Goodness Of A Diner

"A friendly look, a kindly smile, one good act, and life's worthwhile." - Author Unknown

One morning I was coming home from a doctors visit and decided to stop for a little breakfast. I had not eaten much over the past two days due to being ill with a stomach virus.

As I sat reading the paper there were stories were of the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center in New York City which resonated through out America. In reading the stories, I was reminded that my stomach virus was a minor thing in the bigger scheme of life. I knew so because there were stories of bravery, courage and of shear sadness for those lost in the three acts of violence.

As human beings, we can be pretty resilient and hopefully learn from history. Also, the sadness from those events can be overwhelming. So sitting in one of my comfortable eating establishment helped soothe the sadness.

This may sound like an advertisement but the Waffle House is a place which can always bring a smile to your face. It is one of those thousands of places that is good about America and its people. Being around and seeing other friendly people, it is a nice and very pleasing place. To be around other people is something each of us can use. It embodies what is good about human beings in a a certain sense.

The terror of 9/11 or any such similar violence is not the normal, it is not what most people are made of. Goodness does exist through out most societies. In all of my travelling around the world, people are simply getting up, getting dressed, going to work, trying to provide for their families and getting as much out of life as they can.

In other words, we are all very similar regardless of where we live on this wonderful planet.

Taking down the World Trade Center, a plane in Pennsylvania or targeting of the Pentagon are horrific events. What remains is the goodness of our human spirit. The Waffle House type of diners around the world, where people meet, share a meal and a smile reflect that goodness.

Remember those that have been a victim to the terrors of life, but be strengthened by our collective goodness.

Stay inspired my friends!

When To Adjust

From the great folks at Despair.com

Perseverance is something we need in order to obtain our goals.

But there are times when changing direction can be a good thing.

Always be prepared for changing circumstances and adjust accordingly.

Stay inspired my friends!

A Perfect Game

"Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies." - Mother Teresa

A baseball pitcher named Roy Halladay became only the second person to ever throw a no-hitter in post season play on October 5, 2010. It was quite an accomplishment when you look at the history of baseball. More amazing is on May 29 of that same year, Halladay pitched the 20th perfect game in Major League Baseball history.

As they say, "27 up, 27 down" to complete the game.

So what can pitching a no-hitter in baseball have to do with living a great life? Most certainly having such a high level of talent which brings adulation and money, lots of money helps make life comfortable. More important though is the person behind the talent, their character, which makes a great life. And Roy Halladay did something beyond just receiving acclaim for his accomplishments.

After pitching the perfect game in May, he arranged to commemorate that perfect game. Halladay presented roughly 60 Swiss-made Baume and Mercier watches he had purchased to everyone in the clubhouse.

Each were presented in boxes bearing the inscription: "We did it together. Thanks, Roy Halladay." To top it off, on the back of each watch was engraved the date of the game, the line score, and the individual recipient's name. The names of those sixty people were not just his fellow ball-players. They were coaches, trainers, and others all of the way down to what may seem to be the most insignificant people to some.

But not to Roy, he understood and acknowledged that even the smallest have a large impact on our success in life.

Your own life is involved on both ends of this spectrum. While you toil away at something you may feel insignificant in what you do. Just know that even the smallest flower along the roadside serves a grand purpose. The nectar a bee consumes creates food for the hive yet sustains the bee to carry on the pollination of other plants.

The smallest flower is involved in the circle that will carry life forward.

And if we have greatness in our life, we need to remember and acknowledge all the other people who helped us accomplish it. Without many others, your life can not be sustained for very long. Without the smallest flowers, the bee has less to draw upon. In time, the bee can no longer sustain its grand work. Even the largest depend upon the small; life is pretty grand in that respect.

Know that your life is never too big to have done so on your own. Nor is your life too small not to have had an impact on the life of others.

Not all of us can pitch a no-hitter, but each of us can make a difference in the life of another. And when we impact the lives of other people, its as good as having a "27 up and 27 down" great life.

Stay inspired my friends!

Floating On The Water

“You laugh it off, you get upset for a little while, you're human and you let it go.” - Jennifer Lopez

A few years ago my wife and I took an extended early September vacation. It was a great time looking back with family, friends and just chillingout for a few days. We made a visit up to Helen, Georgia just before the start of a very long Oktoberfest celebration they have stretching from mid-September to the start of November.

As we sat in our chairs of a local drinking establishment having a beer and some wings, we noticed small clear bags of water hanging along the edge of the patio walls. This was an open air restaurant next to the Chattahoochee River, down which people float on large round tubes. One might have mistaken these clear plastic bags as water balloons meant to toss at people floating by.

A patron near us had the same thought and decided to toss one.

Why he chose a pretty girl is left to his own reckoning but she ended up being one not to take this offense calmly. She returned, yelled and screamed her displeasure at him. She did get wet, but we thought again that she was in the water and getting wet already. I'm guessing it was the surprise of a water balloon which shocked her from the calm floating waters of the river.

The exchange was heated but the patron did apologize.

I'm not completely certain he was fully remorseful, but he did apologize. The young lady stood her ground, or more actually, her water (since she was standing in the shallows of the river). Standing there, I am not certain if she was waiting for something more or maybe a burly boyfriend to come floating down to save her honor.

It was at this point we decided to leave the maddening noise.

Before leaving we could hear the restaurant staff explaining that those were not water balloons to be thrown at people tubing down the river. In fact they are there to discourage flies from hanging around.

I am certainly glad we did not make the same mistake.

So where does this leave the story and what lesson can be learned? As I said, we did not stay to see the situation play out completely. There were too many stores to visit and too many interesting places to see in town.

What I do know, things are going to happen to us in life.

There are going to be moments in which your peaceful existence is going to get interrupted. A water balloon is going to crash down upon you in a surprising way when you least expect. Getting upset is likely your first response, anger is your second and retaliation might even enter your thought process.

Will you stand on the edge of the water allowing it to consume you? And while you do, the water keeps flowing past, life keeps flowing on. Let it go, pick up the pieces and get back on the tube. Get back into the flowing water of life and move on.

Stay inspired my friends!