The buck stops here.

From this moment forward, I will accept responsibility for my past. I understand that the beginning of wisdom is to accept the responsibility for my own problems and that by accepting responsibility for my past, I free myself to move into a bigger, brighter future of my own choosing. 

Never again will I blame my parents, my spouse, my boss, or other employees for my present situation. Neither my education nor lack of one, my genetics, or the circumstantial ebb and flow of everyday life will affect my future in a negative way. If I allow myself to blame these uncontrollable forces for my lack of success, I will be forever caught in a web of the past. I will look forward. I will not let my history control my destiny. 

The buck stops here. I accept responsibility for my past. I am responsible for my success. 

I am where I am today- mentally, physically, spiritually, emotionally, and financially- because of decisions I have made. My decisions have always been governed by my thinking. Therefore, I am where I am today- mentally, physically, spiritually, emotionally, and financially- because of how I think. Today I will begin the process of changing where I am- mentally, physically, spiritually, emotionally, and financially- by changing the way I think. 

My thoughts will be constructive, never destructive. My mind will live in the solutions of the future. It will not dwell in the problems of the past. I will seek the association of those who are working and striving to bring about positive changes in the world. I will never seek comfort by associating with those who have decided to be comfortable. 

When faced with the opportunity to make a decision, I will make one. I understand that God did not put in me the ability to always make right decisions. He did, however, put in me the ability to make a decision and then make it right. The rise and fall of my emotional tide will not deter me from my course. When I make a decision, I will stand behind it. My energy will go into making the decision. I will waste none on second thoughts. My life will not be an apology. It will be a statement. 

The buck stops here. I control my thoughts. I control my emotions. 

In the future when I am tempted to ask the question "Why me?" I will immediately counter with the answer: "Why not me?" Challenges are gifts, opportunities to learn. Problems are the common thread running through the lives of great men and women. In times of adversity, I will not have a problem to deal with; I will have a choice to make. My thoughts will be clear. I will make the right choice. Adversity is preparation for greatness. I will accept this preparation. Why me? Why not me? I control my thoughts. I control my emotions. I am responsible for my success. 

The buck stops here.

Andy Andrews- The Traveler's Gift

God.

"We have a better chance of finding God in the universe within us than in the one that surrounds us."

love in the daylight

saw god in a parking lot the other day
he smiled and my thoughts ran away from home
i was reaching out to touch his face
until i realized he was untouchable
not because he wanted to be untouchable
but because he was everything around me
it's so hard to envision touching life
but if you can touch life with your whole heart
you can touch god's face...

i saw god in my house yesterday morning
he was inside my daughter's room
inside my daughter
she looked up at me with her big blue eyes
the ones that used to be Frank Sinatra blue
but since then have blended in with a silver
that has further pronounced the growing beauty of her
glowing face
she looked into my eyes with her eyes
she was starting to become agitated
then upset, then enraged
throwing clothes around her room
the room she helped me clean the night before
i wanted to become frustrated with her
but god told me to put my arms around her instead
so i did
when i did i almost started to cry
she did start to cry
she cried hard there in her room
i didn't almost start to cry because she was crying
i almost started to cry because
now i wasn't just seeing god
i was feeling god too.

she felt better after that
and so did i
but i couldn't help but remember the feeling
that stayed deep within my skin
inside into my heart.

Little Talks

I woke up this morning and my mind was the New Jersey Turnpike

I woke up and the thoughts I stuffed in a suitcase and buried in the back yard rose from the dead like dark spirits on a full moon

The crack in my small bridge became a full fledged safety concern and I finally asked myself a question that should have been asked a long time ago:

What does my love look like?

I don't usually entertain that question, I don't sit down and close my eyes and visualize love

But when I did it scared me

Because my love was always leaving, was always double-sided with impure intentions

The love I saw looked nervous and paranoid

Well I looked in the mirror and asked myself where this thought came from?

The devil spoke to me again and said "you think I'm going anywhere?"

He said, "I'll be waiting for you everyday for the rest of your life, and frankly, right now... I don't think you're strong enough to handle what I have for you"

All I could do was shake my head, close my eyes, and pray for the thoughts to stop.

He's right, I'm probably not strong enough.

______________________________________________________________

Don't listen to a word I say.

The screams all sound the same.