Substance of Living

Thank you, dear readers, for sending us thoughtful emails such as this one below. I believe in angels and that once a parent, always a parent. A drunk man in an Oldsmobile   They said had run the light   That caused the six-car pileup.   When broken bodies lay about   And blood was everywhere,   The sirens screamed out eulogies,   For death was in the air.   A mother, trapped inside her car,   Was heard above the noise;   Her plaintive plea near split the air:   Oh, God, please spare my boys! She fought to loose her pinned hands;   She struggled to get free,   But mangled metal held her fast   In grim captivity.   Her frightened eyes then focused   On where the back seat once had been,   But all she saw was broken glass and   Two children's seats crushed in. Her twins were nowhere to be seen;   She did not hear th...

Follow the brick path to your dreams. A void negative sources, people, places, things and habits. B elieve in yourself. C onsider things from every angle. D on't give up and don't give in. E njoy life today; yesterday is gone and tomorrow may never come. F amily and friends are hidden treasures.  Seek them and enjoy their riches. G ive more than you planned to give. H ang on to your dreams. I gnore those who try to discourage you. J ust do it! K eep on trying.  No matter how hard it seems, it will get easier. L ove yourself first and most. M ake it happen. N ever lie, cheat or steal.  Always strike a fair deal. O pen your eyes, and see things as they really are. P ractice makes perfect. Q uitters never win, and winners never quit. R ead, study and learn about everything important in your life. S top procrastinating. T ake control of your own destiny. U nderstand yourself in order to better understand others. V isualize it. W ant it more than anyt...

Class, pay extra close attention to our guest teacher today.  We're going to learn how to draw a rainbow. Tweet this Post P.S., Your purchase through affiliate links will provide Substance of Living with a small stipend and help its continued efforts to bring you quality posts such as this one. Please share me with your friends! If you enjoyed this post, please do a friend and me a BIG favor and forward this email. If you received this email from a friend and you'd like to see more, please sign up today . Don't miss out on future articles. Have Substance of Living delivered directly to your inbox.  THANKS!

Creating Your Destiny You can begin controlling your life's destiny today.  It doesn't matter where you are in your life, your career, or anything else as long as you begin believing in yourself today.  Sure, there will be slips down the slide but each time you will come back stronger and healthier.  Healthier in the belief that you are on the right path. So, remember that your destiny begins with your thoughts.  That means no more negative self-talk or putting yourself down because you made a mistake. Who was it that first said we must take care of ourselves before helping others ?  I'm sure I'm paraphrasing but if we don't take care of ourselves and get ourselves on the right path, who are we to help others?  Here's a prime example: If you are dirty from working outside and don't wash up or change your clothes before bathing your children, who are also dirty from being outside, won't you get them dirty all over again after they get out of the b...

You know how some things touch you even though you don't remember where you read, saw, or heard it?  Sometimes you might even misquote someone as having said something because you don't recall who actually said it.  I've done it!  In this case, I guess we're not really trying to misquote or give someone else credit, it is the message that we are trying to get across. I think that is what has happened with this editorial that was forwarded by a reader.  Don't get me wrong, I really do appreciate the emails and stories and this particular reader didn't actually give someone else credit, I think the message was simply forwarded onto me.  Thank you for thinking of me. The message is powerful and I believe reflects the feelings of many Christians around the world.  Let me stop there for a second, if I may.  I say Christians, but wouldn't any person feel strongly about their faith and want to stand up?  Stand up and have the freedom to pray. The f...

There have been so many diet plans that promised us weight loss.  And that's great!  What was it about that particular diet that was healthy or unfortunately unhealthy?  Did we really keep the weight off or have we found the "lost" weight and some of its friends? Comments I've heard through the years about various diets (can you guess which ones I'm talking about?): "You can eat all the meat you want!" "There's no fat so I can eat as much as I want and not gain any weight!" "All the stars are doing it and look how great they look!" "I can eat anything I want within a certain color." "All my food is prepared for me." "I can eat one of anything and still lose weight." The list of comments can go on and on and on.  You get the point. Diets are fantabulous for businesses and marketers.  Not so much for us. Getting back to my question about gluten-free being a fad.  For those of us who ca...

Welcome to the new year!  I love the word "new".  It gives me hope and allows me to think of the future.  What image comes to mind when you hear or see the word "NEW"? January is such a busy month what with putting away all the holiday decorations, making preparations for the new year by creating Visual Boards , and setting goals so we'll go easy with this month's book club selection. These two books were both referred to me by neighbors who also are dear friends.  These are light reading but hopefully they will touch and speak volumes to you. When God Winks at You by SQuire Rushnell If you're looking for more books to read, take a gander at our previous Book Club selections. Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World by Vicki Myron Don't you love it when simple things, such as a kitten, have HUGE impacts on our hearts?  What other books have you read that touched you deeply? Tweet this Post Please share me...

This is a story about miracles, blessings, and the belief in angels. There are times throughout the year that I find myself cynical and sweet stories, such as this - even though it is fictional - restore my heart. Source Three years ago, a little boy and his grandmother came to see Santa at the McAllister Mall in Saint John. The child climbed up on his lap, holding a picture of a little girl. "Who is this?" asked Santa, smiling. "Your friend? "Yes, Santa," he replied. "My sister,  Sarah, who is very sick," he said sadly. Santa glanced over at the grandmother who was waiting nearby, and saw her dabbing her eyes with a tissue. "She wanted to come with me to see you, oh, so very much, Santa!" the child exclaimed. "She misses you," he added softly. Santa tried to be cheerful and encouraged a smile to the boy's face, asking him what he wanted Santa to bring him for Christmas. W...

A goal is a dream upon which one acts. The First Step in goal setting is to decide which dream you'd like to turn into a goal and eventually a reality.  Then figure out if this goal is: Short-Term - something that can be accomplished within a day or week Daily or Weekly To-Do List Intermediate - something that will take longer than a week but typically a couple months Canning or preserving items from your garden Long-Term - Buying a house or going on a dream vacation A daily To-Do list is a great way to keep each day organized as well as break down tasks to reach your goals.  To make a long-term goal managable, break it down into intermediate goals, then into short-term goals and then list each task on the daily To-Do list. Once you incorporate a daily To-Do list, guesstimate more time than you think a task will take.  Then mark down how long the task actually took.  This will help you more accurately schedule your time in the future. For example,...

I received another amazing email just in time to share for Mother's Day.  I've titled this post "A Mother's Love" in honor of all mothers.     Clinging on for dear life to the side of a vertical cliff, the tiny lion cub cries out pitifully for help. His mother arrives at the edge of the precipice with three other lionesses and a male. The females start to clamber down together but turn back daunted by the sheer drop. Eventually one single factor determines which of them will risk her life to save the youngster - motherly love.     The drama begins: The mother arrives at the edge of the cliff as her son cries out for rescue after being trapped when he slipped     On the brink: Four lionesses look over the edge before aborting their rescue mission because of the sheer drop. Slowly, agonizingly, ...

Lower gas prices FREE quality education for all Food for everyone Shelter and healthcare for the homeless Safe homes for everyone No more homeless animals - all would be adopted into loving homes All the service men and women safely back home with their loved ones Employment for ALL Fiscally responsible governments YOUR smile What would you like to see today?  Please tell us in the comments below and allow others to help make it happen. Tweet this Post Please share me with your friends! Please forward this post to your friends or better yet share on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.  THANKS!  Your comments and help in spreading the news about this site is ALWAYS appreciated!  Don't miss out on future articles. Have Substance of Living delivered directly to your inbox.

One of my neighbors, who was a school teacher, dropped the following off for me last week.  Not really sure where she found this but it does substantiate our earlier conversation of how difficult the English language really is. Think about this:  There are three different ways to spell a word and yet they have the same pronunciation: For, Four, Fore.  Then there is one spelling and two different pronunciations and another spelling (yet pronounced the same as the present tense but means something completely different): Read, Read, Red. Reasons Why English is Hard to Learn! The bandage was wound around the wound . The farm was used to produce produce . The dump was so full it had to refuse some refuse . He could lead if he'd get the lead out. Since there was no time like the present , he thought it was time to present the present . When shot at, the dove dove into the bushes. I did not object to the object . They were too close to the door to close it. The bu...