Some senior scientists were paid to prove....

.....that the beating of a butterfly's wing on one side of the globe, can trigger air currents that eventually cause a hurricane many miles away.  (Part of the Chaos Theory, I seem to remember.)   If so, perhaps we all have to rethink the idea that our words and deeds make little impact on society as a whole.

 

 

We do have influence. And power. We need to recognise this and to use our abilities wisely.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You need chaos in your soul to give birth to a dancing star.    (Nietzsche)

 

Do you ever feel, like me....

.....that whatever you do is either not enough, or not good enough?  Well, when you think about it, critics have to be careful about how much praise they provide. Their job is to find fault and, if they are too forgiving, they may end up being criticised for it. Sometimes, they will be unduly harsh - just because this appears to prove that they are keeping their edge. Others may or may not have a right to disapprove of you, but you are not entitled to feel that way about yourself.

 

 

 

Regardless of what others think or of what you may fear that you feel, it is extremely important to be your own best friend.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What you leave behind is not what is engraved in stone monuments, but what is woven into the lives of others

Mistakes - they always seem to tempt us....

....to review them and then to analyse those reviews.  We do this sometimes because we feel we may be able to learn something - and sometimes, through some perverse desire to punish ourselves. Often though, our biggest mistakes are the ones we know nothing about. They may involve opportunities we do not realise we have missed or decisions that have led to a worse outcome than we yet realise.

 

 

And then, there are the moves we made which we thought were wrong, yet turned out not to be mistakes at all.

 

Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.      (Leo Buscaglia)

Some people will say....

....or do almost anything if they think that it will gain them more money, more love or more respect. It's all rather sad, to say nothing of counterproductive. Money earned through insincere action is soon wasted on unnecessarily indulgence. Love attained through a false promise is soon lost. Recognition given to an empty gesture is rapidly replaced by criticism.

 

 

 

If there is ever pressure on you to lower a standard or to compromise an important principle, the apparent reward is probably not really worth having.

 

We must accept finite disappointment, but we must never lose infinite hope.  (Martin Luther King)

 

'They' have been making utterances again....

....now they are saying ignorance is bliss.  Well, what a surprise - it's not true. Ignorance is vulnerability. Ignorance is deprivation, despair and depression. It is the inability to recognise precisely what you need, even when it is staring you in the face. Ignorance allows you to be robbed of something precious without even realising. Those who happen to be in the know understand one thing very clearly.

 

 

 

Your ignorance is indeed their bliss.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Friendship is born at the moment when one person says to another: What! You too?  I thought I was the only one.   (C S Lewis)

 

 

There are some who believe...

.....that stability is something you attain through prudence. If you don't rock the boat, they argue, the boat will be less inclined to rock you. (And you know how you are viewed if you do rock the boat from time to time.) 

 

 

But how can you truly hope to create an island of conviction in the ocean of uncertainty? The best you can hope to accomplish is a psychological surfboard that lets you ride the waves of chaos, rather than be continually submerged by them.

 

 

Take chances. When rowing forward, the boat may rock. (Chinese proverb)

Let bygones be bygones....

.....Life's too short for rancour and recrimination. Build bridges, don't burn them. Reach out the hand of reconciliation. Let loose the white dove of peace and tolerance. Be big-hearted and generous. Remember that a grudge is the heaviest thing to hold.  And look a little more forgivingly at that person in the mirror, after all, there but for the grace of God goes you! 

 

 

 

 

Things happen from time to time, we have to learn from them and move on.

 

With courage you will dare to take risks, have the strength to be compassionate, and the wisdom to be humble.  Courage is the foundation of integrity.   (Keshaven Nair)