Do You Sell Your Soul For Others Admiration?

From Denny: This particular quote really speaks to me. I've spent a lifetime of getting blowback for not following the crowd off the cliff. Either it's relatives angry I don't go along with turning a blind eye to abuse or surrounded by neighbors angry I refused to vote for or support Bush think.

Can you really spend your life worrying about what other people really think about you? Sure, we all want to be liked and loved, but at what price? Is it worth it to be liked by mean-spirited people who will turn on you in a flash second if the wind blows in suddenly? What's the point of cultivating shallow relationships that won't hold up under the slightest pressure? Better to have a smaller group of real friends who are not pretend supporters than a huge gaggle of fawning admirers who are insincere.

After observing how our lives have played out over time, my choices were validated and vindicated - eventually. :) And I've ended up the happiest one because I chose to be true to my inner self, at all costs.

Quote

Cautious, careful people always casting about to preserve their reputation or social standards never can bring about reform. Those who are really in earnest are willing to be anything or nothing in the world's estimation, and publicly and privately, in season and out, avow their sympathies with despised ideas and their advocates, and bear the consequences. - Susan B. Anthony

Buddha Quote Concerning Life Development

From Denny: So often when people embark upon spiritual development they take with them their same expectations of elevating to self-importance. It's this ego stroking that prevents real spiritual advancement.

The whole point of setting aside the ego as the leader in your life is that it tends to operate out of undisciplined irrational desires that only get us into trouble. Choosing to teach the ego more humility is the way for it to find its place in the greater scheme of things, mainly to follow behind the person's spirit that is the wiser leader. Once the spirit is finally free to lead even the ego is happy because true balance has been achieved.

Quote

One of his students asked Buddha, "Are you the messiah?"

" No," answered Buddha.

"Then are you a healer?"

"No," Buddha replied.

"Then are you a teacher?" the student persisted.

"No, I am not a teacher."

"Then what are you?" asked the student, exasperated.

"I am awake," Buddha calmly stated.

Your Life Story is Not Finished Because Its All Good!

From Denny: This short story and the author's comments are a great reminder of how to live life to the fullest and also gain the fullest understanding of the twists and turns of how it all plays out.

Story of Two Sailors

TWO SAILORS RAN INTO each other in a pub. Over a few beers, one of the men told the other about his last voyage: “After a month at sea,” he said, “we discovered our masts had been eaten through by termites! Almost nothing left of them.”

“That’s terrible,” said the second sailor.

“That’s what I thought at first too,” the first sailor said, “but it turned out to be good luck. As soon as we took the sails down to fix the masts, we were hit by a squall so suddenly and so hard, it would surely have blown us over if our sails were up at the time.”

“How lucky!”

“That’s exactly what I thought at the time too. But because our sails were down, we couldn’t steer ourselves, and because of the wind, we were blown onto a reef. The hole in the hull was too big to fix. We were stranded.”

“That is bad luck indeed.”

“That’s what I thought, too, when it first happened. But we all made it to the beach alive and had plenty to eat. But now here’s the real kicker: While we were on the island whining about our terrible fate, we discovered a buried treasure!”

Comment from Adam Khan:

As this story illustrates, you don’t know if an event is “good” or “bad” except maybe in retrospect, and even then you don’t really know because life keeps going. The story’s not over yet. Just because something hasn’t turned out to be an advantage yet doesn’t mean it is not ever going to. Therefore, you can simply assume whatever happens is “good.”

I know that sounds awfully airy-fairy, but it’s very practical. If you think an event is good, it’s easy to maintain a positive attitude. And your attitude affects your health, it affects the way people treat you and how you treat others, and it affects your energy level. And those can help pave the way for things to turn out well. A good attitude is a good thing. And a bad attitude does you no good at all.

So get in the habit of saying “That’s good!” Since you don’t know for sure whether something will eventually work to your advantage or not, you might as well assume it will. It is counterproductive to assume otherwise. Think about it.

If someone ahead of you in line at a store is slowing everything down, say to yourself, “That’s good!” They may have saved you from getting into an accident when you get back in your car. Or maybe because you slowed down, you might meet a friend you would have missed. You never know.

The truth is, life is uncertain. And even that can work to your advantage.

When something “bad” happens, say to yourself, “That’s good!”

By Adam Khan, Self-Help Stuff That Works

Where is More Gold Located Than You Thought?

Here's a gold fairy sighting...

From Denny: Napolean Hill is always good for an unusual turn of thought! And, on Monday mornings, we sometimes need all the inspiration we can get. What I enjoy about this quote is how it directs us to value ourselves more than what we value outside of ourselves. It is stunning in its implications of unlimited treasures!

Quote

* More gold has been mined from the thoughts of men than has been taken from the earth. - Napolean Hill

How Kindness Develops Your Strength - and Power to Attract Love

From Denny: Kindness is often a hard sell in an aggressive Western society like America and parts of Europe. Kindness has been derided as a weakness, especially by the Republicans and other conservative fundamentalist cultures worldwide who consider kindness undesirable.

The conservatives in America claim to hold to Christian principles and "What Would Jesus Do?" T-shirts, forgetting the whole point of Jesus was about kindness. Jesus was also humanity's strongest person ever to walk this Earth! He is known for his profound teachings that span the centuries.

Quote

Kindness in words creates confidence
Kindness in thinking creates profoundness
Kindness in giving creates love.

Lao-tzu, Chinese philiospher

*** Thanks for visiting and come back often! :)