Ray’s Daily
March 18, 2019
“When I started counting my blessings, my whole life turned around.”
Willie Nelson
I attended a special luncheon last week prepared by our restaurant staff. I sent the food director a thank you for the great meal. He responded in part with:
The lost art of thanks giving will die with your generation. It is always such a treat to receive thank you cards from our residents as well as emails and verbal “thanks givings”. This is not something that any generation after yours does very well.
Often times we are so busy or so entitled or so jaded that we can’t see past our noses. Love and appreciation are all around us, the blessings of others and the smiles too; If we could just see past ourselves.
Is he right, have we become so materialistic and self-centered that we don’t appreciate those who do so much for us? Do we thank friends, family, servers, druggists, grocery clerks and others enough? I find that many of you do appreciate those who make your life a little happier, thank you for caring.
How to Be More Appreciative
- Start saying thank you for everything, time, gifts, service rendered, assistance, kind words, everything.
- Make a list of things and people you appreciate and make a conscious effort to regularly show your appreciation for them. Add something new to this list everyday.
- Volunteer. Just do something that is for anyone but yourself on a regular basis.
- Understand that you regularly go out to eat, buy convenience foods, treats, even bread, or if you have help around the house, spend one week learning and doing it all for yourself. I guarantee the next time a waiter brings you a basket of bread that you had to wait a couple extra minutes for, you will feel more grateful and appreciate the work it took to get it to you.
- Realize that if you find yourself being overly critical of people around you, make a mental list of their good qualities and the things they do that you appreciate.
~~~
“Let us be grateful to people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.”
Marcel Proust
~~~
A guy walks into a bookstore, not looking for anything in particular. On his way to the back of the store, he spots something of interest. A book with a very interesting title, “Dating for the New Millennium. What Women Want.” So, he picks it up and opens it to a random page.
“Chapter 1: The First Date.”
He glances the chapter over for a few minutes and then rushes out of the bookstore to call a girl he’s wanted to ask out for quite awhile. When he gets home, he picks up the phone and calls her. She answers, “Hello?”
He says, “Hi, Jessica. Listen, I was wondering if you would want to go see a movie with me tonight?”
She says, “Sure, I don’t see anything wrong with that.”
He gets excited. He thought she’d say no way, but she didn’t. So, he decided to take it one step further. He asks, “Great, well how about dinner before the movie?”
She replies, “Sure, that would be great too!”
“Fine, I’ll pick you up about nine. You should be finished eating by then.”
~~~
“What lies behind us and what lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson
~~~
A man decides to join the circus. He shows up to demonstrate his skills to the impresario.
“I have the most unusual act,” he announces. “I’m sure it will amaze you.”
He proceeds to climb a tall tower and jumps off. He flaps his arms wildly and finally, his fall slows. He soars forward, swoops upward, turns and swoops back again. Finally, he stops in mid-air and gently lowers himself to the ground.
The impresario stares blankly at him for a long time. Finally, he says, “Is that all you’ve got? Bird imitations?”
~~~
Success is getting what you want; happiness is wanting what you get.
~~~
Pauly and Maury were in the neighborhood bar… Again…And Maury remarked that Old Jim had just told him that He was now an octogenarian.
“What’s an octogenarian?” asked Pauly.
“I dunno,” said Maury, “but they must be pretty healthy People. Every one of ’em I’ve ever heard of is eighty Years old or more.
~~~
Why is it that we travel hundreds of miles to get away from everyone at home and then send them postcards that say, “Wish you were here”?
~~~
My town takes jury selection very seriously. So much so that when it sends questionnaires to perspective jurors, every question is expected to be answered in full–plain and simple, no ifs, ands or buts.
This was evidenced by the juror’s questionnaire I was sent. It asked, Do you speak, read and understand English? If no, explain.”
~~~
As long as you keep a person down, some part of you has to be down there to hold him down, so it means you cannot soar as you otherwise might.
Marian Anderson
~~~
Mary was having a tough day and had stretched herself out on the couch to do a bit of what she thought to be well-deserved complaining and self-pitying. She moaned to her Mom and brother, “Nobody loves me. The whole world hates me!”
Her brother, busily occupied playing a game, hardly looked up at her and passed on this encouraging word: “That’s not true, Mary. Lots of people don’t even know you.”
~~~
Doing nothing is tiring because you can’t stop to rest.
~~~
While sports fishing off the Florida coast, a tourist capsized his boat. He could swim, but his fear of alligators kept him clinging to the overturned craft. Spotting and old beachcomber standing on the shore, the tourist shouted, “Are there any gators around here?!” “Naw,” the man hollered back, “they ain’t been around for years!”
“Feeling safe, the tourist started swimming leisurely toward the shore. About halfway there he asked the guy, “How’d you get rid of the gators?” “We didn’t do nothin’,” the beachcomber said. “The sharks got ’em.”
~~~
“Feeling grateful or appreciative of someone or something in your life actually attracts more of the things that you appreciate and value into your life.”
Northrup Christiane
~~~
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.
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