Chinese Bamboo Tree-story

Chinese bamboo is quite unique on its own. When this bamboo is planted, watered, and nurtured for the whole growing season, it does not outwardly develop even just for an inch. Then, on the next growing season, the farmer must continue to irrigate, fertilize and care for the bamboo tree and yet nothing happens – it fails to sprout just the same.
And as the seasons go in and out, the farmer has to continue caring for the bamboo for four consecutive years. What could really be discouraging is the farmer has nothing substantial to demonstrate for all of his labor in caring and growing the tree. Four lonely years of hard work and caring and yet you have nothing!
And then on the fifth year, you must be prepared for something so amazing and incredible!
All the hard work seems to be paid off on the fifth year because that Chinese bamboo tree seed at last grows and not just growing as we normally see with other plants. The bamboo tree shoots up to more than 80 feet all in just one growing season! Now, that is a very astonishing demonstration of the power of nature!
Now, you might be thinking: Did the small tree loll inactive for four years and then just decides to grow dramatically on the fifth? I think the answer is quite clear for us to see. The little tree was actually developing itself underground by expanding its root system to make it tough enough to sustain its impending external growth in the fifth year and even beyond.
Now, had the tree failed to build up a strong and able underground foundation, it would be impossible for it to keep on growing when it is time to sprout outside into the outside world.
This story is very much true in rearing our beautiful children. As parents, we have to patiently exert efforts in teaching and disciplining our children for them to develop right values and to adopt strong character while at the same time defeat many difficulties and different challenges.
If that Chinese bamboo farmer dug up his little bamboo seeds each year just because he is curious or wants to make sure it was growing or what, he could effectively stopped the tree’s growth. There are times when we demand our little children to sit still and behave and be patient but big lessons can be deeply taught once they are demonstrated in actions and not just in words.

How to Make Happiness a Habit- Tessa Miller

I’m not one who believes you can be happy all the time, but I have learned you can be happy much of the time. And that’s not something that depends on how your day is going or how others treat you — it depends on what you do on a regular basis.
 

I remember being unhappy most days, at one point in my life. It wasn’t because I hated the people in my life — I had a lovely wife, great kids, other wonderful family members and friends. It was because I was unhappy with myself, and that caused growing debt problems, unhappiness with my job, health problems and more. I felt like I couldn’t change any of that.

Then one day I sat down and made a list. I make a lot of list — it’s one of my favourite habits — but this list seemed to have a magical power. It was a list of the things I was grateful for. Amazingly, there were a lot of things on the list, from things about my wife, kids, relatives, and friends, to things about my job, about nature around me, about my life. This list was magical because I went from feeling a bit depressed about everything, and hopeless and helpless, to much happier. My mindset shifted from the things I didn’t like or didn’t have, to the things I was really happy I had. And I was in control.

Since then I’ve experimented with a number of habits and have found a couple things to be true:

A handful of activities can actually make you happy.
 

If you incorporate them into your life on a regular basis (make them into habits), you’ll be happier regularly. And those might seem to be small realizations, but actually they’re huge.

The Habits That Make You Happy
So what habits make you happy? Try doing these on a daily basis, and see if you get the same results:

List Three Good Things. My wife and I started a daily evening ritual, at about 7pm each day, where we take a moment to tell each other three good things about our day. We didn’t invent this, but it serves as at least one time in your day when you focus on what you’re grateful for. This can create a mental habit of gratitude that you can use other times in your day, when you’re focused on the things you don’t like or have — when you feel this, think about something you do have, that you love. Find a way to be grateful, and you’re happier.

Help Someone. When we focus on ourselves, and the woeful state of our lives, we are self-centered. This shrinks the world to one little place with one little unhappy person. But what if we can expand that worldview, and expand our heart to include at least one other person? Maybe even a few others? Then we see that others are suffering too, even if that just means they’re stressed out. Then we can reach out, and do something to reduce their stress, put a smile on their face, make their lives easier. Help at least one person each day, and you’ll find your entire perspective shifted.

Meditate. I’ve called this the Fundamental Habit, because it affects everything else. Meditate for just two minutes a day, and you’ll create a habit that will allow you to notice your thoughts throughout the rest of the day, that will help you to be more present (unhappiness comes from not being present), that will help you notice the source of anxiety and distraction. That’s a lot that can be accomplished in two minutes! Sit every morning when you wake, and just notice your body, and then your breath. Notice when your mind wanders, and gently return to your breath. You become the watcher of your mind, and you’ll learn some useful things, I promise.

Exercise. Everyone knows you should exercise, so I’m not going to belabour this point. But it really does make you happier, both in the moment of exercise (I’m exerting myself, I’m alive!) and throughout the rest of the day. Exercise lightly, if you’re not in the habit yet, and just for a few minutes a day to start out. Who doesn’t have a few minutes a day? If you don’t, you need to loosen up your schedule a bit.

There are a number of other habits that also help: mindful eating, drinking tea, doing yoga, socializing with others. But these incorporate meditation (they’re more active forms of meditation), and exercise, and helping others, and gratitude (if you’re doing it right). So I wanted to list the most basic habits, and then you can expand to other areas.
How do you form these habits? One at a time, starting as small as possible, with some social accountability. Set these habits in motion. You’ll notice yourself becoming more present, more grateful, more other-focused. The shift that results is nothing short of a miracle.

Harmony In Relationships…by anonymoius

Speak always with a conscious control and only what is necessary and helpful.

Always Look On The Bright Side.
A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity;
an optimist sees opportunity in every difficulty.

Serenity
The real sign of serenity is not seen so much in the face,
as found in the depth and stillness of the eyes.

Notice the Difference
Replace the words “I have to” with “I choose to”
and notice the difference in how you feel.

Courage
Courage is taking a step forward into an area of difficulty without a solution in mind, trusting that whatever help you need will become available.

Self-Respect
Experience the bliss of Self-Respect and give respect to others at all times. When I am prejudiced against another, my narrow vision and small heart lower my self-dignity and self-worth

Best Kind of Friend
The best kind of friend is the kind, you can sit on a porch and swing with, never say a word,
and then walk away, feeling like it was the best conversation you’ve ever had.

Balance
Maintain the balance of responding to situations with a cool head and to people with a warm heart.

In order to remain constantly happy transform bad things into something good with the power of silence.

Learn To Create Love
If I limit the love I give to just one or two, it will eventually go stale.
If I learn to create love inside my heart and silently give it to everyone I meet, love will grace every corner of my life.
 
 An Ancient Peace
There is a silence into which the world cannot intrude.
There is an ancient peace you carry in your heart and have not lost. There is a love you have missed for so long and will always come back to.
Pure and Gentle
Success is merged in every step of those who have a pure and gentle nature.

The Happiness You Give
The happiness you give makes you more happy than the happiness you receive.

Lotus Life
The lotus is a symbol of purity. Its roots are in the mud, but the flower remains above dirty water. Live a lotus life. Be in the world, but unaffected by impurities.

Determination
Determination brings the strength to continue, the steadiness to succeed, and the wisdom to slip past difficulties undisturbed.

Vibrations
With your own vibrations of peace and happiness,
give everyone else the experience of happiness and comfort.

Power of Silence
In order to remain constantly happy transform bad things
into something good with the power of silence.

Learn To Create Love
If I limit the love I give to just one or two, it will eventually go stale.
If I learn to create love inside my heart and silently give it to everyone I meet, love will grace every corner of my life.

Believe In Yourself... Les Brown

It's time to believe in yourself. You have enough critics. You have the ability to do more than you ever thought you could do.

Don't let your past define you. The past is not a place you can point to on a map. It exists only in your mind. Why do you continually seek to return to a place that simply doesn't exist?

Your task is to remain focused forward toward the future, and to stay rooted in the present because the present is where you will make your impact and can change lives.

You redefine your future when you redesign your present.

As you look at your life, consider your goals and what you are doing on a daily basis to bring them to fruition. Are you on track? You must continually monitor your progress and course correct as early as you can in order to be successful.

Above all, be coachable. Figure out what you want to do and then find someone that has already done it and hire them to assist you. Hire them so you can save yourself time and costly mistakes.

You see, there's no secret to success. There's a system to success. Once you tap into that system, you're golden. I promise you that you have something special, something you can believe in.

You have Greatness within you!

Les Brown

7 Tips for a Fearless Life-Tess Marshall

Fear is a thief. It will steal your time, energy and dreams. It makes you anxious during the day and keeps you tossing and turning throughout the night.

Fear is crazy making; it taunts and depletes you. It keeps you  imprisoned, depressed and lifeless. Fear steals your joy.

It doesn’t have to be this way. You have the freedom of choice. Make a decision today; choose to take your power back.

Don’t let fear win. Choose to take action. Choose adventure over your comfort zone. Choose to give your attention, time and energy to your dreams. Choose to be unstoppable!

If you’re looking for ways to make different choices but don’t know where to start, you may find these ideas helpful.

Visualize life without fear. How magnificent would your life be? Write out a description of your best life. Make a mental movie and give yourself the leading role. Rerun your movie as often as necessary.

Have faith. Do you faith in your fear or faith in your ability, talent and wisdom? We never lose faith; we only misplace it. Believe in possibilities and opportunities. Believe in yourself. Believe in your higher power, the universe or God. Believe that you have a part in making the world a better place.

Delete mental garbage. Give up your negative affirmations. “I can’t do it.” “I’m not as good as the others.” “I don’t have time.” “I’m not smart enough or qualified.” Replace the garbage with positive self-talk and affirmations.

Identify and use your resources. This can include your mastermind group, spiritual practices, strengths, skills, books, classes and anything else that will give you the courage to be your brilliant self.

Take action. Do your most important tasks at the beginning of your day. Don’t get caught up in busy work. Stay committed. If you veer off course, begin again. If you make a mistake, begin again. Keep going and you will reach your goal.

Persist and persevere. Don’t become discouraged by a previous failure. Instead use it as a learning opportunity.  Answer the following questions: How does this make me stronger? What opportunity does it
give me? What is the next move I must take? Press on!

Trust the process. Learn to trust life. Trust that things have a way of working themselves out. Trust that the right people will be put on your path. Trust that you’ll pick yourself up if you fail. When you trust the process, you’re able to live in the present moment without worrying about the past or the future..

We were born to take risks, explore, grow and expand. We are meant to be out there living our dreams and making the world a more loving place. It’s time to let go and give life everything you’ve got.

The Pregnant Deer Scenario

In a forest, a pregnant deer is about to give birth to a baby. It finds a remote grass field nearby a river and slowly goes there thinking it would be safe. As she moves slowly, she gets labour pain.

At the same moment, dark clouds gather around that area and lightning starts a forest fire. Turning left, she sees a hunter who is aiming an arrow from a distance. As she tries to move towards right, she spots a hungry lion approaching towards her.

STOCHASTIC PROBABILITY THEORY

What can the pregnant deer do, as she is already under labour pain..?
What do you think will happen..?
Will the deer survive..?
Will it give birth to a fawn..?
Will the fawn survive...?

OR

Will everything be burnt by the forest fire...?
Can the deer go left..? No, the hunter's arrow is pointing at her.
Can she go right...? No, the hungry male lion is approaching her.
Can she move up..? No, there the forest is on fire.
Can she move down..? No, that is where the fierce river is.

Answer: She does nothing. She just focuses on giving birth to a new LIFE..

The sequence of events that happens at that fraction of a second (moment)
are as follows:

In a spur of MOMENT, a lightning strikes, and blinds the eyes of the hunter...!
At that MOMENT, he releases the arrow missing and zipping past the deer...!
At that MOMENT, the arrow hits and injures the lion badly...!
At that MOMENT, it starts to rain heavily and puts out the forest fire...!
At that next MOMENT, the deer gives birth to a healthy fawn...!

In our life too, there are MOMENTS of CHOICE when we all have to deal with negative thoughts from all sides. Some thoughts are so powerful they overcome us, and make us clueless.

Anything can happen in a MOMENT in this life. If you are religious, superstitious, atheist, agnostic or whatever, you can attribute this MOMENT to divine intervention, faith, sudden luck, serendipity, coincidence, karma, or a simple 'I just don't know'...!

The priority of the deer, in that given moment, was simply giving birth to a baby, because LIFE IS PRECIOUS...!

In future, may you always be inspired to have a focused positive insight, oblivious of all imaginary, negative probabilities.

"LIFE is Flowing Like a River
With Unexpected TURNS,
May be GOOD,
May be BAD...
Learn to enjoy Each Turn
bcoz,
these Turns...

Never RE-TURN."

10 Steps to Summon Mighty Forces and Live a Bold Life

Most of your fears place you in the future with a sense of lack. You may fear that you’ll never have enough time, money, friends, support or love.

You may be afraid that you’ll always be stuck in the same job, relationship or place.

Think about your top three fears.

Fill in the blanks:

I’m afraid of __________________________.

I’m afraid of __________________________.

I’m afraid of __________________________.

What do they say about your personal beliefs? How do they keep you stuck?

Read through the following three fears and the possible negative beliefs behind them. See if you can relate.

1. Fear:  I won’t have enough money to support myself.

Negative beliefs:

I’m not smart or talented enough.

Nothing ever works out for me.

There aren’t any good jobs left.

There’s not enough to go around.

2. Fear: I’ll always be alone

Negative beliefs:

I’m unlovable.

I’m not thin enough.

Nobody cares about me.

I’m not pretty/handsome enough.

All the good people are taken.

3. Fear: I don’t measure up.

I don’t have enough.

I’m not good enough.

I’m damaged goods.

I’m not capable.

I’m going to be left behind.

Our fears create our reality. If you think you won’t have enough, you never will. If you think that you’re not lovable, others will support your belief. And if you think you don’t measure up, you’ll always feel inferior.

You have the power to invent a bold life. Canadian author and pastor, Basil King said, “When you live boldly you summon mighty forces.”

10 Steps to Summon Mighty Forces:

1. Reinvent your reality.

You create the world that you see with your belief system.  Choose to surrender your old beliefs and invent new ones.

2. Decide what kind of life you want.

Get an image of it in your mind. Write down affirmations to support your new vision. Hold your vision. Never let go.

3. Map out a strategy.

Decide what steps will take you to your dream. Give up what will get in the way. Take action.

4. Make new friends.

Reach out to the people that will support your new beliefs and challenge your limits. If you get rejected, try again. On the other side of rejection is a life-long friend.

5. Make a commitment.

Be willing to do what it takes. Every day, do your three most important tasks first. Track your time. Keep moving forward.

6. Prepare for the best.

Do what it takes. Wake up early. Focus. Do your best work. Ask for support.  Surrender perfection. Plan to have a happy ending.

7. Challenge yourself.

Take a risk. Don’t avoid what’s difficult. Do something different. Put yourself out there. Walk on the edge.

8. You are OK.

Bring to mind your past successes. Remind yourself of your strengths.Bring up the “feelings” that came with your previous accomplishments.  Sit in the “after-glow” in advance.

9. Be grateful in advance.

Write a letter in your journal and thank your friends and colleagues, in advance, for helping you accomplish your goal.

10. Manipulate your mind.

Learn to shift your perception when you catch yourself in doubt and fear. See your future through new lenses. Choose to believe that the best is yet to come. Look around and notice good things happening everywhere.

If you live in a world of fear and scarcity you’ll attract more fear and scarcity. Choose to invent a new reality. Make it one of possibility, miracles and love. I’ll meet you there!