Try This!

Dare to make your life's assessment. Out of 100. Each item, 10 points.

1.   Health

2.   Love

3.   Finances

4.   Family relationships

5.   Friends

6.   Environment (social/work)

7.   Physical/material fulfillment

8.   Emotional fulfillment

9.   Spiritual fulfillment

10. General lifestyle

True Wealth

There is a great difference between having and enjoying. You may have a job but not be happy with it. You might own a house but keep dreaming of a larger one. You possibly have a friend that you often criticize. And you may even be alive (as you actually are!) and complain about your life. It's tragic to realize that human beings are not easily satisfied with what they have and keep finding faults, flaws, lack in whatever comes their way. Wouldn't it be better to be grateful for the job you have, even if you need to make some adjustments to the work environment? What about being grateful for having a roof over your head that provides shelter and safety? And don't forget that a good friend must be acknowledged and cherished for what he/she is. Accepting something first. and then enjoying it are the ingredients for true inner wealth.

Memories of the Past

Do we need memories? We certainly do. Why? Because they are the best teachers who can help us grow wiser. Think about something that happened in your past: something that you did or that someone did to you. Was it a positive experience? If it was, it means that your behavior was right. If the memory causes negative feelings, though, you realize that something went wrong. From here the learning process should start. And every time you learn your lesson, you become a little wiser. You are often told that you should not think about your past because it is obsolete. This is true if you tend to indulge in recalling past events, thus avoiding to live your present fully. On the other hand, your memory is a great asset that can be extremely useful, provided you know how to manage it.

Humor Needed

What kind of a person are you? Take a moment to think about it. Are you rather serious? Do you like things to be always perfect? Everything done on time? These are good qualities, necessary to organize your life or have a brilliant career. As to your well-being, you might need to make a change, to shift your focus, allow your outlook on life to be less strict. Your inner "self" has a trait you may have forgotten about. Next to the well-organized, efficient adult, there is child who wants to play. If you have ignored him (or her) till now, be aware that he is there and wishes to be acknowledged. Give yourself some fun-time: enjoy the company of your loved ones, tell jokes with your friends, run on the beach, dance, sing, be childish once in a while. Your spirit needs to experience all the feelings available to the human nature. But beside the "serious" ones, don't forget to add some humor. It will make your life much more enjoyable.

The "Selling" Machine

I like this statement by Greek philosopher Epicurus (IV century B.C.): "Nothing is enough for the man to whom enough is too little". It seems totally suitable for today's life, where you are pushed from all sides to believe that what you have (or what you are) is never sufficient to make you an acceptable human being. You "need" to have a certain look, purchase specific products. In a nutshell, you always have to change or add something to your present way of being. Why? Because "they" want you to buy something. How do they do it? By convincing you that - by doing what they suggest - you can prove your worth. Who are "they"? All those who constitute the "selling" machine that is presently leading the world in the direction they want.

Dirty Laundry

It seems that some people don't like to be "left behind". Especially when striking happenings are concerned. Let's say something bad took place in your far away past. You had gotten over it and moved on. You don't think about it any more, you don't talk about it because it's an event that belongs to the past and doesn't affect your present. You had accepted it and overcome it. Then someone talks about a similar experience, curiosity is aroused and... you feel the need to unearth your past. Why? Does the public exposure thrills you? Do you want to be at the center of attention, no matter for what circumstance? Does remembering what has been and done with make you feel better? If it 'really' does, then you are right in airing your dirty laundry in public. If it's just a desire for emulation, if you just want to be talked about, not 'left behind', are you sure it is a truly gratifying move?

It's A Sad World

Why is the world the way it is? I believe that many ask the same question. Yes, why? So much turmoil, so much hate, always bad news on the forefront, never-ending accusations, finger pointing, blaming. Where are the "good" news? Why do we seldom hear uplifting stories of people who dedicate themselves to deserving causes, stories of people who love, appreciate, help each other? It's a sad, sad world indeed - I'm sorry to keep repeating it. Is there anything "we" (you and I) could do to make things better? I honestly don't know. I (and probably most of you) don't have the means to make "the world" a better place on a larger scale. But we can certainly try to make "our little corner" of the world a bit better. How? By being helpful, available, caring in our own daily lives.

Your Future

How should we face the future? It's a puzzling question, isn't it? Some seem to only forecast negative happenings, others have total faith in a brighter tomorrow. On a general plane, let's just hope for the best. On a personal plane, though, you should be able to make some predictions. If you look at your life - now - how do you judge it? If you examine your thoughts - now - how would you define them? If you go deep into yourself - now - what do you actually "feel"? According to the sincere, totally honest answers you give yourself, you may be able to detect the attitude that best defines you. Positive or negative? Hopeful or hopeless? Agnostic? Skeptical? Indifferent? One strong possibility is that you'll get what you "do" or "don't" expect.

The Only Aim

When I happened to see a "medical" commercial on TV (although it was on 'mute', I could still understand what it was about), a question popped up in my mind: What are companies, corporations, associations, organizations etc. ready to do with the only aim of hoarding money? How many are willing to also take ethical and moral issues into consideration, while carrying out their businesses? I prefer not to go deeper into the matter because I'm afraid of what I could find (although I feel I might already know!).

The Words of Others

How great is the impact of people's words on you? If someone pays you a compliment, you feel pleased, you become aware of whatever the compliment was about. Maybe it was something you hadn't paid attention to and now you are made aware of such positive trait in your looks, behavior or personality in general. You might experience gratitude. On the other hand, if someone criticizes something you said or did, you immediately feel angry, or guilty, or defensive, or humiliated or misjudged. You are not "pleased" anymore. You are resentful and unwilling to accept what might be a truth, a possible flaw in your way of presenting yourself to others. Although you know that you should not allow your happiness to depend on others, you can also "learn" from what others tell you about yourself.

A Short Poem

New Season

Autumn (or fall) is here. It's time for transformation. Nature has already started to alter its colors because the new season is advancing. The same happens in Life. While one stage of your existence slides into the next one, you see yourself undergoing a kind of metamorphosis because this is what is supposed to happen. If you remained the same, you would create stagnation - the death of your spirit. A continuous, yet gradual transformation is necessary to evolve, to mature, to wise up and become more aware of what it's all about. Accepting each new season, each new stage of your life by gladly greeting your advancing age with openness and gratitude is the best way to live to the fullest.

A Moment Comes...

In (almost) everybody's life a moment comes when they feel they have to make a change. It can be something physical, like consistently following a new diet (to improve your health) or changing your hairstyle - or something else - (to transform your looks). It can be material, like selling your house to buy a bigger one (to obtain a higher social status) or taking on a new business (to earn more  money). The change can also be psychological, if you believe you need to assume a new attitude and/or behavior (to radically transform something in your relationships). Finally, a moment might come when you realize that your spirit needs a true "makeover" because the way you feel about yourself does not fulfill you any more. Let's keep reflecting about "change", the only feature in everyone's life that doesn't fail to happen. We might get some useful insights.

Un-natural

An interesting topic for reflection regards human consciousness. You might believe you are always totally aware of what you think, say or do. You possibly are. Sometimes. Definitely not always. Actually, rather seldom. If ever. How come? The fact is that you (like everybody else, for that matter), throughout a relevant part of your life, are not "yourself", i.e. you are not who you are meant to be in order to express all your positive attributes - in order to be fully "human". When anyone does something wrong - even worse, "evil" (as we unfortunately hear on an almost daily basis) - it is evident that they are not following the natural drive towards the "good". Why? Because they have allowed "unawareness" to bury such drive deep down their spirit. How did it happen? It happened because they chose to follow deceitful lures such as hate, racism, selfishness, absurd pride, craving for power, for attention ... How sad! And how "un-natural"!

Worth Pondering

I copied this from a poster because I found it worth reading and pondering upon.

D ifferent

I  individuals

V aluing
E each other
R egardless of
S kin
I ntellect
T alents or
Y ears

A Simple Word

It might happen that a simple word that someone said to you, that you read somewhere, that you heard someplace might start a significant chain of thoughts. Such thoughts can become so engagingly compelling that they might re-define some of your beliefs, opinions, feelings, even your behavior. How come? The fact is that the human mind can - at times - be totally indifferent or untouchable by outside stimuli while - at other times - it can be so sensitive that it ends up being affected by something as simple as a word to such a degree that a permanent life change takes place.