Can U Adapt this

[JOYce]

Hello Friends,

This is Jaswant. I m going to start a new series in which i'll post a few stories periodically. I expect the same from u. If u cant do that at least have a reading on them & put UR comments. I hope u'll help me to refine my collection & real purpose of this series to motivate youth.

Thankx & JOY(ce)

MEASURE OF CHARACTER

When William McKinley was President of the United States, he had to make a decision about the appointment of an ambassador to a foreign country. Two candidates were equally qualified.

While McKinley was still a Congressman, he had observed an inconsiderate action by one of the men. He recalled boarding a streetcar at the rush hour and getting the last vacant seat. Soon an elderly woman got on, carrying a heavy clothesbasket. No one got up to offer her a seat, so she walked the length of the car and stood in the aisle, hardly able to keep her balance as the vehicle swayed from side to side.

One of the men McKinley was later to consider for ambassador was sitting next to where the woman was standing. Instead of getting up and helping her, he deliberately shifted his newspaper so it would look like he hadn't seen her. When McKinley noticed this, he walked down the aisle, graciously took her basket, and offered her his seat.

The man was unaware that anyone was watching, but that one little act of selfishness would later deprive him of perhaps the crowning honor of his lifetime.

"The measure of a person's character is what he would do if he thought he would never be found out."

[Ideal Singh]

Oh this is Really Nice... Keep Posting...

[JOYce]

Joyce-2 A GOOD FRIEND

In ancient Greece, Socrates was reputed to hold knowledge in high

esteem. One day an acquaintance met the great philosopher and said, "Do you

know what I just heard about your friend?"

"Hold on a minute," Socrates replied. "Before telling me anything I'd

like you to pass a little test. It's called the Triple Filter Test."

"Triple filter?"

"That's right," Socrates continued. "Before you talk to me about my

friend, it might be a good idea to take a moment and filter what you're going to say. That's why I call it the triple filter test.

The first filter is Truth. Have you made absolutely sure that what

you are about to tell me is true?"

"No," the man said, "actually I just heard about it and..."

"All right," said Socrates. "So you don't really know if it's true or

not. Now let's try the second filter, the filter of goodness. Is what you are about to tell me about my friend something good?"

"No, on the contrary..."

"So," Socrates continued, "you want to tell me something bad about

him, but you're not certain it's true. You may still pass the test though,

because there's one filter left: the filter of usefulness. Is what you want

to tell me about my friend going to be useful to me?"

"No, not really."

"Well," concluded Socrates, "if what you want to tell me is neither

true nor good nor even useful, why tell it to me at all?

[JOYce]

Joyce-3 THE WRITING ON THE WALL

A weary mother returned from the store, Lugging groceries through the kitchen door. Awaiting her arrival was her young son, Anxious to say what his brother had done.

"While I was out playing and Dad was on a call, Tommy took his crayons and wrote on the wall!

It's on the new paper you hung in the den. I told him you'd be mad to have to do it again!"

She let out a moan and furrowed her brow, "Where is your little brother right now?"

She put down the food and with a purposeful stride, She marched to his closet where he had gone to hide.

She called his full name as she entered his room. He trembled with fear - he knew that meant doom!

For the next ten minutes, she ranted and raved About the wallpaper, and how she had saved,

And all of the work it would take to repair, What a bad boy he was and how he didn't care.

The more she scolded, the madder she got, Then she stomped from his room, completely distraught.

She stomped into the den to confirm her fears. When she saw the wall, her eyes flooded with tears.

The message in crayon pierced her soul with a dart. It said, "I Love Mommy," surrounded by a heart.

Well, she left the wallpaper just as she found it, With an empty picture frame hung to surround it.

A reminder to her, and indeed to all, To take time to read the writing on the wall.

[JOYce]

HUMAN RELATIONSHIP (JOYCE-4)

A boy was born to a couple after eleven years of marriage. They were a

loving couple and the boy was the apple of their eyes.

One morning, the husband saw a medicine bottle open. As he was late

for work, he asked the wife to cap the bottle and keep it in the

cupboard. The mother, who was preoccupied in the kitchen, totally

forgot the matter.

The boy playfully went to the medicine bottle and, fascinated with its

color, drank it all. It happened to be a poisonous medicine meant for

adults in small dosages. When the child showed signs of poisoning,

the mother took him to the hospital, where he died.

The mother was stunned. She was too terrified to face her husband.

When the distraught father came to the hospital and saw the dead

child, he looked at his wife and uttered just four words.

QUESTIONS :

1. What were the four words ?

2. What is the implication of this story ?

Check with the answers only after you have tried to come up with your

own.

Please scroll down ...........

ANSWERS:

The husband just said " I Love You Darling ."

The husband's totally unexpected reaction is proactive behavior.

He is indeed a genius in human relationships.

The child is dead.

He can never be brought back to life. There is no point in finding

fault with the mother. She had also lost her only child. What she

needed at that moment was consolation and sympathy from the husband.

That is what he gave her. If everyone can look at life with this kind

of perspective, there would be much fewer problems in the world.

"A journey of a thousand miles, begins with a single step."

Take off all your unforgiveness, fear, envies, jealousies and

selfishness, AND you will find things are actually not so difficult as

you think.

[Ideal Singh]

Very Touching and very Much True !! Keep Posting...

Love

[JOYce]

Story of a modern woodcutter (JOYce-5)

One day, while a woodcutter was cutting a branch of a

tree above a river, his axe fell into the river.

When he cried out, God appeared and asked," Why are you crying?"

The woodcutter replied that his axe has fallen into water.

Then God went down into the water and reappeared with a golden axe.

"Is this your axe?" God asked.

The woodcutter replied, "No."

God again went down and came up with a silver axe.

"Is this your axe?" he asked.

Again, the woodcutter replied, "No."

God went down again and came up with an iron axe. "Is this your axe?" God asked.

The woodcutter replied," Yes."

God was pleased with the man's honesty and gave him

all three axes to keep, and the woodcutter went home happily.

One day while he was walking with his wife along the

riverbank, the woodcutter's wife fell into the river.

When he cried out,God again appeared and asked him,

"Why are you crying?"

"Oh God , my wife has fallen into the water!"

God went down into the water and came up with Jennifer Lopez.

"Is this your wife?" he asked.

"Yes," cried the woodcutter.

God was furious. "You cheat! That is an untruth!"

The woodcutter replied, "Oh, forgive me God . It is a misunderstanding.

You see, if I said 'no' to Jennifer Lopez,

You will come up with Catherine Zeta-Jones.

Then if I also say 'no' to her, You wi l l come up with my wife, and I will say 'yes,'

and then all three will be given to me.

But God , I am a poor man and I will not be able to

take care of all three wives, so *that's* why I said 'yes' this time.

Sorry Gentleman I can't be serious all the time !

The moral of the story is whenever a man lies it is

for an honourable and useful reason

see....we're not so bad after allllllll !!

[JOYce]

MICHAL inJOY(ce) 6

Michael is the kind of guy you love to hate. He is always in a good mood and always has something positive to say.

When someone would ask him how he was doing, would reply, "If I were any better, I would be twins!"

He was a natural motivator.

If an employee was having a bad day, Michael was there telling the employee how to look on the positive side of the situation. Seeing this style really made me curious, so one day I went up to Michael and asked him, "I don't get it! You can't be a positive person all of the time.

How do you do it?"

Michael replied, "Each morning I wake up and say to myself, you have two choices today.

You can choose to be in a good mood or ... you can choose to be in a bad mood. I choose to be in a good mood.

Each time something bad happens, I can choose to be a victim or...I can choose to learn from it. I choose to learn from it. Every time someone comes to me complaining, I can choose to accept their complaining or... I can point out the positive side of life. I choose the positive side of life.

"Yeah, right, it's not that easy," I protested.

"Yes, it is," Michael, said. "Life is all about choices. When you cut away all the junk, every situation is a choice.

You choose how you react to situations.

You choose how people affect your mood.

You choose to be in a good mood or bad mood.

The bottom line: It's your choice how you live your life."

I reflected on what Michael said. Soon thereafter, I left the Tower

Industry to start my own business. We lost touch, but I often thought about him

when I made a choice about life instead of reacting to it.

Several years l ater, I heard that Michael was involved in a serious accident, falling some 60 feet from a communications tower.

After 18 hours of surgery and weeks of intensive care, Michael was released from the hospital with rods placed in his back.

I saw Michael about six months after the accident.When I asked him how he was, he replied. "If I were any better, I'd be twins. Wanna see my scars?"

I declined to see his wounds, but I did ask him what had gone through his mind as the accident took place.

"The first thing that went through my mind was the well being of my soon to be born daughter," Michael replied. "Then, as I lay on the ground, I remembered that I had two choices: I could choose to live or... I could

choose to die. I chose to live."

"Weren't you scared? Did you lose consciousness?" I asked. Michael continued, "...the paramedics were great. They kept telling me I was going to be fine. But when they wheeled me into

the ER and I saw the expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses, I got really scared.

In their eyes, I read, "he's a dead man. I knew I needed to take action."

"What did you do?" I asked.

"Well, there was a big burly nurse shouting questions at me," said Michael.

"She asked if I was allergic to anything.

"Yes, I replied." The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply.

I took a deep breath and yelled, "Gravity." Over their laughter, I told them, "I am choosing to

live. Operate on me as if I am alive, not dead."

Michael lived, thanks to the skill of his doctors, but also because of his amazing attitude. I learned from him that every day we have the choice to live fully.

Attitude, after all, is everything.

"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.

Each day has enough trouble of its own." After all today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.

You have two choices now:

1. Ignore this.

2. Send it to the people you care about.

You know the choice I made

Enjoy each day, each breath and mostly---each and every friend

[JOYce]

MasterMind of a Potter ( Joyce-8 )

There was a couple who used to go to England to shop in the beautiful stores. They both liked antiques and pottery, especially teacups. This was their twenty-fifth wedding anniversary. In this beautiful shop they saw a beautiful teacup. It was unlike any other they had ever seen. They said, "May we see that? We've never seen one quite so beautiful."

As the lady handed it to them, suddenly the teacup spoke. "You don't understand, " it said. " I haven't always been a teacup".

"There was a time when I was a piece of old, hard red clay. My master took me and rolled me and patted me over and over and I yelled out, 'Let me alone!' But he only smiled and said, ' Not yet.'"

"Then I was placed on a spinning wheel, " the teacup said, "and suddenly I was spun around and around and around. 'Stop it! I'm getting dizzy!' I screamed. But the master only nodded and said, 'Not yet.'"

"Then he put me in the oven. I never felt such heat. I wondered why he wanted to burn me, and I yelled and knocked at the door. I could see him through the opening and I could read his lips as He shook his head, ' Not yet.'"

"Finally the door opened, he put me on the shelf, and I began to cool. 'There, that's better, ' I said. Then he brushed and painted me all over. The fumes were horrible. I thought I would gag. 'Stop it, stop it!' I cried. He only nodded. 'Not yet'"

" And suddenly he put me back into the oven, not like the first one. This was twice as hot and I knew I would suffocate. I begged, I pleaded, I screamed, I cried. All the time I could see him through the opening nodding his head saying, "Not yet.'"

"Then I knew there wasn't any hope. I would never make it. I was ready to give up. But the door opened and he took me out and placed me on the shelf. One hour later he handed me a mirror and said. ' Look at yourself." And I did. I said, ' That's not me; that couldn't be me. It's beautiful....I'm beautiful.'"

" ' I want you to remember; then,' he said, ' I know it hurts to be rolled and patted, but if I had left you alone, you'd have dried up. I know it made you dizzy to spin around on the wheel, but if I had stopped, you would have crumbled. I knew it hurt and was hot and disagreeable in the oven, but if I hadn't put you there, you would have cracked. I know the fumes were bad when I brushed and painted you all over, but if I hadn't done that, you never would have hardened; you would not have had any color in your life. And if I hadn't put you back in that second oven, you wouldn't survive for very long because the hardness would not have held. Now you are a finished product. You are what I had in mind when I first began with you.'"

Moral:

God knows what He's doing (for all of us). He is the Potter, and we are His clay. He will mold us and make us, he only puts us to all these tests and trials so that we may be made into a flawless piece of work to fulfill His good, pleasing, and perfect will.

[Humblesikh]

Excellent post JOYce!

God makes us go through trials and tribulations but he takes care of all of us.

regards,

[JOYce]

Salutations,

My dear friends, i feel very much sorry that i cant able to post any more aricles in this issue. I have a valid reason for the same that coz i am a human being I have my own feelings & approach which i want to share with all u. But i m observing that i m not getting proper response from u people. Might possible I m going wrong somewhere. But i cant be so great like u that never says anything if someone is wrong (like me). So i have decided to not to post any article in this section and to save UR precious time.

Regards

URz Joyce

[Ideal Singh]

Salutations,

My dear friends, i feel very much sorry that i cant able to post any more aricles in this issue. I have a valid reason for the same that coz i am a human being I have my own feelings & approach which i want to share with all u. But i m observing that i m not getting proper response from u people. Might possible I m going wrong somewhere. But i cant be so great like u that never says anything if someone is wrong (like me). So i have decided to not to post any article in this section and to save UR precious time.

Regards

URz Joyce

Dear JOY(ce) dont worry about the response... appreciating anyone is a tough mental block for humans... but still you can look at the number of views for your each posts... so rest assured... everybody is reading your stuff... so keep posting...

Aman

[Vaheguru24/7]

VJKK VJKF

Yes please keep posting, I get so much inspiration from these little stories you put up - it really helps me think about how i'm leading my own life - not Gursikh at all.

Please keep posting

VJKK VJKF

[Guest BikramjitSingh]

Joyce

Most people just like to read the posts and just because there is no response to it, it doesn't mean that people didn't think was not worthy of a response.

[JOYce]

Friends,

I M very much apploauds UR approachs and appriciate them too. And will be continued my postings. I just want to know that M i going on the right direction. I dont want appriciation but want critisim inspite,coz i want to improve my writing/posting more in the future .

Anyway wish all U a Happy Diwali with a new story of COLORS.

RAINBOW OF LIFE (J-9)

Once upon a time the colors of the world started to quarrel.

All claimed that they were the best.

The most important.

The most useful.

The favorite.

Green said:

"Clearly I am the most important. I am the sign of life and of hope. I was chosen for grass, trees and leaves. Without me, all animals would die. Look over the countryside and you will see that I am in the majority."

Blue interrupted:

"You only think about the earth, but consider the sky and the sea. It is the water that is the basis of life and drawn up by the clouds from the deep sea. The sky gives space and peace and serenity. Without my peace, you would all be nothing."

Yellow chuckled:

"You are all so serious. I bring laughter, gaiety, and warmth into the world. The sun is yellow, the moon is yellow, the stars are yellow. Every time you look at a sunflower, the whole world starts to smile. Without me there would be no fun."

Orange started next to blow her trumpet:

"I am the color of health and strength. I may be scarce, but I am precious for I serve the needs of human life. I carry the most important vitamins. Think of carrots, pumpkins, oranges, mangoes, and papayas. I don't hang around all the time, but when I fill the sky at sunrise or sunset, my beauty is so striking that no one gives another thought to any of you."

Red could stand it no longer he shouted out:

"I am the ruler of all of you. I am blood - life's blood! I am the color of danger and of bravery. I am willing to fight for a cause. I bring fire into the blood. Without me, the earth would be as empty as the moon. I am the color of passion and of love, the red rose, the poinsettia and the poppy."

Purple rose up to his full height:

He was very tall and spoke with great pomp: "I am the color of royalty and power. Kings, chiefs, and bishops have always chosen me for I am the sign of authority and wisdom. People do not question me! They listen and obey."

Finally Indigo spoke, much more quietly than all the others, but with just as much determination: "Think of me. I am the color of silence. You hardly notice me, but without me you all become superficial. I represent thought and reflection, twilight and deep water. You need me for balance and contrast, for prayer and inner peace."

And so the colors went on boasting, each convinced of his or her own superiority. Their quarreling became louder and louder. Suddenly there was a startling flash of bright lightening thunder rolled and boomed. Rain started to pour down relentlessly. The colors crouched down in fear, drawing close to one another for comfort.

In the midst of the clamor, rain began to speak:

"You foolish colors, fighting amongst yourselves, each trying to dominate the rest. Don't you know that you were each made for a special purpose, unique and different? Join hands with one another and come to me."

Doing as they were told, the colors united and joined hands.

The rain continued:

"From now on, when it rains, each of you will stretch across the sky in a great bow of color as a reminder that you can all live in peace. The Rainbow is a sign of hope for tomorrow." And so,

whenever a good rain washes the world, and a Rainbow appears in the sky, let us remember to appreciate one another

[JOYce]

Love without Expression (J-10)

There was once a guy who was very much in love with his girl. This romantic guy folded 1,000 pieces of paper cranes as a gift to his girl. Although, at that time he was just a small fry in his company, his future doesn't seem too bright, they were very happy together.

Until one day, his girl told him she was going to Paris and will never come back. She also told him that she couldn't visualize any future for the both of them, so let 's go their own ways there and then...

Heartbroken, the guy agreed. But when he regained his confidence, he worked hard day and night, slogging his body and mind just to make something out of him. Finally with all these hard work and with the help of friends, this guy

had set up his own company...

"You never fail until you stop trying."

One rainy day, while this guy was driving, he saw an elderly couple sharing an umbrella in the rain walking to some destination. Even with the umbrella, they were still drenched. It didn't take him long to realize those were his girl's parents.

With a heart at getting back at them, he drove slowly beside the couple, wanting them to spot him in his luxury sedan. He wanted them to know that he wasn't the same anymore, he had his own company, car, condo, etc. He made it!

Before the guy can realize, the couple was walking towards a cemetery, and he got out of his car and followed them...and he saw his girl, a photograph of her smiling sweetly as ever at him from her tombstone... and he saw his paper cranes beside her...

Her parents saw him.

He asked them why this had happened. they explained, she did not leave for France at all. She was ill with cancer. She had believed that he would make it someday, but she did not want to be his obstacle ... therefore she had chose to leave him...

"Just because someone doesn't love you the way you want them to doesn't mean they don't love you with all they have."

She had wanted her parents to put his paper cranes beside her, because, if the day comes when fate brings him

to her again... he can take some of those back with him...

"Once you have loved, you will always love. For what's in your mind may escape but what's in your heart will remain forever."

"Find time to realize that there is one person who mean so much to you, for you might wake up one morning losing that person whom you thought meant nothing to you."

[Humblesikh]

JOYce,

You continue to amaze me with the quality of inspirations stories you post. Keep up the good work ..

cheers

[JOYce]

The Most Beautiful Flower

Author Unknown (J-11)

The park bench was deserted as I sat down to read

Beneath the long, straggly branches of an old willow

tree.

Disillusioned by life with good reason to frown,

For the world was intent on dragging me down.

And if that weren't enough to ruin my day,

A young boy out of breath approached me, all tired

from play.

He stood right before me with his head tilted down

And said with great excitement, "Look what I found!"

In his hand was a flower, and what a pitiful sight,

With its petals all worn - not enough rain, or too

little light.

Wanting him to take his dead flower and go off to

play,

I faked a small smile and then shifted away.

But instead of retreating he sat next to my side

And placed the flower to his nose

And declared with ovacted surprise,

"It sure smells pretty and it's beautiful, too.

That's why I picked it; here, it's for you."

The weed before me was dying or dead.

Not vibrant of colors: orange, yellow or red.

But I knew I must take it, or he might never leave.

So I reached for the flower, and replied, "Just what I

need."

But instead of him placing the flower in my hand,

He held it mid-air without reason or plan.

It was then that I noticed for the very first time

That weed-toting boy could not see: he was blind.

I heard my voice quiver; tears shone in the sun

As I thanked him for picking the very best one.

You're welcome," he smiled, and then ran off to play,

Unaware of the impact he'd had on my day.

I sat there and wondered how he managed to see

A self-pitying woman beneath an old willow tree.

How did he know of my self-indulged plight?

Perhaps from his heart, he'd been blessed with true

sight.

Through the eyes of a blind child, at last I could see

The problem was not with the world; the problem was

me.

And for all of those times I myself had been blind,

I vowed to see the beauty in life,

And appreciate every second that's mine.

And then I held that wilted flower up to my nose

And breathed in the fragrance of a beautiful rose

And smiled as I watched that young boy,

Another weed in his hand,

About to change the life of an unsuspecting old man.

Really, If we try to view the things with other ones eyes, then exactly then, we can realize how beautiful the world is. If we do so, there will not be a single problem or single dispute to resolve. Just try moral of the story for a single time on a single person today, n U will really feel it.

Joyce

[JOYce]

A helicopter was flying around above Seattle yesterday when an electrical malfunction disabled all of the aircraft's electronic navigation and communications equipment.

Due to the clouds and haze, the pilot could not determine the helicopter's position and course to steer to the airport.

The pilot saw a tall building, flew toward it, circled, drew a handwritten sign, and held it in the helicopter's window. The pil ot's sign said "WHERE AM I?" in large letters.

People in the tall building quickly responded to the aircraft, drew a large sign, and held it in a building window. Their sign said "YOU ARE IN A HELICOPTER."

The pilot smiled, waved, looked at his map, determined the course to steer to SEATAC airport, and landed safely.

After they were on the ground, the co-pilot asked the pilot how the "YOU ARE IN A HELICOPTER" sign helped determine their position.

The pilot responded "I knew that had to be the MICROSOFT building because, similar to their help-lines, they gave me a technically correct but

completely useless answer."

MORAL: Their is always something good in every bad, U just have to find out useful positives in useless Nagetives.

[Ideal Singh]

A helicopter was flying around above Seattle yesterday when an electrical malfunction disabled all of the aircraft's electronic navigation and communications equipment.

Due to the clouds and haze, the pilot could not determine the helicopter's position and course to steer to the airport.

The pilot saw a tall building, flew toward it, circled, drew a handwritten sign, and held it in the helicopter's window. The pil ot's sign said "WHERE AM I?" in large letters.

People in the tall building quickly responded to the aircraft, drew a large sign, and held it in a building window. Their sign said "YOU ARE IN A HELICOPTER."

The pilot smiled, waved, looked at his map, determined the course to steer to SEATAC airport, and landed safely.

After they were on the ground, the co-pilot asked the pilot how the "YOU ARE IN A HELICOPTER" sign helped determine their position.

The pilot responded "I knew that had to be the MICROSOFT building because, similar to their help-lines, they gave me a technically correct but

completely useless answer."

MORAL: Their is always something good in every bad, U just have to find out useful positives in useless Nagetives.

Ho Ho Very Guddd Paaji...

[JOYce]

When You're Root-bound (J-13) By Steve Goodier

Like potted plants, people can become "root- bound."

We have a beautiful "Christmas Cactus" which I gave to my wife as a gift 28 years ago. It has accompanied us through tough years and good times. It has lived with us in four different communities and has been present during the raising of our family. But it almost died.

As the small plant grew, we transferred it to a larger pot. It did well for about twenty years, but then began to die. It seemed that no amount of feeding, coddling or attention helped. We finally plucked a few leaves, re-rooted them and started over.

We could barely remove the now-dead plant from its pot for all the knotted and intertwined roots. The beautiful succulent was dying because it outgrew its environment. The plant changed, but the container it lived in stayed the same.

People, too, can die when they outgrow their environments. They need broader views, bigger challenges. Songwriter Bob Dylan put it this way: "If

you are not busy being born, you are busy dying."

One man was offered employment at a salary higher than he had ever made in his life. After careful consideration, he declined the position.

"What's the matter?" his potential boss asked. "Isn't the salary big enough?"

"The salary is fine," the man said. "It's the job that's not big enough." He chose growth over decline, life over death.

Karen Kaiser Clark said, "Life is change… growth is optional…choose wisely."

Good advice - especially when we find ourselves becoming root-bound.

[JOYce]

Intelligence

[For your reading pleasure. Enjoy!]

One day, three men were hiking and unexpectedly came

upon a large raging, violent river. They needed to get

to the other side, but had no idea of how to do so.

The first man prayed to God, saying, "Please God, give

me the strength to cross this river." Poof! God gave

him big arms and strong legs, and he was able to swim

across the river in about two hours, after almost

drowning a couple of times.

Seeing this, the second man prayed to God, saying,

"Please God, give me the strength...and the tools to

cross this river." Poof! God gave him a rowboat and he

was able to row across the river in about an hour,

after almost capsizing the boat a couple of times.

The third man had seen how this worked out for the

other two, so he also prayed to God saying, "Please

God, give me the strength and the tools...and the

intelligence...to cross this river." And poof! God

turned him into a woman. She looked at the map, hiked

upstream a couple of hundred yards, then walked across

the bridge.

[JOYce]

Viewing the Future

When Jeanne Calment turned 120 years old, she was

asked what her view of the future was. "Very brief,"

she responded.

Don’t you wish the future were clear? It is usually

hazy, at best. A lonely frog called a psychic hotline.

"You will meet a beautiful young woman who will want

to learn all about you," the psychic advisor told him.

"Where will I meet her?" he asked. "Down by the old

mill stream?"

"No," she said. "In biology class."

I received a postcard from a psychic advisor once. It

said that if I call a 900 number, she would lead me

through a hazy future to clarity and happiness. That

sounded great! But when I turned the card over I

noticed that it was addressed to the wrong house. We

had moved from that old address several months

earlier.

I thought that perhaps she was better with the future

than the present. But I couldn't help but wonder, if

she doesn't even know where I am, how can she know

where I am going?

I believe it was Mahatma Gandhi who said so well, "The

future depends on what we do in the present." And

Thomas Carlyle put it like this: "Our main business is

not to see what lies dimly at a distance, but to do

what lies clearly at hand." What I do today will shape

what tomorrow looks like.

I don't need a crystal ball - I only need to live well

now. My future will take care of itself.

[JOYce]

5 Ways to Develop Friendships That Really Count

Friend is such a powerful word that holds so many

different meanings: confidant, collaborator,

instigator, and the person who helps carry you through

difficult experiences and celebrates and enriches the

good ones.

As said by Emily Dickinson, “My friends are my

estate.”

How then do we develop friendships that nurture our

spirit and enrich our lives?

By following these 5 guidelines you can begin

developing friendships that will uplift and inspire

you.

1) Be Open Minded

One of the keys to developing a close friendship with

someone is to be accepting of the other person by

making an effort to understand where they are coming

from. Since we each have a different set of beliefs

and values and live life in our own unique way, we can

always learn something of value from our friends.

Being open minded requires that we drop our judgements

in favor of understanding. Although you may not agree

with someone or their point of view, you can always

make an effort to understand them.

2) Be a Good Listener

This is a skill few people have developed well. One

thing we all need to remember is that we have two ears

that were meant for listening. Too often we are too

busy talking or thinking up our response, that we

don’t truly listen to what someone else is really

saying.

When we actively listen to someone else, we make that

person feel important and special – two ingredients to

maintaining a healthy friendship.

3) Be Trustworthy

Trust is a key ingredient to any strong and healthy

relationship. When we keep confidences, are impeccable

with our word and walk our talk, we send others the

message that we are reliable, dependable and

ultimately trustworthy.

Speak with integrity and only say what you mean. Avoid

gossip or talking about others and always do what you

say. Taking these actions will speak loudly to others

that you are a trustworthy and responsible friend.

4) Be Yourself

One of the greatest gifts you can give yourself and

others is you – the authentic YOU. There is only one

of you in this world, complete with your own gifts,

talents and treasures. Your uniqueness is what makes

you special and what others will seek out.

When you are honest with yourself, you can be honest

with others. By being authentic, you will show your

friends that you are not afraid to be who you are and

in part will give them permission to be fully who they

are.

5) Set Limits

As with anything in life, it is important to set

limits as to what you will and will not accept in your

life. This may mean ending a negative conversation

with a friend or saying ‘no.’ Ultimately, setting

limits is an act of self-respect.

When you set limits with friends, you are sending a

loud message that you will not tolerate things that

are not aligned with your life or your spirit. By

openly respecting yourself, others will gain a deeper

respect for you.

[JOYce]

Success vs Money

In 1923, a group of the world's most successful

financiers met at the Edgewater Beach Hotel in

Chicago. These tycoons were extremely rich &

altogether they controlled more wealth than there was

in the US Treasury. Their success stories were

published everywhere inspiring many to follow their

fine examples. Just look at who they were:

1. Arthur Cutten - The greatest wheat speculator.

2. Albert Fall - The Secretary of Interior in

President Harding's cabinet.

3. Leon Fraser - The president of the Bank of

International Settlements.

4. Howard Hopson - The president of the largest gas

company.

5. Ivar Kreuger - Head of the world's greatest

monopoly.

6. Jesse Livermore - The greatest bear in Wall Street.

7. Charles Schwan - The president of the largest

independent steel company.

8. Richard Whitney - The president of the New York

Stock Exchange.

But 27 years later in 1948, this was what happened to

them:

1. Arthur Cutten died abroad insolvent.

2. The penniless Albert Fall was pardoned from prison

so that he could die at home.

3. Leon Fraser commited suicide.

4. Howard Hopson was insane.

5. Ivar Kreuger commited suicide.

6. Jesse Livermore commited suicide.

7. Charles Schwan was bankrupt & had to live on

borrowed money the last 5 years of his life before his

death.

8. Richard Whitney was recently released from Sing

Sing Prison.

2 B continue............................