Chicken Soup for the Recovering Soul Daily Inspirations (Chicken Soup for the Soul) (32 page)

Linda S.Day

Flatter me, I may not believe you. Criticize me, I may not like you. Ignore me, I may not forgive you. Encourage me, I will not forget you.

William Arthur Ward

Footnotes for Life

J
ULY
27

T
here is a part of you that is perfect and pure. It is untouched by the less-than-perfect characteristics you have acquired by living in a less-than-perfect world. This part of you is a still and eternal pool. Making time to reach it will bring you untold benefit. Your physical identity is a world of limited thoughts, feelings and roles. It is quite apart from the being of inner peace and power that is your spiritual personality.

Brahma Kumaris
World Spiritual University

You have the key to unlock a direct connection with God–and that key is self-respect.

Brahma Kumaris

Footnotes for Life

J
ULY
28

M
y lungs ached as I climbed what seemed to be a vertical path until three hours later I reached the top. To the east lay the broad expanse of a valley–its emerald lake cradled by the rugged Rockies. But to the west, was one more summit. It seemed impossible to go any farther, but with grueling determination, I climbed on. At the crest I beheld a vista of three glorious valleys, their splendor breathtaking; an image that is forever etched in my memory. In life, never quit when there’s one more summit, the reward at the top is worth every ounce of pain along the way.

Linda Mehus-Barber

In order to succeed we must first believe that we can.

Michael Korda

Footnotes for Life

J
ULY
29

A
ttitude is everything or so it seems. It determines the outcome of what life brings. So never look beyond yourself for answers to your prayers. Instead, look inside your heart, and you will find what you need right there.

Theresa Meehan

Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on Earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude.

W. W. Ziege

Footnotes for Life

J
ULY
30

A
s a child in an alcoholic home, I made decisions impulsively and the results were inconsistency, chaos and unpredictability. I must make choices in my recovery and I must act on them, but I must think before I act. This is not indecisiveness, but rather a disciplined decision to avoid impulsiveness in my behavior. When I try to satisfy my desires without success, I take the time to listen to my inner voice. When I am concerned by what people think, say or do, I pause and decide what I really want. I think before I act and take my thoughts seriously.

Rokelle Lerner

Thought is the blossom; language the bud; action the fruit behind it.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Footnotes for Life

J
ULY
31

E
very few years, I drag out the pine box with brass hinges I made in seventh-grade wood shop. There between my second-grade report card and a poem from a high school girlfriend, are the two photos of Calvin and Allen, friends from long ago. They had so much in common, loving families, doing well in school and in athletics. Another similarity had the greatest impact–both became entangled in the terror of drug addiction. Allen overdosed at twelve and Calvin never saw his twentieth birthday. So, periodically I bring out the box, dust off the photos and hope I’ve learned what I need to prevent history from repeating itself with my two children who mean everything to me.

David R.Wilkins

Good people come to wisdom through failure.

William Saroyan

Footnotes for Life

A
UGUST
1

B
e grateful for what you have at this moment in your life and you will feel a sense of calm. Sit in a quiet place. Write the words, “Today, I am grateful for . . .”, then write what comes to mind. You may be grateful that you have these few moments to sit quietly. You may be grateful for the kind words of a friend or for the life of someone close to you. There are many tangible things to be grateful for that can be easily overlooked: a warm bath, a cool drink, a comfortable chair to sink into. When we practice gratitude, we begin to accept our lives and ourselves. Be good to yourself, practice gratitude.

Barbara Elizabeth Lowell

We need to be grateful for many things that did not happen.

Langenhoven

Footnotes for Life

A
UGUST
2

S
tanding in line at our town post office impatiently waiting for my turn, I noticed a woman struggling to get through the door because she was carrying so many packages. She stood next to me. I noticed that no one volunteered to help her and I was thinking, “I can’t believe these people just don’t want to lose their precious place in line.” A voice inside me told me that I could help–but that I too would lose my place in line. Believing, however, that I am a person who does help, I volunteered to hold some of her packages. Did I learn anything that day? Yes, sometimes to do the right thing you need to get out of line.