Pope John XXIII: Consult not your fears but your hopes and your dreams.

Consult not your fears but your hopes and your dreams. Think not about your frustrations, but about your unfulfilled potential. Concern yourself not with what you tried and failed in, but with what it is still possible for you to do. - Pope John XXIII

Be unstoppable. Follow your dreams.

Further reading: The path of the adventurer is a path of joy - jlh

Mark Twain quote: Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. Throw off the bowlines.

Rabindranath Tagore quote: If you cry because the sun has gone out of your life, your tears will prevent you from seeing the stars.

ACTION - the sixth Point of Simply An Inspired Life

Carl Jung quotes: Naturally, every age thinks that all ages before it were prejudiced

Naturally, every age thinks that all ages before it were prejudiced, and today we think this more than ever and are just as wrong as all previous ages that thought so. How often have we not seen the truth condemned! It is sad but unfortunately true that man learns nothing from history. - Carl Jung

Our honorable and worthy ancestors knew that the world was flat, motionless, and the center of the universe. They knew the human body could not withstand the forces of traveling on a train moving faster than 19 mph. They knew that the way to salvation was exorcising witches and slaying non-believers. They knew that it was a mortal sin to marry someone of a different skin color.

Our grandchildren's grandchildren will shake their heads in shame at some of the beliefs that we hold most dear today - the question is, which ones?

Further reading: How do You View the World?

Eleanor Roosevelt quote: The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.

Carl Jung quotes

Lao Tzu: He who knows others is wise. He who knows himself is enlightened.

Benjamin Franklin quotes: Love your Neighbor; yet don't pull down your Hedge.

Love your Neighbor; yet don't pull down your Hedge.
- Benjamin Franklin

Like all of life, it's a balance. Yes, having universal compassion, acceptance, and kindness toward one's neighbor is central to being a noble person. And that applies equally whether the neighbor lives across the street or around the world. At the same time, as Robert Frost says, "Good fences make good neighbors." Honoring other people's life choices and behaving kindly toward them is very different from enjoying their presence. Further, most of us would probably be happier if we spent more time quietly enjoying our own company and a good book.

In particular, be compassionate toward people who are continually unhappy and constantly complain or gossip, but avoid their company except when you are on a specific errand of mercy toward them.

Further reading: George Washington: It is far better to be alone, than to be in bad company

Happy Friends - Happy You

There is sanctuary in being alone with nature. - jlh

Meddling - 5 Questions To Ask Yourself Before Offering Helpful Advice

Aesops Fables: The Fisherman and the Little Fish

The Fisherman and the Little Fish - Aesop

A poor Fisherman, who lived on the fish he caught, had bad luck one day and caught nothing but a very small fry. The Fisherman was about to put it in his basket when the little Fish said:

"Please spare me, Mr. Fisherman! I am so small it is not worth while to carry me home. When I am bigger, I shall make you a much better meal."

But the Fisherman quickly put the fish into his basket.

"How foolish I should be," he said, "to throw you back. However small you may be, you are better than nothing at all."

Moral: A small gain is worth more than a large promise. 

Further reading: Marie Curie quote: One never notices what has been done; one can only see what remains to be done.

Aesop: The Fox and the Grapes

Marianne Williamson: Joy is what happens to us when we allow ourselves to recognize how good things really are.

Show Your Honest Appreciation - Today.

Is That All There Is - Peggy Lee

Is That All There Is
- Peggy Lee

Sometimes our lives are in deep crisis, and we are in an active struggle to survive. Other times, such as when we are newly in love, life appears near perfection. But much of life occurs between the polar states of pain and joy, and often, when we truly inquire of our inner being, the answer is, "Is that all there is to life?" "Is this all I can expect from life?"

Whenever life is not awful, but occurs as somehow unfulfilling, listen for the small quiet voice within that is whispering, "THIS is your calling. THIS is your purpose. THIS is your reason for being." Be gentle with yourself. You may have shushed that inner whisper for years, so be patient if you don't hear it at once. Begin now to pay attention and begin to listen for that voice.

Further reading: Where does your path lead?

Joseph Campbell: Life is without meaning. You bring the meaning to it.

VISION - the fifth Point of Simply An Inspired Life

What is Honor? Is there a place for Honor today?