We Learned It All In Kindergarten by: Robert Fulghum

Most of what I really need to know about how to live, and what to do, and how to be, I learned in kindergarten. Wisdom was not at the top of the graduate-school mountain, but there in the sandbox.

These are the things I learned. Save everything. Play fair. Don’t hit people. Put things back where you found them. Clean up your own mess. Don’t take things that aren't yours. Say you're sorry when you hurt somebody. Wash your hands before you eat. Live a balanced life. Learn some and think some, and draw and sing and dance and play and 

work every day some.

Take a nap in the afternoon. When you go out into the world, watch for traffic, hold hands and stick together. Be aware of wonder. Remember the little seed in the plastic cup? The roots go down and the plant goes up, and nobody really knows why, but we are all like that.

Goldfish and hamsters and white mice — and even the little seed in the plastic cup — they all die. So do we.

And then remember the book about Dick and Jane and the first word you learned, the biggest word of all: LOOK. Everything you need to know is in there somewhere. The golden rule and love and basic sanitation. 

Ecology and politics and sane living.

Think of what a better world it would be if we all had cookies and milk about three o'clock every afternoon and then laid down with our blankets for a nap. Or if we had a basic policy in our nation and other nations always to put things back where we found them and 

cleaned up our own messes.

And it is still true, no matter how old you are, when you go out into the world, it is best to hold hands and stick together.

Life is a Journey ( A Road We Must Travel and Enjoy)

Sail, explore the vastness 
Feast on the bounty
There is more to life
In between pain and despair

Surf, ride along the possibilities
Chances can’t be scarce
To those who search
Success won’t be far away

Float; run with the wind of change
Lots of riddles to be solved
Life is a quest, a voyage 
Uncertainties make it a challenge 

Getaway, leave the crib of doubt
In your hand, the power
Inside you, the great fire
Let it flare; shine and be at the top

I know I can: It's my destiny

Are you ever be so sure that you are gonna nail it something ?
Ever a thought made you so crazy, that you thought yourself to be out of the world?
Is it possible someone common like you can do something extraordinary?
Is it necessary to be rich to do something big?

Do above questions confuse you? Do they make you realize you are in your dreams?


This is what happen with each individual around the world. They know they thought of something extraordinary but on the 2nd second they think: 'It's Impossible'. This is something for intelligent people, they have no relations to such things, they can't do it.

What such people are not realizing is the fact that they are much more capable and got energies to achieve something bigger. Everyone got a dream, but only those who believe that they can do it, they themselves define there destiny at that particular moment.

If you need to achieve something, if you dream something and if you really want to get it. Only one advice go for it with all courage, all strength, all energy and last but not the least - the motivation you have. You are surely gonna get what you visioned about.

Rise for yourself

The Race by Dee Groberg

"Quit! Give up! You're beaten!"
They shout at me, and plead
"There's just too much against you now.
This time you can't succeed."
And as I start to hang my head
In front of failure's face
My downward fall is broken by
The memory of a race.
And hope refills my weakened will
As I recall that scene
For, just the thought of that short race
Rejuvenates my being.

A children's race, young boys, young men
Now, I remember well,
Excitement, sure! But also fear,
It wasn't hard to tell.

They all lined up so full of hope
Each thought to win that race,
Or, tie for first, if not that,
At least take second place.

And fathers watched from off the side
Each cheering for his son.
And each boy hoped to show his dad,
that he would be the one.

The whistle blew, and off they went
Young hearts and hopes afire
To win, to be the hero there
Was each young boy's desire.

And one boy in particular,
Whose dad was in the crowd,
Was running near the head and thought:
"My dad will be so proud!"

But as they speeded down the field
Across a shallow dip
The little boy who thought to win,
Lost his step and slipped.

Trying hard to catch himself,
His hands flew out to brace
And 'mid the laughter of the crowd
He fell flat on his face.

So, down he fell, and with him hope
- he couldn't win it now -
Embarrassed, sad, he only wished
To disappear somehow.

But, as he fell, his dad stood up,
And showed his anxious face,
Which to the boy so clearly said:
"Get up and win the race."

He quickly rose, no damage done,
- behind a bit, that's all -
And ran with all his mind and might
To make up for his fall.

So, anxious to restore himself
- to catch up and to win -
His mind went faster than his legs;
He slipped and fell again!

He wished, then, he had quit before
With only one disgrace.
"I'm hopeless as a runner now;
I shouldn't try to race.

But, in the laughing crowd he searched
And found his father's face.
That steady look that said again!
"Get up and win the race."

So, up he jumped, to try again
- ten yards behind the last -
"If I'm to gain those yards," he thought
'I've got to move real fast."

Exceeding everything he had
He gained back eight or ten,
But trying so, to catch the lead,
He slipped and fell again!

Defeat! He lay there silently
- a tear dropped from his eye -
"There is no sense in running more;
Three strikes, I'm out, why try?"

The will to rise had disappeared
All hope had fled away
So far behind; so error prone
A loser all the way.

"I've lost, so what's the use," he thought
"I'll live with my disgrace."
But, then he thought about his dad,
Who, soon, he'd have to face.

"Get up!" an echo sounded low,
"Get up, and take your place
You were not meant for failure here,
Get up, and win the race."

With borrowed will, "Get up," it said
"You haven't lost at all.
For winning is no more than this;
To rise each time you fall."

So, up he rose to run once more,
And with a new commit
He resolved that win, or lose,
At least he wouldn't quit.

So far behind the others now
- the most he'd ever been -
Still, he gave it all he had,
And ran as though to win.

Three times he'd fallen stumbling.
Three times he'd rose again.
Too far behind to hope to win
He still ran to the end.

They cheered the winning runner,
As he crossed the line first place,
Head high, and proud, and happy.
No falling, no disgrace.

But, when the fallen youngster
Crossed the line last place,
The crowd gave him the greater cheer
For finishing the race.

Even though he came in last.
With head bowed head low, unproud,
You would have thought he won the race
To listen to the crowd.

And to his dad, he sadly said,
"I didn't do so well."
"To me, you won!" his father said,
"You rose each time you fell."


And now when things seem dark and hard,
And difficult to face.
The memory of that little boy
Helps me to win my race.

For all of life is like that race
With ups and downs and all,
And all you have to do to win,
Is rise each time you fall.

Tell Yourself

Do It Anyway

Can't : I Can

Angels Are Always There

Did you ever feel a tiny raindrop

trickle down from the sky

and land upon your cheek

when there is no rain in sight,

and wonder where it came from

when the day is sunny and bright?

Did you ever hear someone

clearly call out your name,

and when you turned to look

there’s not a familiar face

anywhere around

and wonder where it came from,

when the voice was there

without an ounce of doubt?

The answer is quite simple you see,

Angels are everywhere

watching over you and me.

Though at times we don’t feel

a presence at our side;

Angels are always there

morning, noon and night

in the most mysterious of ways

looking after us with much love

forever and always.

The Sun Will Shine

The sun will shine tomorrow

The rain will somehow end

This is not only a promise

It’s just the way it is

Bad times don’t last forever

The tough times they never stay

The heartache and the let down

Will soon go away

In times of deep sadness

The pain is all too real

And it’s hard to believe

That with time the hurt will heal

The dark clouds that hang above

Will eventually move on

And the storms that dance around

Will soon be gone

Stay strong and keep in mind

That again, the sun will shine

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.

The Optimist Creed

Promise yourself . . .

To be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind. 

To talk health, happiness and prosperity to every person you meet.

To make all your friends feel that there is something in them. 

To look at the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true. 

To think only of the best, to work only for the best and to expect only the best.

To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own. 

To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future. 

To wear a cheerful countenance at all times and give every living creature you meet a smile.

To give so much time to the improvement of yourself that you have no time to criticize others.

To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear, and too happy to permit the presence of trouble.

Dare to Dream

Some people only look at life through eyes that seldom gleam 

while others look beyond today as they're guided by a dream 

And the dreamers can't be sidetracked by dissenters who may laugh 

for only they alone can know how special is their path 

But dreams aren't captured easily; 

there's much work before you're through 

but the time and efforts are all worthwhile 

when the impossible comes true 

And dreams have strength in numbers 

for when a common goal is shared 

the once impossible comes true because of all who cared 

And once it's seen as reality a dream has just begun 

for magically from dreams come dreams 

And a walk becomes a run 

But with growth of course comes obstacles 

and with obstacles come fear 

but the dream that is worth dreaming 

finds its way to the dear 

And the dream continues growing 

Reaching heights before unseen 

And it's all because of the courage of the dreamers 

and their dream.

by

John Turnipseed

Director of People Services at Southwest Airlines