Showing posts with label hope springs eternal. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hope springs eternal. Show all posts

Thursday, September 11, 2014

ONE SEES MUD -- ONE SEES STARS







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‘Two men looked through the same bars.
One sees mud, and one sees stars.’
-- F. Langbridge

This made me think... the ‘one sees mud’ part of it.

Because life as I have learned is just like that. And we are presented with similar situations but from the same vantage point of strife. Our visions are narrowed down or restricted by our minds which seem to understand only those which touch our pain when it feels pain. In pain we see more pain. In struggles we see more struggling, in hurt more hurting, in grief more grief, in darkness even more darkness. It seems to lose its grasp of joy the reason why we stay longer than it should within the sorry void of misery, mess, muck, and mud of our lives.

And this line too made me think... ‘and one sees stars.’

On a clear evening sky the stars shine oh so brightly taking one’s breath away as it praises its Creator. You do too with a prayer of thanks in the heart. As a child I stood so much awed by its wonder and beauty. Mom would always say.... ‘Look to the stars when your heart feels burdened. And find rest.’ It works every time. But apart from taking Mom’s advice literally, I also learned to take it several steps farther and higher as I grew older. Life is a good teacher. Indeed.

Life is tough; it never makes it easy for anyone. We all go through challenges, big or small, at some point of our lives or another. It’s a constant. We continuously journey the hills and valleys of our lives regardless of our brilliance, talent, titles, and the presence or absence of money.

There must be something more than just the sense of survival to get through everything.

And this I have learned that if you listen well enough and look hard enough behind the temporal frills of our mundane lives you will find a tiny spark within. A flickering steady flame right there in your heart which holds itself bravely through the long weary day and night and it waits to be rekindled again and again with every opportunity that rises to do so.

‘Two men looked through the same bars. One sees mud, and one sees stars.’

Hope. Faith. Positivity. God.

Have an unbelievably blessed day, everyone! Blessings!



Tuesday, August 26, 2014

PROOF OF HOPE






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"Everything that is done in the world is done by hope." -- Martin Luther King Jr.

Just like everybody else, I get ...disappointed - frustrated - exasperated - overwhelmed - irritated - annoyed... when things don't happen the way I expect them to. Particularly in world affairs. The world is in a huge mess but it appears that those who can are too slow in sorting it out or in working out solutions. They hem-and-haw, grandstand on some, and can't avoid dipping their greedy fingers into the pot of politics and funds. I guess we need not look far outside our borders to see that.

Reading this book 'Limitless' by Nick Vujicic led me to some unlearning of old ideas which no longer serve,  relearning of old wisdom, or the learning of new ones. Made me refocus to see that which truly matters. It is found right there on the ground among the people themselves.

This is what matters......

-----when individuals or families devastated by huge catastrophes yet stand up and courageously move forward to a future they believe awaits them. They hope to rebuild their broken lives once more.
-----when a laborer perseveres in his backbreaking job with his eyes set on his young children's future education. He hopes to give his children a better future.
-----when an OFW sets aside a portion of his pay as he builds his or her dream with every money added to it. He hopes one day to come home to reap his just reward and share the blessings with loved ones.
-----when a cancer patient goes through the utter discomfort of chemotherapy sessions. He hopes for healing one day soon. He believes he will be healed.

You can find other proof of courage and bravery, of faith and hope around us. This is what suffering - struggles - troubles teach us. HOPE.  We don't owe it to ourselves but to a wise God who put it there in our hearts for a purpose. And this purpose, I believe, is to enable us to get on with life and living regardless of circumstances.

Hope is a gift. God knew that we would be needing it to carve a better future for ourselves....  to unlock hidden potential and talent...  to believe in our strengths and courage...  to enable us to see the good in men...  to help shape a better world if we so much as try...  to live our faith.

Hope springs eternal, indeed.
Have a great day. God will bless you today. You gotta believe that! :-)




Wednesday, November 13, 2013

FOLLOW THE HELP HAPPENING - Haiyan/Yolanda





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WHAT'S ON THE NEWS TODAY?  (Haiyan-Yolanda)

Okay, somebody said on TV  that help is there. So then let's see the action.....

Show the help happening. Show the helpers.

- the clearing of roads
- the aid trucks, ships, and planes
- the medical teams and centers
- the power lines being restored
- the water supply
- the temporary shelters built
- the kitchen soups
- the transportation facilities
- the communication lines restored
- the security measures in place
- the dead buried
- the packing of relief goods
- the individuals and groups with their donations
- the priests and religious groups ministering to the flock
- the global community reaching out to help
- and much more....

You say it's just starting. That's right! So we follow the help happening from day one of help happening. We would like to see...  we would like to know... We would like to appreciate and thank the helpers and the help.  We would like to cry in great joy and applaud.

We already know about the 'why' of this horrible catastrophe. And it's very sad. We'll never be the same again as individuals, as a people, as a community, as a nation.  And I think we have learned our lessons, too.

But please Stop replaying the tears, the anguish, the misery...  we feel their pain. We do! But please do not try to overkill the images. It's like rubbing salt on an open wound. That truly hurts deep.

Now show us the --- what,  when,  where,  who,  and  how of its
solution... restoration... rebuilding... recovery... the efforts to rise from a very very horrible fate.

Show us the spirit of ---  hope,  faith,  prayer, compassion, brotherhood,  courage, unity, generosity, the national and global community separately and collectively towards a singular cause, the basic goodness of man ........... show us the spirit of life!  Show us GOD at work!


Friday, October 4, 2013

BE THE HOPE YOU WANT TO SEE IN THE WORLD






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"You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is an ocean; 
if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty."   
-- Mahatma Gandhi
Unquote.

I keep telling/reminding myself that  'Hope springs eternal'  --- No other way to see all of life.... all of bad that is happening.  And if we think of wanting or having a better neighborhood, community, city, country, people and world.....  well, the buck stops here --- it all begins with self. Somebody once said .... 'Be the change you want to see in the world'. The task therefore is all laid down before us .... change. Transformation. Start with who you are, what you are, where you are, and what you have. In that sense, hope will spring eternal. Because nothing can be better than becoming the best improved version of your self..... and then redirect this precious caring unto the world.

Pay the goodness forward. Blessings from the Heavenly Father, everyone.



Friday, March 28, 2008

IT'S A BEAUTIFUL WORLD OUT THERE

"In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on."

Although I’ve heard it (It's by Robert Frost) thousands of times before and lived that experience at numerous times in my life, still those lines stick out like a tree amidst a flat meadow of grass and stones. You just can’t miss it!

Life goes on – mercifully it does.

You know, I’m glad that the sun continues to rise at dawn even if in other parts of my world fortunes are tumbling down or houses are robbed clean. It’s also a great feeling of rain on my face even if my neighbor just lost his precious car to a mortgage and many lives are eaten up by cancer. It makes me smile every time that I see the cherubic face of a newborn child even if people elsewhere are burying a parent, husband, son, relative, or a friend. And I still tend to my tiny garden every morning even if the daily news tells of bombings, shootings, coup de tats, killings, scandals, divorces, floods, pestilence, and drought.

Life goes on – mercifully it does.

You know something else too, I will be sad, angry, unhappy, miserable, frustrated, disappointed, afraid, cheated, betrayed, will suffer, and what else be added to that heap life throws at us… but I will not linger in that sorry state. It might break me and crush me to the ground, or hurt me deep and leave me with scars to show for it – yes it might. But it cannot destroy me or what I stand for to myself. No, because I know that those things don’t stay there forever. But it’s there for a reason. When it has exhausted itself, done its work and is satisfied that I have learned my life lessons well, it will move on and head for another human being another life. It moves on with the same bag of tools because Life is -- a teacher too.

And I will continue to hope, trust, have faith, believe in a constant and merciful God, build dreams anew, pursue destiny, seek new learning, create new passions, conquer new horizons, and maybe learn to reinvent myself too. Who says a person can’t?!

My life will continue to turn even if the rest of the world wrestles with issues and burdens and continues to fight big silly wars. Life goes on – mercifully it does.

And to the rest of you out there going through tough times in your life, acknowledge those pains and trials – cry if you must but only for awhile - Because you will soon discover that precious time waits for no one Oh No! And that life will move on with or without you. So gather yourself and decide --whether to move on along with life or stay behind in the company of your own misery. It’s your choice. But listen, it’s a beautiful world out there and with enough opportunities adventure blessings and joy for everyone, so then why not grab some for YOU? I think that’s what God would rather that you do too.