Metaphor

Consider a man riding a bicycle. Whoever he is, we can say three things about him. We know he got on the bicycle and started to move. We know that at some point he will stop and get off. Most important of all, we know that if, at any point between the beginning and the end of his journey he stops moving and does not get off the bicycle, he will fall off it. That is a metaphor for the journey through life of any living thing, and I think of any society of living things.

- William Golding

Life is ... Quotes

Life is like arriving late for a movie, having to figure out what was going on without bothering everybody with a lot of questions, and then being unexpectedly called away before you find out how it ends. - Joseph Campbell

Life is like a game of chess, in which there are an infinite number of complex moves possible. The choice is open, but the move contains within itself all future moves. One is free to choose, but what may follow is the result of one’s choice. - Unknown

Life is more than simply being born, growing up and maturing. If life’s meaning is to be discovered, it is intrinsic in each stage as we assume the challenge of actualising every moment of every day as we live it. - Leo Buscaglia

Life is like a blanket too short. You pull it up and your toes rebel, you yank it down and shivers meander about your shoulder; but cheerful folks manage to draw their knees up and pass a very comfortable night. - Marion Howard

Life is the movie you see through your own eyes. It makes little difference what's happening out there. It's how you take it that counts. - Denis Waitley

Life is not always what one wants it to be, but to make the best of it, as it is, is the only way of being happy. - Jennie Jerome Churchill

Life is a dynamic process. It welcomes anyone who takes up the invitation to be an active part of it. - Leo Buscaglia

Life is what we make it, always has been, always will be. To get more out of life, give more of yourself. - Unknown

There is no shortcut to life. To the end of our days, life is a lesson imperfectly learned. - Unknown

Life has to be lived to be understood. Like a book, or movie, you have to read or see it to fully appreciate it. - Unknown

Life is unchartered territory. It reveals its story one moment at a time. - Unknown

Life is a succession of lessons which must be lived to be understood. - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Life is a one-way street. You cannot u-turn. - Unknown

Life is like two cups of tea. One is bitter; the other sweet. You either choose to drink the bitter tea now and the sweet one later; or the other way round. - Unknown

Life is like a burning candle; you never know when it will end or what will cause it to end. - Unknown

Life is never-ending struggle where winnings and failures are not permanent occasions. - Unknown

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away! - Unknown

Life is like an onion. You peel it off a layer at a time and sometimes it makes you weep. - Unknown

Life is a grindstone. Whether it grinds you down or polishes you up depends upon what you are made of. - Unknown

Life is like a roll of toilet paper. The closer it gets to the end, the faster it goes. - Unknown

Life is a battle in which we fall from wounds we receive in running away. - Unknown

Life is a quarry, out of which we are to mould and chisel and complete a character. - Samuel Butler

Life is like an ever-shifting kaleidoscope - a slight change, and all patterns alter. - Sharon Salzberg

Life is like a play: it's not the length, but the excellence of the acting that matters. - Seneca

Life is like a coin. You can spend it any way you wish, but you only spend it once. - Lillian Dickson

Life is a perpetual instruction in cause and effect. - Ralph Waldo Emerson

The Meaning of Life

Do you know the meaning of Life? Let us see what life means to some people and how others define the meaning of life.

For the meaning of life differs from man to man, from day to day and from hour to hour. What matters, therefore, is not the meaning of life in general but rather the specific meaning of a person's life at a given moment. - Viktor E. Frankl

It is while you are patiently toiling at the little tasks of life that the meaning and shape of the great whole of life dawn on you. - Phillips Brooks

Life is a mystery. You cannot understand it unless you surrender, for your intellect cannot grasp its expansive and infinite nature, its real meaning and fullness. Bow down low and be humble; then you will know life's meaning. - Unknown

Anyone can carry his burden, however hard, until, nightfall. Anyone can do his work, however hard, for one day. Anyone can live sweetly, patiently, lovingly, purely, till the sun goes down. And this is all that life really means. - Robert Luis Stevenson

Life is without meaning. You bring the meaning to it. The meaning of life is whatever you ascribe it to be. - Joseph Campbell

What life means to us is determined not so much by what life brings to us as by the attitude we bring to life; not so much by what happens to us as by our reaction to what happens. - Lewis L. Dunnington

There is not one big cosmic meaning for all, there is only the meaning we each give to our life, an individual meaning, an individual plot, like an individual novel, a book for each person. - Anais Nin

And your definition of the meaning of life is ....?

Art of living

All of us tend to put off living. Life’s concern is not with the future but with the present. When shall we live if not now? Relax and enjoy life. You will never live this day again. Make the best of everything in life. Do not waste life in doubts and fears.

The majority of us lead quiet, unheralded lives as we pass through this world. There will most likely be no ticker-tape parades for us, no monuments created in our honour. But that does not lessen our possible impact, for there are scores of people waiting for someone just like us to come along; people who will appreciate our compassion, our encouragement, who will need our unique talents; someone who will live a happier life merely because we took the time to share what we had to give. - Unknown

No, life may not be easy, it can be lonely. Full of people we think we know, but barely comprehend. Yet we must always remember: it's the challenges that define us best, and the obstacles that illuminate what we're truly capable of. We must welcome adversity and embrace struggle, and no matter what we get from life, never give less than 100 percent. Of course, at the end of every battle weary day, we fold ourselves into peaceful darkness and find comfort in those gentle words . . . good night. - Jim Profit

In the game of life, it is a good idea to have a few early losses, which relieve you of the pressure of trying to maintain an undefeated season. - Bill Vaughan

Remember that you ought to behave in life as you would at a banquet. As something is being passed around it comes to you; stretch out your hand, take a portion of it politely. It passes on; do not detain it. Or if it has not come to you yet; do not project your desire to meet it, but wait until it comes in front of you. – Epictetus

Isn't it sad to go to your grave without ever wondering why you were born? Who, with such a thought, would not spring from bed, eager to resume discovering the world and rejoicing to be part of it? - Richard Dawkins

Live your life each day as you would climb a mountain. An occasional glance toward the summit keeps the goal in mind, but many beautiful scenes are to be observed from each new vantage point. Climb slowly, steadily, enjoying each passing moment; and the view from the summit will serve as a fitting climax for the journey. - Harold V. Melchert

The clock of life is wound but once, and no man has the power to tell just when the hand will stop. At late or early hour. Now is the only time you own. Live, love, toil with a will. Place no faith in tomorrow for the clock may then be still. - Unknown

Everything in life is temporary. So if things are going good, enjoy it because it won't last forever. And if things are gong bad, don't worry because it won't last forever either. - Unknown

The art of living lies less in eliminating our troubles than in growing with them. - Unknown

The tragedy of life is not that it ends so soon, but that we wait so long to begin it. - Richard L. Evans

The busier we are, the more acutely we feel that we live, the more conscious we are of life. - Immanuel Kant

The whole of life of the individual is nothing but the process of giving birth to himself; indeed the greatest tragedy in life was the fact that most human beings died before they were fully born. - Erich Fromm

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 the days of your life. - Unknown

Do not grasp at the stars, but do life’s plain, common work as it comes, certain that daily duties and daily bread are the sweetest things in life. - Robert Louis Stevenson

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 the days of your life. - Unknown

Life is not a hundred yard dash, but more a cross-country run. If we sprint all the time, we not only fail to win the race, but never even last long enough to reach the finish line. - Unknown

Life is like walking across a suspended tightrope. If one does not concentrate on looking ahead, but keeps looking back instead, one will surely fall. - Unknown

You do not need all the answers to be successful in life. You only need to be adjustable as you cruise along. - Unknown

“Uncertainty” is the key word in our lives. We must live with uncertainty and steer our ship through life’s perilous paths. - Unknown

The art of life lies in constant readjustment to our surroundings; the wisdom of life consists of the elimination of nonessentials. Unknown

Cease trying to work everything out with your minds. It will get you nowhere. Live by intuition and inspiration and let your whole life be Revelation. - Eileen Caddy

The art of life is to show your hand. There is no diplomacy like candour. You may lose by it now and then, but it will be a loss well gained if you do. Nothing is so boring as having to keep up a deception. - Edward Verrall Lucas

Live in such a way that you would not be ashamed to sell your parrot to the town gossip. - Will Rogers

Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be live forwards. - Soren Kierkegaard

All the art of living lies in a fine mingling of letting go and holding on. - Unknown

Differences Between You And Your Boss

When you take a long time, you are slow.

When your boss takes a long time, he is thorough.

When you do not do it, you are lazy.

When your boss does not do it, he is too busy.

When you make a mistake, you are an idiot.

When your boss makes a mistake, he is only human.

When doing something without being told, you are overstepping your authority.

When your boss does the same thing, that is initiative.

When you take a stand, you are being bull-headed.

When your boss does it, he is being firm.

When you overlook a rule of etiquette, you are being rude.

When your boss skips a few rules, he is being original.

When you please your boss, you are apple polishing.

When your boss pleases his boss, he is being co-operative.

When you are out of the office, you are wandering around.

When your boss is out of the office, he is on business.

When you are on a day off sick, you are always sick.

When your boss is a day off sick, he must be very ill.

When you apply for leave, you must be going for an interview.

When your boss applies for leave, it is because he is overworked.

When you get angry it is because you are ill-tempered.

When you boss gets angry, it just happens that his nerves are bothering him.

When you spend your pay-check in twenty four hours, it is because you are a spendthrift...

When you boss spends his pay-check in twenty four hours, it is because he is generous.

When you take a long time to do a job, it is because you are unbearably slow and pokey.

When you boss takes a long time to do a job, it is because he believes in quality workmanship.

When you do not like someone it is because you are prejudiced.

When your boss does not like someone, he just happens to be a good judge of human nature.

When you compliment people it is because you use flattery to get your way.

When you boss compliments people, he is encouraging them.

When you stay in bed until eleven am, it is because you are a lazy good-for-nothing...

When you boss stays in bed a little longer, it is because he is totally exhausted.

Attitude towards life

Your attitude towards life determines the quality of your life.

If logic tells you that life is a meaningless accident, do not give up on life. Give up on logic. - Shira Milgrom

Focus on what you have; on the fact that you have a roof over your head, you can eat healthy foods, you do have a job or even if you don’t, that you are capable of getting a job. Learn to appreciate your friends, family and the environment around you. Unknown

Appreciate the little things you are able to do every day, simply because you can do them. Rather than focusing on a sore ankle or leg when you go for a walk, or the fact that it’s overcast or even raining, appreciate that you can still go for a walk. Unknown

Think positively and masterfully, with confidence and faith, and life becomes more secure, more fraught with action, richer in achievement and experience. - Eddie Rickenbacker

Life may not be the party we hoped for, but while we're here we should dance. Unknown

Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass, it's about learning to dance in the rain. Unknown

Life is under no obligation to give us what we expect. We take what we get and are thankful it is no worse than it is. - Margaret Mitchell

Most of us will have so little respect for life that we will reach the point of death without ever having lived at all. - Thoreau

Joy in one's heart and some laughter on one's lips is a sign that the person down deep has a pretty good grasp of life. - Hugh Sidey

Of Life ...

I believe that life is a journey, often difficult and sometimes incredibly cruel, but we are well equipped for it if only we tap into our talents and gifts and allow them to blossom. - Les Brown

The only real obstacle in your path to a fulfilling life is you, and that can be a considerable obstacle because you carry the baggage of insecurities and past experience. - Les Brown

You are the architect and builder of your own life, fortune, and destiny. - Alfred Montapert

Your life ends when your body stops functioning. However, keeping your body alive alone does not equate to living. Unknown

Know where you are going in life. Purpose is what gives life a meaning. A life that has not a definite plan is likely to become driftwood. Unknown

There comes a time in your life when you have to let go of the life you planned and live the life you were meant to live. Unknown

The whole of life, from the moment you are born to the moment you die, is a process of learning. - Jiddu Krishnamurti

The road of life can only reveal itself as it is traveled; each turn in the road reveals a surprise. Man's future is hidden. Unknown

Life is easier to take than you think; all that is necessary is to accept the impossible, do without the indispensable and bear the intolerable. - Kathleen Norris

Acceptance of one's life has nothing to do with resignation; it does not mean running away from the struggle. On the contrary, it means accepting it as it comes, with all the handicaps of heredity, of suffering, of psychological complexes and injustices. - Dr. Paul Tournier

Your life is the sum result of all the choices you make, both consciously and unconsciously. If you can control the process of choosing, you can take control of all aspects of your life. - Robert F. Bennett

No one ever ruined his eyesight by looking at the bright side of life. Unknown

The ingredients of health and long life, are great temperance, open air, easy labour, and little care. - Philip Sidney

You only live once, but if you work it right, once is enough. - Joe Lewis

Life may be short, but there is more than enough time for anyone to achieve something significant. Unknown

The prime time of life is that fleeting moment between green and over ripe. Unknown

No life is so hard that you cannot make it easier by the way you take it. Unknown

You can't do anything about the length of your life, but you can do something about its width and depth. - Evan Esar

The law of life is ever urging us to grow in every way. Life demands that we adjust to the circumstances of our daily existence. Unknown

In three words I can sum up everything I've ever learned about life: It goes on. - Robert Frost

The shaping of our own life is our own work. It is a thing of beauty, or a thing of shame, as we ourselves make it. - Henry Ware

Your living is determined not so much by what life brings to you as by the attitude you bring to life; not so much by what happens to you as by the way your mind looks at what happens. - Kahlil Gibran

No matter how good things are in your life, there is always something bad that needs to be worked on. And no matter how bad things are in your life, there is always something good you can thank God for. - Rick Warren

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 savoured each step of the way. Unknown

Thoughts on Life

Most of us, swimming against tides of trouble the world knows nothing about, need only a bit of praise or encouragement and we'll make the goal. Say "Thank you!" whenever you think of it. Say "Nice job!" to that workman who put extra effort into his task. Say "Atta boy!" to the fellow who is struggling through in the face of odds. You'll get a whale of a lot of joy out of life that way. And people will love you. - Jerome P. Fleishman

Life is difficult. This is a great truth, one of the greatest truths. It is a great truth because once we truly see this truth, we transcend it. Once we truly know that life is difficult - once we truly understand and accept it - then life is no longer difficult. Because once it is accepted, the fact that life is difficult no longer matters. - M. Scott Peck

The battle of life is, in most cases, fought uphill; and to win it without a struggle were perhaps to win it without honour. If there were no difficulties there would be no success; if there were nothing to struggle for, there would be nothing to be achieved. - Samuel Smiles

Life has a self-correcting mechanism - things that we once thought were terrible have a way of becoming stepping stones for new discoveries. - Raymond Soh

The law of worthy life is fundamentally the law of strife. It is only through labour and painful effort, by grim energy and resolute courage, that we move on to better things. - Theodore Roosevelt

In everyone's life, at some time, our inner fire goes out. It is then burst into flame by an encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit. - Albert Schweitzer

He who wants to do a great deal of good at once will never do anything. Life is made up of little things. True greatness consists in being great in little things. - Charles Simmons

Moment to moment, there are aspects of life that we like, and other we don't. There are always going to be people who disagree with you, people who do things differently, and things that don't work out. If you fight against this principle of life, you'll spend most of your life fighting battles. - R. Carlson

Life is tragic simply because the earth turns and the sun inexorably rises and sets, and one day, for each of us, the sun will go down for the last, last time. - James Baldwin

Living is a form of not being sure, not knowing what next or how. We guess. We may be wrong, but we take leap after leap in the dark. - Agnes de Mille

One of the secrets of life is to make stepping stones out of stumbling blocks. - Unknown

Life asks of every individual a contribution and it is up to that individual to discover what it should be. - Viktor Frnakl

I should have no objection to go over the same life from its beginning to the end: requesting only the advantage authors have, of correcting in a second edition, the faults of the first. - Benjamin Franklin

Some Jokes

For weeks, a six-year old lad kept telling his first-grade teacher about the baby brother or sister that was expected at his house.

One day the mother allowed the boy to feel the movements of the unborn child. The six-year old was obviously impressed, but he made no comment. Furthermore, he stopped telling his teacher about the impending event.

The teacher finally sat the boy on her lap and said, “Tommy, whatever has become of that baby brother or sister you were expecting at home?”

Tommy burst into tears and confessed, “I think Mommy ate it!”

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A certain little girl, when asked her name, would reply, “I’m Mr Sugarbrown’s daughter.’’

Her mother told her this was wrong, she must say, “I’m Jane Sugarbrown.’’

The Vicar spoke to her in Sunday School, and said, “Aren’t you Mr Sugarbrown’s daughter?’’

She replied, “I thought I was, but mother says I’m not.”

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Early one morning, a mother went in to wake up her son. “Wake up, son. It’s time to go to school!”

“But why, Mom? I don’t want to go.”

“Give me two reasons why you don’t want to go.”

“Well, the kids hate me for one, and the teachers hate me, too!’’

“Oh, that’s no reason not to go to school. Come on now and get ready.”

“Give me two reasons why I should go to school.”

“Well, for one, you’re fifty-two years old. And for another, you’re the principal.’’

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The mother enrolled her precocious six-year-old son at the new progressive school. When the school director interviewed the boy, he asked, “Are you a boy or a girl?”

The child immediately answered, “A girl.”

Quite taken back, the director then asked, “And when you grow up, will you be a man or a woman?”

The child answered, “A woman, of course.”

The alarmed director called a conference with the child’s mother and said, I’m afraid that your child is psychologically impaired and needs professional attention.”

On the way home, the mother calmly questioned her son: “Tommy, why did you say that you were a girl?”

Tommy answered: “When anyone asks me such a dumb question, they deserve a dumb answer.”

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A little girl asked her mother, “Can I go outside and play with the boys?”

Her mother replied, "”No, you can’t play with the boys, they’re too rough.”

The little girl thought about it for a few moments and asked, “If I can find a smooth one, can I play with him?”

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Teacher: Simon, your composition on ‘My Dog’ is exactly the same as your brother’s. Did you copy his?

Simon: No, teacher, it’s the same dog!

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Boy: Mum, teacher was asking me today if I have any brothers or sisters who will be coming to school.

Mother: That’s nice of her to take such an interest, dear. What did she say when you told her you are the only child?

Boy: She just said, “Thank goodness!”

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Teacher: Well, at least there’s one thing I can say about your son.

Parent: What’s that?

Teacher: With grades like these, he couldn’t be cheating.

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Said the small boy to the little girl sitting next to him in class, “Are you the opposite sex, or am I”

Long-range View

A man sentenced to death obtained a reprieve by assuring the king he would teach his majesty's horse to fly within the year - on the condition that if he didn't succeed, he would be put to death at the end of the year. "Within a year," the man explained later, "the king may die, or I may die, or the horse may die. Furthermore, in a year, who knows? Maybe the horse will learn to fly."

My philosophy is like that man's. I take the long-range view. - Bernard Baruch

Never Feed The Foxes

Never feed the foxes! What does that mean?

Breaking commandments is like feeding foxes.

In England where we live, my wife and I had heard that foxes were right in town. We wanted to see a fox.

A neighbour told us that if we left food for the foxes we probably would see one. Our butcher gave us some bones. Each night we would place some bones out in the backyard.

Soon a fox came to eat. Then a few more. Now we have at least five foxes racing through our flower garden, digging up the lawn, and leaving a shamble every night, sort of like a furry Jurassic Park.

What started out as a curiosity is now a problem, and sin is much the same. An indiscretion can begin a process that can make a mess of a whole life.

Remember, if you don't start feeding the foxes, they will never tear up your yard. If you avoid making the seemingly small and harmless mistakes, your life will be free of many larger problems later on.

- Hugh W. Pinnock

The Banker And The Fisherman

            

 An investment banker was on the pier of a small coastal village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. His boat was full of beautiful yellow tuna. The banker complimented the fisherman on his catch, asking how long it took to catch. The fisherman replied, “Only a short time.”

            The banker asked why not stay out and catch more. The fisherman replied, “I’ve enough fish to feed my family.”

            The banker then asked what did the fisherman do with the rest of his time, he replied, “I will sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take a siesta with my wife, stroll into the village each evening, sip wine with my friends, play my guitar, I have a full and busy life.”

            The banker was not impressed. “I have a Harvard MBA and could help you. You should spend more time fishing and with the proceeds buy a bigger boat and from those increased proceeds you could buy several boats and soon have a fleet. Instead of selling your fish to a middleman, you could control production, processing and distribution by building your own cannery. You could leave this small coastal village and move to the city then to New York where you could run your expanding enterprise.”

            The fisherman asked, “How long will this take?”

            The banker said, “Ten to twenty years.”

            “But what then?”

            “Next you would announce an IPO and sell your stock to the public, making millions and millions. Then you could retire to a small coastal village where you could sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take a siesta with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings, sip wine and play your guitar with your friends,” said the banker smiling.

            The fisherman looked puzzled, “I don’t understand this, you are suggesting that I should go one big loop so as to end up where I am today, happily fishing on the cliff?”

            Are you trying to be like the man above, going a full circle to end up being at the same place?

Life’s Observations

- Behind every successful man, there is a woman. And behind every unsuccessful man, there are two.

- No one ever says it is only a game, when their team is winning.

- By the time we got our head together, the body fell apart.

- You cannot have everything, where would you put it all?

- Ever notice that anyone driving slower than you is an idiot, but anyone going faster is a maniac?

- Everybody is somebody else’s weirdo.

- Some people are no good at counting calories – and they have got the figures to show it.

- Needing someone is like needing a parachute. If he is not there the first time you need him, chances are you would not be needing him again.

- It is hard to understand how a cemetery raised its burial cost and blamed it on the cost of living.

- The mind not only wanders; sometimes it leaves completely.

- God put me on earth to accomplish a certain number of things. Right now I am so far behind, I will live forever.

- It is frustrating when you know all the answers, but nobody bothers to ask you the questions.

- Time may be a great healer, but it is also a lousy beautician.

- Age does not always bring wisdom. Sometimes age comes alone.

- The things that come to those that wait may be the things left by those who got there first.

- When you cannot raise the rent, do not worry. The landlord will usually raise it for you.

- Real friends are the ones who survive transitions between address books.

- Despite the cost of living, have you noticed how it remains so popular?

I Am Back

Much as I enjoyed my holidays, it is always nice to come home. Humble as it may be, home is where the heart is – home, sweet home!

Arrived in Singapore - Changi Airport, at 10 minutes to midnight on Thursday, first of May. An uneventful, but long and tedious journey. It was a twenty-nine hours journey, from airport to airport, including lay-overs. Really exhausted by the time I arrived home.

On the whole, it was a very enjoyable, and relaxing home-stay holiday - thanks to the hospitality of my friends. I stayed with friends in Palm Harbour, Tampa – Florida. An affluent but small and quiet town, where the average age of the population is over forty years.

The whole holiday was generally, eating, drinking, sleeping, lazing by the pool and a little shopping. The weather was wonderful. I was told this is the best time to visit.

Did not do much sight-seeing this trip. I did however, went to an Air Show which happened to be on. And on another occasion, I visited Universal Studios. That was interesting.

Now that holidays are over, it is back to reality. Give me some time to settle down, and to settle any outstanding matters, and I will be back with more postings.