Ray's Daily

Ray’s Daily

May 8, 2020

http://rays-daily.com

Although men are accused of not knowing their own weakness, yet perhaps few know their own strength. It is in men as in soils, where sometimes there is a vein of gold which the owner knows not of.

Jonathan Swift

Ray’s Daily published on May 8, 2006

I have been surprised to find out how few of us know who we are. We talk about what we have done, the nature of our jobs, the schools we have attended, the size and nature of our families, but not many of us know who we really are. Too often we take for granted the very things that make us special. Things like our love of others, the joy we get from hard work, our eye for beauty, our perseverance, our loyalty, our intelligence, our wisdom, our sense of adventure, and on and on and on.

I spend many hours listening to people think through their lives and in almost every case we find a seed that was planted in their youth that has grown to the point that it has become their nature today. It might have been their innate friendliness, their curiosity, or some other behavior that has grown through the years and that has become so normal to them that they overlook how much it defines who they are. Of course, we are the product of not just one thing but the aggregate of many things, all that add up to be who we are.

I honestly believe that self-knowledge is the ultimate key to happiness. Unfortunately, however, we think in such broad terms that we don’t see the important details. As an example, I like to travel. Cruising is travel, hiking is travel, seeing new sights is part of travel, and meeting new people is also part of the travel experience. For me I like to cruise, see new sights and meet new people, but hiking, forget it, it is not for me. It is the same for most things, we like people, who, all people? People who think the way we do? People who stimulate our interest? If I can define what I like, I can look for it.

One way to find out about yourself is to write down the year that you were 15 years old, and then write down the date of each year since. It might be 1955, 1956, 1957,…….1005, 2006. Once you have made the list spend time thinking back to that year, what were you doing? What did you like? What problems did you have? And anything else you can remember. Jot down a few notes and move on to the next year. When you are done I can almost guarantee you that you will find patterns, likes and dislikes, and more that will surprise you. It will detail who you are, and it also may very well tell you how to identify the things that give your life meaning. All you have to gain is a happier life ahead.

~~~

The most successful people are those who don’t have any illusions about who they are. They know themselves well and they can move in the direction of their best talents. They know the kind of culture they thrive in and how they can benefit from that culture. Unfortunately, most people don’t understand themselves. Most people don’t want to lose their illusions about themselves, although they say they want to take charge of their career.

Bud Bray

~~~

A Jewish father was concerned about his son who was about a year away from his Bar Mitzvah but was sorely lacking in his knowledge of the Jewish faith. To remedy this, he sent his son to Israel to experience his heritage. A year later the young man returned home.

“Father, thank you for sending me to the land of our Fathers,” the son said. “It was wonderful and enlightening, however, I must confess that while in Israel I converted to Christianity.”

“Oi vey,” replied the father, “what have I done.” So in the tradition of the patriarchs, he went to his best friend and sought his advice and solace.

“It is amazing that you should come to me,” stated his friend, “I too sent my son to Israel and he returned a Christian.”

So in the tradition of the patriarchs they went to the Rabbi. “It is amazing that you should come to me,” stated the Rabbi, “I too sent my son to Israel and he returned a Christian. What is happening

to our sons?”

“Brothers, we must take this to the Lord,” said the Rabbi.

They fell to their knees and began to wail and pour out their hearts to the Almighty. As they prayed the clouds opened and a mighty voice stated, “Amazing that you should come to Me. I, too, sent My Son to Israel…”

~~~

Question: Why don’t retirees mind being called Seniors?

Answer: The term comes with a 10% percent discount.

~~~

He:  I have a complaint, dear.

She:  What is it, darling?

He:  We’ve been married twenty-five years and you still correct me every time I open my mouth, dear.

She:  Twenty-six years, darling.

~~~

People will believe anything if you whisper it.

~~~

Tower: “United 702, cleared for takeoff, contact departure on 124.7.”

United 702: “Tower, United 702 switching to departure …by the way, after we lifted off, we saw some kind of dead animal on the far end of the runway.”

Tower: “Continental 635, cleared for takeoff. Contact departure on 124.7; did you copy the report from United?”

Continental 635: “Continental 635, cleared for takeoff, roger; and yes, we copied United. We’ve already notified our caterers.”

~~~

If you don’t have a sense of humor, you probably don’t have any sense at all.

~~~

She said: My husband and I have our two mothers sharing a double room in our community seniors’ home. One is 96, mentally alert, but has little sight; the other is 90, in good health, but is often confused and totally devoid of memory retention or recall. Together, they complement each other’s handicaps and help each other: one relates the messages; the other relates the vision.

While out on a drive one day, my mother was describing the passing scene, and said to my mother-in-law, “Too bad you aren’t able to see all this.”

My mother-in-law quickly replied: “That’s all right. At least I’ll remember where I’ve been.”

~~~

Love is blind — and it’s not too bright, either.

~~~

The minister gave his Sunday morning service, as usual, but this particular Sunday, it was considerably longer than normal.

Later, at the door, shaking hands with parishioners as they filed out, one man said,

“Your sermon, Pastor, was simply wonderful – so invigorating and inspiring and refreshing.”

The minister of course, broke out in a big smile, only to hear the man add, “Why I felt like a new man when I woke up!”

~~~

I wonder how long I would be on hold if my call WASN’T important to them?

~~~

Morris realized he needed to purchase a hearing aid, but he felt unwilling to spend much money. “How much do they cost?” he asked the salesperson.

“That depends,” he said. “They run from $2.00 to $2,000.”

“Let’s see the $2.00 model,” said Morris the miser.

The salesperson put the device around Morris’ neck. “You just stick this button in your ear and run this little string down to your pocket,” he instructed.

“How does it work?” , asked Morris.

“For $2.00 it doesn’t work,” the salesperson replied. “But when people see it on you, they’ll talk louder.”

~~~

“The difference between great people and everyone else is that great people create their lives actively, while everyone else is created by their lives, passively waiting to see where life takes them next. The difference between the two is the difference between living fully and just existing.”

Michael E. Gerber

~~~

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.