Quote of the day

"Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a harder battle."

-Plato

Not everyone is you. Everyone has a different life, and everyone has different troubles than you. Plato suggests in this quote that you should be kind, for everyone you meet is dealing with different troubles and having to overcome things that could seem way worse to you. Everyone is having to deal with something different, and no matter how big a deal it is, we should all be kind to everyone else. There are those people in this world that need it more than anyone else, and there are those people who we should be kind to nonetheless. Kindness is a very important part of the lives of many. Be kind.

Quote of the day

"I'm starting with the man in the mirror,

I'm asking him to change his ways,

And no message could have been any clearer,

If you wanna make the world a better place,

take a look at yourself and then make a change!"

-Michael Jackson

This is the chorus of the inspirational song 'Man in the Mirror' by Michael Jackson. I love this song because it really shows that the world will change if you do something about it. It is very similar to charity work- just one day of service could help millions around the world. "If you wanna make the world a better place, take a look at yourself and then make a change!"

Church Work

(Picture from www.fanpop.com)

Yet another great way to serve is through your local church or synagogue or temple. My church is a wonderful place and very much service centered. They offer many many things, from buying biscuits to raise money, to mission trips all around the world. Coming up on March 23 is the church's annual 'Great Day of Service.' For this, the members of the church are encouraged to participate by picking one service option off of a  long list of places/people in need. My family usually does yard work at small run down churches, or cleaning at a daycare. My first memory of the Great Day of Service is scrubbing a crib with chemicals that I am not even allowed to use now! This might not sound fun, but it  is actually really fun and a great thing to do with the family. Another memory was raking all of the leaves at a cemetery. The leaves were covering up the tombstones, and it was a very sad and run down little place. Working at a cemetery might sound creepy, but you are never alone. Throughout all of this, you are surrounded by fellow church members. There are so many more opportunities, including painting, yard work, making blankets, making food packages, carpeting, playing bingo with the elderly, and more. I have found that the Great Day of Service is super fun, family friendly, and something I would never miss!

Quote of the day

"You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one. I hope someday you'll join us. And the world will live as one."

-John Lennon

This is a beautiful song. I love the message it brings. Dreams can sometimes be a beautiful and wonderful and full of peace. In order to make those dreams a reality, we all need to live as one in peace and harmony.

Quote of the day

"I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."

-Maya Angelou

Do you remember what your best friend back in elementary school said to you that day when you were sad? How about what they did for you? No. People don't remember these things. The things people do remember, though, is how you made them feel. Back to the sad day in elementary school. How did your friend make you feel? They cheered you up and tried to make you feel happy, right? This is the thing that counts. Feelings are some of the most powerful things in the world. Feelings are what started all of the great wars and battles. Feelings are what join two people together in marriage. Feelings are what cause people to do great things, and feelings are what create love and passion and kindness. Feelings are contagious, so make sure to only spread the good. I mean, what goes round comes round, right?

Quote of the day

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."

-H. Jackson Brown Jr.

Later in life, you won't care what you did, you will care more about those things that you wanted to do.  This quote speaks the truth. The only way to fix these disappointing things is to step away from your comfort zone and explore. Do the things you would have never done. 

Quote of the day

"If you judge people, you have no time to love them."

-Mother Teresa

When you are judging people, you don't even think of what is good about them. Judge less, love more.

Quote of the day

"You know you're in love when you can't fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams."

-Dr. Seuss

Love is a wonderful thing. It is so wonderful, that it can take the darkness out of night and fill the sky with shiny stars. When you are in love, life will be a daydream. Maybe even better. "You know you're in love when reality is finally better than your dreams."

Food Banks

Another great way to serve is through local food banks.

(picture from http://www.acfb.org/more-ways-participate)

An example of one of these places is Feed the Hungry Atlanta. Earlier today, I thought of a story. I thought of a real life adventure that changed my life forever. I decided to share it with you today.

The first time I went to a place like this was many years ago. I was with my old girl scout troop, and our wonderful troop leaders took us here. To tell you the truth, I was dreading it. The last thing I wanted to do on my Friday afternoon was go to some food sorting place. When we arrived at Feed the Hungry, I was discouraged further by the appearance of the building. It looked like a giant garage, complete with a rusty old metal roll up door. No way was I spending my day in there! Our group continued inside, and it even looked like a garage from the inside. The crude cement flooring and raw walls were the key elements that I still remember to this day. All the girls in my troop and I gave a friendly man the food donations we were required to bring, and he gave us all plastic gloves and ushered us to an empty assembly line. He told each of us to pick a station. The stations were positioned along the sides of the empty metal conveyor belt, and the options were things like canned soups, canned vegetables and fruits, precooked meats, rice, beans, and more. I picked canned vegetables, but I also helped my friend with the fully cooked bacon. The hours seemed to drag by slowly, until I realized how it was actually kinda fun. I began to gain confidence, and eventually, my friend on the bacon got tired and sat down. I told her I would cover her shift for her, on one condition. She would have to open the big brown boxes full of cans and bacon for me, and keep a pile of bacon and cans ready for me to pick up and use. She agreed immediately, and I am not sure if the assembly line picked up speed or I just had more on my plate then I could handle, but I began to almost not keep up. I worked super hard and got it all done, and by the time it was time to go, I was laughing hysterically and my face was as red as a tomato. I believe our troop had packaged over 100 boxes by the time we were done, and from then on, I loved food bank work. Since then, I have volunteered at multiple food communities including Feed the Hungry, the Atlanta Community Food Bank, and a few more that I don't remember the name of at the moment. Service has changed my life forever, and this experience is one that I will treasure forever and will never forget. Ever.

Here is some information on the Atlanta Community Food Bank.

www.acfb.org and here is their facts page: http://www.acfb.org/facts-stats

Quote of the day

"Be yourself; everyone else is already taken."

-Oscar Wilde

Don't try to be someone that you are not. Only you can be you. Trying to be someone that you are not is very difficult, and it is way easier to just let go and be yourself. You can easily be you without thinking too hard, but acting requires some serious thought. Be yourself.

Quote of the day

"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever."

-Mahatma Gandhi

Live life to the fullest and live each minute as if it were your last. Keep learning as if you were to live forever, and try to learn as if you will never leave school. Learn as if your brain capacity could take in every single piece of knowledge in the world. Learn more than just facts, learn opinions and human common sense, too.

Agape

Volunteering at a local Agape Center

(Picture from http://www.agapecc.org/Home.html)

One great way to serve your community is by volunteering at a local Agape center. The dictionary definition of the word Agape is this:

agape ² |äˈgäˌpā, ˈagəpī|
nounChristian Theology
Christian love, esp. as distinct from erotic love or emotional affection.
a communal meal in token of Christian fellowship, as held by early Christians in commemoration of the Last Supper.

I have been to the Agape center before, and it is a great place that provides after school programs for students that live in impoverished families. Agape also provides day programs for seniors and disabled adults. On my first adventure to the Agape center, I was amazed at how wonderful Agape really is! I got to help the children with their homework, do some crafts and play games with them. I don't think I have ever seen more thankful faces, and not to mention the children are adorable. On my second adventure to Agape, again, I got to tudor a student with homework. The Agape program is very successful, because I found that the kid I was working with knew more than I did. This is a wonderful program. It brings smiles to children who are living in conditions that don't bring smiles. Here is a link to Agape Atlanta's website: 

http://www.agapecc.org/

Agape really is a wonderful place. 

Quote of the day

"You've gotta dance like there's nobody watching,

Love like you'll never be hurt,

Sing like there's nobody listening,

And live like it's heaven on earth."

-William W. Purkey

Give everything your best as if nothing bad could happen. In this quote, it says to dance like there is nobody watching. What this means is be cheerful and outgoing and act as if nobody judged anybody. Love like you will never be hurt is also good. This says that you should give all of your love as if that love will never be taken away. The sentence itself is pretty self-explanatory. The next line, sing like there's nobody listening, explains that you should never be afraid to speak up. Another meaning could be that you should not be afraid to get up, dance around, and sing just because of what you think others will think of you. The last line I love. "And live like it's heaven on earth." We should all do this. Live like we will die tomorrow, and get the fullest of life.

This quote says to give it your best. So give it your best. When people embarrass themselves, do you feel any embarrassment?  When people give it their all and make a fool of themselves, do you feel any of their shame? No. Give it your all, and you will not be judged as harshly as you judge yourself. Get out there, and serve.

Quote of the day

"Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that."

-Martin Luther King, Jr.

Only light can rid of darkness. Only love can clear away the hate. Spread your light and spread your love for these two things are some of the most important things that have ever existed. 

Quote of the day

"Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift of God, which is why we call it the present."

-Bil Keane

This is a fun little play on words that accurately describes why we should live in the present. Yesterday will never come again. Nobody knows what will happen tomorrow until it actually comes. Today is a gift of God, and as the quote so cleverly describes, this is why we call it 'present.'

Quote of the day

"To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment."

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Being yourself is hard. This world is always trying to make you something that you are not, so being yourself is a great accomplishment. But what people don't know is that being yourself is really not difficult. You simply have to let it go and see what happens. Sometimes the real you is the you that the world is trying to make you. Sometimes it is not. Either way, to be yourself is a great accomplishment. 

Ways to serve

I am going to be doing a short series of posts on some of the different service opportunities that there are. There are so many wonderful ways to serve, and some of them are even fun! Here is a list of only some of the service topics I will talk about.

- AGAPE
- Food Banks/Other Donations
- Service through Church
- Animal Rescue
- Charity Organizations
- Nursing Homes
- Homeless Shelters

I can't wait to share my love for service with all of you! If you have any stories and/or more types of service to add to this list for me to talk about, please be welcome to post a comment and I will add on to this list!

Quote of the day

"Be the change that you wish to see in the world."

-Mahatma Gandhi

You can make a difference. It doesn't even have to be big, but be the person that you want to see in everyone else. If we all be ourselves and make that change for the better, then what would the world be like? For one, there would be peace. World peace is a wonderful thing that may never happen, because everyone these days is so full of hate. If you change that to love, then where would we be? Life would be beautiful. Make it so.

Quote of the day

"All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt."

-Charles M. Schultz

Everything in moderation is good, but love is great.

Quote of the day

"Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened."

-Dr. Seuss

When something good happens, enjoy it. Sure it will be over soon, but enjoy it while it lasts and smile because it happened. This is a major part of living life to the fullest.

Quote of the day

"A lifetime isn't forever, so take the first chance, don't wait for the second one! Because sometimes, there aren't second chances! And if it turns out to be a mistake? So what! This is life! A whole bunch of mistakes! But if you never get a second chance at something you didn't take a first chance at? That's true failure."

-C. JoyBell C.

Everybody makes mistakes, but sometimes the biggest mistake is not taking the opportunity to do something. Sometimes there isn't even a second opportunity! When there isn't even a second chance at something you didn't take the first chance at, then that is true failure.

Quote of the day

"The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes."

-Marcel Proust

In looking for a new start and new discovery is not about the land you will claim or the things you see, but the new attitude towards life that comes out of it.

Life of Opportunity

        Life is beautiful. It is amazing to think that every living thing was created individually with its own intentions in life. Some of these things, however, were born less fortunate and are in need of a little bit of help from those who are more fortunate. These less fortunate creatures come in all shapes and sizes, not necessarily humans, but also animals and other creatures. 

        Have you ever seen a ladybug on your windowsill who had a broken wing and could not fly? Did you ever stop to help that ladybug? What if it was you in that situation? What would you do? There are people in this world that would flick the poor creature off of the windowsill for it to fall to its doom, or they would get toilet paper and completely smash the bug all together. Maybe a ladybug is a bad example, as many people don't like bugs. A better example might be what would you do if you saw a hurt puppy or kitten on the side of the road? Would you stop to help it or would you drive on? If you would stop and help it and take it to a vet or something, then good for you. The world needs more of these people, because there are way too many people suffering. Besides, I personally think making someone smile, or helping them into a better situation is the best thing ever. The glow of a smile can give you that wonderful feeling of a little explosion of happiness and joy in your heart. 

        One good deed done can give you the joy and kindness to last all day. Eventually when your goodness piles up, you will be internally beautiful for a lifetime.

        There is a world of opportunity out there, and it only takes one person to make a difference to millions. There is a service project for everyone, from packaging food and clothing to send to the needy to simply visiting an animal shelter. Even if hands on work is not for you, a simple donation can change the world.

        I want to challenge you to go outside today, to go to the Humane Society, to go to Sheltering Arms, to go to Goodwill and donate; go ask your church or temple or synagogue about volunteering options. Most churches will offer mission trips to places like Nicaragua or the Republic of Georgia, and I am sure temples and synagogues do, too. 

        Just go outside. Get your hands dirty. Serve.

Quote of the day

"Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared."

-Buddha

Happiness and love can be shared with the entire earth without ever decreasing in value or amount, just as the life of a candle won't be shortened in lightening others.

Quote of the day

                                      "Immerse yourself in life. Don't just put your foot in."

-Brandon A. Trean

Live like you will never be hurt in any way. Don't be shy and not live life to the fullest, as that is failure and a big life mistake.