8 lies of a mother

This story begins when I was a child: I was born poor. Often we hadn't enough to eat. Whenever we had some food, Mother often gave me her portion of rice. While she was transferring her rice into my bowl, she would say "Eat this rice, son! I'm not hungry."
This was Mother's First Lie.

As I grew, Mother gave up her spare time to fish in a river near our house; she hoped that from the fish she caught, she could give me a little bit more nutritious food for my growth. Once she had caught just two fish, she would make fish soup. While I was eating the soup, mother would sit beside me and eat what was still left on the bone of the fish I had eaten; My heart was touched when I saw it. Once I gave the other fish to her on my chopstick but she immediately refused it and said, "Eat this fish, son! I don't really like fish."
This was Mother's Second Lie.

Then, in order to fund my education, Mother went to a Match Factory to bring home some used matchboxes which she filled with fresh matchsticks. . This helped her get some money to cover our needs. One wintry night I awoke to find Mother filling the matchboxes by candlelight. So I said, "Mother, go to sleep; it's late: you can continue working tomorrow morning." Mother smiled and said "Go to sleep, son! I'm not tired."
This was Mother's Third Lie

When I had to sit my Final Examination, Mother accompanied me.. After dawn, Mother waited for me for hours in the heat of the sun. When the bell rang, I ran to meet her.. Mother embraced me and poured me a glass of tea that she had prepared in a thermos. The tea was not as strong as my Mother's love, Seeing Mother covered with perspiration; I at once gave her my glass and asked her to drink too. Mother said "Drink, son! I'm not thirsty!".
This was Mother's Fourth Lie.

After Father's death, Mother had to play the role of a single parent. She held on to her former job; she had to fund our needs alone. Our family's life was more complicated. We suffered from starvation. Seeing our family's condition worsening, my kind Uncle who lived near my house came to help us solve our problems big and small.

Our other neighbours saw that we were poverty stricken so they often advised my mother to marry again. But Mother refused to remarry saying "I don't need love."
This was Mother's Fifth Lie.

After I had finished my studies and gotten a job, it was time for my old Mother to retire but she carried on going to the market every morning just to sell a few vegetables. I kept sending her money but she was steadfast and even sent the money back to me. She said, "I have enough money."
That was Mother's Sixth Lie.

I continued my part-time studies for my Master's Degree. Funded by the American Corporation for which I worked, I succeeded in my studies. With a big jump in my salary, I decided to bring Mother to enjoy life in America but Mother didn't want to bother her son; she said to me "I'm not used to high living."
That was Mother's Seventh Lie

In her dotage, Mother was attacked by cancer and had to be hospitalized. Now living far across the ocean, I went home to visit Mother who was bedridden after an operation. Mother tried to smile but I was heartbroken because she was so thin and feeble but Mother said, "Don't cry, son! I'm not in pain."
That was Mother's Eighth Lie.

Telling me this, her eighth lie, she died.
YES, MOTHER WAS AN ANGEL!

M - O - T - H - E - R

"M" is for the Million things she gave me,
"O" means Only that she's growing old,
"T" is for the Tears she shed to save me,
"H" is for her Heart of gold,
"E" is for her Eyes with love-light shining in them,
R" means Right, and right she'll always be,

Put them all together, they spell "MOTHER"

A word that means the world to me.

For those of you who are lucky to be still blessed with your Mom's presence on Earth, this story is beautiful. For those who aren't so blessed, this is even more beautiful.

Happiness

Happiness is wanting what you have, not having what you want.
At first glance this sounds like the same thing, take a
Closer look, it's not.

If your completely fulfilled by spending time with
Your friends and family because you really want to
Be with them then you truly want what you have.
 
On the flip side, if you drive the nicest scar and have
A huge house, and have worked hard to get those things,
Then you have been successful at having what you want.
 
When you have what you want eventually the 
Feeling of satisfaction wears off.  Once you get what 
You want the old wants are replaced by the new wants
And the cycle continues.  True happiness remains at bay.
 
Look around you, happiness may be closer than you
Think.  It may just be a matter of changing what you 
Value.

Be Nice and Smile

Be nice and smile to everyone you meet.
You don't know what they are going through,

And they might just need that smile.

At least for a moment, it would make a lot of difference to them.

Life gives us many such moments to make others feel better.
For tomorrow when you feel low,

Someone might smile and you may feel better. 

Want Not

Next time you are waiting for anything,

notice what you are wanting!

This will be a source of Your tension or impatience.

 

 All desire has fear built in - fear of not getting or losing,

 even Before your desire is fulfilled.

 

 The secret is to want nothing, and then magic happens,

 for love And behold, all that you need and more

arrives in your life, at the right time, in the right way.

Remind Yourself

 If you know a little of yourself, you will have realized that you are

 more than meets your eyes in the mirror in the morning.

 

What you see is not what you are. You see the form not the

 content, the body not the soul, the matter not the mind.

In quiet and profound moments, we innately know that is true.

 

 But we forget.

The world tells us and wants us to believe that

 we are what we see - and we take the easy way out.

 We believe.

That's why the awakening of spirit and the flowering of our spirituality

 (nothing to do with religion)

 means we have to keep reminding ourselves, a hundred times a day,

I am a soul - not a body, I am an eternal spirit - not a perishable piece of meat.

 

I am quality, not quantity. I am. Otherwise, freedom is not possible.

 And if we are not free, in the deepest space inside our own being,

 we cannot be truly happy.

Six Tips To Stop Smoking

People are fond of socializing: parties, business meetings, conferences, and seminars. And it is during these functions that a person feels an intense pressure to fit it with the crowd. If people drink, chances are, you would also have to drink. If a majority of the people in the group smoke, there is a big likelihood that those few who don't smoke choose to learn to smoke so that they can mingle with those who do. Smoking is a nasty habit to get started on. Thanks to its nicotine content, cigarettes can be highly addictive like other narcotics such as cocaine or heroin. The nicotine tends to hit the central nervous system by giving it a fleeting feeling of calm. Like other narcotics, the body easily gets used to the nicotine, and pretty soon it will be craving for more. It is then that people understand that the smoking habit has got them hook, line, and sinker. A lot of smokers can attest to how difficult it is to get rid of their nasty smoking habits. They have gotten so used to it that they feel like their day lacks something important if they fail to puff even a stick of cigarette. How does one begin to quit smoking and keep their promises to remain smoke-free? Here are some quick and easy ways to stop smoking: 1. Prepare yourself for the battle you’re about to face. Admit it. Your biggest opponent here is your self - your will and determination to say no to cigarettes. Psyche yourself up, think only of positive thoughts. Negativity will only make you lose your drive to quit easier. 2. Make a list. Jot down every reason you have in mind to want to quit smoking. List down all the positive effects quitting will bring you. Write down all the activities you can enjoy once you’ve let go of smoking. This gives you something to look forward to when you’ve finally achieved your goal. 3. Condition your body. Get started in a moderately-paced exercise routine that will help get your body in the best condition to fight your cigarette cravings. 4. Mark the date. Set the date when you will finally quit smoking. Make it sacred, let nothing or no one break it for you. It may help that you make the quitting date fall on a significant date to make the event something to look forward to. 5. Know what you’re getting yourself into. Keep your expectations simple and attainable. Over-expecting may magnify little failures. Understand what you’ll be battling while trying to quit. You’ll experience withdrawal symptoms, but these symptoms will pass in a matter of minutes, it is just a matter of holding on to your will a little longer than usual. It is also best to keep in mind that most quitters never got what they wanted in their first tries. So don’t be too hard on yourself if you’ve failed a few times before. 6. Gradually cut back on the amount of cigarettes you light. It doesn’t help to abruptly deprive yourself of the cigarette and nicotine intake that you’re body has gotten used to. Something as little as one stick every one or two weeks will help your body ease out of your usual nicotine fills. --  THANKS & REGARDS S.RAJ KUMAR