The Power of Appreciation…………….

BEST ADVICE GIVEN BY A MOTHER:

A BEAUTIFUL STORY WRITTEN BY JONATHAN PETIT, A GREAT NOVELIST ON THE POWER OF APPRECIATION:

‘I was about ten. My mom had just finished creating one of her amazing meals and I thoroughly enjoyed it and it was simply Delicious. Later, as I was washing the dishes, my mom came up to me, ‘Sorry, dinner was so awful again.’ She said. I was shocked, ‘What? No, it was great. I loved it.’ ‘Really?’ she said, with mock surprise. ‘You always eat so quietly, never saying anything. You’ve never told me you liked my cooking, so I thought you hated it.’ ‘No, my darling Mom, you’re the best cook I know and I love you for being so kind and generous.’ ‘Then you should tell me that,’ she said. ‘Whenever someone does something nice for you, you should thank that person. If you don’t, then they might think they are not appreciated and stop doing those nice things.’

Something clicked in me right then. From that day onwards, I made it my sincere practice to thank everyone for literally everything. If anyone did something that even vaguely helped me, I thanked that person profusely. It became a habit, something I didn’t even think about, and that’s when the magic started happening.

People liked me more. They talked to me more, shared with me, were more friendly. In my first year of high school, during the final week, I came home and found a giant freezie (a kind of sweet of frozen snack) waiting for me. ‘Thanks, mom!’ I said instinctively.’ ‘This isn’t from me, she said. ‘This is from your bus driver.’ He had been driving that bus for years, and my siblings and I were the first people to ever thank him as we got dropped off. Those two simple words made a huge difference, so much so that he went out of his way to tell our mom and give us a present.’

That is the power of appreciation. When you have it, all is right in the world, but when it is missing life is empty. My mom taught me many things, but taking two seconds to say ‘thank you’ every time in any situation, was the best.

Debriefing of this Story: You would have met people who call themselves as good critics but have you ever met a person who says I am good at appreciating others? Isn’t that a sad part of our society? Let’s start appreciating people more frequently especially people who are close to us. ‘The sweetest of all sounds is praise. Let’s start it today.’

Look Fab, Be Good, Be Cheerful Always……………..

                                                        

Advertisements

I See You…………..

 

I See You………

In the sunbeams

Among song-birds and lovely lavenders

You speak of beauties whisperings

Love that softly flows as red wine

 

I See You…….

In the pastures of fountain greens

Rivers running up in full stream

Playing your lovely tunes

Dancing with the autumn leaves

 

I See You……….

In the little white lamb

Suckling its mother tenderly

Horses that gallop sprightly

Hearing your enchanted voice

 

I See You………….

In the valleys and dales

Ringing bells of joyous hay

A movement in every step

A wonder, a surprise, a celebration

 

I See You……….

At our petite dining table

Silently munching with us

Enjoying hot chai’s and coffee

And our little heart to hearts

 

I See You……….

Sitting next to me, a tender smile

Gazing at me with your loving eyes

A quick assurance, a little hug

You need not worry my child

Cause I am here holding you tight……………….

 

 

 

A Little Bit of Laughter…………..

-Child: ‘Mummy why does Gandhiji have no hair on his head?’

Mummy: ‘Because he speaks only the truth.’

Child: ‘Now I understood why ladies have long hair.’

 

-Teacher: ‘How old is your father?’

Kid: ‘He is 6 years old’.

Teacher: ‘What? How is this possible?’

Kid: ‘He became father only when I was born’.

 

-THIS IS VERY HILARIOUS: When I was a kid homosexuality was a crime. When I was growing up homosexuality was a taboo. Now as per the Supreme Court it is legal. I better die before they make it compulsory.

 

-David: ‘I’m going to watch ‘Mission Impossible’ tonight’. 

James: ‘On Cable or at a Theater?’

David: ‘Not the film! My wife who is very fat, bought Slim Fit Jeans and she is going to try it on this evening!!!!!’

 

-I occasionally work with a Chinese guy Cheng. At an office function, we were having coffee and chatting.

I asked him, ‘Cheng, do you ever get fed up of people saying that all Chinese look the same?’

He replied, ‘Cheng is at the counter getting coffee; I am his wife.’       

          

-IN A HOTEL RESTAURANT: One day in a Hotel one stupid man after eating food went to wash his hands and started washing the basin.

The waiter saw this and said, ‘What are you doing Sir?’

The stupid man said: ‘Idiot, you think I do not know English, only you are the one who knows or what. It is written WASH BASIN and I am doing that only.’

 

-IN A NURSERY SCHOOL: There’s a basket of apples with a notice written over it: ‘Do not take more than one, God is watching.’ On the other counter there’s a box of chocolates. A small child went and wrote on it, ‘Take as many as you want, God is busy watching the apples’ NEVER ACT SMART WITH Today’s Generation.

 

-C.A.T. EXAM QUESTION:

Spell the word ‘COW’ in 13 letters:  Many Scientists got mad calculating it.

Even Professors could not answer it.

Lecturers said that it is a wrong query, printing mistakes, etc.,

Toppers got confused.

Average students’ minds went blank cursing the question setters.

Below average students committed suicide, unable to solve it.

But a dim-witted gave a cool answer: ‘SEE O DOUBLE YOU’

 

LAUGH AND BE MERRY AND GAY…………………

Cleansing One Self…………..

 

One day all the disciples went to their Master and said, ‘Master, Master, we all are wanting to go on a pilgrimage.’

Master: ‘Why what happened all of a sudden. Why do you want to go on a pilgrimage trip?’

Disciples: ‘So that we can improve our devotion to God.’

Master: ‘OK. Then do me a favour. Please take this vegetable Karela (known as Bitter Gourd in English) along with you and wherever you go and whichever temple you visit, place it in the alter of the Deity, take the blessings and bring it back.’

So, not only the disciples but the Karela also went on pilgrimage, temple after temple. And finally, when they came back, the Master said, ‘Cook that Karela and serve it to me.’  The disciples cooked it and served it to the Master. After having the first bite, the Master said, ‘Surprising’. 

Disciples too were fumbled: But that is the very nature of the Karela, Master.

Master: ‘That is exactly what I am saying. Unless you change your nature, pilgrimage will not make any difference.  So, you and I, if we do not change ourselves, no teacher or guru can make a difference in our lives. Going on a pilgrimage does not mean you are cleansed with all your wrong doings, of lust, anger, hate, greed and jealousy. One has to thoroughly clean oneself of all these so called negatives.  The very purpose of going to the temple, church or any prayer house is to change within, change your very nature and character for enlightening oneself, get to the cleansing act. Otherwise the purpose is defeated.’

Every phase of our life is bound to teach us something valuable and positive. It all depends on Us whether we understand The Lesson in its true essence or Just Simply Keep on Turning the Pages without comprehending its proper meaning. The spiritual journey starts within.

Live Simply, Look Fab and Enjoy Life………………

Freedom Is Waiting………………..

There is freedom waiting

Just for you, My Love

On the breezes of the blues

On the ever shining lips

And you ask ‘What if I fall?

From the threshold of the waterfalls

Cascading to unending torrents

Knowing not where I am going

Am scared of my own existence’

But then I hear your voice

A tiny whisper in the wilderness

From the echoes of my being

‘Oh! But My Precious Love

What if you can fly?

Like the birds who soar freely

Fearing no one in sight

And the buttercups that dance

With the yellows and greens

Swaying in a chaotic rhythm

Ecstatically flirting as flames of joy

Come we shall merge as One

Oh! My, Darling Mysterious Soul

Freedom is waiting just for you…….

Eight Gifts that do not cost a Cent……….

THE GIFT OF LISTENING: But you must REALLY listen. No interrupting, no daydreaming, no planning your response. Just listening from your heart.

THE GIFT OF AFFECTION: Be generous with appropriate hugs, kisses, pats on the back and a kind word. Let these small actions demonstrate the love you have for family, friends and nature.

THE GIFT OF LAUGHTER: Clip cartoons. Paint caricatures that make others laugh. Share articles, jokes and funny stories. Your gift will say, ‘I love to laugh with you unconditionally.’

THE GIFT OF A WRITTEN NOTE: It can be a simple ‘Thanks for your help’ note pasted or a full sonnet written to make the person feel so grateful. A brief handwritten note may be remembered for a lifetime and may even change someone’s life.

THE GIFT OF A COMPLIMENT: A simple and sincere, ‘You look great in red, the color suits you’, ‘You did a super job’ or ‘You were fantastic’ can make someone’s day so happy and bright.

THE GIFT OF A FAVOUR: Every day go out of your way to do something kind for someone. Feel or show approval for what someone is doing for you. It will make the person dance in joy.

THE GIFT OF SOLITUDE: There are times when we want nothing better than to be left alone.   We would like to go away to be with ourselves. Be sensitive to those times and give the gift of solitude to others too. 

THE GIFT OF A CHEERFUL DISPOSITION: The easiest way to feel good is to extend a kind and compassionate word to someone. Really it’s not that hard to say, ‘Hello’ or ‘Thank You’ or ‘I Am So Pleased with You.’ It goes a long way. 

These simple and easy to follow Eight Gifts in our day to day lives do not cost us a Cent but leads to Happiness and Joy.  They mean a lot to people and to us too. Joy is portable. Carry it wherever you Go. The beauty of life does not depend on how happy you are, but on how happy others can be because of you………..

Some Day & One Day……….

 

A friend of mine opened his wife’s wardrobe and picked up a silk paper wrapped package. ‘This,’ he said, ‘is not any ordinary package.’ He unwrapped the box and stared at both the silk paper and the box and silk satin dresses inside.  They were untouched and she had loved picking them up. She got this the first time we went to New York, 8 or 9 years ago.  She has never put it on, was saving it for a special occasion’ and said to me, ‘Honey, I will open it some day when my mood is right and one day I will open them and show it to you. You will love me in them.’ ‘Well, I guess this is it.  That day never came in my wife’s life.’

He got near the bed and placed the gift box next to the other clothing he was taking to the funeral house, his wife had just died.  He turned to me and said, ‘never save something for a ‘special occasion’.  Every day in your life is a ‘Special Occasion. You never know when your time will come to leave everything behind. Life is short, why don’t we enjoy whatever we have bought instead of waiting for a right occasion.

I still think those words changed my life forever.  Some Days and One Days never come.  Now I take every day as it comes. I read more books which I like and clean less. I sit on the porch without worrying about anything.  I have no fears too.  I spend more time with my family and less at work. I go for parties and freak out like nobody’s business.  I now understand that life must be a source of experience to be lived up to, not survived through.  I no longer keep anything nor keep secrets and if I have money I splurge on it and buy whatever I like or give it to the needy, as I know I am not going to take anything with me. 

Sometimes we just need someone to show us something we cannot see for ourselves, then we too can change forever.

Love Truly, Look Fab and Enjoy Life.