The Only Thing

A  L  O  H   A !

"The worst bullies 

you will ever 

encounter in your life

are your own thoughts."

          Bryant H. McGill

“If you look the right way, 
you can see that the 
whole world is a garden.” 
        Frances Hodgson Burnett

Gratitude

Dissolves fear.

A smile

Thins the veil

Between Heaven & Earth,

Between souls.

௯௯௯௯௯௯௯௯௯௯௯௯௯

Be good to others.

especially those who

are the most challenging

to you personally.

You may have to

absent yourself,

but while present

act only in love

as we all deserve.

Love, not correction

is the only thing that 

heals and corrects.

Thank YOU

Friend!

             Warmly, cloudia

Memories of Flight

A  L  O  H  A !

" Ain't no sunshine when she's gone

It's not warm when she's away

Ain't no sunshine when she's gone

And she's always gone too long

Anytime she goes away -

- Wonder this time where she's gone

Wonder if she's gone to stay

Ain't no sunshine when she's gone

And this house just ain't no home

Anytime she goes away -

- I know, I know, I know, I know,

I know, I know, I know, I know, I know,

I know, I know, I know, I know, I know,

I know, I know, I know, I know, I know,

I know, I know, I know, I know, I know,

I know, I know. . . . . 

                            Bill Withers

                                   'Ain't No Sunshine'

  

Linking to
Saturday's Critters
&
Camera Critters

Thank YOU

for perching here!

                    Fondly, cloudia  

Island of Misfit Relationships

A  L  O  H  A !

It takes two.

Even a saint cannot

repair a damaged relationship.

All you can do

is behave as your best self,

and limit contact.

[even when you are together]

Your courtesy,

non-violent manner,

- even friendly overture -

cannot effect repair

unless the other party

wants it,

is capable,

can even SEE

the overture!

Linking to Weekend Reflections

Some can only

run the scripts

that they have always run,

forcing you into

the role assigned to you.

That's all that

they can see.

They're not even present

to themselves.

It's not your failure

but the nature of

free will.

Don't slam doors,

or say in anger

the thing they will

repeat.

Just continue

on your happy way. . .

Damaged relationships

do not heal

if neglected.

The forgetting scab forms,

covering unresolved tissues.

You can go on with

your life.

Only when

the possibility of healing

expires

with one side,

does survivor find

the grace to finally

heal it alone.

It is over.

Done.

You may forgive.

Then the scab

 falls away

revealing freshness,

that portends only

good.

Until then

slam no doors

when you get out

to salvage

yourself.

Thank You

for Musing Here

with Us!

             Warmly, cloudia

Emotionally True Pancake

A   L   O   H   A !

"Sit down before fact

 as a little child, 

be prepared to 

give up every 

preconceived notion... 

or you shall learn

 nothing."

                       Thomas H. Huxley

"I have never 

been hurt 

by anything 

I didn't say."

                 Calvin Coolidge

 "There ain't no pancake 
so thin 
it ain't got two sides. ..."

"The first pancake 

is always lumpy." 

 Russian Proverb

([\./])

When I worked with teens

I was very invested in 

giving them my attention

and believing in them.

Sometimes they complained

about some person or situation:

The principal said-

Mom said-

Yes, Mom, 

or the Principal

can be rude,

or even wrong.

B U T

By going off half-cocked,

based on 1 person's version

I have learned to my

embarrassment

that there are 

ALWAYS

at LEAST two sides

to everything,

two versions of every story.

I have learned

to withhold judgement

instead of reacting

passionately.

(What was that Grandma

said about counting 

to ten?)

My version of events

is Emotionally True

to me.

Yours to You.

Yet, those truths

are but parts

of a bigger

T r  u  t  h.

I have learned

not to argue with 

Emotional Truths.

They are facts.

It is a rare person

who can see beyond

their own

Emotional Truths

to walk a mile

in the Other's shoes.

I work towards being that person.

Join us.

Together we can

change the

Way the World 

Works!

Who's with me?

                      Fondly, cloudia

Bonus Info:

No matter how flat you make a pancake, 

it still has two sides. 

Step into the other person's shoes 

and try to see their side of the story. 

Try to understand the other person 

and why they acted in a hurtful way. 

Try not to judge them. 

Conversely, examine your role in the feud. 

Did you do or saying something hurtful? 

Did you promise something 

and then back out of your agreement? 

Keep in mind 

the other person 

probably has some valid points that you need 

to weigh and consider. 

"Dr. Phil" McGraw.

Recharge Saturday

A   L   O   H   A  !

  " Humility, acceptance... 

with these coins

 we are to pay 

our fares to paradise."

 Robert  Lindner

Having a sense of 

Humor

is not the same thing

to treating life

as a joke

 “ I find that in your 60s 

everything begins to look 

sort of slightly 

magical again. . . "

Roger Cohen

Rest, Relax,

Recover.

May your visit 

here today

lift your spirits,

Friend!

                       Warmly, cloudia

Friends and Martyrs

A  L  O  H  A !

" You yourself, 

as much as anybody 

in the entire universe, 

deserve your love 

and affection. "

 Siddhartha Gautama

" Self-preservation 

is the first 

law of nature. "

Samuel Butler 

" When we quit

 thinking primarily

 about ourselves 

and our own 

self-preservation, 

we undergo a 

truly heroic 

transformation 

of consciousness. "

Joseph Campbell 

" One, with God, 

is always a majority, 

but many a martyr 

has been burned . . .

while the votes 

were being counted. "

Thomas Reed 

 > <  }  }  ( ° >

The average person says:

"What is mine is mine;

 what is yours is yours."

The sociopath says:

"What is mine is mine, 

what is yours is also mine."

The exceptional person says:

"What is yours is yours, 

and what is mine 

is also yours."

The exceptional person

 in the presence 

of a sociopath says:

NOTHING.

Don't let others

take advantage

of your kindness,

or timidity.

Let your "No"

be "No."

Then stop talking.

If need be,

walk away

after you have said it.

No one can steal

your kindness,

your Aloha.

So give it away.

Feelings of obligation

are danger signs

of a damaged relationship.

Care for the soul

that is in your keeping:

Your Own.

            Fondly, cloudia

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