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The Spoken Word - “Pass It On!”
Life’s true treasures are those we can share with
others without ever reducing our own supply.
Traits like kindness, courage, and happiness
have no expiration dates. They can be
transferred from life to life and shared from
generation to generation, with each new
reflection further brightening the world.
Among the most ennobling aspects of the human
family is our ability to share what we feel and to
teach what we know. By sharing the things that
have enriched our lives, we make the world a
better place. Through explanation and example,
we can increase our own joy by offering it to
others. As one expressed it: “Have you had a
kindness shown? Pass it on!”
The inherent powers of kindness, courage, and
happiness lie in their ability to reproduce
themselves when shared. Even the simplest acts
of generosity and goodness may be amplified by
grateful human hearts until they reach eternity. In
ever-widening ripples - like those that silently
spread after a rock is thrown into still pond - the
influence of doing good to a single individual
may expand in every direction.
By passing on the best that we know and the
best that we are, we are changing the
world - sometimes even during our daily
routines. A new mother gently rocks her baby to
sleep with a lullaby she learned from her
grandmother. In snarled traffic a patient driver
allows someone to merge, and that car’s grateful
driver extends the same courtesy to others.
Members of a family extend the same warm
welcome they received when they moved into
the neighborhood to the next new arrivals.
Each day we have the chance to blaze trails of
character and compassion that our families can
follow. Each day we can share our happiness
with friends and offer kindness to strangers. And
each day we can be courageous and patient in
enduring our trials. Ultimately, what we pass on
to others will outlive us.
We become architects of eternity when we live
the present moment well, using unselfish hands
to share lasting values and to create timeless
memories. Some of life’s most enduring and
inspiring gifts will forever bless the lives of others
if we will simply remember to pass them on.
by Lloyd D. Newell (1 March 1998)
Life’s true treasures are those we can share with
others without ever reducing our own supply.
Traits like kindness, courage, and happiness
have no expiration dates. They can be
transferred from life to life and shared from
generation to generation, with each new
reflection further brightening the world.
Among the most ennobling aspects of the human
family is our ability to share what we feel and to
teach what we know. By sharing the things that
have enriched our lives, we make the world a
better place. Through explanation and example,
we can increase our own joy by offering it to
others. As one expressed it: “Have you had a
kindness shown? Pass it on!”
The inherent powers of kindness, courage, and
happiness lie in their ability to reproduce
themselves when shared. Even the simplest acts
of generosity and goodness may be amplified by
grateful human hearts until they reach eternity. In
ever-widening ripples - like those that silently
spread after a rock is thrown into still pond - the
influence of doing good to a single individual
may expand in every direction.
By passing on the best that we know and the
best that we are, we are changing the
world - sometimes even during our daily
routines. A new mother gently rocks her baby to
sleep with a lullaby she learned from her
grandmother. In snarled traffic a patient driver
allows someone to merge, and that car’s grateful
driver extends the same courtesy to others.
Members of a family extend the same warm
welcome they received when they moved into
the neighborhood to the next new arrivals.
Each day we have the chance to blaze trails of
character and compassion that our families can
follow. Each day we can share our happiness
with friends and offer kindness to strangers. And
each day we can be courageous and patient in
enduring our trials. Ultimately, what we pass on
to others will outlive us.
We become architects of eternity when we live
the present moment well, using unselfish hands
to share lasting values and to create timeless
memories. Some of life’s most enduring and
inspiring gifts will forever bless the lives of others
if we will simply remember to pass them on.
by Lloyd D. Newell (1 March 1998)
- Published on
The Way To Be Happy
How pleasant it is at the end of the day,
No follies to have to repent,
But reflect on the past and be able to say,
My time has been properly spent!
When I’ve done all my business with patience and care,
And been good, and obliging, and kind,
I lie on my pillow and sleep away there,
With a happy and peaceable mind.
Instead of all this, if it must be confest,
That I careless and idle have been,
I lie down as usual, and go to my rest,
But feel discontented within.
Then as I dislike all the trouble I’ve had,
In future I’ll try to prevent it,
For I never am naughty without being sad,
Or good - without being contented.
By Ann Taylor and Jane Taylor
How pleasant it is at the end of the day,
No follies to have to repent,
But reflect on the past and be able to say,
My time has been properly spent!
When I’ve done all my business with patience and care,
And been good, and obliging, and kind,
I lie on my pillow and sleep away there,
With a happy and peaceable mind.
Instead of all this, if it must be confest,
That I careless and idle have been,
I lie down as usual, and go to my rest,
But feel discontented within.
Then as I dislike all the trouble I’ve had,
In future I’ll try to prevent it,
For I never am naughty without being sad,
Or good - without being contented.
By Ann Taylor and Jane Taylor
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If We Only Understood
There is need of kinder treatment
to be given by us all,
There is need that we remember
when someone may ere and fall.
That within the hidden motive
lies the ill, or lies the good,
We would treat each kinder
if we only understood.
If we knew the cares of others,
knew their heartaches, knew the strain,
Under which they may be living,
knew their losses, knew their pain.
We would treat each kinder,
I am sure that each one could,
We would treat each other kinder,
if we only understood.
by Author Unknown
There is need of kinder treatment
to be given by us all,
There is need that we remember
when someone may ere and fall.
That within the hidden motive
lies the ill, or lies the good,
We would treat each kinder
if we only understood.
If we knew the cares of others,
knew their heartaches, knew the strain,
Under which they may be living,
knew their losses, knew their pain.
We would treat each kinder,
I am sure that each one could,
We would treat each other kinder,
if we only understood.
by Author Unknown
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Suppose!
Suppose, my little lady,
Your doll should break her head,
Could you make it whole by crying
Till your eyes and nose are red?
And wouldn’t it be pleasanter
To treat it as a joke,
And say you’re glad ’twas Dolly’s,
And not your head that broke?
Suppose you’re dressed for walking,
And the rain comes pouring down,
Will it clear off any sooner
Because you scold and frown?
And wouldn’t it be nicer
For you to smile than pout,
And so make sunshine in the house
When there is none without?
Suppose your task, my little man,
Is very hard to get,
Will it make it any easier
For you to sit and fret?
And wouldn’t it be wiser
Than waiting, like a dunce,
To go to work in earnest
And learn the thing at once?
Suppose that some boys have a horse,
And some a coach and pair,
Will it tire you less while walking
To say, “It isn’t fair?”
And wouldn’t it be nobler
To keep your temper sweet,
And in your heart be thankful
You can walk upon your feet?
And suppose the world don’t please you,
Nor the way some people do,
Do you think the whole creation
Will be altered just for you?
And isn’t it, my boy or girl,
The wisest, bravest plan,
Whatever comes, or doesn’t come,
To do the best you can?
by Phoebe Cary
Phoebe Cary was born on 4 September 1824 in Mount Healthy, Ohio, United States of America. She became a poet and a newspaper editor. She was a younger sister of the poet Alice Cary (1820 - 1871). Phoebe Cary passed on at 47 years of age on 31 July 1871 in Newport, Rhode Island, United States of America.
Suppose, my little lady,
Your doll should break her head,
Could you make it whole by crying
Till your eyes and nose are red?
And wouldn’t it be pleasanter
To treat it as a joke,
And say you’re glad ’twas Dolly’s,
And not your head that broke?
Suppose you’re dressed for walking,
And the rain comes pouring down,
Will it clear off any sooner
Because you scold and frown?
And wouldn’t it be nicer
For you to smile than pout,
And so make sunshine in the house
When there is none without?
Suppose your task, my little man,
Is very hard to get,
Will it make it any easier
For you to sit and fret?
And wouldn’t it be wiser
Than waiting, like a dunce,
To go to work in earnest
And learn the thing at once?
Suppose that some boys have a horse,
And some a coach and pair,
Will it tire you less while walking
To say, “It isn’t fair?”
And wouldn’t it be nobler
To keep your temper sweet,
And in your heart be thankful
You can walk upon your feet?
And suppose the world don’t please you,
Nor the way some people do,
Do you think the whole creation
Will be altered just for you?
And isn’t it, my boy or girl,
The wisest, bravest plan,
Whatever comes, or doesn’t come,
To do the best you can?
by Phoebe Cary
Phoebe Cary was born on 4 September 1824 in Mount Healthy, Ohio, United States of America. She became a poet and a newspaper editor. She was a younger sister of the poet Alice Cary (1820 - 1871). Phoebe Cary passed on at 47 years of age on 31 July 1871 in Newport, Rhode Island, United States of America.
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Law Versus Moral Values
A civilized society’s first line of defense is not the law, police and courts, but customs, traditions and moral values. Behavioral norms, mostly transmitted by example, word of mouth, and religious teachings, represent a body of wisdom distilled over the ages through experience and trial and error.
Policemen and laws can never replace customs, traditions, and moral values as a means for regulating human behavior. At best, the police and criminal justice system are the last desperate line of defense for a civilized society. Our increased reliance on laws to regulate behavior is a measure of how uncivilized we’ve become.
by Walter E. Williams, professor of economics at George Mason University
Policemen and laws can never replace customs, traditions, and moral values as a means for regulating human behavior. At best, the police and criminal justice system are the last desperate line of defense for a civilized society. Our increased reliance on laws to regulate behavior is a measure of how uncivilized we’ve become.
by Walter E. Williams, professor of economics at George Mason University
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Who Am I?
I am seldom considered, though I do more to influence everything about you than virtually any one thing in your life. I often control the time you get up in the morning, the time you go to sleep, what you eat and drink and the very thought that runs through your head. I can make you either happy or sad, loving or hateful, cheerful or remorseful, congenial or spiteful and in doing so, control the very capacity that you have for success.
No, you don’t often think of me - instead you blame the problem I create on the shortcoming of others, or the state of the economy, or your family or a million other reasons. Often at times unable to find anyone else to blame you look for shortcomings within yourself on which to lay the blame.
When my impact on your life fully is considered in your every thought and action, when you are mindful of my awesome power, when you nurture and groom me for positive use in your life, I can become more contagious than the most prolific disease ever witnessed by man. My influence will spread to every person you come in contact with.
Groomed and nurtured in a positive manner there will be no person or obstacle that can stand in the way of my success or fail to be impacted for the better.
Who am I? I Am Your Attitude.
by Author Unknown
No, you don’t often think of me - instead you blame the problem I create on the shortcoming of others, or the state of the economy, or your family or a million other reasons. Often at times unable to find anyone else to blame you look for shortcomings within yourself on which to lay the blame.
When my impact on your life fully is considered in your every thought and action, when you are mindful of my awesome power, when you nurture and groom me for positive use in your life, I can become more contagious than the most prolific disease ever witnessed by man. My influence will spread to every person you come in contact with.
Groomed and nurtured in a positive manner there will be no person or obstacle that can stand in the way of my success or fail to be impacted for the better.
Who am I? I Am Your Attitude.
by Author Unknown
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Politeness
Good little boys should never say
“I will,” and “Give me these”;
O, no! that never is the way,
But “Mother, if you please.”
And “If you please,” to Sister Ann
Good boys to say are ready;
And, “Yes, sir,” to a Gentleman,
And, “Yes, ma’am,” to a Lady.
by Elizabeth Turner
Good little boys should never say
“I will,” and “Give me these”;
O, no! that never is the way,
But “Mother, if you please.”
And “If you please,” to Sister Ann
Good boys to say are ready;
And, “Yes, sir,” to a Gentleman,
And, “Yes, ma’am,” to a Lady.
by Elizabeth Turner
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The Thirteen Virtues of Benjamin Franklin
At 20 years of age, in 1726, Benjamin Franklin devised a list of 13 virtues to keep for as long as possible, in an attempt to, “live without committing any fault at any time.” He then focused on one virtue each week and kept notes on his progress. His list follows.
Temperance. Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation.
Silence. Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself; avoid trifling conversation.
Order. Let all your things have their places; let each part of your business have its time.
Resolution. Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail what you resolve.
Frugality. Make no expense but to do good to others or yourself; that is, waste nothing.
Industry. Lose no time; be always employed in something useful; cut off all unnecessary actions.
Sincerity. Use no hurtful deceit; think innocently and justly, and, if you speak, speak accordingly.
Justice. Wrong none by doing injuries, or omitting the benefits that are your duty.
Moderation. Avoid extremes; forbear resenting injuries so much as you think they deserve.
Cleanliness. Tolerate no uncleanliness in body, clothes, or habitation.
Chastity. Rarely use venery but for health or offspring; never to dullness, weakness, or the injury of your own or another’s peace or reputation.
Tranquility. Be not disturbed at trifles, or at accidents common or unavoidable.
Humility. Imitate Jesus and Socrates.
by Benjamin Franklin: “The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin” (French edition (1789), English edition (1793))
Benjamin ‘Ben’ Franklin was born on 7 January 1706 in Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America. He became a writer, a printer, a publisher, a satirist, a political theorist, a politician, a postmaster, a scientist, an inventor, and a diplomat. He was the American ambassador to France, inventor of bifocal eyeglasses (1780), publisher of Poor Richard’s Almanack (1732 - 1757), and an American Revolutionary War era statesman. He is included among the founders of the United States of America. Benjamin ‘Ben’ Franklin passed on at 84 years of age on 17 April 1790.
Temperance. Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation.
Silence. Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself; avoid trifling conversation.
Order. Let all your things have their places; let each part of your business have its time.
Resolution. Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail what you resolve.
Frugality. Make no expense but to do good to others or yourself; that is, waste nothing.
Industry. Lose no time; be always employed in something useful; cut off all unnecessary actions.
Sincerity. Use no hurtful deceit; think innocently and justly, and, if you speak, speak accordingly.
Justice. Wrong none by doing injuries, or omitting the benefits that are your duty.
Moderation. Avoid extremes; forbear resenting injuries so much as you think they deserve.
Cleanliness. Tolerate no uncleanliness in body, clothes, or habitation.
Chastity. Rarely use venery but for health or offspring; never to dullness, weakness, or the injury of your own or another’s peace or reputation.
Tranquility. Be not disturbed at trifles, or at accidents common or unavoidable.
Humility. Imitate Jesus and Socrates.
by Benjamin Franklin: “The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin” (French edition (1789), English edition (1793))
Benjamin ‘Ben’ Franklin was born on 7 January 1706 in Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America. He became a writer, a printer, a publisher, a satirist, a political theorist, a politician, a postmaster, a scientist, an inventor, and a diplomat. He was the American ambassador to France, inventor of bifocal eyeglasses (1780), publisher of Poor Richard’s Almanack (1732 - 1757), and an American Revolutionary War era statesman. He is included among the founders of the United States of America. Benjamin ‘Ben’ Franklin passed on at 84 years of age on 17 April 1790.
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One Hundred Per Cent
“I should like to be rich,” said young Tom, with a sigh;
“There are so many things I am aching to buy!
Oh, would I had money, and would it were lent,
To good steady payers, at fifteen per cent!”
Now it chanced a wise man, just in passing, had heard
Tom’s sighs and repining, each covetous word;
So he took the young fellow astride of his knee,
And taught him to grow just as rich as could be.
And this way ’twas done. Every once in a while
Tom would lend to some neighbor - a sunshiny smile;
And every time, for the smile he had lent,
Tom got two in return. That’s one hundred per cent!
Bright greetings, warm kisses, kind deeds on the sly,
All bring him an interest equally high;
And before many days I am bold to declare,
You will find that young Tom is a true millionaire.
by Author Unknown
“I should like to be rich,” said young Tom, with a sigh;
“There are so many things I am aching to buy!
Oh, would I had money, and would it were lent,
To good steady payers, at fifteen per cent!”
Now it chanced a wise man, just in passing, had heard
Tom’s sighs and repining, each covetous word;
So he took the young fellow astride of his knee,
And taught him to grow just as rich as could be.
And this way ’twas done. Every once in a while
Tom would lend to some neighbor - a sunshiny smile;
And every time, for the smile he had lent,
Tom got two in return. That’s one hundred per cent!
Bright greetings, warm kisses, kind deeds on the sly,
All bring him an interest equally high;
And before many days I am bold to declare,
You will find that young Tom is a true millionaire.
by Author Unknown
- Published on
Boys Wanted
Boys of spirit, boys of will,
Boys of muscle, brain, and power,
Fit to cope with anything,
These are wanted every hour.
Not the weak and whining drones,
Who all troubles magnify;
Not the watchword of, “I can’t,”
But the nobler one, “I’ll try.”
Do whate’er you have to do
With a true and earnest zeal;
Bend your sinews to the task,
“Put your shoulders to the wheel.”
Though your duty may be hard,
Look not on it as an ill;
If it be an honest task,
Do it with an honest will.
In the workshop, on the farm,
At the desk, where’er you be,
From your future efforts, boys,
Comes a nation’s destiny.
by Author Unknown
Boys of spirit, boys of will,
Boys of muscle, brain, and power,
Fit to cope with anything,
These are wanted every hour.
Not the weak and whining drones,
Who all troubles magnify;
Not the watchword of, “I can’t,”
But the nobler one, “I’ll try.”
Do whate’er you have to do
With a true and earnest zeal;
Bend your sinews to the task,
“Put your shoulders to the wheel.”
Though your duty may be hard,
Look not on it as an ill;
If it be an honest task,
Do it with an honest will.
In the workshop, on the farm,
At the desk, where’er you be,
From your future efforts, boys,
Comes a nation’s destiny.
by Author Unknown
