Monthly Archives: February 2014

“Lord, Forgive Me When I Whine”

Og Mandino opened one of his seminars with the following poem:

“Forgive Me When I Whine” by John Palmer

“Today upon a bus I saw a lovely maiden with golden hair;

I envied her—so beautiful, and how, I wished I were so fair;

When suddenly she rose to leave, I saw her hobble down the aisle;

She had one foot and wore a crutch,

but as she passed, she wore a smile

Oh God, forgive me when I whine,

I have two feet –the world is mine

 

And when I stopped to buy some sweets,

the lad who served me had such charm;

he seemed to radiate good cheer, his manner was so kind and warm;

I said, “it’s nice to deal with you, such courtesy I seldom find;”

He turned and said, “Oh, thank you sir.”

And then I saw that he was blind.

Oh, God, forgive me when I whine,

I have two eyes, the world is mine.

 

Then when walking down the street,

I saw a child with eyes of blue;

He stood and watched the others play,

it seemed he knew not what to do;

I stopped a moment, then I said,

“Why don’t you join the others, dear?

He looked ahead without a word,

I realized –he could not hear.

Oh God, forgive me when I whine,

I have two ears, the world is mine

 

With feet to take me where I’d go,

with eyes to see the sunsets glow,

with ears to hear what I would know,

I am blessed indeed.

The world is mine.

Oh God, forgive me when I whine.”

This article always strikes a chord deep within my being.

The definition of whine is: “To complain or beg in a childishly undignified way; a complaint uttered in a whining tone; to utter a peevish, high-pitched, somewhat nasal sound, as in complaint, distress, fear, etc.”

How about you? Did you get up on the wrong side of the bed? Is your coffee cold and your toast burned? Did you have a flat tire or the car would not start? Daily life is filled to the brim with instances like this.

Remember, it is not what happens to you that really counts…it is your REACTION to it that does the damage or begins to make a repair.

Which will you choose?

The Serenity Prayer is always just a thought away:

“God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,

The courage to change the things I can,

And wisdom to know the difference.”

(by American theologian Reinhold Nieburh 1892-1971)

So, if you look carefully at whatever is distressing you, you may well find something to be grateful for. It will change your attitude immediately.

Are you willing to give it a try?

Procrastination

PROCRASTINATION is a foible that we are all guilty of at one time or another… some experience it more than others.

Items of unfinished business that are laying around create disorder, and that causes PROCRASTINATION.  As one envelope invites you to put more there…so does a chaotic environment procreate itself ad infinitum ad nauseum.

One element of procrastination that generates chaos is a lack of organization…a pile of anything, be it paperwork, clothes, or something else. If one has not used the idea of “a place for everything and everything in its place,” piles of stuff accumulate. A pile is just an invitation to procrastination. A lack of prioritizing also contributes to it.

Putting first things first sounds simple and uncomplicated…until you take a look around at your surroundings. Most of us live in a state of unfinished business…a project not quite done in one place; dirty clothes that have not yet made the wash basket; a hat here, a glove or two there; unopened mail where one put it, still lying in a stack a couple of days later.

Sometimes we overburden ourselves with expectations. We surround ourselves with disorganization that makes it looks insurmountable, so why even start?

Every single item on a To Do List actually holds a piece of your energy. Just looking at it will not release that energy. It must be completed to free the mind and energize the soul so one can do something else.

When I find myself procrastinating, I purposely choose ONE THING and BEGIN to accomplish it. Synergy then gives me the  ability to continue on with my day, doing whatever it is that I choose to do.

One of my simple organization methods is: “Try to handle something only once.” If it is in your hand, make a quick decision to “put it in its place.” If it is dirty clothes, put them in the wash basket immediately and decide to not just dump them wherever. If it is unopened mail, determine what is junk mail, ready for recycling; open real mail and sort it…put bills with the bills and the rest into a suspense area to be dealt with later. Dirty dishes can get rinsed off as soon as you are done eating as food dries quickly and makes it even harder to get off…put them in the dishwasher  OR get them washed, dried, and put away.

If you are already living a state of unfinished business, pick one room or area. Begin to take care of the problem. Prioritize, put stuff away, and simplify your life. Soften your viewpoint and focus it on a smaller goal that you can achieve.  Break a pile into its parts and handle each one individually. With enough consistency, you can see the piles shrink before your very eyes.

Unfortunately, we do not have a Mary Poppins in our lives to put things in order. The clothes do not hang themselves up, and toys do not jump into the toy box.

Habits are difficult to change. They are created by continually making bad choices. They remain because we do not consciously make a decision to change our actions.

So, how about you? Do you want to continue to beat yourself up for your Procrastination? Do you really want to put out the effort to change? If you do, write it down. It begins there. Then pick an area to begin and decide to get moving. Are you willing? If you do, you may find your breakthrough!

Try to remember: God created Divine Order and Harmony in your mind as a natural state of being, bringing Peace to your Soul. This happens when you create order from disorder in your environment. All you have to do is look at a waterfall, a rainbow,  beautiful flowers, an osprey in flight, or a lovely landscape to understand this Truth.

Best wishes as you begin to change. Enjoy your day! 🙂

Bridal Veil Falls, Idaho Springs, CO

Bridal Veil Falls, Idaho Springs, CO

Rainbow Signifying Peace

Rainbow Signifying Peace

Beautiful Flowers

Beautiful Flowers

Osprey in Flight

Osprey in Flight

Mt Evans, Front Range, CO

Mt Evans, Front Range, CO