Only Thing You Can Change Is Yourself

I wanted to change the world

When I was a young man, I wanted to change the world.

I found it was difficult to change the world, so I tried to change my nation.

When I found I couldn't change the nation, I began to focus on my town. I couldn't change the town and as an older man, I tried to change my family.

Now, as an old man, I realize the only thing I can change is myself, and suddenly I realize that if long ago I had changed myself, I could have made an impact on my family. My family and I could have made an impact on our town. Their impact could have changed the nation and I could indeed have changed the world.

Author: unknown monk around 1100 AD

Every hour, I took a break to rest and sharpen my saw

The two lumberjacks

It was the annual lumberjack competition and the final was between an older, experienced lumberjack and a younger, stronger lumberjack. The rule of the competition was quite simply who could fell the most trees in a day was the winner.



The younger lumberjack was full of enthusiasm and went off into the wood and set to work straight away. He worked all through the day and all through the night. As he worked, he could hear the older lumberjack working in another part of the forest and he felt more and more confident with every tree he felled that he would win.



At regular intervals throughout the day, the noise of trees being felled coming from the other part of the forest would stop. The younger lumberjack took heart from this, knowing that this meant the older lumberjack was taking a rest, whereas he could use his superior youth and strength and stamina to keep going.



At the end of the competition, the younger lumberjack felt confident he had won. He looked in front of him at the piles of felled trees that were the result of his superhuman effort.



At the medal ceremony, he stood on the podium confident and expecting to be awarded the prize of champion lumberjack. Next to him stood the older lumberjack who looked surprisingly less exhausted than he felt.



When the results were read out, he was devastated to hear that the older lumberjack had chopped down significantly more trees than he had. He turned to the older lumber jack and said: “How can this be? I heard you take a rest every hour and I worked continuously through the night. What's more, I am stronger and fitter than you old man”.



The older lumberjack turned to him and said: “Every hour, I took a break to rest and sharpen my saw”

a guy who suffered from cancer

There was once a guy who suffered from cancer… a cancer that can’t be treated. He was 18 years old and he could die anytime. All his life, he was stuck in his house being taken cared by his mother. He never went outside but he was sick of staying home and wanted to go out for once.
So he asked his mother and she gave him permission. He walked down his block and found a lot of stores. He passed a CD store and looked through the front door for a second as he walked. He stopped and went back to look into the store. He saw a young girl about his age and he knew it was love at first sight. He opened the door and walked in, not looking at anything else but her. He walked closer and closer until he was finally at the front desk where she sat.

She looked up and asked Can I help you She smiled and he thought it was the most beautiful smile he has ever seen before and wanted to kiss her right there.
He said Uh… Yeah… Umm… I would like to buy a CD. He picked one out and gave her money for it.
Would you like me to wrap it for you she asked, smiling her cute smile again.
He nodded and she went to the back.
She came back with the wrapped CD and gave it to him. He took it and walked out of the store. He went home and from then on, he went to that store everyday and bought a CD, and she wrapped it for him. He took the CD home and put it in his closet. He was still too shy to ask her out and he really wanted to but he couldn’t. His mother found out about this and told him to just ask her.
So the next day, he took all his courage and went to the store. He bought a CD like he did everyday and once again she went to the back of the store and came back with it wrapped. He took it and when she wasn’t looking, he left his phone number on the desk and ran out…
!!!RRRRRING!!!
The mother picked up the phone and said, Hello
It was the girl!!! She asked for the boy and the mother started to cry and said, You don’t know He passed away yesterday…
The line was quiet except for the cries of the boy’s mother.
Later in the day. the mother went into the boy’s room because she wanted to remember him. She thought she would start by looking at his clothes. So she opened the closet. She was face to face with piles and piles and piles of unopened CDs. She was surprised to find all those CDs and she picked one up and sat down on the bed and she started to open one.
Inside, there was a CD and as she took it out of the wrapper, out fell a piece of paper. The mother picked it up and started to read it.
It said Hi… I think U R really cute. Do u wanna go out with me Love, Jacelyn
The mother opened another CD…
Again there was a piece of paper. It said Hi… I think U R really cute. Do u wanna go out with me Love, Jacelyn

True love is an acceptance of all that is

It was a busy morning, approximately 8:30AM, when an elderly gentleman in his 80's, arrived to have stitches removed from his thumb. He stated that he was in a hurry as he had an appointment at 9:00 AM.

As a nurse, I took his vital signs and had him take a seat, knowing it would be over an hour before someone would to able to see him. I saw him looking at his watch and decided, since I was not busy with another patient, I would evaluate his wound.

On exam, it was well healed, so I talked to one of the doctors, got the needed supplies to remove his stitches and redress his wound.

While taking care of his wound, we began to engage in conversation. I asked him if he had another doctor's appointment this morning, as he was in such a hurry.

The elderly gentleman told me no, that he needed to go to the nursing home to eat breakfast with his wife.

I then inquired as to her health. He told me that she had been there for a while and that she was a victim of Alzheimer's as we talked, I asked if she would be upset if he was a bit late. He replied that she no longer knew who he was, that she had not recognized him in five years now.

Note: Alzheimer's destroys brain cells, causing problems with memory, thinking and behavior severe enough to affect work, lifelong hobbies or social life.

I was surprised, and asked him, "And you still go every morning, even though she doesn't know who you are?"

He smiled as he patted my hand and said, "She doesn't know me, but I still know who she is."

I had to hold back tears as he left, I had goose bumps on my arm, and thought, "That is the kind of love I want in my life."

Moral of the Story:

True love is neither physical, nor romantic. True love is an acceptance of all that is, has been, will be and will not be. The happiest people don't necessarily have the best of everything The Map of Luxury; they just make the best of everything they have.

Inspirational stories about helping others

A man was driving his car, when he saw an old lady, stranded on the side of the road. He saw that she needed help. So he stopped his Pontiac near her Mercedes and got out.

He smiled, while he was approaching her, still she was worried, as nobody had stopped for hours. Moreover, he did not look safe, as his appearance was so poor and shabby. He could see, how frightened she was, so he tried to calm her: „ I‘m here to help you, don‘t worry. My name is Bryan Anderson“.

The tire was flat, so he had to crawl under the car. While changing the tire, he got dirty and his hands were hurt.

When the job was done, she asked how much she owed him for his help. Bryan smiled. He said: „If you really want to pay me back, the next time you see someone, who needs help, give that person the needed assistance. And think of me“.

A the same evening, the lady stopped by a small cafe. That place looked dingy. Then she saw a waitress, nearly eight months pregnant, wiping her wet hear with a towel. The waitress had a sweet friendly smile, although she had spent on her feet the whole day.

The lady wondered, how someone, who has so little, can be so kind and giving to a strange. Then she remembered Bryan.

The lady had finished her meal and paid with a hundred dollar bill. The waitress went to get change and when she came back, the lady was gone. She left a note on the napkin: „You don‘t own me anything. Somebody once helped me, just like now I‘m helping you. If you really want to pay me back, do not let this chain of love end with you“. The waitress found four more one hundren bills under the napkin.

That night the waitress came home earlier. She was thinking about the lady and the money she left. She was wondering, how the lady could know, how much she and her husband needed it? Especially now, when the baby will soon arrive. She knew, that her husband worried about that, so she was glad to tell him good news. Then she kissed him and whispered „Now everything will be all right. I love you, Bryan Anderson“.

I Try To Read The Holy Book JustLike You But I Don't Understand it, And What I Do Understand I Forget As Soon As I Close The Book

Each Mrng Grandpa Was Up Early Sitting At The Kitchen Table Reading his religious Holy Book. His Grandson Wanted To Be Just Like Him And Tried To imitate Him in Every Way He Could.One Day The Grandson Asked, "Grandpa! I Try To Read The Holy Book JustLike You But I Don't Understand it, And What I Do Understand I Forget As Soon As I Close The Book.What Good Does Reading The Holy Book do?"The Grandfather Quietly Turned From Putting Coal in The Stove And Replied,"Take This Coal Basket Down To The River And Bring Me Back A Basket Of Water."The Boy Did As He Was Told, But All The Water Leaked Out Before He Got Back To The House.The Grandfather Laughed And Said, "You'll Have To Move A Little Faster Next Time," And SentHim Back To The River With The Basket To Try Again.This Time The Boy Ran Faster, But Again The Basket Was Empty Before He Returned Home.Out Of Breath, He Told His Grandfather That it Was impossible To Carry Water in A Basket, And He Went To Get A Bucket instead.The Old Man Said, "I Don't Want A Bucket Of Water; I Want A Basket Of Water.You're just Not Trying Hard Enough," And He Went Out The Door To Watch The Boy Try Again.At This Point, The Boy Knew it Was impossible, But He Wanted To Show His Grandfather That Even if He Ran As fastAs He Could, The Water Would Leak Out Before He Got Back To The House.The Boy Again Dipped The Basket into River And Ran Hard,But When He Reached His Grandfather The Basket Was Again Empty.Out of Breath, He Said, " See Grandpa, it's Useless!""So you Think it is Useless?" The Old Man Said, "Look At The Basket." " The Boy Looked At The Basket And ForThe first Time Realized That The Basket Was Different.It Had Been Transformed From A Dirty Old Coal Basket And Was Now Clean, inside And Out."Son, That's What Happens When You Read The Holy Book.You Might Not Understand Or Remember Everything, But When You Read it, You Will Be Changed, inside And out".That is the work of Waheguruji and Bani in our lives nd Let us all Clean ourselves .....

Pencil and Eraser

Pencil: I'm sorry.
Eraser: For what? You didn't do anything wrong.
Pencil: I'm sorry, you get hurt because of me. Whenever I made a mistake, you're always there to erase it. But as you make my mistakes vanish, you lose a part of yourself and get smaller and smaller each time.
Eraser: That's true, but I don't really mind. You see, I was made to do this, I was made to help you whenever you do something wrong, even though one day I know I'll be gone. I'm actually happy with my job. So please, stop worrying I hate seeing you sad.

"Our Parents are like the eraser, whereas we children are the pencil. They're always there for their children, cleaning up their mistakes. Sometimes along the way they get hurt and become smaller (older and eventually pass on) Take care of your Parents, treat them with kindness and most especially love them."

paid in full with a glass of milk

A young poor boy who was begging from door to door to feed his hungry stomach, decided he would ask for a meal at d next house. However, he lost his nerve when a lovely young woman opened d door. Instead of a meal, he asked 4 a glass of water, d woman thought he looked hungry, so she brought him a large glass of milk. He drank it slowly, & then asked how much do I owe u? U don't owe me anything, she replied. Mother has taught us never to accept pay for kindness. He said, then I thank u from my heart………………………Years later, that young woman became critically ill, d local doctors were battling because they couldn't cure her, they finally sent her to d big city, where they called specialists 2 study her rare illness. Dr. Howard Kelly was called in for d consultation, when he heard d name of d town where she came from, a strange light filled his eyes. Immediately, he rose & went down the hall of d hospital to her room. He recognized her at once. He went back to d consultation room determined to do his best to save her life. From that day, he gave special attention to that case. After a long struggle, d battle was won! Dr. Kelly requested d business office to pass d final bill to him for approval. He looked at it, then wrote something on d bill. It was sent to her room, d woman feared opening it, for she was sure it might take d rest of her life to pay for it all. Finally she looked, & noticed something was written at d edge of d note, paid in full with a glass of milk. Tears filled her eyes as she immediately remembered....

Every form of kindness u show doesn't bounce, it reproduces itself. Not necessarily before your eyes, but it always does. I've been kind to u by sharing this story with u. So, be kind to share it with others. It is good to be good.
Always be nice for it always comes back to u.
It cost u nothing to be Nice!

There was a farmer in Africa who was happy and content. He was happy because he was content. He was content because he was happy.One day a wise man came to him and told him about the glory of diamonds and the power that goes along with them. The wise man said, “If you had a diamond the size of your thumb, you could have your own city. If you had a diamond the size of your fist, you could probably own your own country.” And then he went away. That night the farmer couldn't sleep. He was unhappy and he was discontent. He was unhappy because he was discontent and discontent because he was unhappy. The next morning he made arrangements to sell off his farm, took care of his family and went in search of diamonds. . He looked all over Africa and couldn't find any. He looked all through Europe and couldn't find any. When he got to Spain, he was emotionally, physically and financially broke. He got so disheartened that he threw himself into the Barcelona River and committed suicide. . Back home, the person who had bought his farm was watering the camels at a stream that ran through the farm. Across the stream, the rays of the morning sun hit a stone and made it sparkle like a rainbow. He thought it would look good on the mantle piece. He picked up the stone and put it in the living room. That afternoon the wise man came and saw the stone sparkling. He asked, “Is Hafiz back?” The new owner said, “No, why do you ask?” The wise man said, “Because that is a diamond. I recognize one when I see one.” . The man said, no, that's just a stone I picked up from the stream. Come, I'll show you. There are many more.” They went and picked some samples and sent them for analysis. Sure enough, the stones were diamonds. They found that the farm was indeed covered with acres and acres of diamonds. What is the moral of this story? There are five morals: 1. When our attitude is right, we realize that we are all walking on acres and acres of diamonds. Opportunity is always under our feet. We don't have to go anywhere. All we need to do is recognize it. 2. The grass on the other side always looks greener. 3. While we are dyeing the grass on the other side, there are others who are dyeing the grass on our side. They would be happy to trade places with us. 4. When people don't know how to recognize opportunity, they complain of noise when it knocks. 5. The same opportunity never knocks twice. The next one may be better or worse, but it is never the same one.

There was a farmer in Africa who was happy and content. He was happy because he was content. He was content because he was happy.One day a wise man came to him and told him about the glory of diamonds and the power that goes along with them. The wise man said, “If you had a diamond the size of your thumb, you could have your own city. If you had a diamond the size of your fist, you could probably own your own country.” And then he went away.

That night the farmer couldn't sleep. He was unhappy and he was discontent. He was unhappy because he was discontent and discontent because he was unhappy. The next morning he made arrangements to sell off his farm, took care of his family and went in search of diamonds.
.
He looked all over Africa and couldn't find any. He looked all through Europe and couldn't find any. When he got to Spain, he was emotionally, physically and financially broke. He got so disheartened that he threw himself into the Barcelona River and committed suicide.
.
Back home, the person who had bought his farm was watering the camels at a stream that ran through the farm. Across the stream, the rays of the morning sun hit a stone and made it sparkle like a rainbow. He thought it would look good on the mantle piece. He picked up the stone and put it in the living room. That afternoon the wise man came and saw the stone sparkling. He asked, “Is Hafiz back?” The new owner said, “No, why do you ask?” The wise man said, “Because that is a diamond. I recognize one when I see one.”
.
The man said, no, that's just a stone I picked up from the stream. Come, I'll show you. There are many more.” They went and picked some samples and sent them for analysis. Sure enough, the stones were diamonds. They found that the farm was indeed covered with acres and acres of diamonds.

What is the moral of this story? There are five morals:

1. When our attitude is right, we realize that we are all walking on acres and acres of diamonds. Opportunity is always under our feet. We don't have to go anywhere. All we need to do is recognize it.

2. The grass on the other side always looks greener.

3. While we are dyeing the grass on the other side, there are others who are dyeing the grass on our side. They would be happy to trade places with us.

4. When people don't know how to recognize opportunity, they complain of noise when it knocks.

5. The same opportunity never knocks twice. The next one may be better or worse, but it is never the same one.

A touching story i received from a friend long ago and now sharing with you.I don't have any idea about the original author

Unconditional Love !!!
I am a mother of three (ages 14, 12, 3) and have recently completed my college degree. The last class I had to take was Sociology. The teacher was absolutely inspiring with the qualities that I wish every human being had been graced with. Her last project of the term was called "Smile". The class was asked to go out and smile at three people and document their reaction.

I am a very friendly person and always smile at everyone and say hello anyway.....so, I thought, this would be a piece of cake (literally).

Soon after we were assigned the project, my husband, youngest son, and I went out to McDonalds, one crisp March morning. It was just our way of sharing special play time with our son.

We were standing in line, waiting to be served, when all of a sudden everyone around us began to back away, and then even my husband did. I did not move an inch...an overwhelming feeling of panic welled up inside of me as I turned to see why they had moved.

As I turned around I smelled a horrible "dirty body" smell...and there standing behind me were two poor homeless men. As I looked down at the short gentleman, close to me, he was "smiling"...his beautiful sky blue eyes were full of God's Light as he searched for acceptance.

He said, "Good day" as he counted the few coins he had been clutching. The second man fumbled with his hands as he stood behind his friend. I realized the second man was mentally deficient and the blue eyed gentle man was his salvation. I held my tears......as I stood there with them.

The young lady at the counter asked him what they wanted. He said, "Coffee is all Miss" because that was all they could afford (to sit in the restaurant and warm up they had to buy something...they just wanted to be warm).

Then I really felt it...the compulsion was so great I almost reached out and embraced the little man with the blue eyes. That is when I noticed all eyes in the restaurant were set on me...judging my every action. I smiled and asked the young lady behind the counter to give me two more breakfast meals on a separate tray. I then walked around the corner to the table that the men had chosen as a resting spot.

I put the tray on the table and laid my hand on the blue eyed gentleman's cold hand. He looked up at me, with tears in his eyes, and said, "Thank you". I leaned over, began to pat his hand and said, "I did not do this for you...God is here working through me to give you hope". I started to cry as I walked away to join my husband and son. When I sat down my husband smiled at me and said, "That is why God gave you to me honey....to give me hope". We held hands for a moment and at that time we knew that only because of the Grace were we able to give .....

We are not church goers but we are believers. That day showed me the pure Light of God's sweet love.

I returned to college, on the last evening of class,with this story in hand. I turned in "my project" and the instructor read it....then she looked up at me and said, "Can I share this?" I slowly nodded as she got the attention of the class. She began to read and that is when I knew that we as human beings (part of God) share this need to heal.

In my own way I had touched the people at McDonalds, my husband, son, instructor, and every soul that shared the classroom on the last night I spent as a college student. I Graduated with one of the biggest lessons I would ever learn....unconditional acceptance......after all....we are here to learn!

The house with the golden windows...

The little girl lived in a small, very simple, poor house on a hill and as she grew she would play in the small garden and as she grew she was able to see over the garden fence and across the valley to a wonderful house high on the hill – and this house had golden windows, so golden and shining that the little girl would dream of how magic it would be to grow up and live in a house with golden windows instead of an ordinary house like hers.


And although she loved her parents and her family, she yearned to live in such a golden house and dreamed all day about how wonderful and exciting it must feel to live there.

When she got to an age where she gained enough skill and sensibility to go outside her garden fence, she asked her mother is she could go for a bike ride outside the gate and down the lane. After pleading with her, her mother finally allowed her to go, insisting that she kept close to the house and didn’t wander too far. The day was beautiful and the little girl knew exactly where she was heading! Down the lane and across the valley, she rode her bike until she got to the gate of the golden house across on the other hill.

As she dismounted her bike and lent it against the gate post, she focused on the path that lead to the house and then on the house itself…and was so disappointed as she realized all the windows were plain and rather dirty, reflecting nothing other than the sad neglect of the house that stood derelict.

So sad she didn’t go any further and turned, heart broken as she remounted her bike … As she glanced up she saw a sight to amaze her…there across the way on her side of the valley was a little house and its windows glistened golden …as the sun shone on her little home.

She realized that she had been living in her golden house and all the love and care she found there was what made her home the ‘golden house’. Everything she dreamed was right there in front of her nose!

SPOKEN WORDS CAN'T BE RETRIEVED

A farmer insulted his neighbor. Realizing his mistake, he went to the preacher to ask for forgiveness. The preacher told him to take a bag of feathers and drop them in the center of town. The farmer did as he was told. Then the preacher asked him to go and collect the feathers and put them back in the bag. The farmer tried but couldn't as the feathers had all blown away. When he returned with the empty bag, the preacher said, "The same thing is true about your words. You dropped them rather easily but you cannot retrieve them, so be very careful in choosing your words."

“Life is full of Imperfect Things

When I was a kid, my Mum liked to make breakfast food for dinner every now and then and I remember one night in particular when she had made breakfast after a long, hard day at work. On that evening so long ago, my Mum placed a plate of eggs, sausage and extremely burnt biscuits in front of my dad. I remember waiting to see if anyone noticed! Yet all my dad did was reach for the biscuit, smile at my Mum and ask me how my day was at school. I don’t remember what I told him that night, but I do remember hearing my Mum apologize to my dad for burning the biscuits. And I ll never forget what he said: “Honey, I love burned biscuits”. “Later that night I went to kiss my Daddy good night and I asked him if he really liked his biscuits burned. He wrapped me in his arms and said, “Your momma put in a long hard day at work today and she is real tired. And besides….. A burnt biscuit never hurt anyone!” “You know, life is full of imperfect things…….And imperfect people. I’m not the best at hardly anything and I forget birthdays and anniversaries just like everyone. What I have learned over the years is that learning to accept each other’s faults and choosing to celebrate each other’s differences is one of the most important key to creating a healthy, growing, and lasting relationship. So…. please pass me a biscuit. And yes, the burnt one will just do fine.



Life is too short to wake up with regrets…. love the people who treat you right and have compassion for the ones who don’t. Enjoy life now – IT HAS AN EXPIRY DATE!!

We ALL need is someone who understands us

A store owner was tacking a sign above his door that read "Puppies For Sale." Signs like that have a way of attracting small children, and sure enough, a little boy appeared under the store owner's sign. "How much are you going to sell the puppies for?" he asked.

The store owner replied, "Anywhere from $30 to $50."

The little boy reached in his pocket and pulled out some change. "I have $2.37," he said. "Can I please look at them?"

The store owner smiled and whistled and out of the kennel came Lady, who ran down the aisle of his store followed by five teeny, tiny balls of fur.

One puppy was lagging considerably behind. Immediately the little boy singled out the lagging, limping puppy and said, "What's wrong with that little dog?"

The store owner explained that the veterinarian had examined the little puppy and had discovered it didn't have a hip socket. It would always limp. It would always be lame.

The little boy became excited. "That is the puppy that I want to buy."

The store owner said, "No, you don't want to buy that little dog. If you really want him, I'll just give him to you."

The little boy got quite upset. He looked straight into the store owner's eyes, pointing his finger, and said, "I don't want you to give him to me. That little dog is worth every bit as much as all the other dogs and I'll pay full price. In fact, I'll give you $2.37 now, and 50 cents a month until I have him paid for."

The store owner countered, "You really don't want to buy this little dog. He is never going to be able to run and jump and play with you like the other puppies."

To his surprise, the little boy reached down and rolled up his pant leg to reveal a badly twisted, crippled left leg supported by a big metal brace. He looked up at the store owner and softly replied, "Well, I don't run so well myself, and the little puppy will need someone who understands!"

We ALL need is someone who understands us!!!