I am a 61 year old, father of two boys and have been happily married for 33 years. I have been a Physical Education teacher and coach for 38 years and have loved EVERY minute of it. I enjoy making people laugh and feel good about themselves. It’s fun collecting inspiring and heartwarming stories.from people. So, if you have a good story…let me know! I hope you enjoy my page!! :)
Remember:
Everyone is fighting a battle that you know nothing about.
Be kind.
Always.
A Cherokee was instructing his grandson about a battle that goes on in every human being. He said to the young man, “the battle is between two wolves. One wolf is slothful, cowardly, vain, arrogant, and full of self-pity, sorrow, regret, envy and anger. The other wolf is diligent, courageous, humble, benevolent, and full of compassion, joy, empathy and faith”. Then there was a silence.
The grandson thought about the wolves for a moment and then asked his grandfather, “which wolf wins?”
This is a picture that demonstrates the true power of words by a photographer that visited this Central American country. Imagine the effect that we can have on others when we find just one positive thing to say about them!!
There are many times throughout our lives that we sometimes forget the true power and strength of God. We cast our focus on famous or powerful people and shower them adoration, praise, honor and glory. We put them up on a pedestal and view them as people who have all the right answers, the correct decisions, and say the perfect things. It is sort of sad then when we find out how flawed these people are and how disappointed we are that they “let us down.”
A few days ago, I came across this great little story on InspirationalStories.com written by James Baldwin, (The Book of Virtues), which gave me a tremendous illustration about the simple power and glory of God. I hope you enjoy it.
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Long ago, England was ruled by a king named Canute. Like many leaders and men of power, Canute was surrounded by people who were always praising him. Every time he walked into a room, the flattery began.
“You are the greatest man that ever lived,” one would say.
“O king, there can never be another as mighty as you,” another would insist.
“Your highness, there is nothing you cannot do,” someone would smile.
“Great Canute, you are the monarch of all,” another would sing. “Nothing in this world dares to disobey you.”
The king was a man of sense, and he grew tired of hearing such foolish speeches.
One day he was walking by the seashore, and his officers and courtiers were with him, praising him as usual. Canute decided to teach them a lesson.
“So you say I am the greatest man in the world?” he asked them.
“O king,” they cried, “there never has been anyone as mighty as you, and there never be anyone so great, ever again!”
“And you say all things obey me?” Canute asked.
“Absolutely!” they said. “The world bows before you, and gives you honor.”
“I see,” the king answered. “In that case, bring me my chair, and we will go down to the water.”
“At once, your majesty!” They scrambled to carry his royal chair over the sands.
“Bring it closer to the sea,” Canute called. “Put it right here, right at the water’s edge.” He sat down and surveyed the ocean before him. “I notice the tide is coming in. Do you think it will stop if I give the command?”
His officers were puzzled, but they did not dare say no. “Give the order, O great king, and it will obey,” one of then assured him.
“Very well. Sea,” cried Canute, “I command you to come no further! Waves, stop your rolling!. Surf, stop your pounding! Do not dare touch my feet!”
He waited a moment, quietly, and a tiny wave rushed up the sand and lapped at his feet.
“How dare you!” Canute shouted. “Ocean, turn back now! I have ordered you to retreat before me, and now you must obey! Go back!”
And in answer another wave swept forward and curled around the king’s feet. The tide came in, just as it always did. The water rose higher and higher. It came up around the king’s chair, and wet not only his feet, but also his robe. His officers stood before him, alarmed, and wondering whether he was not mad.
“Well, my friends,” Canute said, “it seems I do not have quite so much power as you would have me believe. Perhaps you have learned something today. Perhaps now you will remember there is only one King who is all-powerful, and it is he who rules the sea, and holds the ocean in the hollow of his hand. I suggest you reserve your praises for him.”
The royal officers and courtiers hung their heads and looked foolish. And some say Canute took off his crown soon afterward, and never wore it again.
Thanksgiving conjures up many, many heartwarming memories for many of us. We all have favorite things about this delicious holiday. So, I decided that it would be sort of fun to ask YOU…my friends and fellow bloggers…
What is YOUR favorite thing or experience of Thanksgiving?
Please send me your thoughts and within the week, I will write up a blog that will include your favorite thoughts, memories, and a free link to your page!!
So, sit back..think about what you may want to share about Thanksgiving with others…then let me know!! That’s all there is to it!
Thanks for your time.
I am looking forward to hearing from many of you!!
“I was reading an article last night about fathers and sons, and memories came flooding back of the time I took my son out for his first drink. Off we went to our local bar, which is only two blocks from the house.
I got him a Guinness Stout. He didn’t like it – so I drank it.
Then I got him an Old Style, he didn’t like it either, so I drank it.
While at the park one day, a woman sat down next to a man on a bench near a playground. “That’s my son over there,” she said, pointing to a little boy in a red sweater who was gliding down the slide. “He’s a fine-looking boy” the man said. “That’s my daughter on the bike in the white dress.”
Then, looking at his watch, he called to his daughter. “What do you say we go, Melissa?” Melissa pleaded, “Just five more minutes, Dad. Please? Just five more minutes.” The man nodded and Melissa continued to ride her bike to her heart’s content. Minutes passed and the father stood and called again to his daughter. “Time to go now?”
Again Melissa pleaded, “Five more minutes, Dad. Just five more minutes.” The man smiled and said, “OK.” “My, you certainly are a patient father,” the woman responded.
The man smiled and then said, “Her older brother Tommy was killed by a drunk driver last year while he was riding his bike near here. I never spent much time with Tommy and now I’d give anything for just five more minutes with him. I’ve vowed not to make the same mistake with Melissa. She thinks she has five more minutes to ride her bike. The truth is, I get Five more minutes to watch her play.”
Life is all about making priorities, and family should be the one and only priority on top of all other, so spend all the time you can with loved ones.
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Source: My buddy Karina @ http://karinasussanto.wordpress.com/2013/05/22/five-more-minutes/
A few years after I was born, my Dad met a stranger who was new to our small town. From the beginning, Dad was fascinated with this enchanting newcomer and soon invited him to live with our family. The stranger was quickly accepted and was around from then on.
As I grew up, I never questioned his place in my family. In my young mind, he had a special niche. My parents were complementary instructors: Mom taught me good from evil, and Dad taught me to obey. But the stranger… He was our storyteller. He would keep us spellbound for hours on end with adventures, mysteries and comedies.
If I wanted to know anything about politics, history or science, he always knew the answers about the past, understood the present and even seemed able to predict the future! He took my family to the first major league ball game. He made me laugh, and he made me cry. The stranger never stopped talking, but Dad didn’t seem to mind.
Sometimes, Mom would get up quietly while the rest of us were shushing each other to listen to what he had to say, and she would go to the kitchen for peace and quiet. (I wonder now if she ever prayed for the stranger to leave.)
Dad ruled our household with certain moral convictions, but the stranger never felt obligated to honor them. Profanity, for example, was not allowed in our home – not from us, our friends or any visitors. Our long time visitor, however, got away with four-letter words that burned my ears and made my dad squirm and my mother blush.
My Dad didn’t permit the liberal use of alcohol but the stranger encouraged us to try it on a regular basis. He made cigarettes look cool, cigars manly, and pipes distinguished.
He talked freely (much too freely!) about sex. His comments were sometimes blatant, sometimes suggestive, and generally embarrassing.
I now know that my early concepts about relationships were influenced strongly by the stranger. Time after time, he opposed the values of my parents, yet he was seldom rebuked…and NEVER asked to leave.
More than fifty years have passed since the stranger moved in with our family. He has blended right in and is not nearly as fascinating as he was at first. Still, if you could walk into my parents’ den today, you would still find him sitting over in his corner, waiting for someone to listen to him talk and watch him draw his pictures.
His name…We just call him ‘TV.’
(Note: This should be required reading for every household!)
There are times in some people’s lives when it seems like they were “dealt a bad hand”. Why is it that sometimes people face unforeseeable disease, pain and death? We sometimes ask…why do bad things happen to good people? Why is it that a horrible and deadly sickness can strike a person while others live long and healthy lives? Simply put…why do bad things happen?
I recently read this following short illustration on positivethinking.in that I think answers this question in a simple way when this famous athlete, who was dying of a horrible disease himself, answered this question in a very simple way…
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Arthur Ashe, the legendary Wimbledon player was dying of AIDS which he got due to infected blood he received during a heart surgery in 1983.
From world over, he received letters from his fans, one of which conveyed: “Why does GOD have to select you for such a bad disease”?
To this Arthur Ashe replied:
” The world over — 50 million children start playing tennis, 5 million learn to play tennis, 500,000 learn professional tennis, 50,000 come to the circuit, 5000 reach the grand slam, 50 reach Wimbledon, 4 to semi final, 2 to the finals, when I was holding a cup I never asked GOD ‘Why me?’. And today in pain I should not be asking GOD ‘Why me?’ “Happiness keeps you Sweet…Trials keep you Strong…Sorrow keeps you Human.”
There is simply nothing nicer than watching the joy on the face of a little boy who just got a homemade racing car cake for his birthday!
Why don’t angry witches ride their brooms? They’re afraid of flying off the handle.
My Good Time Stories 