Yesterday, I was thinking about my dad and father’s day today. Pops is in ill health right now but his spirit is strong. He might forget where he’s at from time to time, but I know that deep inside his spirit is as strong and vibrant as it has ever been. Every now and then he will surprise us and just talk, and talk, and talk about the good ol’ days gone by. He is eternally faithful to my mom, and I really feel he hasn’t abandoned ship yet because he fears for her when he is gone. Guess what, Pops? We’ve got your back. You can enjoy what time you have left worrying about what to eat, what show to watch, how long to sit in that front porch rocker, or just waiting around for football season to start so you can see the Saints repeat! You know, the big stuff.
You see, my dad is a quiet man. He has always been a quiet man. I can honestly say that I have never heard him use curse words. Sure, us boys surely tested him, but he was able to maintain his composure during those crazy days with kids running and screaming all over the place.
As I was reflecting on him today, I realized that he taught me some of the most powerful lessons anyone could ever learn in life. It is amazing that he did so without saying a word. I can’t think of anyone that can pull that off like he did.
When I was growing up, I didn’t realize what he was teaching. It never dawned on me that you could teach without using words; however, it’s certainly true. To give you a taste, here are some things that he taught solely by his actions and without saying a single word:
• Always help someone in need.
• Never complain when helping someone.
• A life without service and compassion is no life at all.
• Work hard and always support your family.
• Assist any family or relative that could use your help.
• Absolutely stop for anyone having car trouble.
• Give the shirt off your back to anyone less fortunate than you.
• A good home cooked meal is a blessing.
• Growing a vegetable garden has healing aspects to it.
• It’s much better to be barefoot, broke, and kind than rich and unkind.
• Always, always know there’s someone out there who has it worse than you.
• If someone steals from you, give them what’s in the other pocket.
• Love doesn’t have to be spoken to be given.
• A simple life is a full life.
• And of course, actions speak much louder than words.
Pops, you ROCK! While you may have been silent most of the time, you taught me more by your kind actions, gentleness, compassion and undying love for your family. I can only hope to achieve the softness and empathy you have for everyone you have ever met.
As I sit here, wishing to call him but knowing he is already in bed, I can’t help but hold on to the faith that he will get stronger one day and be back to normal. Unfortunately, lately he has had more bad days than good days. But maybe, just maybe, Father’s Day will be one of the good ol’ days!
Happy Father’s day! I love you! Your son and eternal friend,
Bill
Daily Positive Points
Today’s Message
When we are at work, we create a lot of “what if” scenarios. Should something go wrong, we have the process and procedures to deal with them. So, why not try the same thing in your personal life. Create a plan of action when negative thinking runs rampant or when an emotional crisis breaks out. See below for a new kind of first-aid kit from Cheryl Richardson.
Today’s Quote
“An Extreme Self-Care First-Aid Kit is a well-prepared plan of action put in place before you need to use it. It consists of things you can do on a physical, emotional, and spiritual level that will give you comfort, connection, and a feeling of steadiness while navigating the rough waters of a crisis. When faced with a difficult period, what matters most is that you return to the behaviors and practices that reflect Extreme Self-Care as quickly as possible, so you can restore yourself to sanity and strength. That way, you’ll bring your best, most resourceful self to the challenge at hand.” The Art of Extreme Self-Care (Cheryl Richardson, New York Times best-selling author, speaker, and coach)
Love and gratitude,
Bill
Battle Within
An old Cherokee was teaching his grandchildren about life. He said to them, “A battle is raging inside me … it is a terrible fight between two wolves. One wolf represents fear, anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority and ego. The other stands for joy, peace, love, hope, sharing, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, friendship, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.”
The old man fixed the children with a firm stare. “This same fight is going on inside you, and inside every other person, too.”
They thought about it for a minute and then one child asked his grandfather, “Which wolf will win?”
The old Cherokee replied: “The one you feed.”
Daily Positive Points – Louise Hay
Today’s Message
practice it just a little every day, our outcomes will definitely be more positive. This occurs because what we focus on expands. As we focus on positive thoughts, the negative, self-limiting ones dissipate.
Repetition and practice helps us master lots of things. That cannot be more true than for positive thinking. If we
Today’s Quote
“I discovered that learning the computer was very much like learning the Spiritual Laws. When I learned the computer laws, then she did indeed perform ‘magic’ for me. When I did not follow her laws to the letter, then either nothing would happen or it would not work the way I wanted it to work. She would not give an inch. I could get as frustrated as I wanted while she patiently waited for me to learn her laws, and then she gave me magic. It took practice.” You Can Heal Your Life, (Louise Hay, Author, Professional Speaker, & Publisher, b.1926)
Thought of the Night
After a very long few weeks of travel and long, long work days, I am finally able to take a break. I was thinking about
how some people will say “all is well,” and “I’m not upset” but they are just lip action. I think that some people say those things without really thinking. I say this because some of them will complain about everything under the sun and state how furious they are with someone or something that is going on. What I have learned is that what you focus on expands. The more time we spend saying how bad things are, how frustrated we are or how everything seems to turn out wrong, the more of those things we don’t want are destined to be attracted to us.
Try this the next time you catch yourself saying something negative repeatedly. Say, “I release the need for this to be important in my life.” That’s it. Simple isn’t it? The next step is to STOP fueling the negative energy by not talking about it anymore. Then watch as the struggles start to disintegrate.
Well, that’s my thought for the night. I hope you enjoy!
Peace, love and positivity,
Bill
Give Half of Something Kindness Challenge starts TODAY!
The is year’s Kindness Challenge is a little different than what I have offered in the past. This year the theme is Give Half of Something. What I mean by that is everyone has something they can give half of in the effort to do kind deeds. It can be half the time you spend watching TV on a certain night. It can be half of your budget for coffee in the morning. Basically, anything you can think of that fits the bill, give half of it. So, join me today at idontstink.com and participate in the 6 week Kindness Challenge. Give half of something, half of anything. You CAN do it!
Don’t forget to log your kind deeds into your very own FREE Kindness Meter at idontstink.com.
With peace, gratitude, AND kindness,
Bill
US Post Office Sweetness
Today was no different. I needed to drop off something at the post office at lunch and the second I thought about it, my thoughts said something like this: “Ouch! This is one of the worst times to go. They will be shorthanded and I could end up wasting a half hour there.” Then I changed my thoughts by picturing an empty line and to be completed in less than 3 minutes. I focused on all my previous successes and was in a good mood when I arrived.
Sure enough, two of the normal three attendants were on lunch break much as I originally thought. Imagine my grin when there wasn’t a single person in line. SA-WEET! In and out in less than 3 minutes! Once again, as I turned to walk out a line was forming. Not a big line but at least 4-5 people in line. I tell you, it happens EVERY time now. What a SWEET change to eliminate that old STINKIN’ belief that the experience is always negative.
I’m not sure you believe these “coincidences” I have had at the post office and that’s OK. I’m not quite sure I understand 100% myself, and I really don’t have to. All I know is that this happens every single time since I changed my thoughts. I can’t say exactly what cosmic forces are going on behind the scenes to make this happen but I get the exact same results 100% of the time when I change my negative thoughts to positive.
Imagine how many times we put limiting beliefs on ourselves unnecessarily. Not anymore! Change your awareness. Focus on what you want to happen. Then reap the rewards of success.
With peace and gratitude,
Bill
What is Happiness?
This month, my Positive Pathways newsletter explores happiness. It examines the meaning and the effects of happiness on us. It will be going out on Thursday, June 24th so be sure to sign up for Positive Pathways on our list.
As I was searching for happiness quotes, here are some that I did not make it into the newsletter:
“Success is getting what you want; happiness is wanting what you get.” Ingrid Bergman
“Happiness is a byproduct of an effort to make someone else happy.” Gretta Brooker Palmer
“The secret of happiness is freedom. The secret of freedom is courage.” Thucydides
“The essence of philosophy is that a man should so live that his happiness shall depend as little as possible on external things.” Epictetus
“Much more happiness is to be found in the world than gloomy eyes discover.” Friedrich Nietzsche
“No one is in control of your happiness but you; therefore, you have the power to change anything about yourself or your life that you want to change.” santiz Barbara De Angelis
With peace and happiness!
Bill
Pops Rock! Happy Father’s Day
You see, my dad is a quiet man. He has always been a quiet man. I can honestly say that I have never heard him use curse words. Sure, us boys surely tested him, but he was able to maintain his composure during those crazy days with kids running and screaming all over the place.
As I was reflecting on him today, I realized that he taught me some of the most powerful lessons anyone could ever learn in life. It is amazing that he did so without saying a word. I can’t think of anyone that can pull that off like he did.
When I was growing up, I didn’t realize what he was teaching. It never dawned on me that you could teach without using words; however, it’s certainly true. To give you a taste, here are some things that he taught solely by his actions and without saying a single word:
• Always help someone in need.
• Never complain when helping someone.
• A life without service and compassion is no life at all.
• Work hard and always support your family.
• Assist any family or relative that could use your help.
• Absolutely stop for anyone having car trouble.
• Give the shirt off your back to anyone less fortunate than you.
• A good home cooked meal is a blessing.
• Growing a vegetable garden has healing aspects to it.
• It’s much better to be barefoot, broke, and kind than rich and unkind.
• Always, always know there’s someone out there who has it worse than you.
• If someone steals from you, give them what’s in the other pocket.
• Love doesn’t have to be spoken to be given.
• A simple life is a full life.
• And of course, actions speak much louder than words.
Pops, you ROCK! While you may have been silent most of the time, you taught me more by your kind actions, gentleness, compassion and undying love for your family. I can only hope to achieve the softness and empathy you have for everyone you have ever met.
As I sit here, wishing to call him but knowing he is already in bed, I can’t help but hold on to the faith that he will get stronger one day and be back to normal. Unfortunately, lately he has had more bad days than good days. But maybe, just maybe, Father’s Day will be one of the good ol’ days!
Happy Father’s day! I love you! Your son and eternal friend,
Bill
Daily Positive Points
Here’s a message from one of our Daily Positive Points emails from earlier this week:
Today’s Message
There is a hidden gem in every setback we have. Instead of ignoring it, we should study it as if there were going to be a quiz on it in the near future. If we ignore it, it will be destined to repeat. So let’s acknowledge it now, find the hidden message, and move past the negative energy by leaving it behind for good.
Today’s Quote
“Never walk away from failure. On the contrary, study it carefully and imaginatively for its hidden assets.” Michael Korda (Novelist who was editor-in-chief of Simon & Schuster, b.1933)
3D Solution
Determination. Dedication. Discipline. When these three ingredients are combined, success is just about guaranteed
. When we have determination, we come to a decision to attempt something. Determination gets us started but what keeps us going? You got it, dedication. As we put more and more focus on our goals, we become dedicated to seeing it through. This means that when we experience the first setback, we don’t just give up. We keep moving forward.
That brings us to the final “D” in the 3D Solution, Discipline. With discipline, we accept the setback for what it is and set up new ways to deal with future setbacks. Discipline keeps us focused on our end result but discipline without determination and dedication, we wouldn’t be nearly as successful. Combine all three and we have got ourselves one serious solution to meeting life’s opportunities.
With peace and gratitude,
Bill