KEEP THEM CLOSE

One day a mother died.

And on that clear, cold morning,

in the warmth of her bedroom,

the daughter was struck withthe pain of learning that sometimesthere isn't any more.
No more hugs, no more lucky moments to celebrate together

,no more phone calls just to chat, no more "just one minute."
Sometimes, what we care about the most goes away,

never to return before we can say good-bye, say "I Love You."
So while we have it … it's best we love it .

And care for it and fix it when it's brokenand take good care of it when it's sick.
This is true for marriage … and friendships!

And children with bad report cards;and dogs with bad hips;and aging parents and grandparents.

We keep them because they are worth it,because we cherish them!
Some things we keep -like a best friend who moved awayor a classmate we grew up with.

There are just some things thatmake us happy, no matter what.
Life is important, and so are the people we know.And so, keep them close!

TWO CHOICES

WE HAVE TWO CHOICES:
Jerry was the kind of guy you love to hate. He was always in a good mood and always had something positive to say. When someone would ask him how he was doing, he would reply, "If I were any better, I would be twins!" He was a unique manager because he had several waiters who had followed him around from restaurant to restaurant. The reason the waiters followed Jerry was because of his attitude. He was a natural motivator.
If an employee was having a bad day, Jerry was there telling the employee how to look on the positive side of the situation. Seeing this style really made me curious, so one day I went up to Jerry and asked him, "I don't get it! You can't be a positive person all of the time. How do you do it?"
Jerry replied, "Each morning I wake up and say to myself, 'Jerry, you have two choices today. You can choose to be in a good mood or you can choose to be in a bad mood.' I choose to be in a good mood. Each time something bad happens, I can choose to be a victim or I can choose to learn from it. I choose to learn from it. Every time someone comes to me complaining, I can choose to accept their complaining or I can point out the positive side of life. I choose the positive side of life."
"Yeah, right, it's not that easy," I protested.
"Yes, it is," Jerry said. "Life is all about choices. When you cut away all the junk, every situation is a choice. You choose how you react to situations. You choose how people will affect your mood. You choose to be in a good mood or bad mood. The bottom line: It's your choice how you live life."
I reflected on what Jerry said. Soon thereafter, I left the restaurant industry to start my own business. We lost touch, but I often thought about him when I made a choice about life instead of reacting to it.
Several years later, I heard that Jerry did something you are never supposed to do in a restaurant business: he left the back door open one morning and was held up at gunpoint by three armed robbers. While trying to open the safe, his hand, shaking from nervousness, slipped off the combination. The robbers panicked and shot him. Luckily, Jerry was found relatively quickly and rushed to the local trauma center.
After 18 hours of surgery and weeks of intensive care, Jerry was released from the hospital with fragments of the bullets still in his body.
I saw Jerry about six months after the accident. When I asked him
how he was, he replied, "If I were any better, I'd be twins. Wanna see my scars?"
I declined to see his wounds, but did ask him what had gone through his
mind as the robbery took place. "The first thing that went through my mind was that I should have locked the back door," Jerry replied. "Then, as I lay on the floor, I remembered that I had two choices: I could choose to live, or I could choose to die. I chose to live."
"Weren't you scared? Did you lose consciousness?" I asked.
Jerry continued, "The paramedics were great. They kept telling me I was going to be fine. But when they wheeled me into the emergency room and I saw the expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses, I got really scared. In their eyes, I read, 'He's a dead man.' I knew I needed to take action."
"What did you do?" I asked.
"Well, there was a big, burly nurse shouting questions at me," said Jerry. "She asked if I was allergic to anything. 'Yes,' I replied. The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply. I took a deep breath and yelled, 'Bullets!' Over their laughter, I told them, 'I am choosing to live. Operate on me as if I am alive, not dead.'"
Jerry lived thanks to the skill of his doctors, but also because of his amazing attitude. I learned from him that every day we have the choice to live fully. Attitude, after all, is everything.

MONEY MONEY MONEY

Money can buy costumes but not beauty
Money can buy idols but not devotion
Money can buy books but not wisdom and knowledge
Money can buy bed but not rest and sleep
Money can buy medicines but not health
Money can buy wealth but not health
Money can buy clothes but not shame
Money can buy food but not hunger
Money can buy flowers but not freshness and fragrance
Money can buy land but not home (made of human hearts)
Money can buy honey but not sweetness
Money can buy some things but not everything
Money can buy luxuries but not happiness.

PROMISE YOURSELF

Promise yourself to be so strong that nothing can Disturb your peace of mind.
To talk health, happiness, and prosperity to Every person you meet.
To make all your friends feel like there is Something in them.
To look at the sunny side of everything and make your Optimism come true.
To think only of the best, to work only for the best, And expect only the best.
To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others As you are about your own.
To forget the mistakes of the past and press on the Greater achievements of the future.
To wear a cheerful countenance at all times and give Every living person you meet a smile.
To give so much time to the improvement of yourself That you have no time to criticize others.
To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, and too Strong for fear, and to happy to permit the Presence of trouble.