No day is Wasted

Living with purpose and clear focus helps you to understand
The value of being meaningfully focused. And aimlessly
Wandering with no clear focus can also help you to
Appreciate the power of a positive purpose.
 Either way, life leads you surely, steadily toward your
Purpose. Whether you experience the pain of losing touch
With that purpose, or the joy of living in harmony with it,
You grow in understanding and appreciation.

No day, no experience, no encounter is really wasted.
Through the ups and downs, in the good times and in times of
Despair, you feel more intensely the longing to express who
You truly are.

The beauty of this day is not in its particulars. The beauty
Is that you can take it all in, whatever and however it may
Be, and add it to the substance of your being.

Whatever comes along, be thankful for the opportunity to
Pass through it. Whatever is, go with it and grow with it.

Your purpose cannot help but become stronger, as each moment
Passes. Feel that strength, and live it more fully, more
Authentically, day after day.

~Ralph Marston~

Be Joyful

Whatever you enjoy, you improve. Enjoy where you are,

 and suddenly where you are has more value.
Enjoy the moment you're living.

 

 And suddenly the moment offers new and positive possibilities.
Enjoy what you're doing. By so doing, you transform your effort

 into a pathway to success and achievement.

You can always find a reason to be miserable.

 But being miserable will accomplish nothing.
Being joyful, on the other hand, will put you in a positive,

 productive, effective frame of mind.

 You'll be well positioned to accomplish and succeed.

Whatever this day may hold, find something to truly enjoy about it.

 And you will have found your own best path forward.
~Ralph Marston~

What Life is About

Life isn't about keeping score.

It's not about how many friends you have
Or how accepted you are.
Not about if you have plans this weekend or if you're alone.
It isn't about who you're dating, who you used to date,
How many people you've dated, or if you haven't been

With anyone at all.

It isn't about who you have kissed,
It isn't about who your family is or
How much money they have
Or what kind of car you drive.
Or where you are sent to school.
It's not about how beautiful or ugly you are.
Or what clothes you wear, what shoes you have on,
Or what kind of music you listen to.

It's not about if your hair is blonde, red, black, or brown,
Or if your skin is too light or too dark.
Not about what grades you get how smart you are, how smart
Everybody else thinks you are, or how smart
Standardized tests say you are.
It's not about what clubs you're in or how good
You are at "your" sport.
It's not about representing your whole being on a piece of
Paper and seeing who will "accept the written you."

Life just isn't.

Life is about who you love and who you hurt.
It's about who you make happy or unhappy purposely.
It's about keeping or betraying trust.
It's about friendship, used as a sanctity or as a weapon.
It's about what you say and mean, maybe hurtful, maybe heartening.
It's about starting rumors and contributing to petty gossip.
It's about what judgments you pass and why.
And who your judgments are spread to.

It's about who you've ignored with full control and intention.
It's about jealousy, fear, ignorance, and revenge.
It's about carrying inner hate and love, letting it grow
And spreading it.
But most of all, it's about using your life to touch or poison
Other people's hearts in such a way that could have
Never occurred alone.
Only you choose the way those hearts are affected, and those
Choices are what life's all about.

Power To Tolerate

You have the power to tolerate anyone and any situation.

 But tolerance is not just suffering in silence.

 It means going beyond any personal discomfort you may feel,

 and giving a gift to whom ever you would tolerate.

 Give your time, attention, understanding, compassion,

 care - all are gifts, which paradoxically, you also receive

 in the process of giving.

And, as you do, you will experience your own self esteem

 and inner strength grow. In this way you can turn

 tolerance into strength.

See It Through

When you're up against a trouble,
Meet it squarely, face to face;
Lift your chin and set your shoulders,
Plant your feet and take a brace.
When it's vain to try to dodge it,
Do the best that you can do;
You may fail, but you may conquer,
See it through!

Black may be the clouds about you
And your future may seem grim,
But don't let your nerve desert you;
Keep yourself in fighting trim.
If the worst is bound to happen,
Spite of all that you can do,
Running from it will not save you,
See it through!

Even hope may seem but futile,
When with troubles you're beset,
But remember you are facing
Just what other men have met.
You may fail, but fall still fighting;
Don't give up, whatever you do;
Eyes front, head high to the finish.
See it through!

Conquer Doubt

Are your doubts holding you back? The way to conquer your doubts is with action.
 

Wondering about whether you can do it will not get it done. 

The only way to know for sure is to jump right in and get started.

Avoiding the challenges will only make those challenges grow bigger.

 Instead, walk right up to each challenge, and the closer you get,

 the more ways you'll discover to get beyond it.

If you wait until conditions are perfect, all you'll ever do is wait.

Great accomplishments are given birth by starting from

 where you are with what you have.

As soon as you start to take action, you'll begin to replace your doubts

 with courage and confidence. The more you do, the more insignificant

and powerless those doubts will become.

Stop wondering and start doing. Once you've done it

 you'll always know, without the slightest doubt,

 that you can.

The Wise Woman

Sometimes it's not the wealth you have but what's inside you that

Others need....

A wise woman, who was traveling in the mountains, found a precious
Stone in a stream. The next day she met another traveler, who was hungry.

The wise woman opened her bag to share her food. The hungry traveler
Saw the precious stone and asked the woman to give it to him. She did
So without hesitation.

The traveler left, rejoicing in his good fortune. He knew the stone
Was worth enough to give him security for a lifetime.

But, a few days later, he came back to return the stone to the wise
Woman.

"I've been thinking," he said. "I know how valuable this stone
Is, but I give it back in the hope that you can give me something even
More precious. Please give me what you have within you that enabled
You to give me this stone."

Embrace Your Best Possibilities

Anger is a way of avoiding the things that will really bring
Fulfillment to your life. So is resentment.

In fact, so are envy, procrastination, perfectionism,
Apathy, overindulgence, and a whole lot of other negative
Behaviors and attitudes. They all enable you to avoid the
Fulfillment of your true purpose.

Why would you want to avoid that fulfillment? Because it
Feels more comfortable to just stay where you are.

But comfort is highly overrated. Deep down, you don't really
Want just comfort.

Deep down, you have a burning desire to express the unique
And magnificent person you truly are. Deep down, your spirit
Longs to soar to heights that you cannot even imagine.

What feels like comfort now, will soon become regret, but
You don't have to let that happen. Stop hiding from your
Purpose, embrace your best possibilities, and give life the

Beautiful meaning that you know it can have.