Deliberate Actions

TODAY'S QUOTE:
Take time to deliberate; but when the time for action arrives, stop thinking and go in.
Andrew Jackson, 1767-1845, 7th President of the United States

Looking before you leap is a sane sort of jumping, but hesitating for too long in a leaping stance can put you off-balance enough to inspire a hard fall. Changing back and forth between stop and go is even worse, since every beginning and ending is packed full of intense emotions. I cannot like feeling either extreme, so it is all the more distasteful if my own actions are the cause of the upset.
Getting the dial set to the right amount of thinking time is tricky. Meatier issues take longer to digest than fluffy ones. Considering a heavy one for too long can scare a person half to death, or all the way to the asylum. Dwelling upon a light one at length can cause brain cells to shrink, attention spans to shorten, and childlike behavior to develop.
Setting the speed at which you think figures into this formula too. Racing from notion-to-notion gives little insight, half asked questions have no real answers. Loping slowly seems about as ridiculous as speaking slowly in a loud fashion to a blind person. Too fast and you out-distance the answer, too slowly and you never get to it. An ideal medium can be found and maintained with practice and will power.
Strength of will is the portion of self with the most control over what kind of thoughts we have and how we deal with them. A strong mind is necessary to obtain a healthy balance; wrestling a thought out of mind, or killing it altogether takes muscle. After a surprisingly short time the number of bothersome notions will be close to nothing and the ones you do have will be weak as well as lame.
Pondering better thoughts more efficiently will help in thinking before leaping situations. When a target is in mind it is much safer to jump. And going in is more likely to be a successful endeavor with productive planning, even if it is brief than it would be with mindless panic inspired by over-thinking.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

How Deep Can You Go

TODAY'S QUOTE:
To reach a great height a person needs to have great depth.
Source Unknown

It is impossible to make an ocean by stringing together a series of shallow puddles. Petty minds think only of petty things; indulging in or condoning the use of gossip leaves little space to fill with weightier notions. To some a brief moment of feeling like a know it all is completely satisfying, but mucking about in other people's business only means you must have too little of your own worth the bother. Simply repeating twisted facts and half truths about someone else is not a difficult task, any fool can do it and most of them do.
We often expend a ridiculous amount of time and energy on the most foolish of pastimes. Idle minds will fill with whatever is nearest at hand for easy amusement with little or no return. The fact that reaching greater heights takes time and effort kinda keeps it from being more popular than it is, but there is nothing quite as liberating as a healthy brain stretch. Real depth takes digging then each shovel full has to be deposited somewhere before the next can be scooped up.
The past must be pardoned before the present can be faced or the future contemplated. Nobody can walk in all three places at once, although many of us attempt it again and again. Plant your feet firmly in today and see how deep you can go. Once you find your bottomless space then soaring to greater heights is a breeze.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

Real Success

TODAY'S QUOTE:
If your success is not on your own terms, if it looks good to the world but does not feel good in your heart, it is not success at all.
Anna Quindlen, American Journalist/Novelist/Columnist

Soul noises from faint whispers to full-blown screams will guide any quest for success, if we allow it. Refusing to listen to our built in warning system makes wasted vibrations out of sound advice. Sometimes the mind says we cannot do something and the soul disagrees, yet we let thoughts stop us from even trying. Sometimes the heart wants to believe a lie so badly that it lowers the volume or mutes it altogether while a soul is already weeping for a heart not as yet broken.
Until recently I lacked real understanding of just how powerful the noises are and how much easier everything would be if I listened more carefully. I am adjusting my hearing to a much deeper internal spot than ever before, and flipping the volume as high as it will go. Once something is understood it has to be put to practice or we never grow in wisdom.
Bending in order to belong is always wrong. Any end that is justified by any means is not one worth lending your soul to. Uncomfortable success is only satisfying to someone who does not care what they do to achieve it. They are welcome to their hollow rewards, I will listen to my soul and take whatever success I can reach without setting off any alarms.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

Soul Warmth

TODAY'S QUOTE:
Love is like the sun coming out of the clouds and warming your soul.
Source Unknown

Soul heat warms from the inside out. When we radiate it outward toward others it is always an intense exchange. The type of love determines its expression, and its size dictates the strength but even the smallest amount is powerful. This world can seem such a cold place, so every degree of warmth given or received is precious fuel.
Love is the heat that heals. The more you give the more you possess. The less conditions put upon its use the better it heats the ones it touches. There is nothing quite as comforting as love when you least deserve it, and the ones who love you in an unconditional fashion make you want to become more lovable.
But, do not think that I believe that once you love someone, you are stuck with them no matter what they do to you or others. I know that loving is something you need to give yourself first, so that allowing someone access to abuse is impossible. Love you have to beg for is not worth the effort, because there is nothing quite as chilling to the soul as empty words with no real emotion behind them.
Finding the true balance is difficult, but certainly not impossible. I am paying a lot more attention to how love makes me feel than I used to. This quote will help with clarity if I am ever in doubt again. If I am not warmed by it then there is a limit to the amount of fuel I will use to keep the fire burning. If I am warmed then there is no limit necessary.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

Greatness

TODAY'S QUOTE:
Great achievement is usually born of great sacrifice, and is never the result of selfishness.
Napoleon Hill, 1883-1970, American Speaker/Motivational Writer/Author of "Think and Grow Rich"

Things done for selfish reasons are charged with negative energy from the beginning. Avenues of lies or greed may lead to success but when you travel down them to reach it you reek with a stink that makes you forever suspect. Nothing of great import can be the product of negative energy, which always tears down more than it builds up.
I find great interest in understanding why people do things. What drives someone is more telling than where they are driven. The quickest way to get things to unravel is to do the right things for the wrong reasons. The easiest way to alter a negative is to view it as such and people with a hidden agenda just cannot see anything besides any means justifying the end they hunger for.
I have been walked on and cheated by such people, but most of us can say the same thing to one degree or another. I have paid with years and green backs for agendas I do not believe in, because of lies and manipulation. I cannot focus on the loss, although I do give it its due for a short moment or two. The weaknesses of others only ends up making me stronger in the end. And learning to listen to soul screams instead of heart strings has been brutal again and again. The cost has been dear on my part, but the cost to them will be much higher.
Observation has taught me that they pay a huge price for stepping on others to get to where they end up. When something is dishonestly gained it is forever up for grabs, and the player is doomed to always watch his back. Payback is not always swift, but it is always certain. Karma is a reality.
Whatever seed is planted determines what will grow. Whatever force used to start the
pendulum swinging will be returned, plus the interest earned from evil intent. There is no need for revenge when it is understood that a natural law governs us all. Reaping what is sown is simply a certainty, and I get much comfort from its reality.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

A Better Friend

TODAY'S QUOTE:
One who knows how to show and to accept kindness will be a friend better than any possession.
Sophocles

Friendships are almost magical in the amount of comfort and support they bring and friends are not simply driven to put up with each other because of an accident of birth. Nobody hand-picked me for daughter, or sister, and my children certainly did not have a choice in their mother. I sometimes wonder who among my relatives would exchange me for someone more ordinary or main stream if given the chance. I wonder if any of them would fight to keep me just as I am.
Friends seek each other out because of love, not duty. They listen as much or more than they talk and what they say is never spitefully meant, although hard truths are never off limits. Loving is a pleasure not a burden. Missing a friend is a bit like losing a part of self, not just a nagging irritation.
The unconditional love of a true friend is beyond priceless. In times of trouble they give comfort and ask few questions. When we are wrong they love us anyway, never rubbing our nose in the mistake or glorying over being right. My best friend says I told you so only when it can be laughed about by both of us, and I do not think I have ever said it to her.
The brutal times of my life have been inhabited by gentle friendships that helped me long after family had gone back to their own routine. I am blessed with steadfast friendships. Family is wonderful, but ready made before you arrive; friends are the gravy, home-made seasoned to suit your taste, adding flavor to every meal you share. Have a banquet, toast a friendship, and love unconditionally.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

Measured Hearts

TODAY'S QUOTE:
Nobody has ever measured, even poets, how much a heart can hold.
Zelda Fitzgerald, 1900-1948, American Author and Wife of F. Scott Fitzgerald

I doubt it can be measured with any real accuracy. Perhaps we are born with an equal capacity, but living shrinks or swells every heart into a different shape and size. Their texture is altered also; some solid as stone, others flexible as elastic. Some are like butterflies or humming birds, alighting briefly or hovering nearby first this thing then that.
Some give away all they hold, while others only know how to take like greedy children. Hearts are true or false, hard or soft, each according to the nature of the being they are housed inside of. The correct answer depends on more than the size of the organ and the nature of the beast, but also upon what is kept there.
Does love take up more space than hate? Does bitterness cause more clutter than joy? Can laughter find a place beside jealousy or greed? Can a grudge crowd out grace? Will pain left unresolved become so swollen by constant tears that it fills all available space? Will a heart expand with one and shrink with the other, causing a lumpy confused surface? Do we take the time to clean when necessary, tossing out the debris that makes it beat with a rhythm so off-balance it keeps us lopsided? If not we certainly should; some mean and dirty things would be better off swept out, making space for things of greater value.
I do not believe there is an answer that would be universal, so we simply do not attempt to achieve one. But I do know that the heart is only limited in what it can hold by the reverence we have for the space it possesses. Fill it with negatives and it shrinks, wrinkles, then hardens. Fill it with positives and it will expand and overflow like a mighty fountain.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

No Loving Time

TODAY'S QUOTE:
If you judge people, you have no time to love them.
Mother Teresa

I find judging a tiresome trait, bringing pain not always earned from someone who has no right, but a lot of nerve. I see beyond things, knowing that the obvious is not always the most important thing to focus upon. A lot of actions are simply foolish reactions to pain or fear and have little to do with a persons true character. Sometimes not judging encourages other's to see for themselves facts they would deny if someone else brought it to their attention. And judges have little or no tact about how they toss the verdict at the person they convict.
I think it makes more sense to try to help heal the cause than to add to it. I believe a gentle touch can do more good than a wagging tongue and a pointing finger. Who am I to measure anyone else's guilt when I carry plenty of my own? And the same can be asked of each of us.
Suspend judgment of things not your direct concern, and the things your business try looking deeper and the need to judge just might disappear. If it does not still leave it go, giving it to a higher power to sort for payment. We are not God's bookkeepers. None of us are worthy of grading one another, because none of us can be held blameless. Why should we expect someone else to reach a state of behavior that we cannot? I do not care who you be, you truly are not the judge of me.
Gentleness soothes the hurt, and a closed mouth and open ears invite the wounded to say things to you they need to hear in their own voice to really understand. I have often realized the reason behind a negative actions just mere seconds before the one committing them absorbs the implications of words that come out of their own mouths. There is a powerful energy behind every dawning of that sort, and lessons learned that way work the best.
Deciding to change a negative has to come from inside the person committing it. They are often acting out of anger and coming at them like a Mack Truck only pisses them off more. And it is not our right to run other people over with what too often is just an opinion made without much evidence. Leave your heart free for love and your mind free for a measure of empathy; walk in their shoes gently, listen for a bit to the silent screams for understanding and share a dawning.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

Loving Thoughts

TODAY'S QUOTE:
If instead of a gem, or even a flower, we should cast the gift of a loving thought into the heart of a friend, that would be giving as the angels give.
George MacDonald

A thought takes just a second then sharing it just a few more. Forever friendships are precious and know no limits upon time and space. There are humans that are connected in such a way that their bond never weakens no matter what separates them. If you are really fortunate they hold enough energy to pass goodwill with just a mere thought, but why not reinforce it with a word or action that will lift it to a higher point. And if you do not possess a friend with telepathic abilities, casting will take more than just deep thinking.
When a friend is down your gentle touch will lift them up. If a friend is melancholy your smile may change their mood from blue grey to sunny yellow. When a friend suffers from confusion of the soul your silent solace may inspire clarity. The soft words of one well-loved can help heal any wounds life can toss their way. Giving of self is a gift beyond the store bought. Its value cannot be calculated on a scale or chart but only measured in a friends expanded heart.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

The Soul Rainbow

TODAY'S QUOTE:
The soul would have no rainbow had the eyes no tears.
John Vance Cheney, 1848-1922, American Poet

Heartache has its season and its contrast to times of joy only make them more joyful. The pain of childbirth quickly fades to distant memory once you embrace the product of all your agony. Joy is the rainbow after the storm. No territory is storm free, and no life exempt from the ravages of nature, although some of us seem to possess better rain gear.
Fair weather or foul, how we clothe ourselves is up to each of us. If protective clothing is available it ought to be worn, if not it ought to be fashioned. Special care should be given to fabric; absorbent material only get wetter, and weighs heavy upon the wearer. Wrapping yourself in the wrong kind of cloth is often worse than no protection at all.
A bare frame will air dry ages before one covered in sponges even ends dripping puddles everywhere.
The same can be said for our spirits. Surround it with all the tears ever shed and it will be so overwhelmed that it will never even notice the rainbow. Treasuring pain dismisses joy before it ever gets a chance to heal. Soaking up agony and collecting tears seems such a sad waste of time. Cry if you must then dry your eyes and turn them upward. If you must worship something let it be the rainbow that follows every storm.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

Overcome The Inevitable

TODAY'S QUOTE:
Expect trouble as an inevitable part of life, and when it comes, hold your head high. Look it squarely in the eye, and say, "I will be bigger than you. You cannot defeat me."
Ann Landers

Trouble comes to us all. Some people wait until it occurs before reacting, while other's borrow its possible torment as if there were an installment plan and they wanted to get a few payments ahead. Some even invite it into reality by a conviction so powerful that it creates itself just to prove them right.
Putting a burden upon yourself that life may not ever ask you to carry is senseless. Creating the very thing you dread is foolish. Expecting to be trouble free is unrealistic, but waiting to face it until it occurs means if or when it does come you will have the energy to face it and strength enough to overcome it.
Holding your head up is the smart way to face things, because getting blindsided is almost impossible when you keep the your chin up. The troubles we have do not have to define who we are unless we assign them that role. Some problems are solvable, others are beyond our control, but all can be overcome in some fashion. Change what you can, accept what you cannot, give only what is demanded when it is demanded, and travel on past it with as much grace as possible.
Lead it, do not simply go where it tosses you. Step on its neck, leap over its fangs, and let it move you forward with a strength you did not possess before its occurrence. Use it as an exercise in control; by directing your reaction you will loosen its hold and in that way be its master. If something cannot be mastered in one way it can be in another, all it takes is a gentle twist of attitude and a fierce determination to be more than the sum of all the bad things that ever happened to you.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

Ladder Safety

TODAY'S QUOTE:
The rung of a ladder was never meant to rest upon, but only to hold a man's foot long enough to enable him to put the other somewhat higher.
Thomas Huxley

Ladders are portable stairs used to climb to greater heights. When we positively change our position mentally, physically, emotionally, or spiritually there are certain steps each demands to obtain a higher level. Before I read this quote a ladder had never came to mind as a way of describing how I got from where I was to where I stand now, but it is a perfect fit.
We each possess a ladder of sorts, climbing is every humans possibility, although it is not a certainty. Just as a ladder leaning in the shed will not bring itself out and set itself up underneath our feet the portable stairs we possess will not unfold itself and demand that we climb. Wanting to rise above where you are is the only incentive that will make this assistance available.
We should celebrate the times spent upon the ladder instead of dreading or avoiding it altogether. Rising to a new position takes effort, but only one step at a time. Lingering over-long upon any stair only makes the climb that much harder. Climb with the joy of having a ladder that will take you somewhere worth getting to and of possessing the courage to set yourself upon the first step and begin the assent.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

Happiness Comes

TODAY'S QUOTE:
Happiness is something that comes into our lives through doors we don't even remember leaving open.
Rose Lane, 1886-1968, American Author and Journalist

Everyone wants happiness. We seek it like hidden treasure. We hunt it as if we could bag it like wild game. We try to trap it by force and hold it hostage then spend its ransom like greedy children. We manipulate to achieve even a small measure. But true happiness never comes to us down any of those twisted avenues.
Desperation to find something can make the search so frantic that you end up missing it altogether. Happiness creeps up on us when we least expect it. And keeping it is much easier using gentle means than foul. What is forced and stolen, or trapped and bound never really belongs to the one so selfish in its ownership.
Real happiness grows inside of us and radiates outward, it is not so much a place as it is a state of mind. There are always more reasons to be happy than unhappy, but some hug the bad times so close to their faces that it blocks everything else from view. Their capacity to be happy is overwhelmed by their determination to let everyone know how badly they hurt and who is to blame. People looking for happiness should remember that it is impossible to embrace any joy while clinging to unresolved pain. There comes a time in every life when we have to take responsibility for what we do with our left over agony. If you were hanging from a cliff would you let go to catch a butterfly? Me either, but some people still insist on butterfly hunting while they are hanging, never realizing that even if they see one they cannot reach for it.
Pulling yourself up from the cliff is often brutal, but then so is just hanging there. I think it makes more sense to feel the agony that will free you from the need of aching
than clinging to the one that has no end. And freeing your hands will make butterfly hunting a doable endeavor.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

The Strength Of Forgiveness

TODAY'S QUOTE:
The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.
Mohandas Gandhi

The urge for validation often gets in the way of forgiveness. Things better left alone are picked to pieces for the sake of being right. People who should know better fuss and fight over things not worth the effort then one or both hold grudges like a winning lottery ticket and show it to anyone who looks their way. Dwelling on it becomes the moving force in their lives, and it eats like cancer all healthy tissue in its path.
The hated is not the one who suffers the most, often they care not at all. Sometimes they even get joy out of how ate up the other person is, and what kind of sense does it make to bring joy to someone because of the depth of your own pain. If it does no good and only brings you ill then what is the point, for heavens sake.
One of the most difficult exercises in forgiveness is pardoning yourself. All the times of failure in life can be overwhelming if not given an avenue of escape. I failed many people for years, but it was failing myself that made those misteps possible. I still make blunders in judgment more often than I like to admit, but not as often as long ago. Hell, I do not even make as many as I did last month or last week, each day is contemplated in a different light. And that light comes from a place of unconditional love for everyone, but begins with unconditional love for myself that is a natural added bonus of forgiveness.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

Never Do's

TODAY'S QUOTE:
Never do anything that you wouldn't want to explain to the paramedics.
Source Unknown

This is sound advice. Good lessons given with humor are so much fun, so from time-to-time when I happen upon one I post it here for everyone's sake. I view this quote as a chuckle that reminds us to think about consequence's more often before we do the deed. We all need this reminder to different degrees and I am certainly twisting it in my mind right along side you.
When I was a nurses aide I used to pause in the doorway and look back into the room I was leaving to consider how it would appear to the charge nurse or family member who might enter after my departure. If I found myself in a frustrating situation I placed those same images outside the door ready to step in at any moment and I tempered my action so that if it became reality I would appear to be in gentle control. That practice kept me at a level of service that gave me pride and others much comfort.
So as a test to how well it will work if I use that same tactic in my everyday life I am choosing a watcher to put over my shoulder. I want them always with me, not simply outside the doorway, but fully aware of my every action. I place them there for many reasons, choosing them because I love them well and want them to approve of all I do, knowing that even if I stumble they will not condemn me out of hand. I place them there because I trust them to see me clearly and understand me completely.
For me it seems much safer to place a sentry with me now than wait and have to make up some crazy tale to tell the paramedic's, doctor's, nurse's, councilor's, or shrink's when risky behavior lands me in their path. Hedging the bets, stacking the deck, sweetening the odds, whatever I name it...it beats looking the fool later.

THINK ABOUT IT
LET IT GROW
THEN DECIDE

May the road rise up to meet you.

May the wind be always at your back.

The rain falls soft upon your fields.

And until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of His hand.

Irish blessing

May you always walk in sunshine.

May you never want for more.

May Irish angels rest their wings

right beside your door.

Irish blessing

Unsettling Dreams

TODAY'S QUOTE:
Dreams that do come true can be as unsettling as those that don't.
Brett Butler, 'Knee Deep in Paradise'

That is an understatement of pure fact. There is a price paid for success that is not charged for failure. Suddenly having something so weighty to live up to can humble in ways nothing else can. Dream weaving is delightful, dream living is almost too much to wrap your mind around sometimes, but well worth the brief moments of sheer terror that occur when you think on it too hard.
The intensity of a dream made reality is unimaginable. There is a magical quality to everything you do inside the space you create to match one imagined during quiet contemplation. Once any dream is made real a whole new world opens up for you. The awareness that you are a creator makes going back to how things were before an impossibility. Unsettling yes, but never more alive or aware of every heartbeat. Any dream made real holds the same key to enlightenment.
Dreams come in many shapes and sizes, there are no one size fits all fantasy's. A dream can be as simple as a wish for a quiet walk in the woods or as complex as a public walk upon the moon. Some dreams are obtainable in an instant, others can take a lifetime to accomplish, but none of them come true on their own.
Dream big or small; without dreams we live wooden stiff lives. After you dream do not just file them away like fairy tales upon a dusty bookshelf. Think, really think about things that would need to be done to make it fact. Choose the easiest deed first and do it right away then go on to another, looking at one step at a time as you do, do, do them. As you watch it all unfold, enlightenment rising from every crease, life will have a whole new promise. And dreams will have a whole new meaning.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

The First Step

TODAY'S QUOTE:
Take the first step in faith. You don't have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.
Martin Luther King, Jr.

There are many reasons why people hesitate to take the first step. Fear of the unknown freezes some, fear of failure stops others, and more than a few let fear of success keep them from taking any steps at all. Fright feels the same whatever inspires it, but knowing what produces a fear makes it much easier to overcome.
If my footsteps faltered every time I could not clearly see the path ahead I would be in a constant state of stumble. When in doubt, I keep my eyes on the prize and let faith of its value lead me forward. I know my goal is just; if it cannot keep me on the right path then nothing ever will. Trusting in it has been the easy part. Trusting in myself has been much harder.
The way you view yourself is the light in which others see you too. When you put your pain forward they see you as a victim and use compassion as the base they build their opinion on. If they see you heal their opinion rises as you grow, if they see you wallow endlessly then their opinion lowers. We control how others view us whether we admit it or not so the first step to changing that is altering how we view ourselves. We are not what happens to us, but we are a direct product of our reaction to whatever occurs to or around us. Shit happens, but that does not mean you have to sit in it.
People who wear their pain like armor need to rethink the way they dress themselves. Look at how old it is, chances are it belongs to a time long past and the only one still dressed for that era is you. There is a lot to be said for that old saying...laugh and the world laughs with you, cry and you cry alone. The masses will share your tears for a minute or two, but sob endlessly and you better bring your own tissue.
I let overcoming pain be the billboard I decorate for public consumption. I do not seek pity; hell I want none of that emotion that only encourages the weak to stay weak. Self pity is worse yet. When you take a dose of that you make yourself impotent by default. And saying you cannot un-learn a self destructive trait just insures that will be the case. Tell yourself what you want others to tell you and soon it will be precious fact.
Say you are capable and you will be. Say you are not and guess what? Say you deserve more and you will look for it. Tell yourself to settle for crumbs and crummy you will remain. The only way you can grow in strength is to build yourself up. Other people may help steady you between steps, but if you think for one minute anyone is going to carry you up more than a few you are thinking like a fool.
Every destination has its own path. If you expect to end up at a place of happiness then get off the unhappy trail. Once you admit that you will own all the blame if you continue traveling down Dreary Lane, it ceases to matter who put you there. An easy way to see if you are on the right path is to check for debris. The road to happiness is littered with piles of discarded pain, and misery. The road to regret is litter free because it is a requirement of travel that you carry whatever burdens brought with you. Check your path then change it if need be.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

Imagined Wings

TODAY'S QUOTE:
The man who has no imagination has no wings.
Muhammad Ali

The real power behind imagination is a mostly underestimated, untapped resource. There is a magic surrounding all it touches, everything from the mundane to the weighty is altered by the fingers of fantasy. Seers and statesmen throughout history have pondered its fabric and written of its influence upon time and space.

Norman Vincent Peale, 1898 - 1993, American legend and founder of the Peale Center, the Positive Thinking Foundation and Guideposts called it, "The true magic carpet."

Elbert Hubbard, American philosopher and writer 1856-1915, viewed it as "A ladder to the fourth dimension."

Ambrose Bierce (June 24,1842 -- ??) the Ohio-born writer and journalist who vanished in 1913 while attempting to join Pancho Villa in Mexico, defined it as, "A warehouse of facts, with poet and liar in joint ownership."

Our imaginations are like fingerprints of the mind, none the same in what is created, although they basically function in a similar fashion. The direction and distance we travel there is only limited by whatever restraints we enforce. The magic of creation is at our fingertips, but many are unaware of how to use it to their best advantage. Some simply let it drift where it will and then moan about the mischief it gets into.
Every creation begins first in the mind of the creator. The imagination draws the blueprint then the hands just follow directions. Any subject can be placed there for consideration. Simple or complex the end result is the same. We limit its capacity to help us create by limiting it only to the creation of things outside of us.
Try using it to recreate a reality in you life. Hand it a problem that rests deep inside and it will draw a perfect blueprint to guide you toward a positive lasting change. Any echo of doubt that creeps in is only a shadow of fear produced by an imagination used to drifting where it will, so simply silence it with the belief in your ability to do whatever actions are necessary.
Imagine you cannot do something and you cannot, but see yourself as capable and the power will be there. Fantasize of failure and success will be impossible. Do not waste such a powerful tool by letting it run away with you, channel its power to create a life worthy of fantasy status. See who and where you want to be, look clearly at the present day reality then let your imagination draw the map that will surely lead to getting you from here to there. Use it wisely and it will serve you well.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

Those Frightful Things

TODAY'S QUOTE:
Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal.
Henry Ford, 1863-1947, American Industrialist and Founder of Ford Motor Company

Keeping your eyes on a goal makes it seem as if you have fewer obstacles and any you do have are much smaller and more easily managed. We all naturally travel at different speeds. Stride measurements vary in distance spanned and comfort zones are determined by nature; snails cannot travel easily beside horses, so walking in step is an exercise in compromise. We are not always alone, sometimes by circumstance or by design our personal goal is also a group destination.
Obstacles are where the lessons are kept, and if a group works together none encountered can do more than slow down progress. If a collection of souls and hearts unite with one goal in mind there is nowhere they cannot reach. But when even one of the travelers turn their focus upon those frightful things the whole group slows to a crawl. One voice then the next will echo, "Look toward the prize" then a rhythm returns to their footsteps.
Walking alone is much harder. When that echo occurs there is nobody to point toward safety. Responsibility rests with each of us to encourage others when necessary and ourselves when needed. Using force to lift your eyes off of a source of fright onto a source of might makes sense. Act brave even if your knees bang like a drum and before too very long it will be no act. Do a deliberate action before you allow an automatic reaction. Lift your head and point your eyes where you want your feet to tread. Hook your passion, listen for your drum-beat, and follow your dream past the obstacles and proudly claim the prize.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

God's Medicine

TODAY'S QUOTE:
Mirth is God's medicine. Everybody ought to bathe in it. Grim care, moroseness, anxiety -- all this rust of life ought to be scoured off by the oil of mirth. It is better than emery. Every man ought to rub himself with it.
Henry Ward Beecher (1813-1887)

The greatest stress reliever I can think of is laughter. Faces relax then everything else follows suit and a tide of comfort bursts from deep inside, washing away every negative in its path. Years dissolve from even the most care worn among us. Moods lighten, conflict becomes impossible; laughter is the soul exhaling with enough intensity to shake our frames and free our minds from doom and gloom.
There are places where human congregate to share light moments of hilarity of one measure or another. We have clubs dedicated to its production. We have game sites here on the internet. We have books and websites filled with jokes to read and share. We email or retell the best ones to our best friends in an attempt to pass on positive emotions to the one's we love.
Get the most out of these wonderful places that we set aside in the honor of God's medicine. The measured of joy you experience will be multiplied by how much you give or divided by how much you subtract from the surroundings. Places meant for laughter are not suitable for wars of egos or battles of wills. Spaces built to house laughter are desecrated when rage and blame are used to paint the walls.
Mirth is God's medicine and a priceless gift we can give one another. It is a form of entertainment that each economic class can enjoy to its fullest. It binds us together in such a pure way. No boundaries separate us when we laugh together. Allow your soul to exhale often and as deeply as possible. It is a lot cheaper and saner than trips to the doctor and drug store to find instant relief from the cares we are burdened with and the rush is more wonderful than any man made drug.
The text below came to me in email form and I place it here to remind everyone of the importance of respecting the three feet of personal space of the person next to you. Face-to-face or monitor-to-monitor we owe the same respect to others that we seek for ourselves.


Make sure you read all the way down to the last sentence.
(Most importantly the last sentence.)
There once was a little boy who had a bad temper. His Father gave him a bag of nails
and told him that every time he lost his temper, he must hammer a nail into the back
of the fence. The first day the boy had driven 37 nails into the fence. Over the next
few weeks, as he learned to control his anger, the number of nails hammered daily
gradually dwindled down. He discovered it was easier to hold his temper than to drive those nails into the fence.
Finally the day came when the boy didn't lose his temper at all. He told his father about it and the father suggested that the boy now pull out one nail for each day that
he was able to hold his temper. The days passed and the young boy was finally
able to tell his father that all the nails were gone.
The father took his son by the hand and led him to the fence. He said, "You have done well, my son, but look at the holes in the fence. The fence will never be the same. When you say things in anger, they leave a scar just like this one. You can put a knife in a man and draw it out. It won't matter how many times you say I'm sorry, the wound is still there. " A verbal wound is as bad as a physical one.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

Wisdom Made

TODAY'S QUOTE:
We are made wise not by the recollection of our past, but by the responsibility for our future.
George Bernard Shaw, 1856-1950, Irish

Forward motion requires foresight. Any gazing aimed toward your destination encourages safe travel, while looking behind will put you off course within just a few steps. The smart traveler cares more for where they are headed than where they have already been. I have never heard of anyone driving a long journey in reverse, but too many people live that way then act surprised when tomorrow they are not much further along than yesterday.
Once one second ticks into the next it is a forever over moment. The outcome of a gone by day cannot be altered by keeping it within sight, but dwelling on yesterday can sure screw up today. Seems much more civilized to carry as little baggage as possible into the future, packing with deliberation insures that what we burden ourselves with is light weight. Dwelling upon events that cannot be changed binds them to you in a way that anchors you to the point of their origin. Why root yourself to a place and time that most often has such a bleak landscape?
The more you hold onto things the harder it is to let go. A minor irritation can become a huge seeping wound in no time at all. Distaste can mutate into hate if held inside long enough to sour. And ego is the most foolish navigator for getting anywhere worth going to.
Let the past lay in an unmarked grave to remind yourself that revisiting is a waste of precious time. It seems much better to just deal with the present moment as it occurs then let it drift on the winds of change as you go forward into the next moment in time. Managing your moments is really the best defense against having a reason to look with regret upon their passing.
I received the text that follows in an email and loved its gentle reminder. Read it slowly, absorb it fully, and live it wisely.

**One Flaw In Women **

Women have strengths that amaze men.

They bear hardships and they carry burdens, but they hold happiness, love and joy. They smile when they want to scream.

They sing when they want to cry.

They cry when they are happy and laugh when they are nervous.

They fight for what they believe in.

They stand up to injustice.

They don't take "no" for an answer when they believe there is a better solution.

They go without so their family can have

They go to the doctor with a frightened friend.

They love unconditionally.

They cry when their children excel and cheer when their friends get awards.

They are happy when they hear about a birth or a wedding.

Their hearts break when a friend dies.

They grieve at the loss of a family member, yet they are strong when they think there is no strength left.

They know that a hug and a kiss can heal a broken heart.

Women come in all shapes, sizes and colors.

They'll drive, fly, walk, run or e-mail you to show how much they care about you.

The heart of a woman is what makes the world keep turning.

They bring joy, hope and love.

They have compassion and ideas.

They give moral support to their family and friends.

Women have vital things to say and everything to give.

HOWEVER, IF THERE IS ONE FLAW IN WOMEN,

IT IS THAT THEY FORGET THEIR WORTH.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

Stormy Oceans

TODAY'S QUOTE:
No one would ever have crossed the ocean if he could have gotten off the ship in the storm.
Charles Kettering

There have been times during my lifetime when jumping ship seemed the only chance for survival. On several occasions I stood trembling against the rail, trying to gather the nerve needed for the leap. I rarely even got a leg over before I chickened out, but the only time I regret staying on board are times when my doing so put others in the direct line of danger. Regret is mostly useless though, like using an umbrella once the rain has stopped.
Even the most negative journey can end up at a positive destination. The lessons I learned about my ability to weather stormy seas are the bounty awarded for the effort given. Each rough crossing, between present and future, earned me more of self than I possessed upon departure. Familiarity breeds contempt so hard trips became much easier with practice makes perfect precision. Deep down I believe we ought to celebrate the lesson, instead of fretting about the bruises we receive while struggling to stay afloat. Bruises heal, but lessons last a lifetime.
I jumped ship yesterday, but am more than willing to reboard as soon as the mutiny is at an end. Nobody likes to ride on a ship that is doing nothing more than circling in place. I do not stress over rough crossings, but when shipmates are at odds it is too much pressure to hang on for dear life and dodge sucker punches at the same time.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

Soul sadness

TODAY'S QUOTE:
A sad soul can kill you quicker than a germ.
John Steinbeck, 1902-1968, American Writer and Nobel Prize Winner

I always get such a rush from finding a quote placed upon Journey's End calendar, at least a month in advance, ending up being in the perfect place at just the perfect time. I felt no such joy at discovering this one right in keeping with what is going on around me, but I will use it as best I can to touch as many hearts as possible.
For the ones who came here today looking for some special wisdom to ease an ache we share, I 'spect there will be some disappointment suffered at the lack of any real insight contained in these words. For all the readers without a clue of why a specific group of people are gathered here, read on and maybe get something positive out of the stumble through a place even I do not understand. But do not expect miracles from the sad soul at this keyboard.
There are countless reasons for soul sadness, and one of the worst is inspired by watching friends tear each other to shreds. It does not take much of that to convince any sane person that whatever the reason the cost is much too high. It is a special kind of ache to love members of opposing army's and quite impossible to imagine there being a real victor whichever side wins. Everyone loses as far as I can tell, and I have pondered this equation for much longer than I care to admit.
I stepped out of the line of fire with regret. Staying away until after the last shot is fired and echoes to silence will be difficult, but not nearly as hard as seeing friends destroy each other. My attempt at peacemaking failed so I am leaving them to the war they cannot seem to help fighting. Right now my prayers are for bad aims all around, more weapons than bullets, and larger hearts than egos.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

Treat People

TODAY'S QUOTE:
"Treat people as if they were what they ought to be, and you help them to become what they are capable of being."
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

This is more than just a pretty little quote, it is a creed I live by. I have practiced it for years and can think of only three people who ever resisted its gentle encouragement, and I have not given up on the notion that someday they will live up to the promise I see so clearly. I would feel like I assisted in any failure they suffered if I withdrew my belief. Unconditional love does not demand that we condone bad behavior, but it does ask us to love in spite of it.
Loving the lovable is a breeze. When no effort is necessary it is a comfort for the heart to swell, but when it takes real muscle the delight is magnified. A perfect analogy is the difference between store bought and homemade ice cream. They are both ice cream, both delicious, but homemade is special, richer on the tongue, and well worth the effort.
Seeing the best in other's is easy if you do not use judgmental eyes when you gaze their way. Responding to the best highlights it, and the mirror of pleasure they see in your response can change the way they view themselves. There is nothing quite as encouraging to the human spirit as basking in the beam of approval. Shine that light on the ones who need it the most and before long they evolve into the ones who constantly merit it.
Remember that it is much easier for them to imagine themselves capable if they see that you think so too. If they do something noble just for your sake it is still their deed and still noble. If for a time all acts are performed so that they can live up to your greater expectations the result is the same. And when they travel past the point of doing just for you and begin doing it for their own sake it is a victory for you both.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

True Credit

TODAY'S QUOTE:
It is not the critic who counts, nor the man who points out how the strong stumbled or where the doer of the deed could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes up short again and again. Who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumphs of high achievement; and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly; so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory or defeat.
Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919), "The Strenuous Life" (speech)

There are always people ready to point out shortcomings, so every step taken is bound to be critiqued by someone with issues. I try not to take to heart things said by anyone who elects themselves judge and jury over me. I worry more about how I will view my own face in the mirror than I do about what someone so narrow-minded will think, or say, or do.
I believe the world is heaped full of wounded warriors, each battling to take, re-take, or over-take the pieces of fractured self that become misplaced so easily upon the battlefield. The one's struggling with reclaiming parts of their own being and growing in wisdom deserve as much credit as any other soldier fighting for freedom anywhere. More often than not all they receive is censure aimed at slowing them down or new obstacles put in the way by people who are threatened by any show of strength.
Any worthy cause deserves your all, and I cannot think of any cause more worthy or just than investing in yourself. Once a warrior is strong he can struggle on to fight for something grander, but if he never enters the battle at all he never knows real freedom. The possibility of failure is an asinine reason to refuse to fight. If nothing is ventured then failure is certain. Frankly, it makes no sense to dread something on the one hand while creating it with the other. I am instantly respectful toward any human being who drags themselves out of their rut to travel a higher road. I gladly fight beside such warriors who may not win every battle, but always win the war. They are more beautiful to me with all their scars and seeping wounds than the fairest of the rut walkers.
Dare to climb the walls that keep you plodding upon the same old tired path. Care not if you win or lose, focus upon the delight you feel at winning the freedom to really live. That is the real war, and well worth any wounds suffered to win a victory.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

A Single Man's Vision

TODAY'S QUOTE:
A rock pile ceases to be a rock pile the moment a single man contemplates it, bearing within him the image of a cathedral.
Antoine de Saint-Exupery

I have had occasion to watch this at work on a smaller than cathedral level. I listened to a man, holding a turtle shell caked with dirt tell of the things he was going to make with what I could only view as trash. When he was talking his eyes were lit with an almost magical light that said he was envisioning those things as he gazed at what he viewed as treasure.
That was many years ago, but I remember the way the air popped and crackled with energy produced by his recounting of his vision. He made the things he spoke of, transforming a dirty turtle shell with craftsman hands using blue prints only he could see. I never forgot that lesson and have had many occasions to flash upon it when I noticed that same passion in someone else.
Then once upon a time I looked at a pile of empty paper and inside my brain burned things that needed said. It led to use of a computer, which led to an empty website. I hooked my vision to someone else's and a home was erected. I believe each of us has such a vision center inside of us. What triggers its use varies, and the fact that it does not surface in some people is the depth of thought possible inside the life they live.
Look around carefully and you just might find your pile of cathedral stones. And follow any blueprints stamped on your brain without fear and create a vision. There is simply nothing quite like it.
The link below is to a new flash movie I found in my email this morning. I loved it upon site and put it here as a perfect example of what I have been talking about. Words written by a source unknown sparked the vision of a stranger. The world is a gentler place because of two minds meeting at that sacred space. Enjoy it, I certainly did.
http://www.inspiringthots.net/movie/train-life.php

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

Whatever

TODAY'S QUOTE:
Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve.
Napoleon Hill

I can remember the years when I did not dare to dream. Simple survival took so much energy back then, wistful notions just intensified my melancholy to unmanageable limits. Hopelessness had me by the short hairs, plodding footsteps carried me from one heartache to the next. Hope hurt. Wishes wounded. I had no space for such things inside a mind overburdened with worry and fear.
I finally reached the point of no return. One moment I was totally defeated, the next I was enraged beyond belief. In the time it took to blink twenty years of suppressed emotions sprang to life in an overwhelming torrent that shook me soul deep. I was suddenly certain that if I did not make a stand I would be dooming myself to be forever satisfied with the status quo.
I believe the notion of being at a crossroads where there would be no turning back made it impossible to choose the wrong path. How could anyone possibly opt for pain without end when another road was so clearly highlighted? I took responsibility for my part in the drama and altered the role I was willing to play from eternal victim to wounded warrior. I was suddenly fighting for more than the simple right to survive, I was battling for the chance to thrive.
At first the things dreamed of were simple and direct. Most of the footsteps taken have been clearly illuminated by understanding of cause and effect. Once a destination was chosen the pathway did not become any easier, in fact it became much harder. When times get brutal I often remind myself that a difficult journey to somewhere worth reaching is much better than mindless travel anywhere else.
Simply knowing you are walking through a mine field is no protection, but mapping the danger insures more confident passage. Find your strengths and exercise them. Search out your weakness and avoid places where they will be tested. Failure is often self-inflicted, because success can prove to be such a frightening force to be reckoned with.
Dreaming no longer wounds me as it once did. Dreams fuel my every footstep, notions brought to life are joyous endeavors nowadays. The only differences between having a dream or possessing a reality are the actions necessary to create it. First you have to see it then you can be it. Never stop dreaming, because dreams are what a life worth living is made of.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

The Joy Of The Climb

TODAY'S QUOTE:
Every day you may make progress. Every step may be fruitful. Yet there will stretch out before you an ever-lengthening, ever-ascending, ever-improving path. You know you will never get to the end of the journey. But this, so far from discouraging, only adds to the joy and glory of the climb.
Sir Winston Churchill

I believe this whole heartedly, which may seem odd since I envisioned a website and helped in its construction then named it Journey's End. The site itself is a perfect example of the ever lengthening, ascending, and improving path that the quote speaks of, finding it was my Journey's End. Traveling it is a constant series of new beginnings, each rooted in the conviction that we each have a life path and a rebirth just waiting for discovery.
I love the fact that it is a journey without end. I cannot envision what I would do if I reached a stopping point. The finding of my rightful place makes sense of all the clutter and soothes every agony, living without it would be a half life at best. Nothing could top it and a life spent wandering around searching for something even remotely similar is too depressing to contemplate.
The discovery of this lifepath was my salvation. Brutal years proceeded the time I first placed my feet so firmly here. Abuse, hopelessness, murder, suicide, cancer, and widowhood all played their separate roles in directing me here. My life is far from carefree nowadays, but my ability to adjust to reality and overcome obstacles is equal to every task it is given. Not in a perfect fashion; imperfection is a universal human trait, but after all I have been through any trial for the sake of this journey seems worthwhile.
I stepped on this road for my sake but I follow it for yours. Find your path then journey on with confidence that equals its purpose. Balance, symmetry, and peace come from inside then travel out from their place of origin. Give back more than you take away and everyone wins.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

What We Look Through

TODAY'S QUOTE:
Love looks through a telescope; envy, through a microscope.
Josh Billings, 1815-1885, American Humorist and Lecturer

Love forgives shortcomings; envy uses them as weapons. Love grades on the curve; envy flunks for spite. Love heals all wounds; jealousy is a cancer that destroys healthy tissue. One moves mountains, while the other builds them out of any handy mole hill. Once we allow a negative emotion to invade it torments us to pass it on, but that only increases our agony.
Gazing gently upon our fellowman should come quite naturally, even the ones who have not earned our affection deserve a measure of our concern. I do not care as much for some people as I do for others, it would be an odd thing to blanket everyone with the same emotion. I worry about the ones who expend so much energy and waste so much time on such foolish things.
If cancer was sold from a shop at bargain prices I like to think there would be no buyers. But some of us willingly embrace cancer of the soul at a price no sane person would pay. Negative emotions are costly, taking all you possess then demanding more. Spend your love wisely and invest in something that will benefit all.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE