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Post by SunnyGirl on Dec 29, 2008 17:59:09 GMT -5
"The Parable of the Snake"
A traveler is crossing the countryside and his path takes him through the mountains. As he climbs higher and higher, the temperature continues to drop until it is quite cold. As he continues, he comes across a snake in the path.
"Please" says the snake, "Would you carry me to the other side? It is cold and I can't make it, and I might die without your help." Taking pity on the snake, the traveler picks him up and places him inside his shirt where he'll be warm.
Coming down the other side of the mountain, the temperature warms. Suddenly, the snake bites the traveler, who collapses and removes the snake from his shirt. As the snake's venom begins to work its way into the traveler, he asks the snake "Why, after I trusted and helped you, did you bite me?"
"I am a snake" the snake answers in reply, "and you knew what I was when you picked me up."
The moral of the story, of course, is that when people show us who and what they are, we should take them at their word.
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Post by SunnyGirl on Dec 29, 2008 18:16:08 GMT -5
The Cracked Pot
A water bearer in India had two large pots, each hung on the end of a pole which he carried across his neck. One of the pots was perfectly made and never leaked. The other pot had a crack in it and by the time the water bearer reached his master's house it had leaked much of it's water and was only half full. For a full two years this went on daily, with the bearer delivering only one and a half pots full of water to his master's house. Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it was able to accomplish only half of what it had been made to do.
After two years of what it perceived to be a bitter failure, it spoke to the water bearer one day by the stream. "I am ashamed of myself, and I want to apologize to you." "Why?" asked the bearer. "What are you ashamed of?" "I have been able, for these past two years, to deliver only half my load because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your master's house. Because of my flaws, you have to do all of this work, and you don't get full value from your efforts," the pot said. The water bearer felt sorry for the old cracked pot, and in his compassion he said, "As we return to the master's house, I want you to notice the beautiful flowers along the path."
Indeed, as they went up the hill, the old cracked pot took notice of the sun warming the beautiful wild flowers on the side of the path, and this cheered it some. But at the end of the trail, it still felt bad because it had leaked out half its load, and so again the pot apologized to the bearer for its failure.
The bearer said to the pot, "Did you notice that there were flowers only on your side of your path, but not on the other pot's side? That's because I have always known about your flaw, and I took advantage of it. I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back from the stream, you've watered them. For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate my master's table. Without you being just the way you are, he would not have this beauty to grace his house." Each of us has our own unique flaws. We're all cracked pots. But if we will allow it, God will use our flaws to grace his table. In God's great economy, nothing goes to waste. Don't be afraid of your flaws. Acknowledge them, and you too can be the cause of beauty. Know that in our weakness we find our strength.
There is a lot of good in us! Blessed are the flexible, for they shall not be bent out of shape.
Remember to appreciate all the different people in your life!
Thank you to the cracked pots in my life.
You have made life more interesting and beautiful.
- - author unknown
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Post by SunnyGirl on Jan 7, 2009 16:56:52 GMT -5
Two frogs fell into a deep cream bowl; The one was wise, and a cheery soul. The other one took a gloomy view And bade his friend a sad adieu. Said the other frog with a merry grin, "I can't get out, but I won't give in; I'll swim around till my strength is spent, Then I will die the more content.And as he swam, though ever it seemed, His struggling began to churn the cream Until on top of pure butter he stopped, And out of the bowl he quickly hopped. The moral you ask? Oh, it's easily found! If you can't get out, keep swimming around!
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Post by SunnyGirl on Jan 7, 2009 17:47:21 GMT -5
THE TOUCH OF THE MASTER'S HANDTwas battered and scarred, and the auctioneer Thought it was scarcely worth his while To waste much time on the old violin But held it up with a smile. "What am I bidden, good folks," he cried, "Who'll start the bidding for me? "A dollar, a dollar," then, two! Only two? "Two dollars,and who'll make it three?" "Three dollars, once, three dollars, twice; Going for three..." But no, From the room, far back, a grey-haired man Came forward and picked up the bow; Then, wiping the dust from the old violin, And tightening the loose strings, He played a melody pure and sweet As a caroling angel sings. The music ceased, and the auctioneer, With a voice that was quiet and low, Said:"What am I bid for the old violin?" And he held it up with the bow. "A thousand dollars, and who'll make it two? "Two thousand! And who'll make it three?" Three thousand, once, three thousand, twice; And going and gone," said he. The people cheered, but some of them cried, "We do not quite understand What changes its worth?" Swift came the reply: "The touch of the master's hand." And many a man with life out of tune, And battered and scarred with sin, Is auctioned cheap to the thoughtless crowd, Much like the old violin. A "mess of potage," a glass of wine; A game--and he travels on. He is "going" once, and "going" twice, He's "going" and almost "gone." But the Master comes and the foolish crowd Never can quite understand The worth of a soul and the change that's wrought By the touch of the Master's hand. ~Myra B. Welch
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Post by SunnyGirl on Jan 10, 2009 13:51:19 GMT -5
YOU ALWAYS GET WHAT YOU ASK FOR!
One day, a farmer’s old blind horse fell into the farmers useless old well. Since the farmer thought it would be more trouble than it was worth to haul the hourse out, he figured he could finish off two birds with one stone, so to speak. So he decided to fill in the well and bury the old nag at the same time.
The problem was, that, as he shoveled in the dirt, the horse just shook it off and kept treading it under his feet. Eventually, as the dirt rose in the well, so did the horse, until he finally climbed out at the top and walked off to the pasture.
The moral of the story is, of course, that we don’t need to be buried by hard times, discouragements, or calamities. Unless, of course, we’re willing to stand still and let someone shovel dirt in our face.
ASK FOR WHAT YOU WANT!
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Post by caressa on Jan 10, 2009 22:19:01 GMT -5
Love the picture. Some days I feel like that!
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Post by SunnyGirl on Jan 12, 2009 15:51:51 GMT -5
THE FROG AND THE MOUSEThere was a frog and a mouse that were very good friends. Their friendship grew sweeter and sweeter. They did not have the same kind of houses to live in. The mouse lived in a hole in the ground and the frog lived in water. The frog could live in water, but the mouse could not live in water. When they wanted to visit, the frog would have to come out of the water. When their visit was finished, the frog would hop back into the water, and the mouse would run back into his hole in the ground. One day the frog came out to visit with the mouse. Wickedness entered into his heart. He got some string and tied his foot and the mouse's foot together. He was just in play. Then the frog jumped back into the water with their feet still tied together. The mouse could not live in water, and it died. After a while the mouse bloated and came to the top of the water. A hawk saw him and, with a swoop, took both the dead mouse and the live frog up into the air. The hawk alighted in a tree and ate both of them. They both met death. "Let a man dig the hole of wickedness shallow because, perhaps, he will fall into it himself." ---unknown
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Post by SunnyGirl on Feb 16, 2009 16:45:12 GMT -5
The Trouble TreeI hired a carpenter to help me restore an old farmhouse. He had just finished a rough first day on the job: a flat tire made him lose an hour of work, his electric saw quit and now his ancient pickup refused to start. While I drove him home, he sat in stony silence. On arriving, he invited me to meet his family. As we walked toward the front door, he paused briefly at a small tree, touching the tips of the branches with both hands. When opening the door he underwent an amazing transformation. His tanned face was wreathed in smiles and he hugged his two small children and gave his wife a kiss. Afterwards he walked me to the car. We passed the tree and my curiosity got the better of me. I asked him about what I had seen him do earlier. "Oh, that's my trouble tree," he replied. "I know I can't help having troubles on the job, but one thing for sure, troubles don't belong in the house with my wife and the children. So I just hang them up on the tree every night when I come home. Then in the morning I pick them up again. Funny thing is," he smiled, " when I come out in the morning to pick 'them up. There isn't nearly as many as I remember hanging up the night before." ---unknown
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Post by SunnyGirl on Feb 17, 2009 0:48:28 GMT -5
Parable of the Rose
A certain man planted a rose and watered it faithfully. Before it blossomed, he examined it. He saw a bud that would soon blossom. He also saw the thorns, and he thought, “How can any beautiful flower come from a plant burdened with so many sharp thorns?” Saddened by this thought, he neglected to water the rose, and before it was ready to bloom, it died.
So it is with many people. Within every soul, there is a rose. The “God-like” qualities planted in us at birth, growing amidst the thorns of our faults. Many of us look at ourselves and see only the thorns, the defects. We despair, thinking nothing good can possibly come from us. We neglect to water the good within us, and eventually it dies. We never realize our potential.
Some don’t see the rose within themselves. It takes someone else to show it to them. One of the greatest gifts a person can possess is to be able to reach past the thorns and find the rose within others. This is the truest, most innocent, and gracious characteristic of love . . . to know another person, including their faults, and recognize the nobility in their soul, and yet still help another to realize they can overcome their faults. If we show them the rose, they will conquer the thorns. Only then, will they blossom. Our duty in this world is to help others, by showing them their roses and not their thorns. It is then that we achieve the love we should feel for each other. Only then, can we bloom in our own garden. - - Author Unknown
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Post by Cherie on Feb 19, 2009 18:48:46 GMT -5
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Post by SunnyGirl on Mar 8, 2009 14:41:46 GMT -5
Parable of a Sponsor
An AA member suddenly stopped going to meetings. After a few weeks, her Sponsor decided to visit her. It was a chilly evening and the Sponsor found the Sponsee at home alone, sitting before a blazing fire.
Guessing the reason for the Sponsors visit, the Sponsee welcomed her, led her to a big chair near the fireplace, and waited. Her Sponsor made herself comfortable but said nothing.
In the grave silence, she contemplated the play of the flames around the burning logs. After some minutes, the Sponsor took the fire tongs, carefully picked up a brightly burning ember, and placed it to one side of the hearth all alone. Then she sat back in her chair, still silent.
The Sponsee watched all this in quiet fascination, the one lone embers flame diminished, there was a momentary glow and then its fire was no more. Soon it was cold and dead as a doornail.
Not a word had been spoken since the initial greeting.
Just before the Sponsor was ready to leave, she picked the cold, dead ember and placed it back in the middle of the fire. Immediately it began to glow once more with the light and the warmth of the burning coals around it.
As the Sponsor reached the door to leave, the Sponsee said, Thank you so much for your visit and thanks especially for the fiery sermon. I’ll see you at the meeting in the morning.
The moral: "Meeting makers make it" "Many meetings, many chances; few meetings, few chances; no meetings, no chances"
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Post by SunnyGirl on May 2, 2009 16:25:28 GMT -5
The Bear Cub The bear cub was miserable. Her father, the leader of the pack, had left a month ago to find them winter shelter and had not yet returned. Everyone went on as if nothing had changed. One evening the cub had a dream in which her father appeared and said, Daughter, I know you grieve for me, but your burden is too heavy to carry alone. Share it with the others and let them comfort you. Sharing will only lighten your load, and if you can accept help now you will find it easier to give when others are in need. The next morning the little cub woke with a much lighter heart. As it turns out, everyone in the pack shared the same dream. There was much hugging and crying and reaching out and healing. We can easily lighten our loads by asking support from those who love us, knowing our turn to help will come.
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Post by SunnyGirl on Aug 21, 2009 15:22:18 GMT -5
The Dancing Monkeys
A PRINCE had some Monkeys trained to dance. Being naturally great mimics of men's actions, they showed themselves most apt pupils, and when arrayed in their rich clothes and masks, they danced as well as any of the courtiers. The spectacle was often repeated with great applause, till on one occasion a courtier, bent on mischief, took from his pocket a handful of nuts and threw them upon the stage. The Monkeys at the sight of the nuts forgot their dancing and became (as indeed they were) Monkeys instead of actors. Pulling off their masks and tearing their robes, they fought with one another for the nuts. The dancing spectacle thus came to an end amidst the laughter and ridicule of the audience.
"Not everything you see is what it appears to be."
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Post by gamerbill on Aug 27, 2009 8:33:27 GMT -5
WHEN THE WOLF CRIED There was a wolf who was bad as bad can be, and did things to others without thinking things through. He got smug, and was ego driven. But the wolf didn’t know he didn’t have to do things that way. He spent years wasting his life chasing after things he thought he wanted. Most of what the wolf thought of himself were lies and things told to him when he was young . No one is born bad, not even wolves and since everyone assumed wolves were bad, he fit the bill. One day the wolf came to a conclusion that he wanted to change and mend his ways. . He cried out, and his eyes were open to new opportunities. He started telling the truth, and helping others with their problems. The work the wolf was doing helped him, as he helped others he saw that doing good things is rewarding. Then what the wolf thought of himself, about being bad and not worthy dissolved and he shined. When the wolf started to let others in his life, a new world began for him. Everyone is useful, and can be used to their full potential when they surrender their old self and walk in the light.
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Post by gamerbill on Aug 27, 2009 8:36:34 GMT -5
BROKEN CONTAINER I think of my spirit as a container that is broken. I have spent my time ignoring God and not listening to His wisdom. My spirit needs to be filled with God’s love, and needs to be fixed to be filled with it. I want to face God, and not blame Him or anyone for the past. I have been filling my container with things to make me feel different. It is broken, so it leaks, and I continue to fill it up, in vein and I am not satisfied. It is my prayer that my spirit is fixed and I will be able to fill my soul with love instead of any addiction, or dependence. I am human and will make mistakes, and there is no way for me to get things right all the time. I will keep doing the right thing daily and not dwell on the negative, which is a stumbling block.
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Post by caressa on Aug 27, 2009 11:33:25 GMT -5
According to Jamie Sams, the Wolf is the Teacher. He tells us to become teachable and if we follow his path of family and unity, we can learn to live to help and love others.
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Post by SunnyGirl on Sept 5, 2010 15:10:27 GMT -5
A Whale's GraditudeIf you read the front page story of the SF Chronicle on Thursday, Dec 14, 2005, you would have read about a female humpback whale who had become entangled in a spider web of crab traps and lines. She was weighted down by hundreds of pounds of traps that caused her to struggle to stay afloat. She also had hundreds of yards of line rope wrapped around her body, her tail, her torso, a line tugging in her mouth. A fisherman spotted her just east of the Farralone Islands (outside the Golden Gate) and radioed an environmental group for help. Within a few hours, the rescue team arrived and determined that she was so bad off, the only way to save her was to dive in and untangle her - a very dangerous proposition. One slap of the tail could kill a rescuer. They worked for hours with curved knives and eventually freed her. When she was free, the divers say she swam in what seemed like joyous circles. She then came back to each and every diver, one at a time, and nudged them, pushed them gently around - she thanked them. Some said it was the most incredibly beautiful experience of their lives. The guy who cut the rope out of her mouth says her eye was following him the whole time, and he will never be the same. May you, and all those you love, be so blessed and fortunate - to be surrounded by people who will help you get untangled from the things that are binding you. And, may you always know the joy of giving, and receiving gratitude.
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Post by SunnyGirl on Sept 5, 2010 15:16:05 GMT -5
If You Are Unhappy ... Once upon a time there was a non-conforming sparrow who decided not to fly south for the winter. However, when the temperature dropped below freezing, he reluctantly started to fly south. In a short time ice began to form on his wings, and he fell to the earth in a barnyard almost frozen. A cow passed by and crapped on the little sparrow. The sparrow thought it was the end. However, the manure warmed him and defrosted his wings. Warm and happy, the bird began to sing. Just then a large cat came by. Hearing the chirping, he investigated the sounds. The cat cleared away the manure, found the chirping bird, and promptly ate him. The moral of the story: - Everyone who craps on you is not necessarily your enemy.
- Everyone who gets you out of the crap is not necessarily your friend.
- And, if you are warm and happy in a pile of crap, keep your mouth shut.
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Post by BW on Sept 6, 2010 10:43:50 GMT -5
Good reads to start the day...
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Post by SunnyGirl on Sept 6, 2010 14:42:06 GMT -5
Stress Survival Kit This is your Stress Survival Kit. We hope some of these items will help you relax and enjoy life. •A Rubber Band to stretch your ideas and your mind to new limits so you will continue to grow and enjoy life more. •Tissues to remind you to see the tears and needs of others. •Hugs & Kisses to remind you that everyone needs a hug, a kiss, or encouragement every day. •A Life Saver to remind you to think of family, friends, and yourself as "life savers." Care about and help each other through the stressful times that occur. •A Penny to remind you of the value of your thoughts, big and little. Share them with others. •An Eraser to remind you that we all make mistakes which can all be overcome. •A Toothpick to remind you to "pick out" the good qualities of others while being tolerant of differences. •A Paper Clip to remind you that it's important to "keep it all together" whether "IT" is your mental health or your ability to cooperate with and support family and friends.
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