DON'T EVER FORGET YOUR GIRLFRIENDS!

A young wife sat on a sofa on a hot humid day, drinking iced tea and visiting with her Mother. As they talked about life, about marriage, about the responsibilities of life and the obligations of adulthood. The mother clinked the ice cubes in her glass thoughtfully and turned a clear, sober glance upon her daughter.

"Don't forget your girlfriends," she advised, swirling the tea leaves to the bottom of her glass. "They'll be more important as you get older. No matter how much you love your husband, no matter how much you love the children you'll have, you are still going to need girlfriends.

Remember to go places with them now and then do things with them. And remember that "girlfriends" are not only your friends, but your sisters, your daughters and other relatives too. You'll need other women. Women always do."

'What a funny piece of advice,' the young woman thought. 'Haven't I just gotten married? Haven't I just joined the couple world? I'm now a married woman. For goodness sake, a grown up, not a young girl who needs girlfriends! Surely my husband and the family we'll start will be all I need to make my life worth while!'

But she listened to her mother. She kept contact with her girlfriends and made more each year. As the years tumbled by, one after another, she gradually came to understand that her mom really knew what she was talking about. As time and nature work their changes and their mysteries upon a woman, girlfriends are the main stays of her life.

After 50 years of living in this world, here is what I know about girlfriends:
Girlfriends bring you chicken curry and scrub your bathroom when you need help.
Girlfriends keep your children and keep your secrets.
Girlfriends give advice when you ask for it. Sometimes you take it, sometimes you don't.
Girlfriends don't always tell you that you're right, but they're usually honest.
Girlfriends still love you, even when they don't agree with your choices.
Girlfriends laugh with you, and you don't need canned jokes to start the laughter.
Girlfriends pull you out of jams.
Girlfriends help you get out of bad relationships.
Girlfriends help you look for a new apartment, help you pack and help you move.
Girlfriends will give a party for your son or daughter when they get married or have a baby, in whichever order that comes!
Girlfriends are there for you, in an instant and when the hard times come.
Girlfriends will drive through blizzards, rainstorms, hail, heat and gloom of night to get to you when your hour of need is desperate.
Girlfriends listen when you lose a job or a friend.
Girlfriends listen when your children break your heart.
Girlfriends listen when your parents' minds and bodies fail.
Girlfriends cry with you when someone you loved dies.
Girlfriends support you when the men in your life let you down.
Girlfriends help you pick up the pieces when men pack up and go.
Girlfriends rejoice at what makes you happy, and are ready to go out and kill what makes you unhappy.

Times passes. Life happens. Distance separates. Children grow up. Love waxes and wanes. Hearts break. Careers end. Jobs come and go. Parents die. Colleagues forget favors. Men don't call when they say they will.

BUT girlfriends are there, no matter how much time and how many miles are between you. A girlfriend is never farther away than needing her can reach.
When you have to walk that lonesome valley, and you have to walk it for yourself. Your girlfriends will be on the valley's rim, cheering you on, praying for you, pulling for you, intervening on your behalf and waiting with open arms at the valley's end.

Sometimes, they will even break the rules and walk beside you or come in and carry you out.
My daughter, sisters, mother, sisters-in-law, mother-in-law, aunties, nieces, cousins, extended family, and friends bless my life!

The world wouldn't be the same without them...and neither would I.

When we began this adventure called womanhood, we had no idea of the incredible joys or sorrows that lay ahead. Nor did we know how much we would need each other. Every day, we need each other still.

THE 90/10 PRINCIPLE - STEPHEN COVEY

Discover the 90/10 Principle
It will change your life (or at least, the way you react to situations)

What is this Principle?
10% of life is made up of what happens to you.
…90% of life is decided by how you react…

What does this mean?
We really have NO control over 10% of what happens to us.
We cannot stop the car from breaking down.
The plane will be late arriving, which throws our whole schedule off.
A driver may cut us off in the traffic.
We have NO control over this 10%.
The other 90% is different.
You determine the other 90%.
How?... By your reaction.

You cannot control a red light.
However, you can control your reaction.
Do not let people fool you.
YOU can control how you react.
Let us use an example…

You are having breakfast with your family.
Your daughter knocks over a cup of coffee onto your business shirt.
You have no control over what has just happened.
What happens next will be determined by how you react.

You curse.
You harshly scold your daughter for knocking the cup over.
She breaks down in tears.

After scolding her, you turn to your wife and you criticize her for placing the cup too close to the edge of the table.
A short verbal battle follows.

You storm upstairs and change your shirt.
Back downstairs, you find your daughter has been too busy crying to finish her breakfast and getting ready to go to school.
She misses the bus.

Your spouse must leave immediately for work.
You rush to the car and drive your daughter to school.

Because you are late, you drive 40 miles per hour in a 30 mph speed limit zone.

After a 15-minute delay and throwing $60.00 traffic fine away, you arrive at school.
Your daughter runs into the building without saying goodbye.
After arriving at the office 20 minute late,
You realize you forgot your briefcase.

Your day has started terrible. As it continues, it seems to get worse and worse.
You look forward to coming home.

When you arrive home, you find a small wedge in your relationship with your wife and daughter.
Why?
Because of how you reacted in the morning.

Why did you have a bad day?

A) Did the coffee cause it?
B) Did your daughter cause it?
C) Did the policeman cause it?
D) Did you cause it?

The answer is “D”

You had no control over what happened with the coffee.
How you reacted in those 5 seconds is what caused your bad day.

Here is what could have and should have happened.

Coffee splashes over you.
Your daughter is about to cry.
You gently say: “It’s okay, honey, you just need to be More careful next time.”
Grabbing a towel you go upstairs and change your shirt. You grab your briefcase, and you come back down in time to look through the window and see your child getting on the bus. She turns and waves. You arrive 5 minutes early a cheerfully greet the staff.
Notice the difference?

Two different scenarios.
Both started the same.
Both ended different.
Why?
Because of how you reated

You really have no control over 10%
of what happens in your life.

The other 90% was determined by your reaction.

Here are some ways to apply the 90/10 Principle.

If someone says something negative about you,
do not be a sponge.
Let the attack roll off like water on glass.
You do not have to let the negative comments affect you.
React properly and it will not ruin your day.
A wrong reaction could result in losing a friend,
being fired, or getting stressed out.

How do you react if someone cuts you off in the traffic?
Do you lose your temper?
Pound on the steering wheel? (a friend of mine had the steering wheel fall off),
Do you curse? Does your blood pressure skyrocket?
Who cares if you arrive 10 seconds later at work?
Why let the cars ruin your drive?

Remember the 90/10 Principle and don’t worry about it.
You are told you lost your job.
Why lose sleep and get irritated?
It will work out.
Use your worrying energy and time to find a new job.

The plane is late. It is going to mangle your schedule for the day.
Why take out your frustration on the flight attendant?
She has no control over what is going on.
Use your time to study, get to know the other passenger, why stress out?
It will just make things worse.

Now you know the 90/10 Principle.
Apply it and you will be amazed at the results.
You will lose nothing if you try it.
The 90/10 Principle is incredible.
Very few know and apply this Principle.
The result?
You will see it by yourself!

Millions of people are suffering
from undeserved stress,
trials, problems and headaches.
We all must understand and apply the
90/10 Principle.
It can change your life!…Enjoy it...
It only takes willpower to give ourselves
permission to make the experience.















Absolutely everything we do, give, say, or even think, it’s like a Boomerang.
It will come back to us...
If we want to receive, we need to learn to give first...
Maybe we will end with our hands empty,
but our heart will be filled with love...
And those who love life,
have that feeling marked in their hearts …

MEN NEVER LISTEN...

On a flight to Singapore, a gentleman had made several attempts to get into the men's restroom, but it had always been occupied.

The flight attendant noticed his predicament.

Sir, she said, "You may use the ladies room if you promise not to touch any of the buttons on the wall." He did what he needed to, and as he sat there, he noticed the buttons he had promised not to touch.

Each button was identified by letters: WW, WA, PP, and a red one labeled ATR.
Who would know if he touched them? He couldn't resist.

He pushed WW. Warm water was sprayed gently upon his bottom. What a nice feeling, he thought. Men’s restrooms don't have nice things like this.

Anticipating greater pleasure, he pushed the WA button. Warm air replaced the warm water, gently drying his underside. When this stopped, he pushed the PP button. A large powder puff caressed his bottom adding a fragile scent of spring flowers to this unbelievable pleasure.

The ladies restroom was more than a restroom, it is tender loving pleasure.
When the powder puff completed its pleasure, he couldn't wait to push the ATR button, which he knew would be supreme ecstasy.

Next thing, he knew he was in a hospital. As he opened his eyes, a nurse was staring down at him with a smirk on her face.
"What happened?" he exclaimed.
"You pushed one too many buttons," replied the nurse.
"The last button marked ATR was an Automatic Tampon Remover.
Your balls are in the bucket under the bed"

TRUE LOVE DOES EXISTS!

When I read the story of Katie Kirkpatrick and her Bittersweet memory that happened a few years ago...I was touched by it because it shows that true love does exists and not just in fairy tales! But I guess guys like Nick Godwin is a 'Rare Kind' and hard to find...

Katie had chased cancer, once only to have it return...to clog her lungs and grab hold of her heart. Breathing was difficult, she had to use oxygen. The pain in her back was so intense it broke through the morphine that was supposed to act as a shield. Her organs were shutting down but it would not stop her from marrying Nick Godwin, 23, who was in love with Katie since 11th grade.















In the picture, Nick is waiting for her on one of the many sessions of Chemotherapy to end














No matter what happen, Katie is going along with her wedding and took care of every detail. The dress had to be adjusted a few times due to her constant weight loss. My heart would bleed if this is my daughter!














Sadly...Katie died five days after her wedding day.

THE WINDOW...

A young couple moves into a new neighborhood.

The next morning, while they are eating breakfast, the young woman sees her neighbor hang the wash outside.
“That laundry is not very clean...” she said, “she doesn’t know how to wash correctly. Perhaps she needs better laundry soap.”

Her husband looks on, but remained silent.

Every time her neighbor would hang her wash to dry, the young woman would make the same comments.

About one month later, the woman was surprised to see a nice clean wash on the line and said to her husband:
“Look! She has learned how to wash correctly. I wonder who taught her this.”

The husband said: “I got up early this morning and cleaned our windows!”


And so it is with life:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
What we see when watching others, depends on the purity of the window through which we look. Before we give any criticism, it might be good idea to check our state of mind and ask ourselves if we are ready to see the good rather than to be looking for something in the person we are about to judge.

“PARADOX OF OUR TIME”

This article has been circulated in the e-mail for quite sometimes…from what I know, since 1999. I like it so much even though there is some controversy about who is the real writer. Please take the time to read it and think about it!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers, wider Freeways, but narrower viewpoints.

We spend more, but have less, we buy more, but enjoy less.

We have bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences, but less time.

We have more degrees but less sense, more knowledge, but less judgment, more experts, yet more problems, more medicine, but less wellness.

We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom.

We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values.

We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.

We've learned how to make a living, but not a life.

We've added years to life not life to years.

We've been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor.

We conquered outer space but not inner space.

We've done larger things, but not better things.

We've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul.

We've conquered the atom, but not our prejudice.

We write more, but learn less.

We plan more, but accomplish less.

We've learned to rush, but not to wait.

We build more computers to hold more information, to produce more copies than ever, but we communicate less and less.

These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion, big men and small character, steep profits and shallow relationships.

These are the days of two incomes but more divorce, fancier houses, but broken homes.

These are days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throwaway morality, one-night stands, overweight bodies, and pills that do everything from cheer, quiet or kill.

It is a time when there is much in the showroom window and nothing in the stockroom. Indeed these are the times!



To know more about this article checks out these sources:
http://www.snopes.com/politics/soapbox/paradox.asp
http://www.georgecarlin.com/home/dontblame.html