Monday, December 30, 2013

Peter Drucker on Good Practice

Nothing is less productive than to make more efficient what should not be done at all.

Peter Drucker

Source: freelancers union on facebook and lifehacker.com

Tuesday, December 24, 2013

Dale Evans on Christmas

Christmas, my child, is love in action.

Dale Evans

Source: goodreads.com

Sunday, December 22, 2013

Christmas Song Wisdom: Jingle Bell Rock

Jingle Bell Rock

Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock
Jingle bells swing and jingle bells ring
Snowin' and blowin' up bushels of fun
Now, the jingle hop has begun

Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock
Jingle bells chime in jingle bell time
Dancin' and prancin' in Jingle Bell Square
In the frosty air

What a bright time, it's the right time
To rock the night away
Jingle bell time is a swell time
To go glidin' in a one-horse sleigh

Giddy-up jingle horse, pick up your feet
Jingle around the clock
Mix and a-mingle in the jinglin' beat
That's the jingle bell rock, yeah

Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock
Jingle bells swing and jingle bells ring
Snowin' and blowin' up bushels of fun
Now, the jingle hop has begun

Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell twist
Jingle bells chime in jingle bell time
Dancin' and prancin' in Jingle Bell Square
In the frosty air

What a bright time, it's the right time
To rock the night away
Jingle bell time is a swell time
To go glidin' in a one-horse sleigh

Giddy-up jingle horse, kick up your feet
Jingle around the clock
Mix and a-mingle in the jinglin' feet
That's the jingle bell, that's the jingle bell,
that's the jingle bell rock

Joe Beal and Jim Boothe
Words and Music
1957, Alfred Publishing Co., Inc.

Christmas Song Wisdom: I'll Be Home for Christmas

I'll Be Home for Christmas

Dreaming of home at this Christmas time
Even more than I usually do
And although I know it's a long road back
I promise you

I'll be home for Christmas
You can count on me
Please have snow and mistletoe
And presents by the tree

Christmas Eve will find me
Where the love light gleams
I'll be home for Christmas
If only in my dreams

I'll be home for Christmas
You can count on me
Please have some snow and mistletoe
And presents by the tree

Christmas Eve will find me
Where the love light gleams
I'll be home for Christmas
If only in my dreams
If only in my dreams

Kim Gannon, Walter Kent, Buck Ram
Words and Music
1948, Alfred Publishing Co., Inc.

Christmas Song Wisdom: I Believe in Father Christmas

I Believe in Father Christmas
They said there'll be snow at Christmas
They said there'll be peace on earth
But instead it just kept on raining
A veil of tears for the virgin's birth

I remember one Christmas morning
A winters light and a distant choir
And the peal of a bell and that Christmas tree smell
And their eyes full of tinsel and fire

They sold me a dream of Christmas
They sold me a silent night
And they told me a fairy story
'till I believed in the Israelite

And I believed in Father Christmas
And I looked at the sky with excited eyes
'till I woke with a yawn in the first light of dawn
And I saw him and through his disguise

I wish you a hopeful Christmas
I wish you a brave new year
All anguish, pain and sadness
Leave your heart and let your road be clear

They said there'll be snow at Christmas
They said there'll be peace on earth
Hallelujah Noel be it heaven or hell
The Christmas we get we deserve

Greg Lake and Peter Sinfield
Words and Music
1975, Music Sales Corp.

Christmas Song Wisdom: White Christmas

White Christmas

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas
Just like the ones I used to know
Where the tree tops glisten
And children listen
To hear sleigh bells in the snow
 

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas
With every Christmas card I write
May your days be merry and bright
And may all your Christmases be white
 

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas
just like the ones I used to know
Where the tree tops glisten
And children listen
To hear sleigh bells in the snow
 

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas
With every Christmas card I write
May your days be merry and bright
And may all your Christmases
May all your Christmases
May all your Christmases be white


Irving Berlin
Words and Music
1950, Universal Music Publishing, Ltd.

Source: metrolyrics.com and musicnotes.com

Christmas Song Wisdom: You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch

You're A Mean One, Mr. Grinch
You're a mean one, Mr. Grinch.
You really are a heel.
You're as cuddly as a cactus,
You're as charming as an eel,
 
Mr. Grinch, 
You're a bad banana with a greasy black peel.

You're a monster, Mr. Grinch.
Your heart's an empty hole.
Your brain is full of spiders.
You've got garlic in your soul, 

Mr. Grinch.
I wouldn't touch you with a
Thirty-nine and a half foot pole.

You're a vile one, Mr. Grinch.
You have termites in your smile,
You have all the tender sweetness of a seasick crocodile,
 
Mr. Grinch,
Given the choice between the two of you,
I'd take the seasick crocodile.

You're a foul one, Mr. Grinch.
You're a nasty wasty skunk.
Your heart is full of unwashed socks.
Your soul is full of gunk,

Mr Grinch,
The three best words that best describe you,
Are as follows, and I quote"
Stink!
Stank!
Stunk!

You're a rotter, Mr. Grinch
You're the king of sinful sots
Your hearts a dead tomato squashed with moldy purple spots,

Mr. Grinch,
Your sole is a appalling dump heap
Overflowing with the most disgraceful
Assortment of deplorable rubbish imaginable,
Mangled up in tangled up knots.

You nauseate me, Mr. Grinch
With a noxious super naus
You're a crooked jerky jockey and,
You drive a crooked hoss,
 
Mr. Grinch!
You're a three-decker sauerkraut
And toadstool sandwich,
With arsenic sauce!

Dr. Suess and Albert Hague
Words and Music
1966, Alfred Music Publishing Co., Inc.

Albert Hague played Mr. Shorofsky in Fame.

Christmas Song Wisdom: Winter Wonderland

 Winter Wonderland

Over the ground lies a mantle of white
A heaven of diamonds shines out through the night
Two hearts a-thrilling
In spite of the chilling weather

Love knows no season, love knows no clime
Romance can blossom any old time
Here in the open
We're walking and hopin' together

Sleigh bells ring, are you list'ning?
In the lane, snow is glist'ning
A beautiful sight, we're havin' tonight
Walkin' in a winter wonderland

Gone away is the blue bird
Here to stay is the new bird
He sings a love song as we go along
Walkin' in a winter wonderland

In the meadow we can build a snowman
Then pretend that he is parson brown
He'll say "are you married?" we'll say "no man,
But you can do the job when you're in town."


Later on we'll conspire as we dream by the fire
To face unafraid, the plans that we've made
Walkin' in a winter wonderland.


In the meadow we can build a snowman,
And pretend that he's a circus clown
We'll have lots of fun with mister snowman,
Until the other kids knock him down.

When it snows, ain't it thrilling,
Though your nose gets a chilling
We'll frolic and play, the Eskimo way,
Walking in a winter wonderland.

Walking in a winter wonderland,
Walking in a winter wonderland.


Dick Smith and Felix Bernard
Words and Music
1934, Alfred Publishing Co., Inc.

Source: musicnotes.com and lyricsmode.com

Tuesday, December 17, 2013

Craig Johnson on Critical Thought

I thought about what I didn't know, about how I knew the anecdotes, but perhaps, not the story.

Sheriff Walt Longmire in the first person.

Craig Johnson
Death Without Company
A Walter Longmire Mystery
©2006 Craig Johnson, Penguin Group

Sunday, December 15, 2013

Neil deGrasse Tyson on Perspective

I didn't even know there were stars to look at to not see. If you don't know that they're there, you don't know that you're missing them.

Neil deGrasse Tyson
On the light pollution in New York City and the lack of starry nights in an urban sky; from Exceptional Research Opportunities Program Meeting, May 16, 2008

Source: haydenplanetarium.org

Christmas Song Wisdom: It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year

It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year
With the kids jingle belling
And everyone telling you "Be of good cheer"
It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year


It's the hap-happiest season of all
With those holiday greetings and gay happy meetings
When friends come to call
It's the hap - happiest season of all 


There'll be parties for hosting
Marshmallows for toasting
And caroling out in the snow
There'll be scary ghost stories
And tales of the glories of
Christmases long, long ago 


It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year
There'll be much mistltoeing
And hearts will be glowing
When love ones are near
It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year 


There'll be parties for hosting
Marshmallows for toasting
And caroling out in the snow
There'll be scary ghost stories
And tales of the glories of
Christmases long, long ago


It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year
There'll be much mistltoeing
And hearts will be glowing
When love ones are near
It's The Most Wonderful Time
It's The Most Wonderful Time
It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year


Johnny Marks
Words and Music
1964, St. Nicholas Music
From broadcast television: Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer
1964, Rankin/Bass Productions 

  
Source: azlyrics.com and musicnotes.com

Saturday, December 14, 2013

Frederick Douglass on Rising

It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.  

Fredrick Douglass


Let's never forget.

Dalai Lama XIV on Kindness

This is my simple religion. No need for temples. No need for complicated philosophy. Your own mind, your own heart is the temple. Your philosophy is simple kindness.
 
Dalai Lama XIV

Source: goodreads.com

Kent M. Keith on Kindness

The Paradoxical Commandments

People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered.
Love them anyway.

If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.
Do good anyway.

If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.

The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.

Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.
Be honest and frank anyway. 


The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds.
Think big anyway. 


People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs.
Fight for a few underdogs anyway.

What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.

People really need help but may attack you if you do help them.
Help people anyway.

Give the world the best you have and you'll get kicked in the teeth.
Give the world the best you have anyway.


Kent M. Keith 
The Silent Revolution: Dynamic Leadership in the Student Council  
© Copyright Kent M. Keith 1968, renewed 2001 

Source: goodreads.com

Christmas Song Wisdom; The Christmas Song

The Christmas Song

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire
Jack Frost nipping at your nose
Yuletide carols being sung by a choir
And folks dressed up like Eskimos
Everybody knows a turkey and some mistletoe
Help to make the season bright
Tiny tots with their eyes all aglow
Will find it hard to sleep tonight

They know that Santa's on his way
He's loaded lots of toys and goodies on his sleigh
And every mother's child is gonna spy
To see if reindeer really know how to fly

And so I'm offering this simple phrase
To kids from one to ninety-two
Although it's been said many times
Many ways, Merry Christmas to you
 

Mel Torme and Robert Wells
Words and Music
1946, Sony Music/ATV Music Publishing

Sources: metrolyrics.com and musicnotes.com

Christmas Song Wisdom: Feliz Navidad

Feliz Navidad

Feliz Navidad
Feliz Navidad
Feliz Navidad
Prospero Ano y Felicidad

Feliz Navidad
Feliz Navidad
Feliz Navidad
Prospero Ano y Felicidad

I wanna wish you a Merry Christmas
I wanna wish you a Merry Christmas
I wanna wish you a Merry Christmas
From the bottom of my heart

I wanna wish you a Merry Christmas
I wanna wish you a Merry Christmas
I wanna wish you a Merry Christmas
From the bottom of my heart

Feliz Navidad
Feliz Navidad
Feliz Navidad
Prospero Ano y Felicidad.

Repeat 

Jose Feliciano
Words and Music
1970, J & H Publishing Co.

Song Lyric Wisdom: Somewhere Over the Rainbow

Somewhere Over the Rainbow

Somewhere over the rainbow, way up high
There's a land that I've heard of once in a lullaby. 


Somewhere over the rainbow, skies are blue
And the dreams that you dare to dream,
Really do come true.

Someday I'll wish upon a star
And wake up where the clouds are far behind me.
Where troubles melt like lemon drops,
Away above the chimney tops,
That's where you'll find me.

Somewhere over the rainbow, blue birds fly
Birds fly over the rainbow
Why then, oh why can't I? 


If happy little bluebirds fly beyond the rainbow
Why, oh why can't I?


E. Y. Harburg and Harold Arlen
Words and Music
1938, Alfred Publishing Company, Inc.

Sources: lyrics007.com and musicnotes.com 

Friday, December 13, 2013

Joseph Campbell on Nature

The goal of life is to make your heartbeat match the beat of the universe to match your nature with Nature.

Joseph Campbell

Source: goodreads.com

Francis Bacon on Superstition

The root of all superstition is that men observe when a thing hits, but not when it misses.

Francis Bacon

Source: goodreads.com

Groucho Marx on Superstition

If a black cat crosses your path... it signifies that the animal is going somewhere.

Groucho Marx

Source: goodreads.com

Christmas Song Wisdom: Coventry Carol

Coventry Carol

Lully, lullay, thou little tiny child
By, by, lully, lullay 
Lullay, thou little tiny child
By, by, lully, lullay

O sisters too, how may we do?
For to preserve this day
This poor young ling for whom we do sing
By, by, lully, lullay

Herod the king in his raging
Charged, he hath this day
His men of might in his own sight
All children young to slay

Then woe is me, poor child for thee
And ever mourn and say
For thy parting nor say nor sing
By, by, lully, lullay

Traditional Carol
Circa 1591

Christmas Song Wisdom: Let It Snow

Let it Snow

Oh the weather outside is frightful
But the fire is so delightful
And since we've no place to go
Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!!

Oh, it doesn't show signs of stopping
And I've bought some corn for popping
The lights are turned way down low
Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!

The fire is slowly dying
And my dear is still goodbyeing
But as long as you love me so
Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It snow

When we finally kiss goodnight
How I'll hate going out in the storm!
But if you'll really hold me tight
All the way home I'll be warm

Oh, it doesn't show signs of stopping
And I've brought some corn for popping
The lights are turned way down low
Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!

When we finally kiss goodnight
How I'll hate going out in the storm!
But if you'll really hold me tight
All the way home I'll be warm

The fire is slowly dying
And my dear is still goodbyeing
But as long as you love me so
Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!

Jule Styne
Words and Music
1945, Alfred Publishing, Inc.

Thema Bryant-Davis on Compassion

When someone is going through a storm, your silent presence is more powerful than a million empty words.

Thema Bryant-Davis

Source: John Edward on facebook

Jon Stewart on Character

If you don't stick to your values when they're being tested, they're not values: they're hobbies. 

Jon Stewart

Source: Freelancers Union on facebook

Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Ray Hunt on Navigating

This isn’t just some commercial thing; I wouldn’t do it.
This is life.
This is reality.
There’s no rulebook on this and it’s damned hard to grasp because it comes from deep down inside.
I’ve been trying my whole life and I’m still working at it.... 


Ray Hunt
Horse Trainer

Thanks to the Sonoma Coastal EquesTraining Center on facebook

Saturday, December 7, 2013

Cesar Millan on Transformation

Dogs can teach us to become more conscious about the energy that we project. World transformation comes with self transformation. Once you transform the way you think, everything around you changes and that's the beauty of having a dog. We always talk about the unconditional love dogs give us, but it's also the sense of awareness that dogs bring to us that help transform our lives.

Cesar Millan

Source: Cesar Millan on facebook

Thursday, December 5, 2013

Nelson Mandela on Fulfillment

Let there be justice for all. Let there be peace for all. Let there be work, bread, water and salt for all. Let each know that for each the body, the mind and the soul have been freed to fulfill themselves. 

Nelson Mandela

Source: goodreads.com

Thank you and farewell.

Thursday, November 28, 2013

Meister Eckhart on Gratitude

If the only prayer you said was thank you, that would be enough.

Meister Eckhart

(Meister Eckhart lived in the 13th and 14th centuries.)

Source: goodreads.com

Eckart Tolle on Gratitude

Acknowledging the good that you already have in your life is the foundation for all abundance.

Eckhart Tolle
A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life's Purpose

Source: goodreads.com

John F. Kennedy on Gratitude

Let Us Be Grateful: Today we give our thanks most of all, for the ideals of honor and faith we inherit from our forefathers - for the decency of purpose, steadfastness of resolve and strength of will, for the courage and the humility, which they possessed and which we must seek every day to emulate. As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words but to live by them.

John F. Kennedy

Source: goodreads.com

Anne Morrow Lindbergh on Gratitude

If you surrender completely to the moments as they pass, you live more richly those moments.

Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Source: goodreads.com

Friday, November 22, 2013

John F. Kennedy on Conscious Living

In whatever area in life one may meet the challenges of courage, whatever may be the sacrifices he faces if he follows his conscience - the loss of his friends, his fortune, his contentment, even the esteem of his fellow men - each man must decide for himself the course he will follow. The stories of past courage can define that ingredient - they can teach, they can offer hope, they can provide inspiration. But they cannot supply courage itself. For this each man must look into his own soul.

John F. Kennedy
from Profiles in Courage

Source: jfklibrary.org

John F. Kennedy on Self-Determination

For in a democracy, every citizen, regardless of his interest in politics, 'holds office'; everyone of us is in a position of responsibility; and, in the final analysis, the kind of government we get depends upon how we fulfill those responsibilities. We, the people, are the boss, and we will get the kind of political leadership, be it good or bad, that we demand and deserve.

John F. Kennedy
from Profiles in Courage

Source: jfklibrary.org

Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Mike Dillard on Being Alive

When you commit yourself to leading an extraordinary life, the Universe accepts your deal and silently goes to work challenging you so that you're always prepared for bigger challenges and greater rewards.

Mike Dillard

Source: John Edward on facebook

Leo Buscaglia on Simple Pleasures

The fact that I can plant a seed and it becomes a flower, share a bit of knowledge and it becomes another's, smile at someone and receive a smile in return, are to me continual spiritual exercises.

Leo Buscaglia 

Source: goodreads.com

Richelle E. Goodrich on Gratitude

Happiness isn't complicated. It is a humble state of gratitude for simple pleasures, tender mercies, recognized blessings, and inherent beauty.
 
Richelle E. Goodrich

Source: goodreads.com

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Homespun Wisdom

I dream of a better world where chickens can cross the road without having their motives questioned.

Primitives by Kathy sign

Source: Primitives by Kathy

Monday, November 18, 2013

Ron Jaworski on Comfort Zones

Sooner or later you've got to make that 'stick throw' - the throw where you don't have access to the results.

On NFL Kansas City Chiefs' Quarterback Alex Smith

Ron Jaworksi
on Mike and Mike, ESPN
November 18, 2013

Sunday, November 17, 2013

Doris Lessing on The Truth

Do you know what people really want? Everyone, I mean. Everybody in the world is thinking: I wish there was just one other person I could really talk to, who could really understand me, who'd be kind to me. That's what people really want, if they're telling the truth.

Doris Lessing
The Golden Notebook

Source: goodreads.com

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Cesar Millan on Lessons

To me dogs are not the students, not the ones that need training. To me a dog is a teacher of life, who teaches us the principles of the most important moral values; honesty, integrity, loyalty, trust, respect and love.

Cesar Millan

Source: Cesar Millan on facebook

Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Lao Tzu on Love

Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.

- Lao Tzu

Source: goodreads.com


To honor Barbara Shoemaker-Redmond, a tremendous life filled with love, fully lived. Thank you and farewell.

Monday, November 11, 2013

Dwight D. Eisenhower on Service

History does not long entrust the care of freedom to the weak or the timid. 

Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower

With gratitude on this Veterans Day.

Source: nj.com

Sunday, November 10, 2013

Henri N. J. Nouwen on Compassion

Compassion asks us to go where it hurts, to enter into the places of pain, to share in brokenness, fear, confusion, and anguish. Compassion challenges us to cry out with those in misery, to mourn with those who are lonely, to weep with those in tears. Compassion requires us to be weak with the weak, vulnerable with the vulnerable, and powerless with the powerless. Compassion means full immersion in the condition of being human.

Henri N. J. Nouwen

Source: goodreads.com

Plato on Empathy

Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a harder battle.

Plato

Source: goodreads.com

Song Lyric Wisdom: Hallelujah

Hallelujah

Now I've heard there was a secret chord
That David played, and it pleased the Lord
But you don't really care for music, do ya?
It goes like this
The fourth, the fifth
The minor fall, the major lift
The baffled king composing Hallelujah

Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah

Your faith was strong but you needed proof
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew
ya 
She tied you to a kitchen chair
She broke your throne, she cut your hair
And from your lips she drew the hallelujah

Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah

Maybe I've been here before
I know this room, I've walked this floor
I used to live alone before I knew
ya
I've seen your flag on the marble arch
And love is not a victory march
It's a cold and its a broken hallelujah

Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah

There was a time you let me know
What's really going on below
But now you never show it to me, do
ya 
And remember when I moved in you
And the holy dove was moving too
And every breath we drew was hallelujah

Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah

Maybe there's a god above
All I ever learned from love
Was how to shoot at someone who outdrew
ya 
And it's not a cry you can hear at night
Not somebody who's seen the light
It's a cold and it's a broken hallelujah

Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah

I did my best, it wasn't much.
I couldn't feel, so I learned to touch.
I've told the truth, I didn't come all this way to fool ya.
Yeah even though it all went wrong
I'll stand right here before the Lord of Song
With nothing on my tongue but Hallelujah

Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah....

Leonard Cohen, Various Positions, June 1984
John Lissauer, Producer

Published by Lyrics © EMI Music, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Universal Music Publishing Group

Note: There are more than 80 verses to this song, these are what we hear the most.



John F. Kennedy on These United States

So let us not be petty when our cause is so great. Let us not quarrel amongst ourselves when our Nation's future is at stake.

Let us stand together with renewed confidence in our cause - united in our heritage of the past and our hopes for the future - and determined that this land we love shall lead all mankind into new frontiers of peace and abundance.

Text of the speech John F. Kennedy was going to give at a dinner in Austin, Texas the day he was assassinated, November 22, 1963 

John F. Kennedy

Source: huffingtonpost.com

Thursday, November 7, 2013

Andrew Boyd on Compassion

Compassion hurts. When you feel connected to everything, you also feel responsible for everything. And you cannot turn away. Your destiny is bound with the destinies of others. You must either learn to carry the Universe or be crushed by it. You must grow strong enough to love the world, yet empty enough to sit down at the same table with its worst horrors.

Andrew Boyd 
Daily Afflictions: The Agony of Being Connected to Everything in the Universe

Source: goodreads.com

Monday, October 28, 2013

Albert Schweitzer on Leadership

Example is not the main thing in influencing others. It is the only thing.

Albert Schweitzer

Source: psychologytoday.com

C. S. Lewis on Transcendence

Getting over a painful experience is much like crossing monkey bars. You have to let go at some point in order to move forward.

C. S. Lewis

Source: tinybuddha.com

Monday, October 21, 2013

Leo Buscaglia on Perspective

There are two big forces at work, external and internal. We have very little control over external forces such as tornadoes, earthquakes, floods, disasters, illness and pain. What really matters is the internal force. How do I respond to those disasters? Over that I have complete control.

Leo Buscaglia

Source: goodreads.com

C. Joybell C. on Time Management

You can be the most beautiful person in the world and everybody sees light and rainbows when they look at you, but if you yourself don't know it, all of that doesn't even matter. Every second that you spend on doubting your worth, every moment that you use to criticize yourself; is a second of your life wasted, is a moment of your life thrown away. It's not like you have forever, so don't waste any of your seconds, don't throw even one of your moments away.

C. Joybell C.

Source: goodreads.com

Sunday, October 20, 2013

Tina Fey on Gratitude

Thank you, all, for dressing up.

To the audience, when accepting the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor, 2010

Tina Fey

Watch Tina's acceptance speech.

Friday, October 18, 2013

Mark Schlereth on Obstacles

I don't care if you're Andy Dufresne, and have a rock hammer and twenty years, you aren't getting through that offensive line.

A Shawshank Redemption reference about Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos front line.

Mark Schlereth (Stink)
on Mike and Mike, ESPN
October 17, 2013

Monday, October 7, 2013

Song Lyric Wisdom: I'm In A Hurry (And Don't Know Why)

I'm in a hurry to get things done
Oh I rush and rush until life's no fun
All I really gotta do is live and die
But I'm in a hurry and don't know why

Don't know why I have to drive so fast
My car has nothing to prove
It's not new
But it'll do zero to sixty in five point two

I'm in a hurry to get things done
Oh I rush and rush until life's no fun
All I really gotta do is live and die
But I'm in a hurry and don't know why

Can't be late, I leave in plenty of time
Shakin' hands with the clock
I can't stop
I'm on a roll and I'm ready to rock

I'm in a hurry to get things done
Oh I rush and rush until life's no fun
All I really gotta do is live and die
But I'm in a hurry and don't know why

Oh, I hear a voice
That says I'm running behind
Better pick up my pace
It's a race and there ain't no room for someone in second place

I'm in a hurry to get things done
Oh I rush and rush until life's no fun
All I really gotta do is live and die
But I'm in a hurry and don't know why


I'm In A Hurry (And Don't Know Why)Alabama
From the Album, American Pride
Released by RCA, August 1992
Written by Roger Murrah and Randy VanWarmer
Produced by Alabama, Josh Leo and Larry Michael Lee

Source: cowboylyrics.com  
 



Bill Clinton on Embracing Reality

The first thing you ought to do when you find yourself in a hole is quit digging.... Instead they are looking for a bigger shovel.

Bill Clinton 

Source: thinkexist.com

Will Rogers on Discretion

When you find yourself in a hole, quit digging.

Will Rogers

Source: goodreads.com

Teddy Roosevelt on Voting

A vote is like a rifle; its usefulness depends upon the character of the user.

Theodore (Teddy) Roosevelt

Source: teddyrooseveltlive.com

Sunday, September 22, 2013

Yoko Ono on Seasons

Spring passes and one remembers one's innocence.
Summer passes and one remembers one's exuberance.
Autumn passes and one remembers one's reverence.
Winter passes and one remembers one's perseverance.


Yoko Ono

 Source: goodreads.com

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Cheryl Sawyer on America

ONE
by Cheryl Sawyer
 

As the soot and dirt and ash rained down,
We became one color.
As we carried each other down the stairs of the burning building
We became one class.
As we lit candles of waiting and hope
We became one generation.
As the firefighters and police officers fought their way into the inferno
We became one gender.
As we fell to our knees in prayer for strength,
We became one faith.
As we whispered or shouted words of encouragement,
We spoke one language.
As we gave our blood in lines a mile long,
We became one body.
As we mourned together the great loss
We became one family.
As we cried tears of grief and loss
We became one soul.
As we retell with pride of the sacrifice of heroes
We become one people.

We are
One color
One class
One generation
One gender
One faith
One language
One body
One family
One soul
One people

We are The Power of One.
We are United.
We are America.



Thanks to John Holland for posting this on facebook. 

We remember. Always.

Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Abraham Lincoln on Discretion

I have always found that mercy bears richer fruits than strict justice.

Abraham Lincoln

Source: goodreads.com

Abraham Lincoln on Authenticity

If you once forfeit the confidence of your fellow citizens, you can never regain their respect and esteem. It is true that you may fool all of the people some of the time; you can even fool some of the people all of the time; but you can't fool all of the people all of the time.

Abraham Lincoln
Speech at Clinton, Illinois, September 8, 1854. 

Source: goodreads.com

Sunday, September 8, 2013

Ron Shapiro on Discretion

We've all suffered from "negotiation fever" at one time or another. That's where you get so caught up in the heat of making a deal, you lose sight of the quality of the deal. If you weren't involved and you were just the observer, you'd whisper in your own ear, "Stop! It's not worth it." But it's hard to remind yourself to be objective. Some deals just aren't worth making.

Ronald M. Shapiro
in the book The Power of Nice
©2001, John Wiley & Sons, p. 226

Henri, le Chat Noir on Weathering Storms

The wind and rain whipping through the branches outside seem to sing in their own language. "Stay on the sofa," they say. "Finish your nap."

Henri, le Chat Noir 

Source: Henri, le Chat Noir, on facebook

Saturday, August 31, 2013

Martin Luther King, Jr. on Awareness

One of the great liabilities of history is that all too many people fail to remain awake through great periods of social change. Every society has its protectors of status quo and its fraternities of the indifferent who are notorious for sleeping through revolutions. Today, our very survival depends on our ability to stay awake, to adjust to new ideas, to remain vigilant and to face the challenge of change.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Source: goodreads.com

Martin Luther King, Jr. on Affecting Change

Another way that you love your enemy is this: When the opportunity presents itself for you to defeat your enemy, that is the time which you must not do it. There will come a time, in many instances, when the person who hates you most, the person who has misused you most, the person who has gossiped about you most, the person who has spread false rumors about you most, there will come a time when you will have an opportunity to defeat that person. It might be in terms of a recommendation for a job; it might be in terms of helping that person to make some move in life. That’s the time you must do it. That is the meaning of love. In the final analysis, love is not this sentimental something that we talk about. It’s not merely an emotional something. Love is creative, understanding goodwill for all men. It is the refusal to defeat any individual. When you rise to the level of love, of its great beauty and power, you seek only to defeat evil systems. Individuals who happen to be caught up in that system, you love, but you seek to defeat the system.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Source: goodreads.com

Friday, August 16, 2013

Colum McCann on America

Everybody had a story to tell. The beautiful thing about America is that people are open and gracious and kind.

Colum McCann 

Irish-born, Colum's observation while discussing his experience traveling across America with Stephen Colbert. 

Source: The Colbert Report on facebook

Laurence Boldt on Simplicity

The purpose of life is to live it.

Laurence Boldt.

Source: The Tao of Abundance
by Laurence G. Boldt
©1999 Laurence G. Boldt
Penguin Compass

Thursday, August 8, 2013

Tony Robbins on Fulfillment

The Six Human Needs

1. Certainty: assurance you can avoid pain and gain pleasure
2. Uncertainty/Variety: the need for the unknown, change, new stimuli
3. Significance: feeling unique, important, special or needed
4. Connection/Love: a strong feeling of closeness or union with someone or something
5. Growth: an expansion of capacity, capability or understanding
6. Contribution: a sense of service and focus on helping, giving to and supporting others

Tony Robbins
 


Source: tonyrobbins.com

Sunday, August 4, 2013

Leo Buscaglia on Legacy

The majority of us lead quiet, unheralded lives as we pass through this world. There will most likely be no ticker-tape parades for us, no monuments created in our honor. But that does not lessen our possible impact, for there are scores of people waiting for someone just like us to come along; people who will appreciate our compassion, our unique talents. Someone who will live a happier life merely because we took the time to share what we had to give. 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 a potential to turn a life around. It's overwhelming to consider the continuous opportunities there are to make our love felt.

Leo Buscaglia

Source: Gaiam Blog 


A note: Back in 2008,  I included the last two sentences of this quote on this blog.  I like the context now that I have discovered the entire quote.  - Linda.

Edward R. Murrow on Critical Thought

The speed of communications is wondrous to behold. It is also true that speed can multiply the distribution of information that we know to be untrue.
 

Edward R. Murrow
1908 - 1965

Source: goodreads.com

Saturday, August 3, 2013

Alex Echols on Mindfulness

So I ask you these three important questions: Is there anything in your life that you feel you need to let go of? Are you recording the magic moments from your life? Are you reaching far with your love?

Alex Echols 

Source: tinybuddha.com

Sunday, July 28, 2013

Patty Ruzzo on Dogs

I don't know if my dogs consider me their leader and I don't care. They're greedy, and I have their stuff.

Patty Ruzzo

Source: facebook.com/yourpitbullandyou

Raji Lukkoor on Mindfulness

Respond; don't react.
Listen; don't talk.
Think; don't assume.


Raji Lukkoor

Source: goodreads.com

Laura Day on Conscious Choice

Celebrate the successes and victories. Acknowledge and mourn the losses, and allow the energy of disappointment to become the energy of faith and transformation. And always honor the journey.

Laura Day

Source: The Circle
©2001 Laura Day 
Jeremy P. Tarcher/Putnam 
p. 48

Friday, July 26, 2013

Movie Wisdom: The Quiet American

The American (Audie Murphy): I'm from a country that's been in existence for less than two hundred years, in a very old world. That same fifty years ago, we were barely taken seriously as a nation, much less a great force for wisdom and decision. But suddenly now, a watch tick of history later, the world waits angrily for us to provide the answers it hasn't been able to find in fifty centuries.

Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Screenwriter
The Quiet American, 1958
Loosely based on The Quiet American by Graham Greene
Distributed by United Artists

Source: imdb.com

Havelock Ellis on Balance

All the art of living lies in a fine mingling of letting go and holding on.

Havelock Ellis

Source: tinybuddha.com

Friday, July 19, 2013

Amanda Christian on Embracing Change

There is no one missing from this moment whom you need right now.

Amanda Christian

Source: tinybuddha.com

Thursday, July 18, 2013

Nelson Mandela on Love

No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite.

Nelson Mandela

Source: goodreads.com

Nelson Mandela on Reflection

I have walked that long road to freedom. I have tried not to falter; I have made missteps along the way. But I have discovered the secret that after climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb. I have taken a moment here to rest, to steal a view of the glorious vista that surrounds me, to look back on the distance I have come. But I can only rest for a moment, for with freedom come responsibilities, and I dare not linger, for my long walk is not ended.
 

Nelson Mandela

Source: goodreads.com 

Friday, July 5, 2013

Song Lyric Wisdom: Heart of the Matter

The Heart of the Matter
 
I got the call today, I didn’t wanna hear
But I knew that it would come
An old, true friend of ours was talkin’ on the phone
She said you’d found someone
And I thought of all the bad luck,
And the struggles we went through
And how I lost me and you lost you
What are these voices outside love’s open door
Make us throw off our contentment
And beg for something more?


I’m learning to live without you now
But I miss you sometimes
The more I know, the less I understand
All the things I thought I knew, I’m learning again
I’ve been tryin’ to get down
To the heart of the matter
But my will gets weak
And my thoughts seem to scatter
But I think it’s about forgiveness
Forgiveness
Even if, even if you don’t love me anymore
 

These times are so uncertain
There’s a yearning undefined
And people filled with rage
We all need a little tenderness
How can love survive in such a graceless age?
The trust and self-assurance that lead to happiness
They’re the very things - we kill I guess
Pride and competition
Cannot fill these empty arms
And the work I put between us
You know it doesn’t keep me warm


I’m learning to live without you now
But I miss you, baby
And the more I know, the less I understand
All the things I thought I’d figured out
I have to learn again
I’ve been trying to get down
To the heart of the matter
But everything changes
And my friends seem to scatter
But I think it’s about forgiveness
Forgiveness
Even if, even if you don’t love me anymore


There are people in your life who’ve come and gone
They let you down you know they hurt your pride
You better put it all behind you baby; life goes on
You keep carryin’ that anger; it’ll eat you up inside, baby


I’ve been trying to get down
To the heart of the matter
But my will gets weak
And my thought seem to scatter
But I think it’s about forgiveness
Forgiveness
Even if, even if you don’t love me


I’ve been tryin’ to get down
To the heart of the matter
Because the flesh will get weak
And the ashes will scatter
So I’m thinkin’ about forgiveness
Forgiveness
Even if, even if you don’t love me
Even if, you don’t love me anymore


Mike Campbell, Don Henley, J.D. Souther
Performed by Don Henley
©1989 from the album The End of the Innocence, Geffen Records

Tony Robbins on Heroism

A hero is not someone who is "perfect." We'd have no heroes if this were our standard. We all make mistakes, but that doesn't invalidate the contributions we make in the course of our lives. Perfection is not heroism; humanity is.

Tony Robbins
on facebook

Albert Einstein on Freedom

Everything that is really great and inspiring is created by the individual who can labor in freedom.

Albert Einstein 

From an address at the commencement exercises of Swarthmore College, 1938

Source: einstein.biz

Sunday, June 2, 2013

TV Wisdom: Castle

Don't confuse me with your reasonableness.

Richard Castle (Nathan Fillion) to his daughter, Alexis (Molly C. Quinn) in response to her logical, common sense questions.

Castle
The Dead Pool
Written by Andrew W. Marlow and Matt Pyken
Season 3, Episode 21
Air Date: April 11, 2011
Beacon Pictures

Source: imdb.com

Saturday, May 25, 2013

Franklin Delano Roosevelt on The Cost of Freedom

In the truest sense, freedom cannot be bestowed; it must be achieved.

Franklin D. Roosevelt

Source: quotegarden.com

Linda Foor on Ritual

On Memorial Day Weekend, we remember and honor with gratitude. We gather with friends and family. We welcome summer. Because we can.

Linda Foor

Ralph Waldo Emerson on Perspective

At times the whole world seems to be in conspiracy to importune you with emphatic trifles. Friend, client, child, sickness, fear, want, charity, all knock at once at thy closet door and say,—'Come out unto us.' But keep thy state; come not into their confusion. The power men possess to annoy me I give them by a weak curiosity. No man can come near me but through my act.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Source: goodreads.com

James Thurber on the Mechanism of Thought

I loathe the expression “What makes him tick.” It is the American mind, looking for simple and singular solutions, that uses the foolish expression. A person not only ticks, he also chimes and strikes the hour, falls and breaks and has to be put together again, and sometimes stops like an electric clock in a thunderstorm.

James Thurber

Source: goodreads.com

Emile Zola on Purpose

If you ask me what I came to do in this world, I, an artist, will answer you: I am here to live out loud.

Emile Zola

Source: goodreads.com


For farmer and friend, Richard Birney, thank you and farewell.

Howard Thurman on Passion

Don’t worry about what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive and do that, because what the world needs is people who have come alive.

Howard Thurman

Source: tinybuddha.com

Saturday, April 20, 2013

Martin Richard on The Path to Peace

No more hurting people. Peace.

Martin Richard

Martin Richard, passed away on April 15, 2013, at the age of 8, in the Boston Marathon bombing. Never forget.

Learn more about Martin Richard on Huffington Post.

Source: huffingtonpost.com