Let your light shine; the whole of providence is cheering. It’s your day to excel, to exceed, and outshine your past achievements.
Arise and Shine! 🌄🌻
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Category: Inspiration/Motivation
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Deshauna Barber
Resilience is key to success. A resilient person through series of failures, disappointments and tough experiences build character and important virtues like confidence, patience, and empathy.
Watch Deshauna discuss how being resilient molded her into what she became today. She has a simple message for us: Never give up. 💚
Credit: Goalcast
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She hears the sun cry.
Only a sky full of pain.
Her mind becomes crowded,
and she remembers her country.
Sohana penned these words for her #Rohingya friends.
v/@unicefbd #TeamEurope #EUSolidarity #StrongerTogether
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I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear. Nelson Mandela
At a time colonial forces and indigenous South Africans fought over land rights and freedoms, a courageous man spoke up for his people. He was imprisoned for decades but that didn’t deter him. His resilience contributed to a free South Africa. We call him Madiba.
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You’re going to go through tough times – that’s life. But I say, ‘Nothing happens to you, it happens for you.’ Joel Osteen.
A difficult time can be more readily endured if we retain the conviction that our existence holds a purpose. John Maxwell.
I love the light for it shows me the way to go, but I love the darkness more for it shows me the stars. Og Mandino.
We can’t speak about resilience without speaking about hope. Hope is the bedrock of resilience. Reeta Roy
You can stay fours days without food, but the minute you lose hope, you’re dead! Eliud Kipchoge
Always remember that when battles are like a flood there is a standard, a red line it cannot cross. We gain strength by overcoming obstacles.
Ever had to give up? Remember why you started at first. That purpose is the reason why you must persist. Have a great day.
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Of all the magic in the world, none is more powerful than love.
…And that’s if we accept that any other thing qualify as magic.
Love is a driving force. It can change things; perceptions and imaginations. Great achievements are accomplished through it. Great writers wrote about it. It’s something beautiful to love. Imagine what the world will look like when we love genuinely. Show love today.
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1. Nothing makes life sweeter than making people happy.
2. The people you help today become your soldiers in the battle of life tomorrow.
3. To invest in properties is good, but to invest in people is far better.
4. To make money, make people.
5. Your greatest trophies are the tears you wipe away from people’s faces not the things you acquire.
6. Your greatest achievement should be raising achievers.
7. People will defend, stand by you & honour you when they realise you value them.
8. Don’t let other people’s ungratefulness stop you from making others great.
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Selflessness
Someone is an answer to your prayers as you are to others
Seasons: Things just don’t happen
One beautiful thing about life is: there are seasons for everything so things just don’t happen. Everything happens to serve different purposes. Even in nature there are seasons. There are times for flowers to blossom, time for the night and day and time to eat or rest. In West Africa we have the rainy season and dry season. Each season has a role to play and must fulfil it’s purpose.
Selflessness
Here is a story from ODM that talks about selflessness and compassion. The lessons in this story goes beyond self.
A man was out taking pictures of eagles on a Sunday afternoon in Bellevue, Nebraska in the United States when he witnessed a Sedan (car) containing 3 men which lost control while crossing rail road tracks. The vehicle is a fire hydrant (big container where water is stored to put out fire) and then landed upside down in an ice-cold pond. According to ABC News Omaha affiliate station, KETV the man said “The car just came right in front of me; they hit the fire hydrant and I don’t think they even touched the ground They were airborne”. The man heard the occupants screaming for help and immediately jumped into action. He panicked when he heard the voice of one of them say, “Get me out, it’s filling of water”. But he overcame his initial fear, took a dive into the freezing water and managed to pull one of the car door open. Immediately he did, water started gushing out of the car. The man who screamed for help started making his way out of the car. He pulled him and got him out. He pulled another man and there after pulled another man. Gradually, he got three men out of the overturned and submerged vehicle. The man who was later hailed as the hero for saving the lives of this three men, said he will always look back at the pictures he took that day and be thankful because his timing was right and that he was lucky to be in the right place at the right time.
Remember always
Everyone on earth is here for a purpose. No one is extra human or excess human being. Abhijit Naskar reasoned thus, “Without purpose, we are just good looking animals.” Life is a place of inter connectivity! You were created to be an answer to somebody’s prayer. You are someone’s bundle of joy and someone was made to be your bundle of joy!
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Sometimes those who crown kings don’t look like kings and may never become kings but they can help one wear the crown.
A short story
There was a poor man who wrote a book at the age of 40 and decided to launch it on his birthday. He had no money to fund the launching and so he decided to seek help from a millionaire in his community.
He made a visit to the millionaire’s home and after they exchanged pleasantries, he told his host what brought him. The millionaire told him to take out a piece of paper and pen. He said, “I’ll give you a test. If you pass it, I’ll give you the money you need and if you fail, I’ll still give you the money”. He then told him to write down the names of 10 people who could give him 10k each for his book during the launch. Surprisingly, the man could not write even 3 names.
Relationship is a currency
It’s not enough to have talent and skills. But there is much gain in building valuable relationships. A wise man once said, your network is directly proportional to your net worth.
Relationship is a stream of income.
Everything in life actually reproduces on the basis of relationship. Men are lifted through men. Many are talented but lack the right direction and person to announce them.
Who one knows matters a lot in life. There are heights and opportunities one will never attain if one don’t understand the power of keeping valuable relationships. Classmates and colleagues at work may be the ones that will lead one to his/her destiny helper because you have no idea who they know.
It takes just a recommendation to change a story. Don’t despise anyone. They might be needed one day.
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Quotes on Unity
When spiders unite they can tie down a lion – Ethiopian Proverb.
None of us is as smart as all of us – Ken Blanchard.
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Birthdays are rare
They come once in a year
Unique Birthday: A set of Eights!
Ah, it’s today. 8th day of 8th month of the year 2020. I usually write poems or stories to celebrate but this year’s birthday is unique. So instead of a poem I’ll muse about the actual numbers that made my birthdate special. My birth certificate reads that I was born on 8.24 AM in the year 198*. Even the minutes are multiples of 8, haha! If I had to scribble out my birthdate it will read thus: 8.24 AM, 8/8/8*. One princess from the United Kingdom share exactly this day with me.
How do I feel?
‘So how does it feel to be a year older?’ a close friend had asked me over the phone. I knew it was a rhetorical question meant to reflect on what I’ve done with my time and self since the last birthday. Normally I would have said I feel nothing since the question focused on my self. Personal achievements are not a yardstick to measure overall success.
‘I feel special. I feel alive. I feel fulfilled and I hope for better things to come, not just for me but for every good person.’ To be honest this is what I feel, at least for these past few months. The year 2020 had been a tough one. It brought death, disease, drought, and man-made disaster. Poverty is still at large. Many lost loved ones. I lost a sister, an uncle and some relatives and friends. The lessons I picked broke the mirror called self. I started engaging in humanitarian work and volunteering online for charities, foundations and organizations. This threw me out of my introvert shell. I met great people who had become a strong network. The opportunities I sought before the pandemic came calling and I grabbed them with both hands. I’m glad to be helping other people with my talents, no matter how little. That’s what I count as real achievement.
So I won’t dwell or reflect on my personal success. If I do, I’ll say I achieved very little this past year.
Birthday wish
What do you wish for? This is the big birthday question. No one can give an appropriate answer in one response. At the moment, it’s futile to wish for some things. Nevertheless, I’m just happy to see others happy and successful.
So I make this wish for myself today; for longlife to continue in service to my faith, my nation and humanity, for prosperity to help the impoverished, destitute and be the voice of the voiceless, and for success to inspire children and other youth around the world. Finally, I wish that the world may know tolerance, peace and love. I wish myself a happy birthday.
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– Friends are family we chose for ourselves.
Didn’t forget
I didn’t forget about the World Friends Day. I do write about friendship because it’s dear to me. I was extremely busy with personal and family errands. I also volunteer online for a company based in North America and so had little time to pen my stories, thoughts and poems. At the end of each day I’m left weak and tired. So I sleep earlier nowadays.
Friends are Family…
I’ve so many friends. Strangely, my friends are not limited to street, school, church pals or any human acquaintance made. I’ve adorable friends too: babies and little children, dogs, birds, ants, even plants and trees. To me friendship goes beyond the physical. It’s a mutual thing ordained with understanding, respect and loyalty. It falls in-between trust and love. True friends can give up anything even their life for one another. Take for instance the story of Antonio and Bassanio in Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice.
Everybody is capable of friendship
Someone, somewhere look up to you. It might be a person or a pet. It might be the old milkman walking by your window to see you smile and say good morning. It might be a pair of rose flowers dangling in a vase waiting for its daily dose of water and care. It could be anyone.
I ask that you check on your friends. Times are tough. A simple call or chat can bring back hope to the heartbroken or depressed. Hope is a strong force. Remain a loyal and trustworthy friend to someone. You might be the reason someone looks forward to another day.
Here is to wish you my friends and family what I should have these past few days: Happy belated Friendship Day. And I love you so much. Stay safe.
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Legacy
Life is dynamic. It changes each time we look at it from different perspectives. This is a story you might know. It tells of two opposites: selfishness and generosity, greed and contentment.
Larry and Harry
Larry and Harry, two homeless men were given a chance to travel to a third world country on an all-expenses paid trip.
They were told to carry nothing and to return with nothing. They were to make sure they spent all that was given to them. Provision had been made for their expenses and welfare which they would get upon arrival at their destination. The only caveat was that neither of them knew when they would be asked to return home.
When they arrived, they were both given a huge sum of money and a credit card with no limits, but reminded to spend it all before returning to their home country. At this, they became instantly wealthy by local standards.
Harry thought to himself. “Wow! This is my opportunity to live like a king for I don’t know how long this would last”. So he went and rented a Ferrari and rented the best room in the best hotel in town. He went to the best stylist, shaved and transformed his looks. He had parties everyday. Everyone in the city thought the cars and the wealth were his and they loved and respected him for it.
But at the back of his mind, Harry knew he would go back home someday and leave all of it behind but he didn’t want to think about it. He just wanted to live the moment and enjoying himself to the fullest.
Larry, on the other hand rented a small Honda to get him around town and stayed in a modest inn. He thought to himself. “This money will not last and I don’t know when I am going back so I have to do something tangible with it.” He decided to use it to change some people’s lives while he had the time. So he got busy, went out on the streets and started making a difference. He didn’t just give away money, rather he tried to help people to be self-sufficient. He paid off all the school fees of some promising young ones to enable them get an education and take care of themselves and their families. He found some responsible adults and funded them in a business that guaranteed they would be able to take care of their family and create employment. He devised a means of helping some of the homeless people get off the street and getting them into a trade for he thought “I wish someone would do this for me when I get back.” In short Larry spent his time changing lives.
Then after two months they were suddenly notified that it was time to go back. They hadn’t even finished spending all the money but still had to leave it all. They both said their goodbyes and headed for the airport.
At the airport they were given their original clothes to put back on before boarding the plane back to their country. Harry reminisced on the good times he had but wasn’t too happy that he was going back to his old life.
How would he readjust to being homeless?
Larry on the other hand felt good. He came with nothing and is leaving with nothing, but he at least helped others with a chance at life and that alone meant the world to him. Readjusting to being a homeless person wouldn’t be a problem because he never lived like the wealth was his anyway and always had it at the back of his mind that he would leave it all someday.
But little did they know that each moment they spent on vacation was being secretly recorded and they would be rewarded accordingly.
Now, which one do you think would be cast back out to the slums as a homeless person and which one would be entrusted with large sums of wealth and position of authority?
The same goes with our lives. We are here on a mission and will return empty handed except for the recordings of our dealings on earth. Many walk around thinking that the wealth they have is theirs to keep forever. When we look at the mirror, we think that what we see will always be there, forgetting that everything is temporal.
Have a good day of reflection.
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Abraham’s Humble Story
When Abraham Lincoln became the president of America, his father was a shoemaker. Naturally, egoistic people were very much offended that a shoemaker’s son should become the president. On the first day, as Abraham entered to give his inaugural address, just in the middle, one man stood up. He was a very rich aristocrat. He said, “Mr. Lincoln, you should not forget that your father used to make shoes for my family.” The whole Senate laughed; they thought that they had made a fool of Abraham Lincoln.
But certain people are made of a totally different mettle. Lincoln looked at the man directly in the eye and said, “Sir, I know that my father used to make shoes for your family, and there will be many others here because he made shoes the way nobody else can. He was a creator. His shoes were not just shoes; he poured his whole soul into them. I want to ask you, have you any complaint? Because I know how to make shoes myself. If you have any complaint I can make you another pair of shoes. But as far as I know, nobody has ever complained about my father’s shoes. He was a genius, a great creator and I am proud of my father.”
The whole Senate was struck dumb. They could not understand what kind of man Abraham Lincoln was. He was proud because his father did his job so well, with so much enthusiasm, such a passion, and perfection.
Attitude matters, a lot…
It does not matter what you do. What matters is how you do it of your own accord, with your own vision, with your own love. Then whatever you touch becomes gold.
Ships don’t sink because of the water around them; ships sink because of the water that gets in them. Don’t let what’s happening around you get inside you and weigh you down.
Moral
No one can hurt you without your consent. It is not what happens to us that hurts us. It is our response that hurts us.
