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Showing posts from August, 2014

The beauty of a simple joy

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   As I look upon this year of blogging, I have learned so much about myself and about life. The beauty of life, I have found, is not in the beauty that we can see, but in the beauty that we can feel. The beauty of a simple joy that comes from truly living life. Thank you to everyone that has read my blog this past year. Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

Initiate change in your life

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" Change before you have to." -Jack Welch Sometimes in life, we resist change so much that we have it thrust upon us. We lose our jobs; a relationship ends; we face a health crisis. Don't wait to be forced into changing your life;  initiate the change . Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

Have many names

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   Colin Powell was quoted as saying, "Avoid having your ego so close to your position that when your position falls, your ego goes with it." There is also a saying about not putting your eggs all in one basket, and I think that is a similar concept to what Colin Powell was saying. We sometimes define ourselves by what we do, like a teacher, an engineer, a doctor or even a mother, a father, a wife. Some people go even further and define themselves by doing and being only one thing. I hear, "I was their mother and now they don't need me. Who am I now?" Or "I spent every minute working for that company. How can they let me go? What do I do now?" Define yourself by many names , but think of names of being not just doing. Call yourself joyful. Call yourself passionate. Call yourself friendly...have many names . https://www.facebook.com/susanmarie.schulhof.7 http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

Don't be too late

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    Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "You cannot do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late ." We often put off doing things for ourselves and for others, but we never know what the future holds. Do it today. Don't be too late . https://www.facebook.com/susanmarie.schulhof.7 http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

Let go

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"Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one that gets burned." -Buddha We have all been hurt; we have all been wronged, but the only person that you are hurting by keeping that hurt is yourself. Let go. Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

Mistakes are just another memory

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    Sophia Loren said that mistakes are part of the dues one pays for a full life. These types of quotes can be found throughout this entire blog. I revisit mistakes often because we often think that mistakes should not happen. We are upset with ourselves when they occur, but if we don't view errors as part of life, we will never learn from them. Mistakes are just another memory. Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

Keep living life

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    Simone de Beauvoir said, "Live with no time out." You can not stop time so keep living life . Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

God made you

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     Lily Tomlin once said, "I always wondered why somebody doesn't do something about that. Then I realized that I was somebody." There is also a great song by  Matthew West  that says "I turned my eyes to Heaven and I thought God , why don't you do something?" In the song,  God's response was "I did. I made you." We are all responsible for making changes in this world because God made all of us. Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

Riding Waves Book

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Riding Waves by Susan Marie Schulhof Riding Waves by Susan Marie Schulhof Sample I sit there in his truck through two songs on the radio as Dan talks to Patrick, Matt and a blonde girl that I don’t recognize. I am not sure where Matt goes to college, but I know that Patrick at tends University of Harrisburg. My brother Jake and Dan were in the same grade in school with Matt and Patrick. The blonde girl looks around our age, and she is dressed in a pink coat, jeans and furry boots; the opposite of how I dress. As I watch Dan, I get more and more frustrated that I am expected to sit in the car as she smiles at him and keeps touching his shoulder. He laughs loudly at everything she says. He is very handsome, yet it is more than his looks that attracts others to him. He is so charismatic and charming that people, especially girls, are drawn to him. He emits this aura of self-confidence that makes him a natural leader. I roll down the window, but I can’t hear what they are talking abo

Aim high

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    "If you would hit the mark, you must aim a little above it," Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. When you set your goals , aim high. Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

Enjoy the moment

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"Yesterday was wood; tomorrow is ashes. Only today does  the fire burn brightly." -Eskimo Proverb     This is an important concept that stresses the importance of living in and enjoying the moment . Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

Take that first step

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    Ayn Rand said, "All you have to do is look straight and see the road, and when you see it, don't sit looking at it-walk." I loved Ayn Rand's book The Fountainhead  when I first read it in the 1980's. It was one of the books that inspired me to write my own book. Instead of thinking of writing 200-300 pages, I just took that first step. Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com      

Teachers help others succeed

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"There is always room at the top." -Daniel Webster      I was recently promoted at work, so now I partner with approximately 22 teachers to help them do their job as teachers . My first goal in this position is to help them succeed and grow since I was a teacher for 13 years. If the teachers are successful, they help the students to be successful! Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com      

Failing means trying

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"A great wind is blowing, and that gives you either  imagination or a headache." -Catherine the Great      It was a difficult decision to independently publish my book  Riding Waves  or try to find an agent/publisher. In the end, I decided to try on my own. Even if I fail, I tried. Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

Make your life an adventure

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   Tennessee Williams said, "Make voyages! Attempt them! There's nothing else."  Since I can't really afford flying and fancy resorts, my girls and I love to take road trips . We learn about the world we live in, but we also learn about each other and ourselves. Even though I think that finding a way to travel and see the world is important, we should all find ways to make our lives an adventure . Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com      

Thrive in your struggles

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    I love this quote by Thomas Edison, "I have not failed. I've found 10,000 ways that won't work." Can I view all of my struggles in life in this fashion? All my mistakes can show me success? All my past relationships can show me what I want in my next relationship? All my struggles can show me how to grow and learn? There is a song by Casting Crowns called Thrive that says "It's time for us to more than just survive.  We were made to thrive." Thrive in your struggles. Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com      

See others flaws in yourself

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"Everything that irritates us about others can lead to an understanding of ourselves." -Carl Gustav Jung     As a psychology major, this idea intrigues me. I once read that others are a reflection of ourselves, a mirror so to speak. What can I learn when people lie and are dishonest, about myself? I know that I am always truthful with others, so why does it bother me so much. Am I lying to myself about something? Do I just need to learn to remove those people from my life? Thoughts to ponder. Can I see others flaws in myself? Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

Grow stronger

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"What does not destroy me, makes me stronger ." -Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche Learn from your life. Grow stronger . Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

Discover the meaning

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"What we need is not the will to believe , but the wish to find out." -Bertand Russell I think that this is true of many things in life. We need to want to learn; to chose to understand, and to intend to discover the meaning in all areas of living. Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

Be open and able

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    "The story of love is not important- what is important is that one is capable of love . It is perhaps the only glimpse we are permitted of eternity," according to Helen Hayes. I have loved and lost; been full of joy as well as full of sadness; have laughed and cried, but I still keep myself open to possibilities. Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

Find a solution

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"Don't find fault, find a remedy." -Henry Ford How true are those words? It is easy to pick apart and criticize others, but how about finding a solution to the problem instead. Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

You can never know all that there is to know

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Anais Nin, said, "The possession of knowledge does not kill the sense of wonder and mystery. There is always more mystery." I love that about life. We live in a world where there are continual opportunities to learn and grow. You can never know all that there is to know. Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

The sun will come out tomorrow

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"The crisis of today is the joke of tomorrow." -H.G. Wells    I can usually keep things in  perspective in my life. When I am tempted to feel sad over the trials in my life, I just remember that everything changes. What hurts today, may heal tomorrow. The sun will come out tomorrow. Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

We all deserve respect

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    Doris Lessing said, "It is terrible to destroy a person's picture of himself in the interests of truth or some other abstraction." People laugh at people that are less attractive or less intelligent than they try to portray themselves, yet the truth is that in the eyes of God we are all equal. We all deserve respect . Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

Sin no more

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    Simone Weil said, "All sins are attempts to fill voids." I love this quote because if people with addictions or even unhealthy behaviors could determine their voids and fill them with positive things, their lives would be much better. I will try to fill the voids of my life, so that I will sin no more. Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

Love what you have

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"When we cannot get what we love , we must love  what is within our reach." French Proverb     There is more to this proverb than settling for what you have. I think that often people look at what they cannot have in a grandiose fashion. They think if they could date that person, have that job, live in that house that their life would be perfect. For me this quote is about enjoying what you have while reaching for your goals. So love what you do have right now. Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

Be honest with yourself

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    Virginia Woolf was quoted as saying, "If you do not tell the truth about yourself, you cannot tell it about other people." It is difficult to discern our own truths, but it is necessary in your own life journey as well as your journey with others. Be honest with yourself. Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

Similarities unite us

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"What is the best...to laugh with someone because you think the same things are funny." -Gloria Vanderbilt Have you ever been in a movie theater when everyone is laughing in unison? That to me makes the big world we live in, feel smaller. Similarities unite us. Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

Open your life to miracles

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    Shirley MacLaine said, "I'm in love with the potential of miracles . For me the safest place is out on a limb." I never venture into areas of risk  that put me in physical danger, yet I like to  take chances in my life. Once I did that, I opened my life to miracles. Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

Never be bored

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" Boredom is the feeling that everything is a waste of time; serenity, that nothing is." -Thomas Szasz I was going to write that I am rarely bored, yet really I am never bored. I love spending time with my family, reading, writing, walking and I even love my new job. If anything I wish that there was more time in a day. I am never bored . Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

Let others surprise you

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"Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and they will surprise you with their ingenuity." -General George S. Patton    I think as a parent, I struggled with this. As my daughters get older, they continually amaze me with how they view and react to the events of their lives.      Author Susan Marie Schulhof                          http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

Relax in your peace

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    Thomas A. Kempis said, "First keep the peace within yourself, then you can also bring peace to others." I have prayed for peace my entire life; for the world we live in as well as my own space. I have never liked conflict or even heated discussions. One of my favorite church songs is "Let there be peace on earth." The second half of that line is "and let it begin with me." So I will try to relax in my peace. Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

Go through life full on

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"The best way out is always through." -Robert Frost It is important to live life to the fullest. Don't let your fears hold you back. Go through life full on. Author Susan Marie Schulhof http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com