Gratitude Is The Key To Abundance

Following is another article in regards to "gratitude" which is one of the key aspects to attaining happiness. MMP

Gratitude Is The Key To Abundance
By: Mohamad Latiff Bin Rahim

Truly I tell you, gratitude is the key to abundance. For if you are grateful, surely you will experience an increase in all the good things you feel you are deserving in life.

Gratitude does not come from a 'this is too good to be true' feeling. Nor does it come from feelings of lack and desperation, such that you are dependent upon external factors as if the world owes you anything. Gratitude comes from a realisation, a proper understanding of things, that goes as deep and as true as that of a mother's love for her child.

Thankfulness cannot be faked or forced. You can train a child to say 'thank you' when he is given something good, but you cannot cause him to truly experience deep feelings of gratitude and appreciation in his heart.

Perhaps this is why grateful people have always been in short supply. I am referring to the truly grateful, not the masses that only profess gratefulness by the tongue but do not possess it in the depths of their hearts. However, like any other tendencies, true gratefulness can be slowly and steadily instilled in one's being by consistent and diligent observation and practice.

How does abundance come into the picture of gratitude?

To give a weird but vivid analogy, imagine a person living in a dark, claustrophobic and almost airtight pod. Let's say, for the sake of this analogy, she is able to live solely on air. Her only supply of air streams in from tiny almost imperceptible holes puncturing the surface of the pod. These holes also happen to bring in a little light into her pod.

Abundance is the virtually infinite supply of air that exists as a plenum outside her pod.

Gratitude is the hole that punctures the pod, allowing some air and some light to enter it.

As she lives and breathes in the pod, she is able to notice the tiny holes that have been sustaining her throughout her life. As she has been paying attention to only a fixed area of tiny holes, she thinks those are the only holes that exist to nourish her with much needed air, when in truth, tiny holes dot the entire surface area of the pod.

Every day, she lives a life of struggle, constantly panting and heaving and gasping for air, punctuated only occasionally when she musters the courage and effort to place herself close to an area of holes and really suck in the air from outside the pod.

Let's say she is not likely to suffer from asphyxiation because she is able to survive on very minimal amounts of air.

One day, she experiences a breakthrough. During one of those rare moments in which she gets the strength to really suck in air from one of the holes on the pod, she notices that her suction had caused the hole to expand in size, thus, the amount of air that streams in increases.

At first, she ignores this phenomenon. But when the effect happens for a second, and a third time, she sets out to turn her hypothesis into a fact. Soon she discovers that there are actually more holes dotting the surface of the pod than she had realised, because of the increased amount of light that enters due to the increasing size of the hole. So she experiments with the other holes dotting the pod, sucking in the outside air with all her might, until eventually, she has a couple of big holes on her pod that bring in really huge amounts of air and light.

Day by day, she continues this new hole-expanding effort of hers. One day, because of the increasing sizes of the holes and the number of holes that have expanded, the structural integrity of the once solid pod diminishes, and she finds that she can easily, almost effortlessly, rip apart the pod as if it were made of paper - hence, finally liberating herself and transcending into a whole new world of abundance.

Bizarre as this analogy might seem, most of us live like the girl in the pod. There are tiny streams of abundance entering our self-imposed imprisoned life. All it takes is our awareness of these sources of sustenance and abundance and to expand our awareness of them, thus increasing our prosperity in all areas of life.

Everything is an asset. Are you sitting on them or are you finding ways and means of fashioning those assets into materials that you would use to design the life of your dreams?


gratitude abundance grateful thankfulness appreciation pod breakthrough sucking prosperity materials

The Meaning of Freedom

Once in a while I find a post that may be just a little outside my focus, but it so important that I must refer to it. Well I found such a post on An Unquiet Mind. Please go to this link and read it: The Meaning of Freedom.

The+Meaning+Of+Freedom freedom

Are You Prepared For Success? (Section II - Installment #16f "It’s All In The State Of Mind” - Female version)

(If this is your first time on this site, please begin with "Are You Prepared For Success?" [Introduction])

This is the female version of this post. If you are a male reader, please go to #16m.


It's All In The State Of Mind

If you think you are beaten, you are.
If you think you dare not, you don't.
If you'd like to win, but you think you can't,
It's almost certain you won't.
If you think you'll lose, you've lost.
For out in the world you'll find
Success begins with a woman's will-
It's all in the state of mind.

Full many a race is lost
Ere even a step is run,
And many a coward falls
Ere even her work's begun.
Think big, and your deeds will grow;
Think small, and you'll fall behind;
Think that you can, and you will-
It's all in the state of mind.

If you think you are out-classed, you are;
You've got to think high to rise;
You've got to be sure of yourself before
You can ever win a prize.
Life's battles don't always go
To the stronger or faster woman;
But sooner or later the woman who wins
Is the woman who thinks she can.

(Based on a poem of unknown authorship)

I strongly suggest that you write down your immediate reaction, after passionately reading this poem.

• Your mind is a powerful tool and thoughts can influence actions. What would you like to convince yourself of?

Go to Section II (Installment #17)

State+Of+Mind beaten win lost coward falls think+big prize rise success think big

Are You Prepared For Success? (Section II - Installment #16m "It’s All In The State Of Mind” - Male version)

(If this is your first time on this site, please begin with "Are You Prepared For Success?" [Introduction])

This is the male version of this post. If you are a female reader please go to #16f.

It's All In The State Of Mind

If you think you are beaten, you are.
If you think you dare not, you don't.
If you'd like to win, but you think you can't,
It's almost certain you won't.
If you think you'll lose, you've lost.
For out in the world you'll find
Success begins with a fellow's will-
It's all in the state of mind.

Full many a race is lost
Ere even a step is run,
And many a coward falls
Ere even his work's begun.
Think big, and your deeds will grow;
Think small, and you'll fall behind;
Think that you can, and you will-
It's all in the state of mind.

If you think you are out-classed, you are;
You've got to think high to rise;
You've got to be sure of yourself before
You can ever win a prize.
Life's battles don't always go
To the stronger or faster man;
But sooner or later the man who wins
Is the man who thinks he can.

(Unknown Author)

I strongly suggest that you write down your immediate reaction, after passionately reading this poem.

• Your mind is a powerful tool and thoughts can influence actions. What would you like to convince yourself of?

Go to Section II (Installment #17)

State+Of+Mind beaten win lost coward falls think+big prize rise success think big

Happiness Made Simple

Wrong

• I will be happy when………
• I will be happy if…………..
• I will be happy after……….
• I will be happy (any conditional statement)..........

Right

• I am happy because……….
• (There is always a “because!”)

• I am grateful for (whatever makes up the "because")

happiness simple wrong right happiness+made+simple happy

Who the hell designed this ride?

hell designed ride

Happiness Vs. Human Nature

So many of us tie happiness to the fulfillment of "more." The concept of "more" is one of the basic characteristics of "human nature." Happiness is not a function of human nature; it should not be tied to it.

The basis of Human Nature is "not to be satisfied." Human nature is to seek pleasure, to fulfill desires, to accomplish, to better our world, to never quit, to persevere, to constantly strive for "more." whatever the aspects of human nature that we strive for, we will never be satisfied. Insatiability, and the drive to be satisfied are at the heart of human nature. You can never have enough intimacy, food, love, accomplishment, money, success, etc. The problem that we run into is that many of us feel that we would be happy "if." For such a small word, so much can hang on it. "If" is considered a condition. As an example; polls show that people in general state that they would be happy "if" they had 50% more salary. Then, after that goal was reached and they were polled again, they would be happy with 50% more again. No matter how much we have, we want "more."

To want "more", in and of itself, is not a bad thing, in fact it is a great thing. To desire "more" is what has produced all of the great inventions and discoveries of our civilization; not to mention artwork and the overall betterment of the human condition. "Human nature," unfortunately, has also created what is "bad" in this world, like Hitler, Mussolini, street gangs, wars, man's inhumanity towards man, etc.

Where we go wrong is to base happiness on the attainment of accomplishment, or the achievement of a goal, or on any level of success (however we define it.) The result of this behavior is the assurance that we will never be happy.

If you have read my postings, then you know my basic philosophy of happiness; “Happiness is a decision.” Actually, happiness is a decision to be grateful for what we have, no matter how much, no matter how little. Happiness can be had by rich and poor alike. If you practice this philosophy "happiness is a decision to be grateful," you can be happy most every day of your life, while still striving for “more.”

Basing happiness on any aspect of human nature is a recipe for disaster; you assure yourself of never being able to attain happiness no matter how much you have or how much more you get.

To better understand how "happiness" and "Human Nature" can exist side by side I have created this following quote: “Human nature is what drives us, happiness is what sustains us." Think of two perpendicular lines, one pointing up and the other pointing sideways. The one pointing up represents human nature, a constant up-hill battle to achieve. The one pointing sideways represents happiness; we have the ability to maximize happiness no matter where we are on the vertical line, by the simple process of choosing and the power of gratitude. On the other hand we also have the ability to choose misery and sadness.

There are those who state that the world has so much pain and hardship, wars and evil, and that knowing this, "how can we be happy?" At the end of the day, it comes down to individual choice as to what we do with this knowledge. The vertical line that represents achievement can also represent the desire to change the world around us.

My constant companion is Reinhold Niebuhr’s Serenity Pledge: “God grant me the Serenity to accept the things I cannot change; Courage to change the things I can; and the Wisdom to know the difference.” If we can apply this to everything we do, the ability to choose happiness becomes a lot easier.

The one thing to remember from this is that the "choice is yours!"

Copyright © MondayMorningPower, All rights Reserved

Technorati Tags:
accomplishment food happiness Human Nature intimacy money opposite sex philosophy pleasure recipe for disaster success

Are You Prepared For Success? (Section II - Installment #15 "Only You” - Male and Female versions)

(If this is your first time on this site, please begin with "Are You Prepared For Success?" [Introduction])

Only You

Whatever may happen, by accident or plan;
Whether by nature or whether by man;
No matter how terrible you feel you've been hit
Look for the seed of a much greater benefit.

With every adversity, failure, and heartache;
With more bad news than you think you can take;
And all seems lost with nowhere to turn;
Take a deep breath, look, listen and learn.

Recovery and success are out there to find.
Believe in yourself and have a clear mind.
Stand up and stand tall and know that you will,
With courage and faith, conquer that hill.

Be sure of yourself and know you won't fail.
Leave the doubters behind as you blaze your own trail.
Only you know what it is that you need.
Only you can decide if you fail or succeed.

(An original Poem by Mel Kaye)

I strongly suggest that you write down your immediate reaction, after passionately reading this poem.

• Look at recent disasters in your life and find at least one positive outcome that resulted from each one.
• Now look at them again and see if there was some positive outcomes that could have resulted if you had looked at it differently?

Copyright © MondayMorningPower, All rights Reserved

Go to Section II (Installment #16m for male version)
Go to Section II (Installment #16f for female version)

you plan benefit accident adversity heartache listen recovery poem motivational+poem blaze

The Secret to Real Confidence

Confidence is a critical part of a positive mental attitude. Therefor, I am including another article on this subject. This one looks at confidence as a function of self acceptance.

The Secret to Real Confidence
By: Jon Mercer

Sometimes the best secrets are hidden in plain sight. When it comes to developing confidence, there is one "secret shortcut" that took me years to understand, but it's so painfully obvious that I want to kick myself sometimes for not being aware of it all along. The "secret" I want to tell to you about is acceptance.

Understanding the importance of acceptance requires a little creative thinking. It is important to remember that confidence is never an "all or nothing" situation. We all have confidence to some degree, but it is a fact that some people have much more that than others. It is also a fact, that no matter how low your self-esteem may be right now, you do have some confidence. So it's a sliding scale, and just for the sake of argument, let's say that the confidence scale goes from one to ten, with one being least confident and ten being supremely confident.

To further make this point, let's say that right now your confidence level is a three on this scale, and your friend's confidence is a six on the same scale. Now, it's obvious that your friend is twice as confident as you, but at the same time his confidence level is still only a six out of ten, so it certainly could be a lot higher and your friend is very aware of this.

Now here is where the power of acceptance comes into the picture. Imagine that your friend, whose confidence level is a six, feels very bad about himself because his confidence isn't higher. But let's say that, unlike your friend, you understand that your confidence level is low, but you feel OK about that, and you're not judging yourself because of it. In effect, you are saying "my confidence level "is what it is" and I feel perfectly comfortable with that."

Now, who is going to be perceived as being more confident, you or your friend? YOU ARE! Every single time. Because if you accept your confidence level (no matter what it is) and are perfectly comfortable with it, you are going to come across as much more confident than your friend who does not accept his confidence level. You see how this works?

Another way of saying this would be, no matter what your confidence level is, accepting it and being comfortable with it will instantly make you more confident! Are you having an "aha" moment yet? I know I did when i first began to really "get" this idea. And the irony is, this is such a simple idea. Nevertheless, I overlooked this critical point for many years. Maybe you have too...

But once you understand the importance of acceptance, you can use this knowledge to immediately boost your confidence. All you need to do is begin where you are right now and make it a point to accept your current situation and your current level of confidence. Do NOT feel frustrated with yourself or your situation. Begin with a good feeling about where you are right now at this very minute. After a day or two of thinking this way, you will definitely notice a difference. When you begin any confidence building program from the point of view of acceptance, you are certain to see greater results in less time.

But be warned, if you begin trying to make changes in your life from a position of frustration, or self disapproval, you will find it much more difficult to create the results you want. Find a way to make peace with yourself and your situation where you are right now. Remember, the key to the whole thing is to start by accepting yourself just as you are right now. You absolutely can do this, and it WILL make a difference. Every single time.


secret confidence acceptance argument

Reader Submissions - Index

• Optimist
  

optimism

optimism

By Ann Krischus

she puts it on
like a favorite piece
of jewelry,
lets it sparkle,
the perfect gem.
dabs her wrists
with it and lets it
fill the room,
it's sweet scent
is gentle
like a rose
in the breeze.
it tastes a bit
like chocolate,
a handful
of hershey kisses.
and when you hear it,
it is as if every bird
in the neighborhood sings.

meet the optimist.

optimist optimism

Are You Prepared For Success? (Section II - Installment #14 "The Secret of Happiness” - Male and Female versions)

(If this is your first time on this site, please begin with "Are You Prepared For Success?" [Introduction])

The Secret of Happiness

If happiness is what you are looking for
There are no great mysteries for you to explore,
No oceans to swim or mountains to climb
No searching until the ends of time.

Happiness is not found in what you possess
Nor does it lie on the road to success.
Having someone to love is great, that's for sure.
But it takes more than love for happiness to endure.

To have achieved your goals is a wonderful feeling
But that in itself is not that appealing.
The victory is yours, the race is won,
But without knowing happiness, you've only begun.

Happiness can be yours, and so you will see
Just how easy attaining it really can be.
Whether your poor or whether your rich,
Young or old, it doesn't matter which.

Plain or pretty, skinny or fat,
Kind of heart or low-down rat,
Healthy or sick, educated or not
Just be grateful for what you have got.

The more gratitude that you express
The more you'll enjoy each and every success.
All you need is to have the right attitude.
Happiness is the attitude of gratitude.

(An original Poem by Mel Kaye)

I strongly suggest that you write down your immediate reaction, after passionately reading this poem.

• What should you be grateful for?
• Make a list and tell why you should be grateful.

Copyright © MondayMorningPower, All rights Reserved

Go to Section II (Installment #15)

secret+of+happiness secret happiness climb endure mysteries race plain pretty skinny fat grateful gratitude

Access Denied

Access+Denied, access, denied

A Loving Husband

loving+husband loving husband wife undertaker Jerusalem dead

How to Have Confidence and Enjoy Every Moment of It

There are instances when we need to just know how to act. As we attain the right internal attitude it will become apparent in the way that we portray ourselves, however, there is nothing wrong with knowing the right way to act and working on both the interior and the exterior at the same time. The following is a good article for the outside of ourselves.

How to Have Confidence and Enjoy Every Moment of It

By: Peter Murphy

Confidence is not only a skill it is a choice. How to have confidence? It is a choice to walk, talk and act with confidence despite how you feel or what others say. To have confidence is to be at ease in any situation. To be prepared and capable to take all the hits as they come and still smile while doing it.

The beauty of confidence is that if you don't have to possess it to walk with it. All you need is the know how and a bit of perseverance to make sure that in all instances you can appear to be cool calm collected and confident. This will show that you can cope under pressure and attract responsibility and promotion. When you act in confidence it is attracted to you.

As shallow as it sounds presentation and looking after you are important factors to having confidence. If you know that you are eating right, exercising regularly and treating your body and mind with respect and dignity. When you do have a bad day it is easier to overcome.

Ensuring that your immediate needs of shelter, warmth, hygiene and even what you wear can effect how you feel and therefore affect the was you eventually act. If you are dressed well and feel like you are well presented you are less likely to suffer from a lack of confidence. This will not always help but the foundation needs to be strong for a building to stand so look after yourself and you will find the benefits surprising.

Once you have your exterior covered well your body language is the next thing to be addressed. Are there certain people who you naturally want to hide around or those who you feel intimidated by therefore close your body language up? Your body language will always tell the story of how you feel even if your words don't so make sure that you have open body language to show optimum confidence. Shoulders straight, eyes looking forward or directed towards who you are speaking to, do not fold arms across your chest and try not o shuffle your feet, keep hand movement directed towards what you are doing and resist the temptation to fidget or fiddle while talking or listening.

One of the simplest ways to show that you have confidence is to show interest. There is of course no point in being interested if you cannot be genuine and sincere so be sure that your body language and eyes are actively listening, ask questions and try to interact within the situation. This can help relieve pressure as you will be occupied and active.

By showing interest you are showing that you have the ability to concentrate on a project that may not be your own. Again by acting in a certain way you are creating positive behaviors within yourself, further gaining skills as well as having confidence.

By having a can do attitude both with yourself and with others, you will become a more social and interesting person. If you believe that you can do anything that you have the skills to achieve and you have goals in place to do so then you have no reason to walk in shame. To walk in confidence to hold your head and know that you can tackle anything that comes to you because you area good person and because you deserve good things will make the difference between having confidence or not.

If you don't believe you are confident you won't be, so change the way you think and your actions will have no choice but to change in time you will realize that you had confidence all along, you just didn't know it yet.

confidence perseverence interest

Chance of Surviving a Zombie Apocalypse

51%

Click on the link and see what your chances are.

apocalypse chance surviving zombie

Are You Prepared For Success? (Section II - Installment #13 "Persistence” - Male and Female versions)

(If this is your first time on this site, please begin with "Are You Prepared For Success?" [Introduction])

PERSISTENCE

There is nothing to take it's place.
Not even with talent, can you make a case.
In this world, it's a common sight,
To have all the talent without the fight.

The brains of a genius, is that what it takes?
It would be nice, little chance for mistakes.
but look about, and you will see
"Un-rewarded genius", a proverb, be.

Education, is that the way?
It is important, better start today.
But be forewarned, you'll see all around,
Educated derelicts, a penny a pound.

The most important ingredient in winning, you'll see,
Is that of persistence, that's the key.
Don't ever give up, if you wish to rise.
Persistence, more than anything, will win you the prize.

(An original Poem by Mel Kaye)

I strongly suggest that you write down your immediate reaction, after passionately reading this poem.

• What goals could you have achieved if you had continued to persist?
• What goals did you achieve because you didn't give up?

Copyright © MondayMorningPower, All rights Reserved

Go to Section II (Installment #14)

persistence, sight, fight. mistakes, unrewarded, genius, educated, derelects, winning, prize, talent, education

Let Happiness Find You

As you may know, my philosophy on happiness is that "Happiness is a Decision." This may be a little simplistic, but never the less, in my opinion, true. That does not mean that there can't be other ways of attaining happiness. A fellow blogger and Friend Allison Cabral has recently written a post on happiness with a philosophy and a set of rules that I believe is also sound. She granted me permission to reprint it:

Let Happiness Find You

So many of us are “searching” for happiness. But if you follow these simple three rules, you might discover that you don't have to work so hard. Happiness will find you instead!

RULE #1 - Know Who You Are
So many people do this backwards! We often look for something to give us our sense of identity and self-confidence! Wrong!!! You need to understand yourself before you can know how to be happy.

Do whatever it takes to know who you are, what you love, what you can’t live without, and what you value… maybe this requires therapy, time alone, journaling or just making a list of your likes and dislikes and getting clear on who you are.

RULE #2 - Value Who You Are
YES! You should be picky. Why settle for anything less than extraordinary. Everyone should value who they are and what they bring to the table. There are plenty of people, places and things to settle down with that fit the average, mediocre profile that you could be relatively happy and compatible with. But, that is boring! Yes, you could be happy but for how long and then what? Hold out for the best, set your standards high, there is something out there to match it – it just might take longer. It is hard to find quality, but well worth the effort.

RULE #3 - Engage In Life and What you Love
Fill your calendar with what you love. Don’t sit around waiting for someone to do things with or something fun to find you. Make a list what of YOU want to do and go do it. Surround yourself with people, places and things that reflect the real you. Lose yourself in something you love – that will instantly attract happiness. Be so engaged in what you are doing that you actually forget to look for happiness and … and like magic… it will find you.

Please leave any comments that relate to this post with Allison Cabral's original post.

happiness philosophy extraordinary mediocre standards self+confidence love+what+you+do

The Power Of Positive Thinking - The Undeniable Truth

As an ongoing aspect to my site I want to aggregate articles and stories all dedicated to the concept of PMA (Positive Mental Attitude,) whether I write them or someone else writes them (I will always link back to the author's site, which is part of my "12 Rules of Blogger Etiquette"). This is another in that series.

The Power Of Positive Thinking - The Undeniable Truth
By: Jaz Lai

The power of positive thinking is undeniable.

Every once in a while, everyone becomes distracted, unfocused, and disheartened, especially when it seems that nothing is going your way. Now, you could let your mood and the events around you dictate how you respond and make a seemingly bad day worse, or you could harness the power of positive thinking and demand that the negative emotions you are experiencing relinquish control over your life.

I will be the first to admit that it is much easier to tell someone that thinking positive will help in a less than ideal situation than it is to actually get that individual to believe and cooperate. There have been times in my life, and maybe some of your lives too, when I did not know where the next meal was coming from or if I would return home to a cold dark house, because I could not afford the utility bill.

There are far more people just barely "making it" than we would like to believe, and this is why we should practice positive thinking on a daily basis. It is about controlling your situation instead of allowing your situation to control you. When we implement a routine of daily positive thinking in our lives, we enable ourselves to mentally rise above our immediate situations. This is the first step towards actually unleashing the power of positive thought in our lives.

Once your subconscious mind becomes receptive to the practice of daily positive thinking (and believe me, there will be some resistance at first), you become more fully able to accept that you are worthy of better in life and begin to attract more positive outcomes than negative in your day to day living.

If it is difficult for you at first to allow the power of positive thinking in your life, start small. After all, you have to crawl before you can walk. Make a conscious effort to search out and look for the positive in every situation. Sometimes, depending on the situation, this may be darn near impossible, but try anyway.

Make a habit of stopping to reflect on all the positive things that happen in your life daily. It may even be a good idea to keep a journal; so that whenever you are feeling down, you can pick up your journal, read it, and reflect on the positive thoughts that you have written. Remember, it all starts with just one small step.

power+of+positive+thinking positive thinking unfocused disheartened control barely reflect positive+outcome

The Value of a Drink

The Value of a Drink

"Sometimes when I reflect back on all the wine I drink

I feel shame.

Then I look into the glass and think
about the workers in the vineyards and all of their hopes
and dreams . If I didn't drink this wine, they might be out
of work and their dreams would be shattered.
Then I say to myself, "It is better that I drink this wine and let their
dreams come true than be selfish and worry about my liver."
~ Jack Handy

WARNING: The consumption of alcohol may leave you wondering what the hell
happened to your bra and panties.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"I feel sorry for people who don't drink. When they
wake up in the morning, that's as good as they're
going to feel all day. "
~Frank Sinatra

WARNING: The consumption of alcohol may create the illusion that you are tougher, smarter, faster and better looking than most people.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"When I read about the evils of drinking, I gave up reading."
~ Henny Youngman

WARNING: The consumption of alcohol may lead you to think people are laughing WITH you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"24 hours in a day, 24 beers in a case. Coincidence? I think not."
~ Stephen Wright

WARNING: The consumption of alcohol may cause you to think you can sing.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"When we drink, we get drunk. When we get drunk,
we fall asleep. When we fall asleep, we commit no sin.
When we commit no sin, we go to heaven. So, let's all
get drunk and go to heaven!"
~ Brian O'Rourke

WARNING: The consumption of alcohol may cause pregnancy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy."
~ Benjamin Franklin

WARNING: The consumption of alcohol is a major factor in dancing like a geek!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Without question, the greatest invention in the
history of mankind is beer. Oh, I grant you that the
wheel was also a fine invention, but the wheel does
not go nearly as well with pizza."
~ Dave Barry

WARNING: The consumption of alcohol may cause you to tell your friends over and over

again that you love them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
To some it's a six-pack, to me it's a Support Group. Salvation in a can!
~ Dave Howell

WARNING: The consumption of alcohol may make you think you can logically converse with members of the opposite sex without spitting.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
And saving the best for last, as explained by Cliff Clavin, of Cheers.
One afternoon at Cheers, Cliff Clavin was explaining the Buffalo Theory to his buddy Norm. Here's how it went:

"Well ya see, Norm, it's like this... A herd of buffalo can only move as fast as the slowest buffalo. And when the herd is hunted, it is the slowest and weakest ones at the back that are killed first This natural selection is good for the herd as a whole, because the general speed and health of the whole group keeps improving by the regular killing of the weakest members. In much the same way, the human brain can only operate as fast as the slowest brain cells. Excessive intake of alcohol, as we know, kills brain cells. But naturally, it attacks the slowest and weakest brain cells first. In this way, regular consumption of beer eliminates the weaker brain cells, making the brain a faster and more efficient machine. That's why you always feel smarter after a few beers."

WARNING: The consumption of alcohol may make you think you are whispering when you are not.

value drink shame Jack+Handy alcohol bra Frank+Sinatra Henny+Youngman coincidence Stephen+Wright Brian+O'Rourke beer Benjamin+Franklin Dave+Berry Dave+Howell sex cheers Norm

Are You Prepared For Success? (Section II - Installment #12 "Risk” - Male and Female versions)

(If this is your first time on this site, please begin with "Are You Prepared For Success?" [Introduction])

Risk

To laugh is to risk appearing the fool.
To weep is to risk appearing un-cool.
You risk getting involved when, to another you reach out.
When expressing your feelings you risk self-doubt.

You risk their loss, when your ideas, you state.
And, when expressing your dreams, you risk the same fate.
To hope is to risk total despair.
To try is to risk that there's failure out there.

To love is to risk not being loved in return.
But, without risk you can' t change, you can't live, you can't learn.
Not to risk you may avoid any suffering, but know
To risk is to live and to feel and to grow.

The greatest hazard in life, and the biggest risk, too
Is to risk nothing then nothing is you.
Without risk you can't love you can't live, you can't be.
Only a person who risks can truly be free.

(An original Poem by Mel Kaye)

I strongly suggest that you write down your immediate reaction, after passionately reading this poem.

• What would you really like to do, but haven't because of the risks?
• What would you have really risked?

Copyright © MondayMorningPower, All rights Reserved

Go to Section II (Installment #13)

risk fool self+doubt dreams hazzard

I had a fight today!

"I Had A Fight Today”

I've had a REALLY bad day! I rear-ended a car today.

I tell you, It was a REALLY REALLY REALLY BAD DAY!

The driver got out of the other car and he was a DWARF!

He looked up at me and said, "I am NOT Happy!"

So I said, "Well then, which one ARE you?"

That's how the fight started.

fight dwarf happy bad+day accident driver

Tagged

I got tagged by Mahendra. So here goes……………

1. I shave my head because people don’t know if I like the look or I do it because I have gone bald naturally. I’ll keep them guessing.
2. I love Dachshunds. I have two and am picking up a third on Monday, 7/23.
3. Writing my blog is one of the most fulfilling endeavors I have ever undertaken. In other words, I love it.
4. I have three grown kids: a boy, captain in the US army, a boy, senior publicist in NY and a girl who is a senior at San Francisco State University.
5. My wife is a teacher at a local middle school. I admire her more than I can express; for her dedication and how she affects the future with what she does now.
6. I have a college degree, but never went to grad school because I am fundamentally lazy and didn’t think that they could teach me anything useful
7. Over the years, I have learned that the only thing that brings me the feeling of true accomplishment is following my passions.
8. The only thing that gives me a feeling better than the one that my blog gives me is thinking about my family and how my kids turned out. I little on the mushy side, I know, but so true.
   

TAG RULES:

1. Each player starts with 8 random facts/habits about themselves.
2. People who are tagged, write a blog post about their own 8 random things, and post these rules.
3. At the end of your post you need to tag 5 people and include their names. Don’t forget to leave them a comment and tell them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.
4. If you find out that they have already been tagged, then upon recieveing notification of this, you must find someone else to tag.

I have tagged the following:
Movie World
G8T CARS n BIKES
Invite The Party
Parenting 101
EDIT SUITE 8

Tagged

Laws of Success

The following article, about the Laws of Success, is fundamentally true. Knowing these laws and internalizing them can only be beneficial. These laws are a great compliment to my “Process.” I look at my “Process” (Are You Prepared For Success?) as the CORE of a happy, healthy and successful person. The following Laws of Success can be viewed as an outer ring to the core. This concept will be the focus of a future post.

Laws of Success

By: Andrew Cocks

Just as there are physical laws that govern how the physical world works, gravity, for example, there are also laws that govern how the universe works. Understanding these laws is critical to achieving success, learn them and work with them, not against them.

1. The Law of Perpetual Transmutation

Basically, this law states that what starts as energy changes into what is physical. Everything around you, everything you see, hear, smell, touch, or taste began as energy.

The vibration of that energy forms what is physical. Everything is in constant motion, and that motion is always changing. Energy can not be created or destroyed, just moved and changed. Our thoughts make themselves manifest in the physical world. In other words, what we think about, we bring about.

2. The Law of Relativity

The way we perceive any object, thing, person, or idea is always relative to how we see another object, thing, person, or idea. It's the way we gage what we see, bigger, smaller, good, bad, better, worse. The whole universe is designed to work together, with all the laws corresponding rather than conflicting.

All the laws apply equally to everything in the universe regardless of their size, strength, or awareness of the laws. Everything in the universe has its own rate of vibration, high, low, and in-between, we can only evaluate the rate of vibration based on a comparison with the rates of other things.

In your life, you see this law played out as you compare yourself to other people. You are reasonably attractive, right? Now, say someone enters the room who has entirely unfortunate looks, you feel simply gorgeous in comparison. But what if a supermodel enters the room next? How good-looking are you then? It's all relative. The core of this law is that everything in life just "is." Our perception shapes how we experience it.

3. The Law of Vibration

This law says that nothing is at rest in the universe, it's all constantly vibrating. Our awareness of that vibration is what we call feeling. Our feelings are determined by vibration, and we determine our rate of vibration by our thoughts and the paradigms we use to look at life.

You've experienced this if you've ever walked into an office or house where people were just quarreling. The tension in the air is thick enough to cut with a knife, and you instantly know you've interrupted something unpleasant.

Our thoughts consist of vibrations we send out to the universe. When we focus or concentrate on our thoughts, the vibrations grow stronger. Thoughts are the strongest vibration to move through the universe.

God created the whole universe, all that there is, seen and invisible from nothing, using thoughts and words. People are the only creation who share the power of thought with the Creator, and that makes us special.

This power to think, this gift of spirit, is what it means to be created in the image of God. Our thoughts and prayers are very powerful, affecting the physical world we live in.

Our awareness of vibration is what we call our feelings. We see what it's like to be in a negative vibration when we say, "I feel bad today." A positive vibration shows when we say, "I feel great today!"

Since vibration originates with our thoughts, we can control whether we live in a positive or negative vibration pattern. You use your brain to choose which thoughts you'll entertain; it doesn't choose a vibration itself. You're the master of your thoughts, of your vibration. Your thoughts steer your central nervous system into the vibration you choose.

Your mind is a storehouse of images, positive and negative, whatever you allow to take up room there. If you choose to dredge up, examine, and review the negative, you will move into a negative vibration, negative feelings will immediately follow. The reverse is true, positive thoughts lead to positive vibration and a positive mood.

4. The Law of Polarity

Everything has an equal opposite, up and down, good and bad, empty and full. There is no such thing as a one-sided coin. No object has only a left side without a right side.

Because everything not only has an opposite, but the opposite is also equal, we've got an immutable law that we can understand. If you measure the room and find it is eighteen feet from the wall to the door, you'll find it's also eighteen feet from the door to the wall.

Seems pretty obvious, but the understanding of this law will really change how you look at life. Say something you think is really bad happens to you, according to the Law of Polarity, there must be something equally good about it, too. Mathematically, if something happens to you that you see as only being a little bit bad, the flipside is that there's also a little bit of good in that, too.

Because of the Law of Polarity, you also get to choose your thoughts on every occurrence in life, is this a good thing or a bad thing? In reality, it just is. But you have the privilege of interpretation; you can choose to view it as a positive or a negative. From that choice, you set vibration in motion, determine your feelings, and ultimately your actions and results.

5. The Law of Rhythm

The whole universe moves in a repetitive rhythm. The tides, the seasons, day and night, we can count on these regular patterns to stay constant. If anything moves forward, something else must move backward; if anything grows greater, something else shrinks.

Every action causes a reaction, and results in a rhythmic swinging of vibration. You see this law at work every day in the peak and decline of your energy, the ups and downs that you experience, the way that our days are sometimes full and busy and sometimes slow and lazy.

It's helpful to realize that our moods have a natural rhythm of ups and downs, and that even in the midst of a relatively down mood, we've still got control of our thoughts. Choosing good thoughts, even when we feel down, propels us into a positive vibration, evening out our emotions and keeping us moving toward our goals.

6. The Law of Cause and Effect

This law states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. What you send out into the universe comes back. Luck, chance, and accidents are non-existent. Everything in the universe is subject to universal laws, and everything that happens does so because it was caused.

We see the result of this law in the physical world, in our health, our bank accounts, and how people treat us. The way we get results we want is by working on the cause behind them. A changed cause must produce a changed effect.

One way to change your cause is to focus on it, using positive affirmations to point you in the direction you wish to go. In each area of your life, develop positive statements you can repeat in your mind regularly. These affirmations should be in the present tense, carefully crafted to focus you on what you really want.

7. The Law of Gender

This law describes how every seed has a gestation period. We see it in nature all the time; you plant carrot seeds, and can expect to wait about seventy days before the carrot is ready to eat. If you conceive a child, it takes about forty weeks for the baby to be born.

The same is true for ideas. They are spiritual seeds, and take time to become manifest. You must be patient when you plant a spiritual seed, an idea. It will show itself in physical form when the time is right.

Every idea that is given energy moves into the physical world. Everything in the universe has a masculine and feminine side. We see it in every person and animal, and even in the plant world.

The principle of both male and female in all things makes potential, regeneration, and motion possible. Both male and female are required for life to exist. This law demonstrates how everything comes about, how things change from what they were into what they become.

You may be familiar with some of these concepts, the structure and function of your mind, and the universal laws of the universe. Some may be completely new to you.

Understanding them is so important in the process of achieving your dreams, of living the purpose-filled life you were designed to live, of living in a way that is fulfilling and proactive.

If you're serious about making changes, about winning in life, about living up to your potential and helping everyone around you to do the same, you'll commit yourself to learning these Laws of Success.

Reflect on them, discuss them, and do all you can to comprehend them, teach them to others, too. The more aware you are about how it all works together, the more you can put these ideas and laws to work for you so that you'll experience more success and less frustration.

Laws+of+Success laws success process physical energy vibration law+of+relativity relativity universe perception law+of+vibration law+of+polarity polarity positive+vibration immutable law+of+rhythm rhythm cause+and+effect cause effects law+of+gender gender spiritual structure

Military Funeral

Some things just have to be shared. This is one of them.

In Texas we really do pull off the road and stop for funerals......nobody moves until the last car has gone by.



What follows is a message from Vick i Pierce about her nephew James' funeral (he was serving our country in Iraq):

"I'm back, it was certainly a quick trip, but I have to also say it was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. There is a lot to be said for growing up in a small town in Texas . The service itself was impressive with wonderful flowers and sprays, a portrait of James, his uniform and boots, his awards and ribbons. There was lots of military brass and an eloquent (though inappropriately longwinded) Baptist preacher. There were easily 1000 people at the service, filling the church sanctuary as well as the fellowship hall and spilling out into the parking lot.

However, the most incredible thing was what happened following the service on the way to the cemetery. We went to our cars and drove to the cemetery escorted by at least 10 police cars with lights flashing and some other emergency vehicles, with Texas Rangers handling traffic. Everyone on the road who was not in the proc ession, pulled over, got out of their cars, and stood silently and respectfully, some put their hands over their hearts.

When we turned off the highway suddenly there were teenage boys along both sides of the street about every 20 feet or so, all holding large American flags on long flag poles, and again with their hands on their hearts We thought at first it was the Boy Scouts or 4H club or something, but it continued .. for two and a half miles. Hundreds of young people, standing silently on the side of the road with flags. At one point we passed an elementar y school, and all the children were outside, shoulder to shoulder holding flags kindergartners, handicapped, teachers, staff, everyone. Some held signs of love and support. Then came teenage girls and younger boys, all holding flags. Then adults. Then families. All standing silently on the side of the road. No one spoke, not even the very young children.

The military presence, at least two generals, a fist full of colonels, and representatives from every branch of the service, plus the color guard who attended James, and some who served with him .. was very impressive and respectful, but the love and pride from this community who had lost one of their own was the most amazing thing I've ever been privileged to witness.







I've attached some pictures, some are blurry (we were moving), but you can get a small idea of what this was like.






































THIS IS ONE OF THE MOST MOVING E-MAILS I'VE SEEN TO DATE .


This is important. I don't usually publicly ask that you link to one of my posts. However, this is an exception. It needs to be shared. Please link to this post, or you have my permission to copy and reprint it.


Military funeral Texas, military+funeral