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The first day of school our professor introduced himself and challenged us to get to know someone we didn't already know. I stood up to look around when a gentle hand touched my shoulder.
I turned around to find a wrinkled, little old lady beaming up at me with a smile that lit up her entire being.
She said, "Hi handsome. My name is Rose.
I'm eighty-seven years old. Can I give you a hug?"
I laughed and enthusiastically responded, "Of courseyou may!" and she gave me a giant squeeze.
"Why are you in college at such a young, innocent age?" I asked.
She jokingly replied, "I'm here to meet a rich husband, get married, and have a couple of kids..."
"No seriously," I asked. I was curious what may havemotivated her to be taking on this challenge at her age.
"I always dreamed of having a college education and now I'm getting one!" she told me.
After class we walked to the student union building and shared a chocolate milkshake.
We became instant friends. Every day for the next three months we would leave class together and talk nonstop.
I turned around to find a wrinkled, little old lady beaming up at me with a smile that lit up her entire being.
She said, "Hi handsome. My name is Rose.
I'm eighty-seven years old. Can I give you a hug?"
I laughed and enthusiastically responded, "Of courseyou may!" and she gave me a giant squeeze.
"Why are you in college at such a young, innocent age?" I asked.
She jokingly replied, "I'm here to meet a rich husband, get married, and have a couple of kids..."
"No seriously," I asked. I was curious what may havemotivated her to be taking on this challenge at her age.
"I always dreamed of having a college education and now I'm getting one!" she told me.
After class we walked to the student union building and shared a chocolate milkshake.
We became instant friends. Every day for the next three months we would leave class together and talk nonstop.
I was always mesmerized listening to this "time machine" as she shared her wisdom and experience with me.
Over the course of the year, Rose became a campusicon and she easily made friends wherever she went.
She loved to dress up and she reveled in the attention bestowed upon her from the other students. She was living it up.
At! the end of the semester we invited Rose to speak at our football banquet.
I'll never forget what she taught us. She was introduced and stepped up to the podium. As she began to deliver her prepared speech, she dropped her three by five cards on the floor.
Frustrated and a little embarrassed she leaned into the microphone and simply said, "I'm sorry I'm so jittery. I gave up beer for Lent and this whiskey is killing me! I'll never get my speech back in order so let me just tell you what I know."
As we laughed she cleared her throat and began, "We do not stop playing because we are old; we grow old because we stop playing.
There are only four secrets to staying young, being happy, and achieving success. You have to laugh and find humor every day. You've got to have a dream. When you lose your dreams, you die.
We have so many people walking around who are dead and don't even know it!
There is a huge difference between growing older and growing up.
If you are nineteen years old and lie in bed for one full year and don't do one productive thing, you will turn twenty years old. If I am eighty-seven years old and stay in bed for a year and never do anything I will turn eighty-eight.
Anybody can grow older. That doesn't take any talent or ability. The idea is to grow up by always finding opportunity in change. Have no regrets.
The elderly usually don't have regrets for what we did, but rather for things we did not do. The only people who fear death are those with regrets."
She concluded her speech by courageously singing"The Rose."
She challenged each of us to study the lyrics and live them out in our daily lives.
At the year's end Rose finished the college degree she had begun all those years ago.
One week after graduation Rose died peacefully in her sleep.
Over two thousand college students attended her funeral in tribute to the wonderful woman who taught by example that it's never too late to be all you can possibly be.
Over the course of the year, Rose became a campusicon and she easily made friends wherever she went.
She loved to dress up and she reveled in the attention bestowed upon her from the other students. She was living it up.
At! the end of the semester we invited Rose to speak at our football banquet.
I'll never forget what she taught us. She was introduced and stepped up to the podium. As she began to deliver her prepared speech, she dropped her three by five cards on the floor.
Frustrated and a little embarrassed she leaned into the microphone and simply said, "I'm sorry I'm so jittery. I gave up beer for Lent and this whiskey is killing me! I'll never get my speech back in order so let me just tell you what I know."
As we laughed she cleared her throat and began, "We do not stop playing because we are old; we grow old because we stop playing.
There are only four secrets to staying young, being happy, and achieving success. You have to laugh and find humor every day. You've got to have a dream. When you lose your dreams, you die.
We have so many people walking around who are dead and don't even know it!
There is a huge difference between growing older and growing up.
If you are nineteen years old and lie in bed for one full year and don't do one productive thing, you will turn twenty years old. If I am eighty-seven years old and stay in bed for a year and never do anything I will turn eighty-eight.
Anybody can grow older. That doesn't take any talent or ability. The idea is to grow up by always finding opportunity in change. Have no regrets.
The elderly usually don't have regrets for what we did, but rather for things we did not do. The only people who fear death are those with regrets."
She concluded her speech by courageously singing"The Rose."
She challenged each of us to study the lyrics and live them out in our daily lives.
At the year's end Rose finished the college degree she had begun all those years ago.
One week after graduation Rose died peacefully in her sleep.
Over two thousand college students attended her funeral in tribute to the wonderful woman who taught by example that it's never too late to be all you can possibly be.
These words have been passed along in loving
memory of ROSE.
REMEMBER, GROWING OLDER IS MANDATORY.
REMEMBER, GROWING OLDER IS MANDATORY.
GROWING UP IS OPTIONAL.
We make a Living by what we get,
We make a Life by what we give
"Good friends are like stars.........
"Good friends are like stars.........
You don't always see them,
but you know they are always there."
One Flaw In Women
Women have strengths that amaze men.
They bear hardships and they carry burdens,
but they hold happiness, love and joy.
They smile when they want to scream.
They sing when they want to cry.
They cry when they are happy
and laugh when they are nervous.
They fight for what they believe in.
They stand up to injustice.
They don't take "no" for an answer
when they believe there is a better solution.
They go without so their family can have.
They go to the doctor with a frightened friend.
They love unconditionally.
They cry when their children excel
and cheer when their friends get awards.
They are happy when they hear about
a birth or a wedding.
Their hearts break when a friend dies.
They grieve at the loss of a family member,
yet they are strong when they
think there is no strength left.
They know that a hug and a kiss
can heal a broken heart.
Women come in all shapes, sizes and colors.
They'll drive, fly, walk, run or e-mail you
to show how much they care about you.
The heart of a woman is what makes the world keep turning.
They bring joy, hope and love.
They have the compassion and ideas.
They give moral support to their
family and friends.
Women have vital things to say
and everything to give.
HOWEVER, IF THERE IS ONE FLAW IN WOMEN,
IT IS THAT THEY FORGET THEIR WORTH.
Please pass this along to all your women friends
and relatives to remind them just how amazing they are.
I have done as requested... wayinktelo
WHAT DO INSTRUCTORS MAKE?
(Adapted and altered from an e-mail message)
(Dedicated to all of my teachers... to all who instructed me in my career [and the patient Elders who gifted me, ability]... and to all who have instructed Peace Keepers... and to those who currently instruct Peace Keepers.)
The dinner guests were sitting around the table discussing life. One man, a CEO, decided to explain the problem with the educational process. He argued, "What's a student going to learn from someone who decided his best option in life was to become an Instructor?" He reminded the other dinner guests what they say about Teachers/Instructors: "Those who can, do. Those who can't, teach." To stress his point he said to another guest; "You're an Instructor. Be honest. What do you make?"
The dinner guests were sitting around the table discussing life. One man, a CEO, decided to explain the problem with the educational process. He argued, "What's a student going to learn from someone who decided his best option in life was to become an Instructor?" He reminded the other dinner guests what they say about Teachers/Instructors: "Those who can, do. Those who can't, teach." To stress his point he said to another guest; "You're an Instructor. Be honest. What do you make?"
(Of course he meant in dollars...)
The Instructor who had a reputation for honesty and frankness replied,
The Instructor who had a reputation for honesty and frankness replied,
"You want to know what I make?
(Paused for a second... then began...)
"Well, I make students work harder than they ever thought they could.
I make a passing grade feel like the Congressional Medal of Honor.
I make students sit through 50 minutes of class time when others cannot
I make a passing grade feel like the Congressional Medal of Honor.
I make students sit through 50 minutes of class time when others cannot
make them sit for 5 minutes without being entertained...
You want to know what I make?
(Pausing again, and looking at each and every person at the table.)
I make them wonder.
I make them question.
I make them criticize.
I make them experience what they need to know.
I make them have respect and take responsibility for their actions.
I teach them to communicate and then I make them communicate.
I make them listen, see and learn.
I make them show all their efforts in problem solving.
I make my students from other countries learn everything they need to know in English.
I make my training space a place where all my recruits and students learn safety and survival as well as job application to achieve the goal set for them.
I make my students stand at attention to say the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag, because we are a vital part of... and represent... the United States of America.
Finally, I make them understand that if they use the gifts they were given... the knowledge and the experience they receive, apply them well in hard work, and follow their hearts... they can succeed in life and profession.
(Pausing one last time... and then continuing.)
"Then, when people try to judge me by the dollars I make and the position that I holdin life, I can hold my head up high and pay no attention because they are ignorant...
You want to know what I make?
I MAKE A DIFFERENCE...
I MAKE A DIFFERENCE...
What do you make?"
Here's your Awwwww for the day!! If you don't say Awww at least once, then there's something wrong with you! |
THE GENTLE ART OF BLESSING
On awakening, bless this day, for it is already full of unseen good which your blessings will call forth; for to bless is to acknowledge the unlimited good that is embedded in the very texture of the universe and awaiting each and all.
On passing people in the street, on the bus, in places of work and play, bless them. The peace of your blessing will accompany them on their way and the aura of its gentle fragrance will be a light to their path.
On meeting and talking to people, bless them in their health, their work, their joy, their relationships to Creator, themselves, and others. Bless them in their abundance, their finances… bless them in every conceivable way, for such blessings not only sow seeds of healing but one day will spring forth as flowers of joy in the waste places of your own life.
As you walk, bless the city in which you live, its government and teachers, its nurses and street sweepers, its children and bankers, its priests, rabbis, imams and ministers.
The minute anyone expresses the least aggression or unkindness to you, respond with a blessing: bless them totally, sincerely, joyfully, for such blessings are a shield which protects you from the ignorance of their misdeed, and deflects the arrow that was aimed at you.
To bless means to wish, unconditionally, total, unrestricted good for others and events from the deepest wellspring in the innermost chamber of your heart: it means to hallow, to hold in reverence, to behold with utter awe that which is always a gift from the Creator. The person who is hallowed by your blessing is set aside, consecrated, holy, whole.
To bless is yet to invoke divine care upon, to think or speak gratefully for, to confer happiness upon - although we ourselves are never the bestower, but simply the joyful witnesses of Life's abundance. To bless all without discrimination of any sort is the ultimate form of giving, because those you bless will never know from whence came the sudden ray of sun that burst through the clouds of their skies, and you will rarely be a witness to the sunlight in their lives.
When something goes completely askew in your day, some unexpected event knocks down your plans and you too also, burst into blessing: for life is teaching you a lesson, and the very event you believe to be unwanted, you yourself called forth, so as to learn the lesson you might balk against were you not to bless it. Trials are blessings in disguise, and hosts of angels with gifts follow in their path. To bless is to acknowledge the omnipresent, universal beauty hidden to material eyes; it is to activate that law of attraction which, from the furthest reaches of the universe, will bring into your life exactly what you need to experience and enjoy.
When you pass a prison, mentally bless its inmates in their innocence and freedom, their gentleness, pure essence and unconditional forgiveness; for one can only be prisoner of one's self-image, and a free man can walk unshackled in the courtyard of a jail, just as citizens of countries where freedom reigns can be prisoners when fear lurks in their thoughts.
When you pass a hospital, bless its patients in their present wholeness, for even in their suffering, this wholeness awaits in them to be discovered.
When your eyes behold a man in tears, or seemingly broken by life, bless him in his vitality and joy: for the material senses present but the inverted image of the ultimate splendor and perfection which only the inner eye beholds.
It is impossible to bless and to judge at the same time. So hold constantly as a deep, hallowed, intoned thought that desire to bless, for truly then shall you become a peacemaker, and one day you shall, everywhere, behold the very face of the Creator.
~~~~~ Author Unknown ~~~~
Women are like apples on trees.
The best ones are at the top of the tree.
Most men don't want to reach for the good ones because they are
afraid of falling and getting hurt.
afraid of falling and getting hurt.
Instead, they just take the rotten
apples from the ground that aren't as good, but easy...
apples from the ground that aren't as good, but easy...
The apples at the top think something is wrong with them, when in
reality, they're amazing.
reality, they're amazing.
They just have to wait for the right man to come along, the one who's brave enough to climb all the way to the top of the tree.
Share this with other Women who are good apples, even those who have already been picked!
Now Men...
Men are like a fine wine.
Men are like a fine wine.
They begin as grapes, and it's up to women to stomp the s*%t out of them until they turn into something acceptable to have dinner with.
__________________________________________________
I would never trade my amazing friends, my wonderful life, my loving family for less gray hair or a flatter belly. As I've aged, I've become kinder to myself, and less critical of myself.. I've become my own friend. I don't chide myself for eating that extra cookie, or for not making my bed, or for buying that silly cement gecko that I didn't need, but looks so avante garde on my patio. I am entitled to a treat, to be messy, to be extravagant.
I have seen too many dear friends leave this world too soon; before they understood the great freedom that comes with aging...
Whose business is it if I choose to read or play on the computer until 4 AM and sleep until noon? I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 60 &70's, and if I, at the same time, wish to weep over a lost love ... I will.
I have seen too many dear friends leave this world too soon; before they understood the great freedom that comes with aging...
Whose business is it if I choose to read or play on the computer until 4 AM and sleep until noon? I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 60 &70's, and if I, at the same time, wish to weep over a lost love ... I will.
I will walk the beach in a swim suit that is stretched over a bulging body, and will dive into the waves with abandon if I choose to, despite the pitying glances from the jet set.
They, too, will get old.
They, too, will get old.
I know I am sometimes forgetful, but there again, some of life is just as well forgotten. And I eventually remember the important things.
Sure, over the years my heart has been broken. How can your heart not break when you lose a loved one, or when a child suffers, or even when somebody's beloved pet gets hit by a car? But broken hearts are what give us strength and understanding and compassion. A heart never broken is pristine and sterile and will never know the joy of being imperfect.
I am so blessed to have lived long enough to have my hair turning gray, and to have my youthful laughs be forever etched into deep grooves on my face.
So many have never laughed, and so many have died before their hair could turn silver.
As you get older, it is easier to be positive. You care less about what other people think. I don't question myself anymore. I've even earned the right to be wrong.
So, to answer your question, I like being old. It has set me free. I like the person I have become. I am not going to live forever, but while I am still here, I will not waste time lamenting what could have been, or worrying about what will be. And I shall eat dessert every single day(if I feel like it).
MAY OUR FRIENDSHIP NEVER COME APART ESPECIALLY WHEN IT'S STRAIGHT FROM THE HEART!
Everything in the natural world moves in a circle -- day and night, the roll of seasons we see in plants and animals, our breath, the passages of life and death, the circle of the earth around the sun, the ebb and flow of moon time and tides, the swirling constellations...
Hurricane Earl's southwestern eyewall moved directly over Buoy #41046 (http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/station_page.php?station=41046) overnight, causing the buoy to read 48.6-foot waves (before stopping reporting*) and wind gusts to 101 mph. Winds calmed considerably and the pressure dropped to 27.82" (942 mb) as the edge of the eye moved over the buoy briefly.
The peak wind gust of 101 mph was from this image (http://vortex.accuweather.com/adc2004/pub/includes/columns/community/2010/plot_cwind41046-901.png) (data http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/data/5day2/41046_5day.cwind) which shows the maximum gust of 88 knots during the hour, instead of the maximum gust at the time of the observation.
It's rare to get an actual surface meteorological sampling from the stronger parts of a hurricane with no land to weaken it. Eyewall hits on buoys are rare, though it's likely the winds would have been even stronger if it were on the Northeast side. Prior to this, the biggest waves I had ever witnessed live from buoy readings were 47 feet with Hurricane Katrina (http://www.accuweather.com/blogs/weathermatrix/story/261/6-am-47-foot-wa.asp).
*The buoy either stopped transmitting due to damage from the waves, or the data was cut off by quality control algorithms when over 50 feet.
http://www.accuweather.com/blogs/weathermatrix/story/36468/earl-buoy-reports-49foot-waves-101-mph-winds.asp
WATCH EARL COME IN ON EAST COAST WEBCAMS: http://www.accuweather.com/blogs/weathermatrix/story/23731/extra-east-coast-webcams.asp
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Email discussions....
And the east coast looks to get squished between two competing air masses -- Earl and what is headed across the western USA eastward towards Earl. -- Kimberly
This is very interesting.... Either this will be the "BIG ONE" to hit NYC as outlined by Mike Chertoff in NYC back in 2007 ( http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/hurricane/4881643.html ) or Earl is just another Regular Hurricane I guess ?? Chertoff did warn about a Category-3 Hitting NYC someday & Earl is currently a "3", fluctuating back & forth from a "4" to "3"... -- Sheldon
The artical mentions the record was broken by 5:30pm, but I can tell you it continued raining until about 9:00 pm last night.
Alex, myself and My best friend and her boyfriend and a woman we didn't know. This woman seemed like like a new friend i recently made, yet i did not know her name.She had a long dark brown hair and was wearing a long sleeve shirt with some pants, both of which are black. She had a face but it was hidden in her hair. We were all at the woods hanging out- having a good time. It is dark outside and we are on a cusp of a small field surrounded by trees. i know of this place as i have visited this place in real life and use to quite frequently hang out there. All of a sudden the woman we barley knew just starts taking off into the woods. i felt concerned as i watched her disappear into the darkness. My best friend and her boyfriend seemed not to be concerned, and alex was staring at me. i look deeply into his eyes and he nods yes to me. this part felt like we were communicating telepathicly but there were no thoughts.Just then i get a sudden painful beacon going off in my head and i fall to my knees. i get up and start running into the woods as fast as lighting. I knew exactly where is was and i was running right to her. upon approaching her the pain in my head faded. when i reached her the pain stopped and i reached out my hand to touch her... as i touched her we both get engulfed in this brillant white light, then it explodes in a bright blue raduis around us. she falls to the ground almost lifeless. i sprout "energy wings" pick her up and bring her back to the group. upon approaching my group i wake up. this did not feel like the whole dream, yet some parts in this dream seem to speed up like when i was running and flying, time seemed to speed up.
This is an interesting dream to say the least and i thought i'd share it with all of you, all of your thoughts are appreciated in advance as i value all of your opinions, whatever they may be.
peace and light to all
SERAM INDONESIA 5.0
GUAM 5.0 DEPTH 125KM
SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA 3.2
OKLAHOMA 3.1
NEW BRITIAN REGION P.N.G. 5.1
MARIANA ISLANDS REGION 4.9 DEPTH 157KM
Hmm..in Norway...Isn't there a seed vault in Norway? Getting to be a popular to place to put things you want to, uh, survive.
