Negativity

"Be careful around those individuals who have bought into negativity, because they have the uncanny ability of selling it as well!" - Brian

G. Jett

Your masterpiece

Today is your next masterpiece, waiting to be created. It is the culmination of all you have ever been, of your knowledge, your experience, your skills and your resources. It all comes together today, right now. It is yours to use in the creation of a truly unique and valuable masterpiece.

Paint the masterpiece of today with wide and brilliant strokes. Make every moment count. Treat this day as the priceless opportunity that it is, so that when tomorrow comes, you can look back with satisfaction as you continue to look forward with eager anticipation.

You've spent your life preparing for today. Now has come your chance to live it. You're better than you've ever been. Though the challenges you face are formidable, so too are the opportunities to make a real and lasting positive difference.

You can truly see and understand that life is beautiful even in the difficult moments. Today is indeed your next masterpiece, taking shape even now. Make it better than you can imagine.

- Ralph Marston

Quote for Today

Far away in the sunshine are my highest aspirations. I may not reach them, but I can look up and see their beauty, believe in them and try to follow where they lead.
- Louisa May Alcott

Quote for Today

"Start every day off with a smile and get it over with." - W. C. Fields

Memo From God

To: YOU Date: TODAY

From: THE BOSS Subject: YOURSELF Reference: LIFE

I am God. Today I will be handling all of your problems.

Please remember that I do not need your help.

If life happens to deliver a situation to you that you cannot handle, do not attempt to resolve it.  

Kindly put it in the SFGTD (something for God to do) box. 

All situations will be resolved, but in My time, not yours.

Once the matter is placed into the box, do not hold onto it by worrying about it. 

Instead, focus on all the wonderful things that are present in your life now.

If you find yourself stuck in traffic;

Don't despair.

There are people in this world for whom driving is an unheard of privilege.

Should you have a bad day at work;

Think of the man who has been out of work for years.

Should you grieve the passing of another weekend; 

Think of the woman in dire straits,

working twelve hours a day,

seven days a week to feed her children.              

Should your car break down, leaving you miles away from assistance;

Think of the paraplegic who would love the opportunity to take that walk. 

Should you despair over a relationship gone bad;

Think of the person who has never known what it's like to love and be loved in return.

Should you find yourself at a loss and pondering what is life all about, asking what is my purpose?

Be thankful.

There are those who didn't live long enough to get the opportunity.

Should you find yourself the victim of other people's bitterness, ignorance, smallness or insecurities;

Remember, things could be worse.

You could be one of them!

Should you notice a new gray hair in the mirror;

Think of the cancer patient in chemo who wishes she had hair to examine.

Should you decide to send this to a friend;

Thank you, you may have touched their life in ways you will never know!

Know it is possible

Know it is possible

Knowing that something is possible is a significant step toward achieving it. As soon as you know, without a doubt, that you can achieve it, in many ways you immediately begin to benefit from it.

Of course achievement requires more than just knowing you can do it. You must actually take the steps which will make it happen. However, those efforts come much more readily when you know that they will surely lead where you desire to go.

Look at all the things others have achieved. Consider everything you have already accomplished. Know that what you desire is possible. Convince yourself of it. See yourself living it in every detail. Fully and sincerely expect it, and you're well on the way to having it.

-- Ralph Marston

Got a minute?

My Child,

As you got up this morning, I watched you, and hoped you would talk to me, even if it was just a few words, asking my opinion or thanking me for something good that happened in your life yesterday. But I noticed you were too busy, trying to find the right outfit to wear.

When you ran around the house getting ready, I knew there would be a few minutes for you to stop and say hello, but you were too busy. At one point you had to wait fifteen minutes with nothing to do except sit in a chair.

Then I saw you spring to your feet. I thought you wanted to talk to me but you ran to the phone and called a friend to get the latest gossip instead.

I watched patiently all day long. With all our activities I guess you were too busy to say anything to me.

I noticed that before lunch you looked around, maybe you felt embarrassed to talk to me,that is why you didn't bow your head. You glanced three or four tables over and you noticed some of your friends talking to me briefly before they ate, but you didn't.

That's okay. There is still more time left, and I hope that you will talk to me yet.

You went home and it seems as if you had lots of things to do. After a few of them were done, you turned on the TV. I don't know if you like TV or not, just about anything goes there and you spend a lot of time each day in front of it not thinking about anything, just enjoying the show. I waited patiently again as you watched the TV and ate your meal, but again you didn't talk to me.

Bedtime I guess you felt too tired. After you said goodnight to your family you plopped into bed and fell asleep in no time. That's okay because you may not realize that I am always there for you.. I've got patience, more than you will ever know. I even want to teach you how to be patient with others as well.

I love you so much that I wait everyday  for a nod, prayer or thought, or a  thankful part of your heart. It is hard to have a one-sided conversation.

Well, you are getting up once again. Once again I will wait, with nothing but love for you. Hoping that today you will give me some time.

Have a nice day!

Your friend,

GOD

The Real Cost of Raising Kids

I have seen repeatedly the breakdown of the cost of raising a child (personally I think it is more, MUCH more) but this is the first time I have seen the rewards listed this way. It's nice, really nice!!

The government recently calculated the cost of raising a child from birth to 18 and came up with $160,140 for a middle-income family. Talk about sticker shock! That doesn't even touch college tuition. But $160,140 isn't so bad if you break it down. It translates into: $8,896.66 a year, $741.38 a month, or $171.08 a week. That's a mere $24.44 a day! Just over a dollar an hour.

Still, you might think the best financial advice says don't have children if you want to be "rich." It is just the opposite. What do you get for your $160,140?

Naming rights. First, middle, and last!

Glimpses of God every day.

Giggles under the covers every night.

More love than your heart can hold.

Butterfly kisses and Velcro hugs.

Endless wonder over rocks, ants, clouds, and warm cookies.

A hand to hold, usually covered with jam.

A partner for blowing bubbles, flying kites, building sand castles, and skipping down the sidewalk in the pouring rain.

Someone to laugh yourself silly with no matter what the boss said or how your stocks performed that day.

For $160,140, you never have to grow up.

You get to finger-paint, carve pumpkins, play hide-and-seek, catch lightning bugs, and never stop believing in Santa Claus.

You have an excuse to keep: reading the Adventures of Piglet and Pooh, watching Saturday morning cartoons, going to Disney movies, and wishing on stars.

You get to frame rainbows, hearts, and flowers under refrigerator magnets and collect spray painted noodle wreaths for Christmas, hand prints set in clay for Mother's Day, and cards with backward letters for Father's Day.

For $160,140, there is no greater bang for your buck.

You get to be a hero just for retrieving a Frisbee off the garage roof, taking the training wheels off the bike, removing a splinter, filling the wading pool, coaxing a wad of gum out of bangs, and coaching a baseball team that never wins but always gets treated to ice cream regardless.

You get a front row seat to history to witness the first step, first word, first bra, first date, and first time behind the wheel.

You get to be immortal.

You get another branch added to your family tree, and if you're lucky, a long list of limbs in your obituary called grandchildren.

You get an education in psychology, nursing, criminal justice, communications and human sexuality that no college can match.

In the eyes of a child, you rank right up there with God. You have all the power to heal a boo-boo, scare away the monsters under the bed, patch a broken heart, police a slumber party, ground them forever, and love them without limits, so one day they will, like you, love without counting the cost.

ENJOY YOUR KIDS AND GRANDKIDS!!!!!!!

Tantra Totem

THE FOLLOWING IS A CHINESE GOOD LUCK TANTRA TOTEM.

You may not believe in this but the advice is great!
Read all the way down, you might learn something!!!

ONE.

Give people more than they expect and do it cheerfully.

TWO.

Marry a man/woman you love to talk to. As you get older, their
conversational skills will be as important as any other.

THREE

Don't believe all you hear, spend all you have or sleep all you want.

FOUR

When you say, "I love you", mean it

FIVE

When you say, "I'm sorry", look the person in the eye

SIX

Be engaged at least six months before you get married

SEVEN

Believe in love at first sight

EIGHT

Never laugh at anyone's dreams. People who
don't have dreams don't have much

NINE

Love deeply and passionately. You might get hurt
but it's the only way to live life completely Love deeply and passionately. You might get hurt
but it's the only way to live life completely

TEN

In disagreements, fight fairly. Please No name calling

ELEVEN

Don't judge people by their relatives

TWELVE

Talk slowly but think quickly

THIRTEEN

When someone asks you a question you don't want
to answer, smile and ask, "Why do you want to know?”

FOURTEEN

Remember that great love and great
achievements involve great risk

FIFTEEN

Say "bless you" when you hear someone sneeze

SIXTEEN

When you lose, don't lose the lesson

SEVENTEEN

Remember the three R's:

Respect for self;

Respect for others;

Responsibility for all your actions

EIGHTEEN

Don't let a little dispute injure a great friendship

NINETEEN

When you realize you've made a mistake,
take immediate steps to correct it

TWENTY

Smile when picking up the phone.
The caller will hear it in your voice

TWENTY ONE

Spend some time alone

Quote for Today

There is no shame in calling in sick.

Philosophy of Love

Be open and honest in your philosophy of love.

Flow and focus

To accomplish anything requires focus. The more highly focused, the more spectacular the accomplishment. Yet we must be careful not to confuse focus with narrow mindedness. We must indeed stay focused, and we must also be aware of, open to, and accepting of the opportunities that come our way.

Opportunity rarely comes in the form we expect and plan for. The challenge of successful living is to gather the many and varied opportunities which come to us on a daily basis, and direct them toward the objectives we have defined. To do that requires discipline, confidence, belief and commitment.

Life will flow your way if you let it. This is not a magical, mystical notion, but rather a very practical concept. The "raw material" for success comes in each moment of living. Spend those moments, and their accompanying opportunities, toward some definite purpose, and you'll accomplish it. Life is always flowing. Jump in and swim along.

-- Ralph Marston

The Road to Happiness

The road to happiness lies in two simple principles: find what it is that interests you and that you can do well, and when you find it, put your whole soul into it -- every bit of energy and ambition and natural ability you have.

- John D. Rockefeller III