THE ROSE PALM

A grandmother and her young granddaughter are walking down a busy city street. They pass by a homeless man. He is sitting against the cold granite wall of a high rise building. The man doesn't have a sign, or a cup for begging; He is busily making roses from palm leaves. There are three roses beside him.

The grandmother stops and asks if she could buy one of the beautiful handmade roses. The homeless man smiles and says, "For you kind Lady, it is free." The grandmother takes out her purse and gives the homeless man $5.

As they walk away, the young girl asks her grandmother, "Why did you give him money? He will probably just buy beer and cigarettes."

The grandmother replies, " My dear, it may be his nature to take the money and buy beer and cigarettes, but it is my nature to help a man in need."

FETCH ANOTHER SORT OF DOCTOR

A powerful monarch called a priest with healing powers to help him with his back ache.

"God will help us," said the holy man. "But first let us understand the reason for these pains. I 

suggest Your Majesty confesses now, for confession makes men face up to their problems, 

and liberates much guilt."

Annoyed at having to think about so many problems, the king said:

"I do not wish to speak of these matters; I need someone who heals without asking questions."

The priest went off and returned half an hour later with another man.

"I believe that words can relieve pain, and help me to discover the right path to a cure," he said.

 But you do not wish to talk, and I cannot help you. This is the man you need:

My friend here is a veterinarian, and does not generally speak to his patients."

MASTER THE FOG!

In 1952, young Florence Chadwick stepped into the waters of the Pacific Ocean off Catalina Island, determined to swim to the shore of mainland California. She had previously been the first woman to swim the English Channel both ways.

The weather was foggy and chilly; she could hardly see the boats accompanying her. Still, she swam for fifteen hours. When she begged to be taken out of the water along the way, her mother, in a boat alongside, told her she was close and that she could make it. Finally, physically and emotionally exhausted, she stopped swimming and was pulled out. It was not until she was on the boat that she discovered the shore was less than half a mile away.

At a news conference the next day she said, “All I could see was the fog.…I think if I could have seen the shore, I would have made it.”

Two months later, Florence got back in the water to try her task once more. This time was different. She swam from Catalina Island to the shore of California in a straight path for twenty six miles. The same thick fog set in, but Florence made it because she said that while she swam, she kept a mental image of the shoreline in her mind. Florence Chadwick became the first woman to swim the Catalina Channel, eclipsing the men’s record by two hours!

She didn’t lose sight of the shore because she focused on that image of the coast in her mind, and in this way, she reached her goal.

Consider Florence Chadwick’s words: “I think if I could have seen the shore, I would have made it.” When a fog rolls over your life, or your business, have the courage to stay the course. If you can visualize your goal, you can make it through the fog.

IT ALL SEEMS SO OBVIOUS

Rabbi Ben Zoma was asked: 

"Who is wise?"

"He who always finds something to learn from others," said the Rabbi.

"Who is strong?"

"The man who is capable of dominating himself," responded the Rabbi.

"Who is wealthy?"

"He who knows the treasure he has: his days and hours of life, which can change everything which goes on around him."

"Who deserves respect?"

"He who respects himself and his neighbor."

"These things are all so obvious," commented one of those present. The Rabbi concluded by saying:

"That is why they are so difficult to observe."

MEMORY

In a very respectable hotel an old fellow in charge of the cloak room had been in the job for years and never bothered to give a ticket when coats were handed over to him.

A reporter got interested in him and asked the manager how the old man was able to keep track of so many courts without dockets.

“Oh, don’t worry about old Ted. He’s been doing that job for years, Never had a complaint,” said the manager.

The reporter decided to put him to the test on the next busy Saturday night. When leaving he asked for his coat and when he received one, he said, “How do you know if this is my coat?”

“I don’t,” replied Ted.

“Then why did you give it to me?” asked the reporter with a hint of triumph.

“Because that’s the coat you gave to me, sir,” said Ted.

COVERING THE SUN WITH ONE'S HAND

A disciple went to Rabbi Nachman of Bratslav:
"I shall not continue with my studies of sacred texts," he said. "I live in a small house with my brothers and parents, and never have the ideal conditions for concentrating on that which is important."

Nachman pointed to the sun and asked his disciple to place his hand over his face, in order to hide it. The disciple obeyed.

"Your hand is small, yet it can completely cover the power, light and majesty of the great sun. In the same way, the small problems manage to give you the excuse you need in order to hinder your progress along your spiritual journey.

"Just as your hand has the power to hide the sun, mediocrity has the power to hide your inner light. Do not blame others for your own incompetence."

WINDOW WATCHING

In a Peanuts comic strip, there is a conversation between Charlie Brown and Lucy. As they look out of the window, Lucy exclaims, “Oh, look at the birds and the trees and flowers and sunshine.” And Charlie says, “I see fingerprints, bugs and smudges.” 

Lucy tells him, “Charlie Brown, don’t you know that windows are for looking through, not at.”
--------------------------------------
Our lives are like windows. We can look through the challenges and see the glory and joy of winning. Or we focus on what is wrong and all we see are our weaknesses, and the bugs, the smudges, the difficulties. When you stand by the window of your life’s challenges, choose to look at your strengths. Don’t focus on your limitations. Don’t look at the fingerprints and the smudges.