LOVE AND COMMITMENT

The word "love" is far different from "commitment". Love is a gift that anyone can have, but commitment is a sacrifice for love that not everyone is capable of.

It’s just so sad that the word "commitment" comes with duties and responsibilities which make it heavy, which make some people reluctant and scared. They may be ready for love, but not for commitment. But come to think of it, isn’t love enough to keep a commitment?

WHY WOMEN CRY

A little boy asked his mother, "Why are you crying?"

"Because I'm a woman," she told him.

"I don't understand," he said. His Mom just hugged him and said, "And you never will."

Later the little boy asked his father, "Why does mother seem to cry for no reason?"

"All women cry for no reason," was all his dad could say.

The little boy grew up and became a man, still wondering why women cry.

Finally he put in a call to God. When God got on the phone, he asked, "God, why do women cry so easily?"

God said: "When I made the woman she had to be special. I made her shoulders strong enough to carry the weight of the world, yet gentle enough to give comfort.

I gave her an inner strength to endure childbirth and the rejection that many times comes from her children.

I gave her a hardness that allows her to keep going when everyone else gives up, and take care of her family through sickness and fatigue without complaining.

I gave her the sensitivity to love her children under any and all circumstances, even when her child has hurt her very badly.

I gave her strength to carry her husband through his faults and fashioned her from his rib to protect his heart.

I gave her wisdom to know that a good husband never hurts his wife, but sometimes tests her strengths and her resolve to stand beside him unfalteringly.

And finally, I gave her a tear to shed. This is hers exclusively to use whenever it is needed."

"You see my son," said God, "the beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair.

The beauty of a woman must be seen in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart - the place where love resides."

TO MY CHILD

Just for this morning, I'm going to smile when I see your face, and laugh when I feel like crying.
Just for this morning, I will let you choose what you want to wear, and smile and say how perfect it is.
Just for this morning, I am going to step over the laundry, and pick you up and take you to the park to play.
Just for this morning, I will leave the dishes in the sink, and let you teach me how to put that puzzle of yours together.
Just for this afternoon, I will unplug the telephone and keep the computer off, and sit with you in the backyard and blow bubbles.
Just for this afternoon, I will not yell once, not even a tiny grumble when you scream and whine for the ice cream truck, and I will buy you one if he comes by.
Just for this afternoon, I won’t worry about what you are going to be when you grow up, or second-guess every decision I have made.
Just for this afternoon, I will let you help me bake cookies, and I won’t stand over you trying to fix them.
Just for this afternoon, I will take us to McDonald’s and buy us both a Happy Meal so you can have both toys.
Just for this evening, I will hold you in my arms and tell you a story about how you were born and how much I love you.
Just for this evening, I will let you splash in the tub and not get angry.
Just for this evening, I will let you stay up late while we sit on the porch and count all the stars.
Just for this evening, I will snuggle beside you for hours, and miss my favorite TV shows. Just for this evening, when I run my finger through your hair as you pray, I will simply be grateful that God has given me the greatest gift ever given.
I will think about the mothers and fathers who are searching for their missing children, the mothers and fathers who are visiting their children’s graves instead of their bedrooms, and mothers and fathers who are in hospital rooms watching their children suffer senselessly, and screaming inside that they can’t handle it anymore.
And when I kiss you goodnight, I will hold you a little tighter, a little longer. It is then, that I will thank the Law for you, and ask for nothing except one more day…

I LOVE HEROES!

I LOVE HEROES! My kids and I just can't stop raving about the TV series Heroes. We sat together through a marathon of the Season 1 episodes and we were all cheering, screaming, laughing, and groaning through the action-packed sequences. It's like XMen meets Mutant X meets Justice League, minus the spandex, hehe! We all can't wait for the next season!

Of course, we all have our favorite heroes. My kids love Hiro coz he's so huggably cute as he provides the comic relief to the show; but we all agreed the most awesome is Peter Petrelli (played by dashing Milo Ventimiglia), (for me, because he's a hottie male nurse, hehe!) and because his power is: he gets to absorb the powers of all those he comes in contact with. How cool is that? Sylar (played by the handsome Zachary Quinto) is also a very powerful villain, almost like Peter's counterpart. But he gets his other powers only if he eats the brains of the people with “special abilities”!

The show starts with these ordinary people discovering they have extraordinary abilities, so what will they do about it? This show celebrates those comic book superheroes we are all so familiar with, and the premise is nothing new, what with the popularity of XMen and “mutations” and “evolutions” both in comic books and video games. But somehow creator Tim Kring managed to infuse the show with freshness and innovative storyline that just keeps the viewers craving for more. Let's face it, the idea of superheroes may be old, exploited, and rehashed to death, but admit it, it still gets us. I mean, who hasn't, at one time or another in his/her lifetime, fantasized about having super powers and secret identities, right? I know I have. And I'm certain the “inner child” inside all of us would agree. And with today's science, who knows? It's the next step in our evolution. You don't really think life has stopped evolving with us, do you? Hey, it could happen. =)

THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY

I got this from an email a friend sent me. Nobody knows who the origInal author is, but apparently, this has been making the rounds in emails, bulletins, blogposts, etc. I really like the thought, so I’m sharing this here.

THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY

In your life, you’ll make note of a lot of people. Ones with whom you shared something special, ones who will always mean something.

There’s the one you first kissed, the one you first loved, the one you lost your virginity to, the one you put on the pedestal, the one you’re with…and the one that got away.

Who is the one that got away?

I guess it’s that person with whom everything was great, everything was perfect, but the timing was just wrong. There was no fault in the person, no flaw in the chemistry, but the cards just didn’t fall the right way.

I believe in the fact that ending up with someone, finding a longtime partner that is, does not lie merely in the other person. I can actually argue that an equal part, or maybe even the greater part, has to do with you being ready to settle down and commit to someone in a way that goes beyond the little niceties of giddy romance.

When you’re not ready to commit in that mature manner, it doesn’t matter who you’re with, it just doesn’t work. Small problems become big; inconsequentials become deal breakers simply because you’re not ready and it shows. It’s not that you and the person you’re with are no good; it’s just that it’s not right, and little things become the flashpoint of that fact.

Then one day you’re ready. You really are.

And when this happens you’ll be ready to settle down with someone. He or she may not be the most perfect, they might not be the brightest star of romance to ever have burned in your life, but it’ll work because you’re ready. It’ll work because it’s the right time and you’ll make it work.

And it’ll make sense, it really will.

So that day comes when you’re finally making sense of things, and you find yourself to be a different person. Things are different, your approach is different, you finally understand who you are and what you want, and the time has truly arrived. And mind you, there’s no telling when this day will come. Hopefully you’re single but you could be in a long-term relationship, or married with three kids, it doesn’t matter.

All you know is that you’ve changed, and for some reason, the one that got away, is the first person you think about.

You’ll think about them because you’ll wonder, "What if they were here today?" You’ll wonder, "What if we were together now, with me as I am and not as I was?"

That’s what the one that got away is.

The biggest "What If?" you’ll have in your life.

If you’re married, you’ll just have to accept the fact that the one that got away, got away. Believe me, no matter how fairy tale you think your marriage is, this can happen to the best of us.

But hopefully you’re mature enough to realize that you’re already with the one you’re with and this is just another test of your commitment, one that will strengthen your marriage when you get past it. Sure, you’ll think about him/her every so often, but it’s all right.

It’s never nice to live with "might have been," but it happens.

Maybe the one that got away is the one who’s married. In which case it’s the same thing. You just have to accept and know that your memories of that person will probably bring a nice little smile to your lips in the future when you’re old and gray and reminiscing.

But if neither of that is the case, what do you do if it’s not yet too late?

Simple…find him, find her. ‘Coz, the very existence of a "one that got away" means that you’ll always wonder what if you got that one. Ask him out for coffee; ask her out to a movie.

You’d be surprised, you just might be "the one that got away" as well for the person who is your "the one that got away".

If the timing is finally right, it would be a great feeling, in the end, to be able to say to someone, "Hey you, you’re the one that almost got away".

CHANCE OR CHOICE?

When you meet the right person to love, at the right place, at the right time, that’s CHANCE.

When you meet someone you’re attracted to, that’s CHANCE, too.

Knowing that there are many people out there who are more attractive, smarter, richer, than your mate, and yet you decide to love your mate just the same, that’s a CHOICE.

Attraction comes to us by chance. But true love that lasts is truly a choice.

Listen: "Fate brings us together, but it’s still up to you to make it happen. We may meet someone by chance, but loving and staying with that someone is still a choice".

WHEN DOING THE RIGHT THING MEANS PAIN...

Doing the right thing…

Sometimes it means giving in
When you know that nothing else matters.

Sometimes it means needing to be quiet
When words can no longer deliver the message.

Sometimes it means going separate ways
When things have gotten unbearable and hopeless.

Sometimes it means turning away
When your presence will do more harm than good.

Sometimes it means giving up your dreams
When you no longer have time to dream.

Sometimes it means stop hoping
When there’s nothing else to hope for.

Sometimes it means giving up your reasons
When you know that they just don’t fit.

Sometimes it means masking your true feelings
When you know that you have to put up a face.

Sometimes it means keeping the love within your heart
When you know that it can only bring pain.

THE WINDOW

Two men, both seriously ill, occupied the same hospital room.
One man was allowed to sit up in his bed for an hour each afternoon to help drain the fluid from his lungs. His bed was next to the room's only window.
The other man had to spend all his time flat on his back.
The men talked for hours on end.
They spoke of their wives and families, their homes, their jobs, their involvement in the military service, where they had been on vacation.
Every afternoon when the man in the bed by the window could sit up, he would pass the time by describing to his roommate all the things he could see outside the window.
The man in the other bed began to live for those one-hour periods where his world would be broadened and enlivened by all the activity and color of the world outside.
The window overlooked a park with a lovely lake.
Ducks and swans played on the water while children sailed their model boats.
Young lovers walked arm in arm amidst flowers of every color and a fine view of the city skyline could be seen in the distance.
As the man by the window described all this in exquisite detail, the man on the other side of the room would close his eyes and imagine the picturesque scene.
One warm afternoon the man by the window described a parade passing by.
Although the other man couldn't hear the band - he could see it in his mind's eye as the gentleman by the window portrayed it with descriptive words. Days and weeks passed.
One morning, the day nurse arrived to bring water for their baths only to find the lifeless body of the man by the window, who had died peacefully in his sleep. She was saddened and called the hospital attendants to take the body away.
As soon as it seemed appropriate, the other man asked if he could be moved next to the window.
The nurse was happy to make the switch, and after making sure he was comfortable, she left him alone.
Slowly, painfully, he propped himself up on one elbow to take his first look at the real world outside.
He strained to slowly turn to look out the window beside the bed.
It faced a blank wall. The man asked the nurse what could have compelled his deceased roommate who had described such wonderful things outside this window.
The nurse responded that the man was blind and could not even see the wall.
She said, "Perhaps he just wanted to encourage you."
Epilogue:
"There is tremendous happiness in making others happy, despite our own situations"
"Shared grief is half the sorrow, but happiness when shared, is doubled"
"If you want to feel rich, just count all the things you have that money can't buy"
"Today is a gift, that's why it is called the present."

THE CRACKED POT

An elderly Chinese woman had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a pole which she carried across her neck. One of the pots had a crack in it while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water. At the end of the long walk from the stream to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full.

For a full two years this went on daily, with the woman bringing home only one and a half pots of water.

Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it could only do half of what it had been made to do. After 2 years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, it spoke to the woman one day by the stream. "I am ashamed of myself, because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your house." The old woman smiled, "Did you notice that there are flowers on your side of the path, but not on the other pot’s side? That’s because I have always known about your flaw, so I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back, you water them."

"For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table. Without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace the house." Each of us has our own unique flaw. But it’s the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives together so very interesting and rewarding. You’ve just got to take each person for what they are and look for the good in them.

So, to all of my crackpot friends, have a great day and remember to smell the flowers on your side of the path!

TO REMEMBER ME

In my random browsing through my old things, I came across a notebook which I filled years ago with compilations of great writings from various reading materials. Writings and ramblings which have struck a chord in me that has since then resonated in my own perspective in life. Here is one which I think reflects what I desire when “THAT TIME” eventually catches up with me.

“To Remember Me…”
(Robert N. Test, Cincinnati POST)

The day will come when my body will lie upon a white sheet neatly tucked under four corners of a mattress located in a hospital busily occupied with the living and the dying. At a certain moment a doctor will determine that my brain has ceased to function and that, for all intents and purposes, my life has stopped.

When that happens, do not attempt to instill artificial life into my body by use of a machine. And don’t call this my deathbed. Let it be called the Bed of Life, and let my body be taken from it to help others lead fuller lives.

Give my sight to the man who has never seen a sunrise, a baby’s face or love in the eyes of a woman.

Give my heart to a person whose own heart has caused nothing but endless days of pain.

Give my blood to the teenager who was pulled from the wreckage of his car, so that he might live to see his grandchidren play.

Give my kidneys to one who depends on a machine to exist from week to week.

Take my bones, every muscle, every fiber and nerve in my body and find a way to make a crippled child walk.

Explore every corner of my brain.

Take my cells, if necessary, and let them grow so that, someday, a speechless boy will shout at the crack of a bat and a deaf girl will hear the sound of rain against her window.

Burn what is left of me and scatter the ashes to the winds to help the flowers grow.

If you must bury something, let it be my faults, my weaknesses, and all prejudice against my fellow man.

Give my sins to the devil. Give my soul to God.

If, by chance, you wish to remember me, do it with a kind deed or word to someone who needs you.

If you do all I have asked, I will live forever.

HAVE YOU EVER?

Have you ever experienced a time in your life when you felt so empty for no reason?

Have you ever felt so down but you just can’t tell why?
Have you ever felt like the world suddenly spins around and you are caught in the middle going nowhere?
Weird, isn’t it?
But that is the beauty of being human…
It is knowing that there is a purpose for each existence…and whatever that may be, it is also the reason why we still wake up breathing each morning…to discover that missing piece of the puzzle that would make our lives complete…

SUBSTANCE OF ACHIEVEMENT

Substance of Achievement

It is far better for you to earn something and not have it than to have something and never earn it. When you've truly earned something, there is a valuable and important part of it that can never be taken away.

To wish that all the treasures of life would simply and easily be given to you is to wish for nothing of any real value. It is in the effort, the discipline, the commitment to reach it, that achievement yields true meaning.

Dream the biggest, most spectacular, fulfilling and meaningful dream that you can imagine. And know that the moment you begin to earnestly and steadily work your way toward it, the richness of that dream is yours to experience.

What you desire is not what you really desire. What you really desire is to be the person you must become in order to achieve it.

What you really desire is to matter, to make a difference, to add your own special essence and flavor to life. What will bring you fulfillment is to create, express and bring to life, in your own way, the unique beauty of your spirit.

Look past the mere trinkets and artifacts of achievement. Focus on the substance of achievement that lives in the effort, the passion, the commitment, and the persistence.
There you'll find real and lasting value.

Make the Attempt

Everything you accomplish, you must first attempt. So get busy making those attempts.

Procrastination and excuses do not lead to achievement. The way to make it happen is to make the attempt.

You may very well fall short on the first few attempts. There may very well be plenty of good reasons to give up.

Even so, keep making the attempt. Action and persistence will get you everywhere.

How do you get yourself to make the attempt? By connecting that attempt, and the achievement it will ultimately bring, with a real and meaningful purpose deep within you.

When you are clear about why you must do what you must do, you'll have no trouble finding the will and the commitment to step boldly forward.

Make the attempt, as often as necessary, and you will surely make it happen.

THIS IS WHAT LOVE IS ALL ABOUT

It was a busy morning, approximately 8:30 am, when an elderly gentleman in his 80's, arrived to have stitches removed from his thumb. He stated that he was in a hurry as he had an appointment at 9:00 am.

I took his vital signs and had him take a seat, knowing it would be over an hour before someone would to able to see him. I saw him looking at his watch and decided, since I was not busy with another patient, I would evaluate his wound.

On exam, it was well-healed, so I talked to one of the doctors, and got the needed supplies to remove his sutures and redress his wound.

While taking care of his wound, we began to engage in conversation. I asked him if he had another doctor's appointment this morning, as he was in such a hurry.

The gentleman told me no, that he needed to go to the nursing home to eat breakfast with his wife. I then inquired as to her health. He told me that she had been there for a while and that she was a victim of Alzheimer's Disease.

As we talked, I asked if she would be upset if he was a bit late. He replied that she no longer knew who he was, that she had not recognized him in five years now.

I was surprised, and asked him, "And you still go every morning, even though she doesn't know who you are?"

He smiled as he patted my hand and said, "She doesn't know me, but I still know who she is."

I had to hold back tears as he left, I had goose bumps on my arm, and thought, "That is the kind of love I want in my life."

True love is neither physical, nor romantic. True love is an acceptance of all that is, has been, will be, and will not be.

FOUR PEOPLE YOU WILL MEET IN LIFE

My cellphone buzzed, and from a friend with unlimited texting credits, I got this message:

FOUR PEOPLE YOU WILL MEET IN LIFE:

1st is yourself;

2nd is the one you love the most;

3rd is the one who loves you the most;

and the 4th is the one you spend the rest of your life with.

Sadly in real life, these 3 people are usually not the same person.

The one you love most, doesn't love you...

The one who loves you most, is never the one you love most...

and the one you spend your life with, is never the one you love most or the one who loves you most;

S/He is just the person who happens to be at the right place, at the right time...

Isn't it true? How sad is the fact that most marriages happen not because of "true love", but rather because the persons involved just wanted to "settle down"...and that most of us go through life never really finding our "soul mate", and we end up sharing our life with the wrong person who just happened to be at the right place, at the right time; but we just learn to love, and teach our hearts to love anyway, and never realize that we missed that one great love supposed to be meant for each person's lifetime...

Deep down inside, in the farthest reaches of our mind, and in the most secret corners of our hearts, there is something missing, but we deny and ignore it, and try to fill that void with the everyday details of our mundane existence until we reach the end of our lives convinced that we have lived a full and happy life.

And so we die, and for those who have not found their soulmates, it is said they are reborn so they may go through life once more and try to find their "missing half"...to search all over again...
So, what's the point of it all? Especially since these days, it's freakin' hard to find somebody to "settle down" with, much less a "soul mate" who simply "rocks" your world and sends sparks of electricity all over your body, mind, and soul. Just how long will you search? Or should you wait? How in the world do you recognize your soul mate?

Aw, sheesh! Who the heck knows? Not I, that's for certain. Cause, well, you know, I AM still searching...