Creative touch

Dear Readers, on this last day I would like to end the posts of the month with an extraordinary event took place on the inaugural day of Abraham Lincoln as the president of U.S.

Going to be the president of U.S and on the very first day of his role, it has been a wonderful incident to prove himself before the senate and the world on what he was. 

One must get clear from this post that it is not important the way you start but it is important the way you end. Also must not forget your roots even if after becoming as a leader of entire world. You are still a human being with the death no exception for you.

On the first day, as President Abraham Lincoln entered to give his inaugural address, just in the middle, one man stood up. He was a rich aristocrat.

He said, "Mr. Lincoln, you should not forget that your father used to make shoes for my family". And the whole Senate laughed; they though they had made a fool of Abraham Lincoln.

But Lincoln – and that type of people are made of a totally different mettle; Lincoln looked at the man and said, Sir I know that that my father used to make shoes in your house for your family, and there will be many others here…because the way he made shoes; nobody else can. He was a creator. His shoes ware not just shoes; he poured his whole soul in it. I want to ask you, have you any complaint? Because I know how to make shoes myself; if you have any complaint I can make another pair of shoes. But as far as I know, nobody has ever complained about my father's shoes. He was genius, a great creator and I am proud of my father".

The whole Senate was struck dumb. They could not understand what kind of man Abraham Lincoln was. He had made shoe making an art, a creativity. And he was proud because his father did the job so well that not even a single complaint had ever been heard.

It does not matter what you do. What matter is how you do it – of our own accord, with your own vision, with your own love. Then whatever you touch become gold

Knowledga Vs Experience

One day, a very scholarly gentleman, while travelling in India, decided to go across big river, so he asked one of the village people who owned a small boat, if he would take him, to this request the boatman agreed.
As they started, the sun became obscured by dark clouds, and as the river was large, the gentleman realised that the crossing would take some time. So he started a conversation with the boatman.

"Did you know that the sun is approximately 93,000,000miles away, and yet it has provided heat and light, throughout the universe since time immemorial, baring that, if it was to shift, even a fraction of an inch out of its orbit, there would be total devastation? "

The boatman replied; "My dear sir, I am just a simple man who has had no education, there is no way I could know such information"

"Then" said the gentleman "You are 25% fool".
Some time passed, and as they were coming to the ½ way mark, the thunder began to rumble.

"Did you know notice the lightening, just before the rumbling sound". The gentleman asked. He continued. "Do you know how that phenomenon occurs"

"No sir" replied the boatman.
"Its occurrence is due to the expansion of rapidly heated air," the gentleman exclaimed, " You are 50% fool.
About ¾ of the way the weather completely changed. It became dark and started to rain heavily and started filling up the little boat with water clearly making it difficult for the boatman. But the foolish gentleman insisted in questioning.

"Do you know how we get rain",

"No sir," was the reply."
" The sun evaporates water from the sea, this gets stored in the clouds which then travel by be wind power, then when they become full, it lets all the water go, over the land. That's how we get rain."

"You are 75% fool." Said the gentleman, now feeling very smug.

The gentleman was suddenly interrupted from his basqueing by a loud cry from the boatman,

"Oh no! I have lost my oar and now the water is about capsize the boat, we have no alternative but to swim the remainder of the way, luckily for us it is not very far."
"But I can't swim," cried the gentleman now seeing his own imminent death.

"Then my dear sir, you are 100% fool" said theboatman.

 

The House

All the rooms in the house were being decorated for Diwali. Everything had to be sparkling clean and bright.

The living room said: "Hey look at me, I'm so huge. I'm the one decorated with beautiful things. I'm the most sparkling room of the house. I'm the best."

The bedroom could not resist this challenge, he retorted and said: "OK! You may be the biggest but I am the most important room in the house because everybody longs to take rest here when they are tired. The energy of everybody gets revitalised when they come to me."

The kitchen scoffed and said: "Can you rest with an empty stomach! If it were not for me what could anybody eat? Where could the food be cooked? Where would the energy come from without food? So you see, I am the most important."

The little bathroom was feeling neglected. He dare not speak too loud among these luminous dignitaries. He said meekly: "What about me, everybody needs to use me too, even if I'm smelly sometimes."

Now who could decide which was most valuable room of the house? Could these rooms do without each other?

No, no... They could all be the best places in the room. But still there was something more in there which never spoke, nor could be seen, but was always there. In fact it was in & out of all the walls of the house, all the rooms were rooted in it!
It is the SPACE! The space was not confined to a single room but instead it was present everywhere...

It was because of the space that all the rooms were existing! Every room thought: "This is my space! The space was not in the rooms but the truth is that the rooms were in the space. The space existed silently, all pervasively, selflessly, and so could hold within itself all their vanities and yet it is not bound by them.

********
Similarly people belonging to different religions, like Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Sikh, Jain or Buddhist etc., keep trying to prove their superiority. Each individual draws energy from the blissful roots of the soul. The soul which is omnipresent & is the basis of existence of all, never utters a single word. That which is the most supreme need not prove itself...

Teddy

As she stood in front of her 5th grade class on the very first day of the school. She told the children an untruth.

Like most teachers, she looked at her students and said that she loved them all the same. However, that was impossible, because there in the front row, slumped in his seat, was a little boy named Teddy Stoddard.Mrs. Thompson had watched Teddy the year before and noticed that he did not play well with the other children, that his clothes were messy and that he constantly needed a bath. In addition, Teddy could be unpleasant.

It got to the point where Mrs. Thompson would actually take delight in marking his papers with a broad red pen, making bold X's and then putting a big "F" at the top of his papers. At the school where Mrs. Thompson taught, she was required to review each child's past records and she put Teddy's off until last. However, when she reviewed his file, she was in for a surprise.Teddy's first grade teacher wrote, "Teddy is a bright child with a ready laugh. He does his work neatly and has good manners... he is a joy to be around.."His second grade teacher wrote, "Teddy is an excellent student, well liked by his classmates, but he is troubled because his mother has a terminal illness and life at home must be a struggle."His third grade teacher wrote, "His mother's death has been hard on him.

He tries to do his best, but his father doesn't show much interest, and his home life will soon affect him if some steps aren't taken."Teddy's fourth grade teacher wrote, "Teddy is withdrawn and doesn't show much interest in school. He doesn't have many friends and he sometimes sleeps in class."By now, Mrs. Thompson realized the problem and she was ashamed of herself. She felt even worse when her students brought her Christmas presents, wrapped in beautiful ribbons and bright paper, except for Teddy's.His present was clumsily wrapped in the heavy, brown paper that he got from a grocery bag. Mrs. Thompson took pains to open it in the middle of the other presents. Some of the children started to laugh when she found a rhinestone bracelet with some of the stones missing, and a bottle that was one-quarter full of perfume .

But she stifled the children's laughter when she exclaimed how pretty the bracelet was, putting it on, and dabbing some of the perfume on he r wrist. Teddy Stoddard stayed after school that day just long enough to say, "Mrs. Thompson, today you smelled just like my Mom used to."After the children left, she cried for at least an hour. On that very day, she quit teaching reading, writing and arithmetic.

Instead, she began to teach children. Mrs. Thompson paid particular attention to Teddy.As she worked with him, his mind seemed to come alive. The more she encouraged him, the faster he responded. By the end of the year, Teddy had become one of the smartest children in the class and, despite her lie that she would love all the children the same, Teddy became one of her "teacher's pets.."A year later, she found a note under her door, from Teddy, telling her that she was the best teacher he ever had in his whole life.

Six years went by before she got another note from Teddy. He then wrote that he had finished high school, third in his class, and she was still the best teacher he ever had in life.Four years after that, she got another letter, saying that while things had been tough at times, he'd stayed in school, had stuck with it, and would soon graduate from college with the highest of honors.

He assured Mrs.Thompson that she was still the best and favorite teacher he had ever had in his whole life.Then four more years passed and yet another letter came. This time he explained that after he got his bachelor's degree, he decided to go a little further. The letter explained that she was still the best and favorite teacher he ever had. But now his name was a little longer....

The letter was signed, Theodore F. Stoddard, MD.The story does not end there. You see, there was yet another letter that spring. Teddy said he had met this girl and was going to be married. He explained that his father had died a couple of years ago and he was wondering if Mrs. Thompson might agree to sit at the wedding in the place that was usually reserved for the mother of the groom. Of course, Mrs.Thompson did.

And guess what? She wore that bracelet, the one with several rhinestones missing. Moreover, she made sure she was wearing the perfume that Teddy remembered his mother wearing on their last Christmas together.They hugged each other, and Dr. Stoddard whispered in Mrs. Thompson's ear, "Thank you Mrs. Thompson for believing in me. Thank you so much for making me feel important and showing me that I could make a difference."Mrs. Thompson, with tears in her eyes, whispered back.

She said, "Teddy, you have it all wrong. You were the one who taught me that I could make a difference. I didn't know how to teach until I met you."(For you that don't know, Teddy Stoddard is the Dr. at Iowa Methodist in DesMoines that has the Stoddard Cancer Wing.)Warm someone's heart today. . . pass this along. I love this story so very much, I cry every time I read it. Just try to make a difference in someone's life today? tomorrow? just "do it". Random acts of kindness, I think they call it!

Give 100 Percent in your Relationship with Others

A boy and a girl were playing together. The boy had a collection of marbles. The girl had some sweets with her. The boy told the girl that he will give her all his marbles in exchange for her sweets. The girl agreed.

The boy kept the biggest and the most beautiful marble aside and gave the rest to the girl. The girl gave him all her sweets as she had promised.

That night, the girl slept peacefully. But the boy couldn't sleep as he kept wondering if the girl had hidden some sweets from him the way he had hidden his best marble.

Moral of the story: If you don't give your hundred percent in a relationship, you'll always keep doubting if the other person has given his/her hundred percent.. This is applicable for any relationship like love, employer-employee relationship etc., Give your hundred percent to everything you do and sleep peacefully 

God is at Work in our Lives

The only survivor of a shipwreck was washed up on a small, uninhabited 
island.

He prayed feverishly for God to rescue him, and everyday he scanned
the horizon for help, but none seemed forthcoming.

Exhausted, he eventually managed to build a little hut out of
driftwood to protect himself from the elements and to store his few
possessions.

One day, after scavenging for food, he arrived home to find his little
hut in flames with smoke rolling up to the sky.

The worst had happened! Everything was lost!
He was stunned with disbelief, grief, and anger: "God, how could you
do this to me?" he cried.

Early the next day he was awakened by the sound of a ship that was
approaching the island. It had come to rescue him.

"How did you know I was here?" asked the weary man of his rescuers.

"We saw your smoke signal!" they replied.


Moral of the story:

It's easy to get discouraged when things are going bad, but we
shouldn't lose heart, because God is at work in our lives, even in the
midst of pain and suffering.

Remember that the next time your little hut seems to be burning to the
ground: it just may be a smoke signal that summons the grace of God.

You may want to consider passing this on … because you never know who
feels like their hut is on fire today!


"Unselfishness is more paying, only people have not the patience to
practice it. It is more paying from the point of view of health also."

CW I p.33.Complete works of Swami Vivekananda. Volume I.



"Can anyone get
liberation, my child, unless He Himself removes shackles? Have deep faith
in God. Look upon the Master as your refuge, even as children regard their
parents."

TN348.Swami Tapasyananda and
Swami Nikhilananda. Sri Sarada Devi, the Holy Mother;
Life and Conversations. Madras:
Sri Ramakrishna Math, 1977.

Think how People goes in this Age

How do these people survive?

-----------

ONE

------------

Recently, when I went to McDonald's I saw on the menu that you could

have an order of 6, 9 or 12 Chicken McNuggets. I asked for a half dozen

nuggets. "We don't have half dozen nuggets," said the teenager at the

counter. "You don't?" I replied. "We only have six, nine, or twelve," was

the reply. "So I can't order a half dozen nuggets, but I can order six?"

"That's right." So I shook my head and ordered six McNuggets

-----------------------

TWO

-----------

I was checking out at the local Wal-Mart with just a few items and the

lady behind me put her things on the belt close to mine. I picked up one of those "dividers" that

they keep by the cash register and placed it between our things so they

wouldn't get mixed. After the girl had scanned all of my items, she picked

up the "divider", looking it all over for the bar code so she could scan

it. Not finding the bar code she said to me, "Do you know how much this

is?" I said to her "I've changed my mind, I don't think I'll buy that

today." She said "OK," and I paid her for the things and left. She had no

clue to what had just happened.

------------------------------

THREE

-----------

A lady at work was seen putting a credit card into her floppy drive

and pulling it out very quickly. When I inquired as to what she was doing,

she said she was shopping on the Internet and they kept asking for a credit

card number, so she was using the ATM "thingy."

------------------------------

FOUR

----------

I recently saw a distraught young lady weeping beside her car. "Do you

need some help?" I asked. She replied, "I knew I should have replaced the

battery to this remote door unlocker. Now I can't get into my car. Do you

think they (pointing to a distant convenience store) would have a battery

to fit this?"

"Hmmm, I dunno. Do you have an alarm, too?" I asked. "No, just this remote

thingy," she answered, handing it and the car keys to me. As I took the key

and manually unlocked the door, I replied, "Why don't you drive over there

and check about the batteries. It's a long walk."

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FIVE

---------

Several years ago, we had an Intern who was none too swift. One day

she was typing and turned to a secretary and said, "I'm almost out of

typing paper. What do I do?" "Just use copier machine paper," the secretary

told her. With that, the intern took her last remaining blank piece of

paper, put it on the photocopier and proceeded to make five "blank" copies.

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SIX

----------

I was in a car dealership a while ago, when a large motor home was

towed into the garage. The front of the vehicle was in dire need of repair

and the whole thing generally looked like an extra in "Twister." I asked

the manager what had happened. He told me that the driver had set the

"cruise control" and then went in the back to make a sandwich.

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SEVEN

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My neighbor works in the operations department in the central office

of a large bank. Employees in the field call him when they have problems

with their computers. One night he got a call from a woman in one of the

branch banks who had this question: "I've

got smoke coming from the back of my terminal. Do you guys have a fire

downtown?"

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EIGHT

-----------

Police in Radnor , Pa , interrogated a suspect by placing a metal colander on his

head and connecting it with wires to a photocopy machine. The message "He's

lying" was placed in the copier, and police pressed the copy button each

time they thought the suspect wasn't telling the truth. Believing the "lie

detector" was working, the suspect confessed.

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NINE

-----------

A mother calls 911 very worried, asking the dispatcher if she needs to

take her kid to the emergency room, the kid was eating ants. The dispatcher

tells her to give the kid some Benadryl and it should be fine, the mother

says, I just gave him some ant killer.....Dispatcher: Rush him in to

emergency room!

Think in the Right Way

A teacher teaching Maths to five-year-old Arnav asked him, "If I give you one apple and one apple and one apple, how many apples will you have?" Within a few seconds Arnav replied confidently, "Four!"

The dismayed teacher was expecting an effortless correct answer (three). She was disappointed. "Maybe the child did not listen properly," she thought. She repeated, "Arnav, listen carefully. If I give you one apple and one apple and one apple, how many apples will you have?"

Arnav had seen the disappointment on his teacher's face. He calculated again on his fingers. But within him he was also searching for the answer that will make the teacher happy. His search for the answer was not for the correct one, but the one that will make his teacher happy. This time hesitatingly he replied, "Four…"

The disappointment stayed on the teacher's face. She remembered that Arnav liked strawberries. She thought maybe he doesn't like apples and that is making him loose focus. This time with an exaggerated excitement and twinkling in her eyes she asked, "If I give you one strawberry and one strawberry and one strawberry, then how many you will have?"

Seeing the teacher happy, young Arnav calculated on his fingers again. There was no pressure on him, but a little on the teacher. She wanted her new approach to succeed. With a hesitating smile young Arnav enquired, "Three?"

The teacher now had a victorious smile. Her approach had succeeded. She wanted to congratulate herself. But one last thing remained. Once again she asked him, "Now if I give you one apple and one apple and one more apple how many will you have?"

Promptly Arnav answered, "Four! The teacher was aghast. "How Arnav, how?" she demanded in a little stern and irritated voice.

In a voice that was low and hesitating young Arnav replied, "Because I already have one apple in my bag."

Moral:

"When someone gives you an answer that is different from what you expect. Don't think they are wrong. There maybe an angle that you have not understood at all. You will have to listen and understand, but never listen with a predetermined notion.

Faith

Story told by a man which is most frightening yet thought-provoking experiences of his life. He had been on a long flight. The first warning of the approaching problems came when the sign on the airplane flashed on: "Fasten your seat belts."Then, after a while, a calm voice said, "We shall not be serving the beverages at this time as we are expecting a little turbulence. Please be sure your seat belt is fastened."

As he looked around the aircraft, it became obvious that many of the passengers were becoming apprehensive. Later, the voice of the announcer said, "We are so sorry that we are unable to serve the meal at this time. The turbulence is still ahead of us."

And then the storm broke. The ominous cracks of thunder could be heard even above the roar of the engines. Lightening lit up the darkening skies, and within moments that great plane was like a cork tossed around on a celestial ocean. One moment the airplane was lifted on terrific currents of air; the next, it dropped as if it were about to crash.

The man confessed that he shared the discomfort and fear of those around him. He said, "As I looked around the plane, I could see that nearly all the passengers were upset and alarmed. Some were praying. 

The future seemed ominous and many were wondering if they would make it through the storm. And then, I suddenly saw a girl to whom the storm meant nothing. She had tucked her feet beneath her as she sat on her seat and was reading a book.

Everything within her small world was calm and orderly. Sometimes she closed her eyes, then she would read again; then she would straighten her legs, but worry and fear were not in her world. When the plane was being buffeted by the terrible storm, when it lurched this way and that, as it rose and fell with frightening severity, when all the adults were scared half to death, that marvelous child was completely composed and unafraid."

The man could hardly believe his eyes. It was not surprising therefore, that when the plane finally reached its destination and all the passengers were hurrying to disembark, he lingered to speak to the girl whom he had watched for such a long time.

Having commented about the storm and behavior of the plane, he asked why she had not been afraid. 

The sweet child replied, "Sir, my Dad is the pilot, and he is taking me home."

The Dreams

Dear Readers, this is the one I got through mining the world of web and this is the one which was a must read for every one.

The first day of school our professor introduced himself and challenged us to get to know someone we didn't already know. I stood up to look around when a gentle hand touched my shoulder. I turned around to find a wrinkled, little old lady beaming up at me with a smile that that lit up her entire being. 

She said, "Hi, handsome. My name is Rose. I'm eighty-seven years old. Can I give you a hug?" I laughed and enthusiastically responded, "Of course you may!" and she gave me a giant squeeze. 

"Why are you in college at such a young, innocent age?" I asked.

She jokingly replied, "I'm here to meet a rich husband, get married, have a couple of children, and then retire and travel." 

"No seriously," I asked. I was curious what may have motivated her to be taking on this challenge at her age. 

"I always dreamed of having a college education and now I'm getting one!" she told me. 

After class we walked to the student union building and share a chocolate milkshake. We became instant friends. Every day for the next three months we would leave class together and talk nonstop. I was always mesmerized listening to this "time machine" as she shared her wisdom and experience with me. 

Over the course of the year, Rose became a campus icon and she easily made friends wherever she went. She loved to dress up and she reveled in the attention bestowed upon her from the other students. She was living it up. 

At the end of the semester we invited Rose to speak at our football banquet. I'll never forget what she taught us. She was introduced and stepped up to the podium. As she began to deliver her prepared speech, she dropped her three by five cards on the floor. Frustrated and a little embarrassed she leaned into the microphone and simply said, "I'm sorry I'm so jittery. I gave up beer for Lent and this whiskey is killing me! I'll never get my speech back in order so let me just tell you what I know." 

As we laughed she cleared her throat and began: "We do not stop playing because we are old; we grow old because we stop playing. There are only few secrets to staying young, being happy, and achieving success. "You have to laugh and find humor every day. You've got to have a dream. When you lose your dreams, you die. We have so many people walking around who are dean and don't even know it!" 

"There is a huge difference between growing older and growing up. If you are nineteen years old and lie in bed for one full year and don't do one productive thing, you will turn twenty years old. If I am eighty-seven years old and stay in bed for a year and never do anything I will turn eighty-eight. Anybody can grow older. That doesn't take any talent or ability. The idea is to grow up by always finding the opportunity in change." 

"Have no regrets. The elderly usually don't have regrets for what we did, but rather for things we did not do. The only people who fear death are those with regrets." 

She concluded her speech by courageously singing The Rose. She challenged each of us to study the lyrics and live them out in our daily lives. At the years end Rose finished the college degree she had begun all those years ago. 

One week after graduation Rose died peacefully in her sleep. 

Remember : GROWING OLDER IS MANDATORY, GROWING UP IS OPTIONAL

Lunch With God

A little boy wanted to meet God. He knew it was a long trip to where God lived, so he packed his suitcase with a bag of potato chips and a six-pack of root beer and started his journey.

When he had gone about three blocks, he met an old woman. She was sitting in the park, just staring at some pigeons. The boy sat down next to her and opened his suitcase. He was about to take a drink from his root beer when he noticed that the old lady looked hungry, so he offered her some chips. She gratefully accepted it and smiled at him.

Her smile was so pretty that the boy wanted to see it again, so he offered her a root beer. Again, she smiled at him. The boy was delighted! They sat there all afternoon eating and smiling, but they never said a word.

As twilight approached, the boy realized how tired he was and he got up to leave; but before he had gone more than a few steps, he turned around, ran back to the old woman, and gave her a hug. She gave him her biggest smile ever.

When the boy opened the door to his own house a short time later, his mother was surprised by the look of joy on his face. She asked him, "What did you do today that made you so happy?" He replied, "I had lunch with God." But before his mother could respond, he added, "You know what? She's got the most beautiful smile I've ever seen!"

Meanwhile, the old woman, also radiant with joy, returned to her home. Her son was stunned by the look of peace on her face and he asked, "Mother, what did you do today that made you so happy?" She replied! "I ate potato chips in the park with God." However, before her son responded, she added, "You know, he's much younger than I expected."

Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around. People come into our lives for a reason, a season, or a lifetime! Embrace all equally!

The Boy and the Starfish

One day, an old man was walking along the beach in the early morning and noticed the tide had washed thousands of starfish up on the shore. Up ahead in the distance, he spotted a boy who appeared to be gathering up the starfish, and one by one tossing them back into the ocean.

He approached the boy and asked him why he spent so much energy doing what seemed to be a waste of time.

The boy replied, "If these starfish are left out here like this, they will bake in the sun, and by this afternoon they will all be dead."

The old man gazed out as far as he could see and responded, "But, theremust be hundreds of miles of beach and thousands of starfish. You can'tpossibly rescue all of them. What difference is throwing a few back going to make anyway?"

The boy then held up the starfish he had in his hand and replied, "It is sure going to make a lot of difference to this one!"

Think about a time when your efforts made a difference.

............ ......... ......... .......... ......... ......... ........ ...... ...
Most of us know the story till here........ .......
Do you know what happened then?

............ ......... ......... ......... .......... ......... ............ .. ...
The boy tossed that starfish into the water. He then looked intently at the old man and said "I will save as many as I can." The old man had no reply.
He was really ashamed of his own attitude. He stood speechless for a while. Then slowly he picked up a starfish and threw it into the water, joining the boy in his efforts. The boy gave him a gentle smile and soon both of them were silently tossing one starfish after another into the water..

Soon, the boy and the old man saw that they were not alone. Other people who had come to the beach for a walk noticed them both working diligently to save the starfish. One by one, people started joining in the effort.

As the sun rose higher in the sky, hundreds of people silently worked to save the starfish. Young people, old people, rich people, poor people all joined hands in the noble task.

Amazingly within a couple of hours, the beach was almost clear of starfish. As the last starfish was thrown into the sea, a thunderous cheer spontaneously arose from the people. Each one of them felt they had done something important, something that made a difference. They cheered and hugged each other. Some of them even exchanged names and numbers and promised to stay in touch.

Nothing is impossible if we work together. But someone needs to be bold enough to take the first step. Many others will follow. Even one person's determination and conviction can change the world.

............ ......... ......... ......... .
Take the first step in CREATING your IDEAL WORLD today and you will see the WORLD will follow you.

********************************************************************************************************

Thus dear Readers, I hope you had enjoyed this story. I'm asking in particular because me too enjoyed this story very much and this is one of the stories I like most.

BOSS

A man goes into a pet shop to buy a monkey.The shop owner points to 3 identical looking monkeys on a perch and says the monkey on the left cost $ 500.00,Why does that one cost so much? asked the shopper.The owner says well the monkey knows how to use a computer.The man then asks about the next monkey and was told that this one cost $1000.00 because it can do everything the other monkey can do plus he knows the Unix operating system.Naturally the increasingly startled man asks about the third monkey to be told that it costs $ 2000.00 .Needless to say this begs the question.What can it do?To which the owner replies:"To be honest I have never seen him do a thing but the other two call him BOSS"

 

God is at our Work in Our Lives

The only survivor of a shipwreck was washed up on a small, uninhabited

island.



He prayed feverishly for God to rescue him, and everyday he scanned

the horizon for help, but none seemed forthcoming.



Exhausted, he eventually managed to build a little hut out of

driftwood to protect himself from the elements and to store his few

possessions.



One day, after scavenging for food, he arrived home to find his little

hut in flames with smoke rolling up to the sky.



The worst had happened! Everything was lost!



He was stunned with disbelief, grief, and anger: "God, how could you

do this to me?" he cried.



Early the next day he was awakened by the sound of a ship that was

approaching the island. It had come to rescue him.



"How did you know I was here?" asked the weary man of his rescuers.



"We saw your smoke signal!" they replied.



Moral of the story:



It's easy to get discouraged when things are going bad, but we

shouldn't lose heart, because God is at work in our lives, even in the

midst of pain and suffering.



Remember that the next time your little hut seems to be burning to the

ground: it just may be a smoke signal that summons the grace of God.



You may want to consider passing this on … because you never know who

feels like their hut is on fire today!






"Unselfishness is more paying, only people have not the patience to
practice it. It is more paying from the point of view of health also."

CW I p.33.Complete works of Swami Vivekananda. Volume I.



"Can anyone get
liberation, my child, unless He Himself removes shackles? Have deep faith
in God. Look upon the Master as your refuge, even as children regard their
parents."

TN348.Swami Tapasyananda and
Swami Nikhilananda. Sri Sarada Devi, the Holy Mother;
Life and Conversations. Madras:
Sri Ramakrishna Math, 1977.

Forgiveness

ForgivenessThought I should share this with you...Nice one.One day, the sage gave the disciple an empty sack and a basket of potatoes. "Think of all the people who have done or said something against you in the recent past, especially those you cannot forgive.
For each of them, inscribe the name on a potato and put it in the sack."The disciple came up quite a few names, and soon his sack was heavy with potatoes."Carry the sack with you wherever you go for a week," said the sage. "We'll talk after that."At first, the disciple thought nothing of it. Carrying the sack was not particularly difficult.
But after a while, it became more of a burden. It sometimes got in the way, and it seemed to require more effort to carry as time went on, even though its weight remained the same.After a few days, the sack began to smell. The carved potatoes gave off a ripe odor. Not only were they increasingly inconvenient to carry around, they were also becoming rather unpleasant.Finally, the week was over. The sage summoned the disciple. "Any thoughts about all this?""Yes, Master," the disciple replied. "When we are unable to forgive others, we carry negative feelings with us everywhere, much like these potatoes.
That negativity becomes a burden to us and, after a while, it festers.""Yes, that is exactly what happens when one holds a grudge. So, how can we lighten the load?""We must strive to forgive.""Forgiving someone is the equivalent of removing the corresponding potato from the sack. How many of your transgressors are you able to forgive?""I've thought about it quite a bit, Master," the disciple said. "It required much effort, but I have decided to forgive all of them.""Very well, we can remove all the potatoes. Were there any more people who transgressed against you this last week?"The disciple thought for a while and admitted there were. Then he felt panic when he realized his empty sack was about to get filled up again."Master," he asked, "if we continue like this, wouldn't there always be potatoes in the sack week after week?""Yes, as long as people speak or act against you in some way, you will always have potatoes.""
But Master, we can never control what others do. So what good is the Tao in this case?""We're not at the realm of the Tao yet. Everything we have talked about so far is the conventional approach to forgiveness. It is the same thing that many philosophies and most religions preach - we must constantly strive to forgive, for it is an important virtue. This is not the Tao because there is no striving in the Tao." "Then what is the Tao, Master?""You can figure it out.
If the potatoes are negative feelings, then what is the sack?""The sack is... that which allows me to hold on to the negativity. It is something within us that makes us dwell on feeling offended.... Ah, it is my inflated sense of self-importance.""And what will happen if you let go of it?""Then... the things that people do or say against me no longer seem like such a major issue.""In that case, you won't have any names to inscribe on potatoes. That means no more weight to carry around, and no more bad smells. The Tao of forgiveness is the conscious decision to not just to remove some potatoes... but to relinquish the entire sack."