Inspiring CouplesWords are easy to manufacture.
True and lasting love, however, is not so easily produced … or sustained. In a world of bogus advertising and broken promises, it is easy—even natural—to be a little skeptical of words.
Words don’t cost us much and only the speaker can fully know the intent behind them. But when our words are reinforced by our actions—day after day, year after year—words can begin to seem trustworthy again.
The quotes below come from real couples who have earned the right to their words. Each was nominated by their friends, family or co-workers as an ‘Inspiring Couple’ for giving them a reason to believe again in love. They have learned—and lived—their words of wisdom through years of joy, companionship … and trials.
Words to Live—And Love By
“Have respect for each other and be honest even in the little things. Always put the needs of others before your own, and don’t let your love die.” – Randy and Cheri Blackwood (married since 1979)
“The biggest stumbling block couples face is unmet expectations – children, responsibilities, finances, etc. The more a couple discusses their expectations for every area of life, the better they can predict where their differences will be and deal with them objectively.” – Bob and Annette Wallace (married since 1992)
“Love’s passion is wonderful, but it’s just as important that you really like and respect the person you are about to make a lifetime commitment to … Couples should ask themselves: Would I be friends with this person even if we weren’t in love?” – Bill and Shirley McConnell (married since 1953)
“Have open expectations; setting unrealistic expectations will cause you to fail. Be patient, build trust, learn to communicate and forgive.” – James and Nancy Lawson (married since 1973, shown above)
“You have to be committed and protect your marriage at all costs. There is nothing you can’t work through. Even if you don’t feel like loving your spouse on hard days, you have the power to lead your heart.” – Kevin and Amanda Johnson (married since 2003)
“Show respect for each other … be supportive and work together as a team. Enjoy quality time together but allow each other the independence to do your own thing and pursue personal interests.” – Jesse and Anita Martinez (married since 1948) “Live a positive life – it’s contagious. Have a sense of humor, respect each other, learn how to communicate well and remember why you fell in love.” – Matt and Kelly Allen (married since 1991)
“Honor your commitment. The most important commitment you should have on this earth is to each other.” – Jim and Robin Riley (married since 1968)
These couples are not selling anything. But they are buying something—the idea that love can endure and a relationship can truly grow richer over time. Without at least believing in the possibility of enduring love, a lasting relationship is nearly impossible to achieve. Perhaps you don’t put too much stock in promises of eternal love and faithfulness. Perhaps you shouldn’t. But perhaps we should put a little more faith in the evidence of words in action.
Before you dismiss the relationship “testimony” of credible couples, ask yourself what the consequences are for losing faith in the concept of lasting love. Be sure it is a price you are willing to pay—and one that you really need to pay in the first place. Everlasting love may be scarcer than we’d all like, but it’s not a fantasy either. We are grateful to couples like these for reminding us that some couples really do grow old … and wise together.
Source: twoofus.org
Thursday, 10 April 2014
Wednesday, 2 April 2014
Celebrate our differences
I had a bit of misunderstanding with a friend, today, who was upset over something I didn't do, but which I thought I had done and I was upset that what I had done was disregarded as "not done"; this incident further knocked in a very important lesson I started learning last week.
We humans don't think, value, expect, regard, react, accept or laugh at the same things and that's the beauty of life.
Some people need to communicate regularly to keep the engine of a friendship oiled, while another may not speak to a friend for a year and when they hook up again, they relate as if there was no gap in communication.
What makes one person puke for minutes could get another in stitches, from laughter.
What could choke one person could be the 'fresh air' of another.
Now, to the event that started the learning process last week; while at the hotel, my room and bathroom were cleaned with a soap or something that had a very strong, choking fragrance. I couldn't stand it and opened all the windows, and turned on the A/C.
Later, I went to my colleague's room and they had cleaned his also. I complained about the choking smell to the brother, who told me he actually (oh my goodness) liked the fragrance and obviously revelled in it.
I was beyond Shocked!
I never believed anyone would EVER be able to stand the smell, talk less of liking it.
I quickly picked up what I came for and ran away with the fragrance still clinging to my dress.
This got me thinking; What I thought could have literally knocked me out, was really liked by another, yet I had no right to say that his like was disgusting, even if I was tempted to feel that way.
Because it isn't my cup of tea doesn't make it wrong or disgusting, neither does it make my taste higher or better.
Let's learn to respect our different ways of thinking.
Even if we disagree on personal opinions, it doesn't mean we can't, with civility, discuss our differences with respect and regard for each other.
If we all thought alike, the world would be one big, boring planet.
#thinkonthis #lifeisgood #Godissoamazing #thankGodfordifferences
We humans don't think, value, expect, regard, react, accept or laugh at the same things and that's the beauty of life.
Some people need to communicate regularly to keep the engine of a friendship oiled, while another may not speak to a friend for a year and when they hook up again, they relate as if there was no gap in communication.
What makes one person puke for minutes could get another in stitches, from laughter.
What could choke one person could be the 'fresh air' of another.
Now, to the event that started the learning process last week; while at the hotel, my room and bathroom were cleaned with a soap or something that had a very strong, choking fragrance. I couldn't stand it and opened all the windows, and turned on the A/C.
Later, I went to my colleague's room and they had cleaned his also. I complained about the choking smell to the brother, who told me he actually (oh my goodness) liked the fragrance and obviously revelled in it.
I was beyond Shocked!
I never believed anyone would EVER be able to stand the smell, talk less of liking it.
I quickly picked up what I came for and ran away with the fragrance still clinging to my dress.
This got me thinking; What I thought could have literally knocked me out, was really liked by another, yet I had no right to say that his like was disgusting, even if I was tempted to feel that way.
Because it isn't my cup of tea doesn't make it wrong or disgusting, neither does it make my taste higher or better.
Let's learn to respect our different ways of thinking.
Even if we disagree on personal opinions, it doesn't mean we can't, with civility, discuss our differences with respect and regard for each other.
If we all thought alike, the world would be one big, boring planet.
#thinkonthis #lifeisgood #Godissoamazing #thankGodfordifferences
Thursday, 23 January 2014
JUAN MATA LEAVES CHELSEA - LESSONS
It was with surprise, shock and disbelief that I read the news of Juan Mata’s departure to a rival club, Manchester United. The day before, I had read the news on Daily Mail (DM), but I thought DM was, as usual, spreading a rumour; immediately, I went to BBC’s football site, and gave a sigh of relief as there was no such news.
You can imagine my shock, when I decided to take a ‘stroll’ to BBC’s sport site this afternoon, and I discovered the news was already among the stale news. This just about soiled my day.
Before Jose Mourinho came back to Chelsea, this season, Juan Mata had been voted player of the year, for 2 consecutive seasons, by his Chelsea team mates, so selling such a bundle of talent and skills appeared to be pure madness, yet there wasn’t much visible protest from the fans.
Like a BBC columnist stated, if Rafa Benitez, the former Coach, who the fans merely tolerated, had sold Mata, there” would have been mutiny and marches along the King's Road”, but the ‘Loved One’ took that decision.
The Columnist went on to say that “Mourinho's word is law and accepted on trust. He is the untouchable one.” The fans would simply hope he has taken the right decision as he had won a PERMANENT PLACE in their hearts after making several right decisions for them and also making Chelsea a club that contended and won the top spot in the English Premier League (EPL).
Despite my groaning, it suddenly occurred to me that being the best player the seasons the club performed poorly (the last two seasons), might just have made Juan a ‘local champion’ of some sort, not worthy of a space in Mourinho’s EPL-winning team.
LESSONS
- Winning the trust of people, overtime, is very important. In fact, it would cover for the times when you might take a few wrong decisions. Earning the trust of friends and loved ones might take time, but it would act as an umbrella in the rainy day.
Chelsea fans would have had Rafa’s head, if he had tried what Mourinho tried, but with Mourinho, they had and still have complete confidence in his decisions, with no one chewing his head over a few questionable ones.
- Because someone is known as the star somewhere doesn’t necessarily mean they really are that good; they may actually be unable to measure up to a higher standard when such is demanded from them.
Friday, 20 December 2013
Wednesday, 2 October 2013
A Single Gal Talks Back! : Facebook Relationship Status Solution
A Single Gal Talks Back! : Facebook Relationship Status Solution: So how many of you have hesitated before clicking the appropriate Facebook relationship status? The measly options: Single In a Re...
Tuesday, 24 September 2013
FRUIT FAST: 4TH DAY, 5TH DAY AND FINDINGS
By the morning of the 4 th day, I felt like I couldn’t care about food after facing the worst temptation the previous day.
I took my usual fruits, bentonite clay and Apple Cider Vinegar at different times, and felt really good.
By the fifth day, the hunger descended mightily. It was almost unbearable, but I kept reminding myself that it was ending that day.
By 12 noon, I went to weight myself, and realized I had lost over 5 pounds in less than 5 days. Couldn’t wait to go back to eating as I needed to gain necessary weight as my aim wasn’t weight loss, so I tried to limit whatever would make me lose weight and increase what could make me gain weight like eating bananas and so on; still, I still lost that much weight.
This means that those who want to lose weight would maximally gain from this exercise.
I went to bed after taking 3 large oranges.
The morning of the 6 th day, I wasn’t feeling hungry at all. I felt like I could for another 5 days again, but I wasn’t ready to deal with my mum (she would report me to my Pastor if I continued cuz of the weight-loss side effect) or the aforementioned side effect.
I took an orange that morning and then went out with my younger brother to pick up a Samoyed pup for him. It took longer than expected but I wasn’t hungry one bit, despite having had only one orange. Finally ate bread around 4pm, even though I still wasn’t hungry. This means I more or less fasted for about 5.75 days. Not bad, if you ask me.
FINDINGS
- The odds were high that I would get hungry or crave food strongly, on an odd day. This happened on the 1 st , 3 rd and 5 th day, whereas I was very fine on the even days- 2 nd , 4 th and 6 th days. Don’t know why this turned out so. - My skin complexion looked brighter. My face is some shades darker than my neck, but this reduced during the fast. - I’ve had this oh-so-tiny bumps under my right eye for a long time and they cleared off. - My urine was very clear and clean. Those who are interested in the urine therapy (I’m not!) would find that doing a fruit fast of about 2-3 days would give them easy to you-know-what urine. - My stool had this perfect look and texture (I know this is gross, but I have to mention this lol) - I felt oddly energized. - I had malaria symptoms about 2 or so weeks before the fast, but this cleared up during the fast. - It involves discipline and once accomplished, gives you a sense of self-belief and accomplishment. You can do it if you set your heart on it. - I learnt that one might feel sick during the fast, due to the body having too much toxin, but I didn’t experience this. I attributed this to recently cleansing my liver with some food supplements and also cutting off a few things off my diet (such as milk, soda drink, salt-based seasoning etc.) - No funky morning breath. My breath in the morning was funk-free. - I lost over 5 pounds within 4 days and inched closer to the underweight BMI. This was a side effect I didn’t need, as I was already slim enough, but I still had to face it. - Like I mentioned earlier, the odds were against me. Here’s what I mean: Like I mentioned in my post regarding my 1 st day fruit-fasting, I went to the mall, and in the food section of Shoprite, I saw one of my favourite store-purchased food- macaroni and minced beef, which I always bought since I tasted its yummy goodness a while ago and had to walk away with slumped shoulders. Now, I’ve gone to Shoprite 3 different times after that day, and they haven’t had macaroni and minced beef. Isn’t that strange? Also, we haven’t had any pizza feast in the office like the 3 rd day of the fast, and we had never had such before. Thirdly, my weakest days were only the odd days. See why I said the odds were against me? But I won (Yay!). - When I resumed eating, I felt stuffed on time, despite trying to eat a lot to gain lost weight. I learnt the stomach shrinks during the fast, which is a good thing in my opinion. The best way is to eat slowly, and avoid being tempted to rush your tasty meal, otherwise you run the risk of serious discomfort (unfortunately, I’m speaking from experience, despite being warned…yikes!). - For those who would like to lose some weight, you can eat healthy food in bits. Savour the yummy taste of food. Don’t fall back into your unhealthy way of eating, and do not allow your stomach to expand again, by eating so much food at once. - I realized I needed less sleep to feel energetic, despite loving sleep. This was a good one because I always slept late and had to wake early to catch the staff bus on weekdays. Still benefiting from this more than 2 weeks after. - I later learnt that I should have taken more cleansing fruits like orange, lemons, grapefruits etc., so I’ll be incorporating more of that during my next fruit fast. - I honestly can’t remember all the benefits and can’t look into my body system to see the dance steps displayed by my internal organs (maybe I would have learnt some steps from them, don’t you think?).
GENERAL THOUGHT ON FRUIT-FASTING
Fruit fasting, in my opinion, is the best form of fasting for cleansing and even weight loss. This is because you’re not just depriving your body of food, but you’re simultaneously feeding it necessary nutrients by taking fruits for optimum wellbeing and health. Your body is also taking in lots of fiber from fruits (which you wouldn’t get during a juice fast) which would aid in the flushing out of toxins by your liver (i.e fiber helps liver).
Also, if your goal is weight loss, you definitely DO NOT want your metabolism rate to slow down, which is what juice or water fast would cause. Taking fruits, regularly, during your fast, would result in increased metabolism, which every weight-watcher desires.
Finally, having sufficient calories for the day would be hard to meet when taking strictly juices, as against fruits.
I took my usual fruits, bentonite clay and Apple Cider Vinegar at different times, and felt really good.
By the fifth day, the hunger descended mightily. It was almost unbearable, but I kept reminding myself that it was ending that day.
By 12 noon, I went to weight myself, and realized I had lost over 5 pounds in less than 5 days. Couldn’t wait to go back to eating as I needed to gain necessary weight as my aim wasn’t weight loss, so I tried to limit whatever would make me lose weight and increase what could make me gain weight like eating bananas and so on; still, I still lost that much weight.
This means that those who want to lose weight would maximally gain from this exercise.
I went to bed after taking 3 large oranges.
The morning of the 6 th day, I wasn’t feeling hungry at all. I felt like I could for another 5 days again, but I wasn’t ready to deal with my mum (she would report me to my Pastor if I continued cuz of the weight-loss side effect) or the aforementioned side effect.
I took an orange that morning and then went out with my younger brother to pick up a Samoyed pup for him. It took longer than expected but I wasn’t hungry one bit, despite having had only one orange. Finally ate bread around 4pm, even though I still wasn’t hungry. This means I more or less fasted for about 5.75 days. Not bad, if you ask me.
FINDINGS
- The odds were high that I would get hungry or crave food strongly, on an odd day. This happened on the 1 st , 3 rd and 5 th day, whereas I was very fine on the even days- 2 nd , 4 th and 6 th days. Don’t know why this turned out so. - My skin complexion looked brighter. My face is some shades darker than my neck, but this reduced during the fast. - I’ve had this oh-so-tiny bumps under my right eye for a long time and they cleared off. - My urine was very clear and clean. Those who are interested in the urine therapy (I’m not!) would find that doing a fruit fast of about 2-3 days would give them easy to you-know-what urine. - My stool had this perfect look and texture (I know this is gross, but I have to mention this lol) - I felt oddly energized. - I had malaria symptoms about 2 or so weeks before the fast, but this cleared up during the fast. - It involves discipline and once accomplished, gives you a sense of self-belief and accomplishment. You can do it if you set your heart on it. - I learnt that one might feel sick during the fast, due to the body having too much toxin, but I didn’t experience this. I attributed this to recently cleansing my liver with some food supplements and also cutting off a few things off my diet (such as milk, soda drink, salt-based seasoning etc.) - No funky morning breath. My breath in the morning was funk-free. - I lost over 5 pounds within 4 days and inched closer to the underweight BMI. This was a side effect I didn’t need, as I was already slim enough, but I still had to face it. - Like I mentioned earlier, the odds were against me. Here’s what I mean: Like I mentioned in my post regarding my 1 st day fruit-fasting, I went to the mall, and in the food section of Shoprite, I saw one of my favourite store-purchased food- macaroni and minced beef, which I always bought since I tasted its yummy goodness a while ago and had to walk away with slumped shoulders. Now, I’ve gone to Shoprite 3 different times after that day, and they haven’t had macaroni and minced beef. Isn’t that strange? Also, we haven’t had any pizza feast in the office like the 3 rd day of the fast, and we had never had such before. Thirdly, my weakest days were only the odd days. See why I said the odds were against me? But I won (Yay!). - When I resumed eating, I felt stuffed on time, despite trying to eat a lot to gain lost weight. I learnt the stomach shrinks during the fast, which is a good thing in my opinion. The best way is to eat slowly, and avoid being tempted to rush your tasty meal, otherwise you run the risk of serious discomfort (unfortunately, I’m speaking from experience, despite being warned…yikes!). - For those who would like to lose some weight, you can eat healthy food in bits. Savour the yummy taste of food. Don’t fall back into your unhealthy way of eating, and do not allow your stomach to expand again, by eating so much food at once. - I realized I needed less sleep to feel energetic, despite loving sleep. This was a good one because I always slept late and had to wake early to catch the staff bus on weekdays. Still benefiting from this more than 2 weeks after. - I later learnt that I should have taken more cleansing fruits like orange, lemons, grapefruits etc., so I’ll be incorporating more of that during my next fruit fast. - I honestly can’t remember all the benefits and can’t look into my body system to see the dance steps displayed by my internal organs (maybe I would have learnt some steps from them, don’t you think?).
GENERAL THOUGHT ON FRUIT-FASTING
Fruit fasting, in my opinion, is the best form of fasting for cleansing and even weight loss. This is because you’re not just depriving your body of food, but you’re simultaneously feeding it necessary nutrients by taking fruits for optimum wellbeing and health. Your body is also taking in lots of fiber from fruits (which you wouldn’t get during a juice fast) which would aid in the flushing out of toxins by your liver (i.e fiber helps liver).
Also, if your goal is weight loss, you definitely DO NOT want your metabolism rate to slow down, which is what juice or water fast would cause. Taking fruits, regularly, during your fast, would result in increased metabolism, which every weight-watcher desires.
Finally, having sufficient calories for the day would be hard to meet when taking strictly juices, as against fruits.
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