Sometimes And Always

Sometimes occasionally goes by the rules but mostly does his own thing. He is more worried about being everyone’s friend than doing his school work. He gets into trouble a lot but managed to charm his way through it. His parents have gone to school a lot to have parent teacher conferences.

Always is a boy who always goes by the book, never breaks the rules and is never in trouble. He always pleased his family and friends and never let them down. He is usually stressed out and gets headaches and stomach aches from stress.

Always became very ill one day and had to be rushed to the hospital. The doctors were baffled at what could be wrong with him. Many tests were run and in the end they were inconclusive. He was released and went home only to be stressed some more about missing school and possibly letting everyone down if he received a grade less than an A.

Now sometimes was doing poorly in school and he knew it. He decided that he would just do what he could to get by, he thought, Why should I stress out look what happened to Always.

Well Always was having the same thoughts Why should I stress and make myself sick, sometimes gets by ok and at that time he started missing school and just barely got passing grades.

Their parents decided to sit the boys down and talk to them and tell them that they just need to do their best and that is all that can be asked of them. They do not need to stress and get ill but also do not slack off and get failing grades.

Their parents just wanted them to know that whatever they did they would be proud of them as long as they did their best.

Finally, Sometimes spoke up and said, “You mean even if we don’t do well all the time that you will still love us and be proud of us?” The parents answered the question, “yes we will love you, ALWAYS!”

The moral is,
Do your best at whatever you do that is all that can be expected of you and you will turn out just fine. Your parents and close friends will love you no matter what.

How To Live and Die

I’ve often thought about what it is that makes people happy—what one has to do in order to achieve happiness.

1- First and foremost is good health. If you do not enjoy good health, you can never be happy. Any ailment, however trivial, will deduct something from your happiness.

2- Second, a healthy bank balance. It need not run into crores, but it should be enough to provide for comforts, and there should be something to spare for recreation—eating out, going to the movies, travel and holidays in the hills or by the sea. Shortage of money can be demoralising. Living on credit or borrowing is demeaning and lowers one in one’s own eyes.

3- Third, your own home. Rented places can never give you the comfort or security of a home that is yours for keeps. If it has garden space, all the better. Plant your own trees and flowers, see them grow and blossom, and cultivate a sense of kinship with them.

4- Fourth, an understanding companion, be it your spouse or a girlfriend or a best friend. If you have too many misunderstandings, it robs you of your peace of mind. It is better to accept the differences than to be quarrelling all the time.

5- Fifth, stop envying those who have done better than you in life—risen higher, made more money, or earned more fame. Envy can be corroding; avoid comparing yourself with others.

6- Sixth, do not allow people to descend on you for gossip. By the time you get rid of them, you will feel exhausted and poisoned by their gossip-mongering.

7- Seventh, cultivate a hobby or two that will fulfill you—gardening, reading, writing, painting, playing or listening to music. Going to clubs or parties to get free drinks, or to meet celebrities, is a criminal waste of time. It’s important to concentrate on something that keeps you occupied meaningfully.

8- Eighth, every morning and evening devote 20 minutes to meditation or introspection. In the mornings, 10 minutes should be spent in keeping the mind absolutely still, and five listing the things you have to do that day. In the evenings, five minutes should be set aside to keep the mind still and 10 to go over the tasks you had intended to do.

9- Ninth, don’t lose your temper. Try not to be short-tempered, or vengeful. Even when a friend has been rude, just move on.

10- Above all, when the time comes to go, one should go like a Person without any regret or grievance against anyone.

-Kushwant Singh

Be Content With What You Have In Life

A young man muttered at his bad luck and penniless. He frowned all days. A wise senior came across to talk to him, ‘Hey kiddy, why are you so unhappy ?’

‘I don’t understand why I’m so poor always!’ he said. ‘Poor ? I think you are very wealthy!’ the wise senior said sincerely.

The young man puzzled, ‘Why are you saying like that?’ The wise senior asked, ‘Suppose someone offers you one thousand dollars to cut your finger off. Will you do that?’ ‘Of course, not!’ the young man replied.

‘Suppose someone offers you ten thousand dollars to chop your leg off. Will you do that?’ ‘Certainly, not!’ the young man replied.

‘Suppose someone offers you hundred thousand dollars to scoop your eyes out. Will you do that?’ ‘Surely, not!’ the young man replied.

‘Suppose someone offers you one million dollars to turn you into a ninety years old man in a blink of an eye. Will you do that?’ ‘Definitely, not!’ the young man replied.

‘Suppose someone offers you ten million dollars to take your life right away. Will you do that?’ ‘Absolutely, not!’ the young man replied.

The wise senior said with a smile, ‘That’s right. You have already possessed more than ten million wealthy. Why are you still lamented for being so poor? We came with bare hands, we will leave with bare hands either. Be content with what you have.’

Even though we have owned a kingdom of wealth, nothing we can take with us when the time comes. The real wealth is concealed in our innermost.

IF ONLY WE HAVE OUR HEARTS AT THE RIGHT PLACES, IF ONLY WE DO THE RIGHT THINGS AT THE RIGHT TIMES, IF ONLY WE ARE CONTENT WITH WHAT WE ARE HAVING, WE ARE NEVER BEING POOR!

Happiness is to the one who is content! After listened to the wise senior saying, it dawned upon him at last.

The more kindness we leave behind, the more harmony we will have in our world. I always believe if everyone does a bit good deed, bit by bit, we can make a harmonious world.

God’s Precious Gift. This Is where It’s Hidden

Once upon a time, when God had finished making the world, he wanted to leave behind a piece of His own divinity, a spark of his essence, a promise to man of what he could become, with effort. He looked for a place to hide this precious gift because, He explained, what man could find too easily would never be valued by him.

“Then you must hide this gift on the highest mountain peak on earth,” said one of his counselors.

God shook His head, “No, for man is an adventure some creature and he will soon enough learn to climb the highest mountain peaks.”

“Hide it then, O Great One, in the depths of the earth.”

“I think not,” said God. “for man will one day discover that he can dig into the deepest parts of the earth.”

“In the middle of the ocean then, Master?”

God shook His head. “I’ve given man a brain, you see, and one day he’ll learn to build ships and cross the mightiest oceans.”

“Where then, Master?” cried His counselors.

God smiled, “I’ll hide it where every man and woman will be able to find it if they look sincerely and deeply enough… I’ll hide it in their heart.”

Put The Glass Down

A lecturer was giving a lecture to his student on stress management. He raised a glass of water and asked the audience, “How heavy do you think this glass of water is?”

The students’ answers ranged from 20g to 500gm.

It does not matter on the absolute weight. It depends on how long you hold it. If I hold it for a minute, it is OK. If I hold it for an hour, I will have an ache in my right arm. If I hold it for a day, you will have to call an ambulance.

It is the exact same weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes. If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later, we will not be able to carry on, the burden becoming increasingly heavier.

What you have to do is to put the glass down, rest for a while before holding it up again. We have to put down the burden periodically, so that we can be refreshed and are ! able to carry on.

So before you return home from work tonight, put the burden of work down. Don’t carry it back home. You can pick it up tomorrow. Whatever burdens you are having now on your shoulders, let it down for a moment if you can. Pick it up again later when you have rested.

Rest and relax. Life is short, enjoy it!! Cheers!!!!!

The Love Of God

The story starts out where she, Beth, is sitting at an airport terminal, waiting to board a plane. She was sitting there with several other people who were also waiting, whom she did not know.

As she waited, she pulled out her Bible and started reading. All of a sudden she felt as if the people sitting there around her, were looking at her. She looked up, but realized that they were looking just over her head, in the direction right behind her.

She turned around to see what everyone was looking at, and when she did, she saw a stewardess pushing a wheelchair, with the ugliest old man sitting in it, that she had ever seen before. She said he had this long white hair that was all tangled and such a mess. His face was really, really wrinkled, and he didn’t look friendly at all. She said she didn’t know why, but she felt drawn to the man, and thought at first that God wanted her to witness to him. In her mind she said she was thinking, “Oh, God, please, not now, not here.”

No matter what she did, she couldn’t get the man off of her mind, and all of a sudden she knew what God wanted her to do. She was supposed to brush this old man’s hair.

She went and knelt down in front of the old man, and said “Sir, may I have the honor of brushing your hair for you?”

He said “What?”

She thought, “Oh great, he’s hard of hearing.” Again, a little louder, she said, “Sir, may I have the honor of brushing your hair for you?”

He answered, “If you are going to talk to me, you are going to have to speak up, I am practically deaf.”

So this time, she was almost yelling, “Sir may I please have the honor of brushing your hair for you?”

Everyone was watching to see what his response would be. The old man just looked at her confused, and said “Well, I guess if you really want to.”

She said, “I don’t even have a brush, but I thought I would ask anyway.”

He said, “Look in the bag hanging on the back of my chair, there is a brush in there.”

So she got the brush out and started brushing his hair. She has a little girl with long hair, so she has had lots of practice getting tangles out, and knew how to be gentle with him. She worked for a long time, until every last tangle was out.

Just as she was finishing up, she heard the old man crying, and she went and put her hands on his knees, kneeling in front of him again looking directly into his eyes, and said “Sir, do you know Jesus?”

He answered, “Yes, of course I know Jesus. You see, my bride told me she couldn’t marry me unless I knew Jesus, so I learned all about Jesus, and asked Him to come into my heart many years ago, before I married my bride.”

He continued, “You know, I am on my way home to go and see my wife. I have been in the hospital for a long time, and had to have a special surgery in this town far from my home. My wife couldn’t come with me, because she is so frail herself.”

He said, “I was so worried about how terrible my hair looked, and I didn’t want her to see me looking so awful, but I couldn’t brush my hair, all by myself.”

Tears were rolling down his cheeks, as he thanked Beth for brushing his hair. He thanked her over and over again.

She was crying, people all around witnessing this were crying, and as they were all boarding the plane, the stewardess, who was also crying, stopped her, and asked, “Why did you do that?”

And right there was the opportunity, the door that had been opened to share with someone else, the love of God. We don’t always understand God’s ways, but be ready, He may use us to meet the need of someone else, like He met the need of this old man, and in that moment, also calling out to a lost soul who needed to know about His love.

Dealing With Life’s Problems

How often have you been living life, happy and content, and then suddenly life slaps you in the face with something unexpected? We all have problems, and the truth of the matter is that problems will never go away. They will just change form.

One time you may be struggling with health, the next with money, and still the next with relationships. That is both the curse and blessing of life.

However, you don’t have to suffer because everything isn’t perfect in your life.

Behind the Scenes of Problems

Nothing becomes a problem until you label it so. You’ve probably noticed that different people have different opinions of what problems are, and how much attention should be given to any one thing. This means that problems exist in our heads, and that we create them, define them, and fear them.

The Most Overlooked Secret

The secret to dealing with life’s problems is to realize that they are illusions of our imagination. Sure, they feel very real.

Let’s say you’re driving your car merrily down the highway, until someone cuts you off. You might fly off the handle, or you might not. It will depend on how you perceive the situation. It’s an excellent example of how some people create something to complain about where others are completely fine.

Life will always have “problems” and the way to deal with them is to let them be. You don’t have to try to analyze, fantasize, or figure out your problems. Let them figure themselves out. The more you try, the more you fuel the problem, and the more miserable you become.