Inspiration Shared By Lady Braids

Inspiration On 2/16/12

We, as a society, are still teaching our young women to love backwards.
The message is boldly promoted on the cover of nearly every women's
magazine. There are tools to find love, tricks to catch it and rules to
keep it. The glowing faces of the toothpick models on the covers hold
the promise of great secrets to be revealed on the pages within.

Romantic love is secondary to real love, not the reverse. When there's
an absence of love within, the void cannot be filled by reaching out
and bringing love to you.

Respecting and honoring the person you see in the mirror, is real love.
Genuine care for the lives of every citizen on the planet, is real love.
Gratitude for the things we receive from the earth and concern for
the environment, is real love.

Of course, there are exceptions to the rule: parents who nurture
the spirit of their children and teach them real love. Even more
heartening are the mentors who share their love and wisdom with
children who do not receive that type of nourishment at home.

Not a single one of us is ready for romantic love until we are truly
living in real love. When we love forward, from the inside out, we do
not seek false romance, which is a needy emotion. We seek true
romance, a love that compliments who we are and everything we
want to become.

 -- Living in love and loving life,
     Terri McPherson

Inspiration On 2/14/12

 

The last thing I wanted to do was go out for lunch. Even with my best
friends. Since my husband and I had separated three months before
I didn’t really want to see anyone.

“Come on,” my friend Kristin urged when she called to invite me. “It’ll
do you good to get out and have a few laughs.”

I couldn’t imagine ever laughing again, not the way I was feeling. But
I couldn’t put my friends off any longer. I showed up at the restaurant,
knowing I wouldn’t be very good company.

Everyone looked so sunny and happy, I felt like a black cloud as I
settled into my chair. Please, God, help me have some fun today.
I didn’t want to ruin everyone else’s good time.

My pals passed around the salsa and told jokes. I pasted a smile on
my face and let my eyes drift around the restaurant.

A young girl sat with her parents at a table opposite ours. When her
big eyes met mine I felt like she saw right through me, down to the
sadness inside.

A moment later the girl appeared at our table and dropped something
into my palm: a sticker. A little brown bear hugged a bright red heart.
“Somebody loves me,” it read.

The little girl returned to her table. I stuck the bear on my blouse.
My friends—these dear friends—burst out laughing, and so did I.

Somebody loved me, all right. Enough to send me the perfect message
on a silly sticker.

How could I not take joy in that?

 -- Karen Clanin 

 

 

Inspiration On 1/23/12

Do you love to be loved, or do you love giving love?

Those who want love, seek love and crave love, will
find themselves in times of great darkness and despair
when that love is absent or they feel it has wronged them.

Those who give love freely, without strings or expectations,
in all they do, live in the sunshine of that love for all their
days.

Life is an adventure when you bring your love to the world.
You are unburdened and free. Like minded people are
attracted by your tenderness and reverence for life. Bias
and bigotry are foreign and unfathomable. Dignity and
respect are your currency, and the more you give away,
the richer you become.

You will never have to look for that kind of love.

It will surround you.

 -- Living in love and loving life,
     Terri McPherson

Inspiration On 1/3/12

Because I have received kindness,
I have been spurred on to be kind.

Because I have caught the smile on another's lips,
I have found myself smiling.

Because I have known the joy of receiving,
I rejoice in giving.

Because I have felt pain,
I know what pity is.

Because I have tasted humiliations,
I know what consideration is.

Because I have seen Christ suffer,
I have had the courage to go on.

 -- Sister Mary Gemma Brunke

Inspiration On 1/1/12

To leave the old with a burst of song;
To recall the right and forgive the wrong;

To forget the things that bind you fast;
To the vain regrets of the year that's past;

To have the strength to let go your hold
Of the not worth while of the days grown old;

To dare go forth with a purpose true,
To the unknown task of the year that's new;

To help your brother along the road,
To assist with his work and lift his load;

To add your gift to the world's good cheer,
Is to have and to give a Happy New Year.

 -- Author Unknown

Inspiration On 12/26/11

Where does understanding come from when it feels
as if there is nothing left?

It can come from the simple act of remembering.
To remember is to understand. It is not about
gritting one's teeth and forcing oneself to be
more patient. It is actually easier than that.

Do you remember what it was like to be a child?
No parent should ever forget. And to remember
is to understand.

Do you remember what it was like to be a student?
Every teacher should try to remember, and
especially if they feel frustrated.

Do you remember what it is like to be a patient?
Doctors and nurses show more empathy after
they have also spent time in a hospital bed.

Do you remember what it was like to be lonely?
To be first? To be last? To fail? To succeed?
To be afraid? To remember is to understand.

And to understand is to be patient.

 -- Steve Goodier

 

Inspiration On 12/22/11

Do we not sometimes feel, in trial or perplexity, that others might
help us if they would only stop and listen? But they will not, and
in their constant hurry we know it is little use to speak.

Let us note the lesson for ourselves, and give what we ask - leisure to
hear, attentive, concentrated, not divided - calm, patient consideration.

It may be our busy work, as we think, for the Master, which so
overcrowds our lives that we have not time for this "standing still."
Sad eyes meet ours, but we cannot stay to read their story. Some
look to us for help in battles which we fought long ago, but we
cannot turn aside to see how it fares with them in the strife, or
to whisper the secret of victory.

But He would have said, even though some plans of our own for
His service were put aside, "I tell you the truth, whatever you
did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for Me."

 -- H Bowman

 

Inspiration On 12/21/11

Long-time friendships are like precious gems, but if
neglected, they can fall by the wayside. Maintaining
friendships is easy if you are neighbors and can share
day to day experiences like the Ricardos and Mertzes
in "I Love Lucy." but if your friends live across the
country or even across town, it can be more difficult
to stay connected. it's easy to fall out of touch, but
you need to make a conscious decision not to let it
happen. Likewise, budding new friendships won't grow
unless you nurture them.

It may take some effort, but maintaining friendships
will pay off in the long run with cherished memories
and a wider social circle.

It's one of the best investments you will ever make.

 -- Don Hungerford

Inspiration On 11/10/11

 

I am optimistic about the future of the human race. Now many of
my friends have asked me time and again how I can have such
hope for the future in the face of the problems we have today.
Hunger, pollution, sickness, inflation, recession, unemployment,
wars, and terrorism fill so many hearts with fear. This world
seems to be overflowing too with greed, hypocrisy, anger,
hatred, prejudice, and intolerance. A better life for ourselves
and our children seems for many to be some impossible dream.
How then can I be so optimistic?

My optimism comes from looking into the hearts and souls of
all the people I see everyday. I see a little boy holding open
a heavy door for an elderly man walking with a cane. I see a
young mother carrying a baby in her arms buy an extra box
of macaroni in the store and put it in the food drive box to
help feed the hungry. I see 3 different people pull off the
road to help a motorist whose car broke down. I see a lady
going door to door to share the extra vegetables she had
grown in her garden with her neighbors. I see teenagers
giving up their Spring and Summer vacations to spend their
time helping to repair the homes of the poor and elderly.
I see a man taking off his one Winter coat and giving it to
a woman who has none.

I see people give their time, talents, and energies to make
the life of someone else a little better and a little brighter.
Everywhere I look I see people with smiling faces and kind
hearts. Everywhere I look I see people helping people,
people caring for our world, and people loving their neighbors
as themselves. Everywhere I look I see people living as God
meant for us to live.

That is why I remain so optimistic about us all. Sometimes we
fail, are selfish, and create more problems than we solve. Still,
in our hearts we are good. In our souls we are God’s children.
In our lives we are loving beings capable of saving this world
for us and our children.

 -- Joseph J Mazzella

 

Inspiration On 10/10/11

 

You're miserable and probably one of the rudest people
I've ever come across. 

When I approach you, you turn away and pretend that
I am not there, until you're ready. 

I have tried a thousand times to make you smile and
you have tried a thousand times not to. 

I have dreaded even having to deal with you. I even
tried coming at another time only to find you there
at all hours. 

The hard, staid, look on your face remains unchanged
no matter what day it is, what time it is or even what
season. 

A "Beautiful day!" gets a moan. 

"Hello, how are you today?" always returns "The same." 

I have given up on you, I have been angered by you, I
have even thought about complaining to the manager,
but didn't. 

Then one day I caught myself acting just like you and
realized that I must stop.

I finally resolved myself to the fact that you are who
you are and I cannot change that. 

You are a fact of my life and I must learn to deal with it. 

You made me. 

The one day that I permitted myself to return the
emptiness, rude behavior, terrible attitude and silent
treatment, you chose to say something. 

I approached the checkout and you said, "Are you Okay?"

I was stunned. I could actually feel my brow, my entire
face scrunch up apparently angry that you would ask. 

"Am I okay?" I said in disbelief. 

"Yes." you replied. "You are usually so upbeat and chipper." 

I stood in this dream-like state confused by what was going on. 

You looked at me and said, "I depend on you to lift my spirits
every time you come in. I work three jobs, my bills are piling
up, my kids need clothes for school, my husband left me and
three weeks later I found out I have cancer." 

I was speechless. 

"Now you come in with this attitude today," she said. 

I actually apologized. 

I never considered that you were much more than a clerk.
I never tried to understand that behind that face was
personal pain, life challenges and loss. 

Sure you should learn to separate work and life, but
sometimes life digs in, hurts, and you end up wearing it
like an ugly dress. Fits, but no one wants to see it. 

Knowing now how difficult your life is I will see you
through the eyes of love. 

Love is more than romantic. Love is compassionate. Love
is kind. Love is forgiving. Love is seeing beyond the pain.

 -- I Learned To Love You Today by Bob Perks