Stronger Than All Obstacles

“The dance between darkness and light will always remain, the stars and the moon will always need the darkness to be seen, the darkness will just not be worth having without the moon and the stars.” ― C. JoyBell C.

When just short of two years old, this child fell ill and it took from her both sight and hearing. There were many people who wrongly attached the stigma of being dumb when faced with this blind and deaf child. It was said that being unable to see or hear the speech of others, a child could not learn.

Despite these challenges, this child grew up to become

... a college graduate.
... a public speaker.
... the author of several books.

The accomplishments of this child, this woman, were not entirely accomplished by self alone. There were other people that believed in her as well. But if she had not worked with all her ability to respond to the efforts of her teacher and those other people, this woman would not have reached all of those great accomplishments.

The woman that I speak of is of course Helen Keller.

She is quoted as saying, "the most important day I remember in all my life is the one on which my teacher, Anne Mansfield Sullivan, came to me. I am filled with wonder when I consider the immeasurable contrast between the two lives which it connects. It was the third of March; 1887, three months before I was seven years old."

Helen gave an example of what she experienced by saying, "Have you ever been at sea in a dense fog, when it seemed as if a tangible white darkness shut you in, and the great ship, tense and anxious, groped her way toward the shore with plummet and sounding-line, and you waited with beating heart for something to happen? I was like that ship before my education began, only I was without compass or sounding-line, and had no way of knowing how near the harbour was. "Light! give me light!" was the wordless cry of my soul, and the light of love shone on me in that very hour."

Achieving with small steps of progress, slowly finding your way down a path of experience is a wonderful thing.

In her accomplishments, Helen Keller goes on to say, "No deaf child who has earnestly tried to speak the words which he has never heard--to come out of the prison of silence, where no tone of love, on song of bird, no strain of music ever pierces the stillness--can forget the thrill of surprise, the joy of discovery which came over him when he uttered his first word. It is an unspeakable boon to me to be able to speak in winged words that need no interpretation. As I talked, happy thoughts fluttered up out of my words that might perhaps have struggled in vain to escape my fingers. "My little sister will understand me now," was a thought stronger than all obstacles."

Achievement is possible in many forms with persistence towards that end.

For Helen Keller, it could be said it was if Isaiah's prophecy had been fulfilled in her. And each of us will experience this same feeling in which "the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands!"

Experience the wonder of achievement by never allowing darkness to win.

Your life is worth every tone of love, song of a bird and stronger than any obstacle.

Stay inspired my friends.

Live As Though Alive

"Thoughts are like an open ocean, they can either move you forward within its waves, or sink you under deep into its abyss." ― Anthony Liccione

I found and read this story written by Francie Baltazar-Schwartz titled "ATTITUDE IS EVERYTHING" some time ago. The story provides a perspective regarding the idea of taking only a positive view of life. There is a possibility you will learn a lesson from it and change your view on life as well.

Jerry was the kind of guy you love to hate. He was always in a good mood and always had something positive to say. When someone would ask him how he was doing, he would reply, "If I were any better, I would be twins!"

He was a unique manager because he had several waiters who had followed him around from restaurant to restaurant. The reason the waiters followed Jerry was because of his attitude. He was a natural motivator. If an employee was having a bad day, Jerry was there telling the employee how to look on the positive side of the situation.

Seeing this style really made me curious, so one day I went up to Jerry and asked him, "I don't get it! You can't be a positive person all of the time. How do you do it?"

Jerry replied, "Each morning I wake up and say to myself, Jerry, you have two choices today. You can choose to be in a good mood or you can choose to be in a bad mood.' I choose to be in a good mood. Each time something bad happens, I can choose to be a victim or I can choose to learn from it. I choose to learn from it. Every time someone comes to me complaining, I can choose to accept their complaining or I can point out the positive side of life. I choose the positive side of life."

"Yeah, right, it's not that easy," I protested.

"Yes it is," Jerry said. "Life is all about choices. When you cut away all the junk, every situation is a choice. You choose how you react to situations. You choose how people will affect your mood. You choose to be in a good or bad mood. The bottom line: It's your choice how you live life."

I reflected on what Jerry said. Soon thereafter, I left the restaurant industry to start my own business. We lost touch, but I often thought about him when I made a choice about life instead of reacting to it.

Several years later, I heard that Jerry did something you are never supposed to do in a restaurant business: he left the back door open one morning and was held up at gunpoint by three armed robbers.

While trying to open the safe, his hand, shaking from nervousness, slipped off the combination. The robbers panicked and shot him. Luckily, Jerry was found relatively quickly and rushed to the local trauma center.

After 18 hours of surgery and weeks of intensive care, Jerry was released from the hospital with fragments of the bullets still in his body.

I saw Jerry about six months after the accident. When I asked him how he was, he replied, "If I were any better, I'd be twins. Wanna see my scars?"

I declined to see his wounds, but did ask him what had gone through his mind as the robbery took place.

"The first thing that went through my mind was that I should have locked the back door," Jerry replied. "Then, as I lay on the floor, I remembered that I had two choices: I could choose to live, or I could choose to die. I chose to live."

"Weren't you scared? Did you lose consciousness?" I asked.

Jerry continued, "The paramedics were great. They kept telling me I was going to be fine. But when they wheeled me into the emergency room and I saw the expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses, I got really scared. In their eyes, I read, 'He's a dead man.' I knew I needed to take action."

"What did you do?" I asked.

"Well, there was a big, burly nurse shouting questions at me," said Jerry. "She asked if I was allergic to anything. 'Yes,' I replied. The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply. I took a deep breath and yelled, 'Bullets!' Over their laughter, I told them, "I am choosing to live. Operate on me as if I am alive, not dead."

Jerry lived thanks to the skill of his doctors, but also because of his amazing attitude. I learned from him that every day we have the choice to live fully.

Attitude, after all, is everything.

Begin thinking of your life as if you are alive, not dead.

Choose the laughter and live your life to its greatest potential. After all, attitude is everything.

Stay inspired my friends.

Enjoy The Game

"Just play. Have fun. Enjoy the game." - Michael Jordan

Life can be viewed as a game in some respects. There are gifts and talents each of us possess which enable various types of success.

There is a time limit to the length of the game although the time limit is unknown. The game has an ebb and flow to which we must adjust our speed, attitude and courage.

The game is also a story you write during each and every moment. It is the type of story you will never be able to write an ending for. But there will be others to finish the story and give voice to it after we are long gone.

So while here, pick up the ball and play.

Enjoy writing your story and by all means, enjoy the game.

Stay inspired my friends!

Passing Through Your Tunnel

"Courage is simply the willingness to be afraid and act anyway." - Robert Anthony

We stand within our circumstance, surrounded by walls of doubt all around us.

Before us is a single path to take us from where we are.

It is a long and rough tunnel which has a barely visible light at the end of it.

There is a choice we can make at this point besides simply remaining within our current situation. It takes courage to move towards that light in the tunnel. It is an unknown journey with no promise of greater things. So we stand and ponder all of the possible outcomes.

The odd thing is we know where we are here and now. We know what the current holds for us; the sameness of our circumstance somehow feels comfortable. So you hesitate to enter the tunnel and move forward with your life. The comfort of where we are as opposed to being surrounded by walls of doubt and indecision make it harder to move any further.

One may think the walls might simply collapse in upon you. But with a bit of courage and desire, the tunnel is passable. There will be a new beginning on the other side when you enter into its light.

Be brave and courageous to take the journey towards a new future.

Fill your pocket with the dreams and goals you have held so long. These will help drive you towards the end. As you arrive at your destination, you will have an ability to close the tunnel to the past. The sun will shine brighter and the view will be fantastic.

Stay inspired my friends.