Count my Blessings....

Yes, it is very important in one's life to take inventory of one's life.  If we are honest with ourselves we will find much we don't like but also much we do like.  We however, tend to focus on those things we wish were different.  This is futile if the situation is out of our control, i.e. such as a physical impairment or other aspects of life which we cannot control.  If we focus our strenght on the things we cannot change we get discouraged and soon we stop trying.  So, why not focus on the good things that are part of us?  Use our time to enjoy what we have and what is going good for us.  Doing so will make us happy and chances are we even enhance our good habits and qualities.

We owe it to ourselves to encourage our personal achievements.  When we work on the things we can and should control, we don't get discouraged as quickly or at all. 

Take inventory of your life and focus on the things that bring a smile to your face....

Today...

So, life as I have often said is what you make of it.  I could sit here and dream of how I wish things were, but where would that get me?  Absolutely no where!  I have lived long enough to know that we need to move forward.  Looking back, unless it is to gain strength from a previous lesson life taught us, it is totally futile and serves us very little.  So, I will do what works for me.  I will survive and by doing so I will get stronger and get ready for the next trial. 

I am not alone...

I will be fine...

I am a simple man. I feel pain just as anyone else does. I can also feel joy. I am not always so secure of myself. I love and when I do I fall deeply in love. I fight hate since I don't want it to consume me. Yes, I do wish some aspects of my life could be different, but so be it. Somedays are really hard, but I rely on the strength that got me to a new day. Yes, it is true, "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger" but it sure hurts like hell. I will be fine. I always am. I have to be. Just feeling a little down right now. Hey after all I am only human. I strive to create new memories, hopes and wishes. I blame no one for how I feel. I control how I feel or don't feel. Sometimes it's just a little harder to be strong. I will however reach deep into my soul and fight the demons which try to bring me down. I once found myself in the pits of hell, and I slowly clawed my way out. I swore to myself I would never allow myself to visit that dark place ever again. Is it easy? No it is not, but my life depends on it.....




And I am not saying this because I feel neglected, for I have learned to be satisfied with what I have. 12 I know what it is to be in need and what it is to have more than enough. I have learned this secret, so that anywhere, at any time, I am content, whether I am full or hungry, whether I have too much or too little. 13 I have the strength to face all conditions by the power that Christ gives me.

Phil. 4: 11-13



SMILE

Life and what we choose....

Well it has been a little while since I last blogged, and many things have changed in my life since then. I continue to learn about life and people. Not all is good, but as I often say, "It is what it is!" I stopped trying to figure why people do certain things a long time ago, instead I use my time and efforts finding ways to continue living in relative happiness in spite of them. You see one of the valuable lessons I have learned is that life goes on and we could choose to move ahead with it or just wither and die. I for my part want to see what life has in store for me. While it has shocked me at times, it has also found a way to make me happy to be alive. I live for those moments. They do come and when they do, we feel alive and brand new. I decided a few years ago that I can and will be happy regardless of what comes my way. You see, it is up to me to choose. Yes, I don't always like what comes my way, but how I handle it makes all the difference in the world. If we aren't careful, we get so caught up in the negative, that we totally miss out on the good. We drown ourselves in "why me" and surround ourselves with people who are also miserable. What are the chances of recovery then? Very small to zero. The old saying, "Misery loves company: is so very true. I would rather be by my self than with someone who encourages feeling sorry for oneself. I want to live and enjoy life. I am not going to allow anyone or anything to hinder my attempts to accomplish this! Hope that if you are reading this and find yourself in a bad page of your life, that these words can give you the strength to turn the page forward and find your peace.....

One never stops being a father...

As a father one wishes that all of his children grow up as successful adults. For some children this comes easier than for others. Some will claim that this is due to lack of effort or simply never growing up, this may or may not be true since every situation is different. As a father one tries to see the abilities of each child as an individual, never comparing one child to another of his or her siblings.

The decisions a father makes will be questioned by many and many feel they have the solutions to problems which arise. It is easy to speak your mind and point the finger at what you percieve to be the root of the problem. However, life is not always that b cut and dry. Life teaches us many things one of which is to be patient and try your best to put yourself in the other persons shoes. It always amazes me how we are willing to do this for total strangers but at the same time are willing to diss-own a brother or sister when they are not meeting our expectations for them. And that I might add is what it comes down to, expectations one has set for another person without any right to do so. God has given us the right to choose our own way and if that way is not the best for us but we choose to take it anyway, it is sad that we may be viewed as a failure or embarrassment to our family. We need our family when things are not going as we thought they should or would. But sadly that is when we are cast-off as a dissapointment. How sad that once we have reached our goals we look down on those who for whatever reason have not and maybe never will.

This is where a father who is truly a father can find reasons and ways to be proud of each of his children. Yes, some make that decision an easy one since they seem to make all the right decisions and are always succeeding at what they want to accomplish in life. On the other hand you have the other child who can't quite get a grip on life as easily as they would like to. This child by no means is a dissapointment to the father, and it would be a sin to cast-off this one just to appease the wishes of another.

Walk in my shoes, you may see things in a different light, try it...your children will love you for it!