Ray's Daily

“Any fool can know. The point is to understand.”

Albert Einstein

I did not get back from my special assignment until late last night and my day today starts at 5 AM and won’t end until late afternoon, so let’s see what I wrote on this day eight years ago , I am sure it will be better than anything I put together today.

Ray’s Daily first published on October 18, 2004

 “You listen,” said the Master, “not to discover, but to find something that confirms your own thoughts. You argue, not to find the truth, but to validate your thinking.”

And he told of a king who, passing through a small town, saw indications of amazing marksmanship everywhere.  Trees and barns and fences had circles painted on them with a bullet hole in the exact center.  He asked to see this unusual marksman.  It turned out to be a ten-year-old child.

“This is incredible,” said the king in wonder.  “How in the world do you do it?”

“Easy as pie,” was the answer.  “I shoot first and draw the circles later.”

“So you get your conclusions first and build your premises around them later,” said the Master. “Isn’t that the way you manage to hold on to your religion and to your ideology?”

Anthony de Mello, from Awakening: Conversations with the Master

~~~

I fear that too many of us find the answers before we understand even the question. How many of us really have an open mind? How many of us defend our professed views without even hearing someone else’s belief. Life is not a battle between rigid dogma and someone’s prejudices, rather it is the opportunity that is given to each of us to learn all we can, to do the best we can, and work together for the common good. We will not be remembered for our fights. We will only be remembered for our contributions.

One of the reasons I am glad I know so many of you is that we can disagree while we try to understand each other. Last week I attended a meeting where a Quaker minister explained the beliefs of the Society of Friends (Quakers). He said that he believed that there is God in each of us and it is not important for us to profess faith through ritual, rather it is important that we live what we believe. In effect he said that each of us needs to understand that God is in even those we disagree with, and it is up to us to work to find the good in others. We may not always be successful, but I prefer to love my neighbor rather than hate my neighbor, and I absolutely believe that searching for the good in others is much superior to searching for the bad in them.

~~~

As man draws nearer to the stars, why should he not also draw nearer to his neighbor?

Lyndon B. Johnson ~

~~~

She said:

I used to work for a large company; they often tried to do special things for us to make work a little more enjoyable. Below is a series of memos I found on my desk one week. Thought I would pass then on…..

Casual Day Memo No. 1: Effective immediately, the company is adopting Fridays as Casual Day so that employees may express their diversity.

Memo No. 2: Spandex and leather micro-miniskirts are not appropriate attire for Casual Day.  Neither are string ties, rodeo belt buckles or moccasins.

Memo No. 3: Casual Day refers to dress only, not attitude.  When planning Friday’s wardrobe, remember image is a key to our success.

Memo No. 4: A seminar on how to dress for Casual Day will be held at 4 p.m., Friday in the cafeteria.  Fashion show to follow.  Attendance is mandatory.

Memo No. 5: As an outgrowth of Friday’s seminar, a 14-member Casual Day Task Force has been appointed to prepare guidelines for proper dress.

Memo No. 6: The Casual Day Task Force has completed a 30-page manual. A copy of “Relaxing Dress Without Relaxing Company Standards” has been mailed to each employee.  Please review the chapter “You Are What You Wear” and consult the “home casual” versus “business casual” checklist before leaving for work each Friday.  If you have doubts about the appropriateness of an item of clothing, contact your CDTF representative before 7 a.m. on Friday.

Memo No. 7: Because of lack of participation, Casual Day has been discontinued, effective immediately!

~~~

Our only security is our ability to change.

John Lilly

~~~

My brother, a strict vegetarian, travels abroad for long periods on business. When he got back from Europe one time, he called our parents’ home and told Dad he was about to pay them an unexpected visit. Dad hung up. “The prodigal son is returning!” he called to my mother. “Kill the fatted zucchini!”

~~~

“Be careful of your thoughts; they may become words at any moment.”

Ira Gassen

~~~

She said: At the company water cooler, I bragged about my children’s world travels: one son was teaching in Bolivia, another was working in southern Italy, and my daughter was completing a yearlong research project in India. One co-worker’s quip, however, stopped me short.  “What is it about you,” he asked, “that makes your kids want to get so far away?”

~~~

Nothing is impossible if you don’t have to do it yourself.

~~~

Tired of having to balance his wife Cindy’s checkbook, Mike made a deal with her; he would only look at it after she had spent a few hours trying to wrestle it into shape.  Only then would he lend his expertise.

The following night, after spending hours poring over stubs and figures, Cindy said proudly,

“There!  I’ve done it!  I made it balance!”

Impressed, Mike came over to take a look.

“Let’s see…mortgage 550.00, electricity 70.50, phone 35.00.”

His brow wrinkled as he read the last entry.

“It says here ESP, 615.00.  What is that?”

“Oh,” said. “That means…..       ‘Error Someplace’ ”

~~~

We must believe in free will. We have no choice.

~~~

Little Morris, 4 years old, walked down the beach, and as he did, he spied a matronly woman sitting under a beach umbrella on the sand. He walked up to her and asked, “Are you Jewish?”

“Yes.” she replied.

“Do you know the Ten Commandments?”

She nodded her head, “Yes.”

“Do you pray often?” the boy asked next, and again she  answered, “Yes.”

Do you keep Kosher ?, Morris asked.

“I do.” said the elderly lady.

With that he asked his final question, “Will you hold my dollar while I go swimming?”

~~~

“Friendship improves happiness, and abates misery, by doubling our joys, and dividing our grief.”

Joseph Addison

~~~

Stay well, do good work, and have fun.

 Ray Mitchell

Indianapolis, Indiana

Management is not responsible for duplicates from previous dailies. The editor is somewhat senile.

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