A LOFTIER AMBITION FOR LIFE

Live crocodiles resting in the shade by the pond - “As there is no worse lie than a truth misunderstood by those who hear it, so reasonable arguments, challenges to magnanimity, and appeals to sympathy or justice, are folly when we are dealing with human crocodiles and boa-constrictors.”

One woman says she bought a computer to help her figure her budget. The first thing she learned was that she couldn't afford a computer.

Most people never feel as if they have enough money, and one of the greatest problems in too many lives is financial debt. Earl Wilson says, "Nowadays people can be divided into three classes - the Haves, the Have-Nots, and the Have-Not-Paid-For-What-They-Haves."

Yet, since the beginning of time, people have been preoccupied with ways to get or keep money. In fact, in The Old Farmer's Almanac of Everyday Advice (Random House, 1995), editor Judson D. Hale, Sr. lists a number of money superstitions from various cultures. Some examples:

If you dream of oysters, then you will come into some money.

Swallowing a raw chicken heart will ensure you a financial
windfall.

A girl with hairy arms and legs will marry a rich man.

To increase your money, spit on the first piece of money you
receive each day.

I suggest we file these tidbits of advice in the "Ways to get money when all else has failed" folder. And it helps to remember that "getting" money is not an end in itself. Those who try simply to become as wealthy as possible have lost sight of what money is all about. After all, one can earn successfully and still not live successfully.

Do you want to live successfully? Then look at what you do with your money. Do you use your hard-earned resources to help others? Do you gladly support organizations and causes that serve humanity? Is the world a better place because of your possessions, no matter how limited you believe they may be?

Henry Van Dyke teaches, "There is a loftier ambition than merely to stand high in the world. It is to stoop down and lift mankind a little higher." Regardless of how much we possess, there is always someone we can raise up a bit higher. And in so doing, we find that we will stand taller, too.

From Lifesupport.

Lifesigns Life Quotes