Thursday Thirteen - Edition 33 - Inspiring Quotes

Thirteen Inspirational or Motivational Quotations, Adages, and/or Proverbs That Have Helped Me This Week 1…. Nobody is good enough or smart enough to raise children .-- Ruth Shaw. I have found this observation helpful many times in the past. Yesterday both of my adult children called me at different times and expressed frustration with one of their children. In both instances the child is exhibiting a behavior that the parents have worked hard to change. The challenges of parenthood sometimes seem insurmountable, and the problems encountered raising children seem to be no respecter of persons. 2.... A child's life is like a blank piece of paper on which every person leaves a mark. -- Chinese Proverb. I have tried to make a positive mark on each of my grandchildren this week. I sewed with two of them one day, helped another with a school writing assignment another day, watched one do cartwheels, listened to another sing, and watched two play ball. 3.....Affection is responsible for 9/10 of whatever solid and durable happiness there is in our Lives. -- C. S. Lewis. In his book The Four Loves, C.S. Lewis has given me much to think about recently. 4...."Books, the children of the brain." Jonathan Swift (1667–1745) A Tale of a Tub (1704). This inveterate word-nerd loved reading this Irish quote in the week before St. Patrick's Day. 5....Life is too short to long for money. -- source unknown. The lottery drawing this week attracted much media attention. In interviews we all saw people who had focused their attention on their hopes for sudden wealth this week while who knows how many opportunities for greater fulfillment went unnoticed in their everyday lives. 6....The real measure of your wealth is how much you'd be worth if you lost all your money. -- Bernard Meltzer. This quote has been at the bottom of my blog for about a year now. I continues to mean a lot to me as my DH and I adjust to life on a fixed income. 7....There is no such thing as a self-made person. We are all made up of thousands of others. Everyone who has ever done a kind deed for us, or spoken one word of encouragement to us, has entered into the makeup of our character and of our thoughts, as well as our success. -- George Matthew Adams. Don't we all wish everybody really understood this? 8....The strength of a nation derives from the integrity of the home. -- Confucius. At this point of weakness in our nation (has our union ever been weaker?), I have given a lot of thought to what precipitated the national weakness. Perhaps Confucius knew. Perhaps the solution begins in homes, not in The House in Washington. 9....Work like you don't need the money. Love like your heart's never been broken, and dance like no one is watching. -- Satchel Paige. Of course, this sentiment has become more well-known from a country song of fairly recent popularity, but it is advice that is well worth heeding. 10....You are what you think about all day long. -- Dr. Robert Schuller. As I have had more time to "just think" I have realized that "thinking" is more important than I had ever realized. I have determined to spend my time reading more quality literature, including the Bible and the written thoughts of great statesmen and philosophers. I have decided that the thinking required to learn a new language or write about my life and thoughts is more productive than thinking about celebrities, imaginary lives of invented characters, or petty differences of opinion. 11....Before we set our hearts too much upon anything, let us examine how happy they are who already possess it. -- Francois de La Rochefoucauld. A few observations here: Anna Nicole Smith had wealth and fame. Britney Spears has wealth and fame. Paris Hilton has a fancy car and all the electronic gadgets anyone could want. Does happiness come to mind when you think of any of these people? 12....For disappearing acts, it's hard to beat what happens to the eight hours supposedly left after eight of sleep and eight of work. -Doug Larson,Olympic Gold Medalist (1902-1981) Ain't it the truth?! 13....The tasks you DON’T do tire you out more than those you DO. Ruth Shaw. As I keep postponing the unpacking of the last of the boxes -- things that I haven't decided where to put -- I realize that the only way to do it is to just start taking them out of the boxes. I am more tired on the nights I go to bed without accomplishing anything than I am on the nights when I have worked hard all day. I began and ended this post with quotes from a very wise woman - my mother. Get the Thursday Thirteen code here! The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted! View More Thursday Thirteen Participants