History

The Choice is Yours!

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Today I am thankful for choices.  I love the fact that we have so many choices each day, starting with our attitude.  We can choose to be happy, choose how we approach the day ahead and choose the direction our day will go. 

 Even if you have a day when everything seems to fall apart, you keep making mistakes, or other people get on your nerves, you still have the ability to choose how you will respond.

 Choices are among the most important things we have available to us.  Our choices will lead to decisions that over time will show others who we are and what we stand for.

 Today celebrate your ability to make choices.  There is always hope when there are choices to be made and there are always choices to be made.  Today choose to have a cheery attitude, choose to share your time with others, choose to make a difference, choose.

 Cherry Coley ©

Honored and Remembered

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Today I am thankful for our Veteran’s.  I am sad that there is a need for veterans, but we live in an imperfect world and I’m thankful for those willing to serve.  There are many veteran’s in our family, my uncles on both sides of the family were veteran’s serving in World War II.

My dad was a Navy man and often reflected back on his life in the Navy.  He was just a teenager when he went to war.  At the age of 14 he spent much of his time on ships, being trained and learning to survive in a time of World War.

I don’t think any of us can truly imagine what it means to live a military life unless you’ve been there and done that.  I know from the stories he told and the things he had to do that it would take far more strength both inside and out than I have experienced.

I have never felt the longing, the distance from being far away from home in a hostile place.  I have never been away from my family for an extended time, much less for months or a year.  I have never been to a place where they didn’t speak English and they hated Americans.  I have never had to remember holidays or hold on to good memories while in the battlefield.  

I have the greatest respect for the heroes that serve in the military.  They are heroes each and every one of them.  They stand in the gap and protect our freedoms that many abuse and we all take for granted in some ways.  They have that inner something that gives them a loyalty, a resolve to stand firm, a determination to see things through no matter what, and a need to protect what is ours. 

Today I am thankful for our Veterans, all of them, those that have served those that would serve and those in service.  You are AMAZING!! 

Cherry Coley ©

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That’s History In The Making!

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What you do today matters.

The things you think,

The things you say,

The things you do all matter.

 We have all heard the saying, “it’s history in the making!” Usually those are words describing some important event that is deemed to be memorable for years or decades to come.  The truth is we are all history in the making. 

 From the moment you were born you began on the journey of your life.  Each day you have grown and learned new things along the way.  Each day you make decisions and choices that will take you further towards your goals and dreams, or keep you where you are.

 As humans we have the ability to keep learning, keep stretching and testing our limits, and to change directions at will.  Stop and think what you do today will affect where you are tomorrow.  You truly are history in the making!

 Cherry Coley ©

Faith

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photo by casey keal

“Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.

 

 

 

 

 

What is faith?  Is it a belief in something?  Is there any tangible evidence of faith or is it just a feeling?

Faith is the exact mix of hope and determination you need at the given moment when required.

 Faith conquers fear, moves mountains, shatters obstacles and grows in strength with steady use.  Take the first steps of faith to reach your goals, you don’t need to see the whole staircase, you just need one step at a time to make progress. 

 The first step is to allow yourself to dream.  Get a notebook, a pad, or a journal and start writing down your dreams.  Don’t put limits on your dreams or judge them, just step out onto the staircase and let the journey begin. 

 What do you want to do? Are there places you want to visit?  Where do you want to be later in your life?  Is there someone you would like to meet?  What kind of lifestyle do you see yourself living?

Choices and decisions, planning, goal setting all come later, for right now, just for today allow yourself the unlimited possibilities and the wonder that comes with dreaming.  Take a mini vacation just for you and enjoy the ride.

 Cherry Coley ©

Decide For Yourself

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“Neither believe nor reject any thing because any other person, or description of persons have rejected or believed it.  Your own reason is the only oracle given you by heaven.” – Thomas Jefferson

One of my pet peeves is when someone tries for force their opinion on me.  I like to look at, research – if I want – information and then make my own decisions.  I don’t want someone to put their spin on things or interpret something in such a way that it would seem stupid to disagree with them, anymore than I like someone taking my choices away.

If you truly care about someone then don’t blind side them with tainted opinions.  If you respect someone then respect their right to make up their own mind about things. 

My parents taught me to think for myself, to take the time to consider things from different angles, to think about the consequences, and ask question and seek different perspectives.  I am thankful for the time they took to teach me to reason and think things through for myself.

Mentors, parents, teachers, managers, friends, when you take the choices and options away from the people you are around – who does it benefit, you or them?  You might avoid an argument, or make things go faster, but if you don’t let that person work through things for themselves or be fully informed of the situation, then they won’t be able to handle the real crisis’ life loves to throw in the mix at some point.  We all learn by experience.

Be kind to yourself, it’s not your responsibility to rescue every person.  Be kind to others and trust that they will figure out what is best for them. 

Cherry Coley (c)

 

 

 

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Shoot for the Moon!

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I was outside looking at the full moon one night, marveling at how much light it was giving off and how truly beautiful it was.  It reminded me how beautiful a dream can be when it’s first thought of and how that the light it can give when its new is nothing compared to the light it reflects when it’s reached full completion.

My art teacher used to tell me to “dream big.” 

My mom used to tell me to “be practical.” 

My dad used to say “just do what you can do and go from there.”

Where would we be if we didn’t have the “big” dreamers in the world?  Dreamers like Walk Disney who changed the face of imagination opened the mind to so many new possibilities, or Steve Jobs who wanted to “put a ding in the universe,” and succeeded! 

Look at Thomas Edison, one of the greatest inventors in American History, to him failure was simply finding out the things that wouldn’t work and going on from there.  One of my favorite quotes is: “Hell, there are no rules here – we’re trying to accomplish something” – Thomas Edison.

So when it comes to dreaming, shoot for the moon!  Dream big!  Don’t give up or give in because of set-backs, obstacles, or even failures along the way.  Believe in the dream, note what doesn’t work and keep reaching for your goals anyway, the end result will be well worth the effort if you see it all the way through.

So many of life’s true failures are made when people give up their dream never really realizing how close they were to success when they gave up.

 Cherry Coley ©

Walls and Bridges

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Sometimes we are lonely because we have built far more walls than bridges.

We are a society of walls, fences and protected privacy.  We are taught that these things will keep us safe and protected from harm.  In an age of information, there is a lot of truth to that.

However, it is also true that if we are not careful we find ourselves building walls around our heart and mind as well.  It happens when we get hurt by someone we love or respect a great deal.  It happens because life dictates that we all have our fair share of hard knocks to keep us humble, and help us grow, however we choose how to respond to these events.

The most important weapon we will ever own as individuals is the gift of choice.  We cannot always choose events, or circumstances.  We cannot predict mishaps and unfortunate occurrences.  The one thing we can do is decide how we will respond, the attitude we will take and how we will allow these life events to affect us.  Your responses, attitude and approach to life are the only things you have complete control over at any given point in your life. 

Choose to respond positively. 

Choose to learn and adjust your attitude to your own advantage.

Choose to share what you have experienced.

Don’t shut out the world with walls and fences, build some bridges and share the knowledge with others.  That is how we will change the world, one person at a time, starting with the person in the mirror.

Cherry Coley ©

Put One Foot In Front of the Other

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photo by casey keal

“Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase.” Martin Luther King, Jr.

I remember spending a lot of time on the stairs while I was growing up.  There were two sets of stairs at the daycare / church my mom worked at and more often than not I was either on one or the other.  One set had a landing halfway up and doors on both ends, the other stair case was a straight shot up, but it was at the further end of the building and more secluded. 

As I was thinking about those stairs today, it reminded me that life is full of stairs.  We choose which way we are going on the stairs each day, or whether we are going to sit down for a while. 

When you think of someone like Steve Jobs, Clark Gable, Dick Clark, or even Donald Trump, you think – “wow, they are a household name, famous, rich, successful people.”  Yet, these people didn’t start out that way; they started out working as grocery clerks, radio personalities, lumber jacks, college drop-outs,  and in real estate working for a family member.

There is no elevator to success.  While there are people who are seemingly born with a silver spoon in their mouths, the majority of us will have to work for the lives we want.  When it comes to success it is a steady, daily trek up the stairs that will get us where we want to be. 

I get frustrated at times,  impatiently I want things to happen right now, to have the doors that I need to go through pointed out and opened up to welcome me without me having to search for them, and make some wrong choices along the way, but that’s just not the way it works.

Success and progress are gained one step at a time, the good part about that is that even at the times when the project seems too difficult, and the dream too big, it’s still all just one step at a time.  Each little step leads us further up the path to the place we want to be.

Cherry Coley ©

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  • Stairs (allaboutnan.wordpress.com)

People Watching

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I occasionally work on the weekends doing demonstrations and handing out samples at Target.  I started working this job for several reasons: extra money, meeting new people, expanding my horizons by doing something different, and my favorite thing – people watching.

Today I was handing out the Lindt Lindor milk chocolate bunny samples.  They were tiny bite sized versions of the larger Easter bunnies and they were delicious!

My favorite part of this job?  Sure, I like seeing the parents hand their children the little bunnies and watching their faces light up, but more than that I LOVE giving those little bunnies out to the older people. 

There were three older women, probably in their mid to late 60’s that were just plain giddy when they were handed the bunnies.  One of them laughed and clapped her hands before taking the bunny.  Then they all started talking about Easters from their childhood, hunting eggs, going to church on Easter Sunday and the tricks they used to play on each other.

Yep, that’s what I enjoy, the interaction with people of all ages and just for a moment, getting a small glimpse into another life.  It makes me want to gather a whole lot of eggs and Easter bunnies and head to the nursing homes or children’s ward of the hospitals to wish them a Happy Easter.   How wonderful to have an opprotunity to share a smile with someone else for a moment.  I know it really made my day.

Cherry Coley (c)