a hard life

He did a good job previous life, so he could choose what kind of life the next one would be.

"I want a very difficult life, next one.

One where I would be very confused about who I am, what is my purpose and what should I do.

I want to have people around me posing as friends but be otherwise.

I want to have my life organized about the others so it is difficult to find my own path.

In this way, I am sure I will learn a lot and I will come stronger."

His journey started. He was born as the son of one of the richest people on earth.

the prayer

I used to pray day and night.

Every little second I was thinking of you and I was longing for you and praying.

My prayers were pure prayers: I wanted to know you, I wanted to have you in my life, to have you close.

Day after day, I prayed.

In the morning, at noon and before going to sleep, I prayed.

My life eventually passed and I got to meet you after all.

"What did I do wrong, that you never answered my prayers?" I asked.

"I tried", you said, "but your mind was always working, I could not find a moment of silence to come near you, to talk to you, to give you what you were asking for..."

photo credits

two horses...

... were pulling a heavy wagon full of grains.

One was happy, one was very unhappy.

"What's the matter", the first asked.

"What do you mean?!? We are both pulling this heavy wagons every day. Day after day, sweating for these human beings. The sun is burning our skin and the flies are biting us day and night.

And if now is bad, wait until we get into the autumn and the path will become muddy and the rain will become a daily event.

This life is a miserable one and I wish I died tomorrow... I have no idea how you keep smiling all day long. You have probably lost if from this hard work."

"Well, you might be right. I kind of lost it as I don't know what you are talking about.

It is true we are pulling this heavy wagon, but it is full of grains and part of them will be our daily food now and all through the winter when we'll spend long days without any work.

Also these grains are providing food for the family of our master and for many more. Because of us, lots if people will have what to eat and they will work hard on the fields so we have what to eat and drink as well.

When we get home, our master is calling his children to clean us and play with us. They sometime ride us and their laughs is music in my ears.

Also before going to sleep, our master always come over and checks on us: if we had enough food, water. He is even cleaning after us.

He speaks nice words to us, plays on his flute sometime.

His love for us is so precious that the least I can do is to help him feed his kids and see them grow happy and healthy..."

When I created you...

... I put inside your heart a piece of me. It is an ocean of love in the tiny space of your heart so you have enough to distribute it to the world.

When you come back to me, that is how I am going to see if you did a good job or not, depending on how much of that love you distributed around.

Spread it around and your life will be a beautiful and joyous one.

Keep it to yourself and your life will be miserable and you would have lived in vain...

photo by Romel

The leaf

A leaf was born and for a while all was perfect. Sun rays were falling all day long, the tree was feeding her whenever she needed.

But soon many leaves were born of the tree and our leaf was not that happy anymore. The sun light needed to be shared now and also the food was distributed among maybe others so, while enough, was not plenty like before.

So the leaf started complying:

"Why I am not on the top of the tree? Why do I have to share the light with others? I am a special leaf, I was here first and I should be offered special attention.

Also why do I need the tree? There is nothing special about it. I am the one that nicely moves in the wind and gives the tree its beauty.

I wish I could detach myself from the tree and from all the other useless leaves. Then everybody will see how special I am."

She asked a bird that had the nest in a tree: "I beg of you, please pull me out of the tree and give me the freedom!"

The bird listed to the request and pulled the little leaf and let it be. She travelled for few minutes on the wind but quickly fell on the ground. A rain started and the ground was full of mud. Also lots of people and animals travelled through the area and stepped on it.

The leaf was now even more unhappy: "Only if the people would pay more attention, they will notice what a special leaf I am..."

photo by Anne Davis

he is, she is

He is not smart
She is talking too much
He is too short
She is too tall
He is too thin
She is too fat
He is showing off
She is too quiet

So how was your today? my lord asks me.

Not good, said I.

I wasted yet another day.

Image by Kristina Alexanderson

The cages

Like a mad man, I tried to break the cages around me. Thick, metallic bars are all over.

I push them, I hit them, I throw my body against them.

But in vain. I am hurt, my hands are scratched with blood dripping from my fingers.

Now I am tired. I try no more.

But I realize. As you created me, you created the cages as well. I don't understand why, but I am sure you had a reason.

I abandon my cages, I abandon my life, my thoughts, myself. I give it all to you...

Like magic, the cages disappear, one after another, they dissolve into thin air. So does the pain.

So do I. I am back into the ocean where I started from. I am back to you.

Being back feels so good... and that is only because of the cages.

Photo by John Dalkin

Mount Kailash

Day after day, week after week, the life is passing in total confusion.

Why this, why that? - I ask at every turn. There is no logic whatsoever, no meaning in all this.

Beauty and ugliness, happiness and sorrow, gain and loss, where is this taking me? - I wonder.

So the years pass and so the life does.

Now I am sitting here tired, almost exhausted and I look ahead and I see, not far away, the peak of the mountain Kailash.

I wanted it and longed for it but in my confusion I did not know where it was nor how I could reach it.

And then I look back and I see my life’s long passed events and the zigzagged trail I followed in my confusion and I notice that at each turn I was unknowingly closer to the peak.

And then I see You in front of me showing me the way, pulling my hand without my knowing. In the time of despair I see you behind me helping and pushing me. In the time when I was down I see you carrying me in your arms.

I fold my palms thanking you…

my heart

My lord, how is it that, even if I have everything, I am not happy?

The answer is simple: you are not using the gifts I have bestowed upon you.

What is the gift are you talking about, my lord?

I have gifted you the heart and you are not using it as it should used.

But I did used it to love my parents, my brothers and sisters.

That is true, but not enough.

I love my wife and my children.

A bit better, but still the heart is mostly unused.

My country I love and I try to help the people here.

Yes, that is good. But you know the country is only what people created. God never created countries.

Then teach me how I can use my heart, I beg of you!

I cannot teach you, nor anybody can as it is nothing to be taught.

The heart and the love that flows from is nothing of your doing. I have gifted it to you but it does not belong to you. It is just a fountain through which I can be known in the world. Through your heart and through all the hearts of all the people in the world, I am sending My love.

Lord, then I am offering you my heart. I am offering you my being, I am offering you myself.

Silence came then and my heart became a fountain of divine love, flowing, spreading, reaching everybody. People drenched in it became messengers of the same love.

And then there was nothing left of me that belonged to me.

And then I was happy...



Art by Julie Jensen

beauty is really inside?

Beauty is to be found inside, they say.

Is it?

I looked outside and I saw:

A leaf, a flower, a tree
A field, a hill and a mountain
The wind, the rain and the snow
A cat, a tiger and a lion
A butterfly, a dragonfly, an eagle
Heard the sound of a drum, the music of a piano
The laughter of a child
The smile of his mother looking at him

I looked inside and I saw a river of thoughts
Envy and jealousy and wish for riches
Longing to be appreciated and to be praised
Desire to gossip and many the same

So, I am sticking with the outside for now.

The Voice

I was never good at singing, so I never sang when others could listen.

I loved music though and I envied the singers.

When I met you and you asked me to sing, I was so ashamed, as my voice was not fit for a regular human being, let alone for a king.

You insisted and I sang and true enough I did not sing well.

But you called my brother and asked him to sing.

And he did but his voice, even if way better than mine was not good enough either.

Then you called a sister and another brother and many others and you ask each of them to sing.

Some better, some worse, their voices were not as you would deserve.

Then you did something unexpected: you asked us to sing together.

And we did.

And the result was divine.

And I was not ashamed anymore as I understood.

While we are singing out of tune when alone, we are great together.

And maybe we are not really singing.

Maybe you are?!?

life

Birth
Education
Disintegration
Confusion
Pain

Seeking
Trying
Struggling
Pain

Stretching
Fasting
Pain

Not finding
Not believing
Pain

Not seeking
Renouncing
Praying
Grace
Awakening

Understanding
Accepting
Cleaning
Joy
Loving
More joy
More love
Only joy
Only love

I am what I am

Some say I am not good, regular and maybe not even
But I don't feel bad, nor good, nor proud
I am what I am
A traveller to the peak of the mountain

Some say I am special and look up to me
But I don't feel bad, nor good, nor proud
I am what I am
A traveller to the peak of the mountain

Some ignore me and turn around when I come
But I don't feel bad, nor good, nor proud
I am what I am
A traveller to the peak of the mountain

Some help me and love me and push me ahead
I thank them
But I don't feel bad, nor good, nor proud
I am what I am
A traveller to the peak of the mountain

Some rely on me and their life depends on me
And their trip depends on me
But I don't feel bad, nor good, nor proud
I am what I am
A traveller to the peak of the mountain

Manning Park, BC, 2014

No way

no way
it's gonna be today
if it was
what else?

it's all right

it's all right
if all looks lost
the sparkle inside is not
and it is showing you the way

it's all right
if all looks dark
it's just before dawn

it's all right
if you feel alone
look around
at the trees and flowers and bees
at the wind and rivers and rain
and Mother Earth
they all work for you
and are with you
and love you

it's all right
you are just a piece of light
through the night

Aim of my life

Today I am in good mood
so I am going to look for the purpose of my life

Partying is fun, let's do just that
It works for a while but then the fun is gone

Knowledge is fun
So book after book after book
I read and study and remember
But I realize:
This people did not find the meaning of their life
They are still confused more or less, just like I am.
How can they help me?

Spirituality is the way to go
So I visit churches and temples and saints and teachers
They all know the way, but they are not walking it
But they agree the way is towards You
So I start

Then I ask: "When I am going to find and know You?"
And I hear a laughter
"You can never do that. Your aim in life is not to know Me
but to know you."
"How can I do that?"
"Just walk towards me. The closer you get,
the better you'll know you."

Shri Kalki

At the beginning of the times, God created people as mirrors by which to see Himself.

As a lovely father, He gave them a spark of Himself and put it in their hearts. He called it Spirit.

He created joy, love, friendship, care and many other good feelings and He started teaching them to people.

For that, He sent his messengers, one by one, hundreds of them, as teachers on this earth.

Calling them prophets, incarnations, saints, people got their message, organized it and lost it after a while.

But it was not for nothing, as each time people got a bit closer of knowing themselves.

"This time I will do it differently," God thought. "Instead of sending a teacher, I will make them teachers."

So He came among the people and showed them the spark in their hearts.

He taught them that the spark, this Spirit is who they really are.

Some of them connected with each other in a way they never had before.

They realized they were not that different from each other and that they were all a part of God.

They became one body.

And God called this Kalki.

I don’t get it

I went to school
and I did not get it
I met people and
I still did not get it
Married, had kids and grand kids
I partially got it, but still...
I then met You
And I understood
that understanding
was not the aim
Knowing you
was.
And then
I got it!

after life

"What's gonna be after?" I asked him.

"Close your eyes", said he. And I did.

"Think of the best moments of your life."

I thought of my daughters, how cute they were, how much love they brought and how much better life was with them.

"Now stop thinking", he said.

And I did. All that was left was that feeling, the full of joy heart, the peace, the realization that somehow without understanding anything, it really made sense.

"There..." he said, "that is the heaven we'll go to, if we are good guys..."

birds

photo credit

the oak

painting on the sky

Photo by Saad Faruque

offshore

the shore: waves are furious

offshore: the lake

is peaceful

Happiness is not something you find, it is something you build

Agile programming for families

Chapters funny rules

I went to Chapters to buy Hobbit+Lord of the Rings boxed set which was on sale online for $20.

Price in the store: $40.

I showed them the online price, they couldn't do a price match.

Okay, I said, if these are the rules.

I went back to the computer, went online, order the books for $20, got a $2 discount because I am a member, free shipping and pick up option from the store I have just left...


[edited]

And the nice answer from them:

Dear Dragos Ionel,

Thank you for your feedback regarding online versus in-store book pricing.

We are often asked about the difference in pricing between online and our stores. The differences stem from the different economics of these two channels. We hope that you find the explanation below helpful.

For our online channel, our book pricing is only a small amount above our cost. The economics of online book selling are dependent upon very large volumes to ensure the overall profitability of our business. Despite the challenges, we remain committed to this channel and to providing this service to our customers.

We cannot match our online pricing in our physical stores. The service in our stores is more involved and can be more tailored to an individual shopper. We employ trained and committed staff and maintain a diverse inventory to provide our customers with the most inspiring retail environment in the world for books and life-enriching products and experiences.

It is our policy to provide the best possible pricing in our stores. We offer a discount of 20-30% for a significant number of top-selling books. We also have a large selection of "Bargain Books" at discounts of up to 80% off the list price, providing our customers with tremendous value. There are also numerous in-store sales and promotions throughout the year and most purchases in our store are eligible to collect points through our free plum rewards program for participating members.

When you want the lowest possible price for a book, you can shop online at www.chapters.indigo.ca and choose from over 2 million books available all the time. If you enjoy browsing and more personal service, or need your book immediately, then you may prefer to shop in our stores.

Whether you choose to shop online or in-store – or both – we look forward to offering you unparalleled service and selection at competitive prices.

We thank you for taking the time to provide your feedback and invite you to do so again in the future.

If you require any additional assistance, please contact us.

Thank you for choosing Indigo.

Sincerely,

Tracy
Customer Service Team

Meditation is not a good thing: You are not special anymore

Admit it or not, you and I and all others think we are special people.

During school, at work, in family, even when walking on the street. We are sure we are a special individual.

When you start meditating, your subtle body become cleaner and as a result you start seeing things more of what they are and not of what you think about them.

You know more about you and about others.

You learn how you and others are.

As a result, you understand you are not really a very special person. You are not anymore very smart, handsome, or funny.

You are one person with qualities and defects. Just like any other.

You are just one of the seven billion people on the planet.

You are just a regular person.

Who wants to feel that way?!? Eh?

February twenty-third

when the sun is gone
the warmth stays
forever

Why we can only appreciate someone or a relationship ...

... more only when we can no longer have?

That is because we have no idea about anything. As much as we think we do, we don't.

Say, you walk on a street and you see a BMW. You like it so you tell your friend: "What an awesome car. I wish I had one!" He might say: "You know, Mercedes is a better car, I wish I had a Mercedes car instead."

Now who is right? Of course, none, both are looking at the things from his own perspective.

Say you have a good friend for 20 years. He is your best buddy in the whole world. Then you find out he cheated you with $100. You get so mad that you never speak with him again. "What a crook!" you think. When were you right, 10 minutes ago when you liked your friend or now when you think he is a thief. It is the same person, you know.

Same about memory. Try to describe the person you saw when you came out of the house. Probably you don't even remember him or her. The memory is so weak so when you remember something there is a bigger chance is wrong than right.

And now coming to talk about people or things you don't appreciate until you lose them. The reason is that again you have no idea about anything. All that you have is your image about that particular thing. It is an artificial image, lots of time with no relation with the reality. An image your brain is building using the thoughts as tools. And such bad tools the thoughts are. They can build a monster out of a saint and the other way round.

When we have something, lots of times, out thoughts are making a mess out of him or her. We see the bad habits and we amplify them using our brain.

When we lose somebody, we start to see what we don't have anymore and then the better side of that person or thing comes into mind. And using our continuous though process we build a statue out of it.

Satty

(More Q&A with Satty here. If you have a question, send it over.)

Why do people do things they know will not make them happy?

Satty seemed sad at this question. He said:

"This is a good question. Why, when we know something is wrong we still do it? Not only that, but after we do something and it turns out bad, we do it again.

The reason is simple: people don't know how beautiful they are.

If there is a beautiful painting, let's say a Da Vinci, people come from all the corners of the world to see it. They talk about it, they write books about it, they make movies.

But nobody is amazed at the beauty that he or she is.

Nobody believes anymore in how precious he or she is.

We are just like the small wheels in a watch. Each of huge importance to the correct functioning of the mechanism. One goes slows down, the watch slows down. One stops, the watch stops. The small ones just like the big ones. The one above as the ones below.

Each of us is a beautiful flower but just because we forgot how to look inside we just see us as the result of our actions in the world outside. If we are successful, then we are worthy something. If we are not, then we are worthless.

That is the reason our lives is sometimes so screwed up. We run after shadows and we hit our head on the walls."

"What is the way out?" I asked.

"Simple. Find yourself."

(More Q&A with Satty here. If you have a question, send it over.)

Is the National Lottery manipulated?

If I thought yesterday was cold, then you should see today. When getting out of the house you felt you entered a freezer.

So, again, we skipped the walk in the park and we met for a tea. A hot one to unfreeze those parts of the body that we did not feel anymore after the walk to the tea house.

"So, bring it on", said Satty waiting for the question of the day. He promised to answer one, but only one question per day and so far he kept his word.

"Here it is:

Is the National Lottery manipulated?"

Satty was taking a sip of the hot tea and started laughing at the same time which caused him to choke...

"Ha, ha, ha, this is a good question. The answer is No, it isn't", he said and continued to drink.

"That's it?" I asked.

"Yeah, that's is. You had a question and I gave you an answer. This is what we agreed upon."

I was a bit disappointed to tell you the truth, but, hey, he was right, he gave me the answer...

"So, I'll just have to pray long enough and maybe I will win", I said thinking about the joke he told me the other day.

"That will not help though", he said.

"Yeah, of course, if the lottery is not manipulated, then everything is by chance, a chance that is so slim that you can consider it zero."

"Nothing is by chance", Satty said.

"What do you mean?", I asked. "Everything is by chance. Lottery is by chance: some balls moving into a basket and one being picked out. This is by chance."

"Not really."

"So you are saying that the Lottery IS manipulated?"

"Yes, it is."

"But you've just said that it is not."

"Yes, it is not."

"Making fun of me?"

"Not really. It is manipulated, but not by whom you think, not by people running it, or by the government or by a secret organization."

"By whom then?"

"By a universal law that organizes all in the universe."

"By God you mean."

"This is a simplistic name and it makes you think of a guy with beard running all. It is not that."

"Then?!?"

"Think for a bit. Is the fact that you came here by chance?"

"Not really", I said, "I chose to do that to meet you."

"Exactly. Are the clothes you have on you there by chance? Probably not, you picked them up this morning..."

"Well actually my wife did..." I said smiling.

"Yes and she didn't do it by chance. Is this table here by chance? No, it is not. Is this nice tea nice by chance? Is this building by chance, the road, this city, this country? Of course not, somebody at one point made a decision and as a result these all came to life.

So is everything else. All those things we think are by chance, for example the colour of your eyes, are not really by chance. There is a reason for being so.

We can go further. The moment of your birth is not by chance, nor is the moment of your death. Whom you meet and when you meet, who is your friend, who is you parent, who is you son of daughter. None is by chance.

And to answer your question, as I think this is what you are trying to ask in the first place.

Winning a lottery is not an event that takes place by chance. There is a reason behind it..."

"So you are saying all is predefined and we don't really have free will..."

"He he he, I am not so easily tricked. You have your question today. If you want to talk about the free will, we can. But another day..."

(More Q&A with Satty here.  If you have a question, send it over.)

Will I find the reason of my life?

The weather is getting really cold so instead of a walk in the park, Satty suggested a walk to the McDonald's. I totally agreed as I love the unhealthy Big Mac.

I ordered a Big Mac meal and so did Satty but he asked a Coke without ice. 

"Smart", I said, "with the weather outside I should have done the same."

"Actually the reason I did not order with ice has a more subtle explanation" said Satty, becoming at once serious.

"And what is that?" I asked looking forward to hearing what he had to say. I was totally focused to hear it...

"If you get no ice, you get MORE COKE" said Satty and started laughing.

"Oh man, you are such a charlatan..." said I laughing as well.

"Okay, let's get to the business", he said while devouring the Big Mac.

"Here is the question from Florin:

Will I find the reason of my life before I die?"

"Good one... I will tell you a joke before answering.

There was a guy who everyday prayed to God to make him win the lottery."

"This should be good as I have another question about lottery too...", I said.

"Every night, before going to sleep, with all his focus, he was repeating: Oh, God, please, please, please, make me win the lottery!

That day after day, month after month, year after year, decade after decade.

When he was eighty or so, and while he was praying, the heavens opened and he heard a voice from above: I will make you win the lottery, but please, please, please, buy a ticket!!!"

"Ha, ha, ha" I laughed, "good one, but what on earth does it have to do with finding the reason of one's life?"

"Well, I ask you back: do you search for the meaning of your life? 

Are you doing it every day, every minute, every thought, with every action? 

Is the aim of your life finding the reason of your life? 

If yes, definitely you will find it. 

But if you don't, you are just like the guy in the joke. 

Hoping to get something without doing the work... And this does not work in this case."

(if you have more questions for Satty, send them over)

If I know every inch of the route to perfection...

The weather is getting a bit chilly these days. While there is not too much snow, the wind is blowing a bit so the walk in the park is not as pleasant as it was few days ago.

But still, as promised, Satty agreed to join me for a walk. His warm smile make me forget a bit about the weather.

"I hope you have some a good question for me..."

"I actually have more than one, I got a list to tell you the truth..."

"Then pick one but pick fast before we both freeze to death" said he laughing and walking faster so we can both can get warmer...

"Here is the question", said I.

If I know every inch of the route to perfection like the back of my hand, why am I still not perfect?

He became serious for a second then a big smile came to his face.

"Here is the thing. There are two incorrect topics in your question.

First you don't know every inch of the way to perfection. Not only that, you don't even know about the route to perfection. More, there is not route to perfection. And if there is none, you can't be knowing it.

And the second incorrect item in your question is that you are not perfect. Oh, but you are perfect. And so I am. And so is Ginni who asked the question.

The problem is that we don't know that, we actually forgot about it. We knew it not so long ago when we were small babies and our mind did not start screwing up our life, we were more aware of how perfect we were. And that is why we were happier then.

We are just like a diamond in the mud which does not lose any of its perfection by being in the mud. At the most it gets dirty and hidden. But one day comes when somebody finds the diamond, cleanse it with a bit of water and there you go. The sparkly diamond is known to the world."

"I am a bit confused", said I. "If I am a diamond, how come I don't shine?"

"Because you are deep in the mud. And you need to be found."

"But who is the one who is going to find me and cleanse me so I can be shiny again."

"That is you my friend. You have to search for the real you. Once you do that, you will shine not like a diamond, but like a million diamonds."

"How can I do that?"

"No more questions for today... We agreed to one question per day. And if we stay longer in this cold, none of us will find no diamonds..."

(if you have more questions for Satty, send them over)

Why everyone wants to be happy...

Here is the first question I asked Satty:

"Why everyone wants to be happy when happiness doesn't last? "

Satty laughed...

"This answer is simple. When you are happy you feel good so why wouldn't you like to be happy?!?

Why happiness does not last, that might be an interesting question. But because you did not ask it, I won't answer it."

I could see that he was joking so I also laughed...

"When something has an opposite, you cannot have one without another. You cannot have light without dark, you cannot have heat without cold, you cannot have up without down. And of course, you cannot have happiness without unhappiness. Both are related, both are together.

You cannot be happy forever. After a while, you find a reason to be unhappy even in your happiness...

You might want a happy family, but if you have you might start worrying about loosing it.

You might want lots of money, but if you get them you start being afraid of thieves.

That's how life is...

Nothing one can do can change that"

My friend

While walking in the park some time ago, I met an interesting guy.

We had a nice conversation and he promised he would answer any questions I had, but only for a limited period of time.

He did not tell me when the period will end so he suggested I would make good use of the time and ask questions that would really matter.

For the next little while, the posts will be just that, his answers to my questions.

If you have any question, please send it over. But do only send important ones, questions that might change your life if you found the answer.

His name (a bit of unusual one) is Satty and here are his answers...

Merry Christmas

noisy world

changing into

silent night

End of the world

“What about the end of the world?” I asked my friend.

He laughed and laughed like I never saw somebody laughed before.

“Think of it”, he said. “If you were God and you created so many people in such a beautiful world, would you just destroy them all? Would would wipe out the amazing nature all around. Even if, let’s assume, some people would deserve to be destroyed (but this is debatable as most of the people are bad only out of ignorance) what about the others? What about the little children or the animals and the plants? What bad things did they do?”

“Just close your eye”, my friend said and I did. “Imagine a huge tree, bigger than anything you saw before. A tree with roots spreading over large distances on the earth. The trunk so tall that would go up to the clouds and above. The branches spread all over the sky. Connecting earth and heaven.”

I could see the tree so clear. But I could hardly see its top so tall it was. Its trunk was so wide as I couldn’t figure out how wide. And that tree was really connecting earth and heaven. But he was not far, it was so close...

“Yes that is in you, my friend. The tree is in you, it is part of you. And knowing the tree is the end of our world indeed. But at the same time the beginning of a new one where everyone has access to heaven. Everybody who wants it, that is. And the tree you see is the tree we all have inside. With its help we can reach the heaven.”

"Just like the 'Jack and the beanstalk'", I said.

My friend laughed again. "Yes, exactly like that. Except there is not giant waiting for you up there. Just the treasure..."

***

Here the pictures my daughters drew for me "out of the blue":

30 Days of Gratitude…Are You In?

From Carla White:

Hi! I like you already. Yes, wonderful you. You are taking the time to learn more about being grateful. I get it. I hope you do too. Check it out…

The Challenge

Starting November 1st, I’m challenging everyone to journal 30 days of gratitude. All you have to do is write down five things you’re grateful for each day of November. You can use an old notebook, my app, keep a photo journal with Instagram; it doesn’t matter! Just be sure to write something each day.

The challenge will last until November 30th and anyone can join at anytime. The goal is to have everyone start on November 1st, but some might not discover this challenge until later. That’s cool. Start when you can.

read more on Carla's blog

STOP STEALING DREAMS: Seth Godin at TEDxYouth@BFS

kids

kids are
smarter
wiser
happier

more open

more loving
more forgiving
more friendly

than us

who should learn from whom then

Reward

I worked for the Lord
and, in my ignorance,
I thought of asking a reward.

My Lord laughed at my request:
I created you, I gave you a shelter,
Wife and kids,
Food and water,
Earth, air and sky.

And then we both laughed...

Simple poems - bilingual edition

"Simple poems" is now available in a bilingual edition translated by Uwe David:

My friend

I told my dearest friend
-Come, I’ll show you how to run!
-I don’t want to offend
But running is no fun
I tried it this morning
And ended up in pain
It came out to nothing
Don’t want to try it again

-Let me show you how to fly
You can do it if you try
-Fly?!? What you think I am a bee
No my friend, just give me peace
Up the sky is not for me
Nothing there that I would miss.

-How about a trip to heaven?
Now my friend just looked at me
And he counted up to seven
-You have lost it I can see
Heaven, hell and so alike
They are not, nor here nor there
Better go and take a hike
I’m not going anywhere.

Visit at Wendy's

Being an immigrant and speaking with an accent can give you unexpected adventures sometimes.

I visited Wendy's for the first time alone. It took me around ten minutes to choose something from their menu.

I decided to go with something simple so I have no surprises: "Spicy chicken caesar salad".

I sat in the line and I was happy they were only 3-4 people in front of me. Well, I was happy too early because it took me around 30 minutes to get in front of the line. I have no idea what took so long...

bowling

I went bowling to a new places with a friend.

I asked the guy selling tickets: "how do you pay, by the hour?"

"No", he said, "by the game."

"How long does a game takes usually?" I asked.

"If there are two of you, around 10 minutes."

"Cool", I said, "let's take 3 games because those will take around..."

"Around an hour" said the guy...

Forgiveness

Forgive me lord
For I have sinned

Lord laughed
You don't need my forgiveness
You are like a
Child
Who not aware of
Puddles
Jumps from one
To another

What should I do
Then?
Just take a bath
In the river
And stay away from
The puddles

Life is like a box of chocolates...

...you never know what you gonna get!

Or is it?

Who sows wind reaps storm…

Or does he?

Know thyself…

You will know the truth and that will set you free...

*

Life is like a police investigation. Few facts, maybe a murder or just a simple theft.

Kids are from heaven - now on Kindle

Now on Kindle
read it on out Kindle, iPhone, iPad, iPod or online

sound of silence

(received by email - author unknown)

There once was a farmer who discovered that he had lost his watch in the barn. It was no
ordinary watch because it had sentimental value for him. After searching high and low among
the hay for a long while; he gave up and enlisted the help of a group of children playing
outside the barn.

He promised them that the person who found it would be rewarded.

Hearing this, the children hurried inside the barn, went through and around the entire stack
of hay but still could not find the watch. Just when the farmer was about to give up looking
for his watch, a little boy went up to him and asked to be given another chance.

The farmer looked at him and thought, "Why not? After all, this kid looks sincere enough."

So the farmer sent the little boy back in the barn. After a while the little boy came out with
the watch in his hand! The farmer was both happy and surprised and so he asked the boy how he
succeeded where the rest had failed.

The boy replied, "I did nothing but sit on the ground and listen. In the silence, I heard the
ticking of the watch and just looked for it in that direction."

Kids are from heaven - paperback

and here it is:

"Kids are from heaven" real book. As it is print-on-demand, I had to order it just like everybody else.

One would not believe that half a year of work will result in such a small book :-). I was expecting to have at least 300 pages.

why to write

A friend told me he couldn't write books and what would be the point anyway.

I told it does not matter if you know how to write, to write books (look at me, I said :-) )

To write you need something to be passionate about and be crazy enough to believe you can change the world for the good.

And spend the time writing down how that can happen.

Grammar and style comes after that in importance.

And never think you will be successful (as most probably you will not). With 1 million new books every year, chances to win are similar to those winning a lottery.

He said he will stick to the lottery for now...