BRIGHT SIDE ARCHIVES FROM AOL: FOR WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 16, 2006

ON THE BRIGHT SIDE

AUGUST 16th, 2006

TODAY'S THOUGHT

A friend is a person before whom I may think aloud.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

TODAY’S ACTION

Allow yourself to be loved and to love all that you meet.

TODAY’S QUOTE

Some people approach every problem with an open mouth.

Adlai Stevenson

HAPPY WEDNESDAY !

AND HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO DDIL#3

May the dear Lord bless you today and always !

I had an exciting day at work yesterday – the power was out until afternoon at my workplace. I got there at 7 in the morning and sat around til almost 1:00 before the lights came back on. There is just nothing you can do in an office anymore with out power…I could answer the phone, but that was all. When I left work I saw the news channel van across the street, we must have made the evening news. All told the little town where I work was without power for 12 hours.

Hopefully today will be ok as I need to process the payroll and that requires the computer to work.

Have a great day all ! Another wonderful one on the Way!

TODAY IS…BRATWURST FESTIVAL DAY

Every August, there's a 2 day celebration commemorating Bratwurst in Sheboygan, Wisconsin. Bratwurst is a big, fat sausage of German origin. In the U.S., you'll usually find it made of a pork and spices, severd on a bun and topped with sauerkraut. Over in Germany, it's made with different kinds of meat, but usually veal. And as to eating... a bratwurst in one hand and a roll in the other is politically correct. Either way, it sounds really good to me.

TODAY’S TRIVIA

1923 - Carnegie Steel Corporation established an eight-hour work day for its workers.

1954: "Sports Illustrated" was first published by Time Incorporated.

TODAY’S SMILE

Start your day off with a great big smile because every day should be a GREAT DAY.

THE FATE OF SAND CASTLES

You've watched it, too. I know I'm not the first or only person who has seen it. But there is a lesson in it that we both may have overlooked.

There are some children on a beach. They're playing and giggling -- building sand castles all the while. They seem so intent on the project.

You get amused at how meticulous and careful they are with crumbly corners and towers. The looks on their faces as they screw their mouths around and stick out their tongues make you smile.

Their resolute concentration on the task is priceless. Then a big wave begins building and starts toward shore. But the kids don't panic. Instead, they do the strangest thing. They jump to their feet, scream with delight, and watch the torrent of water wash away their creations. There is no panic. No sadness. No bitterness. Even children know the inevitable end of sand castles.

They are neither surprised nor angry about what has happened. You and I should be so wise. The stuff of this world is about as lasting and durable as children's sand castles on the beach. Yet we grownups can get so caught up in it, defensive of it, and depressed over the loss of it.

God didn't create you to be famous, get rich, live in the biggest house, or drivethe fanciest car. He created you for his glory. He put you in the world to love people and do holy things.

Your destiny is not bound up in physical things, but spiritual. So living to be a hundred is far less important than living well -- even if for a short time. Beautifying your body is far less urgent than purifying your soul.

Children know that their sand castles are brief joys destined to disappear with an incoming tide. So they don't fret as the waves approach. They watch their creations get swept away without shedding tears.

Again, we should be so wise. Everything about this life is fleeting and perishable. The incoming wave of human mortality is going to sweep it all away. Like sand castles, nothing done for the sake of this world can last.

Only what we do for eternity will survive. What would the loss of your job or business do to you? What if your house were lost to fire or storm? What if a strange pain sent you to your physician and led to the discovery that you have only a few weeks to live?

These things really do happen to people, you know. We are all as vulnerable as sand castles. Life is God's gift. Revel in every good thing. But as you enjoy your creations in the sand, just remember not to get overly attached to them.

"Help us, O Lord, to number our days wisely. Amen."

A sunrise is God's way of telling the world to lighten up.

TODAY’S WORD

punc·til·i·ous adjective

1. Strictly attentive to minute details of form in action or

conduct.

Synonym meticulous.

2. Precise; scrupulous. --punc·til"i·ous·ly adv.

TODAY’S REFLECTION

A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones.

Proverbs 14:30

Peace can be wrecked by one of the seven deadly sins -- envy. So when you sense that "the green-eyed monster" is trying to take over your emotions, 1) Pray for God to fill your heart with love. 2) Pray for that person. 3) Pray a prayer of thanksgiving for the blessings God has given you.

FROM DAILY GUIDEPOSTS

TODAY’S ADVICE FROM THE OLD FARMER’S ALMANAC

Compost should be watered during dry periods so that it will remain active.

37 DAYS UNTIL AUTUMN

Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your Heart

Psalm 37:4

I Love You All !!!

Be Blessed !!!

I am a little pencil in the hand of a writing God who is sending a love letter to the world.

Mother Theresa

MY HOMEPAGE

I believe we should live ‘ON THE BRIGHT SIDE’