we teach our children as we were taught –don’t say mean or negative things to or about people –it will only lead to others judging you in a bad light. but the reality is we need to look at the thoughts we have before anything comes out of our mouths. we need to judge ourselves before others judge us. we need to think about our thoughts. we need to pause a thought before it goes out the door to the world. yes, it is the old cliche again –think before you speak. but i am talking about going deeper than that. think before you think. you need to say to yourself –“why am i thinking this negative thought about this person” –well –we all know that instinctively we can’t help this from happening –it is human nature to think negative thoughts about someone, even if they are your best friend. but it is more likely to occur if it is not your best friend. so we need to hone in on that point –we need to think of everyone as our “best friend” to deflect the natural inclination to go negative. for example –you see a person who is rude –think first –“this is my best friend” –that will halt the negative thought from starting –then you move on and your mind is clearer of negative thoughts. yeah this could be a complicated approach, but something to think about. on the other hand, just think before you think. don’t let the negative thought form at all -stop it in it’s tracks -say to yourself –“i will not think this”. I’m starting to try it and it seems to work.
Author: xangst
A Declaration Against Terrorism
As a citizen of the United States of America and of the civilized world, I do declare my will against all past and future acts of terrorism. I will do everything in my mortal power to fight deliberate acts of terrorism in my home, community and country. It is my duty as a member of civilization to fight against this unyielding continuous struggle. We must overcome our own personal fears of insecurity to defeat the leaders and followers of all terrorist movements across the world.
Since the beginning of recorded time and civilization, men and women have lived in fear of deliberate acts of terror. Whether at home or walking down the street or sitting in an office or school building, citizens have been living in fear. We will overcome this fear within ourselves to combat and defeat the modern enemy we call terrorism.
The terrorist attacks against the United States on September 11, 2001 mark a dramatic shift in American and world history. We are now entering a new era of unprecedented challenges that will continue to test our pride, dignity and resolve. From this day forward, civilized life will never be the way it was before. We will now have to be on constant alert to protect our homes, communities and allies from the inevitable onslaught of terrorist acts of violence.
Let us now realize the path we must take in order to stop future acts of terrorism. Let us now declare to ourselves and each other that we will forever fight to maintain our freedom and way of life by standing up against every single act of terrorism here in the United States of America and within the borders of our allies.
Thus, I reiterate my declaration to stand against any and all deliberate acts of terrorism. I declare to defend my family, my home and my country until the last breath of air leaves my body. I declare to use my last drop of blood in defense of these virtues and truths I hold so dear to my patriotic heart and soul.
Tyler Toby (Swampscott, MA)
September 19, 2001
Thanks to this site for keeping my original copy online so that I could find it and re-post it today:
http://www.kathyandtodd.com/weshallovercome/page6_p3.html
when a friend says good-bye
life is a funny thing when it comes to friends. you start off like a romance –strong, fun, full of life and endless possibilities. you have the best laughs and share some great moments. you build up trust and get to know everything about each other. time goes on and you might meet some other new friends, but not as good as this friend. but you do spend time with these new friends and your old friend has other things to do as well. you spend less and less time with this friend until one day, your friend has said that you changed and we might as well go our separate ways. this does happen –but it is not the normal process. typically, you move on without acknowledging that things have changed–though it is harder to do this in a small community. the bottom line is that life is full of surprises and you should be prepared or unprepared for anything to happen –a death in the family, a financial windfall, a friendship fading away. you think to yourself – “i have not changed” –why would they say that? it is because the thoughts in their mind have changed. they think differently about the us –they think we have changed, when in reality it could be the other way around –the person saying “you have changed” is the one who has actually changed –or their perception of the friendship has changed. the bigger you make your circle of friends, the more chance of someone feeling left out. what can we do? nothing. we can only live our lives as life comes to us. it is sad, very sad when a friend says good-bye –but like a death, you must move on for yourself and your loved ones. ciao, it was fun.
get a college degree
we were mean
when you were young, you were mean to people. yes, we are all nice people and have nice friends. yes, we had fun growing up, making many friends, laughing all the time. but guess what –we didn’t please everyone all the time. we did step on some toes, we did piss some people off. and this is because our minds were still growing. we would say things without thinking –and these things would sometimes hurt people. we acted mean towards others to impress others –this is what high school kids do without even thinking. so what does this mean? it means that first we must not hold guilt because we acted this way –we were trying to survive in the high-pressure environment of school –we had no choice but to go with our instincts. if you see someone from your past that you were mean to –say your sorry –why not. chances are most people won’t even remember because you are not all they talk about. but, there will be people that do remember and will always think of you as an ass. not much you can do about that. one big thing you can do is talk to your kids –tell them not to be mean to others –because they will –it is human nature. tell them that hurting others to impress others is not the way to go –be nice and be yourself. help your kids and help yourself in this area.