YOU WILL RECEIVE A BODY
You may like it or hate it, but it will be yours for the entire period you’re around.

YOU WILL LEARN LESSONS
You are enrolled in a full-time informal school called life. Each day in this school you will have the opportunity to learn lessons. You may like the lessons or think them irrelevant and stupid.

THERE ARE NO MISTAKES, ONLY LESSONS
Growth is a process of trial and error, experimentation. The “Failed” experiments are as much a part of the process as the experiment that ultimately “works”.

A LESSON IS REPEATED UNTIL LEARNED
A lesson will be presented to you in various forms until you have learned it. When you have learned it, you can then go on to the next lesson.

LEARNING LESSONS DOES NOT END
There is no part of life that does not contain its lessons. If you are alive, there are lessons to be learned.

“THERE” IS NO BETTER THAN “HERE”
When your “There” has become a “Here”, you will simply obtain another “There” that will, again, look better than “Here”.

OTHERS ARE MERELY MIRRORS OF YOU
You cannot love or hate something about another person unless it reflects to you something you love or hate about yourself.

WHAT YOU MAKE OF YOUR LIFE IS UP TO YOU
You have all the tools and resources you need. What you do with them is up to you. The choice is yours.

YOUR ANSWERS LIE INSIDE YOU
The answers to life’s questions lie inside you. All you need to do is look, listen and trust.

YOU WILL FORGET ALL THIS
Unless you consistently stay focused on the goals you have set for yourself, everything you’ve just read won’t mean a thing.

Why do we have to part while the love is still there? Why do we have to suffer? Why do we have to cry when somebody bids goodbye? Why do beginnings have an end? Why do we have to meet only to lose in the end?

There are questions left unanswered, words left unsaid, letters left unread, poems left undone, songs left unsung, love left unexpressed, promises left unfulfilled.

In a relationship, one of the hardest things to do is saying goodbye and letting go. It is as hard as breaking a crystal because you’ll never know when you will be able to pick up the pieces again. More often than not, they who go, feel not the pain of parting, it is they who stay behind that suffer, because they are left with memories of a love that was meant to be, a love that was.

At the beginning and at the end of a relationship, we are embarrassed to find ourselves alone. Unfair as it may seem, but that’s the way love goes. That’s the drama, the bittersweet and the risk of falling in love. After all, nothing is constant but change. Everything will eventually come to its end without us knowing when, without us knowing how, without us even knowing why. And we must forget not because we want to but because we have to.

In letting go, sorrows come not as a single spy but in battalion. It seems that everywhere you go, everything you do, every song you hear, every turn of your head, every move of your body, every beat of your heart, every blink of your eye and every breath you take always reminds you of him. It’s like a stab of a knife, a torture in the night. Funny how the whole world becomes depopulated when only one person is missing. Just imagine, there are billions of people on earth and yet it seems you feel lonely and empty without the other.

I don’t know if it’s worth calling an art, but letting go entails special skills sparkled with a considerable space and time. Time heals all wounds but it takes a little push on our part. Acceptance plays a part. Not all love stories end with “…and they live happily ever after.” Sometimes we have to part because of circumstances beyond our control. We have to suffer if it would mean happiness for others. We have to cry to temporarily let go of the pain. Every beginning has its end like every dawn has its dusk. It’s something we can’t control, something we had to live up.

It’s over. That person’s gone. But life has to go on. Goodbye doesn’t always mean forever. There will always be a place and time where questions will be answered, words will be spoken, letters will be read, poems will be recited in the night, songs will be sung in harmony, love will be expressed in solitude and promises will be fulfilled.

Somewhere. Somehow. Someday.

We came off to a fast start,
I never even thought we could go this far
But somehow, in some special way
Our love led us to a secret place…
A place only the two of us knows
But in that place… with you, I feel safe
I always find myself longing…
Longing to touch you and kiss you…
To talk with you, and laugh with you
To hold you… and just be with you
I just wish the whole world would see
I wish the whole world would know
But I guess they’d never understand
You touched my life in the most wonderful way
And I know I’ll never be the same again
Now my days are so much brighter
And my smiles hold more meaning
I started to feel all these different emotions
Even feelings that I’ve never felt before
And you brought them all to me…
Happiness, excitement, fear, pain, worry, even anger
Every emotion made me feel alive
And every emotion became a reason for me to keep on loving you
You came and taught me so many things
I never really understood love before, but now I do
Because you showed it to me in countless ways
And I will always be grateful for that
There are times when my thoughts get all tangled up
I’m faced with a lot of hopes, and what ifs,
Questions that don’t have answers,
And feelings that have no explanations
But in the midst of all these, I do love you
I really, truly, honestly, sincerely do love you
And my song will have no ending…
My love will only know forever…
Just like the song I first heard you sing,
And the first time you held my hand,
And the first time I felt your touch,
And the kiss that assured me what we have is special
I don’t need to understand everything…
I don’t need to make everything right…
All I need to do is look into your eyes…
And look inside me to know
Your love is all I need.

Copyright©2008angel

Two men, both seriously ill, occupied the same hospital room. One man was allowed to sit up in his bed for an hour each afternoon to help drain the fluid from his lungs. His bed was next to the room’s only window.The other man had to spend all his time flat on his back. The men talked for hours on end. They spoke of their wives and families, their homes, their jobs, their involvement in the military service, where they had been on vacation.

Every afternoon when the man in the bed by the window could sit up, he would pass the time by describing to his roommate all the things he could see outside the window. The man in the other bed began to live for those one-hour periods where his world would be broadened and enlivened by all the activity and color of the world outside. The window overlooked a park with a lovely lake. Ducks and swans played on the water while children sailed their model boats.

Young lovers walked arm in arm amidst flowers of every color and a fine view of the city skyline could be seen in the distance. As the man by the window described all this in exquisite detail, the man on the other side of the room would close his eyes and imagine the picturesque scene. One warm afternoon the man by the window described a parade passing by.

Although the other man couldn’t hear the band - he could see it. In his mind’s eye as the gentleman by the window portrayed it with descriptive words. Days and weeks passed. One morning, the day nurse arrived to bring water for their baths only to find the lifeless body of the man by the window, who had died peacefully in his sleep. She was saddened and called the hospital attendants to take the body away. As soon as it seemed appropriate, the other man asked if he could be moved next to the window.

The nurse was happy to make the switch, and after making sure he was comfortable, she left him alone. Slowly, painfully, he propped himself up on one elbow to take his first look at the real world outside. He strained to slowly turn to look out the window beside the bed.

It faced a blank wall. The man asked the nurse what could have compelled his deceased roommate who had described such wonderful things outside this window. The nurse responded that the man was blind and could not even see the wall. She said, “Perhaps he just wanted to encourage you.”

“There is tremendous happiness in making others happy, despite our own situations.”

It was a busy morning, approximately 8:15 am, when an elderly gentleman, in his 80’s, came in to have sutures (stitches) removed from his thumb. He stated that he was in a hurry for an appointment at 9:00am. 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 sutures 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 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 Disease. As we talked, and I finished dressing his wound, I asked if she would be worried 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. 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 arms, and thought, “That is the kind of love I want in my life.”

True love is neither physical, nor romantic. True love is an acceptance of all that is, has been, will be, and will not be.

My boyfriend once asked me why I loved him. I didn’t have a ready answer for him, so I told him, “I don’t know baby. I can’t explain it. All I know is I really do love you”. He said, “Okay”. I bit my lip, and wondered if he was disappointed with my answer. His face showed no sign.

After that, I said to myself, I’ve got to come up with reasons why I love him! I thought of my boyfriend and tried to think what I really loved about him. He’s a great guy. He’s someone everyone will love. He’s popular, and good looking. He has a great smile, the kind that makes you smile back in return when you see him. He’s sense of humor is amazing. He’s friendly and fun to be around. He’s talented and sexy… and sweet and thoughtful…

I’ve tried to come up with a hundred reasons why, and believe me, I was able to come up with around 76 reasons! But when I scanned through what I’ve written, I realized, I’m pretty sure there are other people in this world who have the same qualities as he does… great smile, great personality, good sense of humor… so if it all comes down to this list of “Why do I love him’s”, does it mean that I should love these other people too?

That’s when I realized, love really doesn’t need any reason. It just is. I can’t tell him, “I love you because you’ve got a great smile”. So many people have great smiles, but why HIM? I can’t say I love him just because he has a good heart. A lot of people are kind hearted as well, but why HIM?

I guess it really IS true, love moves in mysterious ways. And I can list a whole bunch of reasons why I love him, but that really doesn’t sum it all up. Doesn’t even come close. Because I know that even if I eliminate the items on my list one by one, I will still love him. And I don’t need a hundred reasons to explain why.

I sent him that list. When he finished reading it, he hugged me and told me, “Thanks baby”. I looked him in the eye, and told him… “Baby, I love you for all those reasons I listed. But you know what, I really don’t need all these to prove anything to you. All I need is what’s inside me to know that I love you and you’re the reason why I’m happy. You are my life. You may share some of these qualities with other people, but for me, you’re one of a kind. The man that I love. And I don’t need a reason for that.”

With that, my boyfriend hugged me again, this time, it was a warmer, more passionate hug… the kind not only felt by the body, but by the heart and soul as well. That was probably one of the most beautiful moments we’ve ever had. And I felt it…indeed, we don’t need reasons to love.

Copyright©2008angel

One day a father of a very wealthy family took his son on a trip to the country with the firm purpose of showing his son how poor people can be. They spent a couple of days and nights on the farm of what would be considered a very poor family.

On their return from their trip, the father asked his son, “How was the trip?” “It was great, Dad.” “Did you see how poor people can be?” the father asked. “Oh Yeah” said the son. “So what did you learn from the trip?” asked the father.

The son answered, “I saw that we have one dog and they had four. We have a pool that reaches to the middle of our garden and they have a creek that has no end. We have imported lanterns in our garden and they have the stars at night. Our patio reaches to the front yard and they have the whole horizon.

We have a small piece of land to live on and they have fields that go beyond our sight. We have servants who serve us, but they serve others. We buy our food, but they grow theirs. We have walls around our property to protect us, they have friends to protect them.”

With this the boy’s father was speechless. Then his son added, “Thanks dad for showing me how poor we are.”

Too many times we forget what we have and concentrate on what we don’t have. What is one person’s worthless object is another’s prize possession. It is all based on one’s perspective. Makes you wonder what would happen if we all gave thanks for all the bounty we have, instead of worrying about wanting more. Take joy in all you have.