On the refrigerator at my mom and dad's house, there is a
well-worn piece of paper. At one point, it had vibrant graphics and
a bright border and fancy fonts in primary colors. The sun from the
kitchen window has faded all of that over time. And if the text
carefully typed on it could have been worn down each time someone
from my family read the words, that piece of paper would be
completely blank all these years after my mother first posted
it.
It went up on the fridge shortly after we brought my brother home
to get rehabilitative therapy after a serious accident. The quote
she chose we'd already come to rely on as a family, reminding
each other periodically when one of us was overwhelmed or down or
unsure that "[a] journey
of a thousand miles begins with a single step."
It is accredited to Lao-Tzu and it served me as I moved across the
country for grad school, as my mother overcame her fear of flying
one flight at a time, and now as my brother re-learned how to walk,
write, and get back to his life as an electrical engineer.
That quote, and even that piece of paper stuck up in the center of
my family's life with a silly squirrel magnet, has helped each
of us at some times and all of us together at others to focus on
one little, manageable thing at a time. Having this focus or
"mission" has been powerful for us, perhaps because it
captures a bit of the energy mantras have been thought to send into
the universe for thousands and thousands of years.
During other transitions, traumas, and moments of gratitude,
I've found and written other words to meditate to, pray with,
remind myself of, and help lift me out and up. As friends and
colleagues have shared the quotes they focus on, the power of
hearing, saying, and centering on words is underlined for me.
Here are some of the words I've loved, laughed at, and lived by
(or at least tried).
Join in the chant: Do any of these quotes speak to
you?
What quotes get you through the tough times or help you stay
centered in a chaotic life?
What are your words to live by?
editor
"Smaller, smaller."
Merlin Mann at the blog 43 Folders wrote a few years ago that this personal mantra is certainly "a principle more practical than spiritual" that helps him professionally every day. Saying it over and over reminds him to keep tasks granular, break up big goals into smaller and simpler projects, and makes succeeding easier.
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From the Community…
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Posted by Wed Mar 18, 2009 11:57am PDT
Report AbuseI don't really have a qoute, per say, but I go by these three little words: "It's all good"!!
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Posted by Wed Mar 18, 2009 12:22pm PDT
Report AbuseGod grant me the Serenity to accept the things I cannot change.
The courage to change the things I can.
And the wisdom to know the difference.
My mother kept that poem above the kitchen sink my whole childhood, and now it is the credence I live by.
~Peace
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Posted by Wed Mar 18, 2009 2:47pm PDT
Report AbuseIt's not just about the destination, it's about the journey too :)
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Posted by Wed Mar 18, 2009 4:08pm PDT
Report Abuseyou are you, be you...and...it is less important to be right than it is to do right.
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Posted by Wed Mar 18, 2009 4:47pm PDT
Report Abuse"Look to the future, but not so far as to miss today."
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Posted by Wed Mar 18, 2009 6:56pm PDT
Report Abuse" it is only with the heart that one can see rightly. what is essential is invisible to the eye."
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Posted by Wed Mar 18, 2009 8:29pm PDT
Report AbuseMy mom and her mom always said...There is always someone better then you and you are always better then someone...set your own goals to achieve your own happiness. I always live by that now...I won't always be number 1 and I won't always be last...I make my goals...my goals...not what anyone else wants or not what the jones/smiths, etc...are doing...and that is when i'm truly the happiest...
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Posted by Thu Mar 19, 2009 1:47am PDT
Report AbuseAs long as I can get out of bed each morning, its a good day.
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Posted by Thu Mar 19, 2009 3:32am PDT
Report AbuseI love quotes!!! Here is one of my favorite:
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but rather by the number of moments that take our breath away.
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