Personal Wisdom (Experience)

[Guardian Angel]

This is good......I could have written this about my mom....

WHEN YOU THOUGHT I WASN'T LOOKING
  (Written by a former child)
 
  A message every adult should read, because children
  are watching you and doing as you do, not as you say.
 
  When you thought I wasn't looking, I saw you hang my
  first painting on the refrigerator, and I
  immediately wanted to paint another one.
  When you thought I wasn't looking, I saw you feed a
  stray cat, and I learned that it was good to be kind
  to animals.
 
  When you thought I wasn't looking, I saw you make my
  favorite cake for me and I learned that the
little
  things can be the special things in life.
 
  When you thought I wasn't looking, I heard you say a
  Prayer, and I knew there is a God I could always
  talk to and I learned to trust in God.
 
  When you thought I wasn't looking, I saw you make a
  meal and take it to a friend who was sick, and I
  learned that we all have to help take care of each other.
 
  When you thought I wasn't looking, I saw you give of
  your time and money to help people who had nothing
  and I learned that those who have something should
  give to those who don't.
 
  When you thought I wasn't looking, I saw you take
  care of our house and everyone in it and I learned
  we have to take care of what we are given.
 
  When you thought I
  wasn't looking, I saw how you
  handled your responsibilities, even when you didn't
  feel good and I learned that I would have to be
  responsible when I grow up.
 
  When you thought I wasn't looking, I saw tears come
  from your eyes and I learned that sometimes things
  hurt, but it's all right to cry.
 
  When you thought I wasn't looking, I saw that you
  cared and I wanted to be everything that I could be.
 
  When you thought I wasn't looking, I learned most of
  life's lessons that I need to know to be a good and
  productive person when I grow up.
 
  When you thought I wasn't looking, I looked at you
  and wanted to say, "Thanks for all the things I saw
  when you thought I wasn't looking."
 
  LITTLE EYES SEE A LOT.
 
  Each of us (parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle,
  teacher or friend) influence the life of a child.
 
  How will you touch the life of someone today?

[Guardian Angel]

I got this email from an old friend and wanted to share it........
AMEN!!!!!!  to all of this!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
The other day a young person asked me how I felt about being old. I was taken aback, for I do not think of myself as old. Upon seeing my reaction, she was immediately embarrassed, but I explained that it was an interesting question, and I would ponder it, and let her know.

Old Age, I decided, is a gift.
 
I am now, probably for the first time in my life, the person I have always wanted to be.  Oh, not my body!  I sometime despair over my body, the wrinkles, the baggy eyes, and the sagging butt.  And often I am taken aback by that old person that lives in my mirror (who looks like my mother!), but I don't agonize over those things for long.

I would never trade my amazing friends, my wonderful life, my loving family for less gray hair or a flatter belly.  As I've aged, I've become more kind to myself, and less critical of myself. I've become my own friend. 

I don't chide myself for eating that extra cookie, or for not making my bed, or for buying that silly cement gecko that I didn't need, but looks so avante garde on my patio.  I am entitled to a treat, to be messy, to be extravagant.
 
I have seen too many dear friends leave this world too soon; before they understood the great freedom that comes with aging.     

Whose business is it if I choose to read or play on the computer until 4 AM and sleep until noon?
   
I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 40 &50's, and if I, at the same time, wish to weep over a lost love ... I will.

I will walk the beach in a swim suit that is stretched over a bulging body, and  will dive into the waves with abandon if I choose to, despite the pitying glances from the jet set.
 
They, too, will get old.

I know I am sometimes forgetful.  But there again, some of life is just as well forgotten. And I  eventually remember the important things.

Sure, over the years my heart has been broken.   How can your heart not break when you lose a loved one, or when a child suffers, or even when somebody's beloved pet gets hit by a car?  But broken hearts are what give us strength and understanding and compassion.  A heart never broken is pristine and sterile and will never know the joy of being imperfect.

I am so blessed to have lived long enough to have my hair turning gray, and to have my youthful laughs be forever etched into deep grooves on my face.  So many have never laughed, and so many have died before their hair could turn silver.   

As you get older, it is easier to be positive. You care less about what other people think.  I don't  question myself anymore.  I've even earned the right to be wrong.

 So, to answer your question, I  like being old. It has set me free.  I like the person I have become.  I am not going to live forever, but while I am still here, I will not waste time lamenting what could have been, or worrying about what will be.  And I shall eat dessert every single day. (If I feel like it.)

[Guardian Angel]

A dear friend sent me this in an email and I thought it was good philosophy to start the day.........

The Coffee or the Cup?


A group of alumni, highly established in their careers, got together to visit their old university professor. Conversation soon turned into complaints about stress in work and life.

Offering his guests coffee, the professor went to the kitchen and returned with a large pot of coffee and an assortment of cups - porcelain, plastic, glass, crystal, some plain looking, some expensive, some exquisite - telling them to help themselves to the coffee.

When all the students had a cup of coffee in hand, the professor said: 'If you noticed, all the nice looking expensive cups were taken up, leaving behind the plain and cheap ones. While it is normal for you to want only the best for yourselves, that is the source of your problems and stress. Be assured that the cup itself adds no quality to the coffee. In most cases it is just more expensive and in some cases even hides what we drink. What all of you really wanted was coffee, not the cup, but you consciously went for the best cups... And then you began eyeing each other's cups.

Now consider this: Life is the coffee; the jobs, money and position in society are the cups. They are just tools to hold and contain Life, and the type of cup we have does not define, nor change the quality of life we live. Sometimes, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to enjoy the coffee God has provided us.' God brews the coffee, not the cups Enjoy your coffee!

The happiest people don't have the best of everything. They just make the best of everything. Live simply. Love generously. Care deeply. Speak kindly. Leave the rest to God.

[Butterfly]

Relationship isn't a worry to O'Connor, her son says

PHOENIX

Sandra Day O’Connor’s husband struck up a romance with a fellow Alzheimer’s patient after moving into an assisted-living center, and under the circumstances, O’Connor, a retired Supreme Court justice, is just glad that he is comfortable, her son told a TV station.

Story



When I read this article this morning, I thought what a wise and loving wife she is.  To be happy because her loved one has found some happiness during his struggle with alzheimers, is the ultimate love.

[SpiritMan]

I was going through some writings from a year ago. Found this and thought I should post it here. I wrote it upon awakening from a dream.

  In this night, in my dream, I have looked into the face of what someone else might call God. I accept that it is the answer to what lies beyond the veil that separates us from the mystery of death. Even though there are no words to bring the understanding into the mind, I understand. It is the unanswered question that keeps us attached to the dense physical form. It is the quest for truth that attaches us to the temporal world we have created in our minds.

    This night I have looked out into the vast expanse of the universe, wondering as many do, what is beyond the outermost star. But I came to understand instead, that I am in the middle of that universe, not at the edge. Infinity also reaches beyond the smallest micro organism our inadequate scientific tools can verify.

    In this night I have seen beyond what some call faith. I have fallen into the realm of peace where there is no longer anything to fear. We call it love, but there is no word that does it justice. It is the absence of fear and hatred. It is the void created when we lose all desire. It is the blinding light that consumes us when we realize we are not alone, but part of the whole.

[Butterfly]

My parents told me about Mr. Common Sense early in my life and told me I would do well to call on him when making decisions.  It  seems he was always around in my early years but less and less as time passed by until today I read his obituary.  Please join me in a moment of silence in remembrance.  For Common Sense had served us all so well for so many generations.

Obituary

Common Sense

Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Common Sense, who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was since his birth records were long ago lost in
bureaucratic red tape.

He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as knowing when to come in out of the rain, why the early bird gets the worm, life isn't always fair, and maybe it was my fault.

Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you earn) and reliable parenting strategies (adults, not children are in charge).

His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a six-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a class mate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.

Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job they themselves failed to do in disciplining their unruly children.  It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer Aspirin, sun lotion or a sticky plaster to a student; but could not inform the parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion. 

Common Sense lost the will to live as the Ten Commandments became contraband; churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims.


Common Sense took a beating when you couldn't defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar can sue you for assault.

Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot.  She spilled a little in her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement.

Common Sense was preceded in death by his parents,   Truth   and   Trust ; his wife,   Discretion ; his daughter,   Responsibility ; and his son,   Reason .   
He is survived by three stepbrothers; I Know My Rights, Someone Else is to Blame, and I'm a Victim.

Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone. If you still remember him pass this on. If not, join the majority and do nothing.

[Guardian Angel]

LAWS OF ULTIMATE REALITY

Law of Mechanical Repair - After your hands become coated with grease, your nose will begin to itch and you'll have to pee.

Law of Gravity - Any tool, when dropped, will roll to the least accessible corner.

Law of Probability -The probability of being watched is directly proportional to the stupidity of your act.

Law of Random Numbers - If you dial a wrong number, you never get a busy signal and someone always answers.

Law of the Alibi - If you tell the boss you were late for work because you had a flat tire, the very next morning you will have a flat tire.

Variation Law - If you change lines (or traffic lanes), the one you were in will always move faster than the one you are in now (works every time).  

Law of the Bath - When the body is fully immersed in water, the telephone rings.

Law of Close Encounters -The probability of meeting someone you know increases dramatically when you are with someone you don't want to be seen with.

Law of the Result - When you try to prove to someone that a machine won't work, it will.

Law of Biomechanics - The severity of the itch is inversely proportional to the reach.

Law of the Theater - At any event, the people whose seats are furthest from the aisle arrive last.

The Starbucks Law - As soon as you sit down to a cup of hot coffee, your boss will ask you to do something which will last until the coffee is cold.

Murphy's Law of Lockers - If there are only two people in a locker room, they will have adjacent lockers.

Law of Physical Surfaces - The chances of an open-faced jelly sandwich landing face down on a floor covering are directly correlated to the newness and cost of the carpet/rug.

Law of Logical Argument - Anything is possible if you don't know what you are talking about.

Brown's Law of Physical Appearance - If the clothes fit, they're ugly.

Oliver's Law of Public Speaking - A closed mouth gathers no feet.

Wilson's Law of Commercial Marketing Strategy - As soon as you find a product that you really like, they will stop making it. This also applies to a TV series that you really like.

Doctors' Law - If you don't feel well, make an appointment to go to the doctor; by the time you get there you'll feel better. Don't make an appointment and you'll stay sick.