Glad Game...

Chellie Campbell describes how, when she was a girl, her mother taught her to play "The Glad Game." On days when Chellie came home from school complaining about something - a bully on the playground, a harsh teacher, a skinned knee, or difficult homework - Chellie's mom would hug her, kiss away her tears, and then suggest, "OK, enough complaining. Let's play 'The Glad Game.'"

"The Glad Game" is another name for a Gratitude List. The Glad Game helps you focus on what's right in your world today, instead of what's wrong. Chellie's mom was a very wise woman, teaching her that no matter what your troubles, there are still plenty of things to be grateful for: a sunny day, good food to eat, a loving family, a house to live in, a family pet to love, a handful of friends to enjoy, and much, much more.

Chellie would follow her mother's suggestion: 
"I'm glad I have you as my mom." 
"I'm glad the weekend is almost here." 
"I'm glad I have some nice clothes to wear to school." 
"I'm glad I don't have to share my room with my sister anymore." 
"I'm glad I get to watch TV when I finish my homework." 
"I'm glad we have pie for dessert." 

Playing "The Glad Game" is a terrific way to change your attitude in a hurry. We all slip into self-pity once in a while - after all, we're only human. The important thing is to cut the pity-party short and shift into gratitude. An attitude of gratitude will get you much farther in life than complaining and self-pity. Try it and see.

By

Witty Parent Mrs. Kavita Shah

IMPORTANCE OF AKSHAYA TRITIYA (AKHA TEEJ)

IMPORTANCE OF AKSHAYA TRITIYA (AKHA TEEJ)

Akshaya Tritiya, also known as Akha Teej is a Hindu and Jain holy day, that falls on the third Tithi (Lunar day) of Bright Half (Shukla Paksha) of the pan-Indian month of Vaishakha.

Jainism is one of the oldest known religions of world. Rishabhadeva alias Adinath is the first Tirthankara of the Jain. The Day of Akshay Tratiya is worshipped and said auspicious in Jainism because -

Tirthankara Rshabhdeva was king of Ayodhya. He being enlightened gave up all worldly pleasures and chose to lead the life of an ascetic and become a Jain monk. Jain monks do not own anything. They do not even cook food for themselves. While hungry or thirsty, they go to people and ask for food or drinking water. Tirthankara Rshabhdeva also went to people and asked food. However, the people of that time did not know anything about the acts of monks, as he was the first monk in this era. People of Ayodhya offered gold, jewellery, gemstones, elephants, horses, expensive garments and even their daughters to honour their beloved king. Rshabhdeva was not in quest of all these. He wanted only a morsel of food, but nobody it to offered him. Nobody understood that their king was asking for food. As there was no choice, he had to fast for a long time until his grand son Shreyansha kumara understood his need. Shreyansha Kumara, finally, offered him sugarcane juice and Rshabhdeva ended his fast after a year. This was on the day of Akshaya Tritiya. This is considered by the Jains as one of the best offerings. It is believed that bestowing upon religious gifts on Akshaya Tritiya becomes inexhaustible. Jains, even today, observe fast to commemorate their first Tirthankara Rshabhadeva and end their fast on Akshaya Tritiya with sugarcane juice.

As per Hindus, this day is ruled by god Vishnu, the preserver-god in the Hindu Trinity. It is also traditionally celebrated as the birthday of the Hindu sage Parashurama, the sixth Avatar (incarnation) of the god Vishnu. According to Hindu mythology, on this day the Treta Yuga began and the river Ganges, the most sacred river of India, descended to the earth from the heaven.

The word "Akshaya" means the never diminishing in Sanskrit and the day is believed to bring good luck and success. It is believed that if you do charity on this day you will be blessed. Nowadays jewellers have turned the purity into a marketing gimmick. The day is considered auspicious for starting new ventures. The legend is that any venture initiated on the auspicious day of Akshaya Tritiya continues to grow and bring prosperity. Hence, new ventures, like starting a business, construction etc. is initiated on Akshaya Tritiya.

Let Your Child Make His Own Choices—and Deal with the Consequences

Let Your Child Make His Own Choices—and Deal with the Consequences

I recommend that within the parameters you set around schoolwork, your child is free to make his own choices. You need to back off a bit as a parent; otherwise you won’t be helping him with his responsibilities. If you take too much control over the situation, it will backfire on you by turning into a power struggle. And believe me; you don’t want a power struggle over homework. I’ve seen many kids purposely do poorly just to show their parents “who’s in charge.” I’ve also seen children who complied to ease their parents’ anxiety, but these same kids never learned to think and make choices for themselves.

I’m a big believer in natural consequences when it comes to schoolwork. Within the structure you set up, your child has some choices. He can choose to do his homework or not, and do it well and with effort or not. The logical consequences will come from the choices he makes—if he doesn’t choose to get work done, his grades will drop.

When that happens, you can ask him questions that aren’t loaded, like,

“Are you satisfied with how things are going?

“If not, what do you want to do about it?”

“How can I be helpful to you?”

The expectation is that homework is done to the best of your child’s ability. When he stops making an effort and you see his grades drop, that’s when you invite yourself in. You can say, “Now it's my job to help you do your job better. I’m going to help you set up a plan to help yourself and I will check in to make sure you’re following it.” Set up a plan with your child’s input in order to get him back on his feet. For example, the new rules might be that homework must be done in a public place in your home until he gets his grades back up. You and your child might meet with the teacher to discuss disciplinary actions should his grades continue to drop. In other words, you will help your child get back on track by putting a concrete plan in place. A fad when you see this change, then you can step back out of it. But before that, your child is going to sit in a public space and you’re going to work on his math or history together. You’re also checking in more. Depending on the age of your child, you’re making sure that things are checked off before he goes out. You’re adding a half hour of review time for his subjects every day. And then each day after school, he’s checking with his teacher or going for some extra help. Remember, this plan is not a punishment—it’s a practical way of helping your child to do his best.

Forgiveness of Sins

Forgiveness of Sins

A missionary on one of the islands was sitting in his cool seaside hut one day when one of the village women came in, carrying a handful of dripping sand she had just picked up off the beach. "Do you know what this is?" she asked. "It looks like sand," said the missionary. "Do you know why I brought it here?" she asked. "No. I can't imagine why," the padre answered. "Well, these are my sins," the women explained. "My sins are as countless as the sands of the sea. How can I ever obtain forgiveness for all of them.?" "You got that sand down by the shore, didn't you?" said the missionary. "Well, take it back there, and pile it up into a heaping mound of sand at the water's edge. Then you sit back and watch the tide come in and slowly wash away the pile altogether. That is how God's forgiveness works."...

God says to the people: "Now, let's settle this matter. You are stained red with sin, but I will wash you as clean as snow. Although your stains are deep red, you will be as white as wool." 

HOW TO LOVE YOURSELF

HOW TO LOVE YOURSELF

Stop All Criticism - Criticism never changes a thing. Refuse to criticize yourself. Accept yourself exactly as you are. Everybody changes. When you criticize yourself, your changes are negative. When you approve of yourself, your changes are positive. 

Don't Scare Yourself - Stop terrorizing yourself with your thoughts. It's a dreadful way to live. Find a mental image that gives you pleasure (mine is yellow roses), and immediately switch your scary thought to a pleasure thought. 

Be Gentle And Kind And Patient - Be gentle with yourself. Be kind to yourself. Be patient with yourself as you learn the new ways of thinking. Treat yourself as you would someone you really loved. 

Be Kind To Your Mind - Self hatred is only hating your own thoughts. Don't hate yourself for having the thoughts. Gently change your thoughts. 

Praise Yourself - Criticism breaks down the inner spirit. Praise builds it up. Praise yourself as much as you can. Tell yourself how well you are doing with every little thing. 

Support Yourself - Find ways to support yourself. Reach out to friends and allow them to help you. It is being strong to ask for help when you need it. 

Be Loving To Your Negatives - Acknowledge that you created them to fulfill a need. Now, you are finding new, positive ways to fulfill those needs. So, lovingly release the old negative patterns. 

Take Care Of Your Body - Learn about nutrition. What kind of fuel does your body need to have optimum energy and vitality? Learn about exercise. What kind of exercise can you enjoy? Cherish and revere the temple you live in. 

Mirror Work - Look into your eyes often. Express this growing sense of love you have for yourself. Forgive yourself looking into the mirror. Talk to your parents looking into the mirror. Forgive them too. At least once a day say: "I love you, I really love you." 

Love Yourself .. Do It Now - Don't wait until you get well, or lose the weight, or get the new job, or the new relationship. Begin now -- and do the best you can. 

Leave no room for regrets....

A man found a cocoon of an emperor moth. He took it home so that he could
watch the moth come out of the cocoon. On the day a small opening appeared,
he sat and watched the moth for several hours as the moth struggled to force
the body through that little hole.

Then it seemed to stop making any progress. It appeared as if it had gotten
as far as it could and it could go no farther. It just seemed to be stuck.
Then the man, in his kindness, decided to help the moth, so he took a pair
of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon. The moth then
emerged easily.

But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings. The man continued to
watch the moth because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would
enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract in
time. Neither happened! In fact, the little moth spent the rest of its life
crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled body and shriveled wings.
It never was able to fly.

What the man in his kindness and haste did not understand was that the
restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the moth to get through the
tiny opening was the way of forcing fluid from the body of the moth into its
wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from
the cocoon. Freedom and flight would only come after the struggle. By
depriving the moth of a struggle, he deprived the moth of health.

Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our life. If we were to go
through our life without any obstacles, we would be crippled.

We would not be as strong as what we could have been. Give every opportunity
a chance, leave no room for regrets.

Want to be a Winner......Just do it....!!!

Here's a simple question to get you started. There are three monkeys sitting on a tree, above a pond. One of the monkeys decides to jump into the pond. How many monkeys are left on the tree? Two? Wrong.

The right answer is three. You see, the monkey only made the decision to jump into the pond. He didn't actually jump! If you think about it, we are all like that. We take decisions. We make resolutions. But somehow, we don't follow through with action. And intent without action is quite useless, really. Getting started - taking that first step - is often the master key to success. As someone once said, you don't have to be great to get started. But you sure have to get started to become great!

Do you find yourself struggling to take action on your plans and intentions? Well, here's a five-point programme to help you move from intent to action.

Make a beginning ? right away. Whatever be your goal, take the first step - however small - right away. Until you take that first step, your mind does not believe you. You need to signal to yourself that you are serious, that you mean business. Commit to taking action, immediately. Today. Now.

Break up the grand plan into smaller tasks. Remember, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Sometimes the task ahead looks so enormous that we feel overwhelmed - and we don't do anything about it. Break that up into smaller sub-tasks, and suddenly you'll find something that's doable. Remember that old adage &lsquosomething is better than nothing'? It's still true.

Think of the pleasure, not the pain. Visualise success. If you want to do an MBA at a premier school and plan to devote three hours a day to studying, don't think about missing the football game on television, or about not being able to go out for that Saturday night bash. Think instead of the job that you could get post your MBA, the rewards that it would bring, the dreams that would get realised.

Create a support group. Surround yourself with people who share your objective, who are co-passengers on your journey to success. The excitement of being in it together will help you fight the inertia, and get you going with the rest of the gang.

Pay up ? in advance. For most of us, monetary commitments are a strong impetus for action. The fear of losing money or wasting it, can spur you into action. We follow up on our commitments, if only to ensure our money is well-spent. Plan to lose weight? Pay up for that three-month weight loss programme! Don't wait.

Surround yourself with people who share your objective, who are co-passengers on your journey to success.

Bestselling management author Tom Peters tells the story of a man who approached American financer and banker JP Morgan with an envelope, and said, "Sir, in my hand I hold a guaranteed formula for success, which I will gladly sell you for $25,000."

"Sir," JP Morgan replied, "I do not know what is in the envelope. However, if you show me, and I like it, I give you my word as a gentleman that I will pay you what you ask." The man agreed to the terms, and handed over the envelope. JP Morgan opened it, and pulled out a single sheet of paper. He gave it one look - a mere glance - then handed it back to the gentleman. And paid him the agreed-upon sum of $25,000! On that sheet of paper, were two things:

JP Morgan benefited from this advice, and you can too. Knowing what to do is often easy. We all have our list of things to do. Our plans and our resolutions. Doing it - that's the tough bit. But that's the hallmark of successful people. The Nike guys are right. Want to be a winner? Just do it!

GOOD FRIDAY

What is Good Friday?

Good Friday is observed on the Friday before Easter Sunday. On this day Christians commemorate the passion, or suffering, and death on the cross of the Lord, Jesus Christ.

Many Christians spend this day in fasting, prayer, repentance, and meditation on the agony and suffering of Christ on the cross.

Good Friday also known as Holy Friday, Great Friday.

It is a religious holiday observed primarily by Christians commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus  and his death at Calvary.

Significance of Good Friday 

Good Friday is a holy day observed by the Christian community, commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus. According to the Bible, Jesus is believed to have died around 3 p.m. in the afternoon. Jesus was crucified for the sake of humanity in 33 A.D. It was termed as the victory of good over evil and since then, the day has been celebrated as Good Friday. The need of sacrifice for human sins is acknowledged in most of the world's oldest religions. It is believed that Jesus was the medium between human and God. He was God's perfect sinless substitute, who bore the punishment on behalf of the sinful human race. Through his sacrifice, Jesus became the bridge between humans and god. He is believed to be the son of God.

Good Friday is a day of mourning in church. It is observed as a day of fasting and penance in the memory of Jesus. On this day, the followers solemnly remember the atonement of Lord Jesus Christ and His great sacrifice on the cross of Calvary. It is followed by peaceful prayer and mediation. The service also calls for reading from all the four gospels. These gospels recount the events of the passion, from the Last Supper through the Crucifixion and the burial of Jesus.

Good Friday rituals and traditions are distinct from those of all other Church observances and add to the day’s considerable significance. The entire ceremony is somber, with priests and deacons dressing in black vestments. The pulpit and the altar are bare, and no candles are lit. The purpose behind the solemn presentation is to create an awareness of grief over the sacrifice of God's only begotten Son.

The Roman Catholic Church observes Good Friday with several long-standing traditions, all of which aim at remembering Jesus Christ and his sacrifice for the sins of humans. Good Friday is a day of fasting and the altars of the churches are made without candles. The Liturgy of the Word, the Veneration of the Cross and Holy Communion also takes place on this day. Though Good Friday is celebrated in different ways around the globe, the basic essence of the holiday remains the same.