Let's Talk About Words

            What did James Lowell mean when he said, "A weed is no more than a flower in disguise"? A weed is a weed because we call it that. To a little child, a sow thistle is a pretty flower. Even to adults, a field of dandelions can look as beautiful as a garden of flowers. All that one needs is a change of perspective to change a weed into a flower. Have you ever been frustrated by a car driving too slow, until you realized that is a new student driver or even an older person? You now longer feel angry; you maybe feel compassionate and understanding. The person is still driving too slow, but what changes is your perspective. How many things in life could we look at or classify differently if we only changed our attitude? If we could look at a problem or situation from another point of view? Can we change the weeds of our life into flowers? Read my words and see my quote at  http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

               Love is what we desire from when we are young, but what is love? Love is usually based on need fulfillment and how another person makes you feel. I love him because he makes me feel special. I love her because I feel happy when I am around her. I love him because he is funny. I love her because she is beautiful. I love them because they have always been there for me. Can we love one another free from those feelings and needs? Giving and receiving unconditional love is exactly that. Some needs may still be met based on giving and receiving love with no conditions, but this love is based on truth. It is loving someone for their positive as well as their negative traits. That doesn't mean you like that trait or ignore their negative behavior, but you love them anyway. If couples, families, and friends could love one another unconditionally with an open mind and heart and a willingness to look within themselves, then this relat...

        Today's Positive Quotation topic is "Breaking someone's spirit". Linda Picone states that words are such powerful weapons, but I will take it one step further and say that thoughts are just as powerful. Most of the spiritual books that I read discuss how powerful one's thoughts and intentions are. They claim that people create their experience of the world based on how you think about it. There are countless songs like the one by Sister Hazel that sing, "If you want to be somebody else, change your mind." Not change your circumstance, not change your words and not change someone else. Even in the movie "Don Jon" that I saw today, his love interest was trying to change him. Relationships can indeed be the catalyst for change, but the decision, the intention, the thought must come from within that person. We all know that hitting someone and calling names can hurt, but intentions and thoughts can hurt others as well as ourselves. When ...

           "When a friend is in trouble...Think of something appropriate and do it." said E.W. Howe. He was a novelist that passed away in 1937 yet that advice stands the test of time. Instead of asking others how you can help, spend some time in thought and decide what you can do to help whatever the circumstance is. This can be applied to helping people that you don't know as well. I have always wanted to help others yet I never felt that I had enough money to make a difference. After some soul searching, I realized that I could help others with my time. I volunteered at a women's shelter helping clean and organize their recreational space, in addition to watching the children so that the mothers could attend meetings. That was an appropriate way for me to help others in need. What is your way? Read my words and see my quotes at http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com

           Today's post in The Book of Positive Quotations quotes Charles De Gaulle as saying," Faced with crisis, the man of character falls back on himself. He imposes his own stamp of action, takes responsibility for it, makes it his own". After reading this, my first thought is that it is wrong, that people need others in times of crisis. How is it that to be a "person of character" one must handle it alone? After much contemplation, I have come to realize that although you can rely on family and friends to help you through a crisis, only you can truly understand what you feel and what would be the best response. A person's reaction could be talking it over with friends, accepting help from family members, but those responses still fall back on oneself. One must, on their own, accept the help if they choose after thought and consideration. My choice would be to read book after book about our soul and our purpose for living as a means of facing...

         What did Hermann Hesse mean by the quote, "Knowledge can be communicated but not wisdom"? Knowledge is facts, information and skills that a person can acquire from experience, and the definition of wisdom is the quality of having knowledge and experience. At first glance they do not seem that different, but as you break the definitions down you realize that others can teach you knowledge through their words and their actions. Wisdom seems to be your own interpretation of the knowledge that you are exposed to. It is your thoughts, feelings and responses to all that you learn, situations that you are in and circumstances that you encounter. Intelligence is a trait that most people are in awe of, but in many ways that is a talent or a God given gift. One's ability to learn knowledge is determined by drive and ability, yet wisdom is limitless. All people possess an infinite ability to gain wisdom from the life they are living. Read my words and see my...

         What can you learn from difficult situations? Can you learn to be empathetic, sympathetic, caring? Can you learn about yourself that you are strong, you are capable, you are competent? I have encountered many arduous situations in this lifetime. I was in a difficult  marriage; my father fought and died from brain cancer at 55, and I have struggled financially for many years as a single mother of three to name a few. What have I learned from these? I gained much knowledge from how I responded to each and every one of these times. I discovered about myself that I am indeed, strong, loving, capable, empathetic, sympathetic, caring, competent and so much more. Think back on the situations of your life. Remember how you responded. That will show your true essence.