Quotes Worth Sharing

2011-09-13T22:55:00.001-04:00

"You decide every moment of every day who you are and what you believe in. You get a second chance every second."

2011-09-07T08:24:00.001-04:00

"Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, you'll find one at the end of your arm ... As you grow older you will discover that you have two hands. One for helping yourself, the other for helping others." - Audrey Hepburn

2010-10-07T09:53:00.001-04:00

"I don't want to get to the end of my life and find that I have just lived the length of it. I want to have lived the width of it as well."
– Diane Ackerman

2010-09-30T23:02:00.001-04:00

A smile happens in a flash, but the memory of it can last a lifetime.

2010-08-11T01:01:00.000-04:00

"Sometimes I wish I had a me."
~ Bishop TD Jakes

2010-08-10T23:46:00.001-04:00

True friendship isn't being inseparable, it's being separated and nothing changes.

2010-08-02T18:17:00.001-04:00

"Failure seldom stops you.

What stops you is the fear of failure."

– Jack Lemmon

2010-07-21T09:24:00.001-04:00

"Maturity is the ability to do a job whether or not you are supervised, to carry money without spending it, and to bear an injustice without wanting to get even." - Ann Landers

2010-05-25T10:07:00.001-04:00

"If you want your life to be a magnificent story, then begin by realizing that you are the author and everyday you have the opportunity to write a new page. " ~Mark Houlahan

2010-05-18T20:54:00.001-04:00

Some people are like rainbows in our lives, and others are like storm clouds. I'm learning to embrace the rainbows, and not even listen to the thunder from the storm clouds - Emily Dyer

2010-05-17T15:47:00.001-04:00

"If we wait for the moment when everything is ready, we shall never begin."
– Ivan Turgenev

2010-05-14T13:30:00.001-04:00

"The real art of conversation is not only to say the right thing at the right place, but to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment." – Lady Dorothy Nevill

2010-05-13T22:09:00.001-04:00

"Every experience God gives us, every person He puts into our lives, is the perfect preparation for a future only He can see." - Corrie ten Boom

2010-02-14T22:05:00.002-05:00

"How rare and wonderful that flash of a moment when we realize we have discovered a friend." ~ William Rostler

2010-01-19T17:54:00.000-05:00

I had to go where I went, and do what I did, to be who I am now. I am neither boastful, nor ashamed. I’m just me now. Thank you, God.

2009-03-14T17:44:00.001-04:00

"When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace."

Paul Harvey writes...

2009-02-25T15:29:00.001-05:00

We tried so hard to make things better for our kids that we made them worse. For my grandchildren, I'd like better.

I'd really like for them to know about hand me down clothes and homemade ice cream and leftover meat loaf sandwiches. I really would.

I hope you learn humility by being humiliated, and that you learn honesty by being cheated.

I hope you learn to make your own bed and mow the lawn and wash the car.

And I really hope nobody gives you a brand new car when you are sixteen.

It will be good if at least one time you can see puppies born and your old dog put to sleep.

I hope you get a black eye fighting for something you believe in.

I hope you have to share a bedroom with your younger brother/sister. And it's all right if you have to draw a line down the middle of the room,but when he wants to crawl under the covers with you because he's scared, I hope you let him.

When you want to see a movie and your little brother/sister wants to tag along, I hope you'll let him/her.

I hope you have to walk uphill to school with your friends and that you live in a town where you can do it safely.

On rainy days when you have to catch a ride, I hope you don't ask your driver to drop you two blocks away so you won't be seen riding with someone as uncool as your Mom.

If you want a slingshot, I hope your Dad teaches you how to make one instead of buying one.

I hope you learn to dig in the dirt and read books.

When you learn to use computers, I hope you also learn to add and subtract in your head.

I hope you get teased by your friends when you have your first crush on a boy\girl, and when you talk back to your mother that you learn what ivory soap tastes like.

May you skin your knee climbing a mountain, burn your hand on a stove and stick your tongue on a frozen flagpole.

I don't care if you try a beer once, but I hope you don't like it.. And if a friend offers you dope or a joint, I hope you realize he is not your friend.

I sure hope you make time to sit on a porch with your Grandma/Grandpa and go fishing with your Uncle.

May you feel sorrow at a funeral and joy during the holidays.

I hope your mother punishes you when you throw a baseball through your neighbor's window and that she hugs you and kisses you at Hannukah/Christmas time when you give her a plaster mold of your hand.

These things I wish for you - tough times and disappointment, hard work and happiness. To me, it's the only way to appreciate life.

Say it...

2009-02-11T10:23:00.002-05:00

Written by a friend and teacher at our church, Jason Renault, I felt this was worth sharing...

You would think that by the time one has taken breathes for 33 years, they would have learned so many basic fundamentals of life and love that nothing would be new to them. Maybe it isn't really new to me, but the last three days of my life have retaught me something I need to share and make sure I never forget. It's pretty simple. If you know me, though, simplicity doesn't make something easy for me. Especially when it involves engaging my heart and emotions. The simple/hard thing for me? Saying it.

Read the rest here...

Transcending: Words on Women and Strength by Kelly Corrigan

2009-01-26T23:57:00.000-05:00

Tips for Better Life

2009-01-15T13:30:00.001-05:00

1. Take a 10-30 minutes walk every day. And while you walk, smile.
2. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day.
3. Sleep for 7 hours.
4. Live with the 3 E's -- Energy, Enthusiasm, and Empathy.
5. Play more games.
6. Read more books than you did the previous year.
7. Make time to practice meditation, yoga, and prayer. They provide us with daily fuel for our busy lives.
8. Spend time with people over the age of 70 & under the age of 6.
9. Dream more while you are awake.
1 0. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants.
11. Drink plenty of water.
12. Try to make at least three people smile each day.
13. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip.
14. Forget issues of the past. Don't remind your partner with his/her mistakes of the past. That will ruin your present happiness.
15. Don't have negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.
16. Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.
17. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a beggar.
18. Smile and laugh more.
19. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. Don't hate others.
20. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
21. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
22. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.
23. Don't compare your life to others'. You have no idea what their journey is all about. Don't compare your partner with others.
24. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
25. Forgive everyone for everything.
26. What other people think of you is none of your business.
27. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
28. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.
29. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
30. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
31. The best is yet to come.
32. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
33. Do the right thing!
34. Call your family often.
35. Your inner most is always happy. So be happy.
36. Each day give something good to others.
37. Don't over do. Keep your limits.
38. Share this with someone you care about.

2009-01-10T08:56:00.001-05:00

God doesn't give you the people you want, He gives you the people you NEED - To help you, to hurt you, to leave you, to love you and to make you into the person you were meant to be.

Inspirational...

2008-11-12T13:39:00.002-05:00

2008-09-11T09:40:00.001-04:00

"Death brings pain no one can heal

Love brings memories no one can steal."

Maya Angelou

2008-08-25T22:15:00.000-04:00

"I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."

- Maya Angelou

Women over 40

2008-08-24T23:36:00.002-04:00

As I grow in age, I value women over 40 most of all. Here are just a few reasons why:

A woman over 40 will never wake you in the middle of the night and ask, 'What are you thinking?' She doesn't care what you think. If a woman over 40 doesn't want to watch the game, she doesn't sit around whining about it. She does something she wants to do, and it's usually more interesting. Women over 40 are dignified. They seldom have a screaming match with you at the opera or in the middle of an expensive restaurant. Of course, if you deserve it, they won't hesitate to shoot you if they think they can get away with it. Older women are generous with praise, often undeserved. They know what it's like to be unappreciated. Women get psychic as they age. You never have to confess your sins to a woman over 40. Once you get past a wrinkle or two, a woman over 40 is far sexier than her younger counterpart. Older women are forthright and honest. They'll tell you right off if you are a jerk if you are acting like one. You don't ever have to wonder where you stand with her. Yes, we praise women over 40 for a multitude of reasons. Unfortunately, it's not reciprocal . For every stunning, smart, well-coiffed, hot woman over 40, there is a bald, paunchy relic in yellow pants making a fool of himself with some 22-year old waitress. Ladies, I apologize.

For all those men who say, 'Why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free?', here's an update for you. Nowadays 80% of women are against marriage. Why? Because women realize it's not worth buying an entire pig just to get a little sausage!

- Andy Rooney

2008-08-24T23:12:00.000-04:00

"I have learnt silence from the talkative, toleration from the intolerant, and kindness from the unkind; yet strange, I am ungrateful to these teachers."

-- Kahlil Gibran

2008-06-24T11:37:00.000-04:00

"If you know absolutely that what you're doing is right, then you are bound to accomplish it in due season."

- Harvey Firestone

2008-06-19T20:04:00.001-04:00

You are blessed when you're content with just who you are, no more, no less.

That's the moment you find yourself proud owner of everything that cannot be bought.

2008-05-22T13:07:00.001-04:00

"Speak your heart to the people in it."

~ Phyllis Zinicola

Some Humans Ain't Human

2008-05-12T21:37:00.002-04:00

"Some humans ain't human, some people ain't kind.
You open up their hearts and here's what you'll find:
a few frozen pizzas, some ice cubes with hair,
a broken Popsicle, you don't want to go there."

Some Humans Ain't Human by John Prine

Love the Questions Themselves

2008-05-12T21:35:00.001-04:00

Be patient towards all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves like locked rooms...Do not seek the answers, they cannot be given you because you would not be able to live them. And the point is, to live everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps you will then gradually, without noticing it, love along some distant day into the answers. ~ Rilke

Live, Laugh, Love

2008-03-15T00:10:00.001-04:00

"To laugh often and love much; to win the respect of intellingent persons and the affection of children; to earn the approbation of honest citizens and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to give of one's self; to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; to have played and laughed with enthusiasm and sung with exultation; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived - this is to have succeeded." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

2007-11-19T21:53:00.000-05:00

"We generate the results in life that we believe we deserve." ~ Dr. Phil

2007-05-13T21:08:00.000-04:00

"Friendship isn't a big thing, it's a million little things."

2007-04-24T10:32:00.001-04:00

"To accomplish great things we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe."

~ Anatole France

2007-03-30T16:10:00.000-04:00

"Stop telling God how big your storm is.
Instead, tell the storm how big your God is!"

2007-03-27T00:25:00.001-04:00

True friends are an expression of God's love in our lives.

2007-03-23T17:49:00.000-04:00

May you always have …

Love to Share,

Health to Spare

and Friends that Care.

2007-03-20T16:04:00.000-04:00

“When you are down to nothing ... God is up to something.”

2007-03-12T00:09:00.001-04:00

We can't choose how we die...
but we can choose how we live.

Maya Angelou's Best Poem Ever

2007-03-09T13:17:00.001-05:00

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ....

enough money within her control to move out and rent a place of her own even if she never wants to or needs to…
something perfect to wear if the employer or date of her dreams wants to see her in an hour...
a youth she's content to leave behind....
a past juicy enough that she's looking forward to retelling it in her old age....
a set of screwdrivers, a cordless drill, and a black lace bra...
one friend who always makes her laugh... and one who lets her cry...
a good piece of furniture not previously owned by anyone else in her family...
eight matching plates, wine glasses with stems, and a recipe for a meal that will make her guests feel honored...
a feeling of control over her destiny...

A WOMAN SHOULD KNOW ....

how to fall in love without losing herself…
how to quit a job, break up with a lover, and confront a friend without ruining the friendship
when to try harder... and WHEN TO WALK AWAY...
that she can't change the length of her calves, the width of her hips, or the nature of her parents..
that her childhood may not have been perfect...but its over...
what she would and wouldn't do for love or more...
how to live alone... even if she doesn't like it...
whom she can trust, whom she can't, and why she shouldn't take it personally...
where to go... be it to her best friend's kitchen table... or a charming inn in the woods... when her soul needs soothing...
what she can and can't accomplish in a day... a month...and a year.

2007-03-06T23:36:00.000-05:00

2007-03-04T22:48:00.001-05:00

"Let us be silent that we may hear the whisper of God."
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

"Be still and know that I am God."
Psalm 46:10

2007-03-03T14:22:00.001-05:00

Three keys to more abundant living:
caring about others,
daring for others,
sharing with others.
- William A. Ward

2007-02-19T18:31:00.001-05:00

"Forget love...
I'd rather fall in chocolate."

2007-02-15T21:21:00.001-05:00

"A friend is someone who reaches for your hand and touches your heart."

Happy Valentines Day!

2007-02-14T01:15:00.001-05:00

Life is too short...

2007-02-03T01:32:00.000-05:00

... to wake up in the morning with regrets.
So love the people who treat you right,
forget about the ones who don't and believe
that everything happens for a reason.
If you get a chance, take it.
If it changes your life, let it.
Nobody said that it 'd be easy,
they just promised it would be worth it.

2007-02-01T23:55:00.001-05:00

"There is something you must always remember. You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think." ~Pooh

Humility

2007-01-31T20:38:00.001-05:00

Humility is:

Perpetual quietness of heart. It is to have no trouble. It is never to be fretted or vexed, irritable or sore, to wonder at nothing done to me, to feel nothing done against me. It is to be at rest when nobody praises me, and when I am blamed or despised, it is to have a blessed home in myself where I can go in and shut the door and pray to my Father in secret and be at peace, as in a deep sea of calmness, when all around and about me is seeming trouble.

Andrew Murray, a Scottish Theologian

I've Learned ...

2007-01-31T17:39:00.000-05:00

I've learned...

that you cannot make someone love you. All you can do is be someone who can be loved. The rest is up to them.
that no matter how much I care, some people just don't care back.
that it takes years to build up trust, and only seconds to destroy it.
that it's not what you have in your life but who you have in your life that counts.
that you can get by on charm for about fifteen minutes. After that, you'd better know something.
that you shouldn't compare yourself to the best others can do, but to the best you can do.
that it's not what happens to people that's important. It's what they do about it.
that you can do something in an instant that will give you heartache for life.
that no matter how thin you slice it, there are always two sides.
that it's taking me a long time to become the person I want to be.
that it's a lot easier to react than it is to think.
that you should always leave loved ones with loving words. It may be the last time you see them.
that you can keep going long after you think you can't.
that we are responsible for what we do, no matter how we feel.
that either you control your attitude or it controls you.
that regardless of how hot and steamy a relationship is at first, the passion fades and there had better be something else to take its place.
that heroes are the people who do what has to be done when it needs to be done, regardless of the consequences.
that learning to forgive takes practice.
that there are people who love you dearly, but just don't know how to show it.
that money is a lousy way of keeping score.
that my best friend and I can do anything or nothing and have the best time.
that sometimes the people you expect to kick you when you're down will be the ones to help you get back up.
that sometimes when I'm angry I have the right to be angry, but that doesn't give me the right to be cruel.
that true friendship continues to grow, even over the longest distance. Same goes for true love.
that just because someone doesn't love you the way you want them to, it doesn't mean they don't love you with all they have.
that maturity has more to do with what types of experiences you've had and what you've learned from them and less to do with how many birthdays you've celebrated.
that you should never tell a child their dreams are unlikely or outlandish. Few things are more humiliating, and what a tragedy it would if they believed it.
that your family won't always be there for you. It may seem funny, but people you aren't related to can take care of you and love you and teach you to trust people again. Families aren't biological.
that no matter how good a friend is, they're going to hurt you every once in a while and you must forgive them for that.
that it isn't always enough to be forgiven by others. Sometimes you have to learn to forgive yourself.
that no matter how bad your heart is broken the world doesn't stop for your grief.
that our background and circumstances may have influenced who we are, but we are responsible for who we become.
that sometimes when my friends fight, I'm forced to choose sides even when I don't want to.
that just because two people argue, it doesn't mean they don't love each other. And just because they don't argue, it doesn't mean they do.
that sometimes you have to put the individual ahead of their actions.
that we don't have to change friends if we understand that friends change.
that you shouldn't be so eager to find out a secret. It could change your life forever.
that two people can look at the exact same thing and see something totally different.
that no matter how you try to protect your children, they will eventually get hurt and you will hurt in the process.
that there are many ways of falling and staying in love.
that no matter the consequences, those who are honest with themselves get farther in life.
that no matter how many friends you have, if you are their pillar you will feel lonely and lost at the times you need them most.
that your life can be changed in a matter of hours by people who don't even know you.
that even when you think you have no more to give, when a friend cries out to you, you will find the strength to help.
that writing, as well as talking, can ease emotional pains.
that the paradigm we live in is not all that is offered to us.
that credentials on the wall do not make you a decent human being.
that the people you care most about in life are taken from you too soon.
that although the word "love" can have many different meanings, it loses value when overly used.
that it's hard to determine where to draw the line between being nice and not hurting people's feelings and standing up for what you believe.

Author: Unknown

2007-01-31T17:33:00.001-05:00

"A friend is someone who knows the song in your heart and sings it to you when you forget the words."

2007-01-31T11:14:00.001-05:00

"If I have given my all and still do not win, I haven't lost. Others might remember winning or losing. I remember the journey."

--Apolo Anton Ohno
Five-time Olympic medalist

Inscription on the tomb of an Anglican Bishop

2007-01-29T22:35:00.000-05:00

This is an inscription on the tomb of an Anglican Bishop in Westminster Abbey:

“When I was young and free and my imagination had no limits, I dreamed of changing the world.

As I grew older and wiser I discovered the world would not change –
So I shortened my sights somewhat and decided to change only my country, but it too seemed immovable.

As I grew into my twilight years, in one last desperate attempt, I settled for changing only my family, those closest to me, but alas, they would have none of it.

And now I realize as I lie on my deathbed, if I had only changed myself first, then by example I might have changed my family. From their inspiration and encouragement I would then have been able to better my country,

And who knows, I might have even changed the world.”