Rating Yourself As Friend

A true friend is one who knows all about you and likes you anyway. A friend is someone who helps you up when you're down, and if they can't, they lay down beside you and listen. A friend is one who takes me for what I am. A friend is a hand that is always holding yours, no matter how close or far apart you may be. A friend is someone who is always there and will always, always care. A friend is a feeling of forever in the heart. And if your friend does evil to you, say to him, ''I forgive you for what you did to me, but how can I forgive you for what you did to yourself?'' And the glory of friendship is not the outstretched hand, nor the kindly smile, nor the joy of companionship; it's the spiritual inspiration that comes to one when he discovers that someone else believes in him and is willing to trust him with his friend.

Do you reach out to others rather than always expect that they will call or come to see you? Do you reciprocate? 

“When it hurts to look back, and you're scared to look ahead, you can look beside you and your best friend will be there”

When you meet others, are you open to the possibility that they may become future allies, confidantes, best friends? 

“My best friend is the one who brings out the best in me.” Henry Ford

Do you approach others with an attitude of acceptance and interest? 

“The greatest gift that you can give to others is the gift of unconditional love and acceptance.” Brian Tracy

“Acceptance of others, their looks, their behaviors, their beliefs, bring you an inner peace and tranquility -- instead of anger and resentment”

“When you're a beautiful person on the inside, there is nothing in the world that can change that about you. Jealousy is the result of one's lack of self-confidence, self-worth, and self-acceptance. The Lesson: If you can't accept yourself, then certainly no one else will.”

“Understanding is the first step to acceptance, and only with acceptance can there be recovery.” Joanne Kathleen Rowling

Are you a good listener, or do you claim more than your share of the airtime?

“A good listener tries to understand what the other person is saying. In the end he may disagree sharply, but because he disagrees, he wants to know exactly what it is he is disagreeing with.” Kenneth A. Wells

Do you refuse to become the only nurturer in the relationship?

One of the greatest titles we can have is "old friend". We never appreciate how important old friends are until we are older. The problem is we need to start our old friendships when we are young. We then have to nurture and grow those friendships over our middle age when a busy life and changing geographies can cause us to neglect those friends. Today is the day to invest in those people we hope will call us 'old friend" in the years to come.

“A loving relationship is one in which the loved one is free to be himself -- to laugh with me, but never at me; to cry with me, but never because of me; to love life, to love himself, to love being loved. Such a relationship is based upon freedom and can never grow in a jealous heart.” Leo F. Buscaglia

Relationships-of all kinds-are like sand held in your hand. Held loosely, with an open hand, the sand remains where it is. The minute you close your hand and squeeze tightly to hold on, the sand trickles through your fingers. You may hold onto some of it, but most will be spilled. A relationship is like that. Held loosely, with respect and freedom for the other person, it is likely to remain intact. But hold too tightly, too possessively, and the relationship slips away and is lost.

Are you loyal, and do you guard your friends’ secrets?

“A friend is one with whom you are comfortable, to whom you are loyal, through whom you are blessed, and for whom you are grateful.” William Arthur Ward

Do you practice unsolicited acts of kindness?

Friendship is a living thing that lasts only as long as it is nourished with kindness, empathy and understanding.

Do you live an authentic life based on your values and beliefs?

Living with integrity means: Not settling for less than what you know you deserve

in your relationships. Asking for what you want and need from others. Speaking your truth, even though it might create conflict or tension. Behaving in ways that are in harmony with your personal values. Making choices based on what you believe, and not what others believe.

Can you ask for and grant forgiveness? 

"Forgiveness is the key that unlocks the door of resentment and the handcuffs of hate. It is a power that breaks the chains of bitterness and the shackles of selfishness. Friendship flourishes at the fountain of forgiveness.” William Arthur Ward

Can you listen when a friend tells you that you’ve hurt her, or do you withdraw or get defensive?

A friend is someone who helps you up when you're down, and if they can't, they lay down beside you and listen.

“Friends are helpful not only because they will listen to us, but because they will laugh at us; Through them we learn a little objectivity, a little modesty, a little courtesy; We learn the rules of life and become better players of the game” Will Durant

Do you encourage other people to develop their strengths and graciously help them overcome weakness? 

“Our duty is to encourage every one in his struggle to live up to his own highest idea, and strive at the same time to make the ideal as near as possible to the Truth.” Swami Vivekananda

Other people may be there to help us, teach us, guide us along our path, but the lesson to be learned is always ours.

“It is better to keep a friend from falling than to help him up”

Can you enjoy a friend’s good fortune-whether in marriage, motherhood, or career-even if you aren’t on a parallel track?

Happiness comes of the capacity to feel deeply, to enjoy simply, to think freely, to risk life, to be needed.

“The moments of happiness we enjoy take us by surprise. It is not that we seize them, but that they seize us.” Ashley Montagu

Next Article: How To Be A Good Friend... 

Criticism and Disappointment

“Criticism may not be agreeable, but it is necessary. It fulfils the same function as pain in the human body. It calls attention to an unhealthy state of things.” Winston Churchill

“To bear defeat with dignity, to accept criticism with poise, to receive honors with humility -- these are marks of maturity and graciousness.” William Arthur Ward

Accept criticism and disappointment as part of life and when it comes, stand up, look it in the eye, and say, “you can’t defeat me, I am bigger than you.” You see, size does matter. The bigness of your spirit and the size of your heart often determines how you respond when critical words are said about you and people criticize your accomplishments and failures.

“Burning desire to be or do something gives us staying power - a reason to get up every morning or to pick ourselves up and start in again after a disappointment” Marsha Sinetar

Anytime I am looking to somebody else as my source, I'm coming from scarcity. I am no longer trusting God, or the Universe, for my harvest. It's reasonable for me to have expectations based on what somebody I trust has committed to. And it's natural for me to feel disappointed when that somebody doesn't come through. But when I feel more than disappointment, when I also feel anger, it's because I deviated from my truth. It's because I compromised my truth to get what somebody else promised. Because when I'm really following my truth, I will be at peace with the consequences — whatever they are. I can accept somebody else's truth, but I must live my own truth. And sometimes that means walking away from a relationship.

My friends, rise tall when criticism comes your way. Look it in the eye and say, ‘I am bigger than you, I am going to become better because of this.’

When adversity hits, when you drop the ball, know that you are bigger than the situation. Don’t make the mistake that many have made and shrink/smaller to the size of other people’s opinions, other people’s dreams, other people’s concepts of what you ought to be and do. Rise tall! Realize that you are bigger than the situation. Understand the power of posture/attitude and put yourself above the circumstance, not under it.

Think about those situations in your life that you need to rise above. Consider possible response and estimate what results you will get from them. Surprise your critics by being typical in your response.

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Take A Look At This Photos...

Take a look at these photos....

Also, in case you're wondering where this hotel is, it isn't a hotel at all.   It is a house! 

It's owned by the family of  Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the former president of the United Arab Emirates and ruler of Abu-Dhabi.

 

Click Here for More.....

Take A Look At This Photos...(2)

The Audi A8 in SILVER was made for a sheik....
IT IS NOT SILVER in COLOR, IT IS MADE out of SILVER!!!!!

Amazing what
$2.75 US a gallon
gas can buy,
isn't it?

NOW LOOK THIS  AND THINK !

My great friends let this not come to you as

a surprise,

but it's real

have them living around us and

in our neighborhood today,

we can change it with prayers, and

always lending a helping hand to those in need.
Don't keep this email to yourself,
forward it to your friends, so our friends and all people will

thank God  for food and water that they already have.

This is one more reason

why we have to thank God for the food that

we can have easily…

But in the other hand... ironically,

we still waste the food that we buy.

I feel very GRATEFUL for

what I have today...

We are so Blessed for the wonderful works of

God's hand in our life today,

just think of this....

"I felt very fortunate to live in this part of the world.

I promise I will never waste my food no matter

how bad it can taste and how full I may be.

I promise not to waste water.

I pray that this little boy be alleviated from

his suffering.

I pray that we will be more sensitive towards the suffering

in the world around us and

not be blinded by our own selfish nature and interests.

I hope this picture will always serve as a reminder to us

about how fortunate we are and

that we must never ever take things for granted.

Think & look at this... when you complain about your food and

the food we waste daily..."

MAY ALL HUMAN BEINGS BE FREE FROM SUFFERING!!!!

Please don't break this,

keep on forwarding it to all our friends.

On this good day,

let's make a prayer for the suffering in any place around

the globe and send this friendly reminder to others.

PLEASE,

MY GREAT FRIENDS,

DON'T BREAK THIS CHAIN,

KINDLY SEND IT TO SOMEONE YOU LOVE,

TO ENABLE HIM OR HER SEE WHAT GOD

HAS DONE IN HIS/HER LIFE COMPARED

WITH THESE KIDS' DEPLORABLE

CONDITIONS.

Times To Say "I'm Sorry"

Say Sorry When You Are Wrong.

“To keep your marriage brimming, With love in the loving cup, Whenever you're wrong, admit it; Whenever you're right, shut up” Ogden Nash

“When things go wrong, you'll find they usually go on getting worse for some time; but when things once start going right they often go on getting better and better.”

“Don't dwell on what went wrong. Instead, focus on what to do next. Spend your energies on moving forward toward finding the answer.” Denis Waitley

“Remember not only to say the right thing in the right place, but far more difficult still, to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment.” Benjamin Franklin

Anger is only a natural reaction; one of the mind's ways of reacting to things that it percieves to be wrong. While anger can sometimes lead people to do shocking things,it can also be an instinct to show people that something isn't right.

Say Sorry When You Are Rude.

“You can't be truly rude until you understand good manners.” Rita Mae Brown

The challenge of leadership is to be strong, but not rude; be kind, but not weak; be bold, but not bully; be thoughtful, but not lazy; be humble, but not timid; be proud, but not arrogant; have humor, but without folly.

Say Sorry When You Are Defensive.

Self-discipline, although difficult, and not always easy while combating negative emotions, should be a defensive measure. At least we will be able to prevent the advent of negative conduct dominated by negative emotion. That is 'shila', or moral ethics. Once we develop this by familiarizing ourselves with it, along with mindfulness and conscientiousness, eventually that pattern and way of life will become a part of our own life.

Say Sorry When You Are Impatient.

“He who is not impatient is not in love” Italian Proverb

“Those who will not heed themselves perish. To understand this principle is not to be impatient, not to reproach fate, not to blame others. He who understands the doctrine of self-help blames himself for failure.” Mohandas Gandhi

“A man does not mind being blamed for his faults, and being punished for them, and he patiently suffers much for them; but he becomes impatient if he is required to give them up” Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Say Sorry When You Are Negative.

“If you realized how powerful your thoughts are, you would never think a negative thought.” Peace Pilgrim

“Be vigilant; guard your mind against negative thoughts.” Buddha

“There is little difference in people, but that little difference makes a big difference. The little difference is attitude. The big difference is whether it is positive or negative.” W. Clement Stone

 

“Adopting the right attitude can convert a negative stress into a positive one” Hans Selye

“Never make negative comments or spread rumors about anyone. It depreciates their reputation and yours.” Brian Koslow

“For many, negative thinking is a habit, which over time, becomes an addiction... A lot of people suffer from this disease because negative thinking is addictive to each of the Big Three -- the mind, the body, and the emotions. If one doesn't get you, the others are waiting in the wings.” Peter McWilliams

“You must not allow yourself to dwell for a single moment on any kind of negative thought.” Emmet Fox

“Once our minds are 'tattooed' with negative thinking, our chances for long-term success diminish” John Maxwell

Everyone wants happiness; nobody wants to suffer. Many problems around us are a mental projection of certain negative or unpleasant things. If we analyze our own mental attitude, we may find it quite unbearable. Therefore, a well-balanced mind is very useful and we should try and have a stable mental state.

Thoughts are things; they have tremendous power. Thoughts of doubt and fear are pathways to failure. When you conquer negative attitudes of doubt and fear you conquer failure. Thoughts crystallize into habit and habit solidifies into circumstances.

“Fear is a habit; so is self-pity, defeat, anxiety, despair, hopelessness and resignation. You can eliminate all of these negative habits with two simple resolves: I can!! and I will!!”

Say Sorry When You Are Hurtful.

“A hurtful act is the transference to others of the degradation which we bear in ourselves.” Simone Weil

“Anger, if not restrained, is frequently more hurtful to us than the injury that provokes it” Seneca

“Love comes to those who still hope even though they've been disappointed, to those who still believe even though they've been betrayed, to those who still love even though they've been hurt before.”

Say Sorry When You Are Insensitive.

“It is... axiomatic that we should all think of ourselves as being more sensitive than other people because, when we are insensitive in our dealings with others, we cannot be aware of it at the time: conscious insensitivity is a self-contradiction.” W. H. Auden

“All life demands struggle. Those who have everything given to them become lazy, selfish, and insensitive to the real values of life. The very striving and hard work that we so constantly try to avoid is the major building block in the person we are today.” Ralph Ransom

 
Say Sorry When You Are Forgetful.

“That you may please others you must be forgetful of yourself.”

“But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.” Bible quotes

Say Sorry When You Are Confused or Confusing.
 

“Your intellect may be confused, but your emotions will never lie to you.” Roger Ebert

“Confusing common causes with special causes will only make things worse.” W. Edwards Deming

Say sorry when you have neglected, ignored, or overlooked something important to the one you love.

What if you gave someone a gift, and they neglected to thank you for it - would you be likely to give them another? Life is the same way. In order to attract more of the blessings that life has to offer, you must truly appreciate what you already have.

The TRUTH: It may not lead you to where you thought you were going, but it will always lead you somewhere better. When ignored, it will eventually show itself. The closeness of your relationships is directly proportional to the degree to which you have revealed the truth about yourself. It can be painful.

Say sorry when you have damaged or misused something that is not yours (even if it was an accident).

Say sorry when you have not said "I'm sorry" as sincerely and quickly as the situation needed.

I don't know if I continue, even today, always liking myself. But what I learned to do many years ago was to forgive myself. It is very important for every human being to forgive herself or himself because if you live, you will make mistakes- it is inevitable. But once you do and you see the mistake, then you forgive yourself and say, 'well, if I'd known better I'd have done better,' that's all. So you say to people who you think you may have injured, 'I'm sorry,' and then you say to yourself, 'I'm sorry.' If we all hold on to the mistake, we can't see our own glory in the mirror because we have the mistake between our faces and the mirror; we can't see what we're capable of being. You can ask forgiveness of others, but in the end the real forgiveness is in one's own self. I think that young men and women are so caught by the way they see themselves. Now mind you. When a larger society sees them as unattractive, as threats, as too black or too white or too poor or too fat or too thin or too sexual or too asexual, that's rough. But you can overcome that. The real difficulty is to overcome how you think about yourself. If we don't have that we never grow, we never learn, and sure as hell we should never teach.