Quote of the day.....

Your success in life will be in direct proportion to what you do after you do what you are expected to do.

~Brian Tracy 

Kindness is Contagious

by Phyllis Yearick

My 9-year-old daughter and I were flying from our home in Charlotte, North Carolina, to spend a week with my husband in Miami, Florida. Mike had been in Florida for five months working for an Internet start-up company. We were excited about the trip because we had seen him only five times in five months, and Kallie missed her dad terribly.

As usual on the Charlotte-to-Miami flight, the plane was totally full. I had noticed a troop of Boy Scouts at the gate and commented to my daughter that if anything happened, we would be OK with all those Scouts on our flight! Little did I know....

Because we did not get our boarding passes until we arrived at the gate, Kallie and I could not get seats together and were separated by the aisle. That wasn't such a big deal, except that Kallie was nervous about the trip and had counted on my reading to her the whole way. Trying to read across the aisle would be a challenge.

When the two passengers who shared my row boarded the plane, I asked if they would switch places with Kallie and me, so that we could be together and so that she could sit next to the window. They refused, saying they thought they should stay in their assigned seats. Meanwhile, a mother and her three children were in a panic several rows ahead of us. There had been a mistake in their boarding passes, the whole family had been split up.

The passengers in her row also refused to move elsewhere. The mother could hold her baby, but her 6-year-old son and his older brother had been scattered around the plane. She was very concerned about the younger boy sitting with strangers. She was in tears, yet nobody offered to help her.

Suddenly the Scout leader stood up and said, "Ma'am, I think we can help you." He then spent five minutes rearranging his group so that adequate space was available for the family. The boys followed his directions cheerfully and without complaint, and the mother's relief was obvious.

Kallie, however, was beginning to panic at the thought of not being next to a window or her mother. I told her that there wasn't anything I could do; we would have to sit where we were. Amazingly, the man sitting next to the Scoutmaster (not a Scout himself), turned around to me and asked, "Would you and your daughter like our seats?" referring to himself and the Scoutmaster. He said he was cramped in the window seat and would really prefer the aisle. We traded seats and continued our trip, very much relieved to be together and watch the scenery from Kallie's window seat.

Would that man have offered us his seat if the Scouts hadn't done so for the mom and her children? I don't know. But I do know that kindness is contagious, and good deeds beget good deeds!

Quote of the day......

"Motivation is a fire from within. If someone else tries to light

that fire under you, chances are it will burn very briefly."

 ~ Stephen R. Covey

Quote of the day....

Now is the time. Needs are great. But your possibilities are greater.

~Bill Blackman 

Quote of the day.....

"Happy are those who dream dreams and are ready

to pay the price to make them come true." 

~ Leon J. Suenes

Quote of the day.....

Strength and courage aren't always measured in medals and victories.  They are measured in the struggles they overcome.  The strongest people aren't always the people who win, they are the people who don't give up when they lose. 

Kindness is Contagious

by Phyllis Yearick

My 9-year-old daughter and I were flying from our home in Charlotte, North Carolina, to spend a week with my husband in Miami, Florida. Mike had been in Florida for five months working for an Internet start-up company. We were excited about the trip because we had seen him only five
times in five months, and Kallie missed her dad terribly.

As usual on the Charlotte-to-Miami flight, the plane was totally full. I had noticed a troop of Boy Scouts at the gate and commented to my daughter that if anything happened, we would be OK with all those Scouts on our flight! Little did I know....

Because we did not get our boarding passes until we arrived at the gate, Kallie and I could not get seats together and were separated by the aisle. That wasn't such a big deal, except that Kallie was nervous about the trip and had counted on my reading to her the whole way. Trying to
read across the aisle would be a challenge.

When the two passengers who shared my row boarded the plane, I asked if they would switch places with Kallie and me, so that we could be together and so that she could sit next to the window. They refused, saying they thought they should stay in their assigned seats. Meanwhile,
a mother and her three children were in a panic several rows ahead of us. There had been a mistake in their boarding passes, the whole family had been split up.

The passengers in her row also refused to move elsewhere. The mother could hold her baby, but her 6-year-old son and his older brother had been scattered around the plane. She was very concerned about the younger boy sitting with strangers. She was in tears, yet nobody offered to help her.

Suddenly the Scout leader stood up and said, "Ma'am, I think we can help you." He then spent five minutes rearranging his group so that adequate space was available for the family. The boys followed his directions cheerfully and without complaint, and the mother's relief was obvious.

Kallie, however, was beginning to panic at the thought of not being next to a window or her mother. I told her that there wasn't anything I could do; we would have to sit where we were. Amazingly, the man sitting next to the Scoutmaster (not a Scout himself), turned around to me and asked, "Would you and your daughter like our seats?" referring to himself and the Scoutmaster. He said he was cramped in the window seat and would really prefer the aisle. We traded seats and continued our trip, very much relieved to be together and watch the scenery from Kallie's window seat.

Would that man have offered us his seat if the Scouts hadn't done so for the mom and her children? I don't know. But I do know that kindness is contagious, and good deeds beget good deeds!

Quote of the day........

Sometimes your only available transportation is a leap of faith.

~Margaret Shepherd 

Quote of the day.........

The secret of achievement is to hold a picture of a successful outcome in the mind.

~ Henry David Thoreau

Quote of the day.....

To be able to shape your future, you have to be willing and able to change your paradigm.

~Joel Barker 

UNWRAP YOURSELF

By Miles Patrick Yohnke

We arrive not totally wired nor totally assembled like an electric jigsaw puzzle. And thru life we are just trying to figure out how all our pieces go together. A boxing match within our own mind. We human beings all beat ourselves up. This is how it feels at times. From jabs of fear to uppercuts of doubt. It's all there.

So are the crosses of joy and hope. God placed it all in your mind. One will go many rounds sparring with oneself. But it is a good fight. Internal ugliness will be knocked down and our beauty will prevail, if one chooses to fight the good fight.

Broken fragments of what we were. One climbs out from their bed of black, found in the city of death. An unknown nobody is how we feel. The burden of our own self can feel like a monster not just a monkey on our back. The madness numbs us in ways we can't imagine and yet yesterday one was loaded with care.

Like the choice of choosing to walk on the sunny side or upon the side of shadows. This is the beauty of the mind. The blessings of the living. Turn your weaknesses into your strengths. Success is failure turned inside out. Life is sure interesting, isn't it? Surrender. Surrender. It starts there.

By one simply saying I don't have all the answers. I don't know why I do what I do, but I want to know. I'm tired of making the same mistakes over and over. I'm tired of my mind being like this. I'm tired of the same song being sung in my head. I'm tired of doing laps in my pity-pool. So we start unlearning what we were taught. We start being less of a victim (well-meaning parents, teachers, society - ourselves) and start understanding ourselves.

If one is really living, one is looking to others or into themselves for a challenge. A challenge to be better. To be more. Far more. We may not really know the full impact we can have on each other until much later on in our life (or even after death).

Each of us starts out as strangers to each other. We respond and interact and allow each other into our lives and little miracles occur. We learn and teach one another. We challenge each other to be better and be more. When people accept that they don't have all the answers and start seeking out other sources for their own betterment they have moved forward.

A simple gesture like signing up to a self-help or inspirational website for example demonstrates that "I'm a seeker, I'm looking for help. I don't know all the answers but I'm going to be more than I was yesterday." To be someone making an impact on this world you have to surrender to your own limitations first. Learn from them and pass on what you have done to become more to others. Be accountable. Accountable to yourself.

Some time ago I was recording a vocal performance. It was a mid-tempo song. With heartfelt lyrics. A real nice song. Take after take and an afternoon goes by. I replied, "You have written a great song here, but I don't believe you, your delivery or performance. It's just on the surface. It's not believable." I told him to go back. Reflect. Take yourself back to the place you were with pen and paper when you wrote it.

The next morning we recorded it and pretty much nailed it in one take (we punched in a few touch-up lines). He was in tears doing that track. He had been in tears when writing it he remembered. To be real - you have to surrender. Then and only then does your work or life take on the right meaning. This includes parenting. Anything. Sadly most of life is just on the surface.

This is why McDonald's is so popular. Garbage in. Garbage out. This is why the drink, the drug, the food is so popular. We as people should be far more than this. We must be. It starts by surrendering.

Let's create anew. Let's enrich the minds and souls of all mankind. Let us gift-wrap that. Let us place that under the tree of mankind. Let us witness iPeace. iCare. iLove. iSurrender. These are the real Christmas gifts. Christmas comes each day if one surrenders.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Globally recognized and award-nominated engineer, producer, writer, poet and founder and C.E.O. of 5 Star Productions, Miles Patrick Yohnke brings many years of experience to the music industry; including many awards in sales and marketing. If you are looking at developing your career, Yohnke offers consulting in person, by phone or via email. For more info, please contact him at: miles@5-starproductions.com .

Quote of the day........

You will know that forgiveness has begun when you recall those who hurt you and feel the power to wish them well.

~Lewis B. Smedes 

Think About...

 "The difference between a successful person 
and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack 
of knowledge, but rather a lack of will."

~ Vince Lombardi 

Think About .....

"If you are not willing to risk the unusual,
you will have to settle for the ordinary."

~ Jim Rohn

TIME TO FLY FROM THE NEST

By Michael T. Smith

Ginny and I sat on the deck, like we do a lot, and watched the world flow by. A robin flew into the tree in the yard. It had a twig its mouth.

"Looks like they're building a nest." Ginny said.

"I think you're right." I watched the robin select a perfect spot and thread the branch into position. A second robin with a twig joined the first.

Throughout the next few days, we watched the mates work together to construct a resting place for their soon-to- be-laid eggs. The nest was completed. A few days later, momma bird settled into her new home. They two parents took turns warming the eggs, always aware of the needs of the other and their precious charge. Each knew the other needed nourishment and the eggs needed warmth. It was a perfect partnership.

Every hour or less, the two robins traded places keeping the eggs safe, while the other flew off in search of warmth. The rains fell. At night, the temperatures dropped below freezing, but the two robins, who chose a safe position for their nest, stuck by their eggs. They knew their duties. The wind blew; the tree rocked; and the robins held tight. The eggs would not fall on their watch.

A week or two later, Ginny and I watched as they carried worms to the newly hatched babies. Again, they took turns, sacrificing their own needs for the babies God blessed them with. We watched three little beaks rise above the rim of the nest, and reach for Mom or Dad, as they delivered their meals.

One morning I sat, drank my tea and read a book. The morning sun warmed me. The day was peaceful. No one stirred. I heard a bird chirp in front of me. I looked up. No bird was in sight. It chirped again.

"OK! I hear you, but where are you?"

I stood. The yard was empty. The chirping stopped. I gave the yard one more look, scratched my head, and sat to read. Out of the corner of my eye, I detected movement. One of the young robins hoped over my foot, chirped, and looked up at me. Little white baby feathers stuck out from the side of its face and head. It looked like a bad feather day for this one.

"Hey, little fella. Did you make the big leap?"

"Chirp!"

"Really?" I asked. "Is that all you have to say?"

"Chirp!"

I moved. Little robin hopped to the safety of a small bush by the fence.

"So that's where you've been hiding!"

He peeked out at me from behind the thorny branches.

"Chirp!"

I left him or her alone and went inside. Later, I went outside and there were two of the babies on the patio. Only one remained in the nest. It sat on the edge of the nest, chirped for his siblings, but they were gone. Mom and Dad followed their two coup-flying offspring around the yard. They no longer pushed worms between the baby's beaks. They put the worms beside them. 

The hungry young needed to learn how to satisfy their hunger, pick up the worms and feed themselves. In the nest, the last of the family sat and continued to chirp for its dinner. I watched it for another day. Momma and Daddy flew to a branch close to the nest with a tasty worm dangling from their beaks. The last baby chirped and watched its parent fly off with dinner.

"Chirp! My dinner?"

It sat at the edge of the nest and cried out for food, but Mom and Dad refused. It hopped around the edge of the nest, leaned forward, flapped its wings, chirped hesitated, and settled back in the nest. It cried for food, but none came. Momma and Poppa had worms. They dangled them in front of their baby. Momma flew off. Hunger took over. Baby jumped to the edge of the nest. Its fear was a smaller power than its hunger. It balanced, looked at the ground, spread its young wings and leaped toward momma on the ground. 

Nature taught it to flap and fly. Its heart raced as the ground gently came up to greet it. Momma rewarded its effort with the food it so badly wanted.

Robins, who mate for life, have many lessons to teach: a life devoted to their mate, commitment to family, and the ability to look at their children and say,

"Life has many worms. If you want yours, you need to fly.

You need to know when it is time to fly from the nest."

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Michael lives in Idaho with his beautiful wife Ginny. He works as a project manager in telecommunications and in his spare time writes stories from his heart. To sign up for Michael's stories  click here.  To read more of Michael's stories, click here.  Keep on waving!

Quote of the Day

"A man must be big enough to admit his mistakes, 

smart enough to profit from them, and strong enough to correct them."

~ John C. Maxwell