Why are you angry?

What's the use of being mad at something?  We have all heard the term it takes more energy to be mad than  it does to be happy.  Being upset is such a waste of time, we as people have so much more to worry about than to be upset about something petty.  It's not healthy to hold grudges just because you feel like you should be mad at a person.  In all actuality it really isn't that serious to begin with.  Yes, there are situations that are just unforgivable and is harder not to be upset at than anything, but try to always keep your cool.  A lot of the time people do things to get a rise out of you, and they win if you let it get to you.  We all tend to get upset with our kids and significant others when we do not agree with something that they have done.  Let's take sometime to understand where that irritation comes from before overreacting.  The worst thing you can do is be mad about something and take it out on someone else.  Despite being mad try to realize that you don't have a reason to be mad at that other person.  Try to move on from what made you mad and focus on more positive things.  I've heard of plenty of people breaking up over the most minimal things, and it could all be avoided by understanding what the real issue is.  Sometimes we are not able to think past the situation at hand, but we should think about a few things before pursuing an argument.  We should first put ourselves in the others shoes to see how we would react if the roles were reversed.  You will realize that the way you intended on coming at that particular person would be wrong.  Also take the time to realize if you are really mad or if your just irritated by the situation.  Usually you will realize that you're not really mad and you will be able to approach the situation a lot better.  I sometimes try to make it a point to let it be known that I'm not upset going into the situation.  It can seem that saying your not upset would be doing to much, but it lets the person you are talking to understand that we do not need to be upset when having this conversation.
Wasting your time on being upset in the end is not worth it, and you can find so many more important things to do with that time and energy.  Who knows how much time we all have left, but lets not spend it being upset over something you will forget about tomorrow.  Let us know of ways you get over being angry by leaving a comment.


For every minute you are angry you lose sixty seconds of happiness.”
-Ralph Waldo Emerson-

Work Ethic

What is a good work Ethic? By Definition its a set of values based on the moral virtues of hard work and diligence. To me it means attempting to be the best at whatever you do. Developing a good work ethic begins during the educational process. As you go to school for an education to further your career, you can build a good work ethic in your study habits. If you are able to hold down a job while attending school this can be a good way to learn a good work ethic while also learning multi-tasking skills before you enter you career of choice.
As a child I was taught the importance of a good work ethic. My Grandma stressed to me weather you are a professional athlete or pick up trash for a living be the best at whatever you do. She worked at the Richmond Shipyards during World War II where she was part of a mostly women workforce that was able to built 747 vessels during the War. That is a feat that has not been equaled in the time since, so she knows all about the importance of a good work ethic.  This is a lesson that children and adults can both appreciate. One of my favorite quotes is "Hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard", none of us wants to waste talent by simply not putting in maximum effort. I'm sure we all know some incredibly talented people with horrible work ethics, what a terrible waste of god given ability.
I have always carried this motto with me and it has served me well in life. Work ethic is good for not only your professional life but for your personal life as well. I have always attempted to be the best father, husband, brother, and friend that I can be. Soon a good work ethic will be part of you, and you will put maximum effort in everything that you do.

The Next Generation

What’s going on with all of the violence in the streets?  It used to be that you would only need to worry about violence in the streets.  Now the violence has found its way to our children's schools.  However these days we have young kids doing the killings, car jacking, and selling drugs at almost any age.  At what point did our country turn into little Beirut?  Why is it that it seems like firearms are finding there way into younger and younger kids?  Who’s supplying them with the automatic weapons that are murdering kids before they get a chance to live their lives?  How is it that a 15 year old could take a life without thinking it through?  The rate of younger kids hitting the Juvenile system is growing at a overwhelming rate.  In the last 6 months bookings at the Juvenile system has doubled on Armed Robberies alone and for what, a couple of dollars and a iPhone?  We have to ask ourselves again, where are the parents?  Could it really be that parents don’t communicate with their kids enough to know if their child has a criminal mentality?  Or is it that these kids just won't listen to reason.  It's important to be more involved in our children's lives so that they are open enough to communicate with us on any given situation.  As a man I know how easy it is to over react in situations and to be irrational.  As I raise my son I try to make sure that he controls his temper and realizes that things can be dealt with without over reacting.  Some people may say it’s not that easy, but I think it can be.  However I do feel repetition is the best form of learning so I plan to enforce it as long as he listens.  Let's make it a point to help out any of our younger generation whether they are related to us or not.  It took two generations to destroy a single civilization and it will take another two generations to build it back.  

Life affords no greater responsibility, no greater privilege, than the raising of the next generation.
-- C. Everet Koop, M.D.

Being a Leader

Managers are people who do things right, while leaders are people who do the right thing.- Warren Bennis, Ph.D. "On Becoming a Leader"

I had a great conversation with my best friend Donte Stafford on Saturday. I asked him what kept him from getting involved in violence growing up in Richmond Ca. Richmond is in the top ten in murders per captia in the United States. He told me the reason is that he wanted to be a leader. While his cousins and other people around him were going to jail for various crimes he did not want to follow their example, he wanted to emerge as a leader and follow his own path.
It's easy in my opinion to go along with the crowd, to give in to peer pressure and do what everyone else does. It takes the real men and women to not follow the crowd and have the strength to stand alone. As a youth I felt the same as Donte, I also wanted to be a leader and not follow the destructive path my peers were taking. After this conversation I began to think about how important it is to inspire our youth to be leaders. To have the strength to do the right thing in spite of pressure from their peers. This may be the most important trait to have as a young adult growing into adulthood. I will make sure to instill the importance of being a leader in my children.

Each day is also a chance for all of us to be a leader. The decisions we make and the kind way we deal with others will reflect well on us. Each interaction with our co workers and others we come in contact with show our desire to be a leader in all aspects of life.

Healthy Realtionships

The purpose of relationship
is not to have another who might complete you,
but to have another with whom
you might share your completeness.

~ Neale Donald Walsch ~

People ask me all the time how do you and your significant other make it work.  I respond by telling them it's a lot of work.  In order to make any relationship work you have to be willing to work at it.  This takes a lot of communication, listening, and most importantly compromising.  We should never think as people that we can just have someone love and understand us without needing to work at it.  We all know sometimes the opposite sex does some questionable things, but it's the work we put into that which makes it a lot more manageable.  There are things we do as men that women just can't stand, but they are willing to put up with it for the love of you.  Women it's important that you realize although most men don't do exactly what you want them to, however recognize if you have an exceptional man in your life.  There are a lot of men out there that are abusive verbally and physically, be sure to let your man know that he is appreciated.  Also Men we need to keep in mind that most of our women go up and beyond the call of duty to make sure that we are kept happy.  If you have a woman that does extra to make sure that you are satisfied make sure you explain to her that you are grateful for all that she does.  Women would like to hear that they are appreciated as opposed to becoming your new mother, letting them know that your appreciative is a great way to keep communication open. 

In a relationship it is important that both parties let their significant others know how much they mean to us by speaking it not by just trying to show it.  Although we seem to believe that doing things for each other means the same thing, but it really doesn't.  Hearing somebody tell you how much you mean to them helps you grasp what's expected of you in a relationship.  I'm a firm believer of it isn't what you say it's how you say it.  When communicating with your partner about important issues we should be sure that we are speaking in a tone that does not come off as angry or agitated.  The best way to start an argument is speaking to your spouse with aggravation in your voice.  Most people automatically get offended once they hear that tone in your voice. So keep in mind that we all want to be treated with respect and know that our significant others most of the time want the best for us, so let's be sure to give them the best that we have.

Happily Single vs. Happily Married

Have you noticed how so many people spend their lives wishing they were something they are not? Short people would like to be tall, plump people would like to be thin, singles want to be in a relationship, and those that are married eye their single friends and the freedom they have, with some jealousy.

Why is it that from the time we are young it seems ingrained in us to search for that elusive "soul mate"? Being single has a lot of advantages. Jesus Christ was himself a single man and he was able to go town to town preaching the good news without a wife or children dividing his time. Single people are able to make decisions on the fly without taking their spouse into consideration, whereas married folks have to make sure their spouse is "OK" with the decision they have made. I myself have seen focused guys on their way to doing great things completely derailed by getting involved too early with a woman and having a child. Family is a huge commitment and it is not for everyone. There are plenty of people who can stay single throughout their lives and reap the benefits that a single life can offer, such as uninterrupted service to their God of choice.

Married couples in my opinion provide the best foundation to raise children in. The mother and father arrangement give the children stability, that is essential in this world. That by no means is the only way to raise successful children. Single parent homes, and homes with two unmarried parents can be very successful as well, I just believe the "best" way is to have a married mother and father in the home. Other benefits of marriage are the companionship a spouse can provide. Having someone to be there for comfort if needed or someone to watch a good movie with are all great benefits of a loving adult relationship.  There will be difficulties as married people that unmarried ones will not face and vice versa. We all need to figure out what works for us as individuals married or single and be the best at that as possible.

Raising the future

From the moment you are a child, life tries to pre determine what you will do when you grow up.  As boys we are given Basketballs, Footballs, and Baseballs to learn to play.  Naturally by the time we get to understand what that ball is we learn to love it.  It's hard for our young men not to want to grow up to be Professional Athletes since they have learned to love throwing a football, shooting a basketball, or catching a baseball.  We can make excuses for the reasons why our kids don't grow up to want to be Doctors and Lawyers, but we should know why.  Its imperative to give our children other outlets to express themselves. When our kids are only being exposed to sports all their lives they can begin to allow sports to define them, not allowing for development of other important social skills.  Most of us fathers push sports onto our kids because we want our kids to succeed where we didn't.  A lot of parents push their kids to sports because the money is great.  At what point does what our kids do in their futures reflect back on us?  Shouldn't we push our kids to do more things that holds a career longer than 10-15 years with more of a positive influence.  If we decide to allow our kids to be Pro Athletes it's important that we help them understand everything that comes with that job, and their responsibilities as a role model.  We spoke about how the media and movies paint pictures of minorities, and I believe that's due to lack of minorities writing these scripts and news headlines.  Let's promote the youth to do a little more with their lives other than play sports, which is easier said than done granted on how much it costs to get a College education in this country. I say we make sure that the youth understands playing sports is to pay for your college education and while your in college take advantage of what they are learning.  So the question is do we prevent our kids from playing sports to break a stigma or do we allow them to do what they love the most?

How does the Media Portray Black America?

Simply put it appears the media in general tends to support and even highlight stereotypes for nearly every ethnic, social, and religious group that exists. In regards to black America the blunt fact that so many non blacks raise an eyebrow whenever they see an educated or well-spoken black person on TV supports the idea that the media portrays most blacks as under educated, trouble seeking, financially poor individuals. However its a blurry line to say if the media itself is fully to blame for this poor representation of blacks in America.
Many blacks seem to uphold these stereotypes and even take pride in these stereotypes. Many black rappers glamorize ghetto living, and brag about being violent on the streets. Younger blacks latch on to this image and look up to these individuals as role models. The media I believe focuses on the negative and fear inducing news. Generally bad news sells and keep viewers more entertained.
In 2010 the Q score company released a report to CNBC listing the top ten most hated athletes in sports. The Q score company acquired their data by taking a poll of the general population. The top six consists of a golfer, two NBA players, and three NFL players who all have one thing in common the color of their skin. I am completely shocked that guys like Lebron James and Terrell Owens are more hated than Ben Roethlisberger and Roger Clemens. Roethlisberger has been "accused" of raping two different women in the last two years and he is seen in a more favorable light than Tiger Woods, unbelievable.  So it appears that cheating on your wife is more blemishing then rape? In conclusion the media will always portray stereotypes and portray the dismal, sad, and horrific news because it means ratings. Black America can only escape the media portrayal of themselves by avoiding participating in negative stereotypes themselves.

Education?

I look around and find it hard to believe that schools across the country are closing its doors due to financial hardships.  It's a crime to know that all of these kids will lose education close to their homes due to financial problems.  With all the high paid salaries in the world you would think that we should be able to keep school doors open.  As we speak there is a lockout in the NFL because two sides cannot decide how to split 9 Billion dollars a year, but schools can't keep their doors open due to lack of funds.  This shows how much our society values education. When are we going to realize that the education that we are taking from these kids are the same generation that is supposed to make our world a better place.  If we cannot educate them now that sounds like doom for our future.  It's sad to know that we spend almost a Trillion dollars on a war that almost everybody believes was unnecessary.  After Trillions of dollars lost all we have left to say is "We do not have enough money to keep schools open"?  We spend  a lot of time raising money for other countries problems, but not our own kids education?  Teachers are losing their jobs left and right just to keep a budget in the state.  It's well known that these major organizations have executives making entirely too much money for us to justify why schools are closing.  We as people need to make changes to insure that our future generations are educated enough to be able to take on the struggles that may occur in time.  With Teachers being cut and schools being closed it makes it harder for children to get the proper education they deserve.  Now with the cuts you will have larger classrooms in schools making it harder for children to get the proper attention from a teacher.  I'm not one to tell people what to do with their money but if every Athlete, Musician, Actor, Corporate Executive, and etc. contributed over $5,000 things would have to change right?  This is something that has got to change in order for our youth to have a chance because at this rate there will be only home schooling in the next 10 years.  So more than ever these days it is important that we try to continue to teach our children when they are not in school just in case it happens to them. 

Let us know how you feel about schools closing down due to financial hardship and if it has affected you in any way.

Quality Time

What is Quality Time? Well different people may have different opinions regarding the matter. How each of us live our lives and spend our time is very different. Many of us take for granted a day, an hour, a minute or even a second. It may seem hard to count for every second we live but don't we take that time for granted? This brings me to my topic "spending quality time" how would you like to spend your time? Most of us would love to spend time relaxing, or spending time in an enjoyable way. The most enjoyment I can receive is when I spend  time with my children. The happiness that is displayed by throwing the ball with my son or having a tea party with my daughter is unmatched. These times we will never get back with them.  Also quality time with your significant other is essential as well.  We need to make sure that we take the time to let the men and women that we are with know that they are appreciated.  We may spend quality time the way we want, but we have to keep in mind that quality time to you isn't always quality time to them.  Take the time to find out how your loved ones want to spend their quality time so that it can be enjoyed together.  Try not to take for granted the time that has been given to you. Make maximum use of it, try to live with as less regrets as possible.

How do you socialize?

What age is appropriate to have a social networking account?  Are we as people so caught up in communicating with people we don't see everyday that we don't realize who's really using the sites and what for?  We have pedophiles stalking our kids on these sites like prey.  It imperative that we know what our children are viewing and what they are doing on these sites.  This isn't just to protect them from pedophiles, but to keep their image safe in the views of others.  There are a lot of kids going on these sites showing off their bodies and they are only children. Some kids are on here flaunting weapons, drugs, money, amongst other things.  It's time we take time to realize what's going on and make a conscious effort to understand what our children are doing on these sites.  What's acceptable on these sites and what isn't?  Do we really know?  Is it really necessary for us to spill out our daily lives and the issues with our relationships all over the the social network?  A lot of people make it a point to tell the world that them and their significant other are having are at ends.  Do we really feel that that everyone wants to know these things.  Are we willing to let them know the really bad things like being evicted from your home or being arrested for soliciting their bodies?  Where are the parents in all of this, shouldn't they be there to make sure that their children aren't putting themselves in irreversible situations.  What a lot of these younger kids need to realize is that social networking can be used against you.  These days companies are looking to these sites to keep track of their employees.  Some people have even been convicted of crimes due to what is being shown on their social networking photos.  It seems these days that these sites are built of people living a personification of their lives on these sites.  Many of the people on these sites like to pretend that they are something they are not, when a majority of the people could care less.  Lets stop making social networking our wall to hide behind to escape reality.  Be yourself, and don't let anybody dictate how you carry yourself over the net.  If there are things that you wouldn't do in front of people, don't wait until you get online to become that fake person that you made up in the mirror.  We can only keep it real with other people when we keep it real with ourselves. 

Positive Thinking

Positive thinking is a mental attitude that admits into the minds thoughts. It is a mental attitude that expects good and favorable results. A positive mind anticipates happiness, joy, success and a successful outcome of every situation. Now, this doesn't mean that every situation will turn out in your favor, but the mental attitude that you bring to the situation can always be positive. There are times when we cannot always smile through the problem and thats OK, we are all human but oftentimes what the mind expects, it finds. I have given this a try myself and have had very positive results. I have always been a person that believes you "expect the best but prepare for the worst", which normally just makes you prepare for the worst and forget the expecting the best part. After really making the conscience effort to think positive and really expect positive results, believe it or not positive results do start to come your way. People you come in contact with will treat you differently if you are smiling and look to be in a positive mood. Is it any wonder why that we want to be around positive people and avoid negative ones? People are more disposed to help us if we are positive, I urge people to give this a try, wake up and tell yourself that this will be a great day and follow through on that feeling all day and let the positive results flow your way. If anyone has a story where they have used positive thinking and it has paid off for them we would love to hear it. Have a Great Day!

Live Life

In the wake of this tragedy in Japan it is important now more than ever that we open our eyes and realize what's most important in our lives.  An estimated 10,000 people lost their lives in this tragedy and the number continues to climb.  I'm sure most of us have asked ourselves, what if it was us?  We need to make sure that we take nothing in life for granted because it could be taken from us at any moment.  We as people need to remove any hate barriers and focus on being better people.  Start by bettering yourself, make sure that you have tried all you can to make sure that you are a better person.  Remember there is no such thing as a perfect person, just like there is no such thing as perfection.  There will always be flaws in things you do, but it is up to you to make sure that you recognize those flaws and strive correct them.  As a Humanitarian it's hard not to feel sorrow for the lives changed and lost in Japan and I for one will make sure that I live my life like there is no tomorrow.  Some of us won't feel any sorrow for the country, since they still hold a grudge with the country after they bombed Pearl Harbor.  However over 50 years later we have a chance to let go of that hate and focus on building a better world with not showing hate.  As I look at the photos with towns ravaged and boats moved miles inland away from the sea,  after witnessing the power of the earthquake and Tsunami it's easy to realize where we stand on this earth.  Lets take the time to live life to the fullest with the people we love so that if we have a situation like Japan we know that we gave our all to live.

Temptation

Its basic human nature to be tempted to do things we know is against our better judgment after all we are imperfect. Being able to resist temptation and do what is right in spite of pressure from others and our own imperfection is the key. What we do when we believe nobody else is looking is what defines us, and shapes our character. Character is what determines our responses to adverse situations and advantageous ones as well. We have to train ourselves to resist temptation by using sound judgment at all times. Keep our guard up and do not participate in things that we know is wrong.  Temptation is around us at all times and sometimes we may want to give into that temptations.  However we must realize that temptation will always be around and the only way to beat it is to not give in to it.

Protect our kids

Why is it that certain people feel they can treat someone the way they want by insulting them, picking fights with them or sometimes worst?  It's an epidemic that sweeping the country at an alarming rate.  Bullies could be the reason why your son or daughter doesn’t want to go to school.  They could be causing our children to not want to be at school forcing them to cut school or worst.  Bullies were the cause of the Columbine shooters one of the worst American Tragedies in recent years.  How do we defeat Bullies in our children's schools?  We don't need our children to have tough times with learning as well as dealing with a person making their days miserable.  It's up to us as parents to figure out a way to get our children past this.  I've heard in some cases that teachers try to approach parents about their kids being a bully, and the parent acts as if it's impossible.  Just because you’re in denial doesn't mean you should allow your kid to be treating other people in that way.  What about other people that believe that their kids will be treated kindly when they're left at school.  We have an obligation to our kids and to everybody else that our kids don't bully or treat anyone with disrespect.  Not only could this lead to diminishing the mentality of some kids, but they may bully, but could also lead your child to a life of crime when they seek to bully people at an older age.  Let's keep our kids from falling victims to bullies, since we all know or have seen what damage they can do.  It starts with us remember that. 

Decisions and Repercussions

"Four Steps to achievement: Plan purposefully, Prepare prayerfully, Proceed positively, Pursue persistently"
-William A. Ward

There are so many decisions in life that shape the people we become. The decisions we make as young people starting out our lives as adults can have repercussions that last a lifetime. While we all have the possibility of redemption, coming out the gate using practical wisdom is definitely the way to go. I have seen in my lifetime examples of people making one mistake as an eighteen year old man that cost him not only his future but his parents future as well. A very close family member of mine whom I tried to mold into a outstanding member of society has just spent his 19th birthday in jail for making poor decisions. Our young people must learn to make rational decisions, and be strong enough to stand by those decisions in the face of adversity. As parents we must prepare our children to make quality decisions and that will give them the tools to succeed.

Family

What is Family to you?  Family is more than just those who share the same DNA makeup as you.  Family is everybody that cares about your well being and will be there no matter what.  It's important that we recognize who has our best interest at heart and treat them as family.  Those are the people that will provide motivation when your down and Inspiration when your low.  Sometimes we need to make decisions in our life that may compromise the security of our family unit.  However it's up to us to keep them close to our hearts so to not let negative influences break that bond.  Remember our family bond is only as tight as we make it and we need to remember to let each other know that.  As a minority I understand the value of family and want to tell any other minorities to make sure that your family bond is as strong as possible.  Having a strong family makes for strong family values that we can pass on to our kids.  Let's make sure that we are instilling in our kids the importance of family.  Whether its immediate family, family by marriage or just friends that you call your family remember to love them all the same because sometimes they are all you get.  What does family mean to you?  Below is a video of some examples of how other people felt about family.

Music Matters

Music stimulates the brain, the emotions, and the body simultaneously. Auditory responses structure the way we learn to communicate. It's a known fact that infants still in the womb can have their senses stimulated by hearing certain sounds. Music can have a profound affect on how we communicate with others and how we view life. It is very important to remember that music is for entertainment purposes and not to be used as a guideline for life. Scottish philosopher Andrew Fletcher said "Give me the making of the songs of a nation and I do not care who writes the laws." His insight into the power of music is astonishly valid. Music plays a huge role in all of our lives, and there is no more musically impressionable generation than our adolescents. As parents we must know what our children are listening to, children should not listen to explicit and sexually charged lyrics. We should use music as it was intended as entertainment, to be enjoyed and uplifting.

Dreams

As people we tend to lose focus on our dreams because we lose confidence that it could be done. We all have dreams when we grow up to be famous or successful it's all how we go about it.  It’s about focusing on your goal and going to get it by hard work and determination. Sometimes you are surrounded by negative influences, but you can't let these influences persuade you to fall away from your path. It’s important to focus on the important things, surround yourself with positive influences and you will stay focused. Zadoc Rabinowitz once said, “a mans dreams are an index to his greatness.” How can we achieve greatness if we are not following our dreams? Let’s make sure that we do not forget to let our children dream while pushing them follows their own dreams. We all want what’s best for our children, but ultimately they will have to live that life not us. Give them a chance to understand who they want to be so that they don’t lose sight of their dreams. Do you think that it’s important for Children to be able to grow up and live their dreams? Let’s take time as people to recognize our dreams so that we can help our younger generations recognize theirs.

Listening

All too often, when people say they cant communicate with their kids what they really mean is that they don't know how to talk so that their kids will listen. What they forget is that their own listening habits are probably more important than anything they might say. One of the most loving and personality-shaping things a parent can do for a child is to simply listen to them! Kids have questions, thoughts, observations, and feelings, which can be very enlightening for parents that learn to listen. The behavior of listening starts at the beginning of parenting. When your children cannot talk and can only cry, you can still listen to the crying and try and discover what is discomforting your child. Children use crying as a way of telling their parent that something is wrong. Kids so often give us lots of information about how they are feeling and thinking, if we will just stop talking, telling, and explaining and listen with all our intellect and understanding.

Respect

We as men always assume that just because we are over 18 we should be treated and respected as a man.  Well I'm here to tell all of our young readers that it just isn't so.     Respect is earned not given out to be used as you see fit.  To get respect a lot of the time you have to give respect, you can't feel like you’re entitled to it.  Make sure that when you ask someone to respect you that you’re giving it back in return.  I hear a lot of men saying that they left there woman because she didn't respect him as a man.  I find myself asking the question, why would she say that?  It all comes back to the way he went about his life, How could she respect someone that doesn't respect her?  How could she respect a man that couldn't maintain a job?  How could she respect a man that didn't treat his parents with the Respect they deserve?  How does he not want to be a father and take care of his kids?  But most of all, How could she respects someone that didn't respect themselves?  That's the biggest obstacle when trying to earn respect, and that's respecting yourself.  As men it's important we respect ourselves before we can expect anyone else to do so.  Put focus on making you better, and remember that criticism isn't always bad it helps us become better people.  If she told you that she couldn’t respect you then that is probably more criticism then anything.  The best thing you can do is prove then wrong, step your game up and be that person that everyone knows you can be.  Don’t waste your time worrying about the dude at the gas station mugging you, or the dude at the club that tried to talk to your woman at the bar.  Respect is given to the man that doesn’t let the petty things bother him and continue to carry himself as a respectful person.

Thankful

There are many many things to be thankful for. Just waking up each day is a blessing from God and we should all be thankful for that. More often than not we do not appreciate the small blessings that we receive each day. I try to make a point to take a second and just appreciate having a home to go to and food on the table. There are so many children that are hungry and have no idea where their next meal will come from. My heart hurts for each and every one of those kids who have not asked to be put in this terrible predicament. I was lucky to have a grandmother to step in and raise me when my parents could not and saved me from a life of foster homes. I am so very thankful for that blessing. Lets all remember to be thankful. Take a second and look at these inspiring videos.

We can all learn a lesson from both of these stories. Please take the time to be Thankful.

Legacy

What type of legacy will you leave when you're gone?  Is it one that people can model themselves after and possibly look up to?  However, is it one where people are telling people how not to be like you?  We as people need to make sure that the legacy we leave behind is built with strong fundamentals, positive outlooks, and motivation that could spark generations to come.  It is said in the bible  "The memory of the righteous is blessed, but the name of the wicked will rot".  Proverbs 10:7
Whether you believe in the bible or not it's hard not to allow this to touch you.  We should all be trying to paint a legacy of ourselves in a positive light so that younger generations will have something to build upon with their morals.  We should be trying to feed their brains so that they inherit great ideals who can spark other young minds when they are able to.  Your legacy can touch many for so long if you allow it to.  It's time for us to paint a picture of the legacy we want to leave hanging on our children's wall.  The only way this could be done is to focus on bettering yourself in ways that influence other people, that's what leaders are made of.  When it's all over you want people to remembered as that leader who lead by building his legacy.  Everyday you are here gives you another chance to better yourself and to make right on the responsibility you have as a Man, a Father, and a good Person.  How will your legacy paint itself out, is up to you.