and always like itself. It is equal and pure, without violent demonstrations: it is seen with white hairs and is always
young in the heart.”
on being a blogger
Tired from the pressure of my job,and with my beloved working oceans and oceans away from me, i usually come home everyday exhausted and oftentimes irritated.Only the kids can ease my weariness away,but when a friend suggested I try blogging,it instantly changed my life or rather the routine of my life.Let me put it into other words,whenever I visit my site and breathe in how I have come this far,I feel this other kind of happiness I never thought there is.It is therapeutic for me and at the same time it became an outlet to air what's on my mind, what I like best and what my preferences are.It's like my personal diary that is being used to amuse, inform and inspire my fellow beings.
I may be not the best in this field but I love what I'm doing and what's important is that doing this makes me happy.
And this goes out to all blogger in the world.
I may be not the best in this field but I love what I'm doing and what's important is that doing this makes me happy.
And this goes out to all blogger in the world.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Angel in Disguise
Everyday we encounter angels in our lives,maybe we just don't recognize them right away because they come in many disguises.I believe that this story related to me by my parents is one example of this.
The month of June is unforgettable for the people in the City of Love.The supertyphoon Frank just lashed its strong winds and rains in the city causing flash flood and taking many lives and resources.My parents went out to help my brother and sister who were victims of the flood,but while on their way they were met with strong currents of flood water, floating furniture and appliances from damaged houses.No matter how dangerous it may seem they continued to swim their way and clung on to each other,all the time thinking about my siblings but nearing the bridge (which by that time is already underwater),they were pulled away from the street and guided into a two story building.Then they were not permitted to go out, because they said all the houses in the bridge are washed away and that it will be impossible for them to go across.They all went to the rooftop when the water reach the second level of the building, there they waited until the wee hours of the morning.All my parents could do was pray for the safety of my brother and sister.
Soaking wet and shivering, they were given dry clothes and food by the owner and made their stay as comfortable as it can be.
As soon as it was okay to tread the ground, my parents proceeded,they passed by many drowned victims along the way.When they reached our place there they found my brother and sister safe and sound.They were able to come to our house before it was too late.
Until now my parents cannot stop talking about that kind person who saved them.For me she is one of the angels in disguise.I know I can never thank her enough, but nevertheless I will always bear in my heart my deep gratitude for her. Thank you so much and God Bless you and your Family.
The month of June is unforgettable for the people in the City of Love.The supertyphoon Frank just lashed its strong winds and rains in the city causing flash flood and taking many lives and resources.My parents went out to help my brother and sister who were victims of the flood,but while on their way they were met with strong currents of flood water, floating furniture and appliances from damaged houses.No matter how dangerous it may seem they continued to swim their way and clung on to each other,all the time thinking about my siblings but nearing the bridge (which by that time is already underwater),they were pulled away from the street and guided into a two story building.Then they were not permitted to go out, because they said all the houses in the bridge are washed away and that it will be impossible for them to go across.They all went to the rooftop when the water reach the second level of the building, there they waited until the wee hours of the morning.All my parents could do was pray for the safety of my brother and sister.
Soaking wet and shivering, they were given dry clothes and food by the owner and made their stay as comfortable as it can be.
As soon as it was okay to tread the ground, my parents proceeded,they passed by many drowned victims along the way.When they reached our place there they found my brother and sister safe and sound.They were able to come to our house before it was too late.
Until now my parents cannot stop talking about that kind person who saved them.For me she is one of the angels in disguise.I know I can never thank her enough, but nevertheless I will always bear in my heart my deep gratitude for her. Thank you so much and God Bless you and your Family.
Wonderful poem
WHEN TOMORROW STARTS WITHOUT ME By David M. Romano - Copyright, December 1993
When tomorrow starts without me, and I'm not there to see;
If the sun should rise and find your eyes all filled with tears for me;
I wish so much you wouldn't cry the way you did today,
while thinking of the many things we didn't get to say.
I know how much you love me, as much as I love you,
and each time you think of me I know you'll miss me too;
But when tomorrow starts without me, please try to understand,
that an angel came and called my name and took me by the hand,
and said my place was ready in heaven far above,
and that I'd have to leave behind all those I dearly love.
But as I turned to walk away, a tear fell from my eye,
for all life, I'd always thought I didn't want to die.
I had so much to live for and so much yet to do,
it seemed almost impossible that I was leaving you.
I thought of all the yesterdays, the good ones and the bad,
I thought of all the love we shared and all the fun we had.
If I could relive yesterday, I thought, just for awhile,
I'd say goodbye and kiss you and maybe see you smile.
But then I fully realized that this could never be,
for emptiness and memories would take the place of me.
And when I thought of worldly things that I'd miss come tomorrow,
I thought of you, and when I did, my heart was filled with sorrow.
But when I walked through heaven's gates, I felt so much at home.
When God looked down and smiled at me, from His great golden throne,
He said, "This is eternity and all I've promised you".
Today for life on earth is past but here it starts anew.
I promise no tomorrow, but today will always last,
and since each day's the same day, there's no longing for the past.
But you have been so faithful, so trusting, and so true.
Though there were times you did some things you knew you shouldn't do.
But you have been forgiven and now at last you're free.
So won't you take my hand and share my life with me?
So when tomorrow starts without me, don't think we're far apart,
for every time you think of me, I'm right here in your heart.
the other side of life
DESIDERATA
Go placidly amid the noise and haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible without surrender
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others, even the dull and ignorant;
they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons;
they are vexations to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain and bitter;
for always there will be a greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own career, however be humble;
It is a real possession in the changing of fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs;
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
Many persons strive for high ideals;
and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself. Especially, do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love;
For in the face of all aridity and disenchantment
it is perennial as the grass.
Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe,
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have the right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should
Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you may conceive him to be,
and whatever your labors and aspirations
in the noisy confusion of life
keep peace with your soul.
With all it's sham,
drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful.
Strive to be happy.
- 1927 by Max Ehrmann (1872-1945)
something to ponder upon...
DON'T WE ALL
I was parked in front of the mall wiping off my car. I had just come
from the car wash and was waiting for my wife to get out of work.
Coming my way from across the parking lot was what society would
consider a bum.
From the looks of him, he had no car, no home, no clean clothes, and no
money. There are times when you feel generous but there are other times
that you just don't want to be bothered. This was one of those "don't
want to be bothered times."
"I hope he doesn't ask me for any money," I thought.
He didn't.
He came and sat on the curb in front of the bus stop but he didn't look
like he could have enough money to even ride the bus.
After a few minutes he spoke.
"That's a very pretty car," he said.
He was ragged but he had an air of dignity around him. His scraggly
blond beard keep more than his face warm.
I said, "thanks," and continued wiping off my car.
He sat there quietly as I worked. The expected plea for money never
came.
As the silence between us widened something inside said, "ask him if
he needs any help." I was sure that he would say "yes" but I held true
to the inner voice.
"Do you need any help?" I asked.
He answered in three simple but profound words that I shall never forget.
We often look for wisdom in great men and women. We expect it from
those of higher learning and accomplishments.
I expected nothing but an
outstretched grimy hand. He spoke the three words that shook me.
"Don't we all?" he said.
I was feeling high and mighty, successful and important, above a bum
in the street, until those three words hit me like a twelve gauge
shotgun.
Don't we all?
I needed help. Maybe not for bus fare or a place to sleep, but I
needed help. I reached in my wallet and gave him not only enough for bus
fare, but enough to get a warm meal and shelter for the day. Those
three little words still ring true. No matter how much you have, no matter
how much you have accomplished, you need help too. No matter how little you
have, no matter how loaded you are with problems, even without money or
a place to sleep, you can give help.
Even if it's just a compliment, you can give that.
You never know when you may see someone that appears to have it all.
They are waiting on you to give them what they don't have. A different
perspective on life, a glimpse at something beautiful, a respite from
daily chaos, that only you through a torn world can see.
Maybe the man was just a homeless stranger wandering the streets. Maybe
he was more than that.
Maybe he was sent by a power that is great and
wise, to minister to a soul too comfortable in themselves.
Maybe God looked down, called an Angel, dressed him like a bum, then said, "go minister to that man cleaning the car, that man needs help."
Don't we all?
Author Unknown
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Footprints in the Sand
please click for a full view.
Whenever i have problems in life, reading this makes me strong , strong enough to surpass every bumps along the way.
freedom
FREEDOM
A river belongs where it can rumble
An eagle belongs where it can fly
I've got to be where my spirit can run free
Got to find the corner of my sky
That is freedom for me.
(Anonymous.)
im sick
i'm down with a cold, might be the drizzles every now and then ,typhoon Nina has left the country at last.
Sunday, September 21, 2008
My Food Picks
LaPaz Batchoy
Leche Flan
Arroz Valenciana
I am soooo an avid collector of Yummy magazine, food is my passion and cooking will always be an adventure for me.
My Fairytale Love Story
My father and mother are both from the city of Iloilo. I am the third child in a brood of six. When I was 9 years old, my family moved to Cebu City in line with my father’s job. During church meeting, I met a very cute boy who at first sight became my crush. He was a year older than me, his family was from the States. Although his dad is from Davao and his mom is from Leyte, he grew up in the States , in Hawaii and California.
At a very young age, my admiration for him blossomed into infatuation though no one ever knew about it. We have talked several times over church activities and in front of him I would always appear uninterested. But my heart is flipping inside me you bet. Alone, I would picture him to be my prince charming. He was like a dream for me, I could never imagine him liking someone as simple as me.
I carried that feeling all throughout my elementary days, until I reached grade 6 where he sometimes pass by our room on his way to their campus which was behind our building. Those days were my happiest. When I graduated elementary, I said to myself this could be my chance to be near him coz I’ll be going in the same school as his. But I found out later that his family transferred to Davao. I felt I died that day. How cruel, I never had the chance to take a glimpse of him before he went away. Eventually all my zest in life vanished, I went to school everyday wishing one day he would come back and he would be there in front of me flashing me that cute smile.
On my 2nd year of high school, my family also went back to Iloilo. I never heard from him since then, but always he remained as my secret fairytale. My life in Iloilo turned out great. I met new friends, and begin soaring new horizons. Somehow the new place pulled me back to life again. I became very active in school, in academic and extra-curricular activities, excelling in both. I had a fair share of suitors but for a long time I stood my distance from them not until in my last year of high school, where I got myself a boyfriend. He was the most intelligent boy in school. Our class valedictorian. But our puppy love didn’t work out because of our differences, primarily… religion. I worked myself through college, having part time jobs in between study loads. My family had a financial crisis that time.
Year 1997, after 7 years, I received a letter from my childhood fairytale. He said they are living in the island of Biliran, an island located at the northern part of Leyte. That he had graduated from Marine Engineering and that he was preparing for his mission. He said too that he finds me beautiful. I really screamed with delight after reading his letter. I felt so happy deep inside. I prepared a reply for his letter, but I never sent one. I think deep inside me I was afraid to try. I don’t want my dream to burst into bubbles if it turned out to be a joke. I convinced myself over and over again that he would never choose girls like me. He sent me another letter, again it went unanswered though at that time I really want to write him but I thought by the time I sent my reply, he would again be gone, off to his mission.
Well Im just glad he turned out to be a fine young man, still active in the church. My wish is that someday, somehow we will meet each other again.
Life went on for me and I never heard from him again. I met another guy, I said to myself that maybe I should forget about my dream and face reality. Our relationship was not perfect but I just let myself be contented. Year 2000 I left for the city of Tacloban in Leyte to accompany my older sister because her husband was assigned there so I went through the urgings of my mom. I don’t know why I left my good paying job, my friends, my boyfriend, my life in Iloilo at that time but I felt I was looking for something else.
October 22, 2000 when after 13 long years, we finally met again in the church. It was truly one of the most unbelievable times in my life. Who would have thought that we will meet again? Truly my wish was granted, my dream has come true.
December 11,2000, we got married in Iloilo City.
After seven years of marriage, we are blessed with 2 cute kids, a girl and a baby boy. Although our married life has gone through a series of toss and turns, I will always be blessed and grateful to Heavenly Father for giving me this wonderful chance of sharing life with a very special person like him, my husband. He was truly a dream come true for me.
For Daddy Ken….thank you for awakening the best in me. I LOVE YOU.
RONA
Ken gave me this on my 29th Birthday...
Love Rona Lee Joy
Heavenly Fathers Gift to Me
I thank Heavenly Father for the gift He has given me
A gift - who has accepted me of who I am
A gift - who always trust me and believes in me
A gift - who will hold on to me through our rough trials
A gift - who can never stop showing the meaning of love
A gift - who can make you smile, laugh, cry, angry,argue,strong,wrestle and more
A gift - who will comfort you to kneel together and always bring hope and faith
A gift - who wants to live together in the Celestial Glory with the family
A gift - who gave me two beautiful little young images of our likeness
A gift - I will LOVE and TREASURE for all ETERNITY
For what more can I ask from our Heavenly Father?
Happy Birthday Love. I Love You So Much!
Gems on the Family
Successful Parenting
"Who are good parents? They are those who have lovingly, prayerfully,
and earnestly tried to teach their children by example and precept 'to
pray, and to walk uprightly before the Lord' (D&C 68:28). This is true
even though some of their children are disobedient or worldly. Children
come into this world with their own distinct spirits and personality
traits. Some children 'would challenge any set of parents under any set
of circumstances. . . . Perhaps there are others who would bless the lives
of, and be a joy to, almost any father or mother' (Howard W. Hunter,
"Parents' Concern for Children," Ensign, Nov. 1983, 65).
Successful parents are those who have sacrificed and struggled to do the
best they can in their own family circumstances."
funny outing
here are some pictures of our outing ....the thorny one is the sea urchin we found.
we recently had a family outing , supposedly at "AGTA beach Resort", my parents came over for a visit and so I took them over there. I told them it was one of our best resort in the province , BUT to my utter dismay when we arrive at the place the water was so full of seaweeds and garbage floating and big rocks and sea urchins ugh!I was so ashamed of myself for bragging this place to my ma & pa hehe so we transferred to a nearby resort that offers pool facilities.
Sunday, September 7, 2008
another healthful tips ...
Here are 4 simple tips--things we can do now to prepare our bodies for the long, healthy haul!! by Capessa,
1. If You Can't Spell It, Don't Eat It! Processed foods age us fast! By overworking our pancreas and digestive system, fake foods just don't work well with our bodies. Stick with the basics by using fresh ingredients first. Eat whole grains, fruits, veggies, and high quality proteins and fats such as beans, nuts, salmon. Shop the perimeter of the food store, and when you absolutely have to buy food in a box, look at the ingredients list. If you can't pronounce the ingredients or have no clue what they are, skip it
2. Switch it Out! All foods are not created equal. For example, yogurt can be a healthy option, but if you're yogurt is filled with sugar or chemicals, you may as well eat a candy bar, right? We're lucky, though, because we have SO many choices. Switch to plain all-natural yogurt and add fresh fruit. Or, if you only eat white pasta or bread, try whole grain varieties instead. If you switch out your "staple" foods for higher quality options, your body will thank you in years to come!
3. Slip it In! Ok, so you may not be ready to do a 180 when it comes to food. I totally understand. But filling your body with antioxidants will make you glow from the inside-out! Trick yourself by "slipping in" healthy ingredients to your everyday choices. For example, flax is a powerful antioxidant that's so easy to add to almost anything! Use it when you're making chicken fingers, add it to your cereal, sneak it in to your morning muffins.
4. Muscle Matters! Strong muscles and healthy bones can add years of high energy, high quality living! Make sure to build your muscle and protect your bones by doing stretching, strength training, or even water exercises. And, if you're complaining about your metabolism slowing down as you age, don't worry- strength training can rev that up, too!! You'll become a strong, healthy, fat burning machine in no time!
For more Secrets for Longevity, check out Eliza's story. After studying longevity practices in cultures all over the world, Eliza realized she could make small changes at home to improve the quality -- and length -- of her life.
To read more from Jennifer Tuma-Young, founder of www.Findbalanceinyou.com, visit her blog at Capessa.
1. If You Can't Spell It, Don't Eat It! Processed foods age us fast! By overworking our pancreas and digestive system, fake foods just don't work well with our bodies. Stick with the basics by using fresh ingredients first. Eat whole grains, fruits, veggies, and high quality proteins and fats such as beans, nuts, salmon. Shop the perimeter of the food store, and when you absolutely have to buy food in a box, look at the ingredients list. If you can't pronounce the ingredients or have no clue what they are, skip it
2. Switch it Out! All foods are not created equal. For example, yogurt can be a healthy option, but if you're yogurt is filled with sugar or chemicals, you may as well eat a candy bar, right? We're lucky, though, because we have SO many choices. Switch to plain all-natural yogurt and add fresh fruit. Or, if you only eat white pasta or bread, try whole grain varieties instead. If you switch out your "staple" foods for higher quality options, your body will thank you in years to come!
3. Slip it In! Ok, so you may not be ready to do a 180 when it comes to food. I totally understand. But filling your body with antioxidants will make you glow from the inside-out! Trick yourself by "slipping in" healthy ingredients to your everyday choices. For example, flax is a powerful antioxidant that's so easy to add to almost anything! Use it when you're making chicken fingers, add it to your cereal, sneak it in to your morning muffins.
4. Muscle Matters! Strong muscles and healthy bones can add years of high energy, high quality living! Make sure to build your muscle and protect your bones by doing stretching, strength training, or even water exercises. And, if you're complaining about your metabolism slowing down as you age, don't worry- strength training can rev that up, too!! You'll become a strong, healthy, fat burning machine in no time!
For more Secrets for Longevity, check out Eliza's story. After studying longevity practices in cultures all over the world, Eliza realized she could make small changes at home to improve the quality -- and length -- of her life.
To read more from Jennifer Tuma-Young, founder of www.Findbalanceinyou.com, visit her blog at Capessa.
healthful tips
Tips to Transform Your Body Faster
There are a few things that you can do besides eating well and exercising that will expedite your physical transformation:
1. Stay positive
Believe that transformation is possible even when you haven’t seen the changes that you want yet. I am sure that you can site many examples in your life where you didn’t expect something to happen and then whoa, there it was. If you don’t have enough evidence of your own, look around you. Do you know someone who thought they’d never get the job, meet that special person, or lose the weight, and then they did? Haven’t you read amazing stories about people overcoming obstacles and creating tremendous transformation in their lives, many against great odds? These are just people too, like you and me; anyone can overcome.
There is one thing that you can be sure of in life, and that is change. Make sure yours happens quickly, and in the way you want, by staying positive and then taking the steps that you know you should take.
2. Stay in the moment
If you think about your end results, the work becomes overwhelming. Just do what you know you can do today, and when tomorrow becomes today, you’ll deal with that.
3. Keep your expectations low
Don’t expect too much too soon, you’ll only get discouraged. Aiming high is nice to say but truly it is easier to stay positive if you set your sites on realistic, smaller goals.
4. Eliminate temptation
Remove distractions like foods that you don’t want to eat and people who have habits that you are trying to break. Surround yourself with people and materials that mirror the changes that you want for yourself. Hang out with happy, healthy people, read inspiring books, and listen to some great music that motivates you to get moving and take action.
5. Stop using excuses
There are always excuses; I am sure you have heard, or used, them all. When your desire to change becomes greater than your fear of changing, the excuses will go away -- nothing will stop you from becoming the new you. Even though you may not be able to change the underlying reasons why you haven’t yet accomplished your goals, you can start by removing some of the actions and thought processes that encourage you to stay stuck. Enough with the excuses!
Peace and Happy Trails –
Debbie Rocker
There are a few things that you can do besides eating well and exercising that will expedite your physical transformation:
1. Stay positive
Believe that transformation is possible even when you haven’t seen the changes that you want yet. I am sure that you can site many examples in your life where you didn’t expect something to happen and then whoa, there it was. If you don’t have enough evidence of your own, look around you. Do you know someone who thought they’d never get the job, meet that special person, or lose the weight, and then they did? Haven’t you read amazing stories about people overcoming obstacles and creating tremendous transformation in their lives, many against great odds? These are just people too, like you and me; anyone can overcome.
There is one thing that you can be sure of in life, and that is change. Make sure yours happens quickly, and in the way you want, by staying positive and then taking the steps that you know you should take.
2. Stay in the moment
If you think about your end results, the work becomes overwhelming. Just do what you know you can do today, and when tomorrow becomes today, you’ll deal with that.
3. Keep your expectations low
Don’t expect too much too soon, you’ll only get discouraged. Aiming high is nice to say but truly it is easier to stay positive if you set your sites on realistic, smaller goals.
4. Eliminate temptation
Remove distractions like foods that you don’t want to eat and people who have habits that you are trying to break. Surround yourself with people and materials that mirror the changes that you want for yourself. Hang out with happy, healthy people, read inspiring books, and listen to some great music that motivates you to get moving and take action.
5. Stop using excuses
There are always excuses; I am sure you have heard, or used, them all. When your desire to change becomes greater than your fear of changing, the excuses will go away -- nothing will stop you from becoming the new you. Even though you may not be able to change the underlying reasons why you haven’t yet accomplished your goals, you can start by removing some of the actions and thought processes that encourage you to stay stuck. Enough with the excuses!
Peace and Happy Trails –
Debbie Rocker
the meaning of nostalgia
A friend asked me why my blogspot was named Nostalgia, I answered him because
- my heart is yearning to return home or rather painfully yearning to return home ... ,
-it is homesickness,
-it is sentimentality.
or on a more complete meaning let's put it this way: a wistful desire to return in thought or in fact to a former time in one's life, to one's home or homeland, or to one's family and friends; a sentimental yearning for the happiness of a former place or time.
Here's a picture of my homeland :
and here is where i am now :
- my heart is yearning to return home or rather painfully yearning to return home ... ,
-it is homesickness,
-it is sentimentality.
or on a more complete meaning let's put it this way: a wistful desire to return in thought or in fact to a former time in one's life, to one's home or homeland, or to one's family and friends; a sentimental yearning for the happiness of a former place or time.
Here's a picture of my homeland :
and here is where i am now :
happiness in words...
I am so happy that my parents are coming over for a visit, being so far away from them I am truly grateful for the gesture.Both are so busy but they still find time to visit me out here and I am soooo excited to see them.
Friday, September 5, 2008
Be One
By President Henry B. Eyring
First Counselor in the First Presidency
The Savior of the world, Jesus Christ, said of those who would be part of His Church: “Be one; and if ye are not one ye are not mine” (D&C 38:27). And at the Creation of man and woman, unity for them in marriage was not given as hope; it was a command! “Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh” (Genesis 2:24). Our Heavenly Father wants our hearts to be knit together. That union in love is not simply an ideal. It is a necessity.
The requirement that we be one is not for this life alone. It is to be without end. The first marriage was performed by God in the garden when Adam and Eve were not subject to death. He placed in men and women from the beginning a desire to be joined together as man and wife forever to dwell in families in a perfect, righteous union. He placed in His children a desire to live at peace with all those around them.
But with the Fall it became clear that living in unity would not be easy. Tragedy struck early. Cain slew Abel, his brother. The children of Adam and Eve had become subject to the temptations of Satan. With skill, hatred, and cunning, Satan pursues his goal. It is the opposite of the purpose of our Heavenly Father and the Savior. They would give us perfect union and eternal happiness. Satan, Their enemy and ours, has known the plan of salvation from before the Creation. He knows that only in eternal life can those sacred, joyful associations of families endure. Satan would tear us from loved ones and make us miserable. And it is he who plants the seeds of discord in human hearts in the hope that we might be divided and separate.
All of us have felt something of both union and separation. Sometimes in families and perhaps in other settings we have glimpsed life when one person put the interests of another above his or her own, in love and with sacrifice. And all of us know something of the sadness and loneliness of being separate and alone. We don’t need to be told which we should choose. We know. But we need hope that we can experience unity in this life and qualify to have it forever in the world to come. And we need to know how that great blessing will come so that we can know what we must do.
Our Natures Can Change
The Savior of the world spoke of that unity and how we will have our natures changed to make it possible. He taught it clearly in the prayer He gave in His last meeting with His Apostles before His death. That supernally beautiful prayer is recorded in the book of John. He was about to face the terrible sacrifice for all of us that would make eternal life possible. He was about to leave the Apostles whom He had ordained, whom He loved, and with whom He would leave the keys to lead His Church. And so He prayed to His Father, the perfect Son to the perfect Parent. We see in His words the way families will be made one, as will all the children of our Heavenly Father who follow the Savior and His servants:
“As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.
“And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.
“Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;
“That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me” (John 17:18–21).
In those few words He made clear how the gospel of Jesus Christ can allow hearts to be made one. Those who would believe the truth He taught could accept the ordinances and the covenants offered by His authorized servants. Then, through obedience to those ordinances and covenants, their natures would be changed. The Savior’s Atonement in that way makes it possible for us to be sanctified. We can then live in unity, as we must to have peace in this life and to dwell with the Father and His Son in eternity.
The ministry of the apostles and prophets in that day, as it is today, was to bring the children of Adam and Eve to a unity of the faith in Jesus Christ. The ultimate purpose of what they taught and of what we teach is to unite families: husbands, wives, children, grandchildren, ancestors, and finally all of the family of Adam and Eve who will choose the way of unity.
You remember the Savior prayed, “For their sakes”—speaking of the Apostles—“I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth” (John 17:19). The Holy Ghost is a sanctifier. We can have Him as our companion because the Lord restored the Melchizedek Priesthood through the Prophet Joseph Smith. The keys of that priesthood are on the earth today. By its power we can make covenants which allow us to have the Holy Ghost with us constantly.
Where people have this Spirit with them, we may expect harmony. The Spirit puts the testimony of truth in our hearts, which unifies those who share that testimony. The Spirit of God never generates contention (see 3 Nephi 11:29). This Spirit never generates the feelings of distinction between people which lead to strife.1 Heeding the Holy Ghost leads to personal peace and a feeling of union with others. It unifies souls. A unified family, a unified Church, and a world at peace depend on unified souls.
Companionship of the Holy Ghost
Even a child can understand what to do to have the Holy Ghost as a companion. The sacramental prayer tells us. We hear it every week as we attend our sacrament meetings. In those sacred moments we renew the covenants we made at baptism. And the Lord reminds us of the promise we received as we were confirmed members of the Church—the promise that we might receive the Holy Ghost. Here are those words from the sacramental prayer: “They are willing to take upon them the name of thy Son, and always remember him and keep his commandments which he has given them; that they may always have his Spirit to be with them” (D&C 20:77).
We can have His Spirit by keeping that covenant. First, we promise to take His name upon us. That means we must see ourselves as His. We will put Him first in our lives. We will want what He wants rather than what we want or what the world teaches us to want. As long as we love the things of the world first, there will be no peace in us. Holding an ideal for a family or a nation of comfort through material goods will, at last, divide them.2 The ideal of doing for each other what the Lord would have us do, which follows naturally from taking His name upon us, can take us to a spiritual level which is a touch of heaven on earth.
Second, we promise always to remember Him. We do that every time we pray in His name. Especially when we ask for His forgiveness, as we must do often, we remember Him. At that moment we remember His sacrifice that makes repentance and forgiveness possible. When we plead, we remember Him as our advocate with the Father. When the feelings of forgiveness and peace come, we remember His patience and His endless love. That remembering fills our hearts with love.
We also keep our promise to remember Him when as families we pray together and when we read the scriptures. At family prayer around a breakfast table, one child may pray for another to be blessed that things will go well that day in a test or in some performance. When the blessings come, the child blessed will remember the love of the morning and the kindness of the Advocate, in whose name the prayer was offered. Hearts will be bound in love.
We keep our covenant to remember Him every time we gather our families to read the scriptures. They testify of the Lord Jesus Christ, for that is and always has been the message of prophets. Even if children do not remember the words, they will remember the true author, Jesus Christ.
Third, we promise as we take the sacrament to keep His commandments, all of them. President J. Reuben Clark Jr. (1871–1961), a counselor in the First Presidency, as he pled for unity in a general conference talk—and he did so many times—warned us against being selective in what we will obey. He put it this way: “The Lord has given us nothing that is useless or unnecessary. He has filled the Scriptures with the things which we should do in order that we may gain salvation.”
President Clark went on: “When we partake of the Sacrament we covenant to obey and keep his commandments. There are no exceptions. There are no distinctions, no differences.”3 President Clark taught that just as we repent of all sin, not just a single sin, we pledge to keep all the commandments. Hard as that sounds, it is uncomplicated. We simply submit to the authority of the Savior and promise to be obedient to whatever He commands (see Mosiah 3:19). It is our surrender to the authority of Jesus Christ that will allow us to be bound as families, as a Church, and as the children of our Heavenly Father.
The Lord conveys that authority through His prophet to humble servants. Then faith can turn our call as a home teacher or a visiting teacher into an errand from the Lord. We go for Him, at His command. An ordinary man and a teenage junior companion go into homes expecting that the powers of heaven will help them assure that families are united and that there is no hardness, lying, backbiting, nor evil speaking (see D&C 20:54). Faith that the Lord calls servants will help us ignore their limitations when they reprove us, as they will. We will see their good intent more clearly than their human limitations. We will be less likely to feel offense and more likely to feel gratitude to the Master, who called them.
Barriers to Unity
There are some commandments which, when broken, destroy unity. Some have to do with what we say and some with how we react to what others say. We must speak no ill of anyone. We must see the good in each other and speak well of each other whenever we can.4
At the same time, we must stand against those who speak contemptuously of sacred things, because the certain effect of that is to offend the Spirit and so create contention and confusion. President Spencer W. Kimball (1895–1985) showed the way to stand without being contentious as he lay on a hospital gurney and asked an attendant who, in a moment of frustration, took the name of the Lord in vain:
“ ‘Please! Please! That is my Lord whose names you revile.’
“There was a deathly silence, then a subdued voice whispered, ‘I am sorry.’ ”5 An inspired, loving rebuke can be an invitation to unity. Failure to give it when moved upon by the Holy Ghost will lead to discord.
If we are to have unity, there are commandments we must keep concerning how we feel. We must forgive and bear no malice toward those who offend us. The Savior set the example from the cross: “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34). We do not know the hearts of those who offend us. Nor do we know all the sources of our own anger and hurt. The Apostle Paul was telling us how to love in a world of imperfect people, including ourselves, when he said, “Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil” (1 Corinthians 13:4–5). And then he gave solemn warning against reacting to the faults of others and forgetting our own when he wrote, “For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known” (1 Corinthians 13:12).
The sacramental prayer can remind us every week of how the gift of unity will come through obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel of Jesus Christ. When we keep our covenants to take His name upon us, to remember Him always, and to keep all His commandments, we will receive the companionship of His Spirit. That will soften our hearts and unite us. But there are two warnings which must come with that promise.
First, the Holy Ghost remains with us only if we stay clean and free from the love of the things of the world. A choice to be unclean will repel the Holy Ghost. The Spirit dwells only with those who choose the Lord over the world. “Be ye clean” (3 Nephi 20:41; D&C 38:42) and love God with all your “heart, … might, mind, and strength” (D&C 59:5) are not suggestions but commandments. And they are necessary to the companionship of the Spirit, without which we cannot be one.
The other warning is to beware of pride. Unity which comes to a family or to a people softened by the Spirit will bring great power. With that power will come recognition from the world. Whether that recognition brings praise or envy, it could lead us to pride. That would offend the Spirit. But there is a protection against pride, that sure source of disunity. It is to see the bounties which God pours upon us not only as a mark of His favor but an opportunity to join with those around us in greater service. A husband and his wife learn to be one by using their similarities to understand each other and their differences to complement each other in serving one another and those around them. In the same way, we can unite with those who do not accept our doctrine but share our desire to bless the children of our Heavenly Father.
We can become peacemakers, worthy to be called blessed and the children of God (see Matthew 5:9).
God our Father lives. His beloved Son, Jesus Christ, is the head of this Church, and He offers to all who will accept it the standard of peace. May we all live worthy of that standard.
By President Henry B. Eyring
First Counselor in the First Presidency
The Savior of the world, Jesus Christ, said of those who would be part of His Church: “Be one; and if ye are not one ye are not mine” (D&C 38:27). And at the Creation of man and woman, unity for them in marriage was not given as hope; it was a command! “Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh” (Genesis 2:24). Our Heavenly Father wants our hearts to be knit together. That union in love is not simply an ideal. It is a necessity.
The requirement that we be one is not for this life alone. It is to be without end. The first marriage was performed by God in the garden when Adam and Eve were not subject to death. He placed in men and women from the beginning a desire to be joined together as man and wife forever to dwell in families in a perfect, righteous union. He placed in His children a desire to live at peace with all those around them.
But with the Fall it became clear that living in unity would not be easy. Tragedy struck early. Cain slew Abel, his brother. The children of Adam and Eve had become subject to the temptations of Satan. With skill, hatred, and cunning, Satan pursues his goal. It is the opposite of the purpose of our Heavenly Father and the Savior. They would give us perfect union and eternal happiness. Satan, Their enemy and ours, has known the plan of salvation from before the Creation. He knows that only in eternal life can those sacred, joyful associations of families endure. Satan would tear us from loved ones and make us miserable. And it is he who plants the seeds of discord in human hearts in the hope that we might be divided and separate.
All of us have felt something of both union and separation. Sometimes in families and perhaps in other settings we have glimpsed life when one person put the interests of another above his or her own, in love and with sacrifice. And all of us know something of the sadness and loneliness of being separate and alone. We don’t need to be told which we should choose. We know. But we need hope that we can experience unity in this life and qualify to have it forever in the world to come. And we need to know how that great blessing will come so that we can know what we must do.
Our Natures Can Change
The Savior of the world spoke of that unity and how we will have our natures changed to make it possible. He taught it clearly in the prayer He gave in His last meeting with His Apostles before His death. That supernally beautiful prayer is recorded in the book of John. He was about to face the terrible sacrifice for all of us that would make eternal life possible. He was about to leave the Apostles whom He had ordained, whom He loved, and with whom He would leave the keys to lead His Church. And so He prayed to His Father, the perfect Son to the perfect Parent. We see in His words the way families will be made one, as will all the children of our Heavenly Father who follow the Savior and His servants:
“As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.
“And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.
“Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;
“That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me” (John 17:18–21).
In those few words He made clear how the gospel of Jesus Christ can allow hearts to be made one. Those who would believe the truth He taught could accept the ordinances and the covenants offered by His authorized servants. Then, through obedience to those ordinances and covenants, their natures would be changed. The Savior’s Atonement in that way makes it possible for us to be sanctified. We can then live in unity, as we must to have peace in this life and to dwell with the Father and His Son in eternity.
The ministry of the apostles and prophets in that day, as it is today, was to bring the children of Adam and Eve to a unity of the faith in Jesus Christ. The ultimate purpose of what they taught and of what we teach is to unite families: husbands, wives, children, grandchildren, ancestors, and finally all of the family of Adam and Eve who will choose the way of unity.
You remember the Savior prayed, “For their sakes”—speaking of the Apostles—“I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth” (John 17:19). The Holy Ghost is a sanctifier. We can have Him as our companion because the Lord restored the Melchizedek Priesthood through the Prophet Joseph Smith. The keys of that priesthood are on the earth today. By its power we can make covenants which allow us to have the Holy Ghost with us constantly.
Where people have this Spirit with them, we may expect harmony. The Spirit puts the testimony of truth in our hearts, which unifies those who share that testimony. The Spirit of God never generates contention (see 3 Nephi 11:29). This Spirit never generates the feelings of distinction between people which lead to strife.1 Heeding the Holy Ghost leads to personal peace and a feeling of union with others. It unifies souls. A unified family, a unified Church, and a world at peace depend on unified souls.
Companionship of the Holy Ghost
Even a child can understand what to do to have the Holy Ghost as a companion. The sacramental prayer tells us. We hear it every week as we attend our sacrament meetings. In those sacred moments we renew the covenants we made at baptism. And the Lord reminds us of the promise we received as we were confirmed members of the Church—the promise that we might receive the Holy Ghost. Here are those words from the sacramental prayer: “They are willing to take upon them the name of thy Son, and always remember him and keep his commandments which he has given them; that they may always have his Spirit to be with them” (D&C 20:77).
We can have His Spirit by keeping that covenant. First, we promise to take His name upon us. That means we must see ourselves as His. We will put Him first in our lives. We will want what He wants rather than what we want or what the world teaches us to want. As long as we love the things of the world first, there will be no peace in us. Holding an ideal for a family or a nation of comfort through material goods will, at last, divide them.2 The ideal of doing for each other what the Lord would have us do, which follows naturally from taking His name upon us, can take us to a spiritual level which is a touch of heaven on earth.
Second, we promise always to remember Him. We do that every time we pray in His name. Especially when we ask for His forgiveness, as we must do often, we remember Him. At that moment we remember His sacrifice that makes repentance and forgiveness possible. When we plead, we remember Him as our advocate with the Father. When the feelings of forgiveness and peace come, we remember His patience and His endless love. That remembering fills our hearts with love.
We also keep our promise to remember Him when as families we pray together and when we read the scriptures. At family prayer around a breakfast table, one child may pray for another to be blessed that things will go well that day in a test or in some performance. When the blessings come, the child blessed will remember the love of the morning and the kindness of the Advocate, in whose name the prayer was offered. Hearts will be bound in love.
We keep our covenant to remember Him every time we gather our families to read the scriptures. They testify of the Lord Jesus Christ, for that is and always has been the message of prophets. Even if children do not remember the words, they will remember the true author, Jesus Christ.
Third, we promise as we take the sacrament to keep His commandments, all of them. President J. Reuben Clark Jr. (1871–1961), a counselor in the First Presidency, as he pled for unity in a general conference talk—and he did so many times—warned us against being selective in what we will obey. He put it this way: “The Lord has given us nothing that is useless or unnecessary. He has filled the Scriptures with the things which we should do in order that we may gain salvation.”
President Clark went on: “When we partake of the Sacrament we covenant to obey and keep his commandments. There are no exceptions. There are no distinctions, no differences.”3 President Clark taught that just as we repent of all sin, not just a single sin, we pledge to keep all the commandments. Hard as that sounds, it is uncomplicated. We simply submit to the authority of the Savior and promise to be obedient to whatever He commands (see Mosiah 3:19). It is our surrender to the authority of Jesus Christ that will allow us to be bound as families, as a Church, and as the children of our Heavenly Father.
The Lord conveys that authority through His prophet to humble servants. Then faith can turn our call as a home teacher or a visiting teacher into an errand from the Lord. We go for Him, at His command. An ordinary man and a teenage junior companion go into homes expecting that the powers of heaven will help them assure that families are united and that there is no hardness, lying, backbiting, nor evil speaking (see D&C 20:54). Faith that the Lord calls servants will help us ignore their limitations when they reprove us, as they will. We will see their good intent more clearly than their human limitations. We will be less likely to feel offense and more likely to feel gratitude to the Master, who called them.
Barriers to Unity
There are some commandments which, when broken, destroy unity. Some have to do with what we say and some with how we react to what others say. We must speak no ill of anyone. We must see the good in each other and speak well of each other whenever we can.4
At the same time, we must stand against those who speak contemptuously of sacred things, because the certain effect of that is to offend the Spirit and so create contention and confusion. President Spencer W. Kimball (1895–1985) showed the way to stand without being contentious as he lay on a hospital gurney and asked an attendant who, in a moment of frustration, took the name of the Lord in vain:
“ ‘Please! Please! That is my Lord whose names you revile.’
“There was a deathly silence, then a subdued voice whispered, ‘I am sorry.’ ”5 An inspired, loving rebuke can be an invitation to unity. Failure to give it when moved upon by the Holy Ghost will lead to discord.
If we are to have unity, there are commandments we must keep concerning how we feel. We must forgive and bear no malice toward those who offend us. The Savior set the example from the cross: “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34). We do not know the hearts of those who offend us. Nor do we know all the sources of our own anger and hurt. The Apostle Paul was telling us how to love in a world of imperfect people, including ourselves, when he said, “Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil” (1 Corinthians 13:4–5). And then he gave solemn warning against reacting to the faults of others and forgetting our own when he wrote, “For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known” (1 Corinthians 13:12).
The sacramental prayer can remind us every week of how the gift of unity will come through obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel of Jesus Christ. When we keep our covenants to take His name upon us, to remember Him always, and to keep all His commandments, we will receive the companionship of His Spirit. That will soften our hearts and unite us. But there are two warnings which must come with that promise.
First, the Holy Ghost remains with us only if we stay clean and free from the love of the things of the world. A choice to be unclean will repel the Holy Ghost. The Spirit dwells only with those who choose the Lord over the world. “Be ye clean” (3 Nephi 20:41; D&C 38:42) and love God with all your “heart, … might, mind, and strength” (D&C 59:5) are not suggestions but commandments. And they are necessary to the companionship of the Spirit, without which we cannot be one.
The other warning is to beware of pride. Unity which comes to a family or to a people softened by the Spirit will bring great power. With that power will come recognition from the world. Whether that recognition brings praise or envy, it could lead us to pride. That would offend the Spirit. But there is a protection against pride, that sure source of disunity. It is to see the bounties which God pours upon us not only as a mark of His favor but an opportunity to join with those around us in greater service. A husband and his wife learn to be one by using their similarities to understand each other and their differences to complement each other in serving one another and those around them. In the same way, we can unite with those who do not accept our doctrine but share our desire to bless the children of our Heavenly Father.
We can become peacemakers, worthy to be called blessed and the children of God (see Matthew 5:9).
God our Father lives. His beloved Son, Jesus Christ, is the head of this Church, and He offers to all who will accept it the standard of peace. May we all live worthy of that standard.
Red Marbles
-- Author Unknown -- A TRULY GREAT STORY
During the waning years of the depression in a small Idaho community, I used to stop by Mr. Miller's roadside stand for farm fresh produce as the season made it available. Food and money were still extremely scarce and bartering was used extensively.
One day Mr. Miller was bagging some early potatoes for me. I noticed a small boy, delicate of bone and feature, ragged but clean, hungrily appraising a basket of freshly picked green peas.
I paid for my potatoes but was also drawn to the display of fresh green peas. I am a pushover for creamed peas and new potatoes. Pondering the peas, I couldn't help overhearing the conversation between Mr. Miller and the ragged boy next to me.
"Hello Barry, how are you today?"
"H'lo, Mr. Miller. Fine, thank ya. Jus' admirin' them peas ... sure look good."
"They are good, Barry. How's your Ma?"
"Fine. Gittin' stronger alla' time."
"Good. Anything I can help you with?"
"No, Sir. Jus' admirin' them peas."
"Would you like to take some home?"
"No, Sir. Got nuthin' to pay for 'em with."
"Well, what have you to trade me for some of those peas?"
"All I got's my prize marble here."
"Is that right? Let me see it."
"Here 'tis. She's a dandy."
"I can see that. Hmmmmm, only thing is this one is blue and I sort of go for red. Do you have a red one like this at home?"
"Not zackley ... but almost."
"Tell you what. Take this sack of peas home with you and next trip this way let me look at that red marble."
"Sure will. Thanks Mr. Miller."
Mrs. Miller, who had been standing nearby, came over to help me. With a smile she said, "There are two other boys like him in our community, all three are in very poor circumstances. Jim just loves to bargain with them for peas, apples, tomatoes, or whatever. When they come back with their red marbles, and they always do, he decides he doesn't like red after all and he sends them home with a bag of produce for a green marble or an orange one, perhaps."
I left the stand smiling to myself, impressed with this man. A short time later I moved to Colorado but I never forgot the story of this man, the boys, and their bartering.
Several years went by, each more rapid than the previous one. Just recently I had the occasion to visit some old friends in that Idaho community and while I was there I learned that Mr. Miller had died. They were having his viewing that evening and knowing my friends wanted to go, I agreed to accompany them.
Upon arrival at the mortuary we fell into line to meet the relatives of the deceased and to offer whatever words of comfort we could. Ahead of us in line were three young men. One was in an army uniform and the other two wore nice haircuts, dark suits and white shirts ... all very professional looking.
They approached Mrs. Miller, standing composed and smiling by her husband's casket. Each of the young men hugged her, kissed her on the cheek, spoke briefly with her and moved on to the casket. Her misty light blue eyes followed them as, one by one, each young man stopped briefly and placed his own warm hand over the cold pale hand in the casket. Each left the mortuary awkwardly, wiping his eyes.
Our turn came to meet Mrs. Miller. I told her who I was and mentioned the story she had told me about the marbles. With her eyes glistening, she took my hand and led me to the casket.
"Those three young men who just left were the boys I told you about. They just told me how they appreciated the things Jim "traded" them. Now, at last, when Jim could not change his mind about color or size ... they came to pay their debt."
"We've never had a great deal of the wealth of this world," she confided, "but right now, Jim would consider himself the richest man in Idaho."
With loving gentleness she lifted the lifeless fingers of her deceased husband. Resting underneath were three exquisitely shined red marbles.
MORAL: We will not be remembered by our words... but by our kind deeds.
For my two wonderful Nanay's Neneng & Sonia
SOME THOUGHTS ON MOTHERHOOD
Somebody said it takes about six weeks to get back to normal after you've had a baby... that somebody doesn't know that once you're a mother, "normal" is history.
Somebody said you learn how to be a mother by instinct... that somebody never took a three-year-old shopping.
Somebody said being a mother is boring... that somebody never rode in a car driven by a teenager with a driver's permit.
Somebody said if you're a "good" mother, your child will "turn out good"... that somebody thinks a child comes with directions and a guarantee.
Somebody said "good" mothers never raise their voices... that somebody never came out the back door just in time to see her child hit a golf ball through the neighbor's kitchen window.
Somebody said you don't need an education to be a mother... that somebody never helped a fourth grader with his math.
Somebody said you can't love the fifth child as much as you love the first... that somebody doesn't have five children.
Somebody said a mother can find all the answers to her child-rearing questions in the books... that somebody never had a child stuff beans up his nose or in his ears.
Somebody said the hardest part of being a mother is labor and delivery... that somebody never watched her "baby" get on the bus for the first day of kindergarten... or on a plane headed for military "boot camp."
Somebody said a mother can do her job with her eyes closed and one hand tied behind her back... that somebody never organized seven giggling Brownies to sell cookies.
Somebody said a mother can stop worrying after her child gets married... that somebody doesn't know that marriage adds a new son or daughter-in-law to a mother's heartstrings.
Somebody said a mother's job is done when her last child leaves home... that somebody never had grandchildren.
Somebody said your mother knows you love her, so you don't need to tell her... that somebody isn't a mother.
- When i stumbled upon this in inspire21.com, it opened my eyes to the roles that mothers play in our lives.I am forever grateful to my Nanay Neneng for raising me well and loving me and for my Nanay Sonia (my mom-inlaw) for being my guiding light during the years I am learning to be a mother.Thank you so much and I love you both so much.
Somebody said it takes about six weeks to get back to normal after you've had a baby... that somebody doesn't know that once you're a mother, "normal" is history.
Somebody said you learn how to be a mother by instinct... that somebody never took a three-year-old shopping.
Somebody said being a mother is boring... that somebody never rode in a car driven by a teenager with a driver's permit.
Somebody said if you're a "good" mother, your child will "turn out good"... that somebody thinks a child comes with directions and a guarantee.
Somebody said "good" mothers never raise their voices... that somebody never came out the back door just in time to see her child hit a golf ball through the neighbor's kitchen window.
Somebody said you don't need an education to be a mother... that somebody never helped a fourth grader with his math.
Somebody said you can't love the fifth child as much as you love the first... that somebody doesn't have five children.
Somebody said a mother can find all the answers to her child-rearing questions in the books... that somebody never had a child stuff beans up his nose or in his ears.
Somebody said the hardest part of being a mother is labor and delivery... that somebody never watched her "baby" get on the bus for the first day of kindergarten... or on a plane headed for military "boot camp."
Somebody said a mother can do her job with her eyes closed and one hand tied behind her back... that somebody never organized seven giggling Brownies to sell cookies.
Somebody said a mother can stop worrying after her child gets married... that somebody doesn't know that marriage adds a new son or daughter-in-law to a mother's heartstrings.
Somebody said a mother's job is done when her last child leaves home... that somebody never had grandchildren.
Somebody said your mother knows you love her, so you don't need to tell her... that somebody isn't a mother.
- When i stumbled upon this in inspire21.com, it opened my eyes to the roles that mothers play in our lives.I am forever grateful to my Nanay Neneng for raising me well and loving me and for my Nanay Sonia (my mom-inlaw) for being my guiding light during the years I am learning to be a mother.Thank you so much and I love you both so much.
I Have Learned that...
What I Have Learned
-- By Andy Rooney
I Have Learned that...
... the best classroom in the world is at the feet of an elderly person.
... when you're in love, it shows.
... just one person saying to me, "You've made my day!" makes my day.
... having a child fall asleep in your arms is one of the most peaceful feelings in the world.
... being kind is more important than being right.
... you should never say no to a gift from a child.
... I can always pray for someone when I don't have the strength to help him in some other way.
... no matter how serious your life requires you to be, everyone needs a friend to act goofy with.
... sometimes all a person needs is a hand to hold and a heart to understand.
... simple walks with my father around the block on summer nights when I was a child did wonders for me as an adult.
... life is like a roll of toilet paper. The closer it gets to the end, the faster it goes.
... we should be glad God doesn't give us everything we ask for.
... money doesn't buy class.
... it's those small daily happenings that make life so spectacular.
... under everyone's hard shell is someone who wants to be appreciated and loved.
... the Lord didn't do it all in one day. What makes me think I can?
... to ignore the facts does not change the facts.
... when you plan to get even with someone, you are only letting that person continue to hurt you.
... love, not time, heals all wounds.
... the easiest way for me to grow as a person is to surround myself with people smarter than I am.
... everyone you meet deserves to be greeted with a smile.
... there's nothing sweeter than sleeping with your babies and feeling their breath on your cheeks.
... no one is perfect until you fall in love with them.
... life is tough, but I'm tougher.
... opportunities are never lost; someone will take the ones you miss.
... when you harbor bitterness, happiness will dock elsewhere.
... I wish I could have told my Dad that I love him one more time before he passed away.
... one should keep his words both soft and tender, because tomorrow he may have to eat them.
... a smile is an inexpensive way to improve your looks.
... I can't choose how I feel, but I can choose what I do about it.
... when your newly born grandchild holds your little finger in his little fist, that you're hooked for life.
... everyone wants to live on top of the mountain, but all the happiness and growth occurs while you're climbing it.
... it is best to give advice in only two circumstances; when it is requested and when it is a life threatening situation.
... the less time I have to work with, the more things I get done.
-- By Andy Rooney
I Have Learned that...
... the best classroom in the world is at the feet of an elderly person.
... when you're in love, it shows.
... just one person saying to me, "You've made my day!" makes my day.
... having a child fall asleep in your arms is one of the most peaceful feelings in the world.
... being kind is more important than being right.
... you should never say no to a gift from a child.
... I can always pray for someone when I don't have the strength to help him in some other way.
... no matter how serious your life requires you to be, everyone needs a friend to act goofy with.
... sometimes all a person needs is a hand to hold and a heart to understand.
... simple walks with my father around the block on summer nights when I was a child did wonders for me as an adult.
... life is like a roll of toilet paper. The closer it gets to the end, the faster it goes.
... we should be glad God doesn't give us everything we ask for.
... money doesn't buy class.
... it's those small daily happenings that make life so spectacular.
... under everyone's hard shell is someone who wants to be appreciated and loved.
... the Lord didn't do it all in one day. What makes me think I can?
... to ignore the facts does not change the facts.
... when you plan to get even with someone, you are only letting that person continue to hurt you.
... love, not time, heals all wounds.
... the easiest way for me to grow as a person is to surround myself with people smarter than I am.
... everyone you meet deserves to be greeted with a smile.
... there's nothing sweeter than sleeping with your babies and feeling their breath on your cheeks.
... no one is perfect until you fall in love with them.
... life is tough, but I'm tougher.
... opportunities are never lost; someone will take the ones you miss.
... when you harbor bitterness, happiness will dock elsewhere.
... I wish I could have told my Dad that I love him one more time before he passed away.
... one should keep his words both soft and tender, because tomorrow he may have to eat them.
... a smile is an inexpensive way to improve your looks.
... I can't choose how I feel, but I can choose what I do about it.
... when your newly born grandchild holds your little finger in his little fist, that you're hooked for life.
... everyone wants to live on top of the mountain, but all the happiness and growth occurs while you're climbing it.
... it is best to give advice in only two circumstances; when it is requested and when it is a life threatening situation.
... the less time I have to work with, the more things I get done.
practicality ...
The Retirement Cruise
-- Author Unknown
About 2 years ago my friend and I were on a cruise through the western Mediterranean aboard a Princess liner. At dinner we noticed an elderly lady sitting alone along the rail of the grand stairway in the main dining room.
I also noticed that all the staff, ships officers, waiters, busboys, etc., all seemed very familiar with this lady. I asked our waiter who the lady was, expecting to be told she owned the line, but he said he only knew that she had been on board for the last four cruises... back to back.
As we left the dining room one evening I caught her eye and stopped to say hello. We chatted and I said, "I understand you've been on this ship for the last four cruises". She replied, "Yes, that's true." I stated, "I don't understand" and she replied, without a pause, "It's cheaper than a nursing home".
So, there will be no nursing home in my future. When I get old and feeble, I am going to get on a Princess Cruise Ship. The average cost for a nursing home is $200 per day. I have checked on reservations at Princess and I can get a long term discount and senior discount price of $135 per day. That leaves $65 a day for...
1. Gratuities, which will only be $10 per day. And the rest can be put into the slot machines.
2. I will have as many as 10 meals a day if I can waddle to the restaurant, or I can have room service (which means I can have breakfast in bed every day of the week).
3. Princess has as many as three swimming pools, a workout room, free washers and dryers, and shows every night.
4. They have free toothpaste and razors, and free soap and shampoo.
5. They will even treat you like a customer, not a patient. An extra $5 worth of tips and your casino winnings will have the entire staff scrambling to help you.
6. I will get to meet new people every 7or 14 days.
7. T.V. broken? Light bulb need changing? Need to have the mattress replaced? No problem! They will fix everything and apologize for your inconvenience.
8. Clean sheets and towels every day, and you don't even have to ask for them.
9. If you fall in the nursing home and break a hip you are on Medicare; if you fall and break a hip on the Princess ship they will upgrade you to a suite for the rest of your life.
Now hold on for the best! Do you want to see South America, the Panama Canal, Tahiti, Australia, New Zealand, Asia, or name where you want to go? Princess will have a ship ready to go. So don't look for me in a nursing home, just call shore to ship.
P.S. And don't forget, when you die, they just dump you over the side... at no charge.
(inspire21.com)
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