Volume 36, #4. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . December 2020


Plant these "seeds" well and water often. Enjoy!

December 2020 inspiration motivation qutations, AppleSeeds, Apple Seeds
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Learning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Abigail Adams

“Learning is not attained by chance,
it must be sought for with ardor and attended to with diligence.”


Amazing Goals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Earl Nightingale

     “It’s amazing what a goal, a purpose, will do for a person. The day he or she gets it, if one was lacking it before, it’s as though one has been reborn, secretly connected to some enormous source of vital energy and good health.”


Seeing Ourselves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A Candle By Day, #124

     “As long as we are young, we can tell ourselves that we are better than others. The terrible thing about becoming old is seeing that we are not even as good as ourselves.”


What’s Uncommon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Asleigh Brilliant

     “Good ideas are common — what’s uncommon are people who’ll work hard enough to bring them about.”


An Advent Examination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Edward Hays, A Pilgrim’s Almanac, p. 196

     “Advent is the perfect time to clear and prepare the Way. Advent is a winter training camp for those who desire peace. By reflection and prayer, by Wreathe of Candles - Adventreading and meditation, we can make our hearts a place where a blessing of peace would desire to abide and where the birth of the Prince of Peace might take place.

     Daily we can make an Advent examination. Are there any feelings of discrimination toward race, sex, or religion? Is there a lingering resentment, an unforgiven injury living in our hearts? Do we look down upon others of lesser social standing or educational achievement? Are we generous with the gifts that have been given to us, seeing ourselves as their stewards and not their owners? Are we reverent of others, their ideas and needs, and of creation? These and other questions become Advent lights by which we may search the deep, dark corners of our hearts.”


On Happiness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . M. Scott Peck

     “Look solely for happiness, and I doubt you’ll find it. Forget about happiness, seek wisdom and goodness; probably happiness will find you. Happiness is usually indirect, a side-effect or a by-product of something else.”


Pacem et Terris . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pope St. John XXIII, 4/11/1963

“May He banish from the hearts of men and women
     whatever might endanger peace.
Peace on Earth - Dove with olive branchMay He transform them into witnesses of truth,
      justice and brotherly love.
May He enlighten the rulers of peoples so that
     in addition to their solicitude for the proper welfare
     of their citizens, they may guarantee and defend
     the great gift of peace.
May He enkindle the wills of all so that they may overcome the barriers
     that divide cherish the bonds of mutual charity, understand others,
    and pardon those who have done them wrong.
May all peoples of the earth become as brothers and sisters,
     and may the most-longed-for peace blossom forth
     and reign always among men and women.”


We Must . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . William Arthur Ward

“We must be silent before we can listen.
We must listen before we can learn.
We must learn before we can prepare.
We must prepare before we can serve.
We must serve before we can lead.”


Peace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Native American Proverb

“It is no longer good enough to cry peace.
We must act peace, live peace, and live in peace.”


Future of Civilization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dr. Albert Schweitzer

     “The future of civilization depends on our overcoming the meaninglessness and hopelessness which characterizes the thought of men and women today.”


Rabbi’s Proverb . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rabbi Bachman of Bratslav

     “When one is young, one learns to speak. When one is old, one learns to remain silent. The great misfortune of man is that he learns to speak before he learns to remain silent.”


12 Bees of Christmas  . . . . . . . . . . . Maimie McCullough, Top Performance, Vol.1, # 6

     “#1 Bee Yourself...As you think of yourself, so in time will you become. Think of yourself as God’s special creation and, in that context, work to be the best you can be — not by comparison with others, but compared to your God-given potential and learn to say no to those who would encourage you to fail while remembering that nobody can make you feel inferior without your permission. Fill your mind with the good, the clean, the pure, the powerful and the positive and you’ll truly discover your purpose in life, which will help you Bee Yourself.”


Wisdom Departs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Thomas à Kempis

“When anger enters the mind,
wisdom departs.”


Get Started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mark Twain

     “The secret of getting ahead is getting started. The secret of getting started is breaking your complex overwhelming tasks into small manageable tasks, and then starting on the first one.”


Instrument of Peace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alan Paton

St. Francis holding Christ Child     “The gospel is full of reassurances to us, some of them startling. You are salt of the world! You are light to all the world! These words were exciting to those who heard them. Things might be dark but they were to be the light of the world. They were given a new sense of their value as persons. Of these none was greater than Francis of Assisi. He might well have prayed:

• To those who have lost their way, let me restore it to them.
• To those who are aimless, let me bring purpose.
• To those who do not know who they are, let me teach them that they are the children of God and can be used as His instruments in the never ending work of healing and redemption.”


Ordinary Tasks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Henry David Thoreau

“Since most of us spend our lives doing ordinary tasks,
the most important thing is to carry them out extraordinarily well.”


The Christmas Woman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Wm. Frebuger,
                                                            
“Making Christmas a Saving Event,” Catholic Update, 12-85

"For the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit" Mt. 1:20     “Luke’s Gospel account of the Christmas event is full of activity…And yet, in the middle of the frenetic action, here is this woman wrapped in mystical silence…She demonstrates the necessity of a quiet place within ourselves at Christmastime — that place where we are most ourselves in relation to God.

     It is a place of silence, not because it is untouched by all the activity of our lives, but because it is capable of wonder. Every prayer begins with silent wonder before it turns to words. Our first response to God is dumbstruck awe at who he is and what he has done for us.”


A Prayer for Christmas Morning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Henry Van Dyke

The day of joy returns, Father in Heaven,
and crowns another year with peace and good will.
Help us rightly to remember the birth of Jesus,
that we may share in the song of the angels, the gladness
of the shepherds, and the worship of the Wisemen.
Close the doors of hate and open the doors of love
all over the world…
Let kindness come with every gift and good desires
with every greeting.
Deliver us from evil, by the blessing that Christ brings,
and teach us to be merry with clean hearts.
May the Christmas morning make us happy to be thy children,
And the Christmas evening bring us to our bed
with grateful thoughts, forgiving and forgiven,
for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

For to us a Son is given

 

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