According to William James, known as the father of American psychology, “It is our attitude at the beginning of a difficult task which, more than anything else, will affect its successful outcome.” Think of it this way, you’re invited to a party. Your first thought is, “Oh no. I don’t know anyone, I’ll be miserable for three hours.” The chances are, according your attitude, that you will have a miserable time. What if you changed your attitude and instead thought, “I’m going to a party. That’s great. I won’t know many people, what a great chance to make new contacts. I’m going practice my listening skills. This person will come home from the party with lots of new contacts and information he/she didn’t have before. Our attitude heading in has a great influence on the outcome
O Me! O life! of the questions of these recurring,
Of the endless trains of the faithless, of cities fill’d with the foolish,
Of myself forever reproaching myself, (for who more foolish than I, and who more faithless?)
Of eyes that vainly crave the light, of the objects mean, of the struggle ever renew’d,
Of the poor results of all, of the plodding and sordid crowds I see around me,
Of the empty and useless years of the rest, with the rest me intertwined,
The question, O me! so sad, recurring—What good amid these, O me, O life?
Answer.
That you are here—that life exists and identity,
That the powerful play goes on, and you may contribute a verse.
Saint-Exupéry in writes in The Little Prince, “The little prince, who watched the installation of a huge button, felt that he would get a miraculous appearance, but the flower did not finish preparing to become beautiful, sheltered in its green room. It chose with care its colors. It got dressed slowly, it adjusted one by one its petals. It did not want to come out all wrinkles like the poppies. It didn’t want to appear in the full radiance of its beauty. . . . And then, in one morning, precisely at the time of the rising of the sun, it showed up.”
NOTE: Have you ever wanted something so badly you felt as if what you wanted wouldn’t happen? I think we’ve all had that experience. It’s easy to begin to believe that it will not happen, it wasn’t meant for us, and to push our wishes and dreams aside. What if we wait with patient expectations? Then, like the little prince, we shall see our flower arriving at the precise time it was meant to arrive.
Widad Akrawi
John Wooden
Four great walls have hemmed me in.
Four strong, high walls:
Right and wrong,
Shall and shan’t.
The mighty pillars tremble when
My conscience palls
And sings its song—
I can, I can’t.
If for a moment Samson’s strength
Were given me I’d shove
Them away from where I stand;
Free, I know I’d love
To ramble soul and all,
And never dread to strike a wall.
Again, I wonder would that be
Such a happy state for me . . .
The going, being, doing, sham—
And never knowing where I am.
I might not love freedom at all;
My tired wings might crave a wall—
Four walls to rise and pen me in
This conscious world with guarded men.
The kids in the neighborhood gather on the street corners waiting for their school bus Monday through Fridays. They’re chatting with each other, some are carrying instruments, all have backpacks. Scenes like this make me feel good. I see a new generation trying to figure it out. They will. I have hope that among them are peacemakers, doctors, scientists, and most all people who will make a positive difference.
Saint-Exupéry in writes in The Little Prince, “So I had, in my lifetime, a lot of contacts with a lot of serious people. I’ve lived a lot at the house of grown-ups. I saw them very closely. It has not improved my opinion very much.
NOTE: Oh, the serious people that surround us. They walk around as if the world depended entirely on them. They glue themselves to the news. They fret over things they have no control over. And, they try to recruit others to their fear ladened parade. As for me, I’ll let their parade pass on by. I’d rather sing and dance and enjoy the adventure of living. I’ll keep my eyes open for the rainbow down the road and keep on believing that it will be a good day.
