Tomorrow, I have a karate tournament. It is in Franconia, New Hampshire. The tournament is called ''the Flight of the Crane Championship. I hope to win a trophy. I will be competing in sparring and forms.
Ashleigh
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"Happiness resides not in possessions, and not in gold, happiness dwells in the soul." That is a quote by Democritus. Democritus was an early philosopher who has two great distinctions. First, and to my great amusement, he was hated by Plato. In fact, Plato disliked him so much that he pushed to have his books burned! Sadly, none of his works have survived to this day. We know of his work only through fragments found and through the works of others. On a more positive note, Democritus is also known as the Father of modern science". You see. he had an atomic theory of the universe that is the first known model to have existed in this fashion.
To get back to his quote, I believe he is correct in pointing out that money and possessions ultimately cannot make you happy. To me, Happiness comes from an inner well being... an ability to appreciate the small, inconsequential things around you, and be content. Have you ever stopped and thought "What makes me happy?" I think it is a good exercise. My daughter did a post a couple weeks ago called 33 Moments Of Happiness... One Year Later. Last year, my daughter and I each did a blog post on the 33 things that made each of us happy. My daughter did an update a couple of weeks ago, but I have been dawdling. Below, is my updated list. I have not looked at my list from last year yet, so it will be interesting to see what difference a year makes. Remember, when it is little things that make you happy, your tastes are likely going to change over time. With that said, in no specific order, are 33 things that make me happy.
This is an interesting perspective- I don't think I've ever looked at life quite like this before! Well- I have; but I constantly find myself placing a tab on death as being the marker for the end of my existence. I do believe that there's SOMETHING after death, possibly an after-life or even an entirely new life- but I also believe that there's a high possibility I won't have a memory of my past life after I die. Therefore; it would essentially be an ending.
But; that isn't what I believe the quote was trying to say. This is a simple motivational quote- that is all. It is there simply to encourage all of us when we get down, and start feeling unworthy. Honestly, I think motivational quotes are some of the best things simply for the vast array of people they help. When I get down, I will find myself reading quotes to relate to them- knowing that I'm not alone in my own suffering and that there is hope to be had is a comforting feeling. This post is going to be kept short; because that's exactly what I intended it to be. I just wanted to make a small gratitude post to the quotes that have helped me and many others countlessly; and furthermore have given me ample writing material and will continue to for years to come. - Maddie "Good habits formed at youth make all the difference." That's a quote by Aristotle. If you do not know who he is, then you should stop reading this blog right now and go look him up. I think you will find his thoughts and writing well worth reading!
To get back to his quote, I must say I agree with it 100%. I honestly try to encourage good habits in my daughters now, while they are young, so that they will have a basis for living a good, productive, healthy interesting life. Would you like a couple of examples? Well, for starters, take this blog. Each day, my daughters are supposed to write a post about any topic they like. I want my daughters to be able to write well, and to be able to express themselves on any topic that they would like. Wishing this for my daughters is not enough. They need to practice this skill while they are young, so that it can come naturally for them later on. Let's face it, nearly every high-paying job out there has some writing involved with it. Lawyers, doctors, engineers, analysts, TV personalities or politicians all need to have the ability to write AND be understood. Entrepreneurs also need to be able to write. Whether it is for marketing, new proposals, or even just for thank you letters to an important client. Having a child write a little something every day just makes a lot of sense! Practicing karate is another thing that I have tried to make a habit for my girls. Training in the martial arts helps kids in so many ways. To start, the training helps them to develop physically, mentally and socially. The workouts are designed to help them to develop strength and stamina. Moreover, large motor skills, such as kicking and punching aid in the development of coordination and balance. Our school has five rules that both the adults and the children are expected to follow. In a nutshell, these are: Effort, Etiquette, Sincerity, Character, and Self Control. I am not going to go into detail about them here. (If anyone is interested, I wrote an article on the Bushido Code. You can read it here, although I used it for a marketing piece for my business at that time.) Suffice it to say that these rules help to develop self-discipline and confidence. I have also found that my daughters' attention spans have increased and their listening skills have improved. Both of my daughters started training at the age of three. Madison, my oldest daughter, is now a second-degree black belt. Training has become a way of life for her. It is a part of her. Ashleigh, is now a purple belt. She is participating in her first full tournament season this year. So far, she has won two trophies. She is optimistic that she will win more trophies this weekend. She has been practicing hard at the dojo and at home. Regardless how she does, I am proud of her. The girls also cultivate their own habits over time. I try to encourage there interest in the things they choose as well. If you have kids, cultivate good habits in them now. As a parent, it is our job to teach them. It is not the school's job... it is yours. Happiness is a habit. Teach your children to develop that habit. Healthy habits help to lead to a happy life. Help your children to develop habits that will serve them well for a lifetime. Today I am going to talk about the handyman. His name is Mr. Joe, he is fixing our door. He took the door out. I was surprised! And he has hung our grandfather clock on the wall. It chimes every 15 minutes and on the hour. Oh, I like it a lot!
Ashleigh I love the relevancy of this quote. It's extremely true and honestly; I've seen far too many examples of those living in the past throughout my life. So many people condemn themselves to a life of bitterness, sadness and depression by leaving themselves wedged in the past and honestly, it hurts to see. It hurts because no one can really help- except for the person themselves.
I personally have come to complete and unabridged terms with my past and everything that has happened in it. I have come to accept the fact the past can't be changed and have taken the sorrows from it as a valuable lesson... even something I can pass on to others to help them. Don't get me wrong, being able to look my own past in the face took me awhile too... but one day, something just clicked in me. It was the strangest feeling- just this clarity and forgiveness and acceptance. I went over everything at lightning speed in my mind and decided that day that I'd take my past and everything I'd learned and use it to help people- turning its once-looming negativity into the silver lining on a dark cloud. Since then, I've been very open with people about my own past, and I try to share my experiences both to give warning (and some relatability) to those around me. Nothing shapes your own future but you and your actions- and not being about to move forward from the future would certainly trap you. There's not much else I can say now; besides I hope that if you are living in the past... you find the clarity needed to break through. - Maddie "To be at ease is better than to be at business. Nothing really belongs to us but time, which even he has who has nothing else." That is a quote by Baltasar Gracian. Baltasar was a Jesuit monk during the 1600's and happened to write one of my favorite books, The Art Of Worldly Wisdom.
The book is a masterpiece made up of about 300 maxims and his thoughts on them, giving advice on how to live fully and advance socially. Although the book was written over 360 years ago, many of its ideas still resonate today. In fact, I gave this book to Madison to read while I was home schooling her, and I plan to do the same with Ashleigh. To get back to the quote, I believe he is just stating the obvious. Even so, I think people have to be reminded of this from time to time. I know I do! Oftentimes, I find myself getting thoroughly engrossed in my work. I do research for a living, and I find the work both challenging and interesting. Still it is my work and NOT my life. Sometimes I need to step back and remind myself of that fact. Otherwise I find more and more of my time working on the computer and not doing things with my family. While it is nice to make enough money to live comfortably, it is not really living if you do not set aside time to actually live! Going forward, think about something you would have liked to have done with your family when you were a kid... and then do it with yours! Life is too short not to make memories. Your children's memories should not just mainly be with their friends! Take the time to get to know your children and do things with them. When I am old and dying, I do not want one of my regrets to be "I wish I had spent more time teaching my children what I found important in life." What is important in life to me ARE my children. And I want them to have as many great experiences with me as they can. No regrets people. We are all given the same amount of time each day. Use that time wisely, and make sure to leave some time each week to make memories for both you and your children. THAT is my meaning of life. The above quote was spoken by Paul McCartney- and I believe it has been taken too far out of context; or even too literally. If you search the quote in google; one of the first few links to pop up is the link for the PETA- along with the quote being on one of their pages. I think the quote is actually a metaphor- not something McCartney was saying to support the better treatment of animals (though if he was; I suppose it'd be all the better).
The metaphor I see in this quote is as follows: If people could see through the walls of slaughterhouses; they would witness how cruelly the animals are treated and how horrible the living conditions are for the animals. In the same sense; if people could see the evil in others; they'd most certainly avoid them and do their best to stray from their paths. In short; I think the quote is stating that circumstances would drastically change in a number of cases if the truth was constantly in the eye of the public for all to see. As for myself? I am not a vegetarian; nor do I ever plan on becoming one... and I like to rely heavily on gut instinct. It rarely serves me wrong. The truth is always right in front of you, at the end of the day- you need to make the choice to see it, and accept it for what it truly is. - Maddie Today I read a new book called ''Hop on Pop''. Mouse, house, small, tall, all ball, wall sound the same. But, the words have different meanings. Day, play, night, and fight, are words I know. Hop on Pop is a silly game. This book tires me.
Ashleigh Today I read a new book called ''Mousekin's Special Day.'' Wake up Mousekin Today is your special day!" Mousekin acted surprised? "What special day? Is it Valentines Day? Or is it another holiday?" asked Mousekin. ''No, No, No''. Just then Papa came in with a gift. Then she knew it was her birthday.
Ashleigh Recently, it has been brought to my attention that the people we call "heroes"
Are in fact, some of the lowliest people you will meet And it blows my mind that we look up to people For little to no reason without actually knowing them They fill a role and therefore we glorify them without reason. The people I am talking about are none other Than our own military The troops we revere and stand by so frequently Looking up to their "bravery" and everything else they tend to be embellished with And we fail to see that some troops are the most twisted people you would ever meet. Now I have a friend who's boyfriend is in the military And I can tell you from speaking to him that he's an honorable guy And honestly I'm happy that she's found someone stable who cares about her But the horror stories she hears from him about his unit Truly make me question the integrity and morals of soldiers in general. Now I know well that not all soldiers are like this And maybe there's a chance my friend's boyfriend is with a really bad unit But to me; the actions of the soldiers within his unit are representative of what most are probably like Let's get into what I'm talking about I'm talking about one hero cheating on his wife. Another hero cheating on his girlfriend. Another hero cheating on his girlfriend while simultaneously sleeping with a married woman with a child. That doesn't sound very heroic, now does it? But this is who we look to to defend our country Those so untrustworthy that they cannot hold their own relationships together But no They are brave They defend our country They have all the morals in the world ... Or do they. We need to stop glorifying people for their occupation choice And more for who they actually are Anyone can become a soldier if they put their mind to it But not everyone can be a good person when they think no one is watching. -- Maddie Okay, I am going to start tonight off with a rather longish quote by Blaise Pascal. Don't worry, although the quote is about a belief in God, I am not going to get all preachy here about any particular religion. No, instead I am going to try and tie them all together.
The quote in question is: "Belief is a wise wager. Granted that faith cannot be proved, what harm will come to you if you gamble on its truth and it proves false? If you gain, you gain all; if you lose, you lose nothing. Wager, then, without hesitation, that He exists." I like the quote. While he speaks of believing in God, he doesn't come right out and tell you which one to believe in. I don't know about you, but I have a tendency to separate my faith from my religion. In essence, I am a consumer of religion. I do go to church and I am catholic. Still I find my faith in God is more internalized and less about something I get in church every Sunday (or at least enough Sundays that it feels like every Sunday... okay, MOST Sundays!). I believe that for me to be true to my faith, I need to live my faith. I don't need a church to do this. I need respect and kindness for others; a kind word, a helping hand... I need to treat people as I want to be treated, and I need to be peaceful above all else. Sure, I have my moments where everything doesn't go as planned. It is part of being human. I don't allow that to shake my belief that there is a higher power than me out there. Marcus Aurelius said it best in my opinion. ""Live a good life. If there are gods and they are just, then they will not care how devout you have been, but will welcome you based on the virtues you have lived by. If there are gods, but unjust, then you should not want to worship them. If there are no gods, then you will be gone, but...will have lived a noble life that will live on in the memories of your loved ones." This is my philosophy. Live a good life and have faith in a higher power. Call it what you will, but to me, it is God. Today I read a new book called ''One Tricky Monkey Up On Top.'' Melissa saw a clown on a train saying ''Help! My circus animals ran away!" "Who belongs in car Number 1?" she asked. One tricky monkey! She found him and then rescued the other animals too. Seals were in car two, lions in three and hippos in four. Finally, she placed elephants in car five.
Ashleigh Today I read a new book called ''A Pocketful of Pets.'' Mike met a mama Kangaroo who wanted to find her little kangaroo so he could take a nap. Mike asked a puppy, a kitten, a duck, two lambs, and four bunnies to help find Little kangaroo. Everyone looks, but no one finds him. They are so tired that they hop into Mama Kangaroo's pouch one by one and go to sleep. Mike and the mama keep walking until they come to the zoo at last. They found Little Kangaroo crying for his mama.
Ashleigh "You are never too old to set another goal, or to dream a new dream." That's a quote by C.S. Lewis. If you haven't heard of old Clive, then it's likely that you at least know one of his greatest works, The Chronicles of Narnia. He was also an Oxford professor, whose best friend was J.R.R. Tolkien.
Anyway, I saw his quote and I knew I had to write about it. You see, his quote is the way I try to live my life! I want to be active my entire life, and the best way to do that is to set goals. I try not to let my age stand in my way from doing anything I want to do. I may have to modify my technique a little bit, but I firmly believe that any goal is achievable if you put enough effort into it. Here are some examples: Iva Barr is 88 years old. This year, for the 35th-consecutive year, she will be running in the London Marathon. In fact, she ran in the first London Marathon ever held, way back in 1981! Want another example? How about Harriette Thompson? She is the oldest person to ever complete a marathon. She ran in the Rock N Roll San Diego Marathon last year. She finished the race in 7 hours and 24 minutes. She is 92. Age didn't stop them from doing what they wanted to do. Nope! They made plans and carried them out, and achieved their goals. There are two types of people in the world. Those that make do, and those that make excuses. When I go to meet my maker, I don't want there to be any excuses! I also don't want there to be any more regrets. If I want to do something, I find a way to do it. And that's it. I don't care if it takes years of practice, or great physical or mental effort. I set the goal, and then look for ways to accomplish it. Here are two examples. I have always wanted to do a head-high spinning back kick (since I joined karate anyway). I think they look cool and are the type of attack that will catch an opponent off guard. The problem was that I did not have the balance, speed or flexibility to do the kick. A few months ago, I started to practice the kick before the Little Ninjas class I help to teach on Mondays and Thursdays. Before each class, I would practice both spinning kicks and sidekicks on the large free-standing bag at the dojo. At first, I was happy if I could hit the bag a solid shot. The more I practiced, the higher I would try to bring my kicks. At this point I can land a spinning back kick at head level whenever I like. Not only that, but I can also land straight kicks, sidekicks and crescent kicks at that same head level. You see, by practicing for accuracy and flexibility, I improved all of my kicks. After achieving the proper height, I started practicing landing the kicks at that height but with full power. I can now knock the bag over with a spinning back kick on demand. The first time I achieved it, I kicked so hard I pulled my hamstring. I kept practicing anyway, and I am proud to say I can knock it over without hurting myself at all. It was around that time that Shihan told me that Hanshi could knock that same bag over with a punch. For those of you who don't know Hanshi Larry Sullivan, he is 62 years old and is in terrific shape. Hanshi means highest rank, and this man deserves the title and all of the respect it entails. In my opinion. Hanshi is in better shape than anyone who takes his classes. He has professional fighters that he trains that cannot beat him in a match. But I digress, when I heard that he could do that, I wanted to be able to do it too. This is a large heavy bag folks, and most people cannot knock it over with a kick, let alone a punch. Well, I started to punch the bag as hard as I could. At first, I could only make the bag tilt, but not fall over. I kept trying though, and eventually I got it! I have knocked it over with a single punch on three occasions now. I still can't knock it over every time I punch it yet, but I eventually want to be able to do it at will. Although none of these goals will ever have a monetary reward for me, they do give me a deep sense of satisfaction. Looking ahead, I am now training to do better deep long-hold push ups. Usually, when I do push ups I do them quickly and do what amounts to either a half or two-third push up. They are quicker and easier when you are facing hundreds of push ups. Lately, Hanshi has been working us on deep. all the way push ups that we then hold for about 30 seconds. In other words, think of dropping downwards to do your push up, and then stop with your chest about 1 inch above the floor and then hold it there like that for 30 seconds. Let me tell you, those types of push ups are brutal! The other day, I made the mistake of mentioning that I hated those push ups. That is the quickest way, in my opinion, of saying that you need help with something. Hanshi was only happy to oblige, and now we are doing some of those types of push ups in many of the classes I go to. I am now up to doing six of those (after doing a full set of normal push ups). My goal is to get to where I can do a full set of 25 of that type of push up. Who cares that I am fifty! A couple of those deep push ups each night before bed will help me to achieve my goal. At this point, I am thinking I will be able to do it by Christmas. Yikes! At any rate, do not let your age be the deciding factor in what you do or do not want to do. If it is not impossible, you can achieve it, if you want it bad enough and you are willing to work towards doing it every day. You are only here once, folks. Make the most of it! At the end of the day, it is what it is.
Life goes on. The past cannot be changed. The choices you make in a day will remain the next day. You can't alter things just because you don't like the outcome. It is what it is. At the end of the day, your actions have consequences. Consequences that were predetermined by the choices you made. You can't always beg yourself out of trouble- It is what it is Accept it. Thus it is my philosophy to do what I feel is right To live by my own principles, to live happily Because time is short The past cannot be regained And the consequence of living is death. We all die at some point; and so if you're going to die anyway- Why not have fun with the time you're given? You're the one dying for your own life, anyway. So why not do as you please; within reason? Serve yourself before you serve anyone else Do as you would want done unto you Don't be the causal point of distress Let peace be active in your life. Remember- Each action has a consequence Whether good or bad Don't let the consequence for your life Become negative. Because at the end of the day It is what it is And it cannot be taken back. -- Maddie Today I read a new book called ''Here We Go 'Round The Year.'' January brings lots of snow for sledding and my birthday. February is for ice skating. March brings wind to fly Kites. April brings rain to make mud pies. May brings flowers you can pick. June is the time to have picnics. July brings parades. August is for playing in the pool. September brings school. October brings leaves you can play in. November brings mitten's, and cold weather. December brings sleigh rides.
Ashleigh "Happiness is about stringing together a bunch of small pleasures." That's a quote by Ann Brashares. Call me base, but I must say that when I first read her name all I could think of was some woman sharing her bra with someone. "Ah, I forgot you were going out tonight! Here, you better take this." (as she removes her bra and hands it to the lady next to her! Okay, like I said, sometimes my sense of humor is a weird one!
At any rate, the story gets better! I looked up Ann Brashares and it turns out that she is about my age and kinda cute. She is also best known for her young-adult fiction series The Sisterhood Of The Traveling Pants! So now, not only am I thinking of her lending out her bras, but I'm thinking of her traveling pants too! Anyway, to get back to the quote, it kind of reminds me about what I was saying in yesterday's post. I look for the little things in my life to drive my happiness. This quote really just confirms what I was saying yesterday. Small pleasures are more likely to occur frequently. Thus if you can recognize the little things that can make you happy, you'll be happier than if you only wait for the larger things to happen. For instance, my little thought about Brashares gave me a modicum of happiness tonight. I am always thinking, and oftentimes I find humor in the things I see and read. Thinking about the odd things you see and read about is a great way to experience happiness. Even if what you are thinking isn't funny to anyone else but yourself, if you got a smile from it, then it was worth the thought. That's it for tonight folks. I think I did this topic more justice last night than I did tonight, so you may want to go read yesterday's post. If the lady's name wasn't Brashares, then I likely would have let that quote slide by tonight since I don't like to overwrite on any one topic. But, the vision I had of one large breasted woman lending her bra to another woman just made me chuckle and want to share the thought with you. Good night all! Today I read a new book called ''A Color Clown Comes to Town.'' Color Clown paints with Laura. They paint a truck blue, and a steam shovel, yellow and a fire engine, red. Color Clown can do tricks, like stand on his head. He can also mix tow colors together to make different colors. He mixes yellow and red to make orange, and blue and red to make purple.
Ashleigh Today I read a new book called ''The Bears Upstairs''. Katie sees bears , lots, and lots of bears. She made a boat, out of chairs, a plane, out of chairs, a train, out of chairs, and a bus out of chairs. The chairs fell, and the bears had boo boos all over. Katie ran down the stairs and cut some pears. She made a bed out of chairs and put the bears to bed and said ''Good night''.
Ashleigh |
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