Ray's Daily

What will be your legacy?

Ray’s Daily

November 30, 2018

https://rays-daily.com/

“That is your legacy on this Earth when you leave this Earth: how many hearts you touched.”

Patti Davis

If you are like I am you are concerned about the world we are leaving to our children and grandchildren. It seems that we have become so greedy as a people that we are only focused on what we can get for ourselves.

The recent report on climate change predicts a devastating future in the decades ahead, putting our coastal citizens in danger while making life difficult for the rest of us. Yet our political leaders choose to pretend climate change does not exist, they are also watering down existing efforts to try and mitigate its effects. At the same time we are building huge federal deficits as we place more emphasis on our own pocket books with little worry about how we will pay for it all. The interest on the national debt our grandchildren will have to pay will leave little money left to pay for infrastructure, health care and more.

We seem to be like the guy who has fallen off the Empire State building and as he passes the 55^th floor declares he is alright so far. I hope the legacy I leave will show I have done what I can to avoid being part of the problem.

Kate Snowise wrote the following piece on legacies that I would like to share with you today.

What Do You Want Your Legacy To Be?

Our time on earth is limited. We all know this, yet for some reason, we generally push it to one side. We get caught in the trap of believing there are infinite tomorrows when it simply isn’t the case.

We are here for a short time, but that doesn’t mean that we can’t leave a big legacy. And by big, I don’t mean famous or visible, but a legacy that makes a difference in some way.

So what do you want your legacy to be? Have you ever pondered this question or something similar? What do you want your life to be remembered by? We are full of possibility if we allow ourselves to believe it.

Wayne Dyer, a pioneer in the self-help field and great spiritual teacher passed away suddenly over the weekend. He was 75. I was shocked when I read the post on Facebook from his family that said he was no longer with us. He was a bright light in the world, and you could say his legacy was love. Love for ourselves, love for one another and love for this life. He taught us that through connecting and living with our hearts, we can create heaven on earth. It’s up to us.

I sit here, in my 33-year-old body, in good health, and the tomorrows feel like they stretch as far as I can see. But hearing that a great soul has moved on, and instantaneously knowing his legacy was one of love, brought me back to the point of what do I want to achieve in this life I’ve been given? When you look back at the end of your life, if you are given the chance, and assess what you have done with the moments, the days, the weeks and the years, will you be proud of yourself? Or will you have regrets? What would you have been frustrated that you didn’t do? Or what would you have been incredibly proud of trying?

For me, they are big questions that help to cut through the daily chaos of life and provide a sense of clarity. It’s like shining a light through the busyness so that you can recognize what is really important.

Here are some of my thoughts about my legacy:

If I get to the end of my life and realize that I played it safe because I was too afraid to fail, I would be mad at myself. The only way we know if life has a chance of moving in a certain direction is if we are daring enough to take the risk. I know I won’t regret taking risks.

I hope I leave a legacy, much like Dr. Wayne Dyers. I hope those who knew me will associate my name with a sense of deep, collective love. I hope they will think about their souls and the connection I encouraged them to have with their true-selves. I hope that when those who knew me hear my name after I am gone, they will feel a sense of warmth in their hearts.

~~~

“Carve your name on hearts, not tombstones. A legacy is etched into the minds of others and the stories they share about you.”

Shannon L. Alder

~~~

After putting her children to bed, a mother changed into old slacks and a droopy blouse and proceeded to wash her hair. As she heard the children getting more and more rambunctious, her patience grew thin. At last she threw a towel around her head & stormed into their room, putting them back to bed with stern warnings. As she left the room, she heard her three-year-old say with a trembling voice, “Who was that?”

~~~
Laughter: The shortest distance between two people.
~~~

While working for an organization that delivers lunches to elderly shut-ins, I used to take my four-year-old daughter on my afternoon rounds.

She was unfailingly intrigued by the various appliances of old age, particularly the canes, walkers and wheelchairs.
One day I found her staring at a pair of false teeth soaking in a glass. As I braced myself for the inevitable barrage of questions, she merely turned and whispered, “The tooth fairy will never believe this!”

~~~

A man never discloses his character so clearly as when he describes another’s.

~~~

A lady came to the hospital to visit a friend. She had not been in a hospital for several years and felt uneasy, not knowing about all the new technology. A technician followed her onto the elevator, wheeling a large, intimidating looking machine with tubes and wires and dials.

“Boy, would I hate to be hooked up to that thing,” she said.

“So would I,” replied the technician. “It’s a floor-cleaning machine.”

~~~

Life is cheap. It’s the accessories that kill you.

~~~

Harry had just reached his 175th birthday last week. Surrounded by reporters, he was asked, “Excuse me, sir, but how did you come to live to be 175?”

Harry answered, “It was easy.  I just never argue with anyone.”

The reporter shot back, “That’s crazy.  It had to be something else –diet, meditation, or *something*.  Just not arguing won’t keep you alive for 175 years!”

The old fella stared hard at the reporter for several seconds.

Then he shrugged.  “Hmmm.  Maybe you’re right.”

~~~

“Language allows us to reach out to people, to touch them with our innermost fears, hopes, disappointments, victories. To reach out to people we’ll never meet. It’s the greatest legacy you could ever leave your children or your loved ones: The history of how you felt.”

Simon Van Booy

~~~

Ray Mitchell

Indianapolis, Indiana

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

Ray’s Daily has been sent for more than fifteen years to people who want to start their day on an upbeat. If you have system overload because of our daily clutter, let me know and I will send you the information via mental telepathy. If you have not been getting our daily you can request to be added by e-mailing me at raykiwsp@gmail.com. Back issues are posted at http://rays-daily,com/ currently there are more than 2000 readers from around the world.

 

Did you miss them too?

Ray’s Daily

November 29, 2018

https://rays-daily.com/

“Small cheer and great welcome makes a merry feast.”

William Shakespeare

I just realized that November is almost over and I had not reviewed the themes for the month and what I should have been doing. Just in case you missed it too, here are some of the highlights:

November Monthly Observations

• Adopt A Senior Pet Month – I am a senior and I have yet to have anyone ask me to be their pet.
• Banana Pudding Lovers Month – I wonder if they have a convention and where it might be.
• Family Stories Month – Did I ever tell the one about…..
• Historic Bridge Awareness Month – OK where are you?
• National COPD Month _ I wish I only had it in November.
• National Family Caregivers Month – Thanks kids for doing so much
• National Fun with Fondue Month – Ask a Fondue to dance
• National Gratitude Month – I think I will make 2019 my gratitude year
• National Pepper Month – Bell or ground?
• National Roasting Month – OK turn up the damn heat already!
• Prematurity Awareness Month – If this is for the immature, I may qualify.

I think I will start observances sooner next November.

~~~

“Joy is what happens to us when we allow ourselves to recognize how good things really are.”

Marianne Williamson

~~~

Our English lesson for the day includes the following definitions, try to work them into your conversations today.

Aquadextrous (akwa deks’ trus) adj. Possessing the ability to turn the bathtub faucet on and off with your toes.

Carperpetuation (kar ‘pur pet u a shun) n. The act, when vacuuming, of running over a string or a piece of lint at least a dozen times, reaching over and picking it up, examining it, then putting it back down to give the vacuum one more chance.

Disconfect (diskonfect’) v. To sterilize the piece of candy you dropped on the floor by blowing on it, assuming that somehow it will ‘remove’ all the germs.

Elbonics (el bon’ iks) n. The actions of two people maneuvering for one armrest in a movie theater.

Frust (frust) n. The small line of debris that refuses to be swept onto the dustpan and keeps backing a person across the room until he finally decides to give up and sweep it under the rug.

~~~

“I used to be indecisive, now I’m not so sure.”

~~~

Nina confided to Rosey, “My cooking left my husband cold.”

“He divorced you because of your cooking?” Rosey asked.

“No,” Nina replied, “he died.”

~~~

The honeymoon is over when he no longer smiles gently as he scrapes the burnt toast.

~~~

A customer wanted to ask his attractive waitress for a date, but couldn’t get her attention. When he was able to catch her eye, she quickly looked away. Finally he followed her into the kitchen and blurted out his invitation. To his amazement, she readily consented.

He said, “Why have you been avoiding me all this time? You wouldn’t even make eye contact.”

“Oh,” said the waitress, “I thought you wanted more coffee.”

~~~

“Did your wife have much to say when you got home last night?”

“No, but that didn’t keep her from talking for two hours.”

~~~

A man goes to consult a specialist about his medical problem. After the visit the man asks, “How much do I owe you?”

“My fee is five hundred dollars,” replies the physician.

“Five hundred dollars? That’s impossible. No one charges that much!”

“In your case,” the doctor replies, “I suppose I could adjust my fee to three hundred.”

“Three hundred dollars? For one visit? Ridiculous.”

“Well, then, could you afford two hundred?”

“Who has that kind of money?”

“Look, replies the doctor,” growing irritated, “Just give me fifty bucks and get out.”

“I can give you twenty says the man. Take it or leave it.”

“I don’t understand you,” says the doctor. “Why did you come to the most expensive doctor in New York if you have no money?”

“Listen, Doctor”, says the patient, “When it comes to my health, nothing is too expensive.”

~~~

I used to have a handle on life, then it broke.

~~~

A lady who was speeding had an officer pulled her to the side of the road. She didn’t have her seat belt on so as soon as she stopped, she quickly slipped it on before the officer got to her window.

After talking to her about speeding, the officer said, “I see you are wearing your seat belt. Do you believe in wearing it at all times?”

“Yes, I do, officer,” she replied.

“Well,” asked the officer, “do you always do it up with it looped through your steering wheel?”

~~~

The early fish gets hooked for the same thing the early bird gets credit for.

~~~

“The Art of Negotiations”

Morris Kissinger goes to see a poor man and says, “I want to arrange a marriage for your son.” The poor man replies, “I never interfere in my son’s life.” Kissinger responds, “But the girl is Lord Rothschild’s daughter.” “Well, in that case…”

Next Kissinger approaches Lord Rothschild. “I have a husband for your daughter.” “But my daughter is too young to marry.” “But this young man is already a vice president of the World Bank.” “Ah, in that case…”

Finally Kissinger goes to see the president of the World Bank. “I have a young man to recommend to you as a vice president.” “But I already have more vice presidents than I need.” “But this young man is Lord Rothschild’s son-in-law.” “Ah, in that case….”

~~~

“May your walls know joy, may every room hold laughter, and every window open to great possibility.”

Mary Anne Radmacher

~~~

Ray Mitchell

Indianapolis, Indiana

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

Ray’s Daily has been sent for more than fifteen years to people who want to start their day on an upbeat. If you have system overload because of our daily clutter, let me know and I will send you the information via mental telepathy. If you have not been getting our daily you can request to be added by e-mailing me at raykiwsp@gmail.com. Back issues are posted at http://rays-daily,com/ currently there are more than 2000 readers from around the world.

 

My special friend

Ray’s Daily

November 28, 3018

https://rays-daily.com/

A true friend sees the first tear… catches the second… and stops the third

Angelique

It is another day when I have run out of time so I’m sending you another reprint.

Ray’s Daily first published on November 28, 2014

I don’t think I ever told you about my special friend. For most of my life I convinced myself I was too busy to spend much time with him. That changed about twenty years ago when I realized I really needed his friendship. Now he is with me all the time. If I start to do something questionable he is the one who asks “do you really want to do this?” Often that is all it takes to rethink what I was doing and more times than not make a change.

He is the one who brought me through my many serious medical encounters by reminding me that they were only temporary interruptions in my pretty good life and that I would recover and move on. In our more leisure time he reminds me that most people are good people and many can use a friend so I should be one if they will let me. Sometimes he can be a little pushy when he wakes me to make sure I get up to exercise early each weekday morning.

In truth I owe a lot of my good fortune to my special friend. You see my special friend is me and I am grateful that he decided to stay with me all these years.

Here is something Marc Chernoff has written that includes the kind of things my special friend tells me each day.

1. You are educated enough to read this.  Believe it or not, there are roughly 774 million people in the world who don’t have this ability.  That’s a significant percentage of the human population.  Literacy is the bridge that closes the gap between discouragement and confidence, between confusion and understanding, and between sadness and hope.  It’s the greatest platform of personal growth, and the means by which every human being can realize their full potential.
2. You are reasonably healthy. – In other words, if you got sick today you could recover.  Never underestimate the gift of your health.  It’s the greatest wealth you will ever own.  It’s the foundation for every chance at happiness and success life has to offer.  Your body is the only place you will truly ever live. Too often we focus on the negatives.  We think about how hard it will be and all the sacrifices that must be made.  But one of life’s greatest joys and one the primary benefits of good health comes from focusing on the positives of a healthy lifestyle – what we gain through living and feeling well.
3. You have the freedom to choose. – If you often worry about what you’re going to do with your life – your career, your family, the next step, etc., be grateful.  All details aside, this means you have ambition, passion, drive, and the freedom to make your own decisions.  In the space between your yes and no, there’s liberation.  It’s the difference between the path you walk and the one others want you to walk; it’s the gap between who you could become and who you want to be.
4. You have enough wealth to live comfortably. – You didn’t go to sleep hungry last night.  You awoke this morning with a roof over your head.  You had a choice of what clothes to wear.  You have access to clean drinking water and electricity.  You are online right now.  You have plenty to be comfortable.  Being wealthy is a mindset.  Be sure you understand this.  Want less and appreciate more.
5. You still have a chance. – Time is precious.  Everything you know is ending.  Not yet, but soon enough.  What you must decide is what you want to do with the time you have left.  If your lifespan were to expire this evening at the stroke of midnight, would you be at ease with how you have spent your time today?  Nothing is guaranteed.  Someday, like many others are experiencing right this second, your time will expire.  Don’t be afraid.  Be alive in this moment and make the most of it.  Right now is your chance. 

~~~

“A friend is one that knows you as you are, understands where you have been, accepts what you have become, and still, gently allows you to grow.”

William Shakespeare

~~~

More signs in our time:

Veterinarians Waiting Room: Be back in 5 minutes. Sit! Stay!

The Electric Company: We would be delighted if you send in your bill. However, if you don’t, you will be.

Diner Window: Don’t stand there and be hungry, come in and get fed up.

Cafeteria: Shoes are required to eat in the cafeteria. Socks can eat any place they want.

Funeral Home: Drive carefully, we’ll wait.

~~~

Looking at his portly patient, the doctor hands him a prescription and says, “Mr. Jones, you should make sure that you try to take these pills on an empty stomach…if such an opportunity ever presents itself!”

~~~

A customer was continually bothering the waiter in a restaurant; first, he’d asked that the air conditioning be turned up because he was too hot, then he asked it be turned down cause he was too cold, and so on for about half an hour.

Surprisingly, the waiter was very patient, walking back and forth and never once getting angry. So finally, a second customer asked why didn’t they just throw out the pest.

“Oh I don’t care.” said the waiter with a smile. “We don’t even have an air conditioner.”

~~~

The trouble with alarm clocks is that they always go off when you’re asleep.

~~~

“An abstract noun,” the teacher said, “is something you can think of, but you can’t touch it. Can you give me an example of one?”

“Sure,” a teenage boy replied. “My father’s new car.”

~~~

When I’m good, I’m very, very good, but when I’m bad, I’m better!

Mae West

~~~

My six-year-old grandson called his mother from his friend Charlie’s house and confessed he had broken a lamp when he threw a football in their living room.

“But, Mom,” he said, brightening, “you don’t have to worry about buying another one. Charlie’s mother said it was irreplaceable.”

~~~

Sometimes in life, you find a special friend. Someone who changes your life just by being part of it. Someone who makes you laugh until you can’t stop. Someone who makes you believe that there really is good in the world. Someone who convinces you that there really is an unlocked door just waiting for you to open it. This is forever friendship. When you’re down and the world seems dark and empty, your forever friend lifts you up in spirit and makes that dark and empty world suddenly seem bright and full. Your forever friend gets you through the hard times, the sad times and the confused times. If you turn and walk away, your forever friend follows. If you lose your way, your forever friend guides you and cheers you on. Your forever friend hold your hand and tells you that everything is going to be okay. And if you find such a friend, you feel happy and complete because you need not worry. You have a forever friend, and forever has no end.

Author Unknown

~~~

Ray Mitchell

Indianapolis, Indiana

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

Ray’s Daily has been sent for more than fifteen years to people who want to start their day on an upbeat. If you have system overload because of our daily clutter, let me know and I will send you the information via mental telepathy. If you have not been getting our daily you can request to be added by e-mailing me at raykiwsp@gmail.com. Back issues are posted at http://rays-daily,com/ currently there are more than 2000 readers from around the world.

 

It is up to you

Ray’s Daily

November 27, 2018

https://rays-daily.com/

A man sooner or later discovers that he is the master-gardener of his soul, the director of his life.

James Allen

I am finding that I appreciate each day more these days. It gets a little harder to do somethings then in the past but when I do them I appreciate the accomplishment more. When I look at each day and it’s parts I find that I can improve the day by just doing what needs to be done and using what is left as the opportunity not only to do what I must do but also to do what I want to do.

I recently read the following offering on how we all can improve our days. It reminded me again that the quality of each day is up to me. I hope you find it to be as worthy as I do.

The Art of Living Each Day

Author: Wilferd A. Peterson

Each day is a lifetime in miniature.

To awaken each morning is to be born again, to fall asleep at night is to die to the day.

In between waking and sleeping are the golden hours of the day. What we cannot do for a lifetime we can do for a daytime.

Anyone can hold their temper for a day and guard the words they speak.

Anyone can carry his burden heroically for one day.

Anyone can strive to be happy for a day and to spread happiness around.

Anyone can radiate love for a day.

Anyone can rise above fear for a day and meet each new situation with courage.

Anyone can be kind and thoughtful and considerate for a day.

Anyone can endeavor to learn something new each day and mark some growth.

The supreme art of living is to strive to live each day well.

When we fail and fall short, let us forgive ourselves and consider the words of Emerson: “Finish every day and be done with it. You have done what you could; some blunders and absurdities have crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; you will begin it well and serenely and with too high a spirit to be cumbered by your old nonsense.”

Live a day at a time and remember that tomorrow is another today.

~~~

All the art of living lies in a fine mingling of letting go and holding on.

Henry Ellis

~~~

A wise schoolteacher sends this note to all parents on the first day of school: “If you promise not to believe everything your child says happens at school, I’ll promise not to believe everything he says happens at home.

~~~

Judy has the answer; this is what she sent us:

My face in the mirror
Isn’t wrinkled or drawn.
My house isn’t dirty.
The cobwebs are gone.
My garden looks lovely
And so does my lawn.
I think I might never
Put my glasses back on.

~~~

You know, if my wife wasn’t so hung up on this faithfulness thing, she’d probably say you were my cutest girlfriend yet.

~~~

Martha Stewart did not dine with us this Thanksgiving.  Since Ms. Stewart did not come, we made a few small changes:

Our sidewalk was not lined with homemade, paper bag luminaries.  After a trial run, it was decided that no matter how cleverly done, rows of flaming lunch sacks do not have the desired welcoming effect.

The dining table was not covered with expensive linens, fancy china or crystal goblets.  We used dishes that match and everyone got a fork.  Since it was Thanksgiving, we did not use the plastic Peter Rabbit plate and the Santa napkins from last Christmas.

Our centerpiece was not the tower of fresh fruit and flowers that I promised.  Instead we displayed a hedgehog-like decoration hand-crafted from the finest construction paper.  The artist assured me it was a turkey.

We dined fashionably late.  The children will entertained you while everyone waited.  They shared every choice comment I made regarding Thanksgiving, pilgrims and the turkey hotline.  Please remember that most of these comments were made at 5:00 AM upon discovering that the turkey was still hard enough to cut diamonds.  As accompaniment to the children’s recital, I played a recording of tribal drumming.  If the children mentioned that I don’t own a recording of tribal drumming, or that tribal drumming sounds suspiciously like a frozen turkey in a clothes dryer, ignore them.  They are lying.

We toyed with the idea of ringing a dainty silver bell to announce the start of our feast.  In the end, we chose to keep our traditional method.  We’ve also decided against a formal seating arrangement.  When the smoke alarm sounded, everyone gathered around the table and sat where they liked.  In the spirit of harmony, we did ask the children to sit at a separate table.  In a separate room.  Next door.

Now I know you have all seen pictures of one person carving a turkey in front of a crowd of appreciative onlookers.  This did not happen at our dinner.  For safety reasons, the turkey was carved in a private ceremony.  I stress “private” meaning: No one, under any circumstances was allowed to enter the kitchen and laugh at me.  I used an electric knife.  The turkey was unarmed.  It stands to reason that I would eventually win.  When I did, we ate.

Instead of offering a choice between 12 different scrumptious desserts, we served a traditional pumpkin pie, garnished with whipped cream and small fingerprints.

Martha Stewart did not dine with us this Thanksgiving.  She probably won’t come next year either.

I am thankful.

~~~

“Don’t be too hard on yourself. There are plenty of people willing to do that for you. Love yourself and be proud of everything that you do. Even mistakes mean you’re trying.”

Susan Gale

~~~

Ray Mitchell

Indianapolis, Indiana

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

Ray’s Daily has been sent for more than fifteen years to people who want to start their day on an upbeat. If you have system overload because of our daily clutter, let me know and I will send you the information via mental telepathy. If you have not been getting our daily you can request to be added by e-mailing me at raykiwsp@gmail.com. Back issues are posted at http://rays-daily,com/ currently there are more than 2000 readers from around the world.

 

And we begin again

Ray’s Daily

November 26, 2018

https://rays-daily.com/

“Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself, in your way of thinking.”

Marcus Aurelius

I appreciated my four day Thanksgiving weekend even though I am suffering with a painful foot infection. I always enjoy spending time with friends and family although this time I was a little out of it due to my illness and medications.

I don’t spend too much time being unhappy always preferring to focus on being happy. Recently I saved an article written by Darren Chowles that I liked, here is an abridged copy of what he wrote.

5 Steps To A Happier Life

Many people stumble through life unhappy. Whether it’s a failing relationship, troubles with your job, or a simple lack of interest in anything. There are several small things you can do to change this. I’ve shared a few steps below that I’ve experienced first-hand.

1. Material things won’t make you happy – Material things simply won’t make you happy long-term. Sure, in the short term it feels great. Whether it’s a new car, TV, or just a general influx of money. But as you become accustomed to the new situation, the impact fades. It becomes your “new normal”.

Would you be happier if you get that raise? Would your life be better with that new car? The latest smartphone? Temporarily, perhaps. But this vicious cycle is never-ending.

2. Do something out of your comfort zone –

Comfort zones are prisons. Yes, it makes you feel safe. But how can you grow as a person if you’re too afraid to try new things? Do things out of your comfort zone. Things that will further your experience. Start with the small things and built upon that.

3. Be happy for others, and grateful for what you have – The key here is to be genuinely happy for them. You should always strive for better. But you also need to be grateful for what you have. Once you settle into that mindset, you’ll find yourself being less jealous of others, and happier with what you have.
4. Be more self-aware – Before you know what makes you happy, you need to know yourself.

In this always-connected age, we rarely have time to just sit and think. We’re rushed from the moment we wake up until the moment we hit the pillow.

One way of exploring who you are is introspection. Find a quiet spot, close your eyes, and observe yourself. Self-reflect on what you’ve done the last day, week, month or year. How you’ve treated people. What is your passion? How do you want to grow personally? Don’t judge yourself. Let your thoughts flow and try to avoid any distractions. If you’re in a busy household, try waking up a little earlier to find some quiet time.

5. Stop caring what people think – Stop being a people pleaser! Do what makes you happy.

Focus on what brings joy to your life. Be unapologetic. Don’t allow yourself to be manipulated emotionally. Surround yourself with people that appreciate you. Exclude toxic people from your life.

I’ve found far too many people bend over backwards for others at their own expense. It’s time you start doing things for you. And if people are offended, who cares? One day when you look back on your life, you want to say you’re glad you lived your life for you.

That you were true to yourself.

~~~

“He is a wise man who does not grieve for the things which he has not, but rejoices for those which he has.”

 Epictetus

~~~

A man is having a problem with his son and goes to see his rabbi. “I sent him to Hebrew School and gave him a very expensive Bar Mitzvah,” says the man, “and now he tells me he’s decided to be a Christian! Rabbi, where did I go wrong?”

“Funny you should come to me,” said the Rabbi. “I also brought my boy up in the faith and gave him a fancy Bar Mitzvah. Then one day he, too, tells me he’s decided to become a Christian.”

“So what did you do?” asked the man.
“I turned to God for the answer,” replied the Rabbi.
“And what did He say?” pressed the man.
Rabbi sighed and said, “God said, ‘Funny you should come to me…’ ”

~~~
I finally did something about my weight: I stopped getting on the scale.
~~~

A man who had just undergone a very complicated operation kept complaining about a bump on his head and a terrible headache. Since his operation had been an intestinal one, there was no earthly reason why he should be complaining of a headache.

Finally his nurse, fearing that the man might be suffering from some post-operative shock, spoke to the doctor about it.

The doctor assured the nurse, “Don’t worry about a thing. He really does have a bump on his head. About halfway through the operation we ran out of anesthetic.”

~~~

Obesity has now been linked to religion and to the number of hours you watch TV.  And all this time I thought it had something to do with food.

~~~

“Say, Bill,” a man said to his pal, “how do you like your new job?”
“It’s the worst job I ever had.”
“How long have you been there?”
“About three months.”
“Why don’t you quit?”
“No way.  This is the first time in 20 years that I’ve looked forward to going home.”

~~~

“I always wanted to be somebody, but I should have been more specific.”
Lily Tomlin

~~~

A barber gave a haircut to a priest one day. The priest tried to pay for the haircut but the barber refused saying “you do God’s work.”

The next morning the barber found a dozen bibles at the door to his shop.
A policeman came to the barber for a haircut, and again the barber refused payment saying “you protect the public.” The next morning the barber found a dozen doughnuts at the door to his shop.

A lawyer came to the barber for a haircut, and again the barber refused payment saying “you serve the justice system.” The next morning the barber found a dozen lawyers waiting for a haircut.

~~~

A man whose actions leave his wife speechless has really done something!
~~~

An amateur photographer was invited to dinner with friends and took along a few pictures to show the hostess. She looked at the photos and commented “These are very good! You must have a good camera.”

He didn’t make any comment, but, as he was leaving to go home he said “That was a really delicious meal! You must have some very good pots.”

~~~

“Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.”

 Dr. Seuss

~~~

Ray Mitchell

Indianapolis, Indiana

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

Ray’s Daily has been sent for more than fifteen years to people who want to start their day on an upbeat. If you have system overload because of our daily clutter, let me know and I will send you the information via mental telepathy. If you have not been getting our daily you can request to be added by e-mailing me at raykiwsp@gmail.com. Back issues are posted at http://rays-daily,com/ currently there are more than 2000 readers from around the world.

 

I am thankful

Ray’s Daily

November 21, 2018

https://rays-daily.com/

“Joy is what happens to us when we allow ourselves to recognize how good things really are.”

Marianne Williamson

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving Day in my country, a national holiday. The next day is known as Black Friday, a day when huge retail discounts are offered to shoppers. For many it will begin a four-day holiday weekend.

Traditionally it is a time when families gather to feast, socialize and share their gratitude for all they have. We will enjoy a midday Thanksgiving meal with our fellow senior facility residents. Later we will join other family members for dinner at our oldest daughter’s home. I am also going to shut down Ray’s Daily until next Monday. I hope you enjoy the next four days as much as will.

I selected the following piece because it reminded me that we have more to be thankful for than we often realize.

Be Thankful

     Be thankful that you don’t already have everything you desire … if you did, what would there be to look forward to?

     Be thankful when you don’t know something … for it gives you the opportunity to learn.

     Be thankful for the difficult times … during those times you grow.

     Be thankful for your limitations … they give you opportunities for improvement.

     Be thankful for each new challenge… which will build your strength and character.

     Be thankful for your mistakes … they will teach you valuable lessons.

     Be thankful when you’re tired and weary … because it means you’ve given your all.

     It’s easy to be thankful for the ‘good’ things … yet, a life of rich fulfillment comes to those who are thankful for the setbacks.

     Gratitude can turn a negative into a positive … find a way to be thankful for your troubles and they can become your blessings.

Author Unknown.

~~~

“Be thankful for what you have; you’ll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don’t have, you will never, ever have enough”

Oprah Winfrey

~~~

She said:

I wish I were a bear.

If you’re a bear, you get to hibernate. You do nothing but sleep for six months. I could get used to that.

And another thing; before you hibernate, you’re supposed to eat yourself stupid. That wouldn’t bother me either.

IF you’re a mama bear, everyone knows you mean business; you swat anyone who bothers your cubs. If your cubs get out of line, you swat them, too. Your husband expects you to growl when you wake up.

He expects you to have hairy legs and excess body fat. He likes it.

I wish I were a bear.

~~~

I just read a report that stated that last year 4,153,237 people got married. I don’t want to start any trouble, but shouldn’t that be an even number?

~~~

A foursome teed off on the long par-3 eighth hole. The green on this hole lay behind a large bunker, so any shot that made the green would disappear over the top ridge of bunker. You couldn’t tell where your ball landed until you arrived on the green.

After the last player hit his shot, the first golfer to hit charged off down the fairway, without waiting for the others.

He disappeared over the bunker and seconds later came running back down the fairway to the other three, yelling and screaming, “I got a hole-in-one!

I don’t believe it!”

“You’ve got to be kidding,” said the other golfers in the foursome. “You run ahead of us down the fairway. Then you vanish over the rise, where you know we can’t see you, and, all of a sudden, you start hootin’ and hollerin’ about a hole-in-one. Do you actually expect us to believe you? How stupid do you think we three are?”

“No, no. It’s true. I swear it,” he said crossing his heart. “Go look. I left it in the hole to prove it.”

~~~

A pessimist mourns the future.

~~~

When entering a hotel where she and her husband were staying, Gladys, a devout Baptist, noticed a shabbily dressed man lounging idly in front of the newspaper stand in the lobby. She noticed that several men stopped to talk to him and gave him a little money. He seemed so cheered by the encounters she impulsively put ten dollars in an envelope, wrote ‘God Bless” on the outside, and handed it to him.

The nest day the man stopped her on the street. “Here’s your $250,” he said cheerily. “God Bless won 28 to 1!”

~~~

“Autumn is a second spring when every leaf’s a flower.”

Albert Camus

~~~

Arnold was a ventriloquist, and not a good one at that. In fact business was so bad that he was trying his luck as a medium. One day, a widow came into his office and said that she wanted to contact her dear departed husband and asked Arnold what he charged.

“If you only want to hear him speak,” said Arnold, “I charge $30. If you want to have a conversation with him, I charge $50. But I charge $100 if you want a conversation with him while I’m drinking a glass of water.”

~~~

“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.” ~

Melody Beatti

~~~

Ray Mitchell

Indianapolis, Indiana

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

Ray’s Daily has been sent for more than fifteen years to people who want to start their day on an upbeat. If you have system overload because of our daily clutter, let me know and I will send you the information via mental telepathy. If you have not been getting our daily you can request to be added by e-mailing me at raykiwsp@gmail.com. Back issues are posted at http://rays-daily,com/ currently there are more than 2000 readers from around the world.

 

She Inspires

Ray’s Daily

November 29, 2018

Kindness is just love with its workboots on.

Karen McCullah and Kirsten Smith

There is a special lady who works in the food department here in the Independent Living facility where I now reside. She is appreciated and even loved by almost all of mt fellow residents. I have been told she does not need the job, she just loves to help folks.

What impresses me the most is her unbound kindness. No matter what needs to be done, she does it with a smile. She treats everyone as if they are the most important person in the world. This wonderful lady is the epitome of kindness.

I strive to do as well as she does for there is a special warmth that comes from helping another. Here are excerpts from Wicki How that can benefit us all.

Developing a Kinder Perspective

Care for others genuinely. At its most basic, kindness is about caring genuinely for others around you, wanting the best for them, and recognizing in them the same wants, needs, aspirations, and even fears that you have too. Kindness is warm, resilient, patient, trusting, loyal, and grateful.

Don’t be kind for the sake of getting what you want. Kindness is not about “self-interested politeness, calculated generosity, superficial etiquette”. Being a people pleaser is not kindness; that’s simply behavior designed to give in and not rock the boat because you’re afraid that taking a step forward will sink the ship.

Learn kindness from others. Think about the truly kind people in your life and how they make you feel. Do you carry their warm glow around in your heart every time you think of them? It is likely that you do because kindness lingers, warming you even when the hardest challenges face you. When other people find a way to love you for who you are, it’s impossible to forget such trust and confirmation of worthiness, and their kindness lives on forever.

Cultivate kindness for the good of your own health. Improved psychological health and happiness comes from thinking more positively, and kindness is a positive mental state.

Make a habit of focusing on kindness. Be kind, friendly, and compassionate when you interact with someone, and even more so where that person normally makes you angry, stressed, or bothered. Use kindness as your strength.

Be kind to everyone, not just people “in need“. Natural kindness encompasses all beings and while the challenges you’ll face when trying to put this broader notion of kindness into practice will sometimes be trying, you’ll never stop learning about the depths of your ability to be truly kind.

Minimize judgment. If you really want to be kind, then you have to kick your judgment to the curb. Instead of spending your time being critical of other people, work on being positive and compassionate. Focus on wanting to help others instead of judging them for not being better than they are.

~~~

It’s nice to be important, but it’s more important to be nice.

~~~

We Must Stop This immediately! Have you ever noticed that when you’re of a certain age, everything seems uphill from where you are? Stairs are steeper. Groceries are heavier. And, everything is farther away. Yesterday I walked to the corner and I was dumbfounded to discover how long our street had become!

And, you know, people are less considerate now, especially the young ones. They speak in whispers all the time! If you ask them to speak up they just keep repeating themselves, endlessly mouthing the same silent message until they’re red in the face! What do they think I am, a lip reader?

I also think they are much younger than I was at the same age. On the other hand, people my own age are so much older than I am. I ran into an old friend the other day and she has aged so much that she didn’t even recognize me.

I got to thinking about the poor dear while I was combing my hair this morning, and in doing so, I glanced at my own reflection……..Well, REALLY NOW- even mirrors are not made the way they used to be!

Another thing, everyone drives so fast today! You’re risking life and limb if you just happen to pull onto the freeway in front of them. All I can say is, their brakes must wear out awfully fast, the way I see them screech and swerve in my rear view mirror.

All I can do is pass along this warning: Maturity is under attack! Unless something drastic happens, pretty soon “everyone” will have to suffer these awful indignities.

PLEASE PASS THIS ON TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW AS SOON AS POSSIBLE SO WE CAN

GET THIS CONSPIRACY STOPPED!

~~~

“A well-developed sense of humor is the pole that adds balance to your steps as you walk the tightrope of life.”

William Arthur Ward

~~~

A little boy runs up to his mother and shouts, “Mommy! Mommy! I want to be a drummer when I grow up!”

The mother sweetly replies, “You can’t do BOTH, dear.”

~~~

“Between the optimist and the pessimist, the difference is droll. The optimist sees the doughnut; the pessimist the hole!”

Oscar Wilde

~~~

In bygone days, a thin man insulted a rather heavyset man. The heavyset man challenged his tormentor to a duel with pistols.

On the day of the duel, a debate ensued about the unfair advantage held by the thin man because he was a much smaller target. Finally the thin man came up with a solution…

“Let the outline of my figure be chalked upon your body,” he said to his opponent, “and any shots of mine that hit outside the chalk lines won’t count.”

~~~

“A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort.”

Herm Albright

~~~

Flying to San Francisco from San Diego the other day, a passenger noticed that the “Fasten Seat Belts” sign was kept lit during the whole journey although the flight was a particularly smooth one.

Just before landing, he asked the stewardess about it.

“Well,” she explained, up front there are 17 University of San Diego girls going to San Francisco for the weekend.

In back, there are 25 Navy recruits out on weekend liberty.

“What would you do?”

~~~

What this world needs is a new kind of army — the army of the kind.

Cleveland Amory

~~~

Ray Mitchell

Indianapolis, Indiana

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

Ray’s Daily has been sent for more than fifteen years to people who want to start their day on an upbeat. If you have system overload because of our daily clutter, let me know and I will send you the information via mental telepathy. If you have not been getting our daily you can request to be added by e-mailing me at raykiwsp@gmail.com. Back issues are posted at http://rays-daily,com/ currently there are more than 2000 readers from around the world.

 

It is up to you

Ray’s Daily

November 19, 2018

https://rays-daily.com/

Be happy for this moment. This moment is your life.

Omar Khayyam

Some of the people I meet these days seem to be so worn out that they have given up on life. The good news is that most people I run into are grateful that they have lived so long and look forward to the years ahead. Everyday I see that the good life comes from having a positive attitude.

Years ago Henrik Edberg wrote an article on happiness that I like. I have had to edit for space but here are the highlights.

 

How to Find Happiness: 7 Timeless Tips from the Last 2500 Years

1. You choose.

Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself, in your way of thinking.

Marcus Aurelius Antoninus

How your view yourself and your world are conscious choices and habits. The lens you choose to view everything through determines how you will interpret what is happening. And from your interpretation you act. And all of this becomes your life.

2. Focus on the present, not yesterday or tomorrow.

The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance, the wise grows it under his feet.

James Oppenheim

You only have now. And now. And now. Yesterday is a memory and you cannot change it. Tomorrow is just a fantasy in your mind right now. So live more in the now, focus on the present moment and today.

3. Don’t forget to be grateful.

We tend to forget that happiness doesn’t come as a result of getting something we don’t have, but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have.

Frederick Keonig

One of the simplest and quickest ways to turn a negative and sour mood into a more positive one is to be grateful.

4. Help someone else find happiness.

Happiness is like a kiss. You must share it to enjoy it.

Bernard Meltzer

This is certainly one of the most popular ideas I’ve found about happiness. When you make someone else happy by, for example, helping them with something – you can sense, see, feel and hear it. And that happy feeling flows back to you.

5. Get rid of a couple of your less valuable desires.

You can never get enough of what you don’t need to make you happy.

Eric Hoffer

If you want less instead of more, more, more then your desires are more likely to be fulfilled. And if you throw away a few of those desires that you may not really want or need that much anyway you’ll probably start to feel less stressed and worried.

6. Do what you like to do.

Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.

Albert Schweitzer

7. Or at least do something.

So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.

Mark Twain

One of the best ways to not find happiness is just to hold yourself back and do nothing. Seldom show up. Paralyze yourself through over analysis. It’s not always easy to take action, it can be scary and hard and difficult. But if you don’t take action you’ll be missing out on a lot. Including many moments, people and experiences that can bring you a lot of happiness.

~~~

Happiness doesn’t depend on any external conditions, it is governed by our mental attitude.

Dale Carnegie

~~~

I always know God won’t give me more than I can handle but there are times I wish He didn’t trust me quite so much.

~~~

Two Mississippians are walking toward each other, and one is carrying a sack. When they meet, one says, “Hey Tommy Ray, whatcha got in th’ bag?”

“Jes’ some chickens.”

“If I guesses how many they is, kin I have one?”

“Shoot, if ya guesses right, I’ll give you both of ’em!” “OK.

Ummmmm…five?”

~~~

Where was the toothbrush invented? Arkansas.

If it were invented anywhere else, it would have been called a teethbrush.

~~~

Wanting to lose weight, a woman placed a picture of a shapely, pinup model INSIDE her refrigerator to remind her of her goal. It worked like a charm as the woman discovered that she had lost ten pounds in the first month of using this method.

The downside to this was that her husband spent so much time going into the fridge to look at the picture that he ended up gaining fifteen pounds!

~~~

Ambition is a poor excuse for not having enough sense to be lazy.

~~~

The showers in my daughter’s dorm turned scalding hot whenever a toilet was flushed. To warn others, residents would yell out, “Flushing!” each time they flushed the toilets. During one of my daughter’s visits home, a friend stopped by to chat for a while.  I was explaining how my daughter was acting more distant now that she was in college, and that she didn’t tell me all about her life the way she used to. Suddenly we heard my daughter call out from the bathroom, “Flushing!”

“Wow!” said my friend, “How much more do you want to know?”

~~~

“Mr. and Mrs. Marvin Rosenbloom are pleased to announce the birth of their son, Dr. Jonathan Rosenbloom.”

~~~

A blonde was summoned to court to appear as a witness in a lawsuit. The prosecutor opened his questioning with, “Where were you the night of August 24th?”

“Objection!” said the defense attorney. “Irrelevant!”

“Oh, that’s okay,” said the blonde from the witness stand.”I don’t mind answering the question.”

“I object!” the defense said again.

“No, really,” said the blonde. “I’ll answer.”

The judge ruled: “If the witness insists on answering, there is no reason for the defence to object.”

So the prosecutor repeated the question: “Where were you the night of August 24th?”

The blonde replied brightly, “I don’t know.”

~~~

Let us never know what old age is. Let us know the happiness time brings, not count the years.

Ausonius

~~~

Ray Mitchell

Indianapolis, Indiana

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

Ray’s Daily has been sent for more than fifteen years to people who want to start their day on an upbeat. If you have system overload because of our daily clutter, let me know and I will send you the information via mental telepathy. If you have not been getting our daily you can request to be added by e-mailing me at raykiwsp@gmail.com. Back issues are posted at http://rays-daily,com/ currently there are more than 2000 readers from around the world.

 

I am grateful

Ray’s Daily

November 16, 2018

https://rays-daily.com/

Lots of things that couldn’t be done have been done.

Charles Auston Bates

 Mekong River Thailand

I probably told you before that we moved to Indianapolis in 1969 on what was ro be a short term assignment with my computer company employer. By the time we were asked to accept a new assignment we were so involved in the activities in our new home town we refused to leave.

As the years went by I became more involved in our cities activities as it transitioned itself in to the world class city it is today. My civic activities in a wide range of areas resulted in my appointment to numerous government and not-for-profit boards and committees as well as being selected to participate in a number of local and national programs.

My office walls were filled wirh pictures with dignitaries, plaques and awards. I always wondered why I displayed all of it, but it did help visitors define who I had become. I was glad for the opportunities I was given but they paled when measured against my second career working with Kiwanis International and UNICEF as the director of Kiwanis’ first worldwide service project which has helped millions of children around the world.

I was truly fortunate to be given the opportunity to do something significant. I traveled to Asia, Eastern and Western Europe in support of our effort and made many new friends, I will always be grateful for being selected by Kiwanis.

The Road to Significance and Success

The most traditional way to measure the quality of one’s life is to evaluate success by listing accolades, achievements, and acquisitions. After all, in its simplest terms, success is getting what we want and most people want wealth and status.

Yet, as much pleasure as these attributes can bring, the rich, powerful, and famous usually discover that true happiness will elude them if they do not have peace of mind, self-respect and enduring loving relationships.

Peace of mind doesn’t preclude ambition or desire for material possessions or high position, but it assumes a fundamental foundation of contentment, gratitude and pride – a belief that whatever one has is enough and an attitude of active appreciation for the good things in one’s life.

Feeling successful can generate satisfying emotions of self-worth, but feeling significant – that one’s life really matters – is much more potent. Peter Drucker, the great management guru, captured this idea when he wrote of the urge many high achievers have to  . . . ‘move beyond success to significance.’

The surprise for many is that one of the surest roads to significance is service. It doesn’t have to be of the Mother Teresa missionary variety. Parents who sacrifice their own comfort and pleasure for their children are performing service, as are teachers, public-safety professionals, members of the military, and volunteers who work for the common good.

In addressing graduates, Albert Schweitzer said . . . ‘I don’t know what your destiny will be, but one thing I do know: The only ones among you who will be really happy are those who have sought and found how to serve.’

Written by Michael Josephson

~~~

Knowing is not enough; we must apply.  Willing is not enough; we must do.

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

~~~

Lefkowitz was a very pious old man, who had lived his life according to the Commandments, never asking anything, always giving to others. Finally, wanting to have something for himself, and to experience the other side of life, he began to pray to God.

“Lord”, he said, “All my life I have tried to be good, to follow all your Laws and Commandments, and to always help others, never asking anything for myself when I have prayed to you.  Now that I am old, I am finally asking for something for myself. All that I want is to win the Lottery, so I can have a comfortable old age.”

For year after year, he repeated this prayer, and nothing would happen.  Finally, in despair, he again prayed to God, saying  “Why have you abandoned me?  Is this all I am to have in life?  All I have ever asked you for is to just once to win the Lottery. What have I done wrong that you punish me this way?”

And an aggravated voice boomed down from the heavens, saying, in exasperation,   “Lefkowitz, BUY A TICKET ALREADY!!!”

~~~
Middle age is when you choose your cereal for the fiber, not the toy.
~~~

Signs That You Live In 2018

1. You just tried to enter your password on the microwave.
   2. You call your son’s cell phone to let him know it’s time to eat, he emails you back from his bedroom.
   3. Your daughter sells Girl Scout cookies via her web site.
   4. You chat several times a day with a stranger from South Africa, but you haven’t spoken with your next door neighbor yet this year.
   5. Your grandmother asks you to send her a JPEG file of your newborn so she can create a screen saver.
   6. You pull up in your own driveway and use your cell phone to see if anyone is home.
   7. Leaving the house without your cell phone, which you didn’t have the first 20-50 years of your life, is cause for panic and turning around to go get it.

~~~

Why do they put Braille on drive through bank machines?
~~~

An old Jewish man and a young Jewish man are traveling on the train. The young man asks: “Excuse me, what time is it?” The old man does not answer.

“Excuse me, sir, what time is it?”
The old man keeps silent.
“Sir, I’m asking you what time is it. Why don’t you answer?!”
The old man says: “Son, the next stop is the last on this route. I don’t know you, so you must be a stranger. If I answer you now, I’ll have to invite you to my home. You’re handsome, and I have a beautiful daughter. You will both fall in love and you will want to get married. So tell me, why would I need a son-in-law who can’t even afford a watch?”

~~~

Artificial Intelligence usually beats real stupidity.

~~~

Two old men were sitting on a park bench outside the local town hall where a flower show was in progress.
One leaned over the other and said, “Cripes, life is boring! We never have any fun these days!” For a fiver, I’d take my clothes off and streak through the flower show!”

“You’re on!” said the other old boy, holding up a five dollar note.
As fast as he could, the first old man fumbled his way out of his clothes and, completely naked, streaked through the front door of the town hall.

Waiting outside, his friend heard a huge commotion inside the hall, followed by loud applause. The naked old man burst out through the door surrounded by a cheering crowd.

“How did it go?” asked his friend.
“Great!” said the streaker, “I won first prize as a dried arrangement!!!”

~~~

What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

~~~

Ray Mitchell

Indianapolis, Indiana

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

Ray’s Daily has been sent for more than fifteen years to people who want to start their day on an upbeat. If you have system overload because of our daily clutter, let me know and I will send you the information via mental telepathy. If you have not been getting our daily you can request to be added by e-mailing me at raykiwsp@gmail.com. Back issues are posted at http://rays-daily,com/ currently there are more than 2000 readers from around the world.

 

There is still time

Ray’s Daily

November 15, 2018

https://rays-daily.com/

It’s never too late to be what you might have been.

George Elliot

It has been rewarding for me to spend so much time with folks who have led interesting lives as my new neighbors have. They are business people, educators, doctors and pretty much represent a wide range of occupations.

They, like so many of us reflect back on their lives, not necessarily with regret but rather with the knowledge they now have that the past pressures they put on themselves was just not worth the effort. The story I want to share with you today may well have been written by one of my wise new friends.

IF I HAD MY LIFE TO LIVE OVER

“If I had my life to live over again, I’d try to make more mistakes next time. I wouldn’t try to be so perfect. I would relax more. I’d limber up. I’d be sillier than I’ve been on this trip. In fact, I know very few things that I would take so seriously, I’d be crazier. I’d be less hygienic. I’d take more chances, I’d take more trips, I’d climb more mountains, I’d swim more rivers, I’d watch more sunsets, I’d go more places I’ve never been to. I’d eat more ice cream and fewer beans. I’d have more actual troubles and fewer imaginary ones.

You see I was one of those people who lived prophylactically and sensibly and sanely hour after hour and day after day. Oh, I’ve had my moments, and if I had it to do all over again, I’d have more of those moments. In fact, I’d try to have nothing but beautiful moments- moment by moment by moment.

I’ve been one of those people who never went anywhere without a thermometer, a hot water bottle, a gargle, a raincoat, and a parachute. If I had to do it all over again, I’d travel lighter next time. If I had to do it all over again, I’d start barefoot earlier in the spring and stay that way later in the fall. I’d ride more merry-go-rounds, I’d watch more sunrises, and I’d play with more children, if I had my life to live over again. But you see, I don’t.”

~~~

Life is a grindstone, and whether it grinds you down or polishes you up is for you and you alone to decide.

Cavett Robert

~~~

A little girl was observed by her pastor standing outside the pre-school Sunday School classroom between Sunday School and worship, waiting for her parents to come and pick her up for “big church.”

The pastor noticed that she clutched a big storybook under her arms with the obvious title, “Jonah and the Whale.” Feeling a little pernicious, he knelt down beside the little girl and began a conversation. “What’s that you have in your hand?” he asked.

“This is my storybook about Jonah and the Whale,” she answered.

“Tell me something, little girl,” he continued, “do you believe that story about Jonah and that whale to be the truth?”

The little girl implored, “Why of course I believe this story to be the truth!”

He inquired further, “You really believe that a man can be swallowed up by a big whale, stay inside him all that time, and come out of there still alive and OK? You really believe all that can be true?”

She declared, “Absolutely, this story is in the Bible and we studied about it in Sunday School today!”

Then the pastor asked, “Well, little girl, can you prove to me that this story is the truth?”

She thought for a moment and then said, “Well, when I get to Heaven, I’ll ask Jonah.”

The pastor then asked, “Well, what if Jonah’s not in Heaven?”

She then put her hands on her little hips and sternly declared, “Then YOU can ask him!”

~~~

A characteristic of the normal child is he doesn’t act that way very often.

~~~

She said:

If I am trying to sleep, it’s because I am exhausted from my almost super-human level of daily achievement; if he is trying to sleep it’s because he is lazy.

No matter what the activity, he doesn’t do it as well as my past boyfriend.

If he pays attention to me, he is smothering me. If he gives me space, he is ignoring me.

I demand to be treated as an equal in everything – except when paying for meals, airplane tickets, concerts, beers, clothes, etc. – these are required gifts proving his love.

~~~

I’m so broke, I can’t even pay attention.

~~~

KNOW YOUR GETTING OLDER WHEN:

You know all the answers but nobody asks you any questions.

You get winded playing checkers.

You need a fire permit to light all of your birthday candles and you need oxygen after blowing them out.

You stop to think and forget to start again.

You don’t need an alarm clock to get up with the chickens.

A fortune-teller wants to read your face.

You finally get it all together, but can’t remember where you put it.

Everything hurts, and what doesn’t hurt, doesn’t work.

You feel like the morning after, and you haven’t been anywhere.

You look forward to a dull evening.

You join a health club and never go.

You need your glasses to find your glasses.

You sit in a rocking chair and can’t get it going.

Your knees buckle, but your belt won’t

You have too much room in the house, and not enough in the medicine chest.

~~~

My Top Ten Inventions

1) The water-proof towel

2) Solar powered flashlight

3) Submarine screen door

4) A book on how to read

5) Inflatable dart board

6) A dictionary index

7) Ejector seat in a helicopter

8) Powdered water

9) Pedal-powered wheel chair

10) Water-proof tea bag

~~~

Don’t pay two dollars to get a shirt cleaned. Donate it to the Salvation Army instead. They’ll clean it and put it on a hanger. Next morning buy it back for seventy five cents.

William Coronel

~~~

Don’t ask yourself what the world needs; ask yourself what makes you come alive. And then go and do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.

Harold Thurman

~~~

Ray Mitchell

Indianapolis, Indiana

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

Ray’s Daily has been sent for more than fifteen years to people who want to start their day on an upbeat. If you have system overload because of our daily clutter, let me know and I will send you the information via mental telepathy. If you have not been getting our daily you can request to be added by e-mailing me at raykiwsp@gmail.com. Back issues are posted at http://rays-daily,com/ currently there are more than 2000 readers from around the world.