WORDS

Today let's read to a story that will show us why buddhha said "Whatever words we utter should be chosen with care for people will hear them and be influenced by them for good or ill..." (Click on the title to read an article about 'Think before you speak)

Once there lived a demon who had a peculiar diet: he fed on the anger of others. And as his feeding ground was the human world, there was no lack of food for him. He found it quite easy to provoke a family quarrel, or national and racial hatred. Even to stir up a war was not very difficult for him. And whenever he succeeded in causing a war, he could properly gorge himself without much further effort; because once a war starts, hate multiplies by its own momentum and affects even normally friendly people. So the demon's food supply became so rich that he sometimes had to restrain himself from over-eating, being content with nibbling just a small piece of resentment found close-by.

But as it often happens with successful people, he became rather overbearing and one day when feeling bored he thought: "Shouldn't I try it with the gods?" On reflection he chose the Heaven of the Thirty-three Deities, ruled by Sakka, Lord of Gods. He knew that only a few of these gods had entirely eliminated the fetters of ill-will and aversion, though they were far above petty and selfish quarrels. So by magic power he transferred himself to that heavenly realm and was lucky enough to come at a time when Sakka the Divine King was absent. There was none in the large audience hall and without much ado the demon seated himself on Sakka's empty throne, waiting quietly for things to happen, which he hoped would bring him a good feed. Soon some of the gods came to the hall and first they could hardly believe their own divine eyes when they saw that ugly demon sitting on the throne, squat and grinning. Having recovered from their shock, they started to shout and lament: "Oh you ugly demon, how can you dare to sit on the throne of our Lord? What utter cheekiness! What a crime! you should be thrown headlong into the hell and straight into a boiling cauldron! You should be quartered alive! Begone! Begone!"

But while the gods were growing more and more angry, the demon was quite pleased because from moment to moment he grew in size, in strength and in power. The anger he absorbed into his system started to ooze from his body as a smoky red-glowing mist. This evil aura kept the gods at a distance and their radiance was dimmed.

Suddenly a bright glow appeared at the other end of the hall and it grew into a dazzling light from which Sakka emerged, the King of Gods. He who had firmly entered the undeflectible Stream that leads Nibbana-wards, was unshaken by what he saw. The smoke-screen created by the gods' anger parted when he slowly and politely approached the usurper of his throne. "Welcome, friend! Please remain seated. I can take another chair. May I offer you the drink of hospitality? Our Amrita is not bad this year. Or do you prefer a stronger brew, the vedic Soma?"

While Sakka spoke these friendly words, the demon rapidly shrank to a diminutive size and finally disappeared, trailing behind a whiff of malodorous smoke which likewise soon dissolved.

Any words you speak have a frequency, and the moment you speak them they are released into the Universe. The law of attraction responds to all frequencies, and so it is also responding to the words that you speak. When you use very strong words, such as "terrible", "shocking" and "horrible" to describe any situation in your life, you are sending out an equally strong frequency, and the law of attraction must respond by bringing that frequency back to you.

The law is impersonal, and simply matches your frequency. Do you see how important it is for you to speak strongly about what you want, and not to use strong words about what you don't want? May the joy be with you…!

Stay tuned...!

DOGS...!?!

If you remember I have earlier written at this same place about DOG (to see some interesting videos of this creature, click on the title) under the title Loyalty and again at some point reiterated that human can learn a lot from DOG – human’s best friend…! Today I have got a collection of TWEETS for this domestic and fantastic animal. See if you can find any insight…!?!

1. One reason a dog is such a lovable creature is his tail wags instead of his tongue." - Unknown
2. Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend: and inside a dog, it's too dark to read. - Groucho Marx
3. To his dog, every man is King; hence the constant popularity of dogs. - Aldous
4. Your dog is your only philosopher." -Plato
5. If your dog doesn't like someone, you probably shouldn't either." -Unknown
6. I care not for a man's religion whose dog and cat are not the better for it." -Abraham Lincoln
7. Reverence: the spiritual attitude of a man to a god and a dog to a man. - Ambrose Bierce
8. A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself. -Josh Billings
9. No one appreciates the very special genius of your conversation as the dog does." -Christopher Morley
10. Heaven goes by favour. If it went by merit, you would stay out and your dog would go in. - Mark Twain
11. The better I get to know men, the more I find myself loving dogs. -Gen. Charles De Gaulle
12. The dog is man's best friend. He has a tail on one end. Up in front he has teeth. And four legs underneath. - Ogden Nash
13. The average dog is a nicer person than the average person. - Andrew A. Rooney


Stay tuned...!

Appreciation...!

As we are talking about the problems we must seek the solutions to them. Because if you are not the part of the solution, you are the part of the problem…! You can’t be neutral! (Click on the title to watch a beautiful short movie about appreciation)

Here is the solution for your analysis and practice…

Appreciate those who have hurt you,
because they strengthen your heart.

Appreciate those who deceive you,
because they improve your wisdom.

Appreciate those who slander against you,
because they improve your personality.

Appreciate those who whip you,
because they arouse your will to fight.

Appreciate those who abandon you,
because they teach you independence.

Appreciate those who make you stumble,
because they strengthen your legs.

Appreciate those who denounce you,
because they remind you of your shortcomings.

Appreciate those who give you strength.

Stay tuned...!

Arguing...!?!

We are talking about negative traits, alright! Yesterday we learnt about classical insults. But what else could be more annoying and irritating than Arguing (to understand the difference between Arguing and Fair Fight , click on the title to take the test) which results in Insults…?!?

A boy once asked his father, "Dad, how do wars begin?”
"Well, take the First World War," said his father. "That got started when Germany invaded Belgium."
Immediately his wife interrupted him, "Tell the boy the truth! It began because somebody was assassinated!”
The husband drew himself up with an air of superiority and snapped back, "Are you answering the question or am I?"
Turning her back upon him in a huff, the wife stormed out the room and slammed the door as hard as she could!
When the dishes stopped rattling in the cupboard an uneasy silence followed, broken at length by the boy:
"Daddy, you don't have to tell me how wars begin; I KNOW now!"

We all do it sometimes! We all know what it is to walk away from an argument with the mouth dry, tummy in a knot, head hot and spinning, and heart sick, wishing that it had never happened, deeply regretting the unkind words that were said!

Believe it or not, more homes are destroyed by arguments than by fires or funerals!

We all know that arguing for the sake of arguing is a pointless waste of time!
We have absolutely NOTHING to gain - only our time, energy and someone's friendship is LOST! It is said that the only people who really LISTEN to an argument are the neighbors!

Some people love to argue, and will do anything to prove their point! They'd rather lose a friend than an argument! For others, arguing has become a HABIT, an automatic reaction of saying something contradictory to whatever is being said!

One compulsive arguer was the early American statesman, philosopher and author, Benjamin Franklin. As a youth he loved nothing more than a good argument until a close friend took him aside and said,
"Ben, you are impossible! Your opinions have a slap in them for everyone who differs with you! Your friends enjoy themselves better when you are not around! You think you KNOW so much that no one can TELL you anything. Indeed, no one is going to try, for the effort would only lead to discomfort and hard work! So you are not likely ever to know any more than you do now - which is actually very LITTLE!"

Ben Franklin was BIG enough and WISE enough to accept these stinging truths, and to realize that he was headed for failure and social disaster! So he immediately began to change his bigoted, argumentative ways!

He became one of the best loved, wisest and most diplomatic men in American history, and was actually remembered for saying:
"If you argue and rankle and contradict, you may achieve a victory sometimes.
But it will be an empty victory, because you will never get your opponent's good will!"

NO ONE ever really wins an argument!
You can shout and scream and argue until you're blue in the face, but people are not going to believe that you are right unless they WANT to believe it!

And even if they would LIKE to agree with you, your tone may have put them so much on the defensive that it would be like an utter humiliation, a defeat on the battlefield, for them to confess you're right or even partly right!

And remember, no amount of logic or argument will make anyone change his mind if he doesn't want to! Nine times out of ten, an argument ends with each side more firmly convinced than ever that he is absolutely right! You can't win an argument, because if you lose it, you lose it!
And if you WIN it, you still LOSE it! Why?
Well, suppose you triumph over the other person and shoot his argument full of holes and prove that he's an absolute idiot. Then what?
You'll feel fine, smug and satisfied. But what about him/her? You'll have made him/her feel inferior. You've hurt his pride. He/she may resent your triumph, and…
"A man convinced against his will, is of the same opinion still!"

WHAT CAUSES FIGHTS AND QUARRELS AMONG YOU?
…. “Don't they come from your lusts and desires that battle within you? You want something, but don't get it...so you quarrel and fight…”

So greediness and selfishness can be one of the root causes of arguing, trying to get the things you selfishly want.

“Only by PRIDE come quarrels, but wisdom is found in those who take advice.”

Also, as we've clearly seen, many arguments are caused by SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESS. Pushing your point, thinking that you're so right, putting yourself up and the other person down by contradicting them! And what it all boils down to is a lack of LOVE! Arguing isn't the real problem, that's just a SYMPTOM!

LACK OF LOVE is the REAL problem!

Stay tuned...!

INSULTS...!?!

We have been discussing a lot about Human Nature, Behavior and Values at this place. The discussions till this point were focused on targeted on positive and productive values and traits. Today, for a change I am going to share one of the dark sides of human nature – INSULT – to be precise. I am not sharing this just for fun or making my post ‘with grey shades’, as they say. I will never ever write, compile or produce anything that will not have any type of educative, informative or entertaining value, believe me…!

It is a classic compilation of glorious insults from an era before the English language got boiled down to 4-letter words. I am sure you would really enjoy the huge humor and overflowing honest generously dished out without mincing the words. They are crammed with wits, vitality and verve.

I am confident that you would agree with me that these indeed have the class that pales the impact that crass insults of modern day could possibly create.

1. The exchange between Churchill & Lady Astor:
She said, "If you were my husband I'd poison your tea."
He said, "If you were my wife, I'd drink it."

2. A Member of Parliament to Disraeli: "Sir, you will either die on the gallows or of some unspeakable disease."
"That depends, Sir," said Disraeli, "whether I embrace your policies or your mistress."

3. "He has all the virtues I dislike and none of the vices I admire." - Winston Churchill

4. "I have never killed a man, but I have read many obituaries with great pleasure." Clarence Darrow

5. "He has never been known to use a word that might send a reader to the dictionary." - William Faulkner (about Ernest Hemingway).

6. "Thank you for sending me a copy of your book; I'll waste no time reading it." - Moses Hadas

7. "I didn't attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying I approved of it." - Mark Twain

8. "He has no enemies, but is intensely disliked by his friends…" - Oscar Wilde

9. "I am enclosing two tickets to the first night of my new play; bring a friend.... If you have one." - George Bernard Shaw to Winston Churchill
"Cannot possibly attend first night, will attend second... If there is one…" - Winston Churchill, in response.

10. "I feel so miserable without you; it's almost like having you here." - Stephen Bishop

11. "He is a self-made man and worships his creator." - John Bright

12. "I've just learned about his illness. Let's hope it's nothing trivial." - Irvin S. Cobb

13. "He is not only dull himself; he is the cause of dullness in others." - Samuel Johnson

14. "In order to avoid being called a flirt, she always yielded easily." - Charles, Count Talleyrand

15. "He loves nature in spite of what it did to him." - Forrest Tucker uncle

16. "Why do you sit there looking like an envelope without any address on it?" - Mark Twain

17. "His mother should have thrown him away and kept the stork." - Mae West

18. "Some cause happiness wherever they go; others, whenever they go." - Oscar Wilde

19. "He uses statistics as a drunken man uses lamp-posts... For support rather than illumination." - Andrew Lang (1844-1912)

20. "He has Van Gogh's ear for music." - Billy Wilder

21. "I've had a perfectly wonderful evening. But this wasn't it." - Groucho Marx

Stay tuned...!

Compliment…!?!

Why does it feel so wonderful to pay a compliment? (Click on the title to read more about it) Because you are connecting honestly, directly, and kindly with another human being. It is a basic need that doesn't get met often in our fast-paced, media-hyped, negative-slanted, technical world.

If you want to believe it, the following story that captured my heart, will help you too...!

It happened several years ago in the Paris opera house. A famous singer had been contracted to sing, and ticket sales were booming. In fact, the night of the concert found the house packed and every ticket sold.

The feeling of anticipation and excitement was in the air as the house manager took the stage and said, Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your enthusiastic support. I am afraid that due to illness, the man whom you've all come to hear will not be performing tonight.

However, we have found a suitable substitute we hope will provide you with comparable entertainment. The crowd groaned in disappointment and failed to hear the announcer mention the stand-in's name. The environment turned from excitement to frustration.

The stand-in performer gave the performance everything he had. When he had finished, there was nothing but an uncomfortable silence. No one applauded. Suddenly, from the balcony, a little boy stood up and shouted, "Daddy, I think you are wonderful!!!"

The crowd broke into thunderous applause.

We all need people in our Lives who are willing to stand up once in a while and say, I think you are wonderful. And at times others are expecting this from you. Are you telling them how wonderful they are...?!?

Say it now and make "someone's day more pleasant.

Stay tuned...!

WISHING…?!?

Right from the childhood we all are fascinated with the stories of fairy with her Magic Wand (Click on the title if you want to make one), don’t we? At all the ages and stages of our lives, in the deepest and darkest corner of our mind, we always hope against the hope that some day that fairy will appear from nowhere and will grant us at least one wish…! Well, if it really happens be extremely creative, careful and strategic of your wish. It just might come true…!

A couple was dining out together celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary. After the meal, the husband presented his wife romantically with a beautiful very old gold antique locket on a chain.

Amazingly when his wife opened the locket, a tiny fairy appeared.

Addressing the astonished couple, the fairy said, "Your forty years of devotion to each other has released me from this locket, and in return I can now grant you both one wish each - anything you want…"

Without hesitating, the wife asked, "Please, can I travel to the four corners of the world with my husband, as happy and in love as we've always been?"

The fairy waved her wand with a flourish, and magically there on the table were two first-class tickets for a round-the-world holiday.

Staggered, the couple looked at each other, unable to believe their luck.

"Your turn," said the fairy and the wife to the husband.

The husband thought for a few seconds, and then said, with a little guilt in his voice, "Forgive me, but to really enjoy that holiday of a lifetime - I yearn for a younger woman - so I wish that my wife could be thirty years younger than me."

Shocked, the fairy glanced at the wife, and with a knowing look in her eye, waved her wand.....

And the husband became ninety-three…!?!

Beware of your wishes and Stay tuned...!

UNSHAKABLE...!

Today lets try to discover what makes UNSHAKABLE - The combination of Faith and Confidence...!


A very tired traveler came to the banks of a river.

There was no bridge by which he could cross. It was winter, and the surface of the river was covered with ice. It was getting dark, and he wanted to reach the other side while there was enough light to see. He debated about whether or not the ice would bear his weight.

Finally, after much hesitation and fear, he got down on his knees and began very cautiously to creep across the surface of the ice. He hoped that by disturbing the weight of his body, the ice would be less apt to break under the load.

After he made his slow and painful journey about halfway across the river, he suddenly heard the sound of singing behind him. Out of the dusk, there came a 4-horse load of coal driven by a man singing merrily as he went to his carefree way. Here was the traveler, fearfully inching his way on his hands and knees. And there, as if whisked along by the winter's wind, went the driver, his horses, his sled, and the heavy load of coal over the same river!

The story illustrates how many of us go through life.

Some stand on the bank of decisions unable to make up their minds about the course to take. Others stand on the banks trying to muster enough courage to cross over to the other side of the task or problem encountered.

On the other hand, some individuals crawl and creep through life for fear of thin ice.

Their faith is not strong enough to hold them up. Still there are those who whisked along whistling as they go. Their faith is UNSHAKABLE.

When we face the river of difficulties, we do not have to fear, nor do we creep through life. God has promised to help, and with God's help we can merrily make our way to the other side safely.

Stay tuned...!

Sensibility…!?!

Today let's try to understand what sensibility (for a scientific analysis click the title) means and how it accounts for.

An old hill farming crofter trudges several miles through freezing snow to his local and very remote chapel for Sunday service. No-one else is there, aside from the clergyman.

"I'm not sure it's worth proceeding with the service - might we do better to go back to our warm homes and a hot drink?.." asks the clergyman, inviting a mutually helpful reaction from his audience of one.

"Well, I'm just a simple farmer," says the old crofter, "But when I go to feed my herd, and if only one beast turns up, I sure don't leave it hungry."

So the clergyman, feeling somewhat ashamed, delivers his service - all the bells and whistles, hymns and readings, lasting a good couple of hours - finishing proudly with the fresh observation that no matter how small the need, our duty remains. And he thanks the old farmer for the lesson he has learned.

"Was that okay?" asks the clergyman, as the two set off home.

"Well I'm just a simple farmer," says the old crofter, "But when I go to feed my herd, and if only one beast turns up, I sure don't force it to eat what I brought for the whole herd..."

From which we see the extra lesson, that while our duty remains regardless of the level of need, we have the additional responsibility to ensure that we adapt our delivery (of whatever is our stock in trade) according to the requirements of our audience.

Stay tuned...!

Self…!?!

Today we will try to learn the concept of True Self (For the psychological analysis of the term click on the tiltle) through THREE Zen Short Stories. After reading these stories if you feel like discarding them, rest assured that you have started discovering YourSELF…

I don't mind dying... as long as I don't have to be there when it happens...!

ONE...

The Emperor was really into Buddhism. He read everything he could get his hands on, he talked with philosophers and monks about it, he even tried writing his own discourses and Haiku. One day he heard that a famous Zen master was visiting the city. So, naturally, being the Emperor, he requested that the Master come to visit him at the Palace. He offered the Master a fine meal and afterwards performed a truly elegant tea ceremony. The whole time, the master is pretty much silent and peaceful, as you might expect from a Zen master - but the Emperor is biting his tongue. He wants to pick this guy's brains about Zen. So finally, as they are drinking their tea, he breaks the silence. "Master, according to Zen what is True Self?"

The Master briefly looks up from his tea and says, "I do not know." Then he quietly continues sipping.

TWO...

A Taoist story tells of an old man who accidentally fell into the river rapids leading to a high and dangerous waterfall. Onlookers feared for his life. Miraculously, he came out alive and unharmed downstream at the bottom of the falls. People asked him how he managed to survive. "I didn't struggle," he said. "I accommodated myself to the water and just went with its flow."

THREE...

A distraught man approached the Zen master. "Please, Master, I feel lost, desperate. I don't know who I am. Please, show me my true self!" But the teacher just looked away without responding. The man began to plead, but still the master gave no reply. Finally giving up in frustration, the man turned to leave. At that moment the master called out to him by name, "Hey Joe!" "Yes!" the man said as he spun back around. "There it is!" exclaimed the master.

Stay tuned...!

Hatred...!

Today I have a small story to share. This is about hatred (Click on the title for some good advise about overcoming it) the ugliest truth of life that needs to be eradicated and exterminated as early as possible from each and every heart if we want to progress towards a World of Peace and Compassion…

One day, a Junior School teacher asked her students to bring some potatoes in a plastic bag, to school. Each potato will be given a name of the person whom that child hates. Like this, the number of potatoes will be equal to the number of persons they hate.

On a decided day the children brought their potatoes well addressed. Some had two, some had three and some had even five potatoes.

The teacher said they have to carry these potatoes with them everywhere they go for a week. As the days passed the children started to complain about the spoiled smell that started coming from these potatoes. Also some students who had many potatoes complained that it was very heavy to carry them all around. The children got rid of this assignment after a week, when it got over.

The teacher asked, "How did you feel in this one week?"
The children discussed their problems about the smell and weight.
Then the teacher said, "This situation is very similar to what you carry in your heart when you don't like some people. This hatred makes your heart unhealthy and you carry that hatred in your heart everywhere you go. If you can not bear the smell of spoiled potatoes for a week, imagine the impact of this hatred that you carry through out your life, on your heart?"

Our heart is a beautiful garden that needs a regular cleaning of unwanted weeds. Forgive those who have not behaved with you as expected and forget the bad things...
This also makes room available for storing good things...

Stay tuned...!

ZODIAC

This story is a mnemonic (pronounced 'nemonic' - meaning memory aid) for remembering the twelve Signs of the Zodiac, in order, starting in January.

While this example is useful for pub quizzes, more importantly the method of creating a story mnemonic can be used to retain all sorts of difficult-to-remember pieces of information, for yourself, and taught to others. Mnemonics stories need not make sense - they simply need to be memorable.

In January, a goat (Capricorn), drinking from a stream (Aquarius) said, "Look, a fish (Pisces)."

A ram (Aries), and a bull (Taurus), carrying the twins (Gemini) said "There's also a crab (Cancer)."

A lion (Leo) roared in agreement, which startled the young maiden (Virgo) so that she dropped and smashed her scales (Libra).

"That's no crab - it's a scorpion (Scorpio)," said the archer (Sagittarius).

Note that the Signs of the Zodiac are normally deemed to start and end anything between the 18th and the 24th day of each month, depending on interpretation. It is not by any means a precise science.

Empathy...!

As we are discussing details about when, where, what, why and how of the being at this place; today I want to share a story of empathy (if anybody can think of a better title please let me know and I would be grateful) which is a real-life story as narrated by a Doctor friend…

It was a busy morning, about 8:30, when an elderly gentleman, probably in his 80s, arrived to have stitches removed from his thumb. He said he was in a hurry as he had an appointment at 9:00 am. I took his vital signs and had him take a seat, knowing it would be over an hour before someone would to able to see him. I saw him looking at his watch and decided, since I was not busy with another patient, I would evaluate his wound. On exam, it was well healed, so I talked to one of the doctors, got the needed supplies to remove his sutures and redress his wound.

While taking care of his wound, I asked him if he had another doctor's appointment this morning, as he was in such a hurry. The gentleman told me no, that he needed to go to the nursing home to eat breakfast with his wife. I inquired as to her health. He told me that she had been there for a while and that she was a victim of Alzheimer's disease.

As we talked, I asked if she would be upset if he was a bit late, he replied that she no longer knew who he was, that she had not recognized him in five years now.

I was surprised, and asked him, 'And you still go every morning, even though she doesn't know who you are?' He smiled as he patted my hand and said,
'She doesn't know me, but I still know who she is.'

I had to hold back tears as he left, I had goose bumps on my arm, and thought,

'That is the kind of love I want in my life.'

True love is neither physical, nor romantic.

True love is acceptance of all that is, has been, will be, and will not be.

Life isn't about how to survive the storm,

but how to dance in the rain...!

Stay tuned...!

APPROACH...!

As mentioned in our SCI – Approach – the last but not the least unit of our list of 5, is about Oneness, Spirituality and Enlightenment. Before I could say anything about it, I would like you to visit the link by clicking on the title 'Approach' to have a profound, awakening and stupendous idea of Spirituality…

Knowledge does not end with knowing nor is it pursued and found for the sake of knowing alone. It has its full value only when it leads to some greater gain than itself, some gain of being. Simply to know the truth and to remain in the pain, struggle and inferiority of our present way of being would be a poor and lame advantage. – Yogi Aurobindo

For the practical part of it see if the following guidelines provide any help…

1. Start Each Day with a Creative State of Mind
As you open your eyes to greet the new day, spend the first few minutes thinking of the things that bring you the most happiness and comfort. It can be your family, your faith, or a special goal or project you have set for yourself. In addition, spend a couple of brief moments thinking about the most exciting thing that happened to you yesterday. Savor this experience and allow the feelings to spill over into the new day.

Create a picture in your mind of how you want the day to unfold. Visualize it clearly and attractively in your mind. Imagine the people you want to meet, the things you want to accomplish or experience, and the fun you want to enjoy. Then, no matter the problems or obstacles you encounter, keep this mental snapshot with you and refer back it to when needed.

2. Begin Conditioning Your Mind for a Good Day, Every Day
We become what we think. Ralph Waldo Emerson writes ‘A man is what he thinks about all day long’. So the question is how can we learn to develop the right kind of thoughts to get the most out of each and every day? It begins with starting your day with positive thoughts. Then it becomes very important to condition you mind to keep doing this. Let go the fear or any other self-limiting thought that keeps you from achieving what you want to achieve. Practice replacing the negative thoughts in your mind with more positive ones. Fill your mind with what you want to have; not what you want to avoid. In fact, say aloud what you want. Allow your mind and heart, to hear it.

Surround yourself with positive people and activities. Attempt to avoid, or at least ignore, those folks and things that are toxic for you.

Walk the talk: Be positive. Say nice things - and really mean them.

Start each day with a prayer or a special request. You will be surprised how often you receive what you ask for when you condition your mind to focus on the positive.

3. Understand Every Day is a Gift
Make it a goal, a priority, to appreciate each and every day. Too often we get caught-up with planning and scheduling our lives, but not living our lives. Make a list, right now, of all of the things you want to see or do in your life.

Use this day to pick an item from the list and perform one action that will move you closer to achieving it. Confidence builds and motivation soars when we use our days to move forward to fulfilling our heart's desire. Today is a gift we have been given. Allow this day to live within your heart. Allow this day to move you closer to your life's purpose and passion.

4. Keep Your Emotions Under Control
Exerting your control is not necessarily a bad thing, especially when it comes to your emotions. The controlled person is a powerful person. He or she who always keeps their head will get ahead. I've seen numerous people ruin their whole day because of the lack of emotional control.

Pay attention to the times when you begin to emotionalize rather than to think. When you feel your emotions begin to trump logic, stop and regroup. Sit quietly and think: What would a logical and rational person do in this situation? You will get your answer if you pay attention and keep listening.

5. Do One Thing, Every Day, to Feel Healthier
There is a mind - body connection. It is difficult to have a good day when you do not feel well mentally or physically. Besides going to the doctor for check-ups and the like, there are emotional, mental and spiritual things you can do each day. Here are a few ways to begin feeling healthier today and every day:

Think health, not sickness. Remember, what you think about, grows. Stop looking for things to go wrong with your health or body. Instead, think positively about your physical health. Mental images tend to reproduce themselves. Attempt to free your mind of ill thoughts and attitudes. Learn to replace ill will with goodwill to create a healthier state of mind. The relationship between the mind and its influence on your physical conditions is significant. Purge your mind of resentment, frustrations and anger and you will release tensions that only exacerbate physical illness.

Make one deliberate choice each day regarding what you eat and drink. Opt for water instead of a diet cola, for example. Go with the salad for your combo meal instead of the French fries. Add up every reason for being happy, thankful and healthy. Also, add up reasons for your health and happiness. You will be surprised at how many reasons you will find. Place these reasons in your reserve tank and tap into them when you feel your energy getting low.

6. Give More Than You Take
It is our responsibility to have a good day and to resist the temptation to surrender or simply give up. Just as we expect great things from Life; Life also expects great things from each one of us.

Think of your life as a bank savings account. Your job is to make meaningful deposits of love, grace and kindness every day. Your focus should not be in how much interest you are earning, but rather how many deposits you are making. There will come a day, however, when you will need to make a withdrawal. By giving more than you take, you will have all the resources necessary to receive what you need; when you need it the most

7. Finish the Day Strong
It is important how we begin the day; it is also important how we end the day. Begin it right, live it right, think it right and end it right and you can have a good day every day.

At the end of each day, imagine there is a large balloon in your stomach filled with all of the day’s activities. Practice feeling the sensation of releasing the air in this balloon and with it, all of your responsibilities. Allow your mind to rest while your body rests and feel the day's tensions drift away.

As your drift off to sleep tonight, count your blessings and name them, one by one. Acknowledge them and give them life. When you do, these same blessings will be waiting for you tomorrow ready to help you get the most out of the new day…!

Tomorrow we will try to dig it further… Stay tuned…!