Friday Reflections

Things that are given away are never lost

 

"What lies behind you and what lies in front of you, pales in comparison to what lies inside of you." - Ralph Waldo Emerson
 

 
Story Line:  As we say farewell to 2010, I like to say "Thank You" to Friday Reflections friends from 155 countries and also like to share a wonderful story that I  received a few months ago from Bhakti Shah from India.
 
A wise woman, who was traveling in the mountains, found a precious stone in a stream. The next day she met another traveler who was hungry, and the wise woman opened her bag to share her food. The hungry traveler saw the precious stone and asked the woman to give it to him. She did so without hesitation. The traveler left, rejoicing in his good fortune. He knew the stone was worth enough to give him security for a lifetime.

But, a few days later, he came back to return the stone to the wise woman. "I've been thinking," he said. "I know how valuable this stone is, but I give it back in the hope that you can give me something even more precious. Give me what you have within you that enabled you to give me this stone.
 
Author Unknown.

 

It's a wonderful life

To all our wonderful readers: Wish you a very Merry Christmas and/or very enjoyable Holidays. 

 

Point to Ponder: “It is one of the most beautiful compensations of this life that no man can sincerely try to help another without also helping himself.”  - Ralph Waldo Emerson 

 

Story Line: by Rajiv Shah 

My mind keeps returning to the film, “It’s a Wonderful Life.” The film’s message has stayed with me as it has with so many viewers. The message I took away was this: the truth of one’s own life isn’t in the taking, in the acquisition of more and more things, but of the giving of oneself to others. And that giving will impact those around you.

The central character, George Bailey, is not acting like his usual self in the beginning of the film. The townspeople pray to God for George. God responds by sending an angel to show Bailey the positive impact his life has made on his community. 

Without going into a full-blown synopsis of the movie, I want to pose a few thoughts: Firstly, Bailey had always wanted to travel the world, and to leave the town that he was so integral to. Secondly, Bailey regretted the things he didn’t do but never saw the positive influence he had in those around him. Why is it that the “what ifs” seem to occupy us more than the “what is?” 

Finally, the angel showed George the purpose of his life and the good that was in his life all along. 

 

Reflection: The secret Bailey discovered was that you get what you give. If he had never given of himself to the community, the community would have suffered and George would have never affected the lives of so many people. The material things Bailey didn’t acquire were replaced by the wishes, love, and thoughts of those he impacted in Bedford Falls. As Bailey says at the end of the film, “No man can be poor as long as he has friends.”  

Life is a tragedy when seen in close-up, but a comedy in long-shot

 

 
POINT TO PONDER
 

“There's something just as inevitable as death. And that's life.

Think of the power of the universe — turning the Earth, growing the trees.

That's the same power within you — if you'll only have the courage and the will to use it.”

-C.Chaplin: “My Autobiography”

 

STORYLINE - by Rajiv Shah
 
Charlie Chaplin is considered the most influential movie star of all-time. From films like The Great Dictator, The Gold Rush and Modern Times - Chaplin is indelible as his best known, lovable character, the Tramp. Charlie brought a new brand of comedy but the world in which Charlie lived was not kind – he burst onto the global scene as it was deeply entrenched in its first world war – and it tore at the very man who tried to bring laughter and relief. He is remembered as one of the greats, a movie star that defined a style all his own, but his achievements are only a small portion of a life that was filled with disappointments and hardship.
 

• Chaplin was born to an alcoholic father and a mentally insane mother who was institutionalized at Cane Hill asylum in England.
• At the age of twelve Charlie's father passed away from cirrhosis.
• Charlie was forced to room in a workhouse after his father's death. His mother could no longer care for Charlie or his siblings due to her institutionalization. Charlie eventually moved to a school for paupers.
• In 1913, after working in the theatre, Chaplin is hired in his first film role by Mack Sennett who ran Keystone Film Company. Accustomed to the theatre, Chaplin had a hard time adjusting to the demands of film and his performance in Making a Living is considered to be a failure. Sennett admitted that he regret hiring Chaplin but is persuaded to give him another chance. Chaplin eventually grows to become one of the biggest stars at Keystone.
• During the first world war, Chaplin is criticized for not enlisting in the army however he had and was denied entry due to his small stature (5'5”) and for being underweight.
• Politically, Chaplin was a liberal. J. Edgar Hoover is reported to have accused Chaplin of being a communist and ordered that the FBI keep secret files on the film star. Hoover and the Immigration and Naturalization Service eventually denied Chaplin reentry into the US when Chaplin vacationed in the UK in 1952. Chaplin was forced to give up his residence in the United States and eventually settled in Switzerland.

 
REFLECTION
 
I've included a scene from The Great Dictator that expresses many of Chaplin's personal and political beliefs. It seems the world continues to struggle to achieve the message contained within this Oscar winning monologue.
 

Quotable Quotes and Points to Ponder - Sent By Our Readers

 

In the course of writing Friday Reflections, we have received thousands of comments from readers. Sometimes we receive stories, and often we receive thought-provoking "Quotable Quotes". This week, we are sharing a few with you. Many thanks to people who sent these quotes - their names are in parenthesis.

 
 
Point to Ponder:

In our final moments, we all realize that relationships are what life is all about. Wisdom is learning that truth sooner rather than later. -Rick Warren

 
Quotable Quotes:
 
Last week, I picked up a copy of Sports Afield, and as one would expect, it is mostly stories of the “grand safaris” in Africa.  One article was about hunting crocs in Namibia.  To me, it sounded incredibly dangerous (and expensive).  In the end, the guy shoots the croc - and although he had these fantasies since he was young about killing the man-eating croc (and earning the praise of the thankful natives), alas, the only thing in this croc was some crabs and ballast stones. I liked the way he ended the story, “Life is mostly a process of losing illusions”.   How true!  (Mark D)

I always find that I’m intrigued with Starbuck’s coffee cups ... sometimes I agree, sometimes I don’t. Today, I agree. Here is the one for today: “There is a subtle difference between a mission and a promise.  A mission is something you strive to accomplish – a promise is something you are compelled to keep.  One is individual, the other is shared.  When a mission and a promise are one and the same ... that’s when mountains are moved and races are won.” - Hala Moddelmog, President and CEO, Susan G. Komen for the Cure (Elisabeth Moore)

As Yogi Berra once said, “You’ve got to be very careful if you don’t know where you are going, because you might not get there.” (Elisabeth Moore)

If you ask a fish what it sees around it, water will likely not be on the list.  When you are in the same environment, day in and day out, sometimes the most obvious things will never be seen. (Frank S)

"You can tell whether a man is clever by his answers. You can tell whether a man is wise by his questions."  - Naguib Mahfouz (Leigh and Jim Mulready)

One measure of leadership is the caliber of people who choose to follow you. - Dennis A. Peer ("K")

“If you don’t design your own life plan, chances are you’ll fall into someone else’s plan.  And guess what they have planned for you?  Not much.” - Jim Rohn (Mike Goodner)

 

... and the following two are from my former boss, Gidu Shroff:
 
Do you know why a car's WINDSHIELD is so large & the Rearview Mirror is so small?
      Because our PAST is not as important as your FUTURE. Look ahead and move on.
 
A blind person asked Swami Vivekanand: "Can there be anything worse than losing eye sight?"
       He replied: "Yes, losing your vision!" 

Let him that would move the world first move himself

Point to Ponder: The Internet revolution has created immense opportunities for spreading good information as well as spreading bad information; creating greater understanding vs creative massive misunderstanding. Here is some Wisdom of The Ages from Socrates that is worth revisiting in this information age.

 
Story Line: Let him that would move the world first move himself.
 
In ancient Greece (469 - 399 BC), Socrates was widely lauded for his wisdom. One day the great philosopher came upon an acquaintance who ran up to him excitedly and said, "Socrates, do you know what I just heard about one of your students?"

"Wait a moment," Socrates replied. "Before you tell me I'd like you to pass a little test. It's called the Test of Three."

"Test of Three?"

"That's right," Socrates continued. "Before you talk to me about my student let's take a moment to test what you're going to say. The first test is Truth. Have you made absolutely sure that what you are about to tell me is true?"

No," the man said, "actually I just heard about It."

"All right," said Socrates. "So you don't really know if it's true or not. Now let's try the second test, the test of Goodness. Is what you are about to tell me about my student something good?"

"No, on the contrary..."

"So," Socrates continued, "you want to tell me something bad about him even though you're not certain it's true?"

The man shrugged, a little embarrassed.

Socrates continued. "You may still pass though, because there is a third test - the filter of Usefulness. Is what you want to tell me about my student going to be useful to me?"

"No, not really."

"Well," concluded Socrates, "if what you want to tell me is neither True nor Good nor even Useful, why tell it to me at all?"

The man was defeated and ashamed. This is the reason Socrates was a great philosopher and held in such high esteem.
 
Reflection: Many of us have unkowingly forwarded information that was not accurate. Most of it may be harmless containing interesting, motivating or tear dropping stories but a few of them are dangerous that have potential to create hatred and misunderstanding. Several years ago, a friend from Japan introduced me to www.snopes.com to check out if the stories are True or False.

Quotable Quotes from Socrates:

It is not living that matters, but living rightly.
 
Let him that would move the world first move himself.