Thought 01JUN2009

LOVELY WORKING ENVIRONMENT
As you arrive to your work place - Pray to God and ask for his guidance!!
Greet your colleagues - That is called friendship!!
Give to everybody the best of yourself - That is called sincerity!!
Program and organise your day - That is called reflection!!
Now that you have planned everything, begin to work - That is called taking action!!
Trust that everything will be OK - That is called faith!!
Work with happiness - That is called enthusiasm!!
Give the best of yourself - That is called excellence!!
Help those with more difficulties than you do - That is called compassion!!
Understand that not everybody is at your level - That is called tolerance!!
Receive praise with reticence - That is called humility!!
God is with you - That is called LOVE!!
Source Unknown
Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up - Thomas Edison

Thought 29MAY2009

IN A HURRY
I was in a hurry. I came rushing through our dining room in my best suit, focused on getting ready for an evening meeting. Gillian, my four-year-old, was dancing about to one of her favorite oldies, "Cool," from West Side Story. I was in a hurry, on the verge of being late. Yet a small voice inside of me said, Stop. So I stopped. I looked at her. I reached out, grabbed her hand and spun her around. My seven-year-old, Caitlin, came into our orbit, and I grabbed her, too. The three of us did a wild jitterbug around the dining room and into the living room. We were laughing. We were spinning. Could the neighbors see the lunacy through the windows? It didn't matter. The song ended with a dramatic flourish and our dance finished with it. I patted them on their bottoms and sent them to take their baths.

They went up the stairs, gasping for breath, their giggles bouncing off the walls. I went back to business. I was bent over, shoving papers into my briefcase, when I overheard my youngest say to her sister, "Caitlin, isn't Mommy the bestest one?" I froze. How close I had come to hurrying through life, missing that moment. My mind went to the awards and diplomas that covered the walls of my office. No award, no achievement I have ever earned can match this: Isn't Mommy the bestest one? My child said that at age four. I don't expect her to say it at age 14. But at age 40, if she bends down over that pine box to say good-bye to the cast-off container of my soul, I want her to say it then. Isn't Mommy the bestest one? It doesn't fit on my résumé. But I want it on my tombstone.
By Gina Barrett Schlesinger - from Chicken Soup for the Woman's Soul, Copyright 1996 by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Jennifer Read Hawthorne and Marci Shimoff
Do not spit in the well - you may be thirsty by and by - Russian Proverb

Thought 28MAY2009

KEEP THE FIRES KINDLED
George Bernard Shaw described marriage as that time "when two people are under the influence of the most violence, most insane, most delusive and most transient of passions. They are required to sear that they will remain in that excited, abnormal and exhausting condition continuously until death do them part".

Recall the aura, the ecstasy, the perfectness of your wedding day. The vows are meticulously and faultlessly repeated. A stimulating honeymoon reinforces the idealistic glow. Nothing could ever alter the thrill of this hallowed occasion.

Then comes reality. The couple soon realizes marriage is not an ongoing celebration of celestial dimensions. It's a lifelong process of down-to-earth hard work - worth every drop of sweat it produces.
Extracted from 'Speaker's Sourcebook II', Glen Van Ekeren, Prentice Hall, 1994
Go often to the house of thy friend; for weeds soon choke up the unused path - Scandinavian Proverb

Thought 27MAY2009

WHAT'S AN EXPERT?
I read somewhere that the more a man knows, the more he knows he doesn't know. So I suppose one definition of an expert would be someone who doesn't admit out loud that he knows enough about a subject to know he doesn't really know much.
Malcolm S Forbes - extracted from 'Speaker's Sourcebook II, Glen Van Ekeren, Prentice Hall, 1994
A cold needs the cook as much as the doctor - Scottish Proverb

Thought 26MAY2009

A-HEAD OF THE GAME
A friend of mine had been suffering from a lack of self-confidence after a particularly difficult breakup. He was a bit wary of returning to the dating world, worried that he had "lost his touch" with women. Unfortunately, soon after ending his previous relationship, he began to lose his hair, and he saw this as a sign from above that he was doomed to be alone forever. "Who the heck is going to want to date some bald guy?" he said to me one night as we commiserated over large yummy cups of cappuccino. The eternal wit, he was convinced that good hair was the ticket to a successful relationship. "What will she run her fingers through now?" he exclaimed discouragingly. "My scalp?" As he started asking women out, he only took them to locations where a baseball cap was acceptable - playing Frisbee in the park, walking the dog, a baseball game or any other faintly sporty event where he could successfully hide his thinning top. This worked out fine for a while, but there are only so many sporting events to go to, and only so many sunny days to toss the Frisbee and walk the dog.

Also, one huge aspect of my friend's personality was that he absolutely loved going out for a nice dinner. We had enjoyed many nights in college spending too much money on bottles of wine, hors d'oeuvres and warm chocolatey desserts at the most upscale restaurants. Unfortunately, none of these restaurants would allow a baseball cap, no matter how nice it may be. This started to discourage him and again his spirits dropped, until he received notification in the mail that he had won a free dinner for two at an exclusive restaurant downtown.

"Congratulations!" the letter read. "You and a guest have been chosen to sample and savor our elegant cuisine and ambiance. Please find the enclosed gift certificate for fifty dollars!" He was thrilled. Jumping up and down with enthusiasm, he thought out loud about what to wear, what to order, when to go, and...uh oh...who to take. He couldn't wear a hat into this new restaurant. But who could he take who wouldn't be shocked by his barely covered head? His brow furrowed in disappointment and he collapsed on the nearby couch. After a few minutes of silence, he shouted out, "Aw, phooey. I'm going." Leaping from his seat, his face took on that all-too-familiar glow and he quickly breezed through his index of possible dates, finally landing on Sarah, the woman whom he had been admiring from afar for months. He sat down in his favorite chair, dialed her number confidently and asked her to accompany him - and she gratefully accepted. A few nights later, dressed to the nines and beautifully bareheaded, he and Sarah shared a perfect evening and have been wonderfully in love ever since. And I'll tell you this: That was the best fifty dollars I've spent in a long time.
By Katie Mauro - from Chicken Soup for the Single's Soul, Copyright 1999 by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Jennifer Read Hawthorne and Marci Shimoff
A bad wound may heal, but a bad name will kill - Scottish Proverb

Thought 25MAY2009

SINGH & KAUR - How The Names Originated
In 1699, the Sikh guru Gobind Singh from Punjab formed the Khalsa - a brotherhood of believers. The day April 14, is known as Vesakhi Day, the sikh new year. The Guru gave the name Singh to every male and the name Kaur to every female. Singh means 'lion' while Kaur means 'lioness or princess'. The moment a Punjabi child is born, he or she is brought to the temple to receive blessings, and will get the same universal name.

A Sikh does not have an individual surname and thus, a Sikh man's daughter would not carry his name. In Sikhism, Khalsa also means purity - the purity that you are given when you are born, and you are to maintain that purity in form, mind and soul. This would include the symbols of five Ks - Kesh (hair), Kara (steel bangle), Kangha (comb), Keehara (loose undergarment) and Kirpan (dagger).

There are about 100,000 Sikhs in Malaysia.
As published in the Malay Mail on 4th April 2000.
Gossip needs no carriage - Russian Proverb

Thought 22MAY2009

ON CREATIVITY
Be brave enough to live creatively. The creative is the place where no one else has ever been. You have to leave the city of your comfort and go into the wilderness of your intuition. You can't get there by bus, only by hard work, risking and by not quite knowing what you're doing. What you'll discover will be wonderful : yourself.
Alan Alda - Extracted from 'Speaker's Sourcebook II', Glen Van Ekeren, Prentice Hall, 1994.
Don't buy the house; buy the neighborhood - Russian Proverb

Thought 21MAY2009

ACT LIKE A WINNER
Dennis Waitley teaches that "winners believe in their worth in advance of their performance." Winners prepare to win, think like winners, act like winners and look like winners.

Minnesota Vikings football coach Bud Grant ingrained this philosophy in his players through demonstration. Newcomers were no doubt surprised with Grant's first drill at the first session of training camp. Grant lined up the entire team and demonstrated how he wanted them to properly stand for the national anthem. "You're winners," he would say, "so look and act like winners every second you're part of the team."

Winners believe they are winners because they've learned to act like winners - right down to the smallest detail.
extracted from 'Speaker's Sourcebook II, Glen Van Ekeren, Prentice Hall, 1994
A spoken word is not a sparrow. Once it flies out, you can't catch it - Russian Proverb

Thought 20MAY2009

THE WINDOW
There were once two men, both seriously ill, in the same small room of a great hospital., Quite a small room, it had one window looking out on the world. One of the men, as part of his treatment, was allowed to sit up in bed for an hour in the afternoon (something to do with draining the fluid from his lings). His bed was next to the window. But the other man had to spend all his time flat on his back. Every afternoon when the man next to the window was propped up for his hour, he would pass the time by describing what he could see outside. The window apparently overlooked a park where there was a lake. There were ducks and swans in the lake and children came to throw them bread and sail model boats. Young lovers walked hand in hand beneath the trees and there were flowers and stretches of grass, games of softball. And at the back, behind the fringe of trees, was a fine view of the city skyline.

The man on his back would listen to the other man describe all of this, enjoying every minute. He heard how a child fell into the lake and how beautiful girls were in their summer dresses. His friend's descriptions eventually made him feel he could almost see what was happening outside. Then one afternoon, the thought struck him : Why should the man next to the window have all the pleasure of seeing what was going on? Why shouldn't he get the chance? He felt ashamed, but the more he tried not to think like that, the worse he wanted a change. He'd do anything! One night as he stared at the ceiling, the other man suddenly woke up, coughing and choking, his hands groping for the button that would bring the nurse running. But the man watched without moving - even when the sound of breathing stopped. In the morning, the nurse found the other man dead and quietly took his body away.

As soon as it seemed decent, the man asked if he could be switched to the bed next to the window. So they moved him, tucked him in and made him quite comfortable. The minute they left, he propped himself up on one elbow, painfully and laboriously and looked out the window.

It faces a blank wall.
Author Unknown - submitted by Ronald Dahlsten and Harriette Lindsey - Extracted from 'A 2nd Helping of Chicken for the Soul', Jack Canfield & Mark Victor Hansen, Health Communications, Inc., 1995
A man is judged by his deeds, not by his words - Russian Proverb

Thought 19MAY2009

THIS IS LIFE
You have been sent on a journey. You had no choice about when or where it started. You don't know when, where, or how it will end. You have no map. All you know for sure is that it's bound to end sometime. There are rules that apply to this journey, but you've had to learn them as you go. And you can't control them. You may not even know the purpose of the journey, even though others claim to. All you know is that once started, you must continue every day, whether you feel like it or not. You start with no possessions and when you finish you must turn in all you have accumulated. In the end, say some, you will be rewarded or punished. But how do they know for sure? That's life and you can't change it. A little faith and sense of humour, fortunately, help cushion some of the bumps.
Extracted from 'Bits & Pieces', The Economic Press, Inc., Fairfield New Jersey - From the Library of Puan Hajah Zaihani Abdul Hamid
A kind word is like a spring day - Russian Proverb

Thought 18MAY2009

PEACE?
There once was a King who offered a prize to the artist who would paint the best picture of peace. Many artists tried. The King looked at all the pictures, but there were only two he really liked, and he had to choose between them. One picture was of a calm lake. The lake was a perfect mirror for the peaceful towering mountains all around it. Overhead was a blue sky with fluffy white clouds. All who saw this picture thought that it was a perfect picture of peace. The second picture had mountains, too. But these were rugged and bare. Above was an angry sky from which rain fell, and in which lightening played. Down the side of the mountain tumbled a foaming fountain. This did not look peaceful at all. But when the King looked, he saw behind the waterfall a tiny bush growing in a crack in the rock. In the bush a mother bird had built her nest. There, in the midst of the rush of angry water, sat the mother bird on her nest....a picture of a perfect peace. The King chose the second picture.

Do you know why?

"Because," explained the King, "peace does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble or hard work. Peace means to be in the midst of all those things and still be calm in your heart. That is the real meaning of peace."
Source Unknown
A fault confessed is half redressed - Polish Proverb

Thought 15MAY2009

ON CHARACTER
"Character really does count. The reason is simple: With character and integrity, you're going to do the right thing. And when you do the right thing, you have no guilt or regrets. With integrity you have nothing to fear because you have nothing to hide. Think about it for a moment. When you've taken both guilt and fear off your back, with those two albatrosses gone you are free to be the very best you can be, do the most you can do and, as a result, have more of the good things that life has to offer. That's a winning formula."
From Zig Ziglar Newsletter
Go and wake up your luck - Persian Proverb

Thought 14MAY2009

GOOD-BYES
Do not be dismayed at good-byes. A good-bye is necessary before meeting again and meeting again after moments or lifetimes is certain for those who are friends.
Richard Bach
Ask questions from your heart and you will be answered from the heart - Omaha Proverb

Thought 13MAY2009

EXPLORE
Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things you did not do than by the things you did do. So, throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails.
Explore. Dream. Discover.
Mark Twain
However far the stream flows, it never forgets its source - Nigerian Proverb

Thought 12MAY2009

ON MARRIAGE
The kind of marriage you make depends upon the kind of person you are. If you are happy, well-adjusted person, the chances are your marriage will be a happy one. If you have made adjustments so far with more satisfaction than distress, you are likely to make your marriage and family adjustments satisfactorily. If you are discontented and bitter about your lot in life, you will have to change before you can expect to live happily ever after.
Evelyn Duvall and Reuben Hill - When You Marry - Extracted from 'Speaker's Sourcebook II', Glen Van Ekeren, Prentice Hall, 1994
Hold a true friend with both hands - Nigerian Proverb

Thought 11MAY2009

WHAT DERAILS FAST-TRACK EXECUTIVES
Why do some executives perish while others flourish?The American Management Association conducted an in-depth interviews with 41 executives and found that these traits often lead to failure :
1) Insensitivity to co-workers
2) Aloofness and arrogance
3) Tendency to misuse information conveyed in confidence
4) Inability to control ambition
5) Inability to delegate assignments or promote teamwork
6) Inability to staff effectively
7) Inability to think strategically
8) Overdependence on mentors.
extracted from 'Speaker's Sourcebook II, Glen Van Ekeren, Prentice Hall, 1994
He who waits for a chance may wait for a long time - Nigerian Proverb

Thought 08MAY2009

DISCOVERY
My class was two weeks away from opening night of our play when Sherry walked into my classroom and in a hesitant voice announced that she would have to quit. Hundreds of reasons for such a declaration rushed through my mind -- tragic illness, death in the family, a terrible family crisis. The expression on my face prompted a further explanation. Sherry stammered, "My boyfriend Dave wants me to quit. The rehearsals are taking too much time away from our being together. I bring him sandwiches after football practice." Her boyfriend was a football player who later went on to play in the pros. He was the opposite of his brother Dan, who also played on the high school team. While Dan was easygoing, had a terrific sense of humor and was liked by nearly everyone, Dave seemed to always be angry and in need of someone to boss around. "Sherry," I said, "we're only two weeks from opening. You're outstanding in your role. I'd never be able to replace you."

"Really?" She beamed. "Really," I said, and I meant it. "Everyone should be allowed to do the things they are good at. You're a good actress. Dave should realize that. I know you know how much he loves football." "Yes," she agreed. "But I still have to quit." "I'll bet you're his best fan." She measured the words. "I am," she said. "Has he ever been to a Saturday morning rehearsal to see how good you are?" "No." "He should," I told her. "He should be your number one fan." The next day after sixth hour, my door flew open with a thud. Dave thundered toward me, looking twice as big as his 260 pounds. His arms dangled by his side, his large fists clenched as if around my neck. He leaned across my desk, veins popping, face red as a beet. "You...you...you..." he stammered.

"Can I help you, Dave?" I asked, hoping that my voice wouldn't shake the way my knees were. He never got beyond "you" before he turned and stomped out the door. I listened until the heavy footsteps started down the stairs to the first floor. Sherry did continue with the play, and I can honestly say starred in her art. I also noticed that she smiled more, and I occasionally saw her interacting with other students with a great deal of poise. Dave, I heard, found another girlfriend.
By Eugene E. Beasley - from Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul II, Copyright 1998 by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen and Kimberly Kirberger
Eyes that see do not grow old - Nicaraguan Proverb

Thought 07MAY2009

SHE TOLD ME IT WAS OKAY TO CRY
I saw her last night for the first time in years. She was miserable. She had bleached her hair, trying to hide its true color, just as her rough front hid her deep unhappiness. She needed to talk, so we went for a walk. While I thought about my future, the college applications that had recently arrived, she thought about her past, the home she had recently left. Then she spoke. She told me about her love - and I saw a dependent relationship with a dominating man. She told me about the drugs - and I saw that they were her escape. She told me about her goals - and I saw unrealistic material dreams. She told me she needed a friend - and I saw hope, because at least I could give her that. We had met in the second grade.She was missing a tooth, I was missing my friends. I had just moved across the continent to find cold metal swings and cold smirking faces outside the foreboding doors of P.S. 174, my new school. I asked her if I could see her Archie comic book, even though I didn't really like comics; she said yes, even though she didn't really like to share. Maybe we were both looking for a smile. And we found it. We found someone to giggle with late at night, someone to slurp hot chocolate with on the cold winter days when school was cancelled and we would sit together by the bay window, watching the snow endlessly falling.

In the summer, at the pool, I got stung by a bee. She held my hand and told me that she was there and that it was okay to cry - so I did. In the fall, we raked the leaves into piles and took turns jumping, never afraid because we knew that the multicolored bed would break our fall. Only now, she had fallen and there was no one to catch her. We hadn't spoken in months, we hadn't seen each other in years. I had moved to California, she had moved out of the house. Our experiences were miles apart, making our hearts much father away from each other than the continent she had just traversed. Through her words I was alienated, but through her eyes I felt her yearning. She needed support in her search for strength and a new start. She needed my friendship now more than ever. So I took her hand and told her that I was there and that it was okay to cry - so she did.
By Daphna Renan - from Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul. Copyright 1997 by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen and Kimberly Kirberger
The house does not rest upon the ground, but upon a woman - Mexican Proverb

Thought 06MAY2009

AS A MAN SOWETH
When I was in junior high, the eighth-grade bully punched me in the stomach. Not only did it hurt and make me angry, but the embarrassment and humiliation were almost intolerable. I wanted desperately to even the score! I planned to meet him by the bike racks the next day and let him have it. For some reason, I told my plan to Nana, my grandmother - big mistake. She gave me one of her hour-long lectures (that woman could really talk). The lecture was a total drag, but among other things, I vaguely remember her telling me that I didn’t need to worry about him. She said, "Good deeds beget good results, and evil deeds beget bad results." I told her, in a nice way, of course, that I thought she was full of it. I told her that I did good things all the time, and all I got in return was "baloney!" (I didn’t use that word.) She stuck to her guns, though. She said, "Every good deed will come back to you someday, and every bad thing you do will also come back to you."

It took me 30 years to understand the wisdom of her words. Nana was living in a board-and-care home in Laguna Hills, California. Each Tuesday, I came by and took her out to dinner. I would always find her neatly dressed and sitting in a chair right by the front door. I vividly remember our very last dinner together before she went into the convalescent hospital. We drove to a nearby simple little family-owned restaurant. I ordered pot roast for Nana and a hamburger for myself. The food arrived and as I dug in, I noticed that Nana wasn’t eating. She was just staring at the food on her plate. Moving my plate aside, I took Nana’s plate, placed it in front of me, and cut her meat into small pieces. I then placed the plate back in front of her. As she very weakly, and with great difficulty, forked the meat into her mouth, I was struck with a memory that brought instant tears to my eyes. Forty years previously, as a little boy sitting at the table. Nana had always taken the meat on my plate and cut it into small pieces so I could eat it.

It had taken 40 years, but the good deed had been repaid. Nana was right. We reap exactly what we sow. "Every good deed you do will someday come back to you." What about the eighth-grade bully? He ran into the ninth-grade bully.
By Mike Buetelle - from A 2nd Helping of Chicken Soup for the Soul - Copyright 1995 by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen
He who does not venture has no luck - Mexican Proverb

Thought 05MAY2009

'Sending to you - as reported' - emails received from friends and relatives :
Bill Gates recently gave a speech at a High School about 11 things they did not and will not learn in school. He talks about how feel-good, politically correct teachings created a generation of kids with no concept of reality and how this concept set them up for failure in the real world :::
Rule 1 : Life is not fair - get used to it!
Rule 2 : The world won't care about your self-esteem. The world will expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself.
Rule 3 : You will NOT make $60,000 a year right out of high school. You won't be a vice-president with a car phone until you earn both.
Rule 4 : If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss.
Rule 5 : Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your Grandparents had a different word for burger flipping: they called it opportunity.
Rule 6 : If you mess up, it's not your parents' fault, so don't whine about your mistakes, learn from them.
Rule 7 : Before you were born, your parents weren't as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you thought you were. So before you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parent's generation, try delousing the closet in your own room.
Rule 8 : Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life HAS NOT. In some schools, they have abolished failing grades and they'll give you as MANY TIMES as you want to get the right answer. This doesn't bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.
Rule 9 : Life is not divided into semesters. You don't get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you FIND YOURSELF. Do that on your own time..
Rule 10 : Television is NOT real life. In real life people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.
Rule 11 : Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one.
Source Unknown - email received!
I will charge thee nothing but the promise that thee will help the next man thee finds in trouble - Mennonite Proverb

Thought 04MAY2009

TWO BROTHERS
Once upon a time in a far away land, lived two young men, much like many young men you may know today... The two brothers were likable, but undisciplined, with a wild streak in them. Their mischievous behavior turned serious when they began stealing sheep from the local farmers -- a serious crime in this pastoral place, so long ago and far away. In time, the thieves were caught. The local farmers decided their fate: The two brothers would be branded on the forehead with the letters ST for "sheep thief." This sign they would carry with them forevermore. One brother was so embarrassed by this branding that he ran away; he was never heard from again.

The other brother, filled with remorse and reconciled to his fate, chose to stay and try to make amends to the villagers he had wronged. At first the villagers were skeptical and would have nothing to do with him. But this brother was determined to make reparation for his offenses. Whenever there was a sickness, the sheep thief came to care for the ill with soup and a soft touch. Whenever there was work needing to be done, the sheep thief came to help with a lending hand. It made no difference if the person were rich or poor, the sheep thief was there to help. Never accepting pay for his good deeds, he lived his life for others.

Many years later, a traveler came through the village. Sitting at a sidewalk cafe eating lunch, the traveler saw an old man with a strange brand on his forehead seated nearby. The stranger noticed that all the villagers who passed the old man stopped to share a kind word, to pay their respects; children stopped their play to give and receive a warm hug. Curious, the stranger asked the cafe owner, "What does that strange brand on the old man's head stand for?" "I don't know. It happened so long ago..." the cafe owner replied. Then, pausing briefly for a moment of reflection, he continued: "...but I think it stands for 'saint'."
By Willanne Ackerman - from Chicken Soup for the Unsinkable Soul, Copyright 1999 by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen
Conversation is food for the soul - Mexican Proverb