"What Do You Consider To be The Seven Wonders Of Your World?"

What are the Seven Wonders of the World?
By: Author Unknown

A group of students was asked to list what they thought
were the present "Seven Wonders of the World." Though there
were some disagreements, the following received the most
votes:

1. Egypt's Great Pyramids
2. Taj Mahal
3. Grand Canyon
4. Panama Canal
5. Empire State Building
6. Saint Peter's Basilica
7. China's Great Wall

While gathering the votes, the teacher noticed that one
quiet student hadn't turned in her paper yet. So she asked
the girl if she was having trouble with her list. The girl
replied, "Yes, a little. I couldn't quite make up my mind
because there were so many."

The teacher said, "Well, tell us what you have, and maybe
we can help."

The girl hesitated, then read, "I think the 'Seven Wonders
of the World' are:

1. to see
2. to hear
3. to touch
4. to taste
5. to feel
6. to laugh
7. and to love."

The room was so quiet you could have heard a pin drop.

The things we overlook as simple and ordinary and that we
take for granted are truly wondrous!

"Do You Know What's Missing From Your Life?"

You Don't Have To Be Perfect
By: Harold Kushner

The Missing Piece (by Shel Silverstein) tells the story of
a circle that was missing a piece. A large triangular wedge
had been cut out of it. The circle wanted to be whole with
nothing missing, so it went around looking for its missing
piece. But because it was incomplete and therefore could
roll only very slowly, it admired the flowers along the
way. It chatted with worms. It enjoyed the sunshine. It
found lots of different pieces, but none of them fit. So it
left them all by the side of the road and kept on searching.

Then one day the circle found a piece that fit perfectly.
It was so happy. Now it could be whole, with nothing
missing. It incorporated the missing piece into itself and
began to roll. Now that it was a perfect circle, it could
roll very fast, too fast to notice the flowers or talk to
the worms. When it realized how different the world seemed
when it rolled so quickly, it stopped, left its found piece
by the side of the road and rolled slowly away.

The lesson of the story is that in some strange sense we
are more whole when we are missing something. The man who
has everything is in some ways a poor man. He will never
know what it feels like to yearn, to hope, to nourish his
soul with the dream of something better. He will never know
the experience of having someone who loves him give him
something he has always wanted and never had. There is a
wholeness about the person who has come to terms with his
limitations, who has been brave enough to let go of his
unrealistic dreams and not feel like a failure for doing
so. There is a wholeness about the man or woman who has
learned that he or she is strong enough to go through a
tragedy and survive, who can lose someone and still feel
like a complete person.

When we accept that imperfection is part of being human,
and when we can continue rolling through life and
appreciating it, we will have achieved a wholeness that
others can only aspire to. That, I believe, is what God
asks of us - not "Be perfect" and not "Don't ever make a
mistake," but "Be whole." And at the end, if we are brave
enough to love, strong enough to forgive, generous enough
to rejoice in another's happiness, and wise enough to know
there is enough love to go around for us all, then we can
achieve a fulfillment that no other living creature will
ever know.

"This Is Your Life"

Life's Journey

Do not undermine your worth by comparing yourself with
others. It is because we are different that each of us is
special.

Do not set your goals by what other people deem important.
Only you know what is best for you.

Do not take for granted the things closest to your heart.
Cling to them as you would your life, for without them life
is meaningless.

Do not let your life slip through your fingers by living
in the past nor for the future. By living your life one day
at a time, you live all of the days of your life.

Do not give up when you still have something to give.
Nothing is really over until the moment you stop trying. It
is a fragile thread that binds us to each other.

Do not be afraid to encounter risks. It is by taking
chances that we learn how to be brave.

Do not shut love out of your life by saying it is
impossible to find. The quickest way to receive love is to
give love. The fastest way to lose love is too hold it too
tightly. In addition, the best way to keep love is to give
it wings.

Do not dismiss your dreams. To be without dreams is to be
without hope. To be without hope is to be without purpose.

Do not run through life so fast that you forget not only
where you have been, but also where you are going. Life is
not a race, but a journey to be savored each step of the way.

"Have You Planned Well For The Cycles Of Your Life? Or Will You Be Overwhelmed?"

Making Sandcastles
By: Unknown Author

Hot sun. Salty air. Rhythmic waves.

A little boy is on his knees scooping and packing the sand
with plastic shovels into a bright blue bucket. Then he
upends the bucket on the surface and lifts it. And, to the
delight of the little architect, a castle tower is created.
All afternoon he will work. Spooning out the moat. Packing
the walls. Bottle tops will be sentries. Popsicle sticks
will be bridges. A sandcastle will be built.

Big city. Busy streets. Rumbling traffic.

A man is in his office. At his desk he shuffles papers
into stacks and delegates assignments. He cradles the phone
on his shoulder and punches the keyboard with his fingers.
Numbers are juggled and contracts are signed. And much to
the delight of the man, a profit is made. All his life he
will work. Formulating the plans. Forecasting the future.
Annuities will be sentries. Capital gains will be bridges.
An empire will be built.

Two builders of two castles. They have much in common.
They shape granules into grandeurs. They see nothing and
make something. They are diligent and determined. And for
both the tide will rise and the end will come. Yet that is
where the similarities cease. For the boy sees the end
while the man ignores it.

Watch the boy as the dusk approaches. As the waves near,
the wise child jumps to his feet and begins to clap. There
is no sorrow. No fear. No regret. He knew this would
happen. He is not surprised. And when the great breaker
crashes into his castle and his masterpiece is sucked into
the sea, he smiles. He smiles, picks up his tools, takes
his father's hand, and goes home.

The grownup, however, is not so wise. As the wave of years
collapses on his castle, he is terrified. He hovers over
the sandy monument to protect it. He blocks the waves from
the walls he has made. Salt-water soaked and shivering, he
snarls at the incoming tide. "It's my castle," he defies.

The ocean need not respond. Both know to whom the sand
belongs...