Inspiration for the Mind, Body & Soul
A BLOG DEVOTED TO SHARING POSITIVE AND ENCOURAGING MESSAGES FOR THE HUNGRY HEART
“If you are busy focusing on the falling bricks, you will never realize that they are truly stepping stones you need to cross over to the next phase of your life.”
― Kemi Sogunle
Throughout life you will face challenge after challenge. But, the key is not to allow yourself to become so singularly focused on each obstacle that you become stuck. You must continually remind yourself that obstacles are placed before you so that you can learn, grow and move forward in your life.
“Forget yesterday – it has already forgotten you. Don’t sweat tomorrow – you haven’t even met. Instead, open your eyes and your heart to a truly precious gift – today.”
― Steve Maraboli
As you close out another week, let go of all the negative that happened on Monday, Tuesday, etc. It’s done. You can’t go back and change any decisions or actions, so why carry it into tomorrow? In the same breath, try to hold back from stressing and worrying about tomorrow because it hasn’t happened yet. So, every time your mind drifts, try to refocus it back to the present because this moment right here, right now is what matters. You are in control of this moment and it is truly a precious gift not to be wasted.
“Disappointment to a noble soul is what cold water is to burning metal; it strengthens, tempers, intensifies, but never destroys it.”
-Eliza Tabor
We are all faced with disappointment in our lives. You cannot have hope without disappointment – as they are opposite sides of the same coin. So, even though it hurts when you allow yourself to hope for something, for it not to happen, your spirit will not be destroyed. Your spirit is more resilient than any disappointment or letdown you may face. And each time you manage to stand up in spite of a setback, you become a little stronger and a little wiser.
by Sandra Futter
Oh, it’s a beautiful morning.
Today’s gonna be a great day.
I’ve got that wonderful feeling,
That everything’s going my way.
No matter if the skies be stormy
And the wind’s blowing things in my way.
That doesn’t worry me any,
I know everything’s gonna be ok.
The obstacles don’t even slow me,
I pass by each one in my way.
The messes prove just to grow me.
I get stronger each and every day.
Life is truly all about how you approach it. If you start your day off in the mindset that no matter what it’s going to be a good day, you will be amazed by how the small things don’t faze you. And even when things don’t quite go your way or when things go sideways, you are able to handle it much better and your mood isn’t ruined. Attitude means everything. Never underestimate the power of your mind. So, when you wake up tomorrow, before you get out of bed, say out loud “Today will be a good day and if obstacles come my way, I’ll deal with it and move on, for nothing will dampen my spirit today.”
by Edgar Albert Guest
Figure it out for yourself, my lad,
You’ve all that the greatest of men have had,
Two arms, two hands, two legs, two eyes,
And a brain to use if you would be wise.
With this equipment they all began,
So start for the top and say ‘I can.’
Look them over, the wise and great,
They take their food from a common plate
And similar knives and forks they use,
With similar laces they tie their shoes,
The world considers them brave and smart.
But you’ve all they had when they made their start.
You can triumph and come to skill,
You can be great if only you will,
You’re well equipped for what fight you choose,
You have legs and arms and a brain to use,
And the man who has risen, great deeds to do
Began his life with no more than you.
You are the handicap you must face,
You are the one who must choose your place,
You must say where you want to go.
How much you will study the truth to know,
God has equipped you for life, But He
Lets you decide what you want to be.
Courage must come from the soul within,
The man must furnish the will to win,
So figure it out for yourself, my lad,
You were born with all that the great have had,
With your equipment they all began.
Get hold of yourself, and say: ‘I can.’
In this life, anything is possible. The only person who can limit you is you. If you dream it, you can achieve it. So, you should always approach life with an “I can” attitude. And never hold back – go after your goals with hard work and determination . . .for you will only regret the chances you were too scared to take.
Poem by Edgar Albert Guest
The joy of life is living it, or so it seems to me;
In finding shackles on your wrists, then struggling till you’re free;
In seeing wrongs and righting them, in dreaming splendid dreams,
Then toiling till the vision is as real as moving streams.
The happiest mortal on the earth is he who ends his day
By leaving better than he found to bloom along the way.
Were all things perfect here there would be naught for man to do;
If what is old were good enough we’d never need the new.
The only happy time of rest is that which follows strife
And sees some contribution made unto the joy of life.
And he who has oppression felt and conquered it is he
Who really knows the happiness and peace of being free.
The miseries of earth are here and with them all must cope.
Who seeks for joy, through hedges thick of care and pain must grope.
Through disappointment man must go to value pleasure’s thrill;
To really know the joy of health a man must first be ill.
The wrongs are here for man to right, and happiness is had
By striving to supplant with good the evil and the bad.
The joy of life is living it and doing things of worth,
In making bright and fruitful all the barren spots of earth.
In facing odds and mastering them and rising from defeat,
And making true what once was false, and what was bitter, sweet.
For only he knows perfect joy whose little bit of soil
Is richer ground than what it was when he began to toil.
What is a good life? What is the measure of a life well lived? These are questions that we all ask as we navigate our way through life. And for me, I like to reframe the question to the following: “When my time is up and I pass on from this life, what do I want to be remembered for and what kind of person do I want to be remembered as? And the answer is simple; I want to be remembered for having left this world a better place than when I came into it. I want to leave a positive footprint. I also want to be remembered as a person who shared love in a world full of hate. This is my legacy in the making. . .what will yours be?
By Emily Dickinson
If I can stop one heart from breaking,
I shall not live in vain;
If I can ease one life the aching,
Or cool one pain,
Or help one fainting robin
Unto his nest again,
I shall not live in vain.
I believe firmly that life isn’t about what you get, rather life is about what you give. As you go through life, don’t forget to be compassionate and generous. If you can brighten and help better another person’s life, then do it. Your life will have so much more meaning and fulfillment when you share love and kindness with others.
By: John McLeod
I believe that
nothing in life is unimportant
Every moment
can be a beginning
And a time for decision,
Taken against the constant
background of one’s faith
Each word and gesture –
whether it comes from our
Strength or our weakness
May change the subsequent course
of our life
And the lives of those around us.
Every moment of everyday is important. There is no moment of life that can be categorized as insignificant. The most “insignificant” choice can open the door to new opportunities. So, you should strive to treat each day and every moment as a chance for new beginnings full of infinite possibilities.
Edgar Albert Guest
Somebody said that it couldn’t be done
But he with a chuckle replied
That ‘maybe it couldn’t,’ but he would be one
Who wouldn’t say so till he’d tried.
So he buckled right in with the trace of a grin
On his face. If he worried he hid it.
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldn’t be done, and he did it!
Somebody scoffed: ‘Oh, you’ll never do that;
At least no one ever has done it;’
But he took off his coat and he took off his hat
And the first thing we knew he’d begun it.
With a lift of his chin and a bit of a grin,
Without any doubting or quiddit,
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldn’t be done, and he did it.
There are thousands to tell you it cannot be done,
There are thousands to prophesy failure,
There are thousands to point out to you one by one,
The dangers that wait to assail you.
But just buckle in with a bit of a grin,
Just take off your coat and go to it;
Just start in to sing as you tackle the thing
That ‘cannot be done,’ and you’ll do it.
There will always be people around whispering in your ear that you can’t do it, that you will fail. But, you shouldn’t listen to these negative voices. First of all, who has the right to tell you that you won’t succeed or that you aren’t good enough? The answer is no one. Second of all, you won’t know whether or not you can succeed at something UNLESS you first try. And then if you fail, so what, sometimes things just don’t work out and the most important thing is that you tried. You’ll never regret all the chances you took, but only the opportunities you let pass you by without ever even taking a swing. So get up, grab your bat and when a ball comes your way. . .take a swing!
I have told you of the man who always put on his spectacles when about to eat cherries, in order that the fruit might look larger and more tempting. In like manner I always make the most of my enjoyments, and, though I do not cast my eyes away from troubles, I pack them into as small a compass as I can for myself, and never let them annoy others.
~ Robert Southey
Finding happiness in this life largely boils down to how you approach the daily ins and outs that we all face. If you choose to treat every problem, obstacle and roadblock you encounter with a pessimistic attitude while always expecting the worse – you will find yourself living quite a bleak, joyless life with nothing to look forward to but more despair and heartache. But, if you instead choose to approach all facets of life with a can-do attitude grounded in the ideal that no matter what cards you’re dealt, you will strive to play the best hand you can and make the most out of every minute of every day – you will begin to feel joy in the simple act of living.