Strength Truth Love Hope

"I read somewhere how important it is in life not necessarily to be strong... but to feel strong." -- Chris McCandless

“Unless your heart, your soul, and your whole being are behind every decision you make, the words from your mouth will be empty, and each action will be meaningless. Truth and confidence are the roots of happiness.”

“What you perceive, your observations, feelings, interpretations, are all your truth. Your truth is important. Yet it is not The Truth.” Linda Ellinor

Knowing others is intelligence; knowing yourself is true wisdom.

Mastering others is strength; mastering yourself is true power.

“It takes more courage to reveal insecurities than to hide them, more strength to relate to people than to dominate them, more 'manhood' to abide by thought-out principles rather than blind reflex. Toughness is in the soul and spirit, not in muscles and an immature mind.”  Alex Karras

“Confront the dark parts of yourself, and work to banish them with illumination and forgiveness. Your willingness to wrestle with your demons will cause your angels to sing. Use the pain as fuel, as a reminder of your strength.”  August Wilson (American Writer, 1945-2005)

The mind, body,

and spirit in full capacity and working harmoniously together to confront anything.

"You can't please everyone, and trying to is the kiss of death." Criss Angel

"Don't listen to the people that tell you that you aren't smart enough, not pretty enough - it doesn't matter…what matters is what you think of yourself and to stay positive - believe in yourself."

"Pain can be a beautiful thing."

"Always know that there is nothing in between you and your dreams

except you. You're in control of your destiny so always be the best you

can be."

“When I dare to be powerful - to use my strength in the service of my vision, then it becomes less and less important whether I am afraid.”  Audre Lorde (American Poet, Teacher and Activist, 1934-1992)

“The size of your success is measured by the strength of your desire; the size of your dream; and how you handle disappointment along the way.”

“When it's dark enough you can see the Stars.” Ralph Waldo Emerson

Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma - which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of other's opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary. Steve Jobs (American Entrepreneur, Apple co-Founder)

“I stand for freedom of expression, doing what you believe in, and going after your dreams.”  Madonna (American Actress and Singer)

You have to do it yourself, no one else will do it for you. You must work out your own salvation. Charles E. Popplestone

“I believe that everything happens for a reason. People change so that you can learn to let go, things go wrong so that you appreciate them when they’re right, you believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself, and sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together.” Marilyn Monroe

Anyone can give up, it's the easiest thing in the world to do. But to hold it together when everyone else would

understand if you fell apart, that's true strength.

“I love you, and because I love you, I would sooner have you hate me for telling you the truth than adore me for telling you lies.” Pietro Areti no

“Hope” is the thing with feathers

Emily Dickinson (1830–1886 )

“Hope” is the thing with feathers - That perches in the soul -

And sings the tune without the words

And never stops - at all -

And sweetest - in the Gale - is heard –

And sore must be the storm That could abash the little Bird

That kept so many warm

I’ve heard it in the chillest land - And on the strangest Sea - Yet - never - in Extremity, It asked a crumb … of me.

Life is too short to wake up with regrets.Love the people who treat you right.

Forget about the ones who don’t.Believe everything happens for a reason.

If you get a second chance, grab it with both hands.If it changes your life, let it.

Nobody said life would be easy.They just promised it would be worth it.

Remember the ButterflyWalking down a path through some woods, I saw a water puddle ahead on the path. I angled my direction to go around it on the part of the path

that wasn't covered by water and mud. As I reached the puddle, I was suddenly attacked! Yet I did nothing, for the attack was so unpredictable and

from a source so totally unexpected. I was startled as well as unhurt, despite having been struck four or five times already. I backed up a foot and

my attacker stopped attacking me. Instead of attacking more, he hovered in the air on graceful butterfly wings in front of me. Had I been hurt I

wouldn't have found it amusing, but I was unhurt, it was funny, and I was laughing. Attacked by a butterfly!

Having stopped laughing, I took a step forward. My attacker rushed me again. He rammed me in the chest with his head and body, striking me over

and over again with all his might, still to no avail. For a second time, I retreated a step while my attacker relented in his attack. Yet again, I tried

moving forward. My attacker charged me again. I was rammed in the chest over and over again. I wasn't sure what to do, other than to retreat a

third time. After all, it's just not everyday that one is attacked by a butterfly. This time, though, I stepped back several paces to look the situation

over. My attacker moved back as well to land on the ground. That's when I discovered why my attacker was charging me only moments earlier. He

had a mate and she was dying. She was beside the puddle where he landed.

Sitting close beside her, he opened and closed his wings as if to fan her. I could only admire the love and courage of that butterfly in his concern for

his mate. He had taken it upon himself to attack me for his mate's sake, even though she was clearly dying and I was so large. He did so just to give

her those extra few precious moments of life, should I have been careless enough to step on her. Now I knew why and what he was fighting for.

There was really only one option left for me. I carefully made my way around the puddle to the other side of the path, though it was only inches

wide and extremely muddy. His courage in attacking something thousands of times larger and heavier than himself just for his mate's safety

justified it. I couldn't do anything other than reward him by walking on the more difficult side of the puddle. He had truly earned those moments to

be with her, undisturbed.

I left them in peace for those last few moments, cleaning the mud from my boots when I later reached my car.

Since then, I've always tried to remember the courage of that butterfly whenever I see huge obstacles facing me.

I use that butterfly's courage as an inspiration and to remind myself that good things are worth fighting for.

Love knows no limit to its endurance, no end to its trust, no fading of its hope; it can outlast anything...

Love still stands when all else has fallen.

“I, with a deeper instinct, choose a man who compels my strength, who makes enormous demands on me, who does not doubt my courage or my toughness, who does not believe me naive or innocent, who has the courage to treat me like a woman.” Anais Nin

“Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.” Lao Tzu (Chinese founder of Taoism, "The Book of the Way”, 600 BC-531 BC)

“You can bend it and twist it... You can misuse and abuse it... But even God cannot change the Truth.”  Michael Levy

“Risk! Risk anything! Care no more for the opinions of others, for those voices. Do the hardest thing on earth for you. Act for yourself. Face the truth.” Katherine Mansfield (New Zealander Writer, 1888-1923)

“You never find yourself until you face the truth” Pearl Bailey (American Entertainer notable for her sultry singing and mischievous humour, 1918-1990)

“Love takes off masks that we fear we cannot live without and know we cannot live within.”  James Arthur Baldwin (American Writer, 1924-1987)

Everyone in the apartment complex I lived in knew who Ugly was.  Ugly was the resident tomcat.  Ugly loved three things in this world: fighting, eating garbage, and shall we say, love. The combination of these things combined with a life spent outside had their effect on Ugly. To start with, he had only one eye, and where the other should have been was a gaping hole.  He was also missing his ear on the same side, his left foot has appeared to have been badly broken at one time, and had healed at an unnatural angle, making him look like he was always turning the corner. His tail has long since been lost, leaving only the smallest stub, which he would constantly jerk and twitch.  Ugly would have been a dark gray tabby striped-type, except for the sores covering his head, neck, even his shoulders with thick, yellowing scabs.  Every time someone saw Ugly there was the same reaction. "That's one UGLY cat!!"

All the children were warned not to touch him, the adults threw rocks at him, hosed him down, squirted him when he tried to come in their homes, or shut his paws in the door when he would not leave.  Ugly always had the same reaction.  If you turned the hose on him, he would stand there, getting soaked until you gave up and quit.  If you threw things at him, he would curl his lanky body around feet in forgiveness.  Whenever he spied children, he would come running meowing frantically and bump his head against their hands, begging for their love.  If you ever picked him up he would immediately begin suckling on your shirt, earrings, whatever he could find.

The Story of Ugly

Ugly died in my arms before I could get inside, but I sat and held him for a long time afterwards, thinking about how one scarred, deformed little stray could so alter my opinion about what it means to have true pureness of spirit, to love so totally and truly.  Ugly taught me more about giving and compassion than a thousand books, lectures, or talk show specials ever could, and for that I will always be thankful.

He had been scarred on the outside, but I was scarred on the inside, and it was time for me to move on and learn to love truly and deeply. To give my total to those I cared for.

One day Ugly shared his love with the neighbors huskies.  They did not respond kindly, and Ugly was badly mauled. From my apartment I could hear his screams, and I tried to rush to his aid.  By the time I got to where he was laying,it was apparent Ugly's sad life was almost at an end.

Then I felt a familiar tugging, sucking sensation on my ear- Ugly, in so much pain, suffering and obviously dying was trying to suckle my ear.  I pulled him closer to me, and he bumped the palm of my hand with his head, then he turned his one golden eye towards me, and I could hear the distinct sound of purring.  Even in the greatest pain, that ugly battle-scarred cat was asking only for a little affection, perhaps some compassion. At that moment I thought Ugly was the most beautiful, loving creature I had ever seen.  Never once did he try to bite or scratch me, or even try to get away from me, or struggle in any way.  Ugly just looked up at me completely trusting in me to relieve his pain.

Ugly lay in a wet circle, his back legs and lower back twisted grossly out of shape, a gaping tear in the white strip of fur that ran down his front.  As I picked him up and tried to carry him home I could hear him wheezing and gasping, and could feel him struggling.  I must be hurting him terribly I thought. 

Many people want to be richer,

more successful, well liked,

beautiful, but for me, I will always try to be

Ugly.

Sometimes in our livesWe all have painWe all have sorrowBut if we are wiseWe know that there's always tomorrow

Please swallow your prideIf I have strength you need to borrowFor no one can fill those of your needsThat you won't let show

If there is a load you need to bearThat you can't carryI'm right up the roadI'll share your loadIf you just call me!

Just call on me brother, when you need a hand We all need somebody to lean on….I just might have a problem that you'd understandWe all need somebody to lean on….

(…if you ever need a friend)

“You can't undo anything you've already done, but you can face up to it. You can tell the truth. You can seek forgiveness. And then let God do the rest.”

If it makes you happy; It can't be that bad; If it makes you happy; Then why the hell are you so sad? Sheryl Crow