Patience

Patience: It can be learnt from Butterflies. Though they have less sense than us, they live a life of Patience. 

Once a little boy was playing outdoors and found a fascinating caterpillar. He carefully picked it up and took it home to show his mother. He asked his mother if he could keep it, and she said he could if he would take good care of it. 

The little boy got a large jar from his mother and put plants to eat, and a stick to climb on, in the jar. Every day he watched the caterpillar and brought it new plants to eat. 

One day the caterpillar climbed up the stick and started acting strangely. The boy worriedly called his mother who came and understood that the caterpillar was creating a cocoon. The mother explained to the boy how the caterpillar was going to go through a metamorphosis and become a butterfly. 

The little boy was thrilled to hear about the changes his caterpillar would go through. He watched every day, waiting for the butterfly to emerge. One day it happened, a small hole appeared in the cocoon and the butterfly started to struggle to come out. 

At first the boy was excited, but soon he became concerned. The butterfly was struggling so hard to get out! It looked like it couldn’t break free! It looked desperate! It looked like it was making no progress!

The boy was so concerned he decided to help. He ran to get scissors, and then walked back (because he had learned not to run with scissors…). He snipped the cocoon to make the hole bigger and the butterfly quickly emerged! As the butterfly came out the boy was surprised. It had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings. He continued to watch the butterfly expecting that, at any moment, the wings would dry out, enlarge and expand to support the swollen body. He knew that in time the body would shrink and the butterfly’s wings would expand. But neither happened! The butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings. It never was able to fly…

As the boy tried to figure out what had gone wrong his mother took him to talk to a scientist from a local college. He learned that the butterfly was SUPPOSED TO BE PATIENT WHILE STRUGGLING. In fact, the butterfly’s struggle to push its way through the tiny opening of the cocoon pushes the fluid out of its body and into its wings. Without the struggle, the butterfly would never, ever fly. As you go through school, college or in any status of life, keep in mind that struggling is an important part of any growth experience. In fact, it is the struggle that causes you to develop your ability to fly. So be Patient, to receive the fruits of life.

An earthquake in Japan

This is a true story of a Mother’s sacrifice during the Japan Earthquake.

After the Earthquake had subsided, when the rescuers reached the ruins of a young woman’s house, they saw her dead body through the cracks. But her pose was somehow strange that she knelt on her knees like a person was worshiping; her body was leaning forward, and her two hands were supporting by an object. The collapsed house had crashed her back and her head. With so many difficulties, the leader of the rescuer team put his hand through a narrow gap on the wall to reach the woman’s body. He was hoping that this woman could be still alive. However, the cold and stiff body told him that she had passed away for sure. He and the rest of the team left this house and were going to search the next collapsed building. 

For some reasons, the team leader was driven by a compelling force to go back to the ruin house of the dead woman. Again, he knelt down and used his hand through the narrow cracks to search the little space under the dead body. Suddenly, he screamed with excitement, "A child! There is a child! ". The whole team worked together; carefully they removed the piles of ruined objects around the dead woman. There was a 3 months old little boy wrapped in a flowery blanket under his mother’s dead body.

 Obviously, the woman had made an ultimate sacrifice for saving her son. When her house was falling, she used her body to make a cover to protect her son. The little boy was still sleeping peacefully when the team leader picked him up. The medical doctor came quickly to exam the little boy. After he opened the blanket, he saw a cell phone inside the blanket. There was a text message on the screen. It said, " If you can survive, you must remember that I love you".  This cell phone was passing  around from one hand to another. Every body that read the message wept. "If you can survive, you must remember that I love you.” Such is the mother’s love for her child.

Yes friends, If you are alive this minute, please remember that it is because of your Mother's love for you. However you are in your life, however bad she is with you at times, however she looks or behaves, it is our duty to pay her the respect and love. Lets be grateful to our mother who is used by God, to bring us to this world.

Wrong Conclusions

An old man was traveling with his 25 yr old son in the train. Train is about to leave the station. All passengers are settling down in their seats. As train started young man was filled with lot of joy and curiosity. He was sitting on the window side feeling the passing air in his hands. He shouted, "Papa, see all trees are going behind". Old man smiled and admired his son's feelings.

Beside the young man a couple was sitting and listing all the conversion between the father and son. They felt little awkward with the attitude of 25 yr old man behaving like a small child. Suddenly the young man again shouted, "Papa, see the pond and animals. Clouds are moving with train". Now its start raining and some of water drops touches the young man's hand. He filled with joy and he closed the eyes. He shouted again, "Papa it's raining, water is touching me, see papa". Father was happy. 

The couple couldn't help themselves and ask the old man, "Why don't you visit the Doctor and get treatment for your son?'. Old man said, "Yes, we are coming from the hospital; my son was born blind and today only he got the eye sight for the first time".

Moral: Don't draw conclusions until you know all the facts. We cannot understand other's feelings unless we wear their shoes.

What can I give you?

After having reached at the peak of his career a man felt an urge to repay back to his mother for all that she had done for him. So he asked her, “Mother, what can I give you? What can I do for you? I sincerely want to repay you for all the sacrifices you have made for me and for all the love you have showered upon me.”

Mother looked surprised and said, “Why do you think about it. It was my duty so I did it, you don’t have to repay me. Even if you want to, there is no way a man can ever repay his mother.”

Despite her continuous refusal to ask for anything, he continued to Persist. To put an end to the discussion, she said, “All right. If you must, then tonight you sleep on my bed, with me, just as you used to when you were a baby. “He said, “That’s a strange thing to ask for, but if it pleases you, I will.”

As soon as he fell asleep, the mother got up and brought a bucket of water. She poured a mug full of water on his side. Feeling disturbed by the wetness under him, in his sleep he moved away to the other side of the bed. As he settled down, his mother poured another mug of water on the other side. In his slumber he tried to find space towards the foot post of the bed. Sometime later he woke up feeling that this part of the bed too was damp. He got up and saw his mother, with the mug in her hand. 

He asked angrily, “What are you doing mother? Why don’t you let me sleep? How do you expect me to sleep on a wet bed?”.

Mother said, “I slept with you, when you wet the bed in the night. I changed your nappy and moved you to the dry part of the bed, while I slept on the wet side. You wanted to repay me. Can you sleep here even for one night with me on a damp bed? If you can, I’ll take it that you have repaid me.”

Dear friends, How true it is that of all the debts in the world, the one that can never be repaid is the one you owe to your mother. You can never repay the love, care and time your mother gave to bring up. You are a part of her flesh and blood; don’t forget this, because she never ever forgets it.

Abortion - A Crime

A worried woman went to her gynecologist and said: 

'Doctor, I have a serious problem and desperately need your help! My baby is not even 1 year old and I'm pregnant again. I don't want kids so close together. 

So the doctor said: 'OK and what do you want me to do?' 

She said: 'I want you to end my pregnancy, and I'm counting on your help with this.' 

The doctor thought for a little, and after some silence he said to the lady: 'I think I have a better solution for your problem. It's less dangerous for you too.' 

She smiled, thinking that the doctor was going to accept her request. 

Then he continued: 'You see, in order for you not to have to take care 2 babies at the same time, let's kill the one in your arms. This way, you could rest some before the other one is born. If we're going to kill one of them, it doesn't matter which one it is. There would be no risk for your body if you chose the one in your arms. 

The lady was horrified and said: 'No doctor! How terrible! It's a crime to kill a child!

'I agree', the doctor replied. 'But you seemed to be OK with it, so I thought maybe that was the best solution.' The doctor smiled, realizing that he had made his point. He convinced the mom that there is no difference in killing a child that's already been born and one that's still in the womb. The crime is the same! 

"Love says I sacrifice myself for the good of the other person. Abortion says I sacrifice the other person for the good of myself..." 

Parents and Children

Pencil: I'm sorry

Eraser: For what? You didn't do anything wrong.

Pencil: I'm sorry cos you get hurt bcos of me. Whenever I made a mistake, you're always there to erase it. But as you make my mistakes vanish, you lose a part of yourself. You get smaller and smaller each time.

Eraser: That's true. But I don't really mind. You see, I was made to do this. I was made to help you whenever you do something wrong. Even though one day, I know I'll be gone and you'll replace me with a new one, I'm actually happy with my job. So please, stop worrying. I hate seeing you sad. :)

I found this conversation between the pencil and the eraser very inspirational. Parents are like the eraser whereas their children are the pencil. They're always there for their children, cleaning up their mistakes. Sometimes along the way... they get hurt, and become smaller (older, and eventually pass on).

Though their children will eventually find someone new (spouse), but parents are still happy with what they do for their children, and will always hate seeing their precious ones worrying, or sad.

"All my life, I've been the pencil.. And it pains me to see the eraser that is my parents getting smaller and smaller each day. For I know that one day, all that I'm left with would be eraser shavings and memories of what I used to have..."

To what extend Ego is necessary?

To what extend Ego is necessary?

1) Take a glass of water, and add a spoon of salt in it, and mix it well. The water will taste very salty.

2) Next, drop the glass of waster in a gallon of water. The salt is still there, and you can taste it, although very less.

3) Finally, take the gallon of water and drop it in a fresh water lake. The salt is still there, but now you cannot taste it at all.

The first case is the ego of a common man.

The second case is the ego of a serious spiritual student.

The third case is the ego of an self-realized person.

So..how much ego is necessary for a person? If you can taste the salt (ego), there is still work left to do. :-)

- Inspirations by Sudhir Krishnan

Tips to Control our Anger

Tips to Control our Anger, which harms our lives and relationships:

• Leave the place.
• Take in deep breaths.
• Drink some water.
• Listen to music that you like.
• Watch a movie that you wanted to.
• Do some physical exercise like walking, jogging...
• Repeat: ‘I am patient and loving person'
• Think of a good moments in your life.
• Visualize a relaxing experience.

Life within...

If an egg is broken by an outside force, the life of the chick ends there.But only if an egg breaks from within, the chick can come out safely and successfully, alive, to begin its life.

If a cocoon of a Butterfly is cut open by any outside force, the Butterfly cannot survive or else it will end up with swollen body and shriveled wings which leads to death. But only if the Cocoon opens with inside force with patient and hard working, it can take the publicity as a beautiful Butterfly.

So, never allow any outside force to disturb or destroy you and your inner peace. Great things always begins from within.

What is Fear?

The nature of God, is nothing but pure Love. All negative emotions - anger, jealousy, blame, worry, disappointment, insecurity, anxiety, guilt, unworthiness, grief, depression, despair etc can be summed up as one word - fear. The real source of all problems is fear, which is lack of love - in other words lack of God. When your thoughts are full of God, your thoughts are full of Love, and your life is full of Love. This great feeling place in your mind is called Heaven. On the other hand. when your thoughts are full of fear, your life lacks God. This place in your mind where God does not exist is called Hell. Heaven and Hell are thus both places that you create in your mind by choosing to think thoughts that are either full of Love (God) or the lack of Love (Fear).

All fear is self created, and it is unwise to blame God for it. Fear is created when we choose, consciously or unconsciously to create unlike God. - i.e when we choose to think and act from a place where love is absent. When we are thinking and acting with Love, we are co-creating with God. The course goes on to say that only Love is real, everything else is unreal - in other words, an illusion of the mind. All problems occur when we stray away from our source, our God. All solutions come to us when we choose to connect back with Him. Fear is a bad dream that the ego creates to disconnect with God - fear is clearly not of God’s creation.

-Inspirations by Sudhir Krishnan

Feeling like a Victim?

Do you feel like a victim of your circumstances? Here are some common characteristics of a victim:

• Victims believe they are helpless and that others in their life are villains.
• Victims are ignorant of their responsibility in the circumstances that resulted in an undesirable outcome.
• Victims do not acknowledge that if they handled things differently, the results would have been better.
• Victims believe that they are not responsible for how they feel.
• Victims do not see how they are misinterpreting a situation and making it worse.
• Victims do not learn from a negative experience, but instead go deeper into fear.
• Victims are stuck in the past and do not take action to create a better future.
• Victims feel resentment and blame towards others.
• Victims are not willing to trust and accept people they are resenting.
• Victims feel powerless to create positive change.

Do take 100% responsibility for your life. Blaming others, giving excuses, or coming up with victim stories only keep you from getting what you want. Successful people practice asking “How did I create that situation?“, “What did I do or not do to have this outcome?”. When you blame others for setbacks, you become a powerless victim. Whatever the life situation, you always have the power of choice. While you cannot always control outside situations, you do have the power to change yourself and respond differently.

When you believe that you are a victim, by law of attraction, the universe will bring you more undesirable situations that weaken you further and strengthen the belief that you are indeed a victim. Only when you bring the focus towards self and start taking complete responsibility for your life experiences do you start to become the powerful creator of your life. In other words, taking complete responsibility moves you from being a victim towards becoming a victor.

-Inspirations by Sudhir Krishnan

Don't be a football

A young man and his old father were traveling to the nearby town with their donkey. On their way, they met some laborers. One of the laborers remarked “What fools these two are. In spite of having a donkey, they are both walking”. Hearing them, the old man asked his son to ride on the donkey.

In another 10 minutes, they passed a tea shop. The owner of the shop blurted out “Such an uncaring son - look at him making his father walk while he himself is comfortably sitting on the donkey." The son upon hearing this comment, got down from the donkey and asked his father to ride on it.

As they carried on their journey, they met a couple of men on the road. One of them remarked to the other “Look at the selfish old man riding on the donkey, while making the poor boy walk”. The father became very uncomfortable with the comment, and asked his son to also sit on the donkey.

Further along, they met a group of women washing clothes. One of the women said “How cruel these men are. Look at the poor donkey bearing the weight of two men. It would be better if these two people carried the donkey for a change”. Eager to please, the men found a bamboo stick, tied the donkey’s legs on it and carried the donkey on their shoulders.

As they passed over a bridge, they met a few children playing. Upon seeing the sight of the men carrying the donkey, the children bursted in laughter, and said “Haha - Look at these fools! Carrying the donkey on their shoulders!”. At this time the donkey got restless being carried upside down. The poor donkey jumped and fell down the bridge and died!

The moral of the story is that other people will always have an opinion about what you should do and not do. It is impossible to satisfy everyone. In trying to constantly yield to other people’s opinions, we give up our own best interests and become losers.

Here are some ways we seek approval, that Dr Wayne Dyer mentions in his book “Your erroneous zones”:

• Changing a position, or altering what you believe because someone shows signs of disapproval.

• Sugar coating a statement to avoid the reaction of displeasure.

• Feeling depressed or anxious when someone disagrees with you.

• Feeling insulted or put-down when someone states a contrary sentiment to your own.

• Being excessively agreeable and head nodding, even when you don’t agree at all with what is being said.

• Performing chores for someone and feeling resentful about not being able to say no.

• Being intimated by a sharp salesperson and buying something you don’t want.

• Saying things you don’t mean just to avoid being disliked.

• Trying to impress others with your knowledge of something that you know nothing about by “faking it”

• Begging for compliments by setting yourself up for approval, and then feeling bad when they don’t come.

Many wise men have spoken on about this need in us to seek approval from others, in their own way. (E.g.)

Self-actualized people are independent of the good opinion of others.-Abraham Maslow

Do not be a football of other people’s opinions.-Sri Sri Ravishankar

I don’t know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody.-Bill Cosby

-Inspirations by Sudhir Krishnan

This or that?

You cannot fly by thinking of falling on the ground.

You cannot swim by thinking of drowning.

You cannot save money by thinking about your expenses.

You cannot lose weight by thinking of eating high calorie foods.

You cannot create good health by thinking of getting sick.

You cannot be a topper in school by thinking of getting fail.

In the same way, you can never create a happy life by consistently thinking of things that are making you feel bad.  If you want to create a happy life, your thoughts need to be shifted from things that make you feel bad to the things that make you consistently feel good. You cannot make your life positive, by thinking all negatives.

So it is in your hands to make your life either happy or sad.

Attachment and Commitment ?

What is the difference between attachment and commitment? If I do not get attached, how can i have commitment? On the other hand, If I am committed, will I not get attached?

Attachment implies love mixed with selfishness. It is doing an act out of a selfish need. It is like agreeing to take care of a mango tree only because it will produce sweet fruits. If one season the tree does not produce fruit, attachment will cause you to stop taking care of the tree. 

Commitment on the other hand is having dedication to the cause undertaken. It is making the health of the tree more important than the fruits it produces. Thus, even if the tree does not give as many fruits during a particular season, your commitment to it will not let you abandon the tree.

Nothing is lost until you say it is.

Two frogs accidentally fell into a huge, tall bowl of cream that was kept in the floor of a restaurant. For a long time, the frogs tried helplessly jumping out of the bowl, however it was impossible for them to jump that high while swimming in the viscous, slippery cream.

Finally, the first frog said "I have tried enough. I have thought about the situation - there is no way out. We are going to die. I am going to stop struggling as it of no use. I suggest you give up too.” It gave up the struggle, became fully submerged in the cream, and soon died.

The second frog said "I cannot see a way out of this this moment. I am however going to attempt getting out until I exhaust the last ounce of energy in my body". The second frog kept on paddling and trying to jump out of the bowl of cream.

After a couple of hours, the cream started to solidify, and it became easier and easier for the frog to swim in it. The frog's continuos paddling was starting to churn the cream into butter!! With little more effort, the frog was able to jump out, while sitting on the butter that had now completely solidified!

Moral:

1) Your future may not appear bright today. You may not be able to see the light in the end of your tunnel yet. Don't lose hope too soon. Things will change for the better.

2) Give up your anxiety, fear and worry, and stay positive. Put your 100% attention to the tasks that you have currently undertaken. Things will work itself out.

3) Do not listen to the people who ask you to give up on your dreams. Listen to your inner voice instead.

4) You may be very close to success and yet not know it. Don't give up.

5) Nothing is lost until you say it is.

-Inspirations by Sudhir Krishnan

Trust in your power

We see Birds sitting on the trees, very peacefully and happily. What might be the reason? Is it because it trusts the power of the tree, or the branches, or the root of the tree, or the wind, or the rain or anything else around it? No. It trusts its wings. It trusts that whatever happens, either rain or storm it can just fly away from there on the spot.

Where is our trust? In money, fame, family, friends or the world around...Anything and everything may leave us anytime. So trust in you and in your power. If we trust in our power, we can achieve anything in this world.

Neither judge nor condemn

Imagine pure water bottled up in three transparent glass containers- a short red container, a medium blue container, and a long yellow container, all with different shapes. People who have no idea as to what is inside the bottle may refer to the contents as “short liquid”, “medium liquid”, “long liquid”, “red liquid”, “blue liquid”, “yellow liquid” etc. Due to their ignorance of the contents inside, they identify with the external qualities and develop either attachment or aversion to different types of containers depending on whether they like or dislike short bottles, medium size bottles, long bottles, red bottles, blue bottles, yellow bottles and different shapes.

On the other hand, a person who knows that the contents of what is inside all the bottles is pure water develops neither an attachment nor an aversion to either of the three bottles. If he is thirsty, he will open up any container and drink, as it contains the same pure water inside. He is not fooled by the container, as he knows that the contents of all the three containers are the same pure water in different external physical forms.

Just like the colored water bottles, people also come in different shapes, color, sizes, and temperaments. Most of us, who are ignorant of the divinity within each one of us, identify and judge others in terms of their shapes, colors, sizes, temperaments, religious views, nationality, and various other attributes. We develop attachment to some, and aversion to others, based on our own personal preferences and experiences.

Just like the colored water bottles, we should not judge or condemn or identify anyone by seeing the container, but should appreciate the contents inside. This self knowledge helps us to develop neither clinging attachment to some, nor deep aversion to others. Identified with the divinity within each one of us, we should be able to love everyone, irrespective of external differences.

Difficulties - Your stepping stones

Difficulties in life makes us stronger and makes our life more beautiful.

Once there was a potter who took some clay and started squashing it. He kept squashing the clay for a long time and the whole time the clay kept yelling “Please stop it, stop it!” Maybe he was being mean to the clay! Then the potter took the clay and put it on a wheel. He started spinning the clay. The clay said “Please stop it, I'm getting dizzy, I beg you stop!” but the potter continued spinning and spinning the clay until it came in to the shape of a cup.

Now the potter very gently took the cup. He handled it with great care and put the cup in a kiln. The cup was having a hard time understanding how the potter was being so kind and caring this moment, and just a bit ago

he was hurting him and also making him dizzy. Inside the kiln huge flames rose up from everywhere. The cup started screaming “Please stop it, let me out of here, I'm burning, I beg you stop it!!!” The potter just looked at him and smiled and said “No, no, not yet.” After the flames went out, the potter very gently took the cup out of the kiln.

Now he lovingly put the cup on a table. Then he got out his paint set. He started stroking the cup with his brush. Now the cup started laughing “Hahahaha, stop it, that tickles! Stop it, stop it!” But the potter just said “No, no, no, not yet,” and continued painting for a while longer.

 Now the potter brought the cup to the fires of the kiln again. Again the cup yelled “Stop it, please stop it, I'm burning again, I beg you, stop it!” and again the potter said “No, no, no, not yet.” After a long while the flames stopped and the potter gently took the cup out of the kiln. He placed the cup on the table in front of a mirror. When the cup saw the mirror he said “Wow that’s beautiful!!”

  

The potter said “Yes it is beautiful, it’s you. I made you beautiful.” The potter explained to the cup that if he had listened to his cries of “Stop it, that hurts,” when he was kneading the clay, the clay wouldn't be able to go on the spinning wheel. People would just see a hard clump of clay and throw it in the trash. If he had stopped when the clay said, "Stop it, I'm dizzy!", the soft clay wouldn't have ever been shaped in to a cup. People would see some unshaped clay and throw it in the trash. If he had listened when the cup said, "Stop, I'm burning!" from the fire in the kiln the first time, no one would ever be able to use the cup. He would've just been an unfinished cup with a bunch of cracks. People would just pick up the cracked cup and throw him in the trash. When the cup said, "Stop, it tickles," if the potter stopped painting him, he would have an unfinished design on him. People would see the cup with only some art on it and they would throw it away. If he had stopped from putting him in the kiln the second time, the paint wouldn't have stuck. When people would wash the cup, all the paint would come off, then they’d throw the cup with no paint in the trash. But now the cup went through everything and was finished.

Now the only thing that anyone can say is “Wow, how beautiful it is!"

Yes, dear friends, all the problems that comes on our way, are to help us grow strong and beautifull. If we take up each of our difficulties as a challenge and face it, our life will sure become perfect and meaningful. Take all your failures, disappointments, pains, problems and emptiness as a stepping stone for your success.

Rise up!

Unless a baby falls down, it never learns how to get up. Today if we know how to get up when we fall down, it is only because of our parents who allowed us to try to get up, when we fell down as kids.

So as, when we fall in life, believe that it is for our goodness, to grow, to find the ways, and to learn how rise up, from such tough times in life. We will never learn to rise in life, unless we make mistake and fall down.

"Our greatest glory is not in never failing, but in rising up every time we fail", said Ralph Waldo Emerson.

There is no day, if no night.....................There is no joy, if no sorrow.

There is no gain, if no pain.....................There is no success, if no failure.

So, RISE UP each time you fall down.

You are Worth!

A well known speaker started off his seminar by holding up a $20 bill. In the room of 200, he asked, "Who would like this $20 bill?".  Hands started going up.

He said, "I am going to give this $20 to one of you but first, let me do this." He proceeded to crumple the dollar bill up. He then asked, "Who still wants it?". Still the hands were up in the air.

"Well," he replied, "What if I do this?" And he dropped it on the ground and started to grind it into the floor with his shoe. He picked it up again which is crumpled and dirty. "Now who still wants it?", he asked.

Still the hands went into the air.

He said: "My friends, now you all have learned a very valuable lesson. No matter what I did to the money, you still wanted it because it did not decrease in value. It still worth $20".

In our lives, we too are dropped, crumpled, crushed and ground into the dirt by the decisions/choices we make and by the circumstances that come on our way. And we feel as though we are hopeless/worthless. But no matter what has happened or happening or will happen, you will never lose your value.

Never give up. You can, if you think you can. Even a small piece of grass can serve as a sword, for the people who believe 'I CAN'. Being a Looser or Winner is not important. But how you play the game of life, by rising up again and again, is important. Don't quit.

You are Worth, Special and Unique, however and wherever you are- Keep this in mind always!

Slow down

About ten years ago, a young and very successful executive named Josh was traveling down a Chicago neighborhood street. He was going a bit too fast in his sleek, black, 12 cylinder Jaguar XKE, which was only two months old.

He was watching for kids darting out from between parked cars and slowed down when he thought he saw something. As his car passed, no child darted out, but a brick sailed out and - Whump! - it smashed Into the Jag's shiny black side door! Screeeeech..!!!! Brakes slammed! Gears ground into reverse, and tires madly spun the Jaguar back to the spot from where the brick had been thrown. Josh jumped out of the car, grabbed the kid and pushed him up against a parked car. He shouted at the kid, "What was that all about and who are you? Just what the heck are you doing?!" Building up a head of steam, he went on. "That's my new Jag, that brick you threw is gonna cost you a lot of money. Why did you throw it?"

"Please, mister, please. . . I'm sorry! I didn't know what else to do!" Pleaded the youngster. "I threw the brick because no one else would stop!" Tears were dripping down the boy's chin as he pointed around the parked car. "It's my brother, mister," he said. "He rolled off the curb and fell out of his wheelchair and I can't lift him up." Sobbing, the boy asked the executive, "Would you please help me get him back into his wheelchair? He's hurt and he's too heavy for me."

Moved beyond words, the young executive tried desperately to swallow the rapidly swelling lump in his throat. Straining, he lifted the young boy back into the wheelchair and took out his handkerchief and wiped the scrapes and cuts, checking to see that everything was going to be ok. He then watched the younger brother push him down the sidewalk toward their home.

It was a long walk back to the sleek, black, shinning, 12 cylinder Jaguar XKE -a long and slow walk. Josh never did fix the side door of his Jaguar. He kept the dent to remind him not to go through life so fast that someone has to throw a brick at him to get his attention. . .

Be alert when bricks fall at you in life. May be it is a warning or a lesson to slow down. When being fast, you will, not only miss the beauties of life, but also fail to realise where you go in life and why and with whom. So slow down and show your kindness to the needy, for you may not travel that way again.

"...How long is the life for you? As you have come into this world, leave some mark behind. Otherwise where is the difference between you and the trees and stone? They, too, come into existence, decay and die". - Swami Vivekanand.

I'm sorry.

There once was a little boy who had a bad temper. His father gave him a bag of nails and told him that every time he lost his temper, he must hammer a nail into the fence. The first day the boy had driven 37 nails into the fence.

Over the next few weeks as he learned to control his anger, the number of nails hammered daily, gradually dwindled down. He discovered it was easier to hold his temper than to drive those nails into the fence. Finally the day came when the boy didn’t lose his temper at all. He told his father about it and the father suggested that the boy now pull out one nail for each day that he was able to hold his temper.

The days passed and the young boy was finally able to tell his father that all the nails were gone. The father took his son by the hand and led him to the fence. He said “You have done well, my son, but look at the holes in the fence. The fence will never be the same. When you say things in anger, they leave a scar just like this one.”

You can put a knife in a man and draw it out. It won’t matter how many times you say 'I’m sorry', the wound is still there. At times, 'Sorry' becomes meaningless, when it cannot give back what is lost. Though 'Sorry' can join two pieces, it cannot mend the crack/scar as it was earlier.

So make sure you control your temper the next time you are tempted to say something, for what you will regret later.

Shake it off and Step up!

This parable is told of a farmer who owned an old mule. The mule fell into the farmer’s well. The farmer heard the mule praying or whatever mules do when they fall into wells. After carefully assessing the situation, the farmer sympathized with the mule, but decided that neither the mule nor the well was worth the trouble of saving. Instead, he called his neighbors together, told them what had happened, and enlisted them to help haul dirt to bury the old mule in the well and put him out of his misery.

Initially the old mule was hysterical! But as the farmer and his neighbors continued shoveling and the dirt hit his back, a thought struck him. It suddenly dawned on him that every time a shovel load of dirt landed on his back, he would Shake it off and step up!!

This he did, blow after blow. “Shake it off and step up…shake it off and step up…shake it off and step up!”. He repeated to encourage himself. No matter how painful the blows, or how distressing the situation seemed, the old mule fought panic and just kept right on Shaking it off and stepping up!!

It wasn’t long before the old mule, battered and exhausted, stepped triumphantly over the wall of that well! What seemed like it would bury him actually helped him . All because of the manner in which he handled his adversity.

That's Life! If we face our problems and respond to them positively, by refusing to give in to panic, bitterness, or self-pity, for sure success is ours. 

A successful person is one who lays a firm foundation with the bricks that others throw at him/her. -David Brinkley

Remember: SHAKE IT OFF and STEP UP.

What do you grow in your heart?

A Native American grandfather was talking to his grandson about how he felt. He said, "I feel as if I have two wolves fighting in my heart. One wolf is the vengeful, angry, violent one. The other wolf is the loving, compassionate one."
The grandson asked him, "Which wolf will win the fight in your heart?"
The grandfather answered: "The one I feed."

Yes, dear friends, Our heart is a fertile place.
Anything planted there will grow for sure.
Doesn't matter whether it is Love or Hatred !!
It depends on us, what we grow.
And for sure : What we sow that we reap. So, sow Love in your life and reap abundance of Love.

Butterfly!

A man found a cocoon of a Butterfly. One day a small opening appeared. He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole. Then it seemed to stop making any progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could, and it could go no further.

So the man decided to help the Butterfly. He took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon. The butterfly then emerged easily. But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings.

The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract in time. Neither happened! In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings. It never was able to fly.

What the man, in his kindness and haste, did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening were God's way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon.

Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need, to make us learn certain things in life. Unless we fall down, we will never learn how to get up in life.

The Mind and the Stormy Ocean

Swamiananda, and his disciple Ranga, were strolling on the beach by the ocean. It was a cold day and the wind was blowing strongly over the ocean, raising very high waves. After walking for some time, Swamiananda stopped, looked at his disciple and asked:  "What does the choppy ocean remind you?"

"It reminds me of my mind. Of my rushing and restless thoughts", answered Ranga.

"Yes, the stormy ocean is like the mind, and the waves are the thoughts. The mind is neutral like the water. It is neither good, nor bad. The wind is causing the waves, as desires and fears produce thoughts", said Swamiananda. "I wouldn't want to be on a boat, in the middle of the ocean, in a storm like this", said Ranga.

"You are there all the time." Responded Swamiananda and continued, "Most people are on a rudderless boat in the middle of a choppy ocean, even if they do not realize it. The mind of most people is very restless. Thoughts of all kinds come and go incessantly, agitating the mind like the ocean's waves."

"Yes", Ranga interrupted him, "You don't have to tell me. This is the reason I am with you. I want to calm down the waves of my mind."

Swamiananda looked at Ranga for a while, smiled and said:

"You don't calm the ocean by holding the water and not letting it move. What is necessary is to stop the wind. The wind is made of your thoughts, desires and fears. Don't let them rule your life. Learn to control them by controlling your attention, and then the ocean of your mind becomes calm."

"And how do I do that?".."Suppose it is possible for the ocean to disregard the wind, what would happen then?" asked Swamiananda. "The waves would cease. However, no one can stop the wind."

Swamiananda looked at him with a mysterious smile and said:

"Why not? The wind, the ocean, and thoughts are all within the mind. When you can control the mind, you can control everything within it. But first you have to control your mind, which means you have to control your attention."

"Yes master", said Ranga, " this is what I am trying to do. You say whoever controls his mind can also control the wind. Can you do that?"

"First learn to calm down the ocean of your mind, and then find out if you can calm down the ocean. It is better to learn to control the mind, than enjoying mental tricks. When you calm your mind, you can calm down everything."

The Tiger

A teacher and his student were walking from one village to another, when they suddenly heard a roar behind them. Turning their gaze in the direction of the roar, they saw a big tiger following them. The first thing the student wanted to do was to run away, but as he has been studying and practicing self-discipline, he was able to halt himself, waiting to see what his teacher was going to do.

"What shall we do Master?" Asked the student.

The teacher looked at the student and answered in a calm voice:

"There are several options. We can fill our minds with paralyzing fear so that we cannot move, and let the tiger do with us whatever pleases it. We can faint. We can run away, but then it will run after us. We can fight with it, but physically it is stronger than us."

"We can pray to god to save us. We can choose to influence the tiger with the power of our mind, if our concentration is strong enough. We can send it love. We can also concentrate and meditate on our inner power, and on the fact that we are one with the entire universe, including the tiger, and in this way influence its soul."

"Which option do you choose?"

"You are the Master. You tell me what to do. We don't have much time." The student responded.

The master turned his gaze fearlessly towards the tiger, emptied his mind from all thoughts, and entered a deep state of meditation. In his consciousness, he embraced everything in the universe, including the tiger. In this state the consciousness of the teacher became one with consciousness of the tiger.

Meanwhile the student started to shiver with fear, as the tiger was already quite close, ready to make a leap at them. He was amazed at how his teacher could stay so calm and detached in the face of danger.

Meanwhile the teacher continued to meditate without fear. After a little while, the tiger gradually lowered its head and tail and went away. The student asked his teacher in astonishment, "What did you do?"

"Nothing. I just cleared all thoughts from my mind and united myself in spirit with the tiger. We became united in peace on the spiritual level. The tiger sensed the inner calmness, peace, and unity and felt no threat or need to express violence, and so walked away."

"When the mind is silent and calm, its peace is automatically transmitted to everything and everyone around, influencing them deeply", concluded the teacher.

The Elephant and the Fly

A disciple and his teacher were walking through the forest. The disciple was disturbed by the fact that his mind was in constant unrest. He asked his teacher: "Why most people's minds are restless, and only a few possess a calm mind? What can one do to still the mind?"

The teacher looked at the disciple, smiled and said: "I will tell you a story. An elephant was standing and picking leaves from a tree. A small fly came, flying and buzzing near his ear. The elephant waved it away with his long ears. Then the fly came again, and the elephant waved it away once more".

This was repeated several times. Then the elephant asked the fly: "Why are you so restless and noisy? Why can't you stay for a while in one place?"

The fly answered: "I am attracted to whatever I see, hear or smell. My five senses pull me constantly in all directions and I cannot resist them. What is your secret? How can you stay so calm and still?"

The elephant stopped eating and said: "My five senses do not rule my attention. Whatever I do, I get immersed in it. Now that I am eating, I am completely immersed in eating. In this way I can enjoy my food and chew it better. I rule and control my attention, and not the other way around."

Upon hearing these words, the disciple's eyes opened wide and a smile appeared on his face. He looked at his teacher and said: "I understand! If my five senses are in control of my mind and attention, then my mind is in constant unrest. If I am in charge of my five senses and attention, then my mind becomes calm".

"Yes, that's right", answered the teacher, " The mind is restless and goes wherever the attention is. Control your attention, and you control your mind".

The Power of our thoughts

One day, a yogi and his disciple arrived in the big city. They had no money with them, but they needed food and a place to stay. The disciple was sure that they were going to beg for their food, and sleep in the park at night.

"There is a big park not far from here. We can sleep there at night", said the disciple.

"In the open air?" Asked the yogi.   "Yes", responded the student. 

The yogi smiled and said: "No, tonight we are going to sleep in a hotel and eat there too".

The student was amazed and exclaimed, "We cannot afford that!". "Come and sit down", said the yogi.

They both sat down on the ground, and the yogi said: "When you focus your mind intently on any subject, it comes to pass." 

The yogi closed his eyes and started to meditate with full concentration. After about ten minutes he got up and started to walk, with his disciple following him. They walked through several streets and alleys, until they arrived at a hotel.  "Come, let's enter inside", the yogi said to his disciple.

They just set foot in the entrance, when a well-dressed man approached them. "I am the manager of this hotel. You look like travelling swamis. And it is my pleasure to give you food and a place to stay. Please accept my offer" .  "Fine. Thank you", the yogi responded. The disciple was perplexed and asked the yogi: "Did you use any magic? How did you do that?"

The yogi smiled and said, "I wanted to show you how the power of thoughts works. When you think with full and strong concentration about something that you want to happen, and your mind does not resist the subject of your thought, your thought materializes."

"The secret is concentrating, visualizing, seeing details, having faith and projecting mental and emotional energy into the mental scene. These are the general prerequisites. When your mind is empty from thoughts, and only one single thought is allowed to enter, it gains a very great power. One should be very careful with what he thinks. A concentrated thought is powerful, and exerts a very strong influence."

The disciple looked at his teacher and said: "I see that I have to sharpen my concentration in order to be able to use this power."    "Yes, this is the first step", the yogi replied.

A positive and a negative patient

Two men, both seriously ill, occupied the same hospital room. One man  was allowed to sit up in his bed for an hour a day to drain the fluids from his lungs. His bed was next to the room's only window. The other man had to spend all his time flat on his back.

The men talked for hours on end. They spoke of their wives and   families, their homes, their jobs, their involvement in the military  service, where they had been on vacation. And every afternoon when the  man in the bed next to the window could sit up, he would pass the time by describing to his roommate all the things he could see outside the window.

The man in the other bed would live for those one-hour periods where  his world would be broadened and enlivened by all the activities and  colors of the outside world. The window overlooked a park with a lovely lake, the man had said. Ducks and swans played on the water while  children sailed their model boats. Lovers walked arm in arm amid flowers of every color of the rainbow. Grand old trees graced the landscape, and a fine view of the city skyline could be seen in the distance. As the man by the window described all this in exquisite  detail, the man on the other side of the room would close his eyes and imagine the picturesque scene.

One warm afternoon the man by the window described a parade passing by.  Although the other man could not hear the band, he could see it in his mind's eye as the gentleman by the window portrayed it with descriptive  words. Unexpectedly, an alien thought entered his head: Why should he have all the pleasure of seeing everything while I never get to see  anything? It didn't seem fair. As the thought fermented, the man felt  ashamed at first. But as the days passed and he missed seeing more sights, his envy eroded into resentment and soon turned him sour. He began to brood and found himself unable to sleep. He should be by that window - and that thought now controlled his life.

Late one night, as he lay staring at the ceiling, the man by the window  began to cough. He was choking on the fluid in his lungs. The other man watched in the dimly lit room as the struggling man by the window groped for the button to call for help. Listening from across the room, he never moved, never pushed his own button which would have brought the nurse running. In less than five minutes, the coughing and choking stopped, along with the sound of breathing. Now, there was only silence--deathly silence.

The following morning, the day nurse arrived to bring water for their baths. When she found the lifeless body of the man by the window, she was saddened and called the hospital attendant to take it away--no  words, no fuss. As soon as it seemed appropriate, the man asked if he  could be moved next to the window. The nurse was happy to make the switch and after making sure he was comfortable, she left him alone.

Slowly, painfully, he propped himself up on one elbow to take his   first look. Finally, he would have the joy of seeing it all himself. He strained to slowly turn to look out the window beside the bed. It faced a blank wall.

Moral of the story:

The pursuit of happiness is a matter of choice...it is a positive attitude we consciously choose to express. It is not a gift that gets delivered to our doorstep each morning, nor does it come through the window. And I am certain that our circumstances are just a small part of what makes us joyful. If we wait for them to get just right, we will never find lasting joy.

The pursuit of happiness is an inward journey. Our minds are like programs, awaiting the code that will determine behaviors; like bank vaults awaiting our deposits. If we regularly deposit positive, encouraging, and uplifting thoughts, if we continue to bite our lips  just before we begin to grumble and complain, if we shoot down that seemingly harmless negative thought as it germinates, we will find that there is much to rejoice about.

My Son!

Can I see my baby?” the happy new mother asked. When the bundle was nestled in her arms and she moved the fold of cloth to look upon his tiny face, she gasped. The doctor turned quickly and looked out the tall hospital window. The baby had been born without ears. Time proved that the baby’s hearing was perfect. It was only his appearance that was marred.

When he rushed home from school one day and flung himself into his mother’s arms, she sighed, knowing that his life was to be a succession of heartbreaks. He blurted out the tragedy. “A boy, a big boy … called me a freak.” He grew up, handsome for his misfortune. A favorite with his fellow students, he might have been class president, but for that. He developed a gift, a talent for literature and music. “But you might mingle with other young people,” his mother reproved him, but felt a kindness in her heart. The boy’s father had a session with the family physician. Could nothing be done? “I believe I could graft on a pair of outer ears, if they could be procured,” the doctor decided. Whereupon the search began for a person who would make such a sacrifice for a young man. Two years went by. Then, “You are going to the hospital, Son. Mother and I have someone who will donate the ears you need. But it’s a secret,” said the father. The operation was a brilliant success, and a new person emerged. His talents blossomed into genius, and school and college became a series of triumphs.

 Later he married and entered the diplomatic service. “But I must know!” He urged his father, “Who gave so much for me? I could never do enough for him.” “I do not believe you could,” said the father, “but the agreement was that you are not to know … not yet.” The years kept their profound secret, but the day did come … one of the darkest days that a son must endure. He stood with his father over his mother’s casket. Slowly, tenderly, the father stretched forth a hand and raised the thick, reddish-brown hair to reveal that the mother had no outer ears. “Mother said she was glad she never let her hair be cut,” he whispered gently, “and nobody ever thought Mother less beautiful, did they?”

 Real beauty lies not in the physical appearance, but in the heart. Real treasure lies not in what that can be seen, but what that cannot be seen. Real love lies not in what is done and known, but in what that is done but not known.

I love you!

After 21 years of marriage, my wife wanted me to take another woman out to dinner and a movie. She said, “I love you, but I know this other woman loves you and would love to spend some time with you.”

The other woman that my wife wanted me to visit was my Mother, who has been a widow for 19 years, but the demands of my work and my three children had made it possible to visit her only occasionally. That night I called to invite her to go out for dinner and a movie. “What’s wrong, are you well?” she asked.

My mother is the type of woman who suspects that a late night call or a surprise invitation is a sign of bad news. “I thought that it would be pleasant to spend some time with you,” I responded. “Just the two of us.” She thought about it for a moment, and then said, “I would like that very much.”

That Friday after work, as I drove over to pick her up I was a bit nervous. When I arrived at her house, I noticed that she, too, seemed to be nervous about our date. She waited in the door with her coat on. She had curled her hair and was wearing the dress that she had worn to celebrate her last wedding anniversary. She smiled from a face that was as radiant as an angel’s. “I told my friends that I was going to go out with my son, and they were impressed, “she said, as she got into the car. “They can’t wait to hear about our meeting.”

We went to a restaurant that, although not elegant, was very nice and cozy. My mother took my arm as if she were the First Lady. After we sat down, I had to read the menu. Her eyes could only read large print. Half way through the entries, I lifted my eyes and saw Mom sitting there staring at me. A nostalgic smile was on her lips. “It was I who used to have to read the menu when you were small,” she said. “Then it’s time that you relax and let me return the favor,” I responded. During the dinner, we had an agreeable conversation – nothing extraordinary but catching up on recent events of each other’s life. We talked so much that we missed the movie. As we arrived at her house later, she said, “I’ll go out with you again, but only if you let me invite you.” I agreed.

“How was your dinner date?” asked my wife when I got home. “Very nice. Much more so than I could have imagined,” I answered.

A few days later, my mother died of a massive heart attack. It happened so suddenly that I didn’t have a chance to do anything for her. Some time later, I received an envelope with a copy of a restaurant receipt from the same place mother and I had dined. An attached note said: “I paid this bill in advance. I wasn’t sure that I could be there; but nevertheless, I paid for two plates – one for you and the other for your wife. You will never know what that night meant for me. I love you, son.”

At that moment, I understood the importance of saying in time: “I LOVE YOU” and to give our loved ones the time that they deserve. Nothing in life is more important than your family. Give them the time they deserve, because these things cannot be put off till “some other time.”

Spend time with ur parents,children,your partner, friends - cos no one knows, what happens in next moment. So just let them know that you care for them and love them. The word "I love you" which we say from to others from our heart, meants a lot in others life.

An act of kindness

One day, a poor boy who was selling goods from door to door, to pay his school fees. On the way through school,he realised that he had only one thin dime left, and he was hungry. He decided he would ask for a meal at the next house. However, he lost his nerve when a lovely young woman opened the door. Instead of a meal he asked for a glass of water. She thought, that he looked hungry, and so she brought him a large glass of milk. He drank it slowly, and then asked, “How much do I owe you?” “You don’t owe me anything,” she replied. “My mother has taught us never to accept pay for a kindness.” He said, “Then I thank you from my heart.”

As he left that house, he not only felt stronger physically, but his faith in God increased. 

Year’s later that young woman became critically ill. The local doctors were baffled. They finally sent her to the big city, where they called in specialists to study her rare disease. Dr. Howard Kelly was called in for the consultation. When he heard the name of the town she came from, a strange light filled his eyes. Immediately he rose and went down the hall of the hospital to her room. Dressed in his doctor’s gown he went in to see her. He recognized her at once. He went back to the consultation room determined to do his best to save her life. From that day he gave special attention to the case.

After a long struggle, the battle was won. Dr. Kelly requested the business office to pass the final bill to him for approval. He looked at it, then wrote something on the edge and the bill was sent to her room. She feared to open it, for she was sure it would take the rest of her life to pay for it all. Finally she looked, and something caught her attention on the side of the bill. She began to read the following words:

“Paid in full with one glass of milk”

Signed, Dr. Howard Kelly.

Yes, dear friends - Whatever we sow today, for sure we'll reap it some other day. Even a small act of kindness that we show today, will be rewarded at any time in our life. It is really true!!!

Our priorities

A philosophy professor stood before his students with some items on the table in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with rocks, about 2 inches in diameter.

He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was. So the professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles, of course, rolled into the open areas between the rocks.

He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was. The professor picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He then asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with an unanimous “Yes.”

“Now,” said the professor, “I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The rocks are the important things – your family, your partner, your health, your children – things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter – like your job, your house, your car.

The sand is everything else. The small stuff.”

“If you put the sand into the jar first,” he continued “there is no room for the pebbles or the rocks. The same goes for your life.

If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take your partner out for a walk, and spend some time with your parents and friends...There will always be time to go to work, clean the house, give a dinner party and fix the disposal.

Take care of the rocks first – the things that really matters. Set your priorities. The rest is sand, which is also important to fill your life.”

A Saint

Anastasius was an abbot of a monastery in Egypt. The monastery had a large collection of books, one among them being a rare volume, worth a fortune.

One day a visiting monk chanced upon the book and succumbing to temptation walked away with it. The theft was discovered the same day and it was not hard to guess who the culprit was but Anastasius refused to send anyone after the monk for fear that he might say he had not taken it and add the sin of perjury to that of theft. 

The monk meanwhile was trying to sell the book and eventually found a buyer, a rich man who asked him to leave the book with him for a day so that he could get it evaluated.

When the monk had gone, the man hastened to the monastery and showed the book to Anastasius. The abbot recognized it instantly but did not say anything.

“A monk wants to sell it to me,” said his visitor. “He’s asking for a gold sovereign. You are knowledgeable about books. Is this book worth that much?”

“It’s worth much much more than a sovereign,” said the abbot. “It’s a valuable book.”

The man thanked the abbot and left. The next day when the monk came, he informed him that he would like to buy the book and was prepared to pay the price he had mentioned. The monk was overjoyed.

“Whom did you show it to?” he asked.

“Anastasius, the abbot.”

His visitor turned pale. “A-And what did he say?” 

“He said the book was worth a sovereign.”

“And what else?”

“Nothing.”

The monk was both amazed and touched. He realized that the abbot had refused to reclaim his lost treasure so that he, the thief would not get into trouble. Nobody had ever shown him such love; nobody had ever behaved so nobly towards him.

“I’ve changed my mind, I don’t want to sell it,” he said and took the book from the man.

“I’ll give you two sovereigns,” said the customer.

The monk walked away without answering. He went directly to the monastery and handed the book to the abbot, tears brimming in his eyes.

“Keep it,” said Anastasius. “When I learnt you had borrowed it I decided to give it to you.”

“Please take it back,” pleaded the monk, “but let me stay here and learn wisdom from you.”

His wish was granted. He spent the rest of his years in the monastery modelling his life after that of the saintly Anastasius.

Friends, some times we preach a lot to our friends and neighbours,but we fail to follow what we preach. Our actions speaks louder than our words. Here, Anastasius had no conversation with the monk, but his actions spoke, how good and holy he was.

A Simple Sweet Smile

Once when I was waiting for a particular train at late night, an incident that happened amazed me. I saw a weary old father, walking cheerfully with heavy bundles on his head, holding his little daughter. He lifted the things down on a stone bench and looked very pathetic. In a few seconds I saw him smiling sincerely at someone, which made me curious to know who is at the other end. It was his elder daughter who came towards him smiling and kissing her sleepy younger sister whom she was carrying in her left arms and a bundle in her right shoulder. When the father and his daughters were exchanging their love, again I saw a little girl walking slowly towards them, with eyelids half closed in drowsiness, stumbling both the sides, dragging a small bundle. When the elder sister saw that her little sister coming towards them with drowsing heavy-eyes, she rushed to her aid, embraced her, hold her in her arms and showered her with kisses. After a few steps, it also astonished me to see, that the little bud, opened her eyes widely, hold on her elder sister's neck tightly with a smile and kissed her in turn of the warm affection that she received from her. Finally they all came together and sat down for their supper with full blooming face.

My dear sisters and brothers, this may an event in our day to day life. But it taught me some values in my life, which no one can teach in words. Though they were burdened the whole day, it was their affectionate love for one another that kept them moving on. Many times when others smile at us, it has brought some changes in our life, which we have never realized because we have taken them for granted.

An honest smile makes others to forget their hard times in life. Our smile is enough to encourage the down trodden and to let the captives free. God never asked any great things or miracles from us. He said just to love our neighbours as He loves us. Our genuine Smile of today can change the life of someone tomorrow. Our heart felt smile has the power to heal the wounds and to break the stony hearts. Look around us, where people struggle due to various reasons which we never thought of, in our lives. You and I cannot go and aid them individually. So let us just give a blessing of smile and see what happens in our life and theirs too.

A Smile costs nothing, but does many things in life. It can do miracles. So my dear friends carry the medicine SMILE with you, wherever you go and heal the wounded souls. SMILE begets SMILE.

Now SMILE please. Thanks, cos ur smile is valuable for me too.

Let your obstacles be a stepping stone in life

In ancient times, a King had a boulder placed on a roadway. Then he hid himself and watched to see if anyone would remove the huge rock. Some of the King’s wealthiest merchants and courtiers came by and simply walked around it. Many loudly blamed the King for not keeping the roads clear, but none did anything about getting the stone out of the way. Then a peasant came along carrying a load of vegetables. Upon approaching the boulder, the peasant laid down his burden and tried to move the stone to the side of the road. After much pushing and straining, he finally succeeded. After the peasant picked up his load of vegetables, he noticed a purse lying in the road where the boulder had been. The purse contained many gold coins and a note from the King indicating that the gold was for the person who removed the boulder from the roadway.

The peasant learned what many of us never understand!

Every obstacle presents an opportunity to improve our condition. Unless we fall down, we cannot rise up. Every fall is an opputunity to arise.A day cannot be completed without dark night.

Gratitude is the best attitude

One night, at 11:30 p.m., an older African American woman was standing on the side of an Alabama trying to endure a lashing rain storm. Her car had broken down and she desperately needed a ride. Soaking wet, she decided to flag down the next car. A young white man stopped to help her, generally unheard of in those

conflict-filled 1960s. The man took her to safety, helped her get assistance and put her into a taxi.

She seemed to be in a big hurry, but wrote down his address and thanked him. Seven days went by and a knock came on the man’s door. To his surprise, a giant console color TV was delivered to his home. A

special note was attached. It read: “Thank you so much for assisting me on the highway  the other night. The rain drenched not only my clothes, but also my spirits. Then you came along. Because of you, I was able to

make it to my dying Husband’s’ bedside just before he passed away… God Bless You for helping me and unselfishly serving others.”

Sincerely,

Mrs. Nat King Cole.

Yes, Gratitude is the best attitude. Am I grateful who everyone who does miracles in my life-To my  partner, my parents, my children, my friends, my neighbours, my driver, my servant maid, my doctor, my teacher, my priests, my counsellors......and everyone whom I come across in my day today life?

Every human deserves Love

During the second month of college, a professor gave a pop quiz. Arun was a conscientious student and had breezed through the questions until he read the last one:

“What is the first name of the woman who cleans the school?” Surely this was some kind of joke. He had seen the Cleaning woman several times. She was tall, Dark-haired and in her 50′s, but how would he know her name? He handed his paper, leaving the last question Blank. Just before class ended, one student asked whether the last question would count toward their quiz grade.. 'Absolutely', said the professor. “In your careers, You will meet many people. All are significant.. They deserve your attention and care, even if all you do is smile and say 'Hello'. A loving word does great wonders in others life".

This is a great lesson for everyone of us. At times we don't bother our milkman, newspaper boy, house maid, laundry boy, rickshaw man, conductor.....They too need our love and appreciation. Lets change others lives by our simple art of love.

I love me, as I am.

A water bearer in India had two large pots, each hung on each end of a pole which he carried across his neck. One of the pots had a crack in it, and while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water at the end of the long walk from the stream to the master's house, the cracked pot arrived only half full.

For a full two years this went on daily, with the bearer delivering only one and a half pots full of water to his master's house.

Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments, perfect to the end for which it was made.

But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection,  and miserable that it was able to accomplish only half of what it had been made to do.

After two years of what it perceived to be a bitter failure, it spoke to the water bearer one day by the stream.

"I am ashamed of myself, and I want to apologize to you."

"Why?" asked the bearer. "What are you ashamed of?"

"I have been able, for these past two years,to deliver only half my load because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your master's house. Because of my flaws, you have to do all of this work, and you don't get full value from your efforts", the pot said.

The water bearer felt sorry for the old cracked pot, and in his compassion he said, "As we return to the master's house, I want you to notice the beautiful flowers along the path."

Indeed, as they went up the hill, the old cracked pot took notice of the sun warming the beautiful wild flowers on the side of the path, and this cheered it some.

But at the end of the trail, it still felt bad because it had leaked out half its load, and so again it apologized to the bearer for its failure.

The bearer said to the pot, "Did you notice that there were flowers only on your side of your path,  but not on the other pot's side?  That's because I have always known about your flaw, and I took advantage of it.

I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back from the stream, you've watered them. For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate my master's table.

Without you being just the way you are, he would not have this beauty to grace his house."

Yes, dear friends! Sometimes we too feel unnecessary over guilty of our weaknesses, forgetting how we are a blessing/grace in other's life. So lets love ourself and accept ourself as we are.

Good luck? Bad luck? Who knows?

There is a Chinese story of an old farmer who had an old horse for tilling his fields. One day the horse escaped into the hills and, when all the farmer's neighbours sympathised with the old man over his bad luck, the farmer replied, 'Bad luck? Good luck? Who knows?'

A week later the horse returned with a herd of wild horses from the hills and this time the neighbours congratulated the farmer on his good luck. His reply was, 'Good luck? Bad luck? Who knows?'.

Then, when the farmer's son was attempted to tame one of the wild horses, he fell off its back and broke his leg. Everyone thought this very bad luck. Not the farmer, whose only reaction was, 'Bad luck? Good luck? Who knows?'.

Some weeks later the army marched into the village and conscripted every able-bodied youth they found there. When they saw the farmer's son with his broken leg they let him off. Now, Was that good luck? Bad luck? Who knows?

There is nothing like Good Luck or Bad Luck. It is all our Choices and Decisions that we make, which creates our Destiny in life. It is all about the Positive and Negative ways in which we accept things in life. So it is not a matter of Luck, but a matter of our Choice.

Value of Love

Once upon a time, there was an island where all the feelings lived: Happiness, Sadness, Knowledge, and all of the others, including Love. One day it was announced to the feelings that the island would sink. So all constructed boats left, except Love. Love was the only one who stayed. Love wanted to hold out until the last possible moment.

When the island had almost sunk, Love decided to ask for help. Richness was passing by Love in a grand boat. Love said, "Richness, can you take me with you?". Richness answered, "No, I can't. There is a lot of gold and silver in my boat. There is no place here for you."

Love decided to ask Vanity who was also passing by in a beautiful vessel. "Vanity, please help me!"

"I can't help you, Love. You are all wet and might damage my boat," Vanity answered.

Sadness was close by so Love asked, "Sadness, let me go with you." "Oh . . . Love, I am so sad that I need to be by myself!". Happiness passed by Love, too, but she was so happy that she did not even hear when Love called her.

Suddenly, there was a voice, "Come, Love, I will take you." It was an elder. So blessed and overjoyed, Love even forgot to ask the elder where they were going. When they arrived at dry land, the elder went her own way.

 Realizing how much was owed the elder,Love asked Knowledge, another elder, "Who Helped me?"

"It was Time," Knowledge answered. "Time?" asked Love. "But why did Time help me?"

Knowledge smiled with deep wisdom and answered, "Because - Only Time is capable of understanding how valuable Love is."