The Dancing Cow

Michal and Kental started arguing as to which of them wrote the better music.

"My music is better," Michal said. "My melodies bring tears to the eyes of all women."

"No, my music is better," Kental disagreed. "My scores are more enchanting than anything! Your music couldn't move a cow, my poor Michal."

"And what do you think? That your scores would make it dance?"

The dispute was in full swing when a peasant passed by, leading his cow back home from the field. The two musicians saw an opportunity to put their theories to the test.

"Hello there," they said. "Would you mind if we played something for your cow?"

"Well, if it gives you pleasure, why not? She's seen a lot worse in her day, I can tell you."

Michal warmed his hands, tuned his balalaika and played the most beautiful melody ever heard by a cow. But without result - the beast ruminated without moving an ear. Vexed, Michal passed the instrument to his compatriot, who played a lively score with the same result - no reaction from the cow.

"It's a lost cause," Michal cried. "Your cow does not have a musical ear."

"Well, I don't know about that," the peasant replied. "If you would lend me your instrument for a moment, I could play something for her."

Intrigued, Michal and Kental handed over the balalaika. The peasant did his best to imitate the humming of the flies and the mooing of little cows. The cow lifted her ears, started whipping her tail from side to side, and walked closer to the peasant as if to hear the music better.

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If you have trouble communicating with people, it may be that, like Michal and Kental, you are not playing the music they are used to hearing. Don't try to flatter your listeners, but speak with words that they understand. Don't try to impose your meaning by using words and sentences that are too complex.

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"Because we think that we have to persuade, we forget how to listen."
-Robert Shapiro
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Solipsism

Two students standing beneath the flagpole of the faculty building were engaged in a heated debate.

"But can't you see that it's the wind that is really moving and, in its movement, making the flag curl and flap?"

"You are mistaken," the second student replied, "because you cannot see the wind. How then can you conclude that it is making the flag move?"

A philosophy professor who happened to be passing by decided to interrupt the conversation. He approached the two students, took a draw on his pipe and said, "I'm sorry gentlemen, but have you ever considered the following argument: it is your mind that both flaps and moves."

(c)2005, www.positive-club.com

Solipsism (Latin: solus, alone + ipse, self) is the philosophical idea that "My mind is the only thing that I know exists." Solipsism is an epistemological or ontological position that knowledge of anything outside the mind is unjustified. The external world and other minds cannot be known and might not exist. In the history of philosophy, solipsism has served as a skeptical hypothesis.
(source: Wikipedia)

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What did the professor mean? Was he offering a solution to the problem of the two students? Yes, in the form of a profound truth: nothing is as we see it, because our minds create everything that we see, at the moment we see it. As such, there is no other reality than our self. This theory, called a solipsism, is doubly useful. On the one hand it protects us against faulty appearances. On the other, it indicates a path to self knowledge. That's because if my mind affects everything (is, in fact, everything) then studying what is real is the same as studying my own being.

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"Reality is just a point of view."
-Philip K. Dick
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Complain About What?

Discipline at the Brunwald monastery was terribly strict. The law of silence forced the Brothers not to talk for 10 long years. After waiting for so long, each monk had the right to say two words, but not one more.

It was Brother Hans' turn to meet with the Abbot.

"Speak Brother. I am listening," the Abbot said.

"Bed... hard," the monk replied.

"I see," said his superior.

Ten years later, Brother Hans met with the Abbot again.

"And what two words would you like to tell me?" the Abbot asked.

"Food... bad," said Brother Hans.

"I see," the Abbot sighed.

Another ten years passed and Brother Hans, kneeling once again before the Abbot, said, "I ... leave."

"Well that doesn't surprise me," the Abbot exclaimed, "since all you do is complain all the time!"

(c)2005, www.positive-club.com

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The punch line is funny, but the question remains: why did Brother Hans choose the life he did if he was not capable of profiting by it, if all that he was interested in were his personal comforts? Like him, we often find ourselves complaining about things when all we really have to do is let go and take advantage of what the world has to offer.

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"If you thank God for all the joys He has given you, you won't have
any time left to complain." - Master Eckhart
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What makes the difference?

A young black boy saw a balloon seller on a street corner. His eyes sparkled as he gazed at all the different colored balloons - red, blue, white, black, yellow...

The old man selling the balloons saw the boy hesitate, then gather his courage and approach.

"Tell me mister," said the boy, "Do the black balloons fly as high as the others?"

The old man felt a tear forming in his eye. He picked the boy up, sat him on his knee and said, "Look."

He let go of all the balloons. They drifted up in a cluster, higher and higher into the blue sky, until they were so high they disappeared.

"Did you see that?" the balloon seller asked.

"Yes," said the boy.

"Did the black balloons fly as high as the others?"

"Yes, Mister, they did."

"You see my boy, the balloons are like people. The important thing isn't their color, or what they look like on the outside. No, the important thing is WHAT'S INSIDE.

And what's inside you makes all the difference in life."

(c)2002 www.club-positif.com

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"When someone's character seems impossible to fathom,
observe his friends." - Japanese proverb
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The Triple Filter Test

In ancient Greece, Socrates was reputed to hold knowledge in high esteem. One day an acquaintance met the great philosopher and said, "Do you know what I just heard about your friend?"

"Hold on a minute," Socrates replied. "Before telling me anything, I'd like you to pass a little test. It's called the Triple Filter Test."

"Triple filter?"

"That's right," Socrates continued. "Before you talk to me about my friend, it might be a good idea to take a moment and filter what you're going to say. That's why I call it the triple filter test. The first filter 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 and..."

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

"No, on the contrary..."

"So," Socrates continued, "You want to tell me something bad about him, but you're not certain it's true. You may still pass the test though, because there's one filter left: the filter of usefulness. Is what you want to tell me about my friend 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?"

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The value of time:

To understand the value of a year, talk to a student who has failed an important exam.
To understand the value of a month, talk to a mother who has given birth to a baby a month prematurely.
To understand the value of a week, talk to the publisher of a weekly newspaper.
To understand the value of an hour, talk to a couple in love who are separated and want only to be together again.
To understand the value of a minute, talk to someone who has just missed a train or a plane.
To understand the value of a second, talk to someone who has lost a loved one in an accident.
To understand the value of a millisecond, talk to someone who won a silver medal at the Olympic Games.
Time waits for no one. Gather all the time you have left every moment, and it will be of great use to you. Share it with people you value and love and it will become even more precious.

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5-Ways To Combat Stress

Stress is a disease that can be partially cured. Here are a few thoughts that may help you live more in peace with yourself.

1. They say that 'primordial stress' is related to our unspoken fear of dying, of the end of life. But is it really dying that we are afraid of? No, because we don't know what dying really is. With the end of our existence also comes the end of consciousness and sensation, and so how can we know anything of dying?

2. Stress is generated by a fear of not being perfect. So, you believe you are perfect, do you? Well, you should know that you have never been perfect, because your lack of modesty allowed you to think that you were. And there can be no perfection where there is a lack!

3. Stress comes from being afraid that you can't get everything done on time. Time, like space, is an extendable dimension. It is one of those rare commodities that can be bestowed almost without limit. Remember that nothing grand or beautiful was ever accomplished in a day.

4. Stress comes from fearing that you do not correspond to the self image you want to project. The eye does not see the object itself, but the image of the object. You too are just a reflection in other people's eyes. They will never see you as you really are, no matter how hard they try. So why worry?

5. Stress arises when you don't know how to say no. You do know how to say no. Do you need proof? Well, the fact that you are alive and reading these lines means that you have succeeded in saying no many times, both with your body and with your mind. That's because living means refusing to die, day after day.

(c)2005, www.club-positif.com

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You can start lowering your stress level starting today.
All you have to do is choose your priorities!

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"Anxiety is the vertigo of liberty."
-S. Kierkegaard
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Alone With Others

Master Dzong attained the ultimate knowledge: that of detachment.

When his disciples asked him how he had attained this state, he laughed and explained:

"When I was 20 years old I didn't care what other people thought about me, and I only paid attention to myself.

"Past that age, I began to worry about what other people were thinking about me.

"Then the day after my 50th birthday, I suddenly realized that no one around me thought or cared about me one way or the other."

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Master Dzong was right. You have to attain a certain degree of wisdom to live your life the way you want, not caring about what other people think. But at the same time, it is important to pay attention to what is around you, without judging others.

And that is the problem: being both independent and conscious of others.

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"If you don't control your life, someone else will."
-John Atkinson
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(c) www.positive-club.com

Is it good to seek peace of mind in extremes?

Hillary and Tenzing are famous around the world for being the first people to climb Mount Everest in 1953.

But few people have heard about the discussion they had half way up the mountain.

"You see Tenzing, we are going to tame the dragon of Everest. We have been climbing its back, and soon we will be higher than its head."

"Yes, I see Hillary, but I am not as enthusiastic as you are."

"But look at the fantastic view. We are at a crossroads: down there is the valley, our resting place, the ultimate depression. And up there is the roof of the world, the highest point on earth, with its eternal snow. What more could you want?"

"I don't want anything. I know people who have been depressed, and who have sworn to me that they reached the very bottom of their being. And that is not a good place to be, believe me. I have also spoken to people who reached the summit of their existence, and who sacrificed everything to get there. They did not seem happier. When you are at the top, you are alone, it's cold, and nothing grows there.

"Personally, I prefer staying with my friends and family, at a level where I am comfortable. You are not at peace, Hillary, because you look up or down too much. You don't know how to stay still."

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Is it good to seek peace of mind in extremes? This little conversation seems to say that it is not. True, everyone admires the prowess of Hillary and Tenzing, but that has nothing to do with the serenity we seek in life. People perform exploits for other reasons than finding happiness. It is not good to live in extremes.

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"Virtue has its own just measure."
- Seneca
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(c)2006 www.positive-club.com

The Porcupine's Strategy

Little Miranda was alone in the garden. I was watching her distractedly, occasionally glancing over the top of my newspaper.

Almost kneeling, she was slowly approaching the fence, trying to make as little noise as possible. I thought she was looking for mushrooms or that she was pretending she was a giant mouse.

But after a few minutes I heard her cry out. It was a lusty cry, followed by a bout of tears. I jumped out of my chair and ran out to the garden, in my bare feet.

Miranda was holding her index finger. It was bleeding, but it didn't look too bad. I ran some water over it, asking what she could have touched that made her finger bleed, in a garden that I had planted with grass and other harmless plants.

"I wanted to touch the animal," she replied, "but it didn't let me come close, so I stretched out my arm and it did this. Then it ran away. It's too bad. I didn't want to hurt it."

"What animal?" I asked.

"The white and black ball, down there," she said, pointing to the end of the garden.

I picked up a broomstick I found in the kitchen and went back outside. In the garden, half buried in an old gopher hole, I found the animal. It was a porcupine. I remembered what I had learned in my natural science class.

The porcupine is a solitary animal. When confronted, it either retreats or projects its needles. Once the needles have penetrated the flesh, the wounds become infected and, in some cases, can cause death.

Miranda had presented no danger to the porcupine, but it didn't know what else to do except wound her, or get wounded itself. Nature, in creating its instinct, gave the porcupine no choice: instead of communicating, it had to launch its needles. That is the only strategy it knows, and no one can change it, not even a little girl who wants to make a friend.

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Is the porcupine the only animal to use this type of defense? No, people apply it every day of their lives. But our needles are more vicious, and better hidden. Words, blows, looks, anger, pride... these are the arms we use to attack those who seem to be adversaries. But even a porcupine has to get close to other porcupines at some time. If not the species would disappear.

(c)2006 www.positive-club.com

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"It matters little if we have the most beautiful feelings,
if we are not able to communicate them."
-Stephan Zweig
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Are you a man of faith?

An atheist and a believer had the same doctor. Every time they met in the doctor's waiting room, they would argue and end up insulting each other.

"You really believe that you are going to be saved on Judgment Day and go up to heaven. Do you really believe everything you read in the Bible, and everything they told you in church?" said the atheist.

"I'm not certain of anything," the believer replied. "Like you I have doubts. But I still have hope."

"But I don't have doubts," the atheist cried. "I have only certainties. For example, I can assure you that God has nothing to do with the ache in your knee, and that He doesn't care in the least how you feel."

"You don't know what you're talking about. And do you know something? You are a believer too. I can prove it to you."

"Really? That I'd like to see!"

"Will you be straightforward and answer my questions honestly?"

"Of course. I'm an honest atheist."

"Okay. Can you tell me what the name of the doctor is who you came to see?"

"Well no, he's not here. And I can't pronounce the replacement's name."

"Well, when you leave his office, will you check the prescription he gives you for mistakes, like you would a lottery ticket?"

"No, of course not. The doctor knows what he's doing."

"Are you a close friend of the pharmacist who is going to fill the prescription?"

"No, I go to a big pharmacy, and I rarely get served by the same person."

"Do you know what medication the doctor is going to give you, and what its side effects are?"

"No."

"And yet you are going to take it, aren't you?"

"Yes."

"Well, dear friend, I am happy to announce that you too are a man of faith!"

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Many of us behave like the atheist: we don't understand how believers can have blind faith in their God, and we often find their fervor ridiculous.

And yet, we also have well established beliefs, and not only when we go to see the doctor!

Think about it: without faith, without any certainties, life would be impossible. We sometimes have to have blind faith to survive.

(c)2006, www.positive-club.com

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"You should never criticize another's beliefs. That's how you
can avoid doing wrong to people. And there are even times
when we must honor a belief that we do not share."
- Buddha
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Are you imaginative?

"I have no imagination!"

"But of course you do. Everybody has imagination, my girl."

"No, not me. Ideas don't come to me. I never know what to write or to draw. I'll never be a success."

"All right, if that's the way things are, we will each take a piece of paper and draw what we think is the most terrible monster people have ever seen."

Ten minutes passed as the girl and her father sat drawing the most repulsive monsters they could imagine.

"Have you finished?" the father said. "I did. Here's my drawing." And he handed the girl his sheet of paper.

"It's not bad," she said, "but the paws look like a dog's, it has the tail of a pig, and its face looks a lot like a rhinoceros."

"Ah, it's true. When I look closer I can see that you're right. Well, now it's your turn to show me your monster."

"I didn't draw a monster," the girl said.

"Why not?"

"Because no drawing could be as terrible as the monster I dreamed about last night."

"Well my girl," her father replied, "you don't lack imagination. In my opinion you have too much!"

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"I don't have any ideas. I lack imagination..."

Nothing could be further from the truth! We all have great power - the power to imagine. The proof? Every night when we dream our brain is filled with imaginary forms.

Did you know that 25% of our sleep time is spent dreaming? That means that a 60 year old person will have spent about 5 years dreaming and exercising the power of imagination. You are capable of dreaming, and so you are capable of creating.

(c) www.positive-club.com

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"Like many people, I was a genius at drawing until I was
about ten years old. Then I started copying."
-Robert Massin
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The Rose

The first day of school our professor introduced himself and challenged us to get to know someone we didn't already know. I stood up to look around when a gentle hand touched my shoulder.

I turned a round to find a wrinkled, little old lady beaming up at me with a smile that lit up her entire being.

She said, "Hi handsome. My name is Rose. I'm 87 years old. Can I give you a hug?"

I laughed and enthusiastically responded, "Of course you may!" and she gave me a giant squeeze.

"Why are you in college at such a young, innocent age?" I asked.

She jokingly replied, "I'm here to meet a rich husband, get married, and have a couple of kids..."

"No seriously," I asked. I was curious what may have motivated her to be taking on this challenge at her age.

"I always dreamed of having a college education and now I'm getting one!" she told me.

After class we walked to the student union building and shared a chocolate milkshake.

We became instant friends. Every day for the next 3 months we would leave class together and talk nonstop. I was always mesmerized listening to this "time machine" as she shared her wisdom and experience with me.

Over the course of the year, Rose became a campus icon and she easily made friends wherever she went.

She loved to dress up and she revealed in the attention bestowed upon her from the other students. She was living it up.

At the end of the semester we invited Rose to speak at our football banquet.

I'll never forget what she taught us. She was introduced and stepped up to the podium. As she began to deliver her prepared speech, she dropped her three by 5 cards on the floor.

Frustrated and a little embarrassed she leaned into the microphone and simply said, "I'm sorry I'm so jittery. I gave up beer for Lent and this whiskey is killing me! I'll never get my speech back in order so let me just tell you what I know."

As we laughed she cleared her throat and began, "We do not stop playing because we are old; we grow old because we stop playing.

There are only 4 secrets to staying young, being happy, and achieving success.

You have to laugh and find humor every day.

You've got to have a dream.

When you lose your dreams, you die.

We have so many people walking around who are dead and don't even know it!

There is a huge difference between growing older and growing up.

If you are 19 years old and lie in bed for one full year and don't do one productive thing, you will turn 20 years old. If I am 87 years old and stay in bed for a year and never do anything I will turn 88.

Anybody can grow older. That doesn't take any talent or ability. The idea is to grow up by always finding opportunity in change. Have no regrets.

The elderly usually don't have regrets for what we did, but rather for things we did not do. The only people who fear death are those with regrets."

She concluded her speech by courageously singing "The Rose."

She challenged each of us to study the lyrics and live them out in our daily lives.

At the year's end Rose finished the college degree she had begun all those years ago.

One week after graduation Rose died peacefully in her sleep.

Over 2.000 college students attended her funeral in tribute to the wonderful woman who taught by example that it's never too late to be all you can possibly be.

When you finish reading this, please send this peaceful word of advice to your friends and family, they'll really enjoy it!

These words have been passed along in loving memory of ROSE.

REMEMBER, GROWING OLDER IS MANDATORY. GROWING UP IS OPTIONAL.

We make a Living by what we get, We make a Life by what we give.

image by: http://dryicons.com

A Story About the "Elite" Brotherhood of Quails

In ancient times there existed a hoard of quails who were really proud of their elite brotherhood. Everything went well for them except that they dreaded their number one nemesis – the Great Quail-Trapper.

This expert trapper would imitate the call of the quail – and when the quails were gathered together in answer to his call, he would throw a big net over them; put them into his bag and carried them away to be sold.

Now this trapper came to know about this popular community of quails. So he ventured to capture all the quails who are members of this elite brotherhood.

Now, one of the quails was very wise, and he said, "Brothers! As soon as the trapper throws his net over us, let each one put his head through a mesh in the net and then all lift it up together and fly away with it. When we have flown far enough, we can let the net drop on a thorn bush and escape from under it."

All agreed to the plan - and next day when the trapper threw his net, the birds all lifted it together in the very way that the wise quail had told them, threw it on a thorn bush and escaped. While the trapper tried to free his net from the thorns, it grew dark, and he had to go home.

This happened many days, till at last the trapper's wife grew angry and asked her husband, "Why is it that you never catch any more quail?"

Then the trapper said, "The trouble is that all the birds work together and help one another. If they would only quarrel, I could catch them fast enough."

A few days later, one of the quails accidentally stepped on the head of one of his brothers, as they alighted on the feeding-ground.

"Who stepped on my head?" angrily inquired the quail who was hurt.

"Don't be angry, I didn't mean to tread on you," said the first quail.

But the brother quail went on quarreling. "I lifted all the weight of the net - you didn't help at all," he cried.

That made the first quail angry, and before long all were drawn into the dispute. Then the fowl-catcher saw his chance. He imitated the cry of the quail and cast his net over those who came together. They were still boasting and quarreling, and they did not help one another lift the net. So the hunter lifted the net himself and crammed them into his basket.

But the wise quail gathered his friends together and flew far away, for he knew that quarrels are the root of misfortune.

The Boy With a Bad Character

There once was a boy with a very bad character. His father
gave him a box of spikes and told him to hammer one into the garden fence every time he lost his patience and got into an argument with someone.

The first day the boy hammered 37 spikes into the fence.
Over the next few weeks he began learning to control himself,
and the number of spikes he had to hammer diminished day by
day. He had discovered that exercising self control was a
lot easier than hammering spikes.

Finally the day arrived when the boy didn't hammer any spikes
into the fence.

He went to see his father and told him that he hadn't had to
nail any spikes that day at all.

His father told him to pull a spike out of the fence every
day he didn't lose temper.

Days passed, and finally the boy was able to inform his father
that all the spikes had been removed. The father walked with his
son over to the fence and said: "My son, you have done well,
but look at all the holes in the fence. It will never be the
same as it was before.

Moral of the Story:

"When you fight with someone and say terrible things, you
create wounds just like these holes. You can stick a knife into
someone and then pull it out, but the scar will always be there.
No matter how many times you say you're sorry, the scar will
remain."

A wound caused by words is as bad as a physical wound. Friends
are like precious jewels, they make you smile, they encourage you,
they're there to help you and listen to you when you're in need.
They offer you support, and open their hearts to you.

Show all your friends how important they are to you
by sending them this letter. Also send it back to the
person you got it from. That way, when you get it back
you'll know you have a circle of friends.

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"You don't live on what you eat, but only on what you digest.
This is true for your mind as well as for your body."
- Benjamin Franklin
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Source: http://www.positive-club.com