Wednesday, July 06, 2005

LESSON OF THE DAY 251

Ayahs of the Day:
Believers, do not be unfaithful to God and the messenger, or knowingly be unfaithful to your pledges. And know that your possessions and your children are but a trial, and that there is a higher reward in the presence of God. [8: 27, 28]

Hadith of the Day:
One who severs family ties will never go to Paradise. [Bukhari & Muslim]

Wise Quote of the Day:
Four things are not appreciated except by four types of people -- youth is not appreciated but by the old, freedom from worries is not appreciated but by those afflicted with calamities, health is not appreciated but by those in poor health, and life is not appreciated but by the dead. [Hatim al-Asamm]


Guidance of the Day:
Most people don't get married, have children, make friends, or take jobs with the intention of allowing these relationships to fail. And yet that's what often happens--simply because people don't pay enough attention to the emotional needs of others. They are not acting mindlessly because they want to be mean; they're just temporarily caught up in their own concerns and not focusing on the people around them.

But if you don't pay attention, you don't connect. And if you don't connect, you wind up operating on the principle that your partner, your friend, and your coworker is not going to be there for you. That, in turn, starts a cascade of negative interactions--including criticism, defensiveness, attacking, and withdrawing--all of which eventually destroy the relationship.

Being mindful, on the other hand, leads to the formation of stable, satisfying relationships. When you're mindful, you notice other people's bids and you respond to them. You can shift attention from your own concerns to the concerns of others. In doing so, you learn to understand what other people are feeling, and you're able to feel those same emotions at the same time. You can be "in the moment" with another person, focusing on your shared awareness and your shared experience. You have the sense that you're on a journey of discovery together. It's a creative process of revealing your life stories to each other. These stories unfold every day when people are mindful of one another. [The Relationship Cure]


Food for Thought:
Everything is funny as long as it happens to somebody else. Every person is a hero to his imagination. You really believe in heredity when your child's report card is all A's.

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