Reader Stories Archives - Built to Inspire

A Life Lesson from the Children of an African Tribe

Pat Ness — Thu, 20 Jun 2013 12:44:53 +0000

An anthropologist proposed a game to the kids in an African tribe. He put a basket full of fruit near a tree and told the kids that who ever got there first won the sweet fruits. When he told them to run they all took each other’s hands and ran together, then sat together enjoying their treats. When he asked them why they had run like that as one could have had all the fruits for himself they said: “UBUNTU, how can one of us be happy if all the other ones are sad?”

‘UBUNTU’ in the Xhosa culture means: “I am because we are”

Story Source: www.wimp.com

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5 Simple Rules to be Happy… I’m All About #3

Pat Ness — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 06:23:59 +0000

One day a farmer’s donkey fell down into a well. The animal cried piteously for hours as the farmer tried to figure out what to do. Finally, he decided the animal was old, and the well needed to be covered up anyway; it just wasn’t worth it to retrieve the donkey.

He invited all his neighbors to come over and help him. They all grabbed a shovel and began to shovel dirt into the well. At first, the donkey realized what was happening and cried horribly. Then, to everyone’s amazement he quieted down.

A few shovel loads later, the farmer finally looked down the well. He was astonished at what he saw. With each shovel of dirt that hit his back, the donkey was doing something amazing. He would shake it off and take a step up.

As the farmer’s neighbors continued to shovel dirt on top of the animal, he would shake it off and take a step up. Pretty soon, everyone was amazed as the donkey stepped up over the edge of the well and happily trotted off!

Moral of the Story:

Life is going to shovel dirt on you, all kinds of dirt. The trick to getting out of the well is to shake it off and take a step up. Each of our troubles is a steppingstone. We can get out of the deepest wells just by not stopping, never giving up! Shake it off and take a step up.

Remember the five simple rules to be happy:

Free your heart from hatred – Forgive.
Free your mind from worries – Most never happens.
Live simply and appreciate what you have.
Give more.
Expect less from people but more from yourself.

You have two choices… smile and close this page, or pass this along to someone else to share the lesson.

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I Would be Torn Apart if my Son Said This to Me… TEARS!!!

Pat Ness — Sat, 22 Oct 2011 04:21:26 +0000

A man came home from work late, tired and irritated, to find his 5-year old son waiting for him at the door.

Son: ‘Daddy, may I ask you a question?’

Dad: ‘Yeah sure, what it is?’ replied the man.

Son: ‘Daddy, how much do you make an hour?’

Dad: ‘That’s none of your business. Why do you ask such a thing?’ the man said angrily.

Son: ‘I just want to know. Please tell me, how much do you make an hour?’

Dad: ‘If you must know, I make $50 an hour.’

Son: ‘Oh,’ the little boy replied, with his head down.

Son: ‘Daddy, may I please borrow $25?’

The father was furious, ‘If the only reason you asked that is so you can borrow some money to buy a silly toy or some other nonsense, then you march yourself straight to your room and go to bed. Think about why you are being so selfish. I don’t work hard everyday for such childish frivolities.’

The little boy quietly went to his room and shut the door.

The man sat down and started to get even angrier about the little boy’s questions. How dare he ask such questions only to get some money?

After about an hour or so, the man had calmed down, and started to think:

Maybe there was something he really needed to buy with that $25.00 and he really didn’t ask for money very often The man went to the door of the little boy’s room and opened the door.

‘Are you asleep, son?’ He asked.

‘No daddy, I’m awake,’ replied the boy.

‘I’ve been thinking, maybe I was too hard on you earlier’ said the man. ‘It’s been a long day and I took out my aggravation on you. Here’s the $25 you asked for.’

The little boy sat straight up, smiling. ‘Oh, thank you daddy!’ he yelled. Then, reaching under his pillow he pulled out some crumpled up bills.

The man saw that the boy already had money, started to get angry again.

The little boy slowly counted out his money, and then looked up at his father.

‘Why do you want more money if you already have some?’ the father grumbled.

‘Because I didn’t have enough, but now I do,’ the little boy replied.

‘Daddy, I have $50 now. Can I buy an hour of your time? Please come home early tomorrow. I would like to have dinner with you.’

The father was crushed. He put his arms around his little son, and he begged for his forgiveness.

It’s just a short reminder to all of you working so hard in life. We should not let time slip through our fingers without having spent some time with those who really matter to us, those close to our hearts. Do remember to share that $50 worth of your time with someone you love.

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Life is A Rollercoaster

Pat Ness — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 06:08:07 +0000

Life is a rollercoaster full of highs, lows, ins and outs fun times and scary moments.

If there is one thing I have learned in my crazy 29 years is that life isn’t always perfect and as weird as it may seem, each moment in our lives whether good or bad serves as a lesson in making us a better person.

You need all the negatives to experience the positives.

Sad times will bring happy moments, break ups will bring forth new relationships.

Fake people will allow you to appreciate true friendships.

Hard times will allow you to understand the value of hard work and money.

Failure will enable you to push yourself and succeed.

Criticisms will force you to build confidence and perseverance.

No one’s life is perfect, we all experience obstacles we must over come, so remember whenever you feel those dark and lonely moments there is always a light at the end of the tunnel.

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To Maintain A Healthy Level Of Insanity

Pat Ness — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 21:04:29 +0000

1. At Lunch Time, Sit In Your Parked Car with Sunglasses on and point a Hair Dryer At Passing Cars See If They Slow Down.

2. On all your check stubs, write For Marijuana.

3. Skip down the street Rather than Walk, and see how many looks you get.

4. Order a Diet Water whenever you go out to eat, with a serious face.

5. Sing Along At The Opera.

6. When The Money Comes out of The ATM, Scream I Won! I Won!

7. When Leaving the Zoo, start Running towards the Parking Lot, Yelling Run For Your Lives, They’re Loose!

8. Tell Your Children over Dinner, Due To the Economy, We are Going To Have To Let One of You Go.

AND THE FINAL WAY TO KEEP A HEALTHY LEVEL OF INSANITY…

9. PICK UP A BOX OF CONDOMS AT THE PHARMACY, GO TO THE COUNTER AND ASK WHERE THE FITTING ROOM IS.

Share this To Someone Else To Make Them Smile. It’s Called… THERAPY? Hahahahaha hope this made u smile at least!

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Bob Marley Quotes

Pat Ness — Sat, 27 Nov 2010 01:49:44 +0000

You may not be her first, her last, or her only.

She loved before and she may love again.

But if she loves you now, what else matters?

She’s not perfect – you aren’t either, and the two of you may never be perfect together but if she can make you laugh, cause you think twice, and admit to being human and making mistakes, hold onto her and give her the most you can.

She may not be thinking about you every second of the day, but she will give you a part of her that she knows you can break – her heart. So don’t hurt her expect more then she can give.

Smile when she makes you happy, let her know when she makes you mad, and miss her when she’s not there.

– Bob Marley

Other Pages and News about Bob Marley

Official Website of Bob Marley

Best Known Hits and Info

His best-known hits include “No Woman, No Cry“, “I Shot the Sheriff“, “Stir It Up“, “Could You Be Loved“, “Redemption Song“, “One Love“ “Jamming“,and, together with The Wailers, “Three Little Birds“,as well as the posthumous releases “Buffalo Soldier“ and “Iron Lion Zion“. The compilation album Legend (1984), released three years after his death, is reggae’s best-selling album, going ten times Platinum (Diamond) in the U.S., and selling 25 million copies worldwide.

source – (Wikipedia 2011)

Some Quotes from Bob Marley:

“One good thing about music, when it hits you, you feel no pain.”
— Bob Marley

“Who are you to judge the life I live? I know I’m not perfect -and I don’t live to be- but before you start pointing fingers… make sure you hands are clean!”
— Bob Marley

“The truth is, everyone is going to hurt you. You just got to find the ones worth suffering for.”
— Bob Marley

“Some people feel the rain. Others just get wet.”
— Bob Marley

“One love, one heart, one destiny.”
— Bob Marley

“None but ourselves can free our minds.”
— Bob Marley

“The greatness of a man is not in how much wealth he acquires, but in his integrity and his ability to affect those around him positively”
— Bob Marley

“Don’t Gain The World & Lose Your Soul, Wisdom Is Better Than Silver Or Gold.”
— Bob Marley

Wake Up and Live!”
— Bob Marley

“The good times of today are the sad thoughts of tomorrow.”
— Bob Marley

“Don’t worry about a thing, every little thing is gonna be alright”
— Bob Marley

“When one door is closed, don’t you know that many more are open”
— Bob Marley

“Judge not unless you judge yourself”
— Bob Marley

“Herb is the healing of a nation, alcohol is the destruction.”
— Bob Marley

“My fear is my only courage”
— Bob Marley

“Get up, stand up, Stand up for your rights. Get up, stand up, Don’t give up the fight.”
— Bob Marley

“I don’t stand for black mans side, I don’t stand for white mans side, I stand for Gods side.”
— Bob Marley

“Open your eyes, look within. Are you satisfied with the life you’re living?”
— Bob Marley

“Me only have one ambition, y’know. I only have one thing I really like to see happen. I like to see mankind live together – black, white, Chinese, everyone – that’s all.”
— Bob Marley

“You can fool some people some times but you cant fool all the people all the time”
— Bob Marley

“Life and Jah are one in the same. Jah is the gift of existence. I am in some way eternal, I will never be duplicated. The singularity of every man and woman is Jah’s gift. What we struggle to make of it is our sole gift to Jah. The process of what that struggle becomes, in time, the Truth.”
— Bob Marley

“Don’t give up the fight, Stand up for your rights.”
— Bob Marley

source: BobMarley.com

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Everything Happens for a Reason

Pat Ness — Thu, 25 Nov 2010 19:28:49 +0000

Sometimes people come into your life and you know right away that they were meant to be there… to serve some sort of purpose, teach you a lesson or help figure out who you are or who you want to become. You never know who these people may be but when you look eyes with them, you know that every moment that you are with them, they will affect your life in some profound way. And sometimes things happen to you at the time that may seem horrible,painful and unfair, but in reflection you realize that without overcoming those obstacles you would have never realized your potential, strength,will power or heart.

Everything happens for a reason! Nothing happens by chance or by means of good luck. Illness, injury, love ,lost moments of true greatness and sheer stupidity all occur to test the limits of your soul. Without these small tests, life would be like a smoothly paved, straight, flat road to nowhere,safe and comfortable but dull and utterly pointless.

The people you meet affect your life.The successes and downfalls that you experience can create who you are, and the bad experiences can be learned from…. In fact, they are probably the most poignant and important ones.If someone hurts you, betrays you or breaks your heart, forgive them because they have helped you learn about trust and the importance of being cautious to whom you open your heart. If someone loves you, love them back unconditionally not only because they love you, but also because they are teaching you to love and open your heart and eyes to little things.

MAKE EVERYDAY COUNT! Appreciate every moment and take from it everything that you possibly can, for you may never be able to experience it again. Talk to people who you have never talked to before, and actually listen. Let yourself fall in love, even if it doesn’t seem right because you are too young or too far, just follow your heart. Surround yourself with those who make you smile, laugh, and make you happy.

Break free and set your sights high. Hold your head up because you have every right to. Tell yourself you are a great individual and believe in yourself, for if you don’t believe in yourself, no one else will believe in you. Create your own life then LET GO and LIVE IT!

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