"Never lie, steal, cheat, or drink. But if you must lie, lie in the arms of the one you love. If you must steal, steal away from bad company. If you must cheat, cheat death. And if you must drink, drink in the moments that take your breath away."

Karate Lessons

Lessons Learned on this trip

Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Some stay for awhile and leave footprints on our hearts. And we are never, ever the same.--

There comes a time when you must stand alone.
Karate philosophy teaches us this.
You must feel confident enough within ourself to follow your own dreams.
You must be willing to make sacrifices.
You must be capable of changing and rearranging your priorities so that your final goal can be achieved. Sometimes, familiarity and comfort need to be challenged. There are times when you must take a few extra chances and create your own realities. Be strong enough to at least try to make your life better. Be confident enough that you won't settle for a compromise just to get by. Appreciate yourself by allowing yourself the opportunities to grow, develop, and find your true sense of purpose in this life. Don't stand in someone else's shadow when it's your sunlight that should lead the way.
Work hard at what you like to do and try to overcome all obstacles. Laugh at your mistakes and praise yourself for learning from them. Appreciate the beauty of nature. Say hello to strangers and enjoy the people you know Don’t be afraid to show your emotions laughing and crying make you feel better. Love your friends and family with your entire being they are the most important part of your life. Feel the calmness on a quiet sunny day. Find a rainbow and live your world of dreams always remember life is better than it seems

I've learned to be thankful

Karate is an ever learning experience. Be thankful that you don't already have everything you desire. If you did, what would there be to look forward to? Be thankful when you don't know something, for it gives you the opportunity to learn. Be thankful for the difficult times. During those times you grow. Be thankful for your limitations, because they give you opportunities for improvement. Be thankful for your mistakes. They will teach you valuable lessons. Be thankful when you're tired and weary, because it means you've made a difference. It's easy to be thankful for the good things. A life of rich fulfillment comes to those who are also thankful for the setbacks. Find a way to be thankful for your troubles, and they can become your blessings.
I now appreciate Past, and also learned to let go of it with love.
It is easy to be negative about past mistakes and unhappiness. But it is much more healing to look at ourselves and our past in the light of experience, acceptance, and growth. Our past is a series of lessons that advance us to higher levels of living and loving. The relationships we entered, stayed in, or ended taught us necessary lessons. Some of us have emerged from the most painful circumstances with strong insights about who we are and what we want. Our mistakes, our frustrations, our failures, and sometimes stumbling attempts at growth and progress all were necessary for the process of growth. Each step of the way, we learned. We went through exactly the experiences we need to, to become who we are today. Each step of the way, we progressed. Is our past a mistake? No. The only mistake we can make is mistaking that for the truth.

I have meditated & prayed on the following

-Today, God, help me let go of negative thoughts I may be harboring about my past circumstances or relationships. I can accept, with gratitude, all that has brought me to today.-

A Lesson in Life

Everything happens for a reason. Nothing happens by chance or by means of good or bad luck. Illness, injury, love, lost moments of true greatness and sheer stupidity all occur to test the limits of your soul. Without these small tests, if they be events, illnesses or relationships, life would be like a smoothly paved, straight, flat road to nowhere. If someone hurts you, betrays you, or breaks your heart, forgive them. For they have helped you learn about trust and the importance of being cautious to who you open your heart to. If someone loves you, love them back unconditionally, not only because they love you, but because they are teaching you to love and opening your heart and eyes to things you would have never seen or felt without them. Make every day count. Appreciate every moment and take from it everything that you possibly can, for you may never be able to experience it again. Talks to people you have never talked to before, and actually listen. Hold your head up because you have every right to. Tell yourself you are a great individual and believe in yourself, for if you don't believe in yourself, no one else will believe in you either.You can make of your life anything you wish. Create your own life and then go out and live it.

A friend is one who knows us, but loves us anyway. --

Fr. Jerome Cummings

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“What you need to know about the past is that no matter what has happened, it has all worked together to bring you to this very moment. And this is the moment you can choose to make everything new. Right now.”

More Sights & Sounds

EVERYTHING IS A JOURNEY

Places "The walking man"

"The rhythm of walking generates a kind of rhythm of thinking, and the passage through a landscape echoes or stimulates the passage through a series of thoughts. This creates an odd consonance between internal and external passage, one that suggests that the mind is also a landscape of sorts and that walking is one way to traverse it. A new thought often seems like a feature of the landscape that was there all along, as though thinking were traveling rather than making."

Moving in silent desperation
Keeping an eye on the Holy Land
A hypothetical destination
Say, who is this walking man?
Well, the leaves have come to turning
And the goose has gone to fly
And bridges are for buning
So don`t you let that yearning Pass you by
Walking man, walking man walks
Well, any other man stops and talks
But the walking man walks
Well the frost is on the pumpkin
And the hay is in the barn
An Pappy`s come to rambling on
Stumbling around drunk Down on the farm
And the walking man walks
Doesn`t know nothing at all
Any other man stops and talks
But the walking man walks on by
Walk on by
Most everybody`s got seed to sow
It ain`t always easy for a weed to grow, oh no
So he don`t hoe the row for no one
Oh for sure he`s always missing
And something is never quite right
Ah, but who would want to listen to you
Kissing his existence good night
Walking man walk on by my door
Well, any other man stops and talks
But not the walking man
He`s the walking man
Born to walkWalk on walking man
Well now, would he have wings to fly
Would he be free
Golden wings against the sky
Walking man, walk on by
So long, walking man, so long

Expectations

Expectations

the act or the state of expecting: to wait in expectation.

the act or state of looking forward or anticipating.

an expectant mental attitude: a high pitch of expectation.

something expected; a thing looked forward to.

Often, expectations. a prospect of future good or profit: to have great expectations.

the degree of probability that something will occur: There is little expectation that he will come.

the state of being expected: a large sum of money in expectation.

Tell me your thoughts on this

SUNSET

Softly the evening came. The sun from the western horizon Like a magician extended his golden want o'er the landscape; Trinkling vapors arose; and sky and water and forest Seemed all on fire at the touch, and melted and mingled together.

Author: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow