INDEX; This IssueINDEX:*FEATURE ARTICLE- TO GIVE is to LIVE By Wanda Hope Carter
***FUN, COOL & HELPFUL: - Check out these links!!!
*****PARTING THOUGHTS - MINE!!! By Wanda Hope Carter
*******SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION
TO GIVE is to LIVEWhen my time is over & I am gone,
my deeds will be left to carry on.
They shape the future that I will never see
to become more than I could ever be.
It is good to know that how much I give
is directly related to how long I will live,
Whether in a heart or in a mind,
when those whom I've touched in turn act kind.
The cycle of humanity that started long ago
is passed through me and nurtured to grow.
It is for this reason that I use great care
to be as kind as I can to everyone everywhere.
Who knows if the smile that I give to a stranger
may some day save someone from danger,
Or if something I did without telling a soul
might heal someone and make them whole?
There is no way to know of my life's legacy
but if it's a happy or sad one, is up to me.
This is why it is so important that I generously GIVE,
IT'S DIRECTLY RELATED TO MY WILL TO LIVE!!!
Copyright 2003, Wanda Hope Carter, All rights reserved.
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>>>>>Related Reading<<<<< |
The Cathedral Within uses the metaphor of architecture to look at the way individuals allocate their resources to improve public life. Just as the enduring magnificence of a cathedral is not erected overnight, so, too, the transformation of a society takes many, many years to complete. And just as the construction of a cathedral is less a reflection of its builders' interest in masonry than a testament to the soaring reach of the human spirit, philanthropy is not so much a response to need as to a basic human requirement to give something meaningful back to society. Bill Shore is the founder of Share Our Strength, a national nonprofit devoted to raising funds for anti hunger and antipoverty organizations worldwide, and his book showcases the stories of some of the social entrepreneurs he has come across in the course of his work. (Review from Amazon.com .....READ MORE)
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The Giftionary Whether for a birthday, holiday, special event, or just to express our feelings, many of us continually struggle to find the unique gift no one has, one that won't be returned, and one that will be remembered forever. With The Giftionary, your friends, families, and loved ones will be in awe of you and your gifts. From birthday presents to edible treats, party favors to housewarming presents people will actually use, this creative, indispensable guide can help you find the perfect gift for any occasion. Robyn Spizman is the most recognizable gift-giving expert today. She has been on over 10,000 live TV segments, including CNN and Headline News during the holidays as a gifting expert. She has a popular weekly segment on the morning show of NBC’s Atlanta affiliate WXIA TV, called “Been There, Bought That”. (Review from Amazon.com.....READ MORE) |
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The Giving Tree Average Customer Review 4 1/2 out of 5 stars, Usually ships within 1 to 2 business days. "Once there was a tree ... and she loved a little boy." So begins a story Of unforgettable perception, beautifully written and illustrated by the gifted and versatile Shel Silverstein. Every day the boy would come to the tree to eat her apples, swing from her branches, or slide down her trunk ... and the tree was happy. But as the boy grew older he began to want more from the tree. This is a tender story, touched with sadness, aglow with consolation, a moving parable for readers of all ages that offers an affecting interpretation of the gift of giving and a serene acceptance of another's capacity to love in return. (Review from Amazon.com.....READ MORE) |
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>>>>>What's New Highlights<<<<<
Over fifty new stores have been added to the shopping mall (Including tops stores such as Walmart, GUMPS, International Male, Lillian Vernon, Fields.com & Domestications! It's what keeps this site going!!! PLEASE HELP by using the Inspiration Motivation Shopping Mall as your starting place for online shopping in 39 categories ) Return to: This issue's INDEX
>>>>>Fun, Cool & Helpful<<<<<FUN>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Have Fun With Your Dog - http://www.dog-play.com/index.shtml Links to a very large list of specialty activities, events, and fun games to play with your favorite canine.
Motorcycle USA- http://www.motorcycle-superstore.com has everything for riding street bikes, dirt bikes, & snow mobiles including helmets, boots, leather clothing, goggles & gloves.
Circus Web- http://www.circusweb.com/circuswebFrames.html Everything you ever wanted to know about the circus with links to all major USA and many international circus official sites.
COOL>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Olathe Ks. Library Kids Corner- http://olathe.lib.ks.us/kidscorner/coolsite.htm This site lists some really neat and mostly non .com sites for kids of all ages.
SETI at Home- http://setiathome.ssl.berkeley.edu/ Home of a scientific experiment that uses Internet-connected computers in the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence. You can participate by running a free screen-saver program that downloads and analyzes radio telescope data.
HELPFUL>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
The Weather Channel http://www.weather.com Has accurate weather reports and very reliable week ahead forecasts from around the world with lots of satellite maps such as Doppler.
World Wide Metric http://worldwidemetric.com/metcal.htm has a great conversion calculator for length, weight, volume & pressure the next time you need to know kilometers to miles, liters to gallons, bar to psi, etc.
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>>>>>Reader's Short Story & Poetry Contest<<<<<#How to enter:
Send a poem or short story of 750 words or less on any inspirational subject via e-mail to wanda@lava.net. The winner will receive a free ABC poster and be published here. There is no deadline for entries. There may be more than one winner, so even if a story appears here, others will still be considered as long as this issue appears online.
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>>>>>Parting Thoughts<<<<<MINE!!!
Copyright 2002, Wanda Hope Carter, All rights reserved.
Tommy pushed through the school bus door and ran straight up the sidewalk to our apartment. Slamming the front door behind him, he ran frantically into his room. I barely caught sight of him but enough to notice that he was clutching something stuffed quite obviously under his coat. Another slam was followed by the sound of him locking his door.
I took a deep breath and headed down the hall. "Tommy," I called and knocked lightly, "What's up honey? I saw something under your coat." His quiet sobbing was not quiet enough for this mother's ears and I knew something was wrong at once or at least that Tommy was perceiving it as such. "I love you Tommy, I'll be back in a few minutes and we can talk about this then." I chose to give him his space.
The ten minutes that passed seemed like an eternity as dozens of possible scenarios went through my mind. Finally, I walked back to his room and knocked again. The crying had stopped. "Tommy, I need to talk to you now." I heard him unlock the door and run back across the floor to his bed. I entered to find him laying with his back to me and as I walked over to his bed I saw that he was clutching a puppy. I instantly went in to my mom mode and thought through several more potential scenarios because this was of course nothing that I had previously considered. The apartment complex rules against having animals, the responsibilities of what to do with an animal now in his possession and what to do if the puppy decided to go to the bathroom on Tommy's bed seemed to blend into one thought in those few seconds.
"Well?" I paused... "It's MINE mom." I bit my tongue to keep from blurting out every reply that seemed natural and sensible. Tears rolled up in his eyes, I knew I was going to have to be very careful not say anything that would hurt him even more than he already was. It would be impossible to allow him to keep a puppy and it was obvious that he had already established some strong feelings about the animal. I decided to at least let him have his say before I had mine.
"Okay." was meant to be followed by "but," when he sat up and hugged my neck. I sat quietly holding him until after few minutes when he let go and grabbed his new friend and began to pet it. I resisted my urge to join him so as not to reinforce his depth of feelings and acceptance of the idea. "Tommy, you know the rules about pets here, so what are we going to do with it?" I really don't know what I expected next. I was only hoping to establish an opportunity to allow him to make a decision and ask for my help to do so if needed.
He picked the squirming little creature up and held it to his chest. "Mom, I know we can't keep the puppy but my friend Jack gave it to me to keep for him and he had to move away. He brought him to school today for show and tell and so I could have it. Today was his last day. When I was getting on the bus another boy and his friend tried to take it away from me and I was afraid they were going to hurt the puppy so I kicked one of them." I gasped the way many mothers have upon hearing of the first physical scrap their child encounters.
"Oh, No!" I couldn't help it, it just came out.
"But Mrs. Graham the bus driver lady, came and told them they had to get on the bus first and go to the back and I got to sit up front with her."
"I see." I tried to remain calm while watching the puppy trying to chew on Tommy's shirt sleeve. I wanted to say "Why did you agree to take the dog when you knew the rules here?" because I thought it would be best to try and keep our talk on track with the immediate situation at hand. We could talk about the bullies and Tommy's response later. But what came out was, " You kicked someone?"
"It's MINE!!!!!" Tommy clutched the puppy and scooted away from me. It was not the reaction I was hoping for with my thinking ahead mom-like plan. In the heat of any moment as a parent, it is often hard to operate outside of what's going on inside emotionally. I always tried so hard to be understanding and use positive psychology for leading my child to grow rather than be controlled, yet often, just like now, when faced with the moment of truth, all of the planning and thoughtfulness flew right out the window and my heart spoke quicker than my head.
"Okay, I petted Tommy's leg, we'll talk about that later. "So, what are we going to do about it?" I said hoping to get back on the subject at hand.
" No mom, it's MINE; you want to know what I'm going to do about it."
"Well yes." I was relieved that he seemed to be feeling comfortable that he was in control again.
"I'm going to give it to Julie."
"Julie? Who is Julie and how do you know if Julie can have a puppy?"
"Mr. Barry has a little girl who got sick and has to have school at her house now." Mr. Barry was our apartment complex supervisor that often gave Tommy a ride on his golf cart when he went on his rounds. Mr. Barry said her puppy that she got for Christmas died and that she was sad. I told Jack that I would find his puppy a home that it would be happy in, so I am going to give it to Julie."
What a relief I felt upon hearing of Tommy's plan but still wondered about his kicking another child and most of all why he was crying when he came home. "That sounds like a great idea Tommy." I said with a smile, "But I am wondering why you ran into your room when you came home and why you were so sad."
Tommy looked thoughtfully at me for a while before answering. "I really wanted to give Julie, Jack's puppy and those boys were going to take it away. Nobody should be able to take stuff away from you when it's yours mom and that made me mad. I am sorry I kicked that boy when I felt mad and I was afraid you wouldn't love me any more if you found out and that made me sad." With his answer, the afternoon's drama seemed to be winding down when the puppy did what all puppies have to do sooner or later right there on Tommy's bed. The one thing I had worried about before but had not addressed became the one thing that actually happened. Another mom lesson, to determine and address the most immediate needy circumstance when there are many, was miserably failed but hopefully learned for the next test which would surely come sooner or later.
We rushed around grabbing rags, cleaners, towels, stripping sheets and replacing the bedding. When the items were finally placed in the washing machine, Tommy scooped up the puppy and began petting it again. It reminded me where we had left off with our discussion earlier. I leaned down and petted the puppy too. "You are not mad at the puppy for messing up your bed?" "No," he replied, "I love this puppy and it's mine, I was supposed to take care of it until I give it to Julie, so I guess it was kind of my fault that it happened.
"Do you remember when you said that you got sad because you thought I wouldn't love you anymore because you kicked someone? Well, I feel the same way about you that you do about the puppy. I am supposed to be taking care of you and I didn't do anything to protect your bed and not because I didn't know better or care but I was more upset about the other things that already happened and I forgot. Plus I should have already talked to you about how to handle bullies and I haven't done that either so in a way it is my fault that you kicked someone too." I felt relief as I forgot my mom rules and spoke freely without trying to pick the perfect words to get the results that I desired.
"You see Tommy, everybody makes mistakes sometimes because of their feelings, but we must always try to learn to do better next time though right?" "Right!" he beamed up at me. I beamed back, " Plus you know what? I will always love you and do you know why? Because you're MINE!!!" "I'll tell you what, we'll take a walk over to Mr. Barry's office with the puppy and on the way, I'll tell you everything I know about bullies so that we can both do our love jobs, okay?" He shook his head yes and jumped up then we took off together hand in hand.
May all that you give be multiplied and returned in abundance.
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>>>>>Suggested Reading<<<<< |
In Healthy Parenting, Janet Woititz, a leading therapist, contrasts what happens in a healthy family with what happens in an unhealthy family to show just how your own upbringing influences the way you raise your children, and what you can do to make their upbringing better for them. For example: -- In a healthy family the child is always loved even if the child's behavior is unacceptable. In an unhealthy family the behavior criticized and the child is shamed as well. -- In a healthy family the parent is teacher and guide. In an unhealthy family the child brings himself up the best he can. -- In a healthy family there is structure, and reasonable limits are set. In an unhealthy family there is chaos or extreme rigidity. (Review from Amazon.com .....READ MORE)
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Nose to Nose is a memoir about healing. Recovering from emergency surgery in a foreign country, Barry Schieber finds himself buying a puppy to bring back to Montana. Once home, wherever they go, Moritz draws people to him. Sensing something therapeutic about Moritz, Barry comes upon a way to share this quality with others. So begins their partnership for weekly volunteer visits at a local hospital. As this chronicle unfolds, the reader comes to appreciate, with Barry, how a seemingly simple interaction with Moritz leads to healing and to engaging in the lives of others such as when his dog Moritz gently lays his head on a child's leg, apparently doing nothing but nevertheless bringing an obviously healing energy with him. (Review from Amazon.com .....READ MORE) |
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This is an extremely helpful book that both parents and teachers can use to deal with bullying, an aspect of school that the author feels "is a life-and-death issue that we ignore at our children's peril." Staring with a bottom-line assumption that "bullying is a learned behavior," Coloroso wonderfully explains not only the ways that the bully, the bullied and the bystander are "three characters in a tragic play" but also how "the scripts can be rewritten, new roles created, the plot changed," and suggests a range of methods that parents and educators can use to identify bullying behavior and deal with it effectively. (Review from Amazon.com .....READ MORE) |
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