Positive Thinking

Jerry was the kind of guy you love to hate. He was always in a good mood and always had something positive to say. When someone would ask him how he was doing, he would reply, “If I were any better, I would be twins!”

He was a unique manager because he had several waiters who had followed him around from restaurant to restaurant. The reason the waiters followed Jerry was because of his attitude. He was a natural motivator. If an employee was having a bad day, Jerry was there telling the employee how to look on the positive side of the situation.

Seeing this style really made me curious, so one day I went up to Jerry and asked him, “I don’t get it! You can’t be a positive person all of the time. How do you do it?” Jerry replied, “Each morning I wake up and say to myself, Jerry, you have two choices today. You can choose to be in a good mood or you can choose to be in a bad mood.’ I choose to be in a good mood. Each time something bad happens, I can choose to be a victim or I can choose to learn from it. I choose to learn from it. Every time someone comes to me complaining, I can choose to accept their complaining or I can point out the positive side of life. I choose the positive side of life.”

“Yeah, right, it’s not that easy,” I protested.

“Yes it is,” Jerry said. “Life is all about choices. When you cut away all the junk, every situation is a choice. You choose how you react to situations. You choose how people will affect your mood. You choose to be in a good mood or bad mood. The bottom line: It’s your choice how you live life.”

I reflected on what Jerry said. Soon thereafter, I left the restaurant industry to start my own business. We lost touch, but often thought about him when I made a choice about life instead of reacting to it. Several years later, I heard that Jerry did something you are never supposed to do in a restaurant business: he left the back door open one morning and was held up at gunpoint by three armed robbers. While trying to open the safe, his hand, shaking from nervousness, slipped off the combination. The robbers panicked and shot him. Luckily, Jerry was found relatively quickly and rushed to the local trauma center. After 18 hours of surgery and weeks of intensive care, Jerry was released from the hospital with fragments of the bullets still in his body. I saw Jerry about six months after the accident. When I asked him how he was, he replied, “If I were any better, I’d be twins. Wanna see my scars?”

I declined to see his wounds, but did ask him what had gone through his mind as the robbery took place. “The first thing that went through my mind was that I should have locked the back door,” Jerry replied. “Then, as I lay on the floor, I remembered that I had two choices: I could choose to live, or I could choose to die. I chose to live.”

“Weren’t you scared? Did you lose consciousness?” I asked. Jerry continued, “The paramedics were great. They kept telling me I was going to be fine. But when they wheeled me into the emergency room and I saw the expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses, I got really scared. In their eyes, I read, ‘He’s a dead man.’ I knew I needed to take action.”

“What did you do?” I asked.

“Well, there was a big, burly nurse shouting questions at me,” said Jerry. “She asked if I was allergic to anything. ‘Yes,’ I replied. The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply… I took a deep breath and yelled, ‘Bullets!’ Over their laughter, I told them, ‘I am choosing to live. Operate on me as if I am alive, not dead.”

Jerry lived thanks to the skill of his doctors, but also because of his amazing attitude. I learned from him that every day we have the choice to live fully. Attitude, after all, is everything.

By Francie Baltazar-Schwartz

Living life and having fun

A house becomes a home when you can write 'I love you' on the furniture. I can't tell you how many countless hours that I have spent cleaning. I used to spend at least 8 hours every weekend making sure things were just perfect - 'in case someone came over.' Then I realized one day that no-one came over; they were all out living life and having fun!

Now, when people visit, I find no need to explain the condition of my home. They are more interested in hearing about the things I've been doing while I was away living life and having fun. If you haven't quite figured this out as yet, please heed this advice.

Life is short, so enjoy it! Dust if you must, but wouldn't it be better to paint a picture or write a letter, bake a cake or plant a seed, or even ponder the difference between want and need? Dust if you must, but there's not much time, with rivers to swim and mountains to climb, music to hear and books to read, friends to cherish and life to lead. Dust if you must, but the worlds out there with the sun in your eyes, the wind in your hair, a flutter of snow, a shower of rain. This day will not come around again.

Dust if you must, but bear in mind, old age will come and it's not kind. And when you go - and go you must, you, yourself will make more dust! It's not what you gather, but what you scatter that tells what kind of life you have lived ... and remember, a layer of dust protects the wood beneath it.

Help Yourself To Happiness - Helen Steiner Rice

We are truly happy when we give to others.

Everybody, everywhere

seeks happiness, it's true,

But finding it and keeping it

seem difficult to do.

Difficult because we think

that happiness is found

Only in the places where

wealth and fame abound.

And so we go on searching

in palaces of pleasure

Seeking recognition

and monetary treasure,

Unaware that happiness

is just a state of mind

Within the reach of everyone

who takes time to be kind.

For in making others happy

we will be happy, too.

For the happiness you give away

returns to shine on you.

"Hope Is The Thing With Feathers" by Emily Dickinson

“Hope” is the thing with feathers -

That perches in the soul - 

And sings the tune without the words - 

And never stops - at all -

And sweetest - in the Gale - is heard - 

And sore must be the storm - 

That could abash the little Bird 

That kept so many warm -

I’ve heard it in the chillest land - 

And on the strangest Sea - 

Yet - never - in Extremity, 

It asked a crumb - of me.

"I Choose The Mountain" by Howard Simon

The low lands call 

I am tempted to answer 

They are offering me a free dwelling 

Without having to conquer

The massive mountain makes its move 

Beckoning me to ascend 

A much more difficult path 

To get up the slippery bend

I cannot choose both 

I have a choice to make 

I must be wise 

This will determine my fate

I choose, I choose the mountain 

With all its stress and strain 

Because only by climbing 

Can I rise above the plane

I choose the mountain 

And I will never stop climbing 

I choose the mountain 

And I shall forever be ascending

I choose the mountain

"It Couldn't Be Done" by Edgar A. Guest

Somebody said that it couldn’t be done, 

But, he with a chuckle replied 

That "maybe it couldn’t," but he would be one 

Who wouldn’t say so till he’d tried.

So he buckled right in with the trace of a grin 

On his face. If he worried he hid it. 

He started to sing as he tackled the thing 

That couldn’t be done, and he did it.

Somebody scoffed: "Oh, you’ll never do that; 

At least no one has done it"; 

But he took off his coat and he took off his hat, 

And the first thing we knew he’d begun it.

With a lift of his chin and a bit of a grin, 

Without any doubting or quiddit, 

He started to sing as he tackled the thing 

That couldn’t be done, and he did it.

There are thousands to tell you it cannot be done,

There are thousands to prophesy failure;

There are thousands to point out to you one by one,

The dangers that wait to assail you.

But just buckle it in with a bit of a grin,

Just take off your coat and go to it;

Just start to sing as you tackle the thing

That "couldn't be done" and you'll do it.

Be Thankful

Be thankful that you don’t already have everything you desire.

If you did, what would there be to look forward to?

Be thankful when you don’t know something,

for it gives you the opportunity to learn.

Be thankful for the difficult times.

During those times you grow.

Be thankful for your limitations,

because they give you opportunities for improvement.

Be thankful for each new challenge,

because it will build your strength and character.

Be thankful for your mistakes. They will teach

you valuable lessons.

Be thankful when you’re tired and weary,

because it means you’ve made a difference.

It’s easy to be thankful for the good things.

A life of rich fulfillment comes to those who

are also thankful for the setbacks.

Gratitude can turn a negative into a positive.

Find a way to be thankful for your troubles,

and they can become your blessings.

'Inspirational: I know how to fly'

The Snake was crawling on the ground. The Eagle flew to her and said:
- How unfortunate you are, doomed to crawl all your life. Not like me - I am destined to fly.
The Snake looked at the Eagle and said:
- You are right Eagle, I can’t fly. But only I know what it means to fly.
- How can you know that? – The Eagle smiled, - you don’t have wing!
- Thoughts are my wings, - said the Snake proudly, - Dreams are my heaven. While crawling on the ground I close my eyes and I see the heaven. I image that I’m crawling in heaven not on the ground. Yes, it’s impossible to crawl in heaven, you can only fly. It means that in those moments I am flying. In my free thoughts I am learning to fly, Eagle. With my soul I rise to the high heaven, so when my time comes and my life as a snake comes to an end, I could ascend into the blue heaven, into the endless heaven and fly, to fly and not think about anything, enjoying my freedom. And I won’t be afraid to fly, because it won’t be a new thing for me. For you Eagle, the wings were given as you were born, but not for me. But the heaven will make us equal. We will be flying together one day, Eagle, under the clouds. Only I will be stronger and freer than you, because I have learned how to fly without having wings, simply crawling on the ground. Both things are available for me. I am not afraid to lose my wings because I know how to crawl, and I am not afraid to gain wings because I know how to fly. And what will you do, Eagle, if you lose your wings?

You Can Be Whatever You Want To Be!

There is inside you
All of the potential
To be whatever you want to be; 
All of the energy
To do whatever you want to do. 
Imagine yourself as you would like to be, 
Doing what you want to do, 
And each day, take one step
Towards your dream. 
And though at times it may seem too
difficult to continue, 
Hold on to your dream. 
One morning you will awake to find
That you are the person you dreamed of, 
Doing what you wanted to do, 
Simply because you had the courage
To believe in your potential
And to hold on to your dream.

Glenn Cunningham

Glenn Cunningham’s story is, well, almost unbelievable. As an eight-year old he was caught up in an explosion in his native Kansas, which killed his older brother Floyd. His legs and feet were badly burned, and doctors recommended amputating his legs. Glenn had lost all the toes on his left foot, and the transverse arch of the foot was ravaged. The flesh on his knees and shins had been eaten away by the flames. His right leg was grossly misshapen and was now a full two inches shorter than the left leg. However, Cunningham was determined he would walk again, against the odds, and as he grew older dedicated his life to athletics. Cunningham competed in the 1932 and 1936 Olympic Games, winning medals and setting world records. At his peak, Cunningham also ran the four-minute mile, a feat that was deemed physically impossible at the time.

Tyler Perry

Perry had a rough childhood. He was physically and sexually abused growing up, got kicked out of high school, and tried to commit suicide twice—once as a preteen and again at 22. At 23 he moved to Atlanta and took up odd jobs as he started working on his stage career.

In 1992 he wrote, produced, and starred in his first theater production, I Know I’ve Been Changed, somewhat informed by his difficult upbringing. Perry put all his savings into the show and it failed miserably; the run lasted just one weekend and only 30 people came to watch. He kept up with the production, working more odd jobs and often slept in his car to get by. Six years later, Perry finally broke through when, on its seventh run, the show became a success. He’s since gone on to have an extremely successful career as a director, writer, and actor. In fact, Perry was named Forbes’ highest paid man in entertainment in 2011.

Your Life Your Way

Its your life. Live it like your sweetest dream, don't let anyone define you. Paint your life as you wish it to look like.

Just One

We can't always seek big adventures or experiences. But sometimes it's the little things that make a great difference in life.

One song can spark a moment,

One flower can wake the dream

One tree can start a forest,

One bird can herald spring.

One smile begins a friendship,

One handclasp lifts a soul.

One star can guide a ship at sea,

One word can frame the goal.

One vote can change a nation,

One sunbeam lights a room

One candle wipes out darkness,

One laugh will conquer gloom.

One step must start each journey.

One word must start each prayer.

One hope will raise our spirits,

One touch can show you care.

One voice can speak with wisdom,

One heart can know what's true,

One life can make a difference,

You see, it's up to you!