WISDOM: various authors

To enjoy your goals, 

think of them as signposts, 

pointing you in a certain direction.  

They give you a focus 

and help your energy to get moving.  

The way you go is up to you; 

you can get very uptight 

focusing only on getting to your goal 

or you can relax
and enjoy the entire journey,
appreciating every unexpected bend
and turn of the road, 

every new opportunity
for learning and feeling.

~Shakti Gawain

~*~

It must be borne in mind that

the tragedy of life doesn’t lie in

not reaching your goal.  The

tragedy lies in having no goal

to reach.  It isn’t a calamity

to die with dreams unfulfilled,

but it is a calamity not to dream.

It is not a disgrace not to reach

the stars, but it is a disgrace

to have no stars to reach for.

Not failure, but low aim is sin.

 Benjamin Mays

~*~

Live a balanced life -

learn some 

and think some 

and draw 

and paint 

and sing 

and dance 

and play 

and work every day some.

Robert Fulghum

~*~

Weakness and strength are necessary for balance.  No one or nothing is only weak or only strong.  But some of us overlook our weaknesses, and even deny that we have them.  That can be dangerous, because denying there is a weakness is in itself a weakness.  Likewise, accepting that we have weaknesses becomes a strength.  And by the same token, overestimating strength is a weakness.  You should not be blinded by your strengths.  The feeling of strength is not the same as having strength.  Neither should you ignore your weaknesses.  Know them well, too.

~Joseph M. Marshall III

~*~

"Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop away from you like the leaves of Autumn." 

~Also by John Muir 

~*~

No one lives on the top of the mountain. It’s fine to go there occasionally —for inspiration, for new perspectives. But you have to come down. Life is lived in the valleys. That’s where the farms and gardens and orchards are, and where the plowing and the work is done. That’s where you apply the visions you may have glimpsed from the peaks.

~Arthur Gordon

~*~

"You cannot stay on the summit forever; you have to come down again. So why bother in the first place ? Just this: What is above knows what is below, but what is below does not know what is above. One climbs, one sees. One descends, one sees no longer, but one has seen. There is an art of conducting oneself in the lower regions by the memory of what one saw higher up. When one can no longer see, one can at least still know."

~Rene Daumal

~*~

The fact that I can plant a seed and it becomes a flower, share a bit of knowledge and it becomes another's, smile at someone and receive a smile in return, are to me continual spiritual exercises.

Don't spend your precious time asking "Why isn't the world a better place?" It will only be time wasted. The question to ask is 'How can I make it better?' To that there is an answer. 

    

A loving relationship is one in which the loved one is free to be him- or herself -- to laugh with me, but never at me; to cry with me, but never because of me; to love life, to love him- or herself, to love being loved.  Such a relationship is based upon freedom and can never grow in a jealous heart.

Leo Buscaglia

 ~*~

Whatever our hands touch

We leave fingerprints.

On walls, on furniture

On doorknobs, dishes, books.

There's no escape.

As we touch we leave our identity.

Wherever I go today

Help me leave heartprints.

Heartprints of compassion

Of understanding and love.

Heartprints of kindness

And genuine concern.

May my heart touch a lonely neighbor

Or a runaway daughter

Or an anxious mother

Or perhaps an aged grandfather.

Send me out today

To leave heartprints.

And if someone should say,

"I felt your touch,"

May they also sense the love

that is deep within my heart.

~Author Unknown

 ~*~

A wonderful realization will be the day you realize that you are unique in all the world. There is nothing that is an accident. You are a special combination for a purpose - and don't let them tell you otherwise, even if they tell you that purpose is an illusion. (Live an illusion if you have to.)  You are that combination so that you can do what is essential for you to do. Don't ever believe that you have nothing to contribute. The world is an incredible unfulfilled tapestry. And only you can fulfill that tiny space that is yours. 

 

~Leo Buscaglia

~*~

In the sweetness of friendship let there be laughter, and sharing of pleasures. For in the dew of little things the heart finds its morning and is refreshed. 

~Khalil Gibran

~*~

It is impossible for you to be angry and laugh at the same time. Anger and laughter are mutually exclusive and you have the power to choose either. 

~Wayne Dyer

~*~

I am thankful for laughter, 

except when milk comes out of my nose. 

~Woody Allen

~*~

Yes, people will discourage you, often unintentionally.  But what do we do with that discouragement?  Do we take it to heart and allow it to stop us from reaching our ultimate goal of spreading love, or do we polish it up and put it on a shelf with the rest of our discouragements, and move on with our lives, continuing to work towards our goals? 

~tom walsh

~*~

Discouragement visits all of us from time to time.  We all get the feeling that no matter what we do, it's somehow not worthwhile.  Our challenge is to accept that feeling for exactly what it is--a temporary state that in no way defines who we are or what we're able to do.  If we're able to accept that feeling, we can allow our true courage to come back and take its place, where it truly belongs, and our discouragement will quickly become encouragement.  It's not that the negative becomes positive, but that the positive is able to take its true place at the forefront of our lives, our thoughts, and our feelings.

Let your discouragement have its five minutes in the sun, but even as you do so keep in mind that you soon will overcome it and return to a more positive state.  No matter what anyone may do to discourage us, no matter what may happen, we know that our value isn't found in what others think of us or what others do to us, nor in the things that we "accomplish" or the number of material goods in our homes.  Our value is found in who we are and what we do with that, and if we can continually encourage ourselves, our discouragement will have less space in which to live and grow.

~unknown

~*~

No matter how old you get, 

if you can keep the desire to be creative, 

you're keeping the child inside alive.

~John Cassavetes

~*~

Creativity comes from the spiritual realm, the collective consciousness. And the mind is in a different realm than the molecules of the brain. The brain is a receiver, not a source.

~Candace Pert

~*~

I am the one and only me. I may not think of myself as a creative person, but I know that I have unique talents and skills to share. For instance, art may appear on a canvas, or it may appear in a meal prepared with love.  Some hands sculpt clay or play a musical instrument, and some gently hold the hand of a child.  Wisdom can be found in books, but it can also be found in quiet conversation across the kitchen table. 

I am creative in my own unique way.  As I more fully express who I am, I bless others, and blessings flow back to me.  I am creative, productive, and open to divine inspiration.  I give my gifts to the world. 

~Unattributed (Daily Word)

 ~*~

Only when you can accept that you are alone,

 Will you discover that you are not alone. 

~Leonard Jacobson

~*~

The curious paradox is that 

When I accept myself just as I am, 

Then I can change.

 ~Carl Rogers

~*~

The first step toward change is acceptance.  

Once you accept yourself, 

You open the door to change.  

That's all you have to do.  

Change is not something you do, 

It's something you allow.

~Will Garcia

~*~

The transition from rebellion to acceptance 

Has an extremely important consequence 

In which we start seeing life as a training school, 

To teach us what we need to learn. 

~Piero Ferrucci

 ~*~

O beautiful human life!  

Tears come to my eyes as I think of it.  

So beautiful, so inexpressibly beautiful!  

The song should never be silent, 

the dance never still, 

the laugh should sound 

like water which runs forever.

 ~Richard Jeffries

~*~

You must understand the whole of life, 

not just one little part of it. 

That is why you must read, 

that is why you must look at the skies, 

that is why you must sing, and dance, 

and write poems, and suffer, and understand, 

for all that is life.

 ~J. Krishnamurti

~*~

We are not human beings having a spiritual experience.  

We are spiritual beings having a human experience. 

~Teilhard de Chardin

~*~

Do the things you used to talk about doing but never did. Know when to let go and when to hold on tight. Stop rushing. Don't be intimidated to say it like it is. Stop apologizing all the time. Learn to say no, so your yes has some oomph. Spend time with the friends who lift you up, and cut loose the ones who bring you down. Stop giving your power away. Be more concerned with being interested than being interesting. Be old enough to appreciate your freedom, and young enough to enjoy it. Finally know who you are.

~Kristin Armstrong

 ~*~

What choices are you making in your perception of the events around you?  We choose how we view our times.  There is a pinch of pessimism in our culture now.  Counter it with small acts of optimism.  Pick up a piece of litter that isn't yours.  Show some extra grace on the freeway.  Give to your food bank.  Smile at a child who is in your way.  Help someone you know.  Help someone you don't know.  The accumulation of small, optimistic acts produces quality in our culture and in your life.  Our culture resonates in tense times to individual acts of grace.  What's your choice?

~Jennifer James

Success Is the Quality of Your Journey 

~*~

You are goodness and mercy and compassion and understanding. You are peace and joy and light. You are forgiveness and patience, strength and courage, a helper in time of need, a comforter in time of sorrow, a healer in time of injury, a teacher in times of confusion. You are the deepest wisdom and the highest truth; the greatest peace and the grandest love. You are these things. And in moments of your life you have known yourself to be these things. Choose now to know yourself as these things always.

~Neale Donald Walsch

Conversations with God

~*~

Behind all creation is silence. Silence is the essential condition, the vital ingredient for all creation and all that is created. It is a power in its own right. The artist starts with a blank canvas - silence. The composer places it between and behind the notes. The very ground of your being, out of which comes all your thoughts, is silence. The way to silence is through meditation. When you arrive in your own silence you will know true freedom and real power. Stop, take a minute, and listen to the silence within you today. Then be aware of what disturbs your inner silence. It could be negative thoughts, memories, sensations. And when you are aware, you will know what is draining your creative power, and you will know what needs to change…on the inside! 

~Relax7.com

~*~

Observe the space 

between your thoughts, 

then observe the observer. 

~Hamilton Boudreaux

~*~

Do you have patience 

to wait till your mud settles 

and the water is clear? 

Can you remain unmoving 

till the right action arises by itself?

~Lao Tzu 

 ~*~

Whatever our individual troubles and challenges may be, it’s important to pause every now and then to appreciate all that we have, on every level.  We need to literally “count our blessings,” give thanks for them, allow ourselves to enjoy them, and relish the experience of prosperity we already have.

~Shakti Gawain

~*~

I move through my day-to-day life with a sense of appreciation and gratitude that comes from knowing how fortunate I truly am and how unearned all that I am thankful for really is.  To have this perspective in my everyday consciousness is in itself a gift, for it leads to feeling “graced,” or blessed, each time. . . . Every time I see beauty around me I appreciate what I am seeing, and simultaneously I have this sense of appreciation—for being alive to have this particular moment.

~Jean Shinoda Bolen

~*~

Let us be grateful to people who make us happy--

they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.

~Marcel Proust

 ~*~

I wish that I could tell every person that I meet that he or she is a beautiful person--and have them believe it.  I wish I could look them in the eyes and tell them of their beauty and have them accept the words for what they truly are--the truth, plain and simple.

You know what I mean, don't you?  You and I both know that most people will deny their beauty, expressing what they feel is modesty or humility.  It's easier for us to be told that we're talented or intelligent--our own beauty is something that we don't want to face.

You could help me to convince people of their innate beauty.  You could agree with me in an effort to reinforce the message.  You could give a few specifics to illustrate just what we're talking about when we say the person is beautiful.  You could reassure the person that I'm not saying it to flatter or to try to win the person over or get something out of the person, but just trying to express in words the beauty I see when I look into that person's eyes and see the human being there, the person who gets happy and hurt and who laughs and who cries.

You can help me by reminding the person that beauty isn't about comparing ourselves with others, but about the part of us that shines when we love others and love life.  It's not all physical and it's not all spiritual, but a tender combination of all that we are.

And when that person says, "No, not me," you could argue the point and ask him or her not to talk down about him or herself, to admit to the beauty that's there, to accept it, to thrive in it.  Because you know just as well as I do that this person can hurt his or her own self-image and feelings by denying the beauty.

So I ask you:  Please help me to convince people of their own beauty.  Will you do that?  Thank you.  And we'll start right here, with you:  You're a beautiful person.

The rest is up to you.

~tom clark

  ~*~

 New things cannot come 

 where there is no room.

 - Mario Morgan

 ~*~

The important thing is this: 

 to be able at any moment 

 to sacrifice what we are 

 for what we could become.

 - Charles Du Bos

 ~*~

 "How does one become a butterfly?" 

she asked pensively. 

 "You must want to fly so much 

 that you are willing to give up being a caterpillar."

 - Trina Paulus

 ~*~

Realize that true happiness lies within you. 

Waste no time and effort 

searching for peace 

and contentment 

and joy 

in the world outside. 

Remember that there is no happiness 

in having or in getting, 

but only in giving. 

Reach out. 

Share. 

Smile. 

Hug. 

Happiness is a perfume 

you cannot pour on others 

without getting a few drops on yourself.

~Og Mandino

~*~

 You have it easily in your power to increase the sum total of this world's happiness now. How? By giving a few words of sincere appreciation to someone who is lonely or discouraged. Perhaps you will forget tomorrow the kind words you say today, but the recipient may cherish them over a lifetime. 

 ~Dale Carnegie

~*~

Remember that happiness is a way of travel -

not a destination.

 ~Roy M. Goodman

 ~*~

Source - AOM