Facts New Way Of Life

•Face Difficulties Positively"

This parable is told of a farmer who owned an
old mule. The mule fell into the farmer’s well.
The farmer heard the mule praying or whatever
mules do when they fall into wells.
After carefully assessing the situation, the
farmer sympathized with the mule, but decided
that neither the mule nor the well was worth
the trouble of saving. Instead, he called his
neighbors together, told them what had
happened, and enlisted them to help haul dirt
to bury the old mule in the well and put him
out of his misery.
Initially the old mule was hysterical! But as the
farmer and his neighbors continued shoveling
and the dirt hit his back, a thought struck him.
It suddenly dawned on him that every time a
shovel load of dirt landed on his back, HE
WOULD SHAKE IT OFF AND STEP UP!
This he did, blow after blow. “Shake it off and
step up… shake it off and step up… shake it off
and step up!” He repeated to encourage
himself. No matter how painful the blows, or
how distressing the situation seemed, the old
mule fought panic and just kept right on
SHAKING IT OFF AND STEPPING UP!
It wasn’t long before the old mule, battered
and exhausted, stepped triumphantly over the
wall of that well! What seemed like it would
bury him actually helped him … all because of
the manner in which he handled his adversity.
THAT’S LIFE! If we face our problems and
respond to them positively, and refuse to give
in to panic, bitterness, or self-pity.
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•Positive Thinking"

Jerry was the kind of guy you love to hate. He
was always in a good mood and always had
something positive to say. When someone
would ask him how he was doing, he would
reply, “If I were any better, I would be twins!”
He was a unique manager because he had
several waiters who had followed him around
from restaurant to restaurant. The reason the
waiters followed Jerry was because of his
attitude. He was a natural motivator. If an
employee was having a bad day, Jerry was
there telling the employee how to look on the
positive side of the situation.
Seeing this style really made me curious, so
one day I went up to Jerry and asked him, “I
don’t get it! You can’t be a positive person all
of the time. How do you do it?” Jerry replied,
“Each morning I wake up and say to myself,
Jerry, you have two choices today. You can
choose to be in a good mood or you can
choose to be in a bad mood.’ I choose to be in
a good mood. Each time something bad
happens, I can choose to be a victim or I can
choose to learn from it. I choose to learn from
it. Every time someone comes to me
complaining, I can choose to accept their
complaining or I can point out the positive side
of life. I choose the positive side of life.”
“Yeah, right, it’s not that easy,” I protested.
“Yes it is,” Jerry said. “Life is all about
choices. When you cut away all the junk, every
situation is a choice. You choose how you
react to situations. You choose how people
will affect your mood. You choose to be in a
good mood or bad mood. The bottom line: It’s
your choice how you live life.”
I reflected on what Jerry said. Soon thereafter,
I left the restaurant industry to start my own
business. We lost touch, but often thought
about him when I made a choice about life
instead of reacting to it. Several years later, I
heard that Jerry did something you are never
supposed to do in a restaurant business: he
left the back door open one morning and was
held up at gunpoint by three armed robbers.
While trying to open the safe, his hand,
shaking from nervousness, slipped off the
combination. The robbers panicked and shot
him. Luckily, Jerry was found relatively quickly
and rushed to the local trauma center. After 18
hours of surgery and weeks of intensive care,
Jerry was released from the hospital with
fragments of the bullets still in his body. I saw
Jerry about six months after the accident.
When I asked him how he was, he replied, “If I
were any better, I’d be twins. Wanna see my
scars?”
I declined to see his wounds, but did ask him
what had gone through his mind as the
robbery took place. “The first thing that went
through my mind was that I should have
locked the back door,” Jerry replied. “Then, as
I lay on the floor, I remembered that I had two
choices: I could choose to live, or I could
choose to die. I chose to live.”
“Weren’t you scared? Did you lose
consciousness?” I asked. Jerry continued, “The
paramedics were great. They kept telling me I
was going to be fine. But when they wheeled
me into the emergency room and I saw the
expressions on the faces of the doctors and
nurses, I got really scared. In their eyes, I read,
‘He’s a dead man.’ I knew I needed to take
action.”
“What did you do?” I asked.
“Well, there was a big, burly nurse shouting
questions at me,” said Jerry. “She asked if I
was allergic to anything. ‘Yes,’ I replied. The
doctors and nurses stopped working as they
waited for my reply… I took a deep breath and
yelled, ‘Bullets!’ Over their laughter, I told them,
‘I am choosing to live. Operate on me as if I
am alive, not dead.”
Jerry lived thanks to the skill of his doctors,
but also because of his amazing attitude. I
learned from him that every day we have the
choice to live fully. Attitude, after all, is
everything.
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•Helpless love"

Once upon a time all feelings and emotions
went to a coastal island for a vacation.
According to their nature, each was having a
good time. Suddenly, a warning of an
impending storm was announced and everyone
was advised to evacuate the island.
The announcement caused sudden panic. All
rushed to their boats. Even damaged boats
were quickly repaired and commissioned for
duty.
Yet, Love did not wish to flee quickly. There
was so much to do. But as the clouds
darkened, Love realised it was time to leave.
Alas, there were no boats to spare. Love
looked around with hope.
Just then Prosperity passed by in a luxurious
boat. Love shouted, “Prosperity, could you
please take me in your boat?”
“No,” replied Prosperity, “my boat is full of
precious possessions, gold and silver. There is
no place for you.”
A little later Vanity came by in a beautiful boat.
Again Love shouted, “Could you help me,
Vanity? I am stranded and need a lift. Please
take me with you.”
Vanity responded haughtily, “No, I cannot take
you with me. My boat will get soiled with your
muddy feet.”
Sorrow passed by after some time. Again, Love
asked for help. But it was to no avail. “No, I
cannot take you with me. I am so sad. I want
to be by myself.”
When Happiness passed by a few minutes
later, Love again called for help. But Happiness
was so happy that it did not look around,
hardly concerned about anyone.
Love was growing restless and dejected. Just
then somebody called out, “Come Love, I will
take you with me.” Love did not know who
was being so magnanimous, but jumped on to
the boat, greatly relieved that she would reach
a safe place.
On getting off the boat, Love met Knowledge.
Puzzled, Love inquired, “Knowledge, do you
know who so generously gave me a lift just
when no one else wished to help?”
Knowledge smiled, “Oh, that was Time.”
“And why would Time stop to pick me and
take me to safety?” Love wondered.
Knowledge smiled with deep wisdom and
replied, “Because only Time knows your true
greatness and what you are capable of. Only
Love can bring peace and great happiness in
this world.”
“The important message is that when we are
prosperous, we overlook love. When we feel
important, we forget love. Even in happiness
and sorrow we forget love. Only with time do
we realize the importance of love. Why wait
that long? Why not make love a part of your
life today?”
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•Temper Control"

Once upon a time there was a little boy who
was talented, creative, handsome, and
extremely bright. A natural leader. The kind of
person everyone would normally have wanted
on their team or project. But he was also self-
centered and had a very bad temper. When he
got angry, he usually said, and often did, some
very hurtful things. In fact, he seemed to have
little regard for those around him. Even friends.
So, naturally, he had few. “But,” he told
himself, “that just shows how stupid most
people are!”
As he grew, his parents became concerned
about this personality flaw, and pondered long
and hard about what they should do. Finally,
the father had an idea. And he struck a
bargain with his son. He gave him a bag of
nails, and a BIG hammer. “Whenever you lose
your temper,” he told the boy, “I want you to
really let it out. Just take a nail and drive it
into the oak boards of that old fence out back.
Hit that nail as hard as you can!”
Of course, those weathered oak boards in that
old fence were almost as tough as iron, and
the hammer was mighty heavy, so it wasn’t
nearly as easy as it first sounded.
Nevertheless, by the end of the first day, the
boy had driven 37 nails into the fence ( That
was one angry young man! ). Gradually, over a
period of weeks, the number dwindled down.
Holding his temper proved to be easier than
driving nails into the fence! Finally the day
came when the boy didn’t lose his temper at
all. He felt mighty proud as he told his parents
about that accomplishment.
“As a sign of your success,” his father
responded, “you get to PULL OUT one nail. In
fact, you can do that each day that you don’t
lose your temper even once.”
Well, many weeks passed. Finally one day the
young boy was able to report proudly that all
the nails were gone.
At that point, the father asked his son to walk
out back with him and take one more good
look at the fence. “You have done well, my
son,” he said. “But I want you to notice the
holes that are left. No matter what happens
from now on, this fence will never be the same.
Saying or doing hurtful things in anger
produces the same kind of result. There will
always be a scar. It won’t matter how many
times you say you’re sorry, or how many years
pass, the scar will still be there. And a verbal
wound is as bad as a physical one. People are
much more valuable than an old fence. They
make us smile. They help us succeed. Some
will even become friends who share our joys,
and support us through bad times. And, if they
trust us, they will also open their hearts to us.
That means we need to treat everyone with
love and respect. We need to prevent as many
of those scars as we can.”
A most valuable lesson, don’t you think? And a
reminder most of us need from time to time.
Everyone gets angry occasionally. The real test
is what we DO with it.
If we are wise, we will spend our time building
bridges rather than barriers in our
relationships.
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