positivethinking

“As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.”
— John Fitzgerald Kennedy
In high school, I felt abnormal, like I didn’t fit within the crowd of my peers. I’m sure a lot of people felt that way. I grew bored of the mundaneness that seemed to be my life - and I really dove into projects where I felt I could serve and utilize my skills to benefit those around me. This began my quest of self-fulfillment, as well as trying to serve others.

I went to a lot of Florida Business Leaders of America conferences, and one particular motivational speaker made a comment about the people that you meet and the books that you read having such an enormous influence on our lives. That really made me question what type of people I was meeting to have such a valuable influence, as well as the books that I was reading. Was I vesting enough time into these replenishable resources? The answer was no. I made it a point to meet more people and to read some incredible literature. I still find this quote to be an interesting source for me, as it does ring so true.

The above quote ties into this idea of books and people, because I think that the more inforamtion you acquire from others, or the more you learn, has no where to go, if you don’t share it with other people; whether that come from gratitude, shared knowledge, or faith.

We can easily live by words that are expressed to us from others, and we can surely share them with other people, but do we do this? I make a lot more effort to expound upon the ideas that I’ve recently learned, messages that I’ve heard, and ideas that generate from people that I meet so that this information isn’t lost. I love to brainstorm with other people and I’ve found that by sharing my knowledge helps others and allows me to really fulfill what I was looking for amongst a crowd of people in high school when I just didn’t feel I fit in.

How about you? Have you had experiences where you should live by your words, or do live by your words? Please share.

Too often there is hustling and bustling for individuals when the holiday season arrives. People have holiday parties to attend, sporting events that they try to cram in, and the birth of our savior, Jesus gets lost. Remember, he’s the reason for the season?

It’s hard to decline invitations to fun events, but keep in mind that you are only able to accomplish so much in your day. Choose activities for yourself and your family wisely, that you enjoy and can spread the hope, love, and giving, that Christmas has to offer to others.

With a struggling economy and financial pitfall only to continue into the near future, we need to preserve our financial resources, and give of others things - our time, our gifts, our love - things that we might not share so openly.

I grew up in a large family, and the traditions that I absolutely love the most aren’t associated with spending a lot of money, or receiving a ton of gifts. They include: watching movies at home in my new pajamas with my family, roasting hot dogs and marshmallows in the fireplace, making sugar cookies and decorating them, and driving around our neighborhood to see the Christmas lights.

In my home with my children, I try to pass on as many of those fun activities that just warm my soul just writing it down. We enjoy making crafts as gifts for others. We enjoy attending church services to provide our talents, love, and offerings to our church during this incredible season. We enjoy making hot chocolate and watching Disney Christmas movies, and we just cuddle together. These are some of the fondest memories that I could ever give to my child, not a gift that will diminish excitement over time.

Think about how you celebrate your season. Can you get more out of it? Can you give differently to provide a different experiene for yourself and others?
Please share.

Nothing is too small to know, and nothing too big to attempt.
— Sir William Van Horne

This quote made me ponder how we spend our time, throughout our day. Do we tune out information that we feel is unnecessary, or feel invaluable? Do we miss out on opportunities to learn something small that might change our lives because are too impatient to stop for one moment and allow for the moment to bring significance? Do we ignore our gut instinct and do the opposite because it seems more convenient?

I can honestly say yes to all of these things at one point or another, and I’m sure (unfortunately) that I’m not the only one. So, nothing is too small to know. Let’s live as though every moment really does count. I mentioned in a beginning post about the blessing rock, where a man held a small stone in his pocket and anytime he touched it, he would count one of his blessings. An act so small, can really make a difference in our lives. We don’t need Thanksgiving, or a holiday to truly see the blessings in our lives.

Now, about the next portion of the quote: nothing is too big to attempt.

I know, I’ve been at the other end of this statement too, where I let my negative thinking get in the way of trying something because I ultimately feared the outcome of the situation. I couldn’t see the positive, only the negative that might have been. Instead of trying, I let my feet as as brick stones that wouldn’t move. I try to write down my goals. they seem a lot more achievable this way, and often attainable, if it comes to material possessions. This works for me. I can clearly see what it is that I want, and I can make adjustments, or write down the mini-steps I need to accomplish to make my goal a reality. This act makes the BIG a lot easier to chomp, since all big goals happen in small steps. Now, don’t get me wrong, I still think that there are some big tasks out there that I’m just not ready for, but I can add them to my long term goal list, if it is something I really want to acheive - because, it doesn’t have to look, feel, or seem big.

What about you? Can you change the value that you have for time, for both small and big moments?

I just finished reading Gifts from Eykis, by Wayne Dyer. The book is interesting, as it applies life on Earth in comparisson to life on Uranus, where Eykis lives. On Uranus, anxiety really attacks, and there is meaning and purpose behind everything. They live in an entirely reality based society. When Eykis visits Earth, however, she realizes that the world is truly stuck in the wrong way of thinking - nothing from her mindset is realistic and we are all wrong. She helps to provide gifts that will help the world become a better place.

Some of these include living in the present, not focusing so much on our ability to make money to accomplish something, but to accomplish what we can by living in the present, and truly enjoying this act. Her idea reflected being happy in our lives (since so many Earthlings aren’t) and to become better people through the growth of becoming happy. She called this cultivating our own gardens, and I love this. She said that we are all responsible for who we are and what we become, so we need to be responsible for what we make of ourselves. We need to ensure that we are keeping our bodies in good health, that we are shaping our minds with good information, and that we are growing ourselves into happy people to properly influence those around us.

This book is very short, and filled with a great deal of common sense information. Wayne Dyer doesn’t typically write fiction, however he really made his point in this book about how people can change their mindsets and influence not only themselves, but others as well in a positive way.
Check out the book.

I read this statement and it really made me question how much we ponder on life’s circumstances. “The path to grwoth is rarely smooth.”

How many times have you wished that you skipped a moment in time, or maybe even days - to get to the final outcome of a scenario. I believe we all have at one time or another, whether we on the inside just were excited about a time in our lives, or if we just wanted something to be over, and quickly. I believe ultimately that we should live through experiences because they help us to get to the final end product, however, I realize that this whole idea is not always pleasant.

So, when I read the above statement, I had one of those “aha” moments. I really think this statement was simply put and does summarize a lot of the situations in my life that have been challenging. Growth is the key word for me in this statement. I have grown, in all areas of my life - through hardship, pain, and a lot of tender love and care, and watering. But, the growth was definitely worth it.

I’ve struggled with wanting all situations in life to have some kind of definitive value, and I belive this statment does help me clarifiy how I can attain value.

This thought from the day comes from The Upper Room, and reads, “How are my experiences refining me today.”

I love the simplicity of this questions - How are my experiences refining me today - this means both good and bad. What is happening (this really forces you to live in the present moment, which most of us don’t) and how are you being refined for the future?

It’s challenging for me as a parent, teacher, student, to always live in the present moment and completely digest the situation in the moment, rather than look at my life in segments and accomplishments.

I’ve been reading The Gifts of Eykis by Wayne Dyer which has a lot of information about how individuals take advantage of their time and focus their lives on accomplilshments rather than what it is they choose to do to be happy. I’ve found a direct correlation with my life, as well as those around me when it comes to accomplishments. I question if we really are just stuck in a society that demands individuals to have certain accomplishments. Then, I wonder, when I read passages, like the thought for the day, and wonder if when I live in the moment, if the things I do can be considered as further refinement. Of course, I believe a mix of the two is probably most accurate, but would love to have the understanding and knowledge that my life continues to be refined in most things that I do. Not just accomplishments, but the daily ins and outs of life.

What do you believe? Which statement works for you?

I was reading a passage of a magazine called The Upper Room, and came across this statement, which I thought was amazing.

“Celebration is when you are free not only from your past but for your past so that your past becomes your set of building blocks instead of stumbling blocks.”

I admit that I’ve felt held back, and pulled in the wrong direction (especially when it comes to moving forward) based on situations that occurred to me, that I spent too much time dwelling on from my past. So, reading this statement made me really see through someone else’s perspective how valuable those squeamish situations in my past can be. I’m sure this holds true for many of you reading as well. How many times have we stumbled over situations, committments, or opportunities because we were scared of what might happen based on our preconcieved notions of the past?

I do all the time, and I’m finally to the point where I can often let that fear slide, and jump into situations. I can’t quesion all the time, what might go wrong - I realize that I need to just try, and do my best.

So, the same advice I share with you. Please share if this quote rings any bells for you. It certainly did for me, and I was excited to share.

“Time spent laughing is time spent with the gods.” Japenese Proverb
I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase that laughter is the best medicine. When we’re able to laugh at out there scenarios or mistakes from the past, we’re using our sense of humor and able to let incidents roll off of our back. When you laugh, you physically are healing, because you’re releasing endorphins into your body, much like you would with physical exercise, which is always good for your central nervous system and the rest of your body. Just think, some simple laughs during the day can rehabilitate you.

Have you noticed if you’re feeling down, someone can make a simple joke that turns your day around? I notice this about children, which is a great part of why I love working with children so much, they take life so less seriously. Their jobs, how they interact with others is through playful situations. They engage with one hundred percent happiness, and laughter.

I think I live vicariously through these children. I had a difficuy lt childhood and feel as an adult that I was incapable of just being a kid. So, here I am, a big kid now, working with children, being goofy, having fun, and utilizing one true healing power that I have some control over - laughter.

What do you do that helps you laugh, or what makes you laugh when you see other people? I truly believe there is no doubt to how far laughter can take you in the healing process. Try it. Make someone laugh today. Chances are, you’ll be laughing right along with them, and you’ll feel yourself start to glow.

I’m sure we’ve all heard of the term positive reinforcement, when we see someoene doing something well, and we make sure we praise them. This is specifically used with children, when we want them to model positive behaviors. We praise them as much as possible so that they learn and see when they are doing something right, instead of always telling them no, or punishing them for things that they are doing wrong.

Well, I just finished reading The Shack, by William Young and have to say that the message within this book led me to have some inner peace and has left me with a great deal of positive reinforcement.

The story is about a man who through tragedy and suffering has lost his spiritual path towards God. After years of hiding his inner most feelings and running on “robot-mode” he gets a note from God to meet him at The Shack. The book takes our main character Mack through a spiritual journy like no other, and leads him back to trusting God, initiating praise, and understanding more than many of us have the opportunity to do so, having shared a miraculous weekend with God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit.

This book is truly amazing, and I would recommend it to anyone that needs a pick me up, or questions organized religion, or their connection as a spiritual being. The book will make you ponder, nod your head, and cry.

If you’ve already read The Shack, please share your comments.

Democracy is…the conviction that there are extraordinary possibilities in ordinary people.
— Harry Emerson Fosdick

This quote to me is so heartwarming. It just reminds me of the concept of not to judge people on their outward appearance, but to wait until you see what is on the inside, and what really matters to judge others. Obviously, this has some significance for the presidential election in the United states that came to a close last night. JFK said, “It is not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.” I try to instill this truth with my children.

It was amazing to see them wake this morning, becuase the first thing on their minds was who had won the presidential election. They were curious, bug-eyed as we turned on the computer and found the electoral picture map with all of the colors that separate the states into Democratic electoral votes and Republican electoral votes. I laughed when they called their father and asked him who he voted for ( a man who doesn’t take privelage and vote). They were so involved and really paid attention to what was going on socially around them.

So, we can approach another day with conviction, and to take a stand and prove that we can create extroidinary possibilities. Can you share with us a way that you can help pave the way for extroidinary possibilities?