Welcome to Mirth and Motivation!
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Motivation Mondays: Wonderfully Made
“There are still so many questions to answer about the workings of the human body and, most mysterious of all, it is influenced by our state of mind.” Craig Venter
Motivation Mondays: Wonderfully Made
If any thing is sacred, the human body is sacred. Walt Whitman
In order to experience everyday spirituality, we need to remember that we are spiritual beings spending some time in a human body. Barbara De Angelis
Did you know that to be born in a human body is a 1 in 400 trillion gift of life? The sheer combination of factors and scientific engineering that it takes to create a human life is mind-boggling. If we stop to take stock of every single action, muscles, connective tissue, mental and physical energy coursing through our bodies, we’d be impressed. Each of us is a masterpiece wonderfully made and we need to remember that with gratitude for the life we have. When we are able to pause and value our life, we will grasp the importance of valuing others lives too. We come into the world with a unique set of gifts, and we use them to make a difference in the lives of our friends, families and strangers. When we operate from a place of awe and gratitude for the gifts we have, we work at using them in the best possible way to uplift others and the world. How? When we perform our duties with pride and commitment, we elevate all around us and that energy continues to ripple out to the world. It is our responsibility to serve with passion and compassion and all of us can do our part.
READ: 100 Very Cool Facts About The Human Body
Amazing facts you didn’t know about the human body!
Fearfully And Wonderfully Made! by Melissa Muchemwa
You are flowery beautiful
and kindly cheerful.
you do your own thing;
and you are your own song
You got your own style
and your own smile.
You are absolutely Unique
Everyday of the week.
“The body politic, as well as the human body, begins to die as soon as it is born, and carries itself the causes of its destruction.” Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Motivation Mondays: Wonderfully Made
Success makes so many people hate you. I wish it wasn’t that way. It would be wonderful to enjoy success without seeing envy in the eyes of those around you. Marilyn Monroe
Being the richest man in the cemetery doesn’t matter to me. Going to bed at night saying we’ve done something wonderful, that’s what matters to me. Steve Jobs
Why is there so much hate in our world? Recently, a friend shared a message with me that someone sent her. It was from a member of an online group I’m in. It was so hateful and ugly that it made no sense to me why anyone who feels that way about me or another person online would choose to be around me or that person. Why poison yourself with such hypocrisy? Why pretend to be a team player when you are a hater? Why wallow in all that hate over Twitter shares? We are all fearfully and wonderfully made yet, some can’t let the hate go. The saddest part is that these petty hatreds can grow into monsters. Soon, the person starts to imagine things the other person never ever thought of doing or thinking, and then, the hatred escalates into something else. Let it go. We are all here on this earth to learn and grow. We all have our fault-lines and that is what humanizes us. Compassion and direct communication can clear the air. Try that first and see how freeing it can be. If it doesn’t work, remove yourself from the situation. Don’t become a troll. We are all guests on this planet and the best guests remember to be grateful and principled. We live and we die by our principles…
READ: 100 Amazing Facts About the Human Body
Human Body: 30 Unbelievable facts about human body
The Summer Day by Mary Oliver
Who made the world?
Who made the swan, and the black bear?
Who made the grasshopper?
This grasshopper, I mean–
the one who has flung herself out of the grass,
the one who is eating sugar out of my hand,
who is moving her jaws back and forth instead of up and down —
who is gazing around with her enormous and complicated eyes.
Now she lifts her pale forearms and thoroughly washes her face.
Now she snaps her wings open, and floats away.
I don’t know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn’t everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
With your one wild and precious life?
The details for Motivation Mondays are below. Join in! The themes for APR 2018/MAY 2018 are:
05/06 – 01 May Day, 03, National Day of Prayer, 03 World Press Freedom Day, 04 Star Wars, 05 Cinco De Mayo
05/13 – 13 HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY, 16 Ramadan starts, 19 Armed Forces Day,
05/20 – 20 Pentecost Day, 23 World Turtle Day, 24 National Brother Day
05/27 – 28 Memorial Day, 30 World MS Day, 31 World No Tobacco Day
06/03 – 05 World Environment Day, 06, D Day, 08 National Best Friend Day,
06/10 – 13 St Anthony, 15 Eid al-Fitr,
06/17 – 17 Father’s Day, 18 Int’l. Picnic Day, MTV Movie Awards 19 Juneteenth, 20 World Refugee Day, 21 Summer Solstice, Int’l. Yoga Day, World Music Day
06/24 – 24 St John the Baptist, 26 Day against Drug Abuse/Illicit Trafficking
Are You Looking for Ways to Stay Creative in 2018?
– Join the Daily Post Post-a-day or Post-a-week Challenge.
— Join the BlogHer Writing Lab
More Below! Read more…
Motivation Mondays: Honoring Father’s Day
“Dad, your guiding hand on my shoulder will remain with me forever.” ~Anon
Motivation Mondays: Honoring Father’s Day
My father used to say that it’s never too late to do anything you wanted to do. And he said, ‘You never know what you can accomplish until you try.’ Michael Jordan
Anyone can be a father, but it takes someone special to be a dad, and that’s why I call you dad, because you are so special to me. You taught me the game and you taught me how to play it right. Wade Boggs
Happy Father’s Day: Over the years, I’ve shared memories of my own father and how much I cherished his presence in my life and, after his death, his absence in my life. Today, I want to share some poems and later share some thoughts on the subject. As Father’s Day approaches, on June 17, I am sure you have your own memories to share. How would you like to honor your Dad? What do you treasure about your relationship? What remains unresolved?
READ: Amidst the Deluge: Abundant Love for Father’s Day 2009
On Father’s Day: The Gift of Wisdom 2010
On Father’s Day: Memories of Love Lost & Found… 2011
Do not go gentle into that good night by Dylan Thomas, 1914 – 1953
Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.And you, my father, there on the sad height,
Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
“He didn’t tell me how to live; he lived, and let me watch him do it.” Clarence Budington Kelland
Motivation Mondays: Honoring Father’s Day
Blessed indeed is the man who hears many gentle voices calling him father! Lydia M. Child
I cannot think of any need in childhood as strong as the need for a father’s protection. Rumi
Waiting for Loved Ones: Some of the memories I hold dear are of waiting for my Dad to return from one of his business trips abroad. Teitman’s poem below reminds me of how often we waited for him to return from another country. My anticipation had as much to do with seeing him as it did receiving a gift from some far flung place he visited on his journey. He didn’t disappoint; he’d bring us clothes, shoes or treats and, on one occasion, I got a beautiful watch with a red leather strap. All his gifts were treasured, enjoyed and parceled away in our brains, surfacing at odd moments to remind us of him. The greater gift was his wisdom, filled pithy words of advice that seeped like precious oil through our brains and into our lives… For that, I thank you Dad… and like Bogle’s poem affirms at the end, I’m glad you were mine.
READ: Inspiration: Happy Father’s Day… 2012
Remembrance: Happy Father’s Day 2014
Happy Father’s Day & International Yoga Day: 20 Things That Matter 2015
Father’s Day By Mary Frances Bogle
Over the years
As we grow old,
We remember our father
So brave and bold.In the garden,
Leaning on the plow,
He would listen to me;
I see him now.He would give advice
And understand;
He was always there
To lend a hand.God made fathers
Strong and firm,
For he knew our lives
Would have great concerns.So he gave us fathers
To teach us to pray,
And guide our lives,
And show us the way.So on his day
Let’s take the time
To say “Thanks, dad.
I’m glad you’re mine.”
Another Country by Ryan Teitman
The days unfold
like maps. Fresh dirt
in the garden, black
as cake, grows warm.The roses perform
a silent recital,
each playing its part
from memory. I waitfor my father the way
men wait for a train.
I wait for my father
the way a dancerwaits for music.
My mother is a curtain
in the window.
She calls me into fit my shadow
for a suit. I keep still
as she pinches the tape
around its wrist.Around her neck
my mother’s pearls
clink like teeth.
Your shadow growsfaster than you do,
she says. She says
that waiting is
a kind of dancing.At night I dance
with the stillness.
My blood waits
behind my chestlike a man behind
a locked door.
My father waits
in another country.
The details for Motivation Mondays are below. Join in! The themes for APR 2018/MAY 2018 are:
05/06 – 01 May Day, 03, National Day of Prayer, 03 World Press Freedom Day, 04 Star Wars, 05 Cinco De Mayo
05/13 – 13 HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY, 16 Ramadan starts, 19 Armed Forces Day,
05/20 – 20 Pentecost Day, 23 World Turtle Day, 24 National Brother Day
05/27 – 28 Memorial Day, 30 World MS Day, 31 World No Tobacco Day
06/03 – 05 World Environment Day, 06, D Day, 08 National Best Friend Day,
06/10 – 13 St Anthony, 15 Eid al-Fitr,
06/17 – 17 Father’s Day, 18 Int’l. Picnic Day, MTV Movie Awards 19 Juneteenth, 20 World Refugee Day, 21 Summer Solstice, Int’l. Yoga Day, World Music Day
06/24 – 24 St John the Baptist, 26 Day against Drug Abuse/Illicit Trafficking
Are You Looking for Ways to Stay Creative in 2018?
– Join the Daily Post Post-a-day or Post-a-week Challenge.
— Join the BlogHer Writing Lab
More Below! Read more…
Photo Challenge: CELEBRATE LIFE
“The more you praise and celebrate your life, the more there is in life to celebrate.” Oprah Winfrey
Photo Challenge: CELEBRATE LIFE
A simple celebration, a gathering of friends; here is wishing you great happiness, a joy that never ends. Zahid Abas
I’m a really, really optimistic and really, really positive person. My main thing is, ‘Enjoy life. Celebrate life.’ Luke Bryan
Each day holds a surprise. But only if we expect it can we see, hear, or feel it when it comes to us. Let’s not be afraid to receive each day’s surprise, whether it comes to us as sorrow or as joy It will open a new place in our hearts, a place where we can welcome new friends and celebrate more fully our shared humanity. Henri Nouwen
Life is a Celebration, don’t let it pass you by. As promised, I’m continuing the photo challenges by looking through the 2013 archives. I was quite sick that year and spent time in and out of the hospital so it holds special meaning to me. Thank God I’m better now. The theme for June 7 2013 was Fleeting which is quite appropriate for the photos and thoughts I’m sharing here. Life is so fleeting that we should celebrate each moment we spend here and rejoice for every breath we take. So many of us wait and wait for all sorts of reasons; retirement, happiness, love, money and on and on … we forget to celebrate the good we have now. Please go out and join your friends and family and celebrate the life you have. It is precious. Today, June 7, is Prince Roger Nelson’s and Swae Lee’s birthday. I love their music and creative spirit so I’m sharing their music with you. It’s also Susannah’s special day. She is a colleague and yoga enthusiast so I wish her much love too. Wish them and everyone you know a very Happy Birthday!❤
UPDATE: Happy June 8th Birthday blessings to one of my best friends, Diahann, to Kanye West and the hugely funny Joan Rivers.❤
“The most beautiful things are not associated with money; they are memories and moments. If you don’t celebrate those, they can pass you by.” Alek Wek
Photo Challenge: CELEBRATE LIFE
There is no success you can celebrate more than the success of a brother. Diego Luna
Celebrate life in all its glory – challenge yourself to let the routine sing, and the new dance. Maximillian Degenerez
We all have life storms, and when we get the rough times and we recover from them, we should celebrate that we got through it. No matter how bad it may seem, there’s always something beautiful that you can find. Mattie Stepanek
Time is fleeting. What are you waiting for? If not now, when? We often waste time on petty BS that we miss the special moments we can spend wishing each other well. Lift each other up. Power glide into your life and enjoy what you have. I think it is very important to celebrate your struggles, failures, and successes every day. Why? Because our struggles remind us to keep the faith. Our failures remind us to stay humble, and our successes inspire us and remind us to spread the joy and share our largess. Please lets all stop and show love to ourselves and others… and remember that even when the grass looks greener on the other side, envy is stupid, everyone is struggling with their own life challenges. Compassion and genuine concern are imperative.
Suicide Is an Epidemic. Celebrate Life by Encouraging those in Need of Mental Health Support: Given the events of the last several days, I cannot remain quiet on a topic that is stigmatized in societies across the globe. As many of you might know, fashion designer, Kate Spade, and Food connoisseur/writer/documentarian, Anthony Bourdain, died from suicide this week. Suicide is a subject that impacts all of us either directly or indirectly, and the underlying mental health issues that lead so many down that road persists. As a member of the blogging community, I’ve written about the loss of a young man who was a son to me, and about my own struggle. Many others in our community have written about it too. Depression and the many other manifestations of mental health conditions affect so many and it has nothing to do with being weak minded, selfish or self serving as some insensitive, thoughtless jerks have purported on the internet. It is NOT a character defect. It is real and those who suffer are like YOU and ME. Some of the most brilliant minds and talented folks have suffered through that black hole and, sadly, some couldn’t avoid falling into that dark hole and taking their own life to end the pain. My heart goes out to the friends and families of all who have lost a loved one to suicide.
If you, or someone you know, is in suicidal crisis or emotional distress please call the LIFELINE at 1-800-273-TALK (8255)* You can also get Help via NSPL. and you can learn more from The Columbia–Suicide Severity Rating Scale.
IMPORTANT RESOURCES
- Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
- National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention
- Suicide Prevention Resource Center
- National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 800-273-TALK (8255)
- READ: what to Do When a Loved One Is Severely Depressed
More Below! Read more…
