Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life. – Berthold Auerbach
This quote reminded me of how dust seems to pile up on everyday things.
Desks, dressers, counters, etc.
Maybe the same thing happens to our souls.
Maybe music really is the way we wash away the dust from our souls.
I sure do feel better after listening to some good music.
Find something you like to listen to and wipe away some dust.
Make it a great day.
Jake
JW – “It is my ambition to say in ten sentences what others say in a whole book.” – Friedrich Nietzsche
JD – Wisdom is knowing when you can’t be wise. – Paul Engle
EB* – Hope is such a bait, it covers any hook. – Oliver Goldsmith
MS – "You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you." – Isaiah 26:3
Hope is such a powerful force.
It can drive us to greatness or without we can wallow in despair.
When we dream of our future, set goals or picture a better tomorrow we are drawn to it.
Our hope in that better future state literally pulls along towards it, making our dreams come true.
Think about your goals and dreams for a minute.
Is there an area where the flame of hope is a little dimmer?
An area where you have let your hopes dwindle and so your progress has slowed?
Rekindle it.
Stoke the flame.
Make it a great day. One filled with hope.
Jake
"Be careful of your thoughts; they may become words at any moment." – Ira Gassen
Our thoughts have a funny way of becoming our actions and our words.
One great way of becoming a happier and more successful person is to start monitoring and controlling your thought patterns.
We should work to look at our thoughts objectively and get rid of the bad and insert the good.
This requires discipline and effort.
It’s much easier to just let our thoughts run off in their usual directions.
A useful technique that I recently read in a book was to actively stop thinking the negative thought and always insert something positive.
Example (imagine saying each line out loud):
I’m never going to be able to ____________.
STOP! That’s not helpful.
You got this.
Just having the mental awareness to stop for a second and insert a positive thought where a negative one was will make a big difference. Create a habit out of it and it will change your life.
Make it a great day.
Jake
The creation of a thousand forests is in one acorn. – Ralph Waldo Emerson
So much possibility lies inside each of us.
Like the acorn we have the possibility to expand and grow beyond ourselves.
Whether it be through our family, friends and relationships or knowledge and ideas we share, we can leave a legacy that goes beyond our wildest dreams.
As you look at what you are doing and working on, is it building a legacy you want to see?
Are you moving towards making the kind of impact you would like to make?
What might you do differently today if you were thinking of your legacy first?
Make it a great day.
Jake
Spread love everywhere you go. Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier. – Mother Teresa
That’s a pretty good life plan, if you ask me.
What if every person you encountered felt loved?
What if 50% of the people you encountered felt loved?
What if a higher percentage than today felt loved?
What if we all moved toward that goal, just a little.
Today, make an effort to make someone leave happier for having spent time with you.
Make it a great day.
Jake
I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear. – Martin Luther King, Jr.
Sometimes a good way to decide which action to take in a given scenario is to think of the opposite.
It’s usually not as obvious as hate vs love. It’s usually a choice between more and less love. More and less selfishness.
But even when choosing between more and less, choices become more obvious.
The key is to take the step back to evaluate the decision based on your values.
And with Valentine’s Day yesterday, I hope we all remember to put love at the top of our lists.
Make it a great day.
Jake
Love doesn’t make the world go ’round. Love is what makes the ride worthwhile. – Franklin P. Jones
In honor of Valentine’s Day (and my Special Valentine) the next few daily attitude emails will center on love.
This quote seemed like a good place to start.
Love and loving relationships are what make everything worth it.
It’s worth the risk of heart break in order love someone.
It’s worth giving up some (or maybe all) of my selfish desires in exchange for a loving relationship for another.
It’s worth being vulnerable in a very real and scary way in order to truly give your heart to someone else.
By loving someone else and focusing on make their ride worthwhile we find meaning and substance in our own life.
Sometimes it hurts. Sometimes it feels like you are on a roller coaster. Sometimes it seems like it will never work out.
But it will and it does. It works out. It makes the ride worthwhile.
Make it a great day.
Jake
JD – The sky is filled with stars, invisible by day. – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
EB* – To err is human, but to really foul things up, you need a computer. – Paul Ehrlick
JW – The course of history shows that as a government grows, liberty decreases. – Thomas Jefferson
MS – Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser: teach a just man, and he will increase in learning. Proverbs 9:9
JR – I do not fear computers. I fear the lack of them. – Isaac Asimov
I like the quote by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow because it shows how easily we can miss simple truths.
I had never really thought about it, but all of those stars are still shining all day long, we just can’t see them.
It makes me wonder what other “hidden stars” might be out there that I am missing.
Those little nice things my wife does for me that I don’t even notice.
That stranger that went out of their way for me even though I didn’t see them.
That co-worker who steps into something that was about to end up on my to do list.
I’m sure there a bunch of those little things (and probably some big ones) happening in my life each day.
I hope my eyes will be opened a little and that my heart will be thankful for those little blessings I don’t even see.
Make it a great day.
Jake
"And my little daughter and I, because of random good luck and the interventions of a few decent people, had been saved." – Edith H. Beer
This line was in a book I recently read called “A Nazi Officer’s Wife”. It is a story of Jewish woman who finds a way to survive during WW II in Germany.
This quote really stood out to me because she credits good luck and a few decent people for her survival.
We all need a little luck sometimes.
The wake up call for me though was the line “the interventions of a few decent people.”
It reminded me that I should be actively working to be that for others.
That I should be taking action (intervening) to help others.
That it only takes a few decent people to make a difference.
Be that decent person in someone’s life today. Intervene in a positive way to help someone else out.
Make it a great day.
Jake
Practical Steps for Friendship, Unity and Intimacy in Your Marriage
The Daily Attitude Email 