<p>I thought it would be great to share our philosophies on life…here’s mine. </p>
<p>Life is best when you are true to yourself.
Not who others expect you to be.
Not perfect.
Just who you are comfortable being.
Then and only then do you feel free!</p>
<p>It is what it is!</p>
<p>Being at peace with oneself. Less critical, more joyful and grateful . Humility. Having a meaningful relationship with Jesus/God. Living in the moment rather than the past. This is my philosophy, and I’m still working on these things. I have not attained all this. It is a work in progress.</p>
<p>“If the world were merely seductive, that would be easy. If it were merely challenging, that would be no problem. But I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the world and a desire to enjoy the world. This makes it hard to plan the day.” --E.B. White</p>
<p>My S is an only child and was diagnosed with autism (Asperger’s) at age 3. In raising him, I have tried to help him develop his own strengths and identity, while at the same time, acquire the skills that he seemed unable to naturally acqure, in order for him to grow morally, socially and emotionally. Early on, I think I perhaps intuitively determined that the most important things I could teach my son were empathy, patience, and an understanding for others. We had two very basic rules in our home:</p>
<p>“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you”</p>
<p>“How can I judge or condemn any man until in his shoes, I walk and I stand?”</p>
<p>I can still remember how difficult those first few years were before it it dawned on me that I, myself, was not a very patient person. I like to think that I have grown a lot myself along the way :)</p>
<p>Here are some of my favorite thoughts to live by:</p>
<p>Handle your business before it handles you.</p>
<p>It’s not the number of breathes you take in life, it’s about the moments that take your breathe away.</p>
<p>Life’s tough…get a helment! (my husband, makes me laugh every time, because it’s so true. Life is not easy or fair, but with resilience, adaptability and integrity, one can help to control their own destiny.)</p>
<p>Treat others the way you want to be treated, because to have a good friend, you have to be a good friend.</p>
<p>STOP…breathe and appreciate the small stuff, because if you concentrate on what you don’t have, you’ll never have enough. But, if you appreciate all that you have been given, you’ll have more than you ever need.</p>
<p>Reading the bible always helps, because god never gives us more than he knows that we can handle.</p>
<p>*If you are lucky enough to live in Paris, as a young man, then wherever you go, for the rest of your life, it stays with you, for Paris is a moveable feast.</p>
<p>Ernest Hemingway</p>
<p>quoted by musica from her current apartment on Rue Dauphine in the 6th.</p>
<p>only 5 days left and I still cant find the quotation keys on this French keyboard</p>
<p>Brighten the corner where you are.</p>
<p>Gratitude. Gratitude. Gratitude. There is always somebody worse off than yourself.</p>
<p>Compassion is sometimes the fatal capacity for feeling what it is like to live inside somebody else’s skin. It is the knowledge that there can never really be any peace and joy for me until there is peace and joy finally for you too. -F. Buechner</p>
<p>It’s better to die upon your feet than to live upon your knees. -G. Anderson </p>
<p>True peace is not merely the absence of tension: it is the presence of justice. -MLKjr</p>
<p>Bloom where you are planted. -military spouse motto!</p>
<p>Never sweat the small stuff. - my father.</p>
<p>There are more horse’s a$$es in the world than there are horses. Get used to it. - my father</p>
<p>By virtue of being born in this time & place you have already won the lottery.
Clean up after yourself & leave the world a more beautiful place.</p>
<p>SMILE. You will immediately feel better and so will the people around you!</p>