“Fair Warning” Blog # 58
“IF it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck and acts like a duck….is it a duck?” “Doing the
same things over and over, and expecting different results, are…?” “Even if I am on the
right track, will I get run over, if I just sit here?” The above quotes people have heard over
and over. What do all three have in common? They give Fair Warning of life ahead. Life
is full of warnings.
I am alive and expected to follow the rules. Its only when we fudge, look the other way
or justify reasons why we don’t have to do what “our conscience tells us to do, that we
start the snow ball rolling down the hill, getting bigger and bigger, ready to strike at any
moment.
Probably one of the greatest Fair Warnings is “Time”. Time waits for no one. The clock is
our master time keeper. In our life we run against the clock daily. I love the following
poem - it is Anonymous.
“To realize the value of One Year,
Ask a student who failed his or her final exams.
To realize the value of One Month,
Ask a Mother who gave birth to a premature baby.
To realize the value of One Week,
Ask an editor of a weekly magazine.
To realize the value of One Day,
Ask a daily wage laborer who has six kids to feed.
To realize the value of One Hour,
Ask the lovers who are waiting to meet.
To realize the value of One Minute,
As a person who missed their train.
To realize the value of One Second,
Ask the person who survived an accident.
To realize the value of One Millisecond,
Ask the person who won a Silver Medal in the Olympics.
To appreciate the value of time, makes all the difference in one’s day. What is expected
of each and every one of us? I AM thankful that I have each hour of every day to make
a positive difference. In order to succeed in life I believe we must have the following:
INTEGRITY. “THE QUALITY OF BEING HONEST AND HAVING STRONG MORAL PRINCIPLES,
INTEGRITY IS THE STATE OF BEING WHOLE AND UNDEVIDED”
A person is good; who is filled with Honesty, Compassion and Kindness. If I start each
day this way, I attract goodness and know how to spend quality time. From the time we
are little children we are given Fair Warning about the basic rules of life. There is the
“Golden Rule” - “Do unto others as you would have them do unto to you”. Treat each
other with respect. Keep lies and deceit away. Follow rules of life daily. Yet wait a
minute, what if we are raised in a family where rules are not followed? What if parents
are selfish, cruel, abuse themselves and their children? Where do the children go when
they grow older? For a time, they may be attracted to the wrong side of the tracks. Still I
believe we are all given choice and chance to change. We have a built in compass of
“truthful awareness”. We know inside right from wrong.
I remember we had friends who wanted to give their children everything. They wanted
to buy their children all the world had to offer. But inside, the children wanted none of it.
They internally knew they had to find their own way when becoming adults. The spoiled
children ran off and the parents ran after them. They did everything they could to bribe
them with a new car and a beautiful life style. Suddenly, the children needed space, for
they had become adults. Bright, intelligent and strong headed, they needed to learn
about life by falling down. It was time for bravery. Time to get up on their own, show up
for themself and find out what life is all about, all alone, learning to be confident. It is
only then that respect, appreciation and kindness fall into place between parent and
child. TRUST comes along. I remember my friend told me how excited she was to give
her son the family heirloom when it was time for him to marry. However, the son felt
dismayed and wanted to work to earn the money to buy the ring for his future bride, all
by himself. Life has so many twists and turns. We need to trust when the time is right to
push them out of the nest and let them fly. Too many parents out there treat their kids
like their best friends and they are not doing them any favors!
Too often parents came to the rescue, parents pay for childrens mistakes and turn their
backs on all their childens cruel behavior toward them. Warning signs are there. In
time, both parents and children lose sight of bounderies for one another. The parents
had lost sight of their own needs and became caretakers instead of caregivers.
In the end, each party loses respect for the other. Fair warning signs were thrown to the
wind. The rule of life, completely overlooked. When a child becomes a healthy adult,
time to “trust them with freedom”, time to let them go out into the world on their own.
Our adult children, in the adult world, need to feel good about making decisions for
themselves. They need to figure life out. Of course, there are extenuating
circumstances where college is involved and monies are spent for careers ahead.
Regardless of the home situation, parents need to be respected and give back respect
to their child.
We need only take a deep breath. Put our hands together to center ourself. Pray for the
light to transform our darkness. Then the peaceful, quiet, discernment takes over.
DON’T QUIT
by: Edgar A. Guest
When things go wrong as they sometimes will,
when the road you’re trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debt is high,
And you want to smile but you have to sigh.
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest if you must, but don’t you Quit.
Life is strange, with its twists and turns,
As everyone of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about,
When he might have won had he stuck it out.
Don’t give up though the pace seems slow,
You might succeed with another blow.
Often the struggler has given up,
When he might have captured the Winners Cup,
And he learned too late when the night slipped down,
How close he was to the Golden Crown.
Success is failure turned inside out,
The silver lining of clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
IT may be near when it seems so far,
So stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit,
It’s when things seem the worst that you must not quit!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I believe, The Fair Warning signs in life are - three major ones. First and foremost, l obey
the Ten Commandments today and every day. Then I remember to Follow my “heart
and not my emotions” in critical thinking. Last but not least, I remember my “Body IS the
Temple of God” I give my body good health, kindness, exercise and I forgive myself and
others each day in prayer.
Am I following the “Fair Warning” signs today?
NOW LISTEN TO SONG FOR TODAY - CLICK PLAY BUTTON IN VIDEO BELOW