Tuesday, June 28, 2016

2016-26 - Food For The Soul

An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. He told his employer, a building contractor, of his plans to leave the house building business and live a more leisurely life with his wife, enjoying his extended family. He would miss the paycheck, but he needed to retire. They were not wealthy, but they could get by.

His employer was sorry to see his good worker go and asked if he could build just one more house as a personal favour. The carpenter said yes, but in time it was easy to see that his heart was no longer in his work. He had lost his enthusiasm and had resorted to shoddy workmanship and used inferior materials. It was an unfortunate way to end his career.

When the carpenter finished his work and his boss came to inspect the new house, he handed the front-door keys to the carpenter. "This is your house," he said, "my gift to you for your many years as a faithful employee."

What a shock! What a shame! If he had only known he was building his own house, he would have done it all so differently. Now he had to live in the home he had built none too well.

So it is with us. We build our lives in a distracted way, reacting rather than acting, willing to put up less than the best. At important points, we do not give the job our best effort. Then with a shock, we look at the situation we have created and find that we are now living in a house we have built none too well. If we had only realized, we could and we would have done it so differently.

Think of yourself as the carpenter. Think about your house. Each day you hammer a nail, place a board, or erect a wall. Build wisely. It is the only life you will ever build. Even if you live it for only one day more, that day deserves to be lived graciously and with dignity.

The plaque on the wall says, "Life is a do-it-yourself project." Who could say it more clearly? Your life today is the result of your attitudes and the choices you made in the past. Your life tomorrow will be the result of the attitudes you form and the choices you make today..

~ Author Unknown





"A positive attitude is something everyone can work on, and everyone can learn how to employ it."

~ Joan Lunden

Tuesday, June 21, 2016

2016-25 - No mistakes… only opportunities!

Five men got lost in a vast forest. They tried to find their way out. 

The first man said, “I will follow my intuition and go left.” 

The second man said, “I will go right. I have a strong feeling about this.” 

The third man said, “I think I will walk back the same path we came. This should be the safest option.” 

The fourth man said: “I think we are on the right track already, so I will keep going straight. I am sure this forest will end and I will find a village or a farm to ask for directions.” 

The fifth man said, “I don’t know what to do. I think I will climb up this tall tree and take a better look around before I make up my mind.” 

So the fifth man did that. While he was climbing, the other four men scattered towards their own directions. The fifth man now could see from above what was the shortest way to a village. He thought that the others should not have chosen the paths they did. He was wrong, though. 

Each man chose his own path and gained a different experience. The man who went left, found a long path but in the end, it led him to the town. 

The man who went right, had to fight a pack of wolves, but this way he learned how to survive in the forest. 

The man who went back, met another team of hikers and made new friends. 

The man who went straight, found a farm and was hosted by the family for a couple of days before leaving for the village.

Everyone was enriched in their own unique way by the journey.

~ Author Unknown
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“Do what you think is right. Don't let people make the decision of 
right or wrong for you.”


~ Steve Maraboli
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Tuesday, June 14, 2016

2016-24 - Untying Mental Blocks…

A farmer was taking three of his donkeys for sale to the market. On the way he saw a river and decided to have a dip. Since he had only two ropes to tie the donkeys to a tree, he looked around wondering how to tie the third one.

He saw a sage and sought his help if he could give him a rope to tie the third donkey. The sage did not have a rope but had a suggestion. He told the farmer, “let the third donkey see you tying the other two donkeys to a tree. Then you pretend to tie the third one too”. The farmer did as he was told and went for a dip in the river.

After coming back, he thanked the sage and saw that the donkeys stood at the same spot where he had left them. He untied the two donkeys and patted the third one to start moving. After going a little ahead, to his surprise, he saw that the third donkey stood still at the same spot. Cajoling, kicking or talking did not help, the donkey just refused to move from the spot.

The farmer went back to sage, who told him, “untie the third donkey”.

"But”, protested the farmer, “I have not tied him”.

The sage asked, “You know it. But does the donkey know that?”

Sure enough the farmer went back and went through the motions of untying the donkey. The donkey moved immediately as though released and walked over to join the other two donkeys.

We are tied up by too many imaginary ropes which are non-existent. 
The only truth is that there are no boundaries in real life and anyone 
can stretch to any extent.


~ Author Unknown
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“Don’t let mental blocks control you. Set yourself free. Confront 
your fear and turn the mental blocks into building blocks.”

~ Dr Roopleen
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Tuesday, June 7, 2016

2016-23 - Puppies for Sale

A store owner was tacking a sign above his door that read "Puppies For Sale." Signs like that have a way of attracting small children and sure enough a little boy appeared. "How much are you going to sell the puppies for?", he asked. The store owner replied, "Anywhere between $30 and $50." The little boy reached for his pocket and pulled out some change. "I have $2.37," he said. "May I please look at them?"

The store owner smiled and whistled, out of the kennel came Lady, who ran down the aisle of his store followed by five teeny, tiny balls of fur. One puppy was lagging considerably behind. Immediately the little boy singled out the lagging, limping puppy and said, "What's wrong with that little dog?" The store owner explained that the veterinarian had examined the little puppy and had discovered it didn't have a hip socket. It would always limp. It would always be lame.

The little boy became excited. "That is the little puppy that I want to buy." The store owner said, "No, you don't want to buy that little dog. If you really want him, I'll just give him to you." The little boy got quite upset. He looked into the store owner's eyes, pointed his finger, and said, "I don't want you to give him to me. That dog is worth every bit as much as all the other dogs and I'll pay full price. In fact, I'll give you $2.37 now, and 50 cents a month until I have him paid for."

The store owner countered, "You really don't want to buy this little 
dog. He is never going to be able to run and jump and play with you 
like the other puppies." To this, the little boy reached down and rolled 
up his pant leg to reveal a badly twisted, crippled left leg supported by 
a big metal brace. He looked up at the store owner and softly replied, 
"Well, I don't run so good myself, and the little puppy will need someone 
who understands!"

~ Author Unknown
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“Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself, 
in your way of thinking.”

~ Marcus Aurelius
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