MAKE THE DIFFERENCE WHERE YOU ARE

"I think the purpose of life is

to be useful, to be responsible, to be honorable, to be compassionate.
It is, after all, to matter:
--- to count, to stand for something,
to have made some difference that you lived at all."
(Leo C. Rosten, American Writer)

This is how life should be, how we should conduct ourselves in the business of living as best as we can. Because we can't simply coast along enjoying the view or enjoying our privileges (God-given lest we forget) which we actually do. But I think there should be something more added to that. You see, He gave us our free will and I think with it we can work our proper response to the gift of life.

It may or may not be something of a grand or grander scale although some of us could with whatever resources available to them. What I'm looking at is just where we are at. Right there where God has planted us. In the small measure we can manage or afford to do. There's much that can be done there, significant much. These things cropping up i.e. --- environment protection, global warming, planting trees, protecting endangered species, recycling, intelligent disposal of garbage, anti-bullying online and offline, anti-graft and corruption in government, anti-poverty, anti-crime, energy and water saving, etc. --- they matter. But by itself or by a small number of people alone this do not stand a chance of moving forward. This is where we come in and do our part. It's the greater and collective number that pushes -- projects.... programs.... issues.... concerns.... beliefs.... campaigns.... and drives the bad eggs off the charts. This greater and collective number is composed of unique individuals each in his or her own turf who care.

Nobody is insignificant; no effort least important. Neither do we need a stage or applause or eyes to see it ..... because just knowing that what we do is true, good, and right is its own reward. The test of character is when nobody is watching.

As it has been said for the ____th time -- "Let's be the change we want to see in the world". Let's do this for ourselves..... and for our children.... and for the generations coming after us.... and take it even further for Mother Earth, the country, and the world. For what we do today will define the kind of future that will come.

Give it a thought.
Blessings to you and your loved ones.

LOOKING OUT TO THE WORLD

There are two ways of looking at life, people, the world. One is from your own standpoint and the other is from the other person's. Both don't always agree and that usually makes for the inconsistencies that we see around us in most everything. But life is actually lived in personal terms sieved through our individual beliefs, preferences, insights, opinions, knowledge, and understanding. We don't usually bother about what people may think, as much as we can anyway. We do our thing with what is dished out to us trying as best as we can to be worthy of being alive... of life. We all do that... you, me, the guy next door... everybody. But whoever we are or where we come from, we have our story and we matter. Honestly the world will look like a messy place when we would look out to it from a heart that isn't quite sorted out. That's true because we have to figure out how we want to see the world and with what. We can't just take what's there and work something out and hope to God it turns out alright. That's not how things work out.

So then from where I stand now these are the stories I've seen and heard, and lived quite a few myself .....

-- joining the band wagon won't always get you to where you want to go... especially if you had joined the wrong one. Know when to leave. Leave!

-- when life hands you lemons, it's okay to cry because that's what you're supposed to do with it.. cry. But when you're done crying, shake yourself and say 'nope, you've seen nothing yet'. Then work hard with everything you've got. Walk your talk.

-- people won't always agree to everything you say unless you have succeeded to pull familiar strings in his heart or memory.

-- when you give a piece of praise, give it not because you aim to please. But give it because you agree that that person is indeed wonderful.

-- it could be true that the grass is greener on the other side of the fence. But also true is the fact that your side of the fence can be greener too or so much more if you simply remembered to nurture it.

-- you are the only one in the world, there is nobody like you elsewhere... and so does the rest of humankind think about themselves. But that is not the problem. The problem is we can't seem to agree that we all belong here -- together, side by side.

And so much more and we know them all, don't we?