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by Sushil
The park bench was deserted as I sat down to read,
Beneath the long, straggly branches of an old willow tree.
Disillusioned by life with good reason to frown,
For the world was intent on dragging me down.
And if that weren't enough to ruin my day,
A young boy out of breath approached me, all tired from play.
He stood right before me with his head tilted down,
And said with great excitement, "Look what I found!"
In his hand was a flower, and what a pitiful sight,
With it's petals all warn down-not enough rain, or to little
light.
Wanting him to take his dead flower and go off to play,
I faked a smile and then shifted away.
But instead of retreating he sat next to my side,
And placed the flower to his nose and declared
with overacted surprise,
"It's smells pretty and it's beautiful too.
That's why I picked it; here it's for you!"
The weed before me was dying or dead.
Not vibrant of colors, orange, yellow or red.
But I knew I must take it, or he might never leave.
So I reached for the flower and replied, "Just what I
need."
But instead of him placing the flower in my hand,
He held it mid-air without reason or plan.
It was then that I noticed for the very first time,
That the weed-toting boy could not see, he was blind.
I heard my voice quiver, tears shone like the sun,
As I thanked him for picking the very best one.
"You're welcome" he smiled and then ran off to play,
Unaware of the impact he's had on my day.
I sat there and wondered how he managed to see,
A self-pitying woman beneath an old willow tree.
How did he know about my self-indulged plight?
Perhaps from his heart, he'd been blessed with true sight.
Through the eyes of a blind child, at last I could see,
The problem was not with the world; the problem was me.
And for all of those times I myself had been blind,
I vowed to see the beauty in life, & appreciate
every second that's mine.
And then I held that wilted flower up to my nose
and breathed in the fragrance of a beautiful rose.
And I smiled as I watched that young boy,
another weed in his hand,
About to change the life of an unsuspecting old man.
This poem is featured on www.Pravsworld.com,
inspiring you for a better tomorrow.
By Chris Green
I wonder if you, like me, have been
presented with countless opportunities to take a different
path in life but succumbed to the power of fear each time?
Sometimes, the opportunities arose out of the blue and needed
a quick decision. On many other occasions though, the
opportunities arose because I'd had a dream and an ambition to
try something new, to do something I had a passion for or to
connect with someone I liked.
Each time, the opportunity passed me by and
I was left frustrated and puzzled as to why things never
changed. I know I'm not unique, as this happens to most people
and I'm sure you've been there too. Fear, the most powerful of
our emotions, is the villain who cheats us out of
life-enhancing opportunities.
Have you ever imagined what your life would
be like if fear simply didn't exist?
Imagine how your life would be if an
opportunity to change job arose. It could be a move to a new
company, it could be a promotion to a more senior role or it
could be a complete change of direction to a brand new career
or starting a business. Imagine if you didn't indulge fear by
thinking "this could be too much for me." Or
"It's too late to change now." Or "why change
anyway, things are OK as they are." Imagine how your life
would be if you had an opportunity to connect with someone you
really wanted to be with. Someone you find very attractive and
who you can't take your eyes off. Imagine if your fears didn't
influence your thoughts: "I know I'll screw up if I go
over and they'll tell me to get lost. I never know what to say
or do and I'll just look like a loser. Besides, what would
they see in someone like me?"
Imagine how exciting and fulfilling your
life would be if an opportunity to experience adventure arose.
Say a dangerous sport, travelling to distant, exotic lands, to
live in a different country, and fear didn't place its choking
limitations on you: "Yes, I'd love to but I'm too old
now." Or "I'm not fit enough" or "I have a
family so I can't" or "What if it all goes
wrong?"
Can you see how fear works by diverting
your attention to the downside? You focus more and more on
finding reasons and excuses for not taking action because you
fear a negative outcome. And each time, an opportunity to
grow, to learn new skills, to enjoy adventures and to
experience more happiness is robbed from you.
That's how fear works and if you indulge
it, it will do it to you!
But imagine if fear didn't exist in your
life. Imagine what would happen, if, instead of focusing on
the negative sides, your attention and focus shifted to the
more positive aspects.
How would you react to opportunity without
fear? A new job, a career shift, a new business - would you
still refuse the opportunity or would you seize it? How about
that "someone special" you'd love to connect with
but your knees turn to jelly if you even think about
approaching? Would you be rooted to the spot in stony silence
or would stride confidently over as fear wouldn't make you
walk like a baby giraffe and talk like a jabbering wreck?
How about all those exciting adventures?
Would you pass up on them so you could carry on doing the same
old same old or would you be filled with the courage to
experience as many as you could and milk them for all they're
worth? I think I know your answer! And to help you, think
about this:
Fear only exists in one place: your mind.
Many people, sometimes in spite of serious limitations and
setbacks, have overcome all of fear's excuses for missing out
on opportunity, and you can overcome them too. Because nothing
holds any fear in itself. Only your mind has the fear. Resolve
to not let it place boundaries on your happiness any more.
It's your life - imagine how you'd live it
without fear and then live it!
Chris Green is the author of the new book
"Conquering Fear", the acclaimed program that will
help you start out on a lifetime of rich experiences and
exciting adventures. For more info, click here => www.conqueringfear.net
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