The Pretty Lady

Once upon a time a big monk and a little monk were travelling together. They came to the bank of a river and found the bridge was damaged. They had to wade across the river. There was a pretty lady who was stuck at the damaged bridge and couldn't cross the river. The big monk offered to carry her across the river on his back... The lady accepted. 

The little monk was shocked by the move of the big monk. 'How can big brother carry a lady when we are supposed to avoid all intimacy with females?' thought the little monk. But he kept quiet. The big monk carried the lady across the river and the small monk followed unhappily. When they crossed the river, the big monk let the lady down and they parted ways with her. 

All along the way for several miles, the little monk was very unhappy with the act of the big monk.. He was making up all kinds of accusations about big monk in his head. This got him madder and madder. But he still kept quiet. And the big monk had no inclination to explain his situation. 

Finally, at a rest point many hours later, the little monk could not stand it any further, he burst out angrily at the big monk. 'How can you claim yourself a devout monk, when you seize the first opportunity to touch a female, especially when she is very pretty? All your teachings to me make you a big hypocrite '

The big monk looked surprised and said, 'I had put down the pretty lady at the river bank many hours ago, how come you are still carrying her along?' 

This very old Chinese Zen story reflects the thinking of many people today. We encounter many unpleasant things in our life, they irritate us and they make us angry. Sometimes, they cause us a lot of hurt, sometimes they cause us to be bitter or jealous. But like the little monk, we are not willing to let them go away. We keep on carrying the baggage of the 'pretty lady' with us. We let them keep on coming back to hurt us, make us angry, make us bitter and cause us a lot of agony. 

We should ‘let go of the pretty lady’ immediately after crossing the river, that is after the unpleasant event is over. This will immediately remove all our agonies. There is no need to be further hurt by the unpleasant event after it is over.

Isn't It Nice

              Two delicate blossoms of Southern femininity, one from Mississippi and the other from Texas, were conversing on the porch swing of a large white-pillared mansion. The Mississippian said, “When my first child was born, my husband built this beautiful mansion for me.” 

              The Texan lady commented, “Well, isn’t that nice?” 

              The lady from Mississippi continued, ‘’When my second child was born, my husband bought me that fine Cadillac automobile you see parked in the drive.’’ 

              Again, the Texas lady commented, “Well, isn’t that nice?” 

              The first woman boasted, “Then, when my third child was born, my husband bought me this exquisite diamond bracelet.’’ 

              Yet again, the Texas lady commented, “Well, isn’t that nice?” 

              The first woman then asked her companion, “What did you husband buy for you when you had your first child?”

              The Texas lady replied, “My husband sent me to charm school.” 

              “Charm school!’’ the first woman cried. “Land sakes, child, what on Earth for?’’ 

              The Texas lady responded, “So that instead of saying, ‘Who gives a crap,’ I learned to say, ‘Well, isn’t that nice?’’’

Time

Time like tide waits for no man. Even as you finish reading that sentence and perceive the message it conveys, it would have perhaps taken you about five to eight seconds. And those precious seconds are gone from your life forever. Irretrievable.

This fact can be quite frightening to us if we can fully understand the implication of what it means to lose every second of our lives without making full use of them or gaining something beneficial in return.

We have somehow taken this fact for granted, like we did for so many other things in life. We have let each day passes by followed by weeks, months and eventually years. We've all grown older each day, but we may not necessarily have grown wiser.

- Author Unknown

Effect Of Soya On Cholesterol.

Here we go again. More studies and reports on the Soya. Please refer to my earlier post on September 22,(under Health), "Soya - Good or Bad for Health". 

The claim: Soya can lower cholesterol

The facts: Soya foods have been credited with all sorts of health benefits, but perhaps none as appealing as this assertion.

              The notion was cemented in 1999, when the United States Food and Drug Administration allowed companies to claim that 25g of soya protein a day, in a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, “may reduce the risk of heart disease”. The agency evaluated studies and concluded that soya protein could cut cholesterol.

               However, studies since have raised doubts. In 2006, an American Heart Association advisory panel reviewed a decade of studies and determined that soya products had no significant effects on “good” cholesterol or HDL, or triglycerides (fat in the blood), and little or no ability to lower “bad” cholesterol or LDL.

               Another study, published in August in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, found that consuming 24g of soya protein daily had no “significant effect on plasma LDL” in people with mildly elevated cholesterol.

               However, another line of research shows that soya seems to help when combined with foods low in fat and high in fibre.

The bottom line: There is evidence soya can improve cholesterol, but the jury is still out.

- The New York Times 

Ripples On The Pond

My grandfather took me to the fish pond on the farm when I was about seven, and he told me to throw a stone into the water. He told me to watch the circles created by the stone. Then he asked me to think of myself as that stone person. 

“You may create lots of splashes in your life but the waves that come from those splashes will disturb the peace of all your fellow creatures,” he said. “Remember that you are responsible for what you put in your circle and that circle will also touch many other circles. You will need to live in a way that allows the good that comes from your circle to send the peace of that goodness to others. The splash that comes from anger or jealousy will send those feelings to other circles. You are responsible for both.” 

That was the first time I realized each person creates the inner peace or discord that flows out into the world. We cannot create world peace if we are riddled with inner conflict, hatred, doubt, or anger. We radiate the feelings and thoughts that we hold inside, whether we speak them or not. Whatever is splashing around inside of us is spilling out into the world, creating beauty or discord with all other circles of life. 

- Source Unknown

Loving You…

If I can’t be generous and supportive, I’ll at least try not to stand in your way. Loving you means wanting you to grow.

I won’t put my problems onto you. You have enough problems, I’m certain, and you don’t need mine. My love should simplify your life, not complicate it.

I don’t always have to be right. I can accept the fact that you are right as often as I am. Loving is sharing with each other. If I already know I’m right, I’ll never profit from your insight.

I don’t have to be perfect, nor do you. Love is a celebration of our humanness, not our perfection. I don’t want to change you. 

If I want you in my life, the best thing for both of us is for me to accept you as you are. After all, love is moving forward together in mutual growth.

I don’t need to place blame. Since I’m an adult who makes decisions based upon personal experience, there is no one to blame for a poor decision except myself. Love puts the responsibility where it belongs.

I can give up expectations. To wish is one thing, to expect is another. One brings hope, the other can bring pain. Love is free of expectations.

To love is the greatest of human experiences and sooner or later we all realize that without it life is empty and meaningless. 

Love is always worth the effort, even if it brings confusion, uncertainty and pain in the process. A loving relationship should be a celebration all its own. 

- Leo Buscaglia 

Today

This is another one from my scrap book - one of the many articles I collected 

              The past is over. It is finished. It has brought you to where you are right now. You can learn much from it. You can carry its experiences with you always. Yet you cannot go back. 

              You cannot relive the past. You can do something much, much better. You can make your life from this point on the best that it can be. 

              Today is a new day with even more possibilities than any day that you’ve ever known in the past. Today is your opportunity, here and now, real and ready. 

              If you think you’re too old or too late or too this or too that, you’re absolutely wrong. You're precisely in the right spot, at the right time, to make a real, positive difference in your life and in the world around you. 

              Today is the best opportunity anyone could ever imagine, because what you do with today is completely up to you. 

              Make it the best day ever! 

- Source Unknown 

More Water May Not Help Skin

 The claim: Drinking lots of water is good for your skin.

The facts: By now, the old saw about drinking eight glasses of water a day has been thoroughly debunked. However, a similar adage about excess water and healthy skin persists, even though there is no evidence that drinking anything more than recommended amounts of water is particularly beneficial to skin.

              A 2007 study on the effects of water consumption did show that drinking 500ml of water, about two cups, increased blood flow to the skin. A good sign, but there was no evidence that it reduced wrinkles or improve complexion.

              Dr. Margaret E. Parson, a spokesman for the American Academy of Dermatology, said: “if we are eating and drinking what we should, our bodies are healthier and therefore our skin as well.”

              Her advice? Always wear sunscreen, avoid cigarettes and eat well.

The bottom line: There is little evidence that excess water helps the skin.

- The New York Times 

A Farmer And His Frogs

              A farmer came into town and asked the owner of a restaurant if he could use a million frog legs. The restaurant owner was shocked and asked the man where he could get so many frog legs! The farmer replied, “There is a pond near my house that is full of frogs - millions of them. They croak all during the night and are about to drive me crazy!” 

              So the restaurant and the farmer made an agreement that the farmer would deliver frogs to the restaurant five hundred at a time for the next several weeks. 

              The first week, the farmer returned to the restaurant looking rather sheepish, with two scrawny little frogs. The restaurant owner said, “Well...where are all the frogs?” 

              The farmer said, “I was mistaken. There were only these two frogs in the pond. But they sure were making a lot of noise!” 

              Next time you hear somebody criticizing or making fun of you, remember it’s probably just a couple of noisy frogs. Also - remember that problems always seem bigger in the dark. Have you ever laid in your bed at night worrying about things which seem almost overwhelming - like a million frogs croaking? Chances are pretty good that when the morning comes, and you take a closer look, you’ll wonder what all the fuss was about. 

The Mystery-Lover

A mystery-lover take his place in the theatre for opening night, but his seat is way back in the theatre, far from the stage. 

The man calls an usher over and whispers, “I just love a good mystery, and I have been anxiously anticipating the opening of this play. However, in order to carefully follow the clues and fully enjoy the play, I have to watch a mystery close up. Look how far away I am! If you can get me a better seat, I’ll give you a handsome tip.” 

The usher nods and says he will be back shortly. 

Looking forward to a large tip, the usher speaks with his co-workers in the box office, hoping to find some closer tickets. With just three minutes left until curtain, he finds an unused ticket at the Will Call window and snatches it up. 

Returning to the man in the back of the theatre, he whispers, “Follow me.” 

The usher leads the man down to the second row, and proudly points out the empty seat right in the middle. 

“Thanks so much,” says the mystery-lover, “This seat is perfect.” He then hands the usher a quarter. 

The usher looks down at the quarter, leans over and whispers, “The butler did it in the parlour with the candlestick.”