“What we are today comes from our thoughts of yesterday,
and our present thoughts build our life of tomorrow:
Our life is the creation of our mind.”
Buddha
The Voyager boat returning from Whale Watching. Redondo Beach 2015
Shine On
“The good lord in his ultimate wisdom gave us three things
to make life bearable, hope, jokes and dogs,
but the greatest of these was dogs.
Robin Davidson
War Dogs by Rebecca Frankel
I just finished reading War Dogs, by Rebecca Frankel. It was a great read about dogs of war from the civil war to the current war in the Middle East.
I’m married to a Vietnam Veteran that worked with dogs during his time in Vietnam. A few of the stories Frankel tells about I was familiar with. However, there are several tear-jerking tales that I was not aware of.
The book tells how each handler and his dog have an unbreakable bond. So much so that they will often give their life for each other, dog for man and man for dog.
This book should be required reading for all our politicians that push this country towards war.
In my opinion, these dogs of war and their handlers should be honored yearly as a National Holiday.
Shine On
“Goodness is about character – integrity, honesty,
kindness, generosity, moral courage, and the like.
More than anything else, it is about
how we treat other people.”
Dennis Prager
A small ray of light left before sunset on the Esplanade.
When I began this blog on January 1st of this year, my first post was about my resolution for the coming year.
Now, five months into 2015 I decided to revisit that post. How was I doing with my resolution, to have a positive attitude toward my fellow-man?
The last five months I have made a conscious effort to be more positive. Even my husband has noticed a big difference in my stress level and his, with my positive attitude. For example, on Thursday I had to make a phone call that I had been dreading to make because I didn’t want to deal with how difficult a particular company is to deal with. Before I made the phone call I told myself that I would be happy, patient and courteous to the customer service person helping me, no matter how rude they have been in the past.
My change in attitude worked. The customer service person was helpful, easy to talk with and had great compassion for me and what I needed help with. She even called me back ten minutes later as she had promised.
A little sunshine goes a long way. After all, sunshine has long symbolized light and happiness and was worshiped for thousands of years for its life-giving properties. It feels good to be a ray of light.
Shine On
“When you are a mother, you are
never really alone in your thoughts.
A mother always has to think twice,
once for herself and once for her child.”
Sophia Loren
Mother’s Day was first celebrated in 1908, when Anna Jarvis held a memorial for her mother in Grafton, West Virginia.
Anna’s efforts to make Mother’s Day a recognized holiday began in 1905, the year her beloved mother died. She wanted to honor her mother by continuing work she started and to set aside a day to honor mothers. Her mother was a peace activist who cared for wounded soldiers on both sides of the Civil War.
Whether you live in the United States or live across the ocean on another continent, have a Happy Mother’s Day.
Shine On
“The average dog is a nicer person than the average person.”
Andy Rooney
My son’s girlfriends basset hound puppy.
Shine On
Chronicles of a Blogaholic 