2012-41 - Happiness...

God created Man 'happy'. But Man did not use happiness properly. So God took it back from him. God asked the Angels, "Where do we hide happiness?"

One of them said, "We should bury it deep in the earth."

God said "No... Man will dig deep into the earth and find it."

Another Angel said, "Well... in that case, we put it into the deepest sea."

But God said, "No... one day Man will go down into the depths of the sea. He can find it there easily."

All the Angels said together, "We cannot hide it in the earth, we cannot hide it in the sea... Then where can we hide it? What shall we do?"

God smiled and said, "I have a plan, we'll hide it in Man's heart. He will never think of looking for it there!!"

Man started his search for happiness from that day onwards. He never thought of looking for happiness in his own heart, and, the search is still on...

~ Author Unknown
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"Happiness depends upon ourselves."

~ Aristotle (384 BC - 322 BC)
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2012-40 - Happiness on Hold...

We convince ourselves that life will be better after we get married, have a baby, then another. Then we are frustrated that the kids aren't old enough and we'll be more content when they are.

After that, we're frustrated that we have teenagers to deal with. We will certainly be happy when they are out of that stage. We tell ourselves that our life will be complete when our spouse gets his or her act together, when we get a nicer car, are able to go on a nice vacation, or when we retire.

The truth is, there's no better time to be happy than right now. If not now, when? Your life will always be filled with challenges. It's best to admit this to yourself and decide to be happy anyway. Happiness is the way. So, treasure every moment that you have and treasure it more because you shared it with someone special, special enough to spend your time with... and remember that time waits for no one.

So, stop waiting

--until your car or home is paid off

--until you get a new car or home

--until your kids leave the house

--until you go back to school

--until you lose ten pounds

--until you gain ten pounds

--until you finish school

--until you get a divorce

--until you get married

--until you have kids

--until you retire

--until summer

--until spring

--until winter

--until fall

--UNTIL YOU DIE!!!

There is no better time than right now to be happy.

Happiness is a journey, not a destination.

So - work like you don't need money, Love like you've never been hurt, And dance like no one's watching.

Hope for the best and never forget that anything is possible as long as you remain dedicated to the task

~Author Unknown
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“For every minute you are angry you lose sixty seconds of happiness.”
 
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson 
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2012-39 - Do not blame others…

A student went to his teacher. “I shall not continue with my studies” he said. “I live in a small house with my brothers and parents, and never have the ideal conditions for concentrating on that which is important.”

The teacher pointed to the sun and asked his student to place his hand over his face, in order to hide it. The student obeyed.

“Your hand is small, yet it can completely cover the power, light and majesty of the great sun. In the same way, the small problems manage to give you the excuse you need in order to hinder your progress along your life.”

“Just as your hand has the power to hide the sun, mediocrity has the power to hide your inner light. Do not blame others for your own incompetence.”

~ Author Unknown
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“There is an infinite difference between a little wrong and just right, between fairly good and the best, between mediocrity and superiority.”

~ Orison Swett Marden 
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2012-38 - Stretching Yourself…

I hadn't run more than three miles in twenty years. In fact I walk more often than I run. But last week I decided to join my friends Dan and Chris for a 5 mile run through the battlefields of Gettysburg while spending time at an FCA lacrosse camp with my daughter.

Dan, who runs marathons, and Chris, a former college athlete, ran the first two days without me. But on the third day I was inspired to join them.

It seemed like a good idea in theory but after the first mile I wasn't feeling very positive about my decision. At the three mile mark I wanted to stop running but knew it wasn't an option. I had to give everything I had.

As we ran the last two miles, mostly uphill, I felt like I was going to pass out but with Dan and Chris' amazing encouragement I kept going and made it to the finish line. 

I felt an incredible sense of accomplishment all day but that's not the point of this message.

What happened two days later is the reason why I'm writing this. I ran three miles by myself and it was a piece of cake.

What I thought was once hard was now easy because I had stretched myself.

We don't like to stretch ourselves because it's painful and uncomfortable but it is through discomfort and stretching that we become stronger and grow.

When we stretch ourselves we look back and realize that it is our challenges, not our comforts, that make us stronger, wiser and better.

So what area of your life do you need to stretch?

Not everyone should go run five miles. But you can stretch yourself by taking on a new project at work. You can stretch your mind by reading more books. You can stretch your heart by giving more to a charity. You can stretch your relationships at home. You can stretch yourself mentally, physically and spiritually by challenging yourself to do the hard things that make life ultimately easier.

How will you stretch yourself?

~ Jon Gordon

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“If you always put limit on everything you do, physical or anything else. It will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them.”
 
~ Bruce Lee 
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2012-36 - Self-respect leads to self-discipline…

A mother once brought her son to Mahatma Gandhi and said, ”Sir, please tell my son to stop eating sugar”.

Gandhi looked at the boy for a long time and then, turning towards mother, said, “Bring your son back to me in two weeks”. 

The mother did not understand the rationale of the delay in instruction, but she did as she was asked. Two weeks later she and her son returned. 

Gandhi looked deeply into boy‘s eyes and said, “Stop eating sugar”.

The mother was grateful, but puzzled. She asked, “Why didn‘t you tell my son to stop eating sugar two weeks ago when we were here?”

Gandhi replied, “Two weeks ago, I was eating sugar.”

~ Author Unknown
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“Self-respect is the fruit of discipline; the sense of dignity grows with the ability to say no to oneself.”

~ Abraham J. Heschel
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