Nobody is Self-Made

 

Your talent is God's gift to you.
- Leo Buscaglia

None of us got where we are solely by
pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps.
- Thurgood Marshall

Ingratitude often hides behind a mask of independence or self-sufficiency.
An assertion of being "self-made" is a rejection of God, one's ancestors, and society.
Your Genes, Place of Birth, and Upbringing are God's Gift to You.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Those who have succeeded at anything
and don't mention luck
are kidding themselves.
- Larry King

If I have seen further, it is
by standing on the shoulders of giants.
- Isaac Newton

The whole idea of compassion is based on a keen awareness
of the interdependence of all these living beings,
which are all part of one another, and all involved in one another.
- Thomas Merton

Civilization is not a spontaneous generation
with any race or nation known to history,
but the torch to be handed down from race to race from age to age.
- Kelly Millar

Success is a result of hard work,
plus being blessed with good genes, food,
a good country, an opportunity for education,
and much more which we never "earned"
or "deserved," and for which we owe
everlasting gratitude.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: Debt to Those Who are Kind

Appreciating Our Blessings

Give Thanks

Gratitude for This Food
     

"Self-Made" is a Fallacy

Your talent is God's gift to you.
- Leo Buscaglia

None of us got where we are solely by
pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps.
- Thurgood Marshall

Ingratitude often hides behind a mask of independence or self-sufficiency.
An assertion of being "self-made" is a rejection of God, one's ancestors, and society.
Your Genes, Place of Birth, and Upbringing are God's Gift to You.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Those who have succeeded at anything
and don't mention luck
are kidding themselves.
- Larry King

If I have seen further, it is
by standing on the shoulders of giants.
- Isaac Newton

The whole idea of compassion is based on a keen awareness
of the interdependence of all these living beings,
which are all part of one another, and all involved in one another.
- Thomas Merton

Civilization is not a spontaneous generation
with any race or nation known to history,
but the torch to be handed down from race to race from age to age.
- Kelly Millar

Success is a result of hard work,
plus being blessed with good genes, food,
a good country, an opportunity for education,
and much more which we never "earned"
or "deserved," and for which we owe
everlasting gratitude.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: Debt to Those Who are Kind

Appreciating Our Blessings

Give Thanks

Gratitude for This Food
     

On the Shoulders of Those Who Came Before

 

Your talent is God's gift to you.
- Leo Buscaglia

None of us got where we are solely by
pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps.
- Thurgood Marshall

Ingratitude often hides behind a mask of independence or self-sufficiency.
An assertion of being "self-made" is a rejection of God, one's ancestors, and society.
Your Genes, Place of Birth, and Upbringing are God's Gift to You.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Those who have succeeded at anything
and don't mention luck
are kidding themselves.
- Larry King

If I have seen further, it is
by standing on the shoulders of giants.
- Isaac Newton

The whole idea of compassion is based on a keen awareness
of the interdependence of all these living beings,
which are all part of one another, and all involved in one another.
- Thomas Merton

Civilization is not a spontaneous generation
with any race or nation known to history,
but the torch to be handed down from race to race from age to age.
- Kelly Millar

Success is a result of hard work,
plus being blessed with good genes, food,
a good country, an opportunity for education,
and much more which we never "earned"
or "deserved," and for which we owe
everlasting gratitude.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: Debt to Those Who are Kind

Appreciating Our Blessings

Give Thanks

Gratitude for This Food
     

We Owe Everlasting Gratitude

 

Your talent is God's gift to you.
- Leo Buscaglia

None of us got where we are solely by
pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps.
- Thurgood Marshall

Ingratitude often hides behind a mask of independence or self-sufficiency.
An assertion of being "self-made" is a rejection of God, one's ancestors, and society.
Your Genes, Place of Birth, and Upbringing are God's Gift to You.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Those who have succeeded at anything
and don't mention luck
are kidding themselves.
- Larry King

If I have seen further, it is
by standing on the shoulders of giants.
- Isaac Newton

The whole idea of compassion is based on a keen awareness
of the interdependence of all these living beings,
which are all part of one another, and all involved in one another.
- Thomas Merton

Civilization is not a spontaneous generation
with any race or nation known to history,
but the torch to be handed down from race to race from age to age.
- Kelly Millar

Success is a result of hard work,
plus being blessed with good genes, food,
a good country, an opportunity for education,
and much more which we never "earned"
or "deserved," and for which we owe
everlasting gratitude.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: Debt to Those Who are Kind

Appreciating Our Blessings

Give Thanks

Gratitude for This Food
     

Your Talent is God's Gift to You

Your talent is God's gift to you.
- Leo Buscaglia

None of us got where we are solely by
pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps.
- Thurgood Marshall

Ingratitude often hides behind a mask of independence or self-sufficiency.
An assertion of being "self-made" is a rejection of God, one's ancestors, and society.
Your Genes, Place of Birth, and Upbringing are God's Gift to You.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Those who have succeeded at anything
and don't mention luck
are kidding themselves.
- Larry King

If I have seen further, it is
by standing on the shoulders of giants.
- Isaac Newton

The whole idea of compassion is based on a keen awareness
of the interdependence of all these living beings,
which are all part of one another, and all involved in one another.
- Thomas Merton

Civilization is not a spontaneous generation
with any race or nation known to history,
but the torch to be handed down from race to race from age to age.
- Kelly Millar

Success is a result of hard work,
plus being blessed with good genes, food,
a good country, an opportunity for education,
and much more which we never "earned"
or "deserved," and for which we owe
everlasting gratitude.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: Debt to Those Who are Kind

Appreciating Our Blessings

Give Thanks

Gratitude for This Food
     

Your Genes, Place of Birth, and Upbringing are God's Gift to You

None of us got where we are solely by
pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps.
- Thurgood Marshall

Your talent is God's gift to you.
- Leo Buscaglia

Ingratitude often hides behind a mask of independence or self-sufficiency.
An assertion of being "self-made" is a rejection of God, one's ancestors, and society.
Your Genes, Place of Birth, and Upbringing are God's Gift to You.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

The whole idea of compassion is based on a keen awareness
of the interdependence of all these living beings,
which are all part of one another, and all involved in one another.
- Thomas Merton

Those who have succeeded at anything
and don't mention luck
are kidding themselves.
- Larry King

Civilization is not a spontaneous generation
with any race or nation known to history,
but the torch to be handed down from race to race from age to age.
- Kelly Millar

If I have seen further, it is
by standing on the shoulders of giants.
- Isaac Newton

Success is a result of hard work,
plus being blessed with good genes, food,
a good country, an opportunity for education,
and much more which we never "earned"
or "deserved," and for which we owe
everlasting gratitude.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: Debt to Those Who are Kind

Appreciating Our Blessings

Give Thanks

Gratitude for This Food
     

Seek Your Own Wisdom

Do not seek to follow in the footsteps of the wise;
rather, seek what they sought.
- Matsuo Basho

No one saves us but ourselves.
No one can and no one may.
We ourselves must walk the path.
- The Buddha

Travelers, there is no path.
Paths are made by walking.
- Antonio Machado

There is no subject so old that something new cannot be said about it.
- Fyodor Dostoyevsky

Quotations are dead unless a spur for inquiry.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: Know Yourself

The Wisdom of Lao Tzu

Maybe So, Maybe Not. - Ancient Taoist Proverb

Accepting the Fear of Change
    

A Firm Foundation

The loftier the building, the deeper must the foundation be laid.
- Thomas Kempis

A successful man is one who can lay a firm foundation
with the bricks others have thrown at him.
- David Brinkley

Education is the foundation upon which we build our future.
- Christine Gregoire

It is not the beauty of a building you should look at;
it is the construction of the foundation that will stand the test of time.
- David Allan Coe

Further reading: Honoring Our Roots

Not By Our Bootstraps

Pay It Forward

Feeling Blessed
     

Honoring Our Roots

There are two lasting bequests we can give our children
One is roots, the other is wings.
- Hodding Carter

Traditions are the guideposts driven deep in our subconscious minds.
The most powerful ones are those we can't even describe,
aren't even aware of.
- Ellen Goodman

Civilization is not a spontaneous generation
with any race or nation known to history,
but the torch to be handed down from race to race from age to age.
- Kelly Millar

Continuity gives us roots; change gives us branches,
letting us stretch and grow and reach new heights.
- Pauline R. Kezer

I prefer to choose which traditions to keep and which to let go.
- Theodore Bikel

All major religious traditions
carry basically the same message,
that is love, compassion and forgiveness.
The important thing is they should
be part of our daily lives.
- Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama

Honor tradition AND question tradition.
Tradition is like a second-hand store.
It is best to sort carefully between the treasures and the trash.
See everything with new eyes.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: Rekindling the Light

A Parent's Gift

Perspective on Tradition: An Open Mind

The Trouble with Conformity

Quotes about Tradition

Ingratitude

Ingratitude is a painter of hard lines on the face.
- Emma Curtis Hopkins

Talent is God-given; be humble.
Fame is man-given; be thankful.
Conceit is self-given; be careful.
- John Wooden

The whole idea of compassion is based on a keen awareness
of the interdependence of all these living beings,
which are all part of one another, and all involved in one another.
- Thomas Merton (American Catholic writer and monk 1915-1968)

The debt of gratitude we owe our mother and father
goes forward, not backward.
What we owe our parents is the bill presented to us by our children.
- Nancy Friday

None of us got where we are solely by
pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps.
- Thurgood Marshall

If I have seen further, it is
by standing on the shoulders of giants.
- Isaac Newton

Ingratitude often hides behind a mask of independence or self-sufficiency.
An assertion of being "self-made" is a rejection of God, one's ancestors, and society.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: Pay It Forward

Zero-Based Gratitude

Feeling Blessed

Thanksgiving

Gratitude for Our Blessings

Ingratitude

Gratitude for Our Blessings

None of us got where we are solely by
pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps.
- Thurgood Marshall

Those who have succeeded at anything
and don't mention luck
are kidding themselves.
- Larry King

If I have seen further, it is
by standing on the shoulders of giants.
- Isaac Newton

Civilization is not a spontaneous generation
with any race or nation known to history,
but the torch to be handed down from race to race from age to age.
- Kelly Millar

The debt of gratitude we owe our mother and father
goes forward, not backward.
What we owe our parents is the bill presented to us by our children.
- Nancy Friday

Success is a result of hard work,
plus being blessed with good genes, food,
a good country, an opportunity for education,
and much more which we never "earned"
or "deserved," and for which we owe
everlasting gratitude.

Further reading: Appreciating Our Blessings

Gratitude for This Food

Debt to Those Who are Kind

Give Thanks

Bounty of the Earth

One touch of nature makes the whole world kin - William Shakespeare

One touch of nature makes the whole world kin. - William Shakespeare 

 To cherish what remains of the Earth and to foster its renewal is our only legitimate hope of survival. - Wendell Berry 

  Treat the earth well. It was not given to you by your parents,it was loaned to you by your children. We do not inherit the Earth from our Ancestors, we borrow it from our Children. - Native American traditional

We do not inherit the Earth from our Ancestors, we borrow it from our Children. - Native American traditional

Plant Trees For Your Grandchildren

Treat the earth well. It was not given to you by your parents,it was loaned to you by your children. We do not inherit the Earth from our Ancestors, we borrow it from our Children. - Native American traditional

Everything you do, and everything you do not do, is your legacy to future generations.

Ecology is important. Thirty years ago, Tampa Bay was polluted and dying. Today, the fish are swarming. A small island near my home is roost for perhaps 2000 birds, including once-endangered pelicans and frigate birds. The osprey in today's picture visited my dock today. Ospreys are now plentiful, and there are even a few eagles around, That eagles would return to this part of Florida was unimaginable. Few would have thought that Tampa Bay could have recovered, and that recovery has taken decades, but nature is amazingly resilient when we humans stop attacking her.

What you do for your biological descendants is important. The values that you teach your children through your example will be the values that they teach their children through their example.

Today's message is bigger than ecology and bigger than your blood line. EVERYTHING you do, and EVERYTHING you do not do, is your legacy to future generations.

Today's acorns grow into the oak trees of thirty years hence. But what acorns are we sowing today? Imagine what an acorn-sized bit of prejudice or hatred would grow into. Imagine what an acorn-sized bit of pollution can become.

Our legacy to future generations will grow from the acorns of our actions and inactions today in global affairs, energy, ecology, education, and wellness, as well as the personal values we demonstrate to those of this and future generations through our everyday behaviors and attitudes.

Further reading: How do You View the World?

The Paradox Of Living In The Moment - How To Be Happy Today And Prepare For Tomorrow