SECRETS OF STAYING IN LOVE FOR LIFE

Man dangerously walking on the side roof - “Perhaps when we find ourselves wanting everything, it is because we are dangerously close to wanting nothing.”

The results are in. I have learned that, after careful consideration
and endless debate, The Perfect Man has finally been named: "Mr.
Potato Head." Let me tell you why. He's tan. He's cute. He knows the
importance of accessorizing. And if he looks at another girl, you
can rearrange his face.

I don't know if Mr. or Ms. Potato Head is right for you. But I'm not
a big believer in the idea that we MUST find a perfect match,
anyway. There are plenty of happy people who are not paired with
someone else. And there are also plenty who may not say they found
Mr. or Ms. Right, but are living quite happily with Mr. Almost Right
or Ms. Close Enough.

Marriage and long-term commitments may not be for everyone, but if
you plan to be with someone a long time, can you stay in love? Does
a lifetime relationship have to seem more like a life sentence? I
think we're tempted to believe that real love is a myth, a long-term
relationship is a marathon and romance is for kids. Are there
secrets to staying in love? Over the long haul?

I believe in love and romance, and I know it can last a lifetime. I
also believe there are a few simple things we can do to help our
love grow over the years.

For one thing, find time to date. I don't mean time to rehash the
stuff you talk about all week long. Get away and talk about things
that matter. Use this as time to focus on one another, not to solve
problems or to raise issues. There are other times to bring up
difficult subjects.

Next, understand what delights the other and make it happen. "The
romance is over," says Marlys Huffman, "when you see a rosebush and
start looking for aphids instead of picking a bouquet." What makes
him laugh? What brings her pleasure? And what can you do today to
delight each other?

Also, remember why you got together in the first place. When you
focus first on his faults you're not thinking about his strengths.
When you're busy pointing out her imperfections, you're not enjoying
those qualities that attracted you to her initially. Choose to
appreciate that which first drew you together and remember it often.

And always - plan enough time for fun. And don't always plan times
for fun -- be spontaneous. Laugh. Go places. Play.

A woman from Charleston, South Carolina was overheard to remark that
it was her 53rd wedding anniversary. When asked if she planned a
special celebration, she smiled and said softly, "When you have a
nice man, it really doesn't matter." I suspect they learned the
secrets of staying in love.

From Lifesupport

Lifesigns Life Quotes

CHANGING WITH THE CHANGES FOR LIFE

Feet reflexology floor tiles for sale - “Only a fool tests the depth of the water with both feet.”

A clerk at a Philadelphia airline counter picked up the telephone
and heard the caller ask, "How long does it take to go from
Philadelphia to Phoenix?"

She was busy with another customer just then and intended to put the
caller on hold.

"Just a minute," she replied.

As she was about to press the hold button, the caller said, "Thank
you," and hung up.

We live in an age when it seems almost anything is possible. But a
trip of a couple thousand miles in a few minutes?

Our time is one of unprecedented change. I understand that 2005 was
the first year that there were more spam e-mails sent than cans of
Spam sold. And if you wonder what a can of Spam is, then you see how
much things have changed.

In a restaurant, a mother noticed her eleven-year-old daughter
staring at a movie poster on the wall. The picture portrayed
Superman standing in a phone booth. The girl's mother whispered to
her husband, "Doesn't she know who Superman is?"

He told her it was worse than that. "She doesn't know what a phone
booth is."

I heard someone mention that he believes most of the changes that
will ever take place already have occurred. I am sure that isn't so.
Our new reality is one of constant and unending change.

Some changes can be good and some we may feel are not for the best.
Most change is uncomfortable and awkward at first. But, of course,
if we don't occasionally feel awkward with what we're doing, maybe
we are not doing anything new. And unless we'd rather live in the
past, we'll be happiest learning to embrace this world of change and
to change and adapt along with it.

The world can still be a wonderful and exciting place to live. Do
you believe that? If so, change with the changes. Resist your
resistance to changing. Your attitude toward change is one of the
most important measures of determining whether you can be happy.

From Lifesupport

Lifesigns Life Quotes

LEANING YOUR LADDER AGAINST THE RIGHT BUILDING FOR LIFE

Pirate buccaneers mugs on sale - “There is more treasure in books than in all the pirate's loot on Treasure Island.”

Rabbi Harold Kushner tells a wonderful story about a bright young
man who was a sophomore Stanford pre-med student. To reward him for
having done so well in school, his parents gave him a trip to the
Asia for the summer.

While there he met a guru who said to him, "Don't you see how you
are poisoning your soul with this success-oriented way of life? Your
idea of happiness is to stay up all night studying for an exam so
you can get a better grade than your best friend. Your idea of a
good marriage is not to find the woman who will make you whole, but
to win the girl that everyone else wants.

"That's not how people are supposed to live," the sage admonished.
"Give it up; come join us in an atmosphere where we all share and
love each other."

The young man had completed four years at a competitive high school
to get into Stanford, plus two years of pre-med courses at the
university. He was ripe for this sort of approach. He called his
parents from Tokyo and told them he would not be coming home. He was
dropping out of school to live in an ashram (a spiritual retreat).

Six months later, his parents got this letter from him:

"Dear Mom and Dad,
I know you weren't happy with the decision I made last summer, but I
want to tell you how happy it has made me. For the first time in my
life, I am at peace. Here there is no competing, no hustling, no
trying to get ahead of anyone else. Here we are all equal and we all
share. This way of life is so much in harmony with the inner essence
of my soul that in only six months I've become the number two
disciple in the entire ashram, and I think I can be number one by
June!"

You can take the boy out of the rat race, but can you take the rat
race out of the boy?

I am concerned about some people's narrow and dangerous ideas about
success. Achieving more, getting more, becoming number one. Not that
there is anything wrong with healthy achievement. It's just that
there is a difference between earning well and living well.

A successful life is not always a high-achieving life. Sometimes it
is about accomplishing a worthwhile goal, even a private, personal
victory. Sometimes it is about improving one's character. Sometimes
success is best defined by living into one's own personal mission,
or finding a meaningful purpose to organize one's life around. And
sometimes it is about learning how to live in peace, happiness,
generosity and love.

Someone put it like this: "I spent my life frantically climbing the
ladder of success. When I got to the top I realized it was leaning
against the wrong building." Even if she got to the top first, it
made no difference. There is no merit in being first to arrive at
the wrong place in life.

You CAN BE successful in ways that matter. And your life can be
truly meaningful. If you're leaning your ladder against the right
building, it doesn't even matter if you make it to the top. Any life
spent going after things that count, will count as a life well
spent.

From Lifesupport

Lifesigns Life Quotes

PAYING ATTENTION TO HABITS IN LIFE

Antique china wares on display - “Friendship is like a expensive china. It can be fixed when it is broken, but the crack will remain.”

There was a fire one night at a convent and several nuns who lived
on the fourth floor were trapped. They were praying for divine
providence to show them a way out of the fire when one of the
sisters screamed, "We need to take off our robes, tie them together,
and climb down to safety."

Later as they were recounting the event to reporters, they were
asked if they were afraid that the crude rope might not hold up.
"Oh, no," they said, "Old habits are hard to break."

Do you know the story of the touchstone? It tells of a fortunate man
who was told that, if he should find the "touchstone," its magical
powers could give him anything he wanted. It could be found, he was
informed, among the pebbles of a certain beach. All he need do is
pick up a stone - if it feels warm to the touch, unlike the other
pebbles, he has found the magical touchstone.

The man went immediately to the beach and began picking up stones.
When he grasped a pebble that felt cold, he threw it into the sea.
This practice he continued hour after hour, day after day, week
after week. Each pebble felt cold. Each pebble was immediately
tossed into the sea.

But then, late one morning, he happened to take hold of a pebble
that felt warm, unlike the other stones. The man, whose
consciousness had barely registered the difference, tossed it into
the sea. He hadn't meant to, but he had formed a habit, and habits
can be hard to break.

Most of my habits are more like routines. I habitually arise about
the same time every day - too early, it seems. I exercise. I fix
oatmeal for breakfast. Most days I listen to the same kinds of music
and even read the same kinds of literature. (I hope I don't repeat
the same old stories.) My routines include those places I like to
visit and the people I like to see. It's all fairly predictable. But
what I call routine is more like a series of habits, some of which
work well for me and some I should perhaps look at a bit more
closely.

In fact, any behavior that I repeat, I reinforce. If I repeat it
often enough, it becomes habit. Soon I don't even think about it -
old habits are hard to break. Even good ones.

A Spanish proverb says: "Habits are first cobwebs, then cables." The
metaphor works well for "bad" habits. They first entice, and then
ensnare us like a cobweb. And if we continue in the behavior, the
web grows stronger and can be as difficult to break as a steel
cable.

But some habits can work in our favor. Such as patterns in the way
we live our lives. Or positive attitudes and healthy ways of
thinking. Our habitual attitudes and behaviors can either help us or
hinder us.

The truth is this: we form our habits, then our habits form us. So
we ought to pay attention to the habits we're forming.

Is there a behavior or attitude you would like to make into a habit?
Then reinforce it by repeating it at every opportunity. Is there a
something you wish to change? Then substitute a different attitude
or behavior and repeat the new one every chance you get.

When it comes to habits, practice may not make perfect. But practice
will certainly make permanent. Your habits will form you. So form
the habits you want and let them mold you into the person you want
to be.

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Lifesigns Life Quotes

THE EASIEST WAY TO LEARN IN LIFE

Fresh pumpkins for sale - “Produce great pumpkins, the pies will follow later.”

A true story points to a universal truth about human beings: we learn
best by watching how others behave.

President Calvin Coolidge once invited friends from his hometown to
dine with him at the White House. Unsure of their table manners, the
guests decided to imitate the presi­dent. They watched closely to see
which utensils he used, what foods he ate and when.

Their strategy seemed to succeed until coffee was served. Coolidge
poured some coffee into his saucer. They did the same. He added sugar
and cream. His guests did, too. Then the president bent over and put
his saucer on the floor for the cat!

Like Coolidge's hometown guests, we, too, seem to learn best by
imitation. Kids learn by ob­serving parents when they are young, and
by copying their peers as they grow older. In fact, parents should
probably be less concerned about whether their children are paying
attention to them and more worried about the fact that their kids are
ALWAYS watching.

They tell us that adults learn in much the same way. If you're
struggling with your computer or want to learn to drive a car, you
will be more successful if you have someone show you how to do it. You
can always read the operator's manual and try to figure everything out
yourself, but you will learn best by watching others and asking
questions.

What if you want to become more self confident, to organize your life,
to be a better parent or to get along better with others? Again, we're
told that the best way to learn these skills and attitudes is to find
somebody who already is confident, or who is an effective parent or
who has healthy attitudes and then mimic the traits you want to adopt.
It is the easiest and quickest way to shape your life.

Just about ANY personality trait or skill can be learned: simply find
it in someone you know and copy it. Then watch what happens.

From Lifesupport

Lifesigns Life Quotes

HOW'S YOUR VISION IN LIFE?

Overexposed picture of papercraft smart phone - “It's good to overexpose yourself with work. But don't expose yourself too much with the press.”

One woman laughs about the time she took her 14-year-old daughter and
her daughter's best friend to a Peter, Paul and Mary concert. They
were all fans of "oldies" music from the 60's and 70's and felt lucky
to get front row seats. When they returned home, her daughter said,
"During the show, we looked back and saw hundreds of little lights
swaying to the music. At first we thought the people were holding up
cigarette lighters. Then we realized that the lights were the
reflections off all the eyeglasses in the audience." (Thanks to
"Reader's Digest")

My eyesight isn't what it used to be, either. But as Helen Keller (who
could neither hear nor see) said, "The greatest tragedy in life is
people who have sight but no vision." Maybe I should be more concerned
with my vision than with my eyesight.

There are numerous stories of people who lacked vision. A Hollywood
producer scrawled a curt rejection note on a manuscript that became
"Gone With The Wind." He had no vision for the success that movie
would enjoy.

Orville and Wilbur Wright felt excited. On December 17, 1903, they
had finally succeeded in keeping their homemade airplane in the air
for 59 seconds. Immediately, they rushed a telegram to their sister
in Dayton, Ohio, telling of this great accomplishment. The telegram
read, "First sustained flight today fifty-nine seconds. Hope to be
home by Christmas."

Upon receiving the news of the successful flight, their sister was so
excited that she rushed to the newspaper office and gave the telegram
to the editor. The next morning the newspaper headed the story:
"Popular Local Bicycle Merchants To Be Home For Holidays." The hapless
editor saw what was obvious, but missed the real story.

Vision is never about seeing the obvious. It's about looking ahead;
about seeing what is not there -- YET. It's often about seeing the
potential behind the obvious.

Like the potential in people. Spotting the potential for success in a
student who, as is obvious to everyone else, will likely fail.

Or recognizing the potential for something good to come from a
situation others are writing off as lost.

If we want to see what is really going on, we will need to learn to
spot what is not there, then act on it.

So... your eyesight may be perfect, but how's your vision?

From Lifesupport

Lifesigns Life Quotes

WE NEED EACH OTHER FOR LIFE

Paving cement road - “A person without a sense of humor is like a wagon without springs. It's jolted by every pebble on the road.”

Many living things need each other to survive. I have lived for most
of my life near trees known as Colorado aspens. If you are familiar
with this tree, you may have noticed that it does not grow alone.
Aspens are found in clusters, or groves. We're told that the reason
for this is because aspens can multiply from the roots. They send up
lots of new shoots every year. These become saplings that grow quickly
and make new baby aspens of their own. In some groves, all of the
trees may actually be connected by their roots. It is as if they are
one tree.

Another tree, the giant California redwood, may tower 300 feet into
the sky. We've seen pictures of tunnels carved into massive trunks
wide enough to drive an automobile through. It seems they would
require the deepest of roots to anchor them against strong winds. But
instead their roots are actually shallow -- they spread out wide in
search of surface water. And they reach in all directions,
intertwining with roots of other redwoods. Locked together in this
way, all the trees support each other in wind and storms.

Aspens and redwoods never stand alone. They need one another to
survive.

People, too, are connected by a system of roots. We grow up in
families that nurture and guide us. We learn early to make friends who
support us in different ways. We are not meant to survive long without
others. And like the giant redwoods, we do best when we hold onto one
another and help each other to keep standing through life's storms. We
need others to hold us up, encourage us and to stand with us.

When I'm not doing well, it is often because I am going it alone. I
don't always let others in. I forget to ask for help; I keep my
problems to myself. And though I may not see it, others around me
might be doing the same thing.

It helps to remember how much like those trees we really are. It might
be time to let someone else help hold you up for awhile. Or perhaps
someone needs to hang on to you.

From Lifesupport

Lifesigns Life Quotes

SURPRISED BY JOY FOR LIFE

Bootleg Gundam Wing model kit - “We are each of us angels with only one wing, and we can only fly by embracing one another.”

Sometimes fact is more mysterious than fiction. I clipped a newspaper
article several years ago which tells a story that is strange... and
beautiful.

Stan heard in church about a Denver, Colorado (USA) family facing a
rather bleak Christmas holiday. Medical bills robbed them of any
extras; they would not even have a tree. Stan's pastor asked him if he
would get them that tree.

So Stan and his son Jay headed up into the Colorado Rockies in the
family pickup. However, the truck skidded off the icy road and hit a
boulder that shattered the windshield. Jay was showered by glass
slivers and suffered from shock and crash trauma. Stan was uninjured,
though somewhat shaken.

Cars sped past that day -- maybe 200 of them. Only two stopped to
help. A gentle, dark-haired woman took the boy into her car to comfort
him while her husband and another man helped Stan move his truck off
the road. Then this kind couple drove father and son to Stan's home
and quietly left without identifying themselves.

Stan was discouraged that he was unable to cut a tree for the family
that his church was trying to help. But later in the month, the pastor
asked if Stan might deliver a food basket to the same unfortunate
family. He found the house, but he could hardly find his speech when
the door opened. For standing there before him was the same couple who
had stopped to help him on the mountain road when so many others had
passed him by.

There is a strange power in love. Some folks may call it an amazing
coincidence. Others might say it was divine providence. But I choose
to think that love has its own power, and that sometimes these kinds
of mysteries are better left unanalyzed. Let them remain mysteries.
And enjoy the wonder of it all. For whenever we choose to be kind, we just might be surprised by joy.

From Lifesupport

Lifesigns Life Quotes

MILLENNIUM DREAM FOR LIFE

Stream at the beach - “In the confrontation between the stream and the rock, the stream always wins. Not through strength, but through persistence.”

The daughter of comedian Groucho Marx was once denied admittance to an
exclusive country club swimming pool with her friends because she and
her family were not members. Realizing what had happened, embarrassed
officials sent the Marx family an apology and an application to join.
Groucho declined the invitation with the comment, "I wouldn't want to
belong to any club that would have me as a member."

Someone still tried to smooth over the incident by persuading the
comedian to allow an application to be submitted for membership. The
country club was embarrassed further when the application was denied.
The reason? The Marx family was Jewish and the club was "restricted. "

True to form, Groucho wrote back: "My wife is not Jewish. Can she go
swimming and let our daughter wade up to her waist?"

I love his use of humor, but Groucho effectively shines a spotlight on
the prevalence and absurdity of prejudice. He must have felt, as did
Sir Isaac Newton so many years earlier, that we "build too many walls
and not enough bridges."

I yearn for a time when we courageously break down those walls that
divide and build wide bridges between one another. I long for a
super-highway of compassion and acceptance spanning our differences
that will unite us as one. As we ease into a new millennium, I dream
of an age when people will finally be connected heart to heart and
mind to mind.

My greatest desire is that we somehow learn what it means to be
family.

From Lifesupport

Lifesigns Life Quotes

HOW TO HAVE A LIFE OF JOY

Frozen hash browns for sale - “Friendship that flows from the heart cannot be frozen by adversity, as the water that flows from the spring cannot congeal in winter.”

Do you know how to have a life of joy?

A businessman on his deathbed called his friend and said, "Bill, I
want you to promise me that when I die you will have my remains
cremated." "And what," his friend asked, "do you want me to do with
your ashes?" The businessman said, "Just put them in an envelope and
mail them as taxes to the government and write on the envelope,
'NOW YOU HAVE EVERYTHING!' "

Paying taxes is not usually a joy. But GIVING can be joyful. We pay
the taxes because we have to. But when we choose to give time or
money, then giving can add to our overall happiness.

Mother Teresa teaches us an important lesson about happiness. She
was one of those people who emanated joy. Born in 1910 in Skopje,
Macedonia, she felt called as a teenager to move to Calcutta, India.
Some months later she saw a sight that completely revolutionized her
life.

Shortly after moving to Calcutta she spotted a homeless, dying woman
lying in the gutter, being eaten by rats. After seeing that,
compassion compelled her to beg an abandoned Hindu temple from the
government and convert it into a crude, make-shift hospital for the
dying. "Nobody should die alone" she would later say. Mother Teresa
went on to establish homes for the destitute dying in numerous cities.
But in spite of devoting her life to people in such dire straits, she
radiated joy and happiness.

This incredible woman was once interviewed by Malcolm Muggeridge from
the BBC News. He asked her an unusual question: "Mother Teresa, the
thing I noticed about you and the hundreds of sisters who now form
your team is that you all look so happy. Is that a put-on?"

Here was a woman who had none of the things we like to think of as
bringing happiness: a home, a family, prosperity. Rather, she lived in
near-poverty and spent her time wiping dirt and various body fluids
from half-dead cancer and leprosy victims -- and appeared to be
blissfully happy. "Is that a put-on" she was asked?

She replied, "Oh no, not at all. Nothing makes you happier than when
you really reach out in mercy to someone who is badly hurt."

She would agree that happiness does not come from acquiring, but is a
by-product of giving: time, money, love. Do you want a life of joy?
Start by giving.

From Lifesupport

Lifesigns Life Quotes

EYES ON THE SHORE OF LIFE

Harvested banana hearts for sale - “Maybe I could have loved you better. Maybe you should have loved me more. Maybe our hearts were just next in line. Maybe everything breaks sometime.”

A story is told about a bloodhound chasing a stag. A fox crossed the
path, so the hound chased the fox. After a while a rabbit crossed the
path, so the hound chased it. Later, a mouse crossed the path and the
hound chased the mouse into a hole. The hound began his hunt on the
trail of a magnificent stag and ended up watching a mouse hole!

Not that there is anything wrong with spontaneity. Some of the most
wonderful things have come into my life by beautiful accident. But
there is also something to be said for knowing where we want to go.

Florence Chadwick learned the importance of keeping a goal in mind on
July 4, 1952. She waded into the Pacific Ocean off Catalina Island
and began swimming toward the California coast 26 miles away. The day
was cold and her attendants drove off sharks throughout the journey.

Florence had already swum the English Channel twice and, if she could
finish today, she would be the first woman to have swum both. But
after fifteen hours in the water, for the first and only time in her
long-distance swimming career, she gave up and climbed into the
escort boat. Others had urged her on, but in the fog they could not
tell her how near she was to the coast. She later learned that she
was less than half a mile from shore.

When asked by a reporter why she gave up, Florence replied: "It was
the fog. If I could have seen land, I could have finished. But when
you can't see your goal, you lose all sense of progress and you begin
to give up."

On a warm, sunny day two months later Florence Chadwick swam the
Catalina Channel, handily beating the men's record. Only when she
kept her eyes on the shore did she eventually arrive there.

Keeping that goal constantly in sight will get you where you want to
go.

From Lifesupport

Lifesigns Life Quotes

SUCCEEDING AT LIFE

Local traditional Chinese pastries - “Often, the less there is to justify a traditional custom, the harder it is to get rid of it.”

It's said there are three ways to get to the top of a tree: climb it,
sit on an acorn or make friends with a big bird. But without too much
imagination I can think of a couple of other ways – like one that
involves a parachute and a poor landing.

However, the point is still well taken: getting to the top of that
organization or reaching a new height requires effort. And it is taken
for granted that reaching the top is exactly what everyone wants to
do. After all, isn't that what "success" is all about? More power?
More money? Reaching the top?

But what about success at living – trying to get it right this go
around?

Success at this thing we call living has always been important to me.
And climbing to the top of a tree has never been a good metaphor for
it. I like to think more about the word "priorities. " Getting some
basic priorities in order is key. And I know that if one's life can be
organized around solid priorities, then a full and worthwhile life
will be the result.

It is always risky to use sports illustrations; they just don't speak
to everyone. But let me forge ahead with an oft-quoted statement by
American football coaching legend Vince Lombardi. He is remembered for
saying, "Winning isn't everything, it's the only thing." And
Lombardi's dream was certainly to coach winning teams, but it's a
mistake to think that climbing to the top of football's ladder of
success was his greatest goal. He believed it was more important to
succeed at life than at his career or anything else.

Actually, winning football games was not "the only thing" to Lombardi.
He once actually listed his life priorities in this order: God, his
family and his career.

He knew what was important. And he knew that keeping his priorities
straight could bring him joy, peace and, ultimately, success at life.
Which is probably the only thing that truly matters.

From Lifesupport

Lifesigns Life Quotes

A DREAM THAT WILL CATCH YOUR HEART IN LIFE

Classy ceiling fan - “Fan the sinking flame of hilarity with the wing of friendship; and pass the rosy wine.”

That all-too-quotable Yogi Berra once said, "If you don't know where
you are going, you might wind up someplace else." (I think that
happened to me once.)

But even if you know where you want to end up, do you REALLY WANT to
be there? I'm not talking about traveling now, but where we're going
with our lives. Is the dream you are following really that important
to you?

Most people are not lazy. They simply have uninspiring goals. They
don't accomplish what they set out to do because they lose interest.
The dream they are following is simply not that important to them.

But then I think of Dennis Oehler. He ran the 100-meter dash in 11.73
seconds. Record-holder Maurice Greene ran it in 9.79 seconds, almost
two seconds faster. So what's the big deal? Maurice Greene has two
legs. Dennis Oehler has one. One leg -- and a huge dream.

The truth is -- we are always highly motivated when something means a
great deal to us. If I fell into a deep lake and I didn't know how to
swim, I would become highly motivated in an instant. Climbing from the
lake would mean more to me than anything else in the world. My effort
would be no less than astounding and I would suddenly become one of
the most excited and enthusiastic persons imaginable.

And that goes for anything that is truly important to us. If we want
something badly enough, we will find necessary energy, excitement and
drive to grasp it.

Writer Tim Redmond says this about following worthwhile dreams: "There
are many things that will catch my eye, but there are only a few that
catch my heart...it is those I consider to pursue."

Is your dream big enough -- important enough -- to catch your heart?

From Lifesupport

Lifesigns Life Quotes

LITTLE THINGS IN LIFE

Red flower batik painting - “Artists can color the sky red because they know it's blue. Those of us who aren't artists must color things the way they really are or people might think we're stupid.”

When I was in college, I shared an American Thanksgiving supper with
friends. We spent the day cooking together – turkey, potatoes, green
beans, yams and, of course, dinner rolls. I was in charge of the
rolls. Looking back, that may have been a mistake.

I love to eat raw dough. Most any kind will do – cookie dough, cake
batter, biscuit dough, bread dough – you get the idea. So I rolled out
the yeast dough, sliced off a corner and ate it, rolled some more,
sliced and ate, rolled, sliced, ate…. I don't know how much of the
dough I consumed before the rolls hit the oven, but I remember it as a
wonderful afternoon. Until about a half-hour later.

Yeast, it seems, likes a dark, moist, warm environment. In me, it
found one and did what yeast does best – it grew. And grew. And grew.

After a while my stomach was distended and I felt like the Pillsbury
Dough Boy with a burping disorder.

It was soon time for supper and I felt too full to eat anything. All
of that scrumptious food and I couldn't eat.

That day I gained a new respect for the power of yeast; it doesn't
take much to make a big difference.

Little things make a big difference. Little things like yeast. Little
things like kindness.

Douglas, a fifteen year old boy who lived in Missouri (USA), had been
feeling badly for several days. His mother Donna took him to the
emergency room where blood tests revealed one of the most frightening
things a parent can learn about a child. Her son was diagnosed with
leukemia.

Douglas' life changed. He began a routine of blood transfusions,
spinal and bone marrow tests and chemotherapy. The physical trauma was
one thing, but he also became depressed. And who wouldn't? He lost is
former life, his healthy self. All of those exciting dreams and plans
a young boy has for his future vanished, and in their place all he
could see was somebody with cancer. Somebody who may or may not live
long. Somebody whose life would be very different than before.

He had a good hospital and good doctors. But it he did not have hope.
And without it, he was in serious jeopardy.

Douglas' aunt called a florist close to the hospital. She wanted the
sales clerk to be aware of the flower arrangement' s significance. "I
want the planter to be especially attractive. It's for my teenage
nephew who has leukemia," she told the clerk.

"Oh," said the salesclerk. "Let's add some fresh-cut flowers to
brighten it up."

When the floral arrangement arrived Douglas opened the envelope and
read the card from his aunt. Then he saw something unusual. It was
another card. The second card read:

"Douglas--I took your order. I work at (this floral shop).
I had leukemia when I was seven years old. I'm 22 years
old now. Good luck. My heart goes out to you.
Sincerely,
Laura."

Douglas smiled. He finally felt some real hope. And why not? Here was
a person who also had cancer and new she was 22 and working! If she
could do it, so could he. Douglas found what he needed. He found the
will to live.

Little things make a big difference. Little things like kindness and
encouragement and hope. Little things all of us can give.

And it doesn't take much to make a big difference.

From Lifesupport

Lifesigns Life Quotes

FOUR TRAITS OF EFFECTIVE LEADERS FOR LIFE

1/100 scale Gundam Exia Avalanche and Gundam OO model kits on display - “No snowflake in an avalanche ever feels responsible.”

A young officer in the Army discovered that he had no change when he
tried to buy a soft drink from a vending machine. He flagged down a
passing private and asked him, "Do you have change for a dollar?"

The private said cheerfully, "I think so. Let me take a look."

The officer drew himself up stiffly and said, "Soldier, that is no
way to address a superior. We'll start all over again. Do you have
change for a dollar?"

The private came to attention, saluted smartly, and said, "No, sir!"

Each of us commands some authority. There are or will be those we
guide, supervise, rear, mentor or lead. Some of us will be effective
and others will feel as if we're running a cemetery: we've got a lot
of people under us and nobody's listening.

Much has been written and taught about leadership, but I find that at
least four traits are common in all people of authority who
effectively elicit cooperation and respect from those who look up to
them. Whether you are a parent, whether you find yourself in the
workplace, sitting on a volunteer committee or teaching some-one a
new skill, these traits will help you effectively guide those who
would seek to follow.

These good leaders are...

L isteners. They take time to listen to the suggestions and concerns
of those they endeavor to lead.

E ncouragers. They don't try to do it all themselves. Neither do they
motivate by force or guilt. They encourage others and help bring out
their best.

A ssertive. They say what needs to be said without being unkind. They
tell the truth as they see it, openly and frankly.

D ecisive. They know what needs to be done and they make timely, even
difficult, decisions when necessary. But they can also take charge
without running over the people in their lives.

In short, good leaders L-E-A-D!

It's said that the trouble with being a leader today is that you
can't be sure whether people are following you or chasing you. But
those who will develop these four traits are sure to find that their
authority will be valued and respected.

From Lifesupport

Lifesigns Life Quotes