JOY

Impossible to fail

This was in my inbox today from HeartQuotes. It really describes my Hero and how he goes after things. I wish that I had his confidence sometimes. It's a blessing that he can embrace life this way and his success is evidence of how this kind of an attitude works.

How good is your word?

Living with integrity means: 

Not settling for less than what you know you deserve in your relationships. 
Asking for what you want and need from others. 
Speaking your truth, even though it might create conflict or tension. 
Behaving in ways that are in harmony with your personal values. 
Making choices based on what you believe, and not what others believe.

~Barbara de Angelis

Do you live a life of integrity?  Do you mean what you say and stand behind those things? Do you compromise yourself? Do you take a stand but then turn around and accept circumstances that are less than you deserve or go against what you have said you'd never do? Do you stand passionately and say things that start with the phrase "I will never" but then turn around and do the very thing you said you'd never do?  

I've recently discovered that there are very few people who mean what they say. When the chips are down many people really don't have the strength to stand by their convictions.  It's no wonder that so few people trust others when so many go back on their word.  Does anyone really respect someone who doesn't stand by their word and follow their convictions?  It really makes me sad that people are willing to compromise who they are. I wonder if they will ever truly have satisfaction or happiness as a result of their inability to stand up for what they believe in and be who they really are.

WORD Wednesday

Those who are generous towards God and towards their neighbor find that they cannot outgive God in his generosity towards us. God blesses us with the priceless treasures of his kingdom – freedom from fear and the griping power of sin, selfishness and pride which block his love and grace in our lives; freedom from loneliness, isolation and rejection which keep his children from living together in love, peace, and unity; and freedom from hopelessness, despair, and disillusionment which blind our vision of God's power to heal every hurt, bind every wound, and remove every blemish which mar the image of God within us. God offers us treasure which money cannot buy. He alone can truly satisfy the deepest longing and desires of our heart. Are you willing to part with anything that might keep you from seeking true joy with Jesus?

~ Don Schwager


"Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; but remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for."

~ Epicurus

"Opportunity is missed by most people because is dressed in overalls and looks like work."

~ Thomas Edison

Word Wednesday

A diplomat... is a person who can tell you to go to hell in such a way that you actually look forward to the trip. -Caskie Stinnett

Disappointment

Don't let the workings of adversity totally absorb your life. Try to understand what you can. Act where you are able; then let the matter rest with the Lord for a period while you give to others in worthy ways before you take on appropriate concern again. Please learn that as you wrestle with a challenge and feel sadness because of it, you can simultaneously have peace and rejoicing. Yes, pain, disappointment, frustration, and anguish can be temporary scenes played out on the stage of life. Behind them can be a background of peace and the positive assurance that a loving Father will keep His promises.

~Richard G. Scott (1924 - )


The Path of Life is not a hike or a race; it is a dance. And, in all dances, there will be a few steps backward.
Just remember -- the steps backward are still part of a beautiful dance.

~Laura Teresa Marquez


I will permit no man to narrow and degrade my soul by making me hate him.

~Booker T. Washington

Bless a thing and it will bless you. Curse it and it will curse you...If you bless a situation, it has no power to hurt you, and even if it is troublesome for a time, it will gradually fade out, if you sincerely bless it.

~Emmet Fox


We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.

~2 Corinthians 4:8-9

Love according to Turtle

"I love you as high as space... no I love you all the way to the planet Mars."

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Grandma's Hands

I don't normally forward email things, in fact, I skim some, delete most but this caught my eye and touched my heart enough to post it in my blog rather than forward it. I edited all the pass this along info that people love to put on the bottom to guilt you into hitting forward. God will answer my prayers no matter how many people I send it to and doing so doesn't mean I love Him more than sending it to delete means I'm not a good Christian. I hope it makes you think and touches your heart.

I was privileged to take a photo of 'Five Generations of Women' shortly before my 93 year-old Grandmother passed away last year. The photo, shown below, features the hands of my Grandmother, Mom, Sister, Niece and Great-Niece. While I can't take credit for the idea, I was so happy to have had the suggestion & capture this moment. It inspired a friend of mine to do something similar which turned out so beautiful and a special keepsake prior to her father's passing.




GRANDMA'S HANDS

Grandma, some ninety plus years, sat feebly on the patio bench. She didn't move, just sat with her head down staring at her hands.

When I sat down beside her she didn't acknowledge my presence and the Longer I sat I wondered if she was OK.

Finally, not really wanting to disturb her but wanting to check on her At the same time, I asked her if she was OK. She raised her head and Looked at me and smiled. 'Yes, I'm fine, thank you for asking,' she said in a clear voice strong. 'I didn't mean to disturb you, grandma, but you were just sitting here Staring at your hands and I wanted to make sure you were OK,' I Explained to her.

'Have you ever looked at your hands,' she asked. 'I mean really Looked at your hands?' I slowly opened my hands and stared down at them. I turned them Over, palms up and then palms down. No, I guess I had never really looked at My hands as I tried to figure out the point she was making.

Grandma smiled and related this story: 'Stop and think for a moment about the hands you have, how they have Served you well throughout your years. These hands, though wrinkled Shriveled and weak have been the tools I have used all my life to reach out and grab and embrace life. 'They braced and caught my fall when as a toddler I crashed upon the Floor. They put food in my mouth and clothes on my back. As a child, my Mother taught me to fold them in prayer. They tied my shoes and pulled on my boots. They held my husband and wiped my tears when he went off to war. 'They have been dirty, scraped and raw , swollen and bent. They were uneasy and clumsy when I tried to hold my newborn son. Decorated with my wedding band they showed the world that I was married and loved someone Special. They wrote my letters to him and trembled and shook when I buried my parents and spouse. 'They have held my children and grandchildren, consoled neighbors, and shook in fists of anger when I didn't understand. They have covered my face, combed my hair, and washed and cleansed the rest of my body. They have been sticky and wet, bent and broken, dried and raw. And to this day when not much of anything else of me works real well these hands hold me up, lay me down, and again continue to fold in prayer.

'These hands are the mark of where I've been and the ruggedness of life. But more importantly it will be these hands that God will reach out and take when He leads me home. And with my hands He will lift me to His side and there I will use these hands to touch the face of Christ.'

I will never look at my hands the same again. But I remember God Reached out and took my grandma's hands and led her home.

When my hands are hurt or sore or when I stroke the face of my children and husband I think of grandma. I know she has been stroked and caressed and held by the hands of God. I, too, want to touch the face of God and feel His hands upon my face.

-- Author Unknown

I look good naked!!!

Recently I've discovered the british show "How to Look Good Naked" . There is an american version , which I watched today for the first time, but I find the host of the british one, Gok Wan, to be more edifying. I've watched several episodes and have been struck at how women of all shapes and sizes, including those with bodies some of us would be thrilled with have such low opinions of themselves, self-loathing and lack of confidence. It really shows how our perceptions of ourselves come out in every aspect of of our lives- how we care for ourselves, dress, walk, talk and act. By showing these women how to love who they are and see themselves as others really see them their entire persona is transformed. Not only are they able to accept their perceived flaws but they are left with the inner courage to be proud of who they are. Their inner self shines through and their love of self makes them more beautiful than any makeover, weight loss program or plastic ever could.

I could sit on the couch and dream about being chosen to be on the show and have Gok transform me into a beautiful woman. I'd be sitting and dreaming for a long while. I could take the things these women learn to heart and I could try to look at myself more objectively. I can chose to look at myself through my Hero's eyes. He is constantly telling me I'm a hottie or sexy or grabbing my bum. He did this 40 lbs ago, 60 lbs ago, through swollen ankles and 4 pregnancies, through leaky boobs, bloated belly, beyatchy moods, zit breakouts and depression. I am just finally starting to listen, to really take it in and learn to love my body and myself for what I have and who I am. I'm learning to not hide when a camera comes out or crop myself out of pictures of the crew. I'm also learning to take steps to make myself healthy, to not set impossible goals for myself, to become the best me not the best magazine cover or twiggy women in my town.... to be healthy and happy no matter what store I have to shop in or what the world's opinion of me.

I try to teach my children that inner beauty is what is most important. To not judge people by the clothes they wear, how they look on the outside but to let who they are inside, what they stand for, how they behave as the measure of who they are. Someone has told Iceman that his Mom is fat and he was very hurt by that because he knew it was a mean spirited thing to say. He doesn't see me that way. He sees me as his Mommy and he has told me since I've been losing weight to not get too skinny because then I wouldn't be a soft cuddler anymore. They have friends of all different shapes and sizes. They get it, I need to start taking what I'm preaching to heart and applying it to myself. I see the beauty in others who don't love themselves but I also need to see that same beauty in me.

I owe it to myself and to those that love me to be the best that I can be. That starts with falling in love with myself. I hope any of you that have any doubt about how beautiful you are will join me so that we may all be able to proclaim " I look good naked!!!"

"We either make ourselves miserable, or we make ourselves strong. The amount of work is the same." ~ Carlos Castaneda

Wisdom for Wednesday

Things that have me thinking today...

"All blame is a waste of time. No matter how much fault you find with another, and
regardless of how much you blame him, it will not change you"
- Wayne Dyer

Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from a religious conviction.
- Blaise Pascal

Most people would rather be certain they're miserable than risk being happy.
- Robert Anthony

Thanks to my iGoogle page and it's gadgets.

Weasels

"The eagle may soar, but the weasel never gets sucked into a jet engine."
-- Tracy-Paul Warrington

Seems like the weasels are running amok in Hazzard County. Weasels only serve themselves and eventually that very master will lead to their demise. It's interesting to note that a pack of weasels is also known as a "confusion". The vision and the courage of the eagles will see them soar. Hang in there eagles, we know your hearts.

"If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten we belong to each other."

- Mother Teresa

words of wisdom from my daily quote from Heart Math

My daily inspiration from Heart Math

I've been really trying to apply this to my life. Today it has proven to be more difficult than other days. I'm only human right? I'm posting this to remind myself to let it go. If you are interested in getting these daily pearls of wisdom than you should visit HeartMath.