It's A Long Way Up

Once you find what matters in your life
Keep on pushing through the darkness
Till you see the light
You're gonna find it
You're no longer behind it

Once you learn what you've been doin' wrong
You can make the change
You need to make to carry on
Now and forever
The sooner the better, just remember now . . .

It's a long way up
When you're coming from nowhere
It's a long way up
When you're coming from nowhere
You gotta fight a little harder
You gotta push a little more
You gotta gamble everything you got
To get you through the door
'Cause it's a long way up

You've been down before but that's okay
You can rest assured
That every dog will have his day
And life is a jungle
But you ain't gonna crumble, remember now . . .

It's a long way up
When you're coming from nowhere
It's a long way up
When you're coming from nowhere
You gotta fight a little harder
You gotta push a little more
You gotta gamble everything you got
To get you through the door
'Cause it's a long way up

Don't give up the dream
Hey don't you know it's dark before the dawn
When you think you just can't take it
That's when you'll make it

Gonna Get Better

We do what we do
To try and get us through
Our darkest days ..
A time in life that's not so bright
And there will be days when we cry
And we don't know why
You've gotta fight it
Coz..those days will pass you by

It's gonna get better
Everybody knows there's brighter days
It's gonna get better
Live your life, and take it day by day

Be positive in mind or you'll
Fall before you even try
Sometimes it takes a helping hand
To show you that life goes on
There's a brand new dawn
When you're feeling down
There's always a reason
To hold on

You gotta live your life
Cause life is for the living
And you don't know
If you'll get the chance again
You gotta find a way to hold on maybe
Faith will help you carry on
Just fight it
Take it in your stride
It's gonna be alright

It's gonna get better, pick yourself up and start again
And maybe when you find yourself alone
You'll have the time
To gather all your thoughts
And when you find
You're not so strong
You'll have the strength
To carry on
And even when you find yourself in doubt
You'll never lose sight
Of what your life's about
And when you find you're losing faith
You'll get the strength to help you
Tell yourself it's gonna get better
Just tell yourself that
It is gonna get better
It is gonna get better..

Just Do It

If you're mad with someone , and nobody's there to fix the situation... You fix it .
Maybe today, that person still wants to be your friend . And if you don't, tomorrow can be too late .

If you're in love with somebody , but that person doesn't know...Tell her/him.
Maybe today, that person is also in love with you .And if you don't say it, tomorrow can be too late .

If you still love a person that you think has forgotten you...Tell her/him.
Maybe that person have always loved you. And if you don't tell her/him today , tomorrow can be too late.

If you need a hug of a friend... ask her/him for it.
Maybe they need it more than you do. And if you don't ask for it today, tomorrow can be too late.

If you really have friends who you appreciate... tell them.
Maybe they appreciate you as well. That if you don't and they leave or go far away today , tomorrow can be too late.

If you love your parents, and never had the chance to show them... do it .
Maybe you have them there to show them how you feel. That if you don't and they leave today , then tomorrow can be too late.

The Troubles Tree

A businessman hired his old carpenter to help him restore a farmhouse.
The carpenter had a rough first day on the job. A flat tire then made him lose an hour of work and now his ancient pick up truck refused to start.

While the businessman drove him home, the carpenter sat beside him in stony silence.
On arriving, he invited the businessman in to meet his family. As they walked to the front door, the carpenter paused briefly at a small tree, touching at the tips of the branches with his fingers.

When the carpenter opens the door, he underwent an amazing transformation. His tanned face was all in smiles as he hugged his two small children and gave his wife a kiss.

At the end of dinner, the carpenter walked the businessman to his car. They passed the small tree again and the businessman's curiosity got the best of him. He asked the carpenter about what he had seen the carpenter did earlier.

'Oh that is what I called my 'Trouble Tree', the carpenter told him. 'I know I can't help having troubles when I am working and in my life'. But one thing that I am sure of: troubles do not belong in the house with my wife and kids. So, I just hang my problems up on the tree every night when I come home. Then, in the morning, I pick them up again as i left the house.'

'Funny thing is, ' the carpenter smiled as he explains, 'when I come out in the morning to pick my troubles up, there are not nearly as many as I remember hanging up the night before.'

Shouts in Anger

Once a professor asked his students: 'Why do some people shout when in anger? Why do people shout at each other when they are upset?'

The students thought for a while before one of them said 'We shout because we lose our calm.'

'But why shout when the other person is just next to you? Isn't it possible to speak with a soft voice?'

The students gave many answers but none of it satisfied the professor.

Finally, the professor explained:'When 2 people are angry with each other, their hearts became distanced. To cover that distance, they shout so that each can hear the other. The angrier they are, the louder they shout.'

Then the professor asked again 'What happens when 2 people fall in love? They do not shout but talk softly to each other. Because their hearts are too close to each other. The distance became very small'.

'What happens when they love each other even more? What happens? They do not speak. They only whisper. And in the end, finally, they do not even need to whisper. They only have to look at each other, that's all. '

So, when you argue, do not shout and let your hearts get distant. There will come a day when the distance is so great that you might not find the path back to each other.

Failure

We all go through tough times, and we all fail at one time or another.

These words by an unknown author have helped me through many times of testing. Perhaps, they will help you too:

Failing doesn't mean I'm a failure,

It just means I have not succeeded yet.

Failing doesn't mean I have accomplished nothing,

It just means I have learned something.

Failing doesn't mean I have been a fool,

It just means I have enough faith to experiment.

Failing doesn't mean I have been disgraced,
It just means I dared to try.

Failing doesn't mean I don't have what it takes,
It just means I have to try things differently next time.

Failing doesn't mean I am inferior,
It just means I'm not perfect.

Failing doesn't mean I have wasted my time,
It just means I have a reason to start over.

Failing doesn't mean I should give up,
It just means I must try harder.

Failing doesn't mean I'll never make it,
It just means I need more patience.

Failing doesn't mean I'm wrong,
It just means I must find a better way.

Failing doesn't mean God has abandoned me,
It just means I must obediently obey his will.

The Cab Ride

Twenty years ago, I drove a cab for a living. When I arrived at 2:30 a.m., the building was dark except for a single light in a ground floor window. Under these circumstances, many drivers would just honk once or twice, wait a minute, and then drive away.

But I had seen too many impoverished people who depended on taxis as their only means of transportation. Unless a situation smelled of danger, I always went to the door. This passenger might be someone who needs my assistance, I reasoned to myself.

So I walked to the door and knocked. "Just a minute", answered a frail, elderly voice. I could hear something being dragged across the floor. After a long pause, the door opened. A small woman in her 80's stood before me. She was wearing a print dress and a pillbox hat with a veil pinned on it, like somebody out of a 1940's movie.

By her side was a small nylon suitcase. The apartment looked as if no one had lived in it for years. All the furniture was covered with sheets. There were no clocks on the walls, no knickknacks or utensils on the counters.

In the corner was a cardboard box filled with photos and glassware.

"Would you carry my bag out to the car?" she said. I took the suitcase to the cab, then returned to assist the woman. She took my arm and we walked slowly toward the curb. She kept thanking me for my kindness.

"It's nothing", I told her. "I just try to treat my passengers the way I would want my mother treated".

"Oh, you're such a good boy", she said.

When we got in the cab, she gave me an address, and then asked, "Could you drive through downtown?"

"It's not the shortest way," I answered quickly.

"Oh, I don't mind," she said. "I'm in no hurry. I'm on my way to a hospice".

I looked in the rear-view mirror. Her eyes were glistening.

"I don't have any family left," she continued. "The doctor says I don't have
very long."

I quietly reached over and shut off the meter. "What route would you like me
to take?" I asked.

For the next two hours, we drove through the city. She showed me the building where she had once worked as an elevator operator.

We drove through the neighborhood where she and her husband had lived when
they were newlyweds. She had me pull up in front of a furniture warehouse that had once been a ballroom where she had gone dancing as a girl.
Sometimes she'd ask me to slow in front of a particular building or corner and would sit staring into the darkness, saying nothing.

As the first hint of sun was creasing the horizon, she suddenly said, "I'm tired. Let's go now."

We drove in silence to the address she had given me.

It was a low building, like a small convalescent home, with a driveway that
passed under a portico. Two orderlies came out to the cab as soon as we
pulled up. They were solicitous and intent, watching her every move. They must have
been expecting her. I opened the trunk and took the small suitcase to the door.
The woman was already seated in a wheelchair.

"How much do I owe you?" she asked, reaching into her purse.

"Nothing," I said.

"You have to make a living," she answered.

"There are other passengers," I responded.

Almost without thinking, I bent and gave her a hug. She held onto me tightly.

"You gave an old woman a little moment of joy," she said. "Thank you."

I squeezed her hand, and then walked into the dim morning light.

Behind me, a door shut. It was the sound of the closing of a life. I didn't pick up any more passengers that shift. I drove aimlessly lost in thought. For the rest of that day, I could hardly talk. What if that woman had gotten an angry driver, or one who was impatient to end his shift? What if I had refused to take the run, or had honked once, then driven away?

On a quick review, I don't think that I have done anything more important in
my life. We're conditioned to think that our lives revolve around great moments.
But great moments often catch us unaware-beautifully wrapped in what others
may consider a small one.

PEOPLE MAY NOT REMEMBER EXACTLY WHAT YOU DID, OR WHAT YOU SAID, BUT THEY
WILL ALWAYS REMEMBER HOW YOU MADE THEM FEEL.

"Life may not be the party we hoped for, but while we are here, we might as
well dance".

Helping Others

A clergyman was consulted by a widow who was feeling sorry for herself because she'd be alone on an upcoming holiday. The pastor said, 'I am going to give you a prescription,' and proceeded to to write the name and address of a poor elderly couple.

'These people are a lot worse off than you,' he said bluntly. 'Do something for them'.
The woman went away muttering to herself, but the next day she went to the address. There, in a tiny apartment, she found the couple. They were fragile and barely able to fix meals for each other. So, she arranged to cook their holiday dinner.

When she saw the clergyman the following week, she had a new bounce in her step. ' It was certainly the best holiday I have had in years,' she told him.
************************
Helen Keller, the american author who was deaf and blind from infancy, once remarked:
'I find life an exciting business- and almost as exciting when it is lived for others'.

Take A Break

Sometime ago, I found myself writing too many articles, giving too many speeches, seeing too many clients and not doing anything well.

So I went on leave. I took all day walks, planted trees, build cabinets and spent times with my family. After a few months, my cholesterol level was down 100 points, my blood pressure 30. I felt good for the first time in years.

Most people can take short breaks- two or three days in which we alter our routine. Perhaps, you cannot control your job, but you may be able to make other changes in life: like taking a class, establishing a special family night, getting to know new people or starting an exercise program.

Taking a break, clears the mind and spirit.

Goodbye from a Genius

Gabriel Garcia Marquez, famous writer from Colombia, and Nobel Peace prize winner for literature, has retired from public life for reasons of health. He has a form of cancer which is terminal. He has sent a farewell letter to his friends and it has been circulated around the Internet.

He says:

If God, for a second, forgot what I have become and granted me a little bit more of life, I would use it to the best of my ability.

I wouldn't possibly, say everything that is in my mind, but I would be more thoughtful of all I say.

I would give merit to things not for what they are worth, but for what they mean to express.

I would sleep little, I would dream more, because I know that for every minute that we close our eyes, we waste 60 seconds of light.

I would walk while others stop; I would awake while others sleep.

If God would give me a little bit more of life, I would dress in a simple manner, I would place myself in front of the sun, leaving not only my body, but my soul naked at its mercy.

To all men I would say how mistaken they are when they think that they stop falling in love when they grow old, without knowing that they grow old when they stop falling in love.

I would give wings to children, but I would leave it to them to learn how to fly by themselves.

To old people I would say that death doesn't arrive when they grow old, but with forgetfulness.

I have learned so much with you all, I have learned that everybody wants to live on top of the mountain, without knowing that true happiness is obtained in the journey taken & the form used to reach the top of the hill.

I have learned that when a newborn baby holds, with its little hand, his father's finger, it has trapped him for the rest of his life.

I have learned that a man has the right and obligation to look down at another man, only when that man needs help to get up from the ground.

Say always what you feel, not what you think. If I knew that today is the last time that that I am going to see you asleep, I would hug you with all my strength and I would pray to the Lord to let me be the guardian angel of your soul.

If I knew that these are the last moments to see you, I would say "I love you".

There is always tomorrow, and life gives us another opportunity to do things right, but in case I am wrong, and today is all that is left to me, I would love to tell you how much I love you & that I will never forget you.

Tomorrow is never guaranteed to anyone, young or old. Today could be the last time to see your loved ones, which is why you mustn't wait; do it today, in case tomorrow never arrives. I am sure you will be sorry you wasted the opportunity today to give a smile, a hug, a kiss, and that you were too busy to grant them their last wish.

Keep your loved ones near you; tell them in their ears and to their faces how much you need them and love them. Love them and treat them well; take your time to tell them "I am sorry";" forgive me"," please" "thank you", and all those loving words you know.

Nobody will know you for your secret thought. Ask the Lord for wisdom and strength to express them.

Show your friends and loved ones how important they are to you.

If you don't do it today...tomorrow will be like yesterday, and if you never do it, it doesn't matter, either, the moment to do it is now.

For you, With much love,
Your Friend,
Gabriel Garcia Marquez