By LIZ SIDOTI, Associated Press Writer

ST. PAUL, Minn. - Not merely a Republican. Not merely a candidate. John McCain cast himself as a leader for all Americans, regardless of party or status.

 
Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain and vice presidential nominee Gov. Sarah Palin wave to supporters at the 2008 Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minnesota September 4, 2008.(Rick Wilking/Reuters)

After several days of Democratic bashing by his supporters, the Arizona senator struck a nonpartisan stance and promised that he wouldn't be bound by political party in the White House as he accepted the GOP presidential nomination Thursday before thousands of Republican loyalists.

"We are fellow Americans, an association that means more to me than any other," McCain told the Republican Convention, deriding "constant partisan rancor" that causes Washington gridlock. He rejected those in Washington who he said "work for themselves and not you."

McCain marched through a series of big issues — defense, taxes, education, energy independence among them — without offering many specifics. Instead, there were generic promises to "make it better," of "rewarding hard work," and the like.

He marked the pinnacle of his political life by delivering a speech in his preferred setting — surrounded by people. In this case, they were the GOP convention delegates who granted him the nomination that had eluded him in 2000.

"I don't work for a party," he declared. "I don't work for a special interest. I don't work for myself. I work for you."

The GOP nominee was making an aggressive play for voters from across the political spectrum....

Read the rest:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/cvn_mccain;_ylt=AkyDvm6HvqkdEp9WVwvEXXus0NUE

On the authority of Abu Hurayrah (May Allah be pleased with him) it is related that the Prophet (Peace be upon him) said,

“There are three people whose ‘Du’a’ is not rejected; the fasting person until he breaks the fast, the just ruler, and the oppressed person, whose Duaa Allah lifts above the clouds and opens unto it the doors of Jannah, and Allah says: “I swear by My Honour, verily I shall assist you, even though it may be after some time.”

[Ahmad and Tirmidhi]

In another hadith also on the authority of Abu Hurayrah (May Allah be pleased with him) it is related that the Prophet (Peace be upon him) said,

“Whatever is prayed for at the time of breaking the fast is granted and never refused.” [Tirmidhi]

Explanation

Many people miss the opportunity of making du’a at the moment of breaking the fast, i.e. at the very last moment of Asr, before the Adhan is called for Maghrib. This is due to the fact that most people are busy preparing their food for the Iftar, and are preoccupied in putting out the food on the table or are engaged in other acts, and then the very last moments just before the Adhan for Maghrib are usually spent in futile activity just to pass time, or people idly wait around doing nothing just waiting for the time of Iftar. This is a great deprivation, as this is a very blessed moment in which duas are accepted. The last moments of the fast should be spent making much dua and beseeching Allah(swt) for His mercy and blessings, for forgiveness and for the fulfilment of one’s needs etc....

A humble request that you remember me also in your accepted duas.

And there's another reason to smile and have a few laughs before my day started.

Rio and Aileen shared with me this video posted in youtube. It's on of those Robot Chicken series that's being aired in Adult Swim, a late night show in Cartoon Network. (Thanks, ladies!)

Guess everyone has a share of what the giraffe is experiencing in the clip ;) Undeniably, I can relate to his situation...

Hahaha.

Enjoy the video, have a few laughs and comment if you'd like to Ü

Happy weekend everyone! 

Twice I found myself in the tea room with B and we seemed to fall back into our chatty, flirty style with each other. We keep edging around the topic of relationships with each other which is quite interesting. Today it was comments on rich, aging men who take up with much younger women - B assured me he wasn't interested in young bimbos (not that he is exactly aging I have to say - he's only in his late 30s). I assured him I wasn't interested in rich men particularly (although I have no real aversion to a man having money I must say :-) )

Not much planned for the weekend. Another massage tomorrow and then perhaps another movie. Nothing for Sunday except perhaps I might take myself on a bushwalk. Another quiet, potentially slow weekend. Where have all my friends gone lately I wonder? Next weekend I'm seeing Paul and another friend wants to catch up (same day I think).

Acceptance. That is where I am at. Next week Saturn crosses my Ascendant (that is pretty significant - only happens every 29 years). I am having a guided meditation to try to make the most of the opportunities.

Thursday nights I still go to my study/meditation class and I'm quite amazed now at the sorts of things that come through sometimes. I had a voice saying to me the other night, they are not all connected yet. So last night I asked who was not connected. Turns out it is the team of people I am to work with on the physical plane - and there are 17 of them. Then I was told how to attempt to connect them up! Cool stuff. I love it. I have been yearning for my 'team', my 'group', my 'ashramic colleagues' for quite a while now. The ones with whom I am going to find and manifest my purpose. When I think of this aloneness I often feel I realise it isn't just, deep down, the desire for a partner, it is also the desire for my group.

So now I'm going to post this and then go and read Esoteric Psychology Volume II by Alice Bailey. I love the way it explains the stages as we grow and evolve, and I like to try to pinpoint the stage I am at - then everything makes sense. I think I am making inner progress but often it isn't reflected in the outer world. Then I read up on it and find that what I experience is often a sign that things ARE moving and shaking.

Details here.

There was this one day during elementary school where my mom came to say hello to me. I was so embarrassed.

How could she do this to me? I ignored her, threw her a hateful look and ran out. The next day at school one of my classmates said, 'EEEE, your mom only has one eye!'

I wanted to bury myself. I also wanted my mom to just disappear. I confronted her that day and said, ' If you're only gonna make me a laughing stock, why don't you just die?'

My mom did not respond... I didn't even stop to think for a second about what I had said, because I was full of anger. I was oblivious to her feelings.

I wanted out of that house, and have nothing to do with her. So I studied real hard, got a chance to go abroad to study.

Then, I got married. I bought a house of my own. I had kids of my own. I was happy with my life, my kids and the comforts. Then one day, my Mother came to visit me. She hadn't seen me in years and she didn't even meet her grandchildren.

When she stood by the door, my children laughed at her, and I yelled at her for coming over uninvited. I screamed at her, 'How dare you come to my house and scare my children!' GET OUT OF HERE! NOW!!!'

And to this, my mother quietly answered, 'Oh, I'm so sorry. I may have gotten the wrong address,' and she disappeared out of sight.

One day, a letter regarding a school reunion came to my house. So I lied to my wife that I was going on a business trip. After the reunion, I went to the old shack just out of curiosity.

My neighbors said that she died. I did not shed a single tear. They handed me a letter that she had wanted me to have.

'My dearest son,

I think of you all the time. I'm sorry that I came to your house and scared your children.

I was so glad when I heard you were coming for the reunion. But I may not be able to even get out of bed to see you. I'm sorry that I was a constant embarrassment to you when you were growing up.

You see........when you were very little, you got into an accident, and lost your eye. As a mother, I couldn't stand watching you having to grow up with one eye. So I gave you mine.

I was so proud of my son who was seeing a whole new world for me, in my place, with that eye.

With all my love to you,

Your mother.
By : Sarfaraz amani

HIS GRACE IS ENOUGH

KEY VERSE - Galatians 5:1 (NKJV)

HEAD (REVELATION- WHAT I NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THIS TRUTH)

It is possible to put total faith in Jesus concerning our eternal salvation, and yet turn back to the deception that God will only bless us in this life proportionally to our performance. That deception is a yoke of bondage; a mental prison.  A yoke is something that ties two things - people, animals, or objects - together.  The enemy is continuing trying to lasso us into a mindset of following a set of rules in order to please God and walk in His blessings. He wants us tied down to the condemnation and guilt that follows when we realize that we fall short of perfect obedience. For some reason, we can understand that the reason we are saved, and have secured a home in heaven, is because Jesus is the only One who could ever follow the rules. We believe He did exactly that and then died a criminal's death in order to pay our penalty for breaking the rules.  But along comes a way of thinking that tells us, "God says you have to follow all these rules and do everything right or He's not going to make good on His promise to love, heal, forgive, accept, prosper, and bless you."  We must resist going back to that unrenewed way of thinking and keep our minds fixed on the truth that Jesus has freed us from enslavement to a set of rules.

The fact that Paul says to "stand fast" is further evidence that we are being pushed around by this legalistic view in our everyday lives, much as these Galatians were.  Are you sitting down in the dunce's corner?  Or worse yet, are you laid out on the ground because somewhere along the line you were pushed in the dirt by a works-based lifestyle, and started to feel like God was mad, disappointed, or otherwise disapproving of you?  Maybe this devotion is the first time you started reading your Bible in weeks, months, or even years. Perhaps you are struggling with an addiction right now but you hate it, and you hate how it makes you feel even further from the love of God.  Or maybe your marriage and family are crumbling.  Or it could be that you are convinced that you are just worse than the "average" Christian. Somehow you have believed the lie that this grace and favor and beauty - this John 10:10 abundant life that God offers through Christ - is only for the pretty, successful, motivated, or talented people.

You need to know that God accepts those who accept Him.  By that, I mean that God welcomes lovingly, eternally, and unconditionally all who are willing to welcome His Son, Jesus, to make up the difference in their lives.  Have you believed in Jesus?  Then do not allow others to impose their lack of faith in the finished work of Jesus onto you. In verse seven of Galatians 5 Paul asks, "Who hindered you?", and encouraged them to stop comparing themselves to the ones who looked righteous outwardly but inwardly had not put their trust in God.  We must be careful to do the same.

Have you been expecting yourself or others around you to get it "right"?  It's time to destroy that yoke of slavery and put on the yoke Jesus has given us.  Check out Matthew 11:29 and you will see the difference between being yoked to obeying the law versus being yoked to Jesus.  He wants us tied to the freedom and joy of knowing that His grace alone is our salvation.  His yoke is light because He is pulling all the weight! Imagine how free our minds would be if we didn't walk around second-guessing the message of the Cross in our lives but, instead, lived every day fully aware of the forgiveness that is ours through His sacrifice.  We would be so consumed with gratitude and joy that we would live holy and obedient lives better on accident than we ever did when we tried to white-knuckle it!

HEART (EMOTION- WHAT I NEED TO FEEL ABOUT THIS TRUTH)

The reality is this:  God is happy with us because of what He did. He is glad because His plan worked.  He rescued us by giving the most costly gift He had.  The anguish He felt as He watched His Son be brutally tortured and spitefully abused was mixed with love and joy because He knew that this was the only way we could please Him and have a relationship with Him.  The death of His Son meant that we could finally stop living under the heavy weight of condemnation and come into His presence with full assurance of our glad welcome.  If you believe the Son has set you free, then you are free indeed!  He watches you reading this devotion, running after His heart, and He smiles because He has redeemed you.  He has won you back from the grip of sin and death. 

No, you and I are not the hero of this story.  We were the wandering, hapless simpleton in this narrative and we needed rescue. We are "Hosea's wife", as it were; totally incapable of loving Him rightly, yet He sought us out because of His desire for us.  This kind of amazing love makes it easy to follow His commandments.  And this kind of unmerited grace makes it impossible to think that our doing everything right is why He would love us.  If you have traded in the romance you once knew for a regimen, then today it's time for a revolution.  Let us throw off the slave's yoke as we remember that it is never our greatness of conduct that should be celebrated, but rather, our boast should be "to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved" (Ephesians 1:6). May we continue to stand fast in that place of rest.

WHO (ILLUSTRATION- WHERE THIS TRUTH HAS BEEN SEEN)

It is fascinating when we think about whom this message of grace and freedom came through.  Paul, formerly known as Saul, was drinking the "Hater-Ade" towards this message of the gospel for most of his life before Christ.  He had lived an amazingly clean life by the world's standard, and Christ came with a message that tore down everything Paul had trusted in.

Paul was mad enough to kill, seize, imprison, and mock Christians for believing this faith-based salvation.  But once he saw for himself that his "righteous" deeds were worthless, he understood that the origin of his righteousness was not about ancestry, custom, or rule, but about God's kind intention to save all of mankind from their self-destructive fate.  He spent most of his life proclaiming the gospel of grace, enduring much persecution and opposition from "religious" people, because he tasted and saw that the Lord alone was good. 

HANDS (APPLICATION- WHAT I NEED TO DO WITH THIS TRUTH)

If you feel you have been basing God's acceptance of you on anything other than your faith in Jesus, whether good or bad, it's time to confess that dependency and turn from it.  Maybe it would be helpful to list the faithful deeds that you do for God, stuff like going to church, giving, loving your family, serving, making morally sound choices (be specific!).  Next, list some of the "works of the flesh" as listed in Galatians 5 that you have dealt with or are dealing with now.  Now, find a red marker or pen and write "TRUST IN JESUS" in big, bold letters across all the words you have previously written.  Those red letters alone are the only answer we have when we stand before God in judgment.  Both now and at our last breath, eternal life is ours because Jesus bought it for us (John 10:10).

DIG DEEPER:

John 1:17; Romans 3:24; Romans 5:2; Ephesians 2:5; Hebrews 4:16; James 4:6; 2 Timothy 2:1

OTHER RESOURCES:

How Good Is Good Enough by Andy Stanley

Your Covenant of Peace- a sermon series by Pastor Dan Stallbaum

That being said, Radical Acceptance is one of the most difficult states of mind to achieve. Naturally our minds and souls want to repel negative events and situations. None of us wants to accept the break up of a relationship, the death of a loved one, the loss of a job, or any other negative situation. However, where does that leave us when we choose not to accept these things??? If we choose not to accept the breakup of a relationship, for example, where are we?? We are in a place of trying to repair that relationship, trying to make it into something it isn't. How would that feel??? Most of us would agree that it is not a pleasant place to be. More than likely our attempts to repair the damaged relationship would result in increased rejection, feelings of desperateness,  and deeper sadness and grief over the loss of the relationship. Am I right?? So what if we choose to accept the breakup of the relationship? Now, remember we said that acceptance does not mean liking it. Acceptance does not mean being happy about it. Acceptance just means it is what it is. In this case it would mean acknowledging that the relationship is indeed over. Would that be sad? Of course. Would we like that? Most likely not. But what can we now do since we acknowledge that it is over??? We can go on. We can continue to live our life. We can participate in other relationships. We may also be able to see clearly what went wrong in that relationship, so that maybe next time we won't repeat the same pattern and find ourselves back in a broken relationship.  Clearly the most advantageous plan is to attempt acceptance even though we don't like it. That process has the best outcome for us.

So if we choose to accept and we really and truly accept a situation at that moment, is that it? For some small things maybe, but for the really big things in life.....no. Most times acceptance is a process that we weave in and out of. It's like at first we may deny, then we may begin to accept, only to deny again. We may spend days, weeks, months, or even years moving in and out of acceptance. Sometimes we will think we have it only to find ourselves questioning it once again. It's a really difficult process and one that everyone goes through in their life. No one is exempt from having something in their life they find difficult to accept.

Acceptance is something that is chosen and worked towards. It is not something that is achieved overnight. Acceptance requires a willing spirit; not a willful one. What's the difference? A willing spirit is open, a willful spirit is closed. Willing spirits try; willful spirits shut down. Willingness allows us to be mobile, to make strides forward and backwards and sideways. Willfullness keeps us stagnant. In order to truly accept, we have to be willing. Which also brings up the point that acceptance comes from within ourselves. No one can chose acceptance for us. No one can make us willing. This is something that we choose for ourselves in our own time as part of our own process.

So, what are you finding hard to accept?  What things make it so difficult to accept? What are the advantages of refusing to accept? What are the disadvantages? How are you feeling currently about this situation?? How would you like to feel? What good could come if you were able to accept? These are some questions I have been asking myself. It's a lot to think about, huh?

~Secret Shadows

References

Linehan, Marsha (1993) Skills Training Manual for Treating Borderline Personality Disorder. The Guilford Press

McKay, M., Wood, J., & Brantley, J. (2007) The Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills Workbook. Oakland, CA: New Harbinger Publications, Inc.

Spradlin, Scott (2003) Don't Let Your Emotions Run Your Life: How Dialectical Behavior Therapy Can Put You in Control. Oakland, CA: New Harbinger Publications, Inc.

As we walked through the musty shop, he pointed out a set of white cherub statues that stood around a foot and a half  tall each .  They were beautiful and I knew at once that we couldn’t leave without them. 

We watched as they were wrapped delicately in craft paper, and we handled them gingerly as we baby stepped them to our car.  On the drive back home windows were down and gusts of wind blew in our ears and hair.  The music hummed in the background as we drove past the random misplaced cow or horse or farm... 

As we arrived back into the city, the tension of priority and bustle began to weigh on us immediately.  We were back in the noise and traffic and constant…everything.

We began unloading the car, and I noticed he was attempting to carry both cherubs at once.  “No, I insisted.”  “They are too heavy; just carry one at a time, please.”  He reassured, “they’re not heavy, and I can carry them fine.”  “Ok, I agreed.”  We walked towards the door, and I stood searching for my keys.  My head whipped quickly around as I heard a loud crash…he lost grip of both of the cherubs, and they fell and shattered on the concrete. 

Both of our faces dropped all expression.  There was silence that highlighted our disappointment, and frustrations.  We knew that words or anger would not fix that which had been broken.  We cleaned up the broken pieces, and went on with the day. 

Sometimes…we lose our grip and things greatly beloved are lost...and all that we can do, is to go on. 

Last nights acceptance speech at the RNC by Gov. Sarah Palin for the Vice President was built up by the MSM to be the most important speech of her life in order infuse fear into Palin's head. Also to try and put the bar too high for her to succeed in the minds of viewers.

The MSM failed at this attempt, her speech was great!

The MSM picked up the ball this morning trying from all channels to dig themselves out of the grave they are in for saying she couldn't do it. They are trying to make Palin out as MEAN this morning and using her joke about the difference between pit bulls and hockey moms is lipstick as the vehicle.

They are trading phrases among the MSM outlets like; she came out "Full guns blazing," "A fighting speech," "A really bitting speech," "mean," "shrill! (Harry Reid, Democrat Senate Majority leader," "Confident, tipping over into sarcatic and smug," "she performed well but certainly more scrutiny of her record is coming," (We, in 5 days, have watched reports telling us more about her than Barack Obama and Joe Biden put together) "Somebody else wrote the speech." "Wreckless, a very dangerous speech and frankly going and taking on the media has never worked," "Only uneducated white women will be drawn to her not the educated ones."

"She doesn't have the time to be Vice President with that many kids," "What is she doing dropping that child (Bristol) onto the national stage like this." No it's you the MSM that is attacking a minor because your candidate, Barack Obama, does not have an issue he can stand on.

The Obama camp lashed out put Joe Biden on the morning shows. But, all he would say in response to Palin's charges of inexperience on both sides of the Democrat ticket was first, "You'll hear when I say it, I am not going to give you a preview." Why did you go on the shows you idiot. Barack Obama and his advisor David Axlerod only have this as a response? 

Secondly, Joe Biden then said, "I am not going to deminish her experience, it's real." Yes you are right and the American voters know it. You deny it and then admit it in the same paragraph you idiot.

George Stephanopoulos said about the Obama campaign, "I don't think they know how this played, their trying to work their way through it." This means they got their racist, sexist, and mean butts kicked. They got a knock out blow and are still laying on their backs, out cold!

The MSM continued with more calling the nomination of Palin as, "Emergence of Republican folk lore," and the real hillbilly reference, "Wouldn't Washington DC be a culture shock to the Palin's."

They don't get it, they are not seeing that the public is seeing Gov. Sarah Palin as one of us, the average Americans, and attacking her is attacking us. The Democrat party will pay dearly for their outlandish attacks on the families of America, Obama will be defeated and I wouldn't be surprised to see them loose the Senate in November.

The Democrat Barack Obama media is filling the dirt on top of themselves as they lay comfortably in their grave. 2008 is the year journalism in the media died.

Her full speech;

Our negative thoughts can be like pebbles rolling down the mountainside. One pebble bumps into another one. The second begins rolling and slams into a third. On and on it goes until thousands of pebbles, rocks, and even giant boulders are hurtling down the mountain.

When we find ourselves stuck in a rut thinking a negative thought, we can decide to stop and replace it with a positive thought. At first our single positive thought may not dislodge another one. We may have to think of several and start them rolling down the mountainside. If we practice, we will find it becomes easier for that first good thought to shake loose others. We will see our lives change when we begin to look at the positive side of things.

I was struck by how readily we identify ourselves as dummies and idiots. Obviously we think we are stupid, and these books will help. I wonder what would happen if I published a similar series for geniuses, such as Golf for Sages or The Complete Genius's Guide to Home Repair. I have a hunch they wouldn't sell very well at all. Not because we are not geniuses. Because we have been trained to regard ourselves as stupid.

When I was little, I sat on my front porch one morning and sang several rousing verses of "Take Me Out to the Ballgame." A few days later I overheard my mother casually tell someone, "Alan has a foghorn voice." That idea made an impression on me, and I did not sing for many years. After all (at that age), your mother knows everything, and if she said I couldn't sing, I couldn't sing.

Perhaps you had a similar experience. Perhaps early in life you adopted a thought about yourself that defined you as small, ugly, incapable, or unlovable. Most of us did. And perhaps you went on to live as if that identity was true. And perhaps, like many, you collected a pool of tears in your heart and went through life hurting because you wished you could be more.

You are more. The genius you were born as, still lives, and can be reactivated at any moment. Genius is your reality and the dark programming is your adopted personality. When Abraham (through Esther Hicks) was challenged, "You can't teach an old dog new tricks," Abraham answered, "You have no idea what an old dog you are!" Who you were before you learned self-defeating tricks, is still very much available and eager to come forth and shine.

There is a story in the annals of education about an elementary school teacher who arrived on the first day of school and perused her class roster. Next to each child's name was the number of a very high I.Q. "126, 135, 140," Miss Everett read aloud, eyebrows raised. "Thank goodness I finally got a bright class!"

Miss Everett went on to stimulate the loftiest abilities in her wiz-kids. She gave them challenging projects, took them on field trips, and offered them leeway to explore their work in creative ways.

At the end of the semester all the students earned A's and B's.

The day after report cards came out, the principal called her into his office and asked, "Miss Everett, what did you do with these kids?"

"What do you mean?" she asked innocently.

"You took some of the lowest-functioning students in the school and turned them into geniuses!"

"I don't understand what you're talking about," the teacher replied. "These kids were bright when I got them. Here, just look at their I.Q.'s in my roll book."

The principal scanned her roster and replied, astonished, "Miss Everett, these are their locker numbers!"

"I do nothing but stand here all day," it sighed. "What use am I? I'm the ugliest plant in the desert. My spines are thick and prickly, my leaves are rubbery and tough, my skin is thick and bumpy. I can't offer shade or juicy fruit to any passing traveler. I don't see that I'm any use at all."

All it did was stand in the sun day after day, growing taller and fatter. Its spines grew longer and its leaves tougher, and it swelled here and there until it was lumpy and lopsided all over. It truly was strange-looking. "I wish I could do something useful," it sighed. By day hawks circled high overhead.

"What can I do with my life?" the cactus called. Whether they heard or not, the hawks sailed away.

At night the moon floated into the sky and cast its pale glow on the desert floor.
"What good can I do with my life?" the cactus called. The moon only stared coldly as it mounted its course.

A lizard crawled by, leaving a little trail in the sand with its tail. "What worthy deed can I do?" the cactus called.

"You?" the lizard laughed, pausing a moment. "Worthy deed? Why, you can't do anything! The hawks circle way overhead, tracing delicate patterns for us all to admire. The moon hangs high like a lantern at night, so we can see our ways home to our loved ones. Even I, the lowly lizard, have something to do. I decorate the sands with these beautiful brushstrokes as I pull my tail along. Buy you? You do nothing but get uglier every day."

And so it went on, year after year. At last the cactus grew old, and it knew its time was short.

"Oh, Lord," it cried out, "I've wondered so long, and I've tried so hard. Forgive me if I've failed to find something worthy to do. I fear that now it's too late."

But just then the cactus felt a strange stirring and unfolding, and it knew a surge of joy that erased all despair. At its very tip, like a sudden crown, a glorious flower suddenly opened in bloom.

Never had the desert known such a blossom. Its fragrance perfumed the air far and wide and brought happiness to all passing by. The butterflies paused to admire its beauty, and that night even the moon smiled when it rose to find such a treasure. The cactus heard a voice.

"You have waited long," the Lord said. "The heart that seeks to do good reflects My glory, and will always bring something worthwhile to the world, something in which all can rejoice - even if for only a moment.
"

Eleven days later I tried to make a call from my current cell phone, and got the message, "Your phone has a verification problem. Please call the business office." God bless the phone company, I thought (not the first time).

I called the business office and the representative told me they had no clue why my phone wouldn't access. My bill was paid, and their diagnostic showed no problem. I talked to several reps, still no help. God bless the phone company.

When I arrived home I found a FedEx box sitting at my doorstep with my new phone. I plugged it in, and voila! it worked like a charm. The phone company had disconnected my old phone because it had transferred service to my new one.

Moral:
In the wake of my euphoria, I recognized a powerful lesson in this experience:

If the old thing isn't working any more, it will not do you any good to fight to reinstate it or keep it alive. If you have completed a career phase, level of relationship, or stage of life, the Big Phone Company in the Sky (really within you) has hooked your energy up to the next thing, and any effort to resuscitate the old will only be frustrating and wasted. Instead, focus your attention on where you are now or where you want to be going, and the object of your vision will show up without struggle or strain.

Some of our bags, as you can imagine, were quite heavy.

We were then told to carry this bag with us everywhere for one week, putting it beside our bed at night, on the car seat when driving, next to our desk at work.

The hassle of lugging this around with us made it clear what a weight we were carrying spiritually, and how we had to pay attention to it all the time to not forget, and keep leaving it in embarrassing places. Naturally, the condition of the potatoes deteriorated to a nasty slime.

This was a great metaphor for the price we pay for keeping our pain and heavy negativity! Too often we think of forgiveness as a gift to the other person, and while that's true, it clearly is also a gift for ourselves!

Moral:
So next time you decide you can't forgive someone, ask yourself-- Isn't MY bag heavy enough?

Mitt Romney - Some good points about Washington being liberal, but not a lot of energy or excitement in his delivery. Mitt does well in one on one interviews, but he seemed a bit unnatural tonight. I couldn't envision him delivering an acceptance speech. Obviously, neither could John McCain.

Mike Huckabee - I only caught a couple minutes of his speech but my impression was similar to that of Mitt Romney's speech. 

Rudy Giuliani - An excellent delivery, very natural, fiery. He really connected with the audience both at the convention center and at home. If he was using a teleprompter you couldn't tell. He got the crowd energized and ready for Sarah Palin.

Sarah Palin - At first I was nervous that she was coming across a bit stiff and that her speech would feel scripted. However, once she began talking about her family, she relaxed and took control of the crowd. A humorous, down to earth presentation. A gold medal performance. Her acceptance speech beat Obama's hands down in every category. If Barack Obama was emulating John F. Kennedy, then Sarah Palin was emulating Harry S. Truman and Obama is looking more and more like Dewey with every passing hour.

Note: Watching Governor Palin's children in the audience during the speech and on stage with her afterward, I found it easy to envision them as the children of our next Vice President. 

Videos of the speeches should be available at the 2008 Republican National Convention Website.

And others such as now, it is gentle and quiet and there is an immediate acceptance of this truth. Still hurts but I know that sometimes it is the littlest disappointments that really hurt the most.

I accept this fact with gratitude, grace and acceptance. Now I can finally live and not look back. And I can say this with happiness and joy for others.

First Diddy, and now Tyra has cast a transgendered woman, Isis, on her show.  I remember seeing Isis on MSNBC's documentary "Born in the Wrong Body" a few months ago.  I was so excited to see her on here and the fact that she is actually in the final group!  For the most part, I'm happy how they depicted her on this first episode.  I just hope that is how she really is and will be throughout the show.  Everyone around her is constantly talking about her (except for a hand full) and how weird they think she is.  My only wish is that they won't bring up her gender in all of the episodes unless it should become an issue among the girls (whom I hope they just kick-off the show).

Anyway, I think they are really doing something great with choosing her to be on the show.  Hopefully the outcome of this will be a positive one for the transgender community.

I know that ANTM will not give up the "character casting", but I think this contestant choice has redeemed them a little.

Plus, she kicks total ass when she models!!!

One day it was announced to the feelings that the island would sink, so all constructed boats and left. Except for Love.

Love was the only one who stayed. Love wanted to hold out until the last possible moment.

When the island had almost sunk, Love decided to ask for help.

Richness was passing by Love in a grand boat. Love said, "Richness, can you take me with you?"

Richness answered, "No, I can't. There is a lot of gold and silver in my boat. There is no place here for you."

Love decided to ask Vanity who was also passing by in a beautiful vessel. "Vanity, please help me!"

"I can't help you, Love. You are all wet and might damage my boat," Vanity answered.

Sadness was close by so Love asked, "Sadness, let me go with you."

"Oh . . . Love, I am so sad that I need to be by myself!"

Happiness passed by Love, too, but she was so happy that she did not even hear when Love called her.

Suddenly, there was a voice, "Come, Love, I will take you." It was an elder. So blessed and overjoyed, Love even forgot to ask the elder where they were going.
When they arrived at dry land, the elder went his own way.

Realizing how much was owed the elder, Love asked Knowledge, another elder, "Who helped me?"

"It was Time," Knowledge answered.

"Time?" asked Love. "But why did Time help me?"

Knowledge smiled with deep wisdom and answered, "Because only Time is capable of understanding how valuable Love is."

The other frog continued to jump as hard as he could. Once again, the crowd of frogs yelled at him to stop the pain and just die. He jumped even harder and finally made it out. When he got out, the other frogs said, "Did you not hear us?" The frog explained to them that he was deaf. He thought they were encouraging him the entire time.

Moral:
Be careful of what you say. Speak life to those who cross your path. The power of words... it is sometimes hard to understand that an encouraging word can go such a long way. Anyone can speak words that tend to rob another of the spirit to continue in difficult times. Special is the individual who will take the time to encourage another.

This story teaches two lessons:
1. There is power of life and death in the tongue. An encouraging word to someone who is down can lift them up and help them make it through the day.

2. A destructive word to someone who is down can be what it takes to kill them.

"Well," said the farmer, as he rubbed the sweat off the back of his neck, "these puppies come from fine parents and cost a good deal of money."

The boy dropped his head for a moment. Then reaching deep into his pocket, he pulled out a handful of change and held it up to the farmer. "I've got thirty-nine cents. Is that enough to take a look?"

"Sure," said the farmer.

And with that he let out a whistle, "Here, Dolly!" he called.

Out from the doghouse and down the ramp ran Dolly followed by four little balls of fur. The little boy pressed his face against the chain link fence. His eyes danced with delight.

As the dogs made their way to the fence, the little boy noticed something else stirring inside the doghouse. Slowly another little ball appeared; this One noticeably smaller. Down the ramp it slid. Then in a somewhat awkward manner the little pup began hobbling toward the others, doing its best to catch up....

"I want that one," the little boy said, pointing to the runt.

The farmer knelt down at the boy's side and said, "Son, you don't want that puppy. He will never be able to run and play with you like these other dogs would."

With that the little boy stepped back from the fence, reached down, and began rolling up one leg of his trousers. In doing so he revealed a steel brace running down both sides of his leg attaching itself to a specially made shoe. Looking back up at the farmer, he said, "You see sir, I don't run too well myself, and he will need someone who understands."

Moral:
The world is full of people who need someone who understands.

Michael is finishing up his last week at work and will be on military leave until he returns next year.  Ugh.  It's all I can say.  The next 3 weeks are going too fast and I wish I can just push the "stop" button and freeze everything around us.  I would hold him, smell his skin, look at his hands, gaze into his eyes, just 'be' with him.  I would much rather deal with his breakfast dishes on the coffee table, dirty socks at the door, clean and folded clothes that never made their way to the closet but to the top of the dresser...I would take all of these things and every crazy annoying thing he does just as long as he could stay here with me...heck I wouldn't even nag him about it for an entire year just as long as he gets to stay safe with me. 

I was half in and out of sleep last night, I had a fever when I got home from work and he cozied me into my favorite blanket and made me something to eat...and I fell asleep shortly after that...but I remember him whispering into my ear.  He does that sometimes and often I can't remember exactly what it was he said, but last night he touched me when he whispered, "I am so in love with you, even though I am leaving I will be with you always because God gave me to you, please remember that and trust in Him."  This man is an anomaly.  He loves me with all that he is and I prayed ever since I was a little girl for him. 

Acceptance is taking over my bitterness that he has to go, I know that it's temporary but it still hurts.  I accept it.  I am finding myself getting less and less angry with him, it's not his fault and if he could change it and take it back he would, but like he tells me all of the time, "Terra I am a man of God, he made me a fighter, and he made me strong for a reason and if I am called to duty then God is the reason I do it."  For any of you that personally know Michael then you know what a big heart he has, you know that he would do anything for anyone.  I am proud of my husband for doing a job where he puts his life up for so many others that have to think twice about risking it all.  Thank you Michael, thank you to every soldier out there that has risked their life and given it their all while you and me can be safe and surrounded by those we love.  I want to thank all of the Military wives and families...thank you for accepting the duty of your husbands, brothers, sisters, children so that they can be beside my husband through battle.  He wasn't alone in Iraq and he won't be alone this deployment, I rest in that thought and I am thankful.