Times Change

In the 1960s people took acid to make the world weird. Now the world is weird and people take Prozac to make it normal.

Feed the Wolf

An old Cherokee chief is teaching his grandson about life: "A fight is going on inside me," he said to the boy. "It is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves.
"One is evil - he is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, self-doubt, and ego.
"The other is good - he is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith. This same fight is going on inside you - and inside every other person, too."
The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather, "Which wolf will win?"
The old chief simply replied, "The one you feed."

The Wars We Make

The following poem was written by Nicholas Peters just after the outbreak of World War II in 1939. Peters, who lived for some years at Grande Pointe, Manitoba, Canada, had emigrated from Russia in 1925 as a boy of 10 and had seen firsthand the horrors of revolution and war in his native country. He joined the Royal Canadian Air Force in 1942 and trained as a flying officer. He died on the night of March 7-8, 1945, after his aircraft was hit by enemy fire. The poem is from a collection of Peters' work titled "Another Morn."

THE WARS WE MAKE
I gaze into the world with sorrowing eyes
And see the wide-abounding fruits of hate.
We fight, we say, for peace, and find
The wars we make
To be a spring of hate and source of future wars.

Is there no peace for man?
No hope that this accursed flow
Of blood may cease?
Is this our destiny: to kill and maim
For peace?
Or is this 'peace' we strive to gain
A thin unholy masquerade
Which, when our pride, our greed, our gain is
touched too far,
Is shed, and stands uncovered what we are?

Show me your light, O God
That I may fight for peace with peace
And not with war;
To prove my love with love,
And hate no more!

At The Movies

A man lay sprawled across three entire seats in the posh theater. When the usher came by and noticed this, he whispered to the man, "Sorry, sir, but you're only allowed one seat." The man groaned but didn't budge. The usher became impatient. "Sir, if you don't get up from there I'm going to have to call the manager."
Again, the man just groaned, which infuriated the usher who turned and marched briskly back up the aisle in search of his manager. In a few moments, both the usher and the manager returned and stood over the man. Together the two of them tried repeatedly to move him, but with no success. Finally, they summoned the police. The cop surveyed the situation briefly then asked, "All right buddy, what's your name?"
"Sam." The man moaned. "Where ya from, Sam?"
With pain in his voice, Sam replied, "The balcony."

The Difference

I got up early one morning
And rushed right into the day;
I had so much to accomplish
That I didn't have time to pray.
Problems just tumbled about me,
And heavier came each task;
I wondered.
He answered, "You didn't ask."
I wanted to see joy and beauty,
But the day toiled on grey and bleak;
I wondered why God didn't show me.
But He said, "You didn't seek".
I tried to come into God's presence;
I used all my keys in the lock.
God gently chided,
"My child, you didn't knock."
I woke up early this morning,
And paused before entering the day;
I had so much to accomplish
That I had to take time to pray.
Author Unknown.

Look and See

All of us are watchers - of television, of time clocks, of traffic on the freeway - but few are observers. Everyone is looking, not many are seeing.
- Peter M. Leschak -

How Life has Changed!

The year is 1902, just over one hundred years ago - here are some U.S. statistics for that year:
The average life expectancy in the U.S. was forty-seven (47).
Only 14% of the homes in the US had a bathtub; Only 8% of the homes had a telephone.
A three minute call from Denver to New York City cost eleven dollars.
There were only 8,000 cars in the US and only 144 miles of paved roads. The maximum speed limit in most cities was 10 mph.
Alabama, Mississippi, Iowa, and Tennessee were each more heavily populated than California. With a mere 1.4 million residents, California was only the 21st most populous state in the Union.
The tallest structure in the world was the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France.
The average wage in the US was 22 cents an hour. The average US worker made between $200 and $400 per year. A competent accountant could expect to earn $2,000 per year - a dentist $2,500 per year - a veterinarian between $1,500 and $4,000 per year - and a mechanical engineer about $5,000 per year.
More than 95% of all births in the US took place at home.
Ninety percent of all U.S. physicians had no college education. Instead, they attended medical schools, many of which were condemned in the press and by the government as "substandard."
Sugar cost 4 cents a pound; eggs were 14 cents a dozen; coffee cost 15 cents a pound.
Most women only washed their hair once a month and used borax or egg yolks for shampoo.
The American flag had 45 stars: Arizona, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Hawaii and Alaska hadn't been admitted to the Union yet. The population of Las Vegas, Nevada was 30.
Crossword puzzles, canned beer, and iced tea hadn't been invented.
There was no Mother's Day (or Father's Day).
One in ten U.S. adults couldn't read or write. Only 6% of all Americans had graduated from high school.
Marijuana, heroin, and morphine were all available over the counter at corner drugstores. According to one pharmacist, "Heroin clears the complexion, gives buoyancy to the mind, regulates the stomach and the bowels, and is, in fact, a perfect guardian of health."
Eighteen percent of households in the US had at least one full-time servant or domestic.
There were only about 230 reported murders in the entire US.
What a difference a century makes!

Abraham Lincoln's Road to the Whitehouse

Failed in business in 1831.
Defeated for Legislature in 1832.
Second failure in business in 1833.
Suffered nervous breakdown in 1836.
Defeated for speaker in 1838.
Defeated for Elector in 1840.
Defeated for Congress in 1843.
Defeated for Congress in 1848.
Defeated for Senate in 1855.
Defeated for Vice President in 1856.
Defeated for Senate in 1858.
Elected President in 1860.

LESSON: Never Give Up!

Forgiveness

Forgiveness is the fragrance that a violet sheds on the heel that has crushed it.
- Mark Twain -

Crucifixion

The true God does not say, "Crucify the enemy."
He says, "Crucify your heart so I can create in you a new one."

Good Friday

Jesus was crucified not in a cathedral between two candles, but on a cross between two thieves.
- George F MacLeod -

Coasting

When you are coasting, you are either losing speed, or going downhill.

True Spirituality

The Master was asked, "What is true spirituality?"
He said, "Spirituality is that which succeeds in bringing one to inner transformation."
"But if I apply the traditional methods handed down by the Masters, is that not spirituality?"
"It is not spirituality if it does not perform its function for you. A blanket is no longer a blanket if it does not keep you warm."
"So spirituality does change?"
"People change and needs change. So what was spirituality once is spirituality no more. What generally goes under the name of spirituality is merely the record of past methods."
Don't cut the person to fit the coat.

from Anthony de Mello, The Song of the Bird

A Growing Exchange

If you have a penny and I have a penny and we exchange pennies, you still have one cent and I still have one cent. But if you have an idea and I have an idea and we exchange ideas, we both now have two ideas.

- Mary Anne Phelps -

Good Public Relations

* Smile. It takes 72 muscles to frown and only 14 to smile.
* Speak to people and call them by name. The sweetest music to anyone's ears is the sound of his or her own name.
* Be friendly and helpful. If you would have friends, be friendly. You can like everybody if you try.
* You catch more flies with honey than with vinegar! Be generous with praise, cautious with criticism.
* Be thoughtful and considerate of the opinions and feelings of others. There are always three sides to a controversy - yours, the other person's and the right one.
* Do a good deed for others. He is not the greatest who has the greatest number of servants, but he who serves the greatest number.

Strange but True

The Prince of Wales' chef, one Henri Carpentier, had a minor kitchen catastrophe one day when he accidentally set fire to a dish he was preparing. It tasted delicious, so he named the crepe after the only person who had seen him make the error, a young girl named Suzette.

Dumb Advice?!

(PLEASE DO NOT TRY THESE OUT!)

1. Fool other drivers into thinking you have an expensive car phone by holding an old TV or video remote control up to your ear and occasionally swerving across the road.
2. If a person is choking on an ice cube, don't panic. Simply pour a jug of boiling water down their throat and presto! The blockage is almost instantly removed.
3. Save on alcohol by drinking cold tea instead of whiskey. The following morning you can create the effects of hangover by drinking a thimble full of dish washing liquid and banging your head repeatedly on the wall.

Sleeping Through Life?

How much of the day are you awake? You think, I gotta get the dry cleaning, I gotta get going, and this and this. All of a sudden it's dinnertime. And then there is a moment of connection with your spouse or your friends. Then you read and go to bed. Wake up, and it's the same all over. You're not awake, you're not living, you're not experiencing. We start early medicating ourselves. We start kids early on TV and video games and so on. It's daunting how many possibilities there are in life for every one of us. But rather than face that I may be a failure or a success - I think both of them are terrifying - people find diversions. - Tim Allen

Just Too Smart?! (2)

A patient limped into his doctor's office complaining about his sore foot. The doctor handed him a large pill. Just then, the nurse called the doctor out of the room to ask him a question. While the doctor was gone, the patient hobbled over to the sink, ran some water in a paper cup and swallowed the pill. Just then the doctor returned with a bucket and said, "Now, drop the pill into the bucket and we'll soak your foot."

Ignatius of Loyola

The sixteenth century mystic, Ignatius of Loyola, said that at the time of his conversion he had no one to turn to for guidance, so the Lord himself taught him the way a schoolmaster teaches a child. He once declared that even if all the scriptures were destroyed, he would hold on to what they revealed because of what the Lord had taught him personally.
Christian:
I have, unfortunately, had a surfeit of people to guide me. They badgered me with their persistent teachings till I could barely hear you through the din. I never thought I could have you for my teacher, for they said, "We are all the teachers you have; he who listens to us, listens to Him."
But I am wrong to blame them or deplore their presence in my life. It is I who am to blame. For I lacked the firmness to silence them; the courage to find out for myself; the patience to wait for your appointed time; and the trust that someday. somewhere, you would break your silence and reveal yourself to me.

from Anthony de Mello, The Song of the Bird, pp 196-197

Just Too Smart?! (1)

A passenger was at the airport, checking in at the gate, when an airport employee asked, "Has anyone put anything in your baggage without your knowledge?" The puzzled passenger said, "If it was without my knowledge, how would I know?" The employee smiled and nodded knowingly, "That's why we ask."

Organisations

Someone once said that organisation membership is made up of four bones:
There are WISHBONES who spend all the time wishing that someone else would do the work.
There are JAWBONES who do all the talking, but little else.
There are the KNUCKLEBONES who knock back everything that anyone else tries to do.
Finally, there are BACKBONES who get under the load and do all the work.

Just for today, Lord...

I will live through the next 12 hours and not try to tackle all of life's problems at once. I will improve my mind. I will learn something useful. I will learn something that requires effort, thought, and concentration. I will be agreeable. I will look my best, speak in a well-modulated voice, be courteous and considerate. I will not find fault with friend, relative or colleague. I will not try to change or improve anyone but myself. I will have a program. I might not follow it exactly, but I will have it. I will save myself from two enemies - hurry and indecision. I will do a good turn and keep it a secret. If anyone finds out, it won't count. I will do two things I don't want to do, just for the exercise. I will believe in myself. I will give my best to the world and feel confident the world will give its best to me.

- Author Unknown

A Bird’s-eye View

Said the robin to the sparrow,
"I should really like to know
Why these anxious human beings
Rush about and worry so..."

Said the sparrow to the robin,
"I think that it must be
That they have no Heavenly Father
Such as cares for you and me."

by Elizabeth Cheney

The Drums of War

Beware the leader who bangs the drums of war in order to whip the citizenry into a patriotic fervor, for patriotism is indeed a double-edged sword. It both emboldens the blood, just as it narrows the mind.... And when the drums of war have reached a fever pitch and the blood boils with hate and the mind has closed, the leader will have no need in seizing the rights of the citizenry. Rather, the citizenry, infused with fear and blinded with patriotism, will offer up all of their rights unto the leader, and gladly so. How do I know? For this is what I have done. And I am Caesar."

- William Shakespeare -

A Prayer at Midday

The day has been breathless, Lord. Now I stop for a few moments and I wonder: Is the signature of the holy over the rush of the day? Or have I bolted ahead, anxiously trying to solve problems that do not belong to me?
Holy Spirit of God, please show me:
How to work relaxed,
How to make each task an offering of faith,
How to view interruptions as doors to service,
How to see each person as my teacher in things eternal.
In the name of him who always worked unhurried. Amen

Richard Foster, Prayers from the Heart

Times Have Changed

If Jesus were to do his same ministry on Earth today
He would be wanted by...
...the FDA for turning water into wine without a license,
...the EPA for killing fig trees,
...the AMA for practicing medicine without a licence,
...the Dept. of Health for asking people to open graves, for raising the dead and for feeding 5,000 people in the wilderness,
...the Education Department for teaching without a certificate,
...Occupational health and Safety for walking on water without a life-jacket and for flying without an airplane,
...the RSPCA for driving hogs into the sea,
...the National Board of Psychiatrists for giving advice on how to live a guilt-free life,
...and by the ZONING DEPT for building mansions without a permit.

Transition

There is a time to hold the gavel and a time to pass it on. More important than plaques on your wall or monuments bearing your name are the hearts which have been touched because you chose to lead with love.

- Neil Eskelin -

The Universe

There is a theory that states that if ever anybody discovers exactly what the universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable. There is another theory that states that this has already happened.

A Daily Prayer

Teach us, good Lord,
To serve you as you deserve:
To give, and not to count the cost;
To fight, and not to heed the wounds;
To toil, and not to see for rest;
To labour, and not ask for any reward,
Except that of knowing that we do your holy will;

Ignatius Loyola

An Irish Toast

Always remember to forget
The things that made you sad.
But never forget to remember
The things that made you glad.

Always remember to forget
The friends that proved untrue.
But never forget to remember
Those that have stuck by you.

Always remember to forget
The troubles that passed away.
But never forget to remember
The blessings that come each day.