If only the people who worry about their liabilities would think about the riches they do possess, they would stop worrying.  Would you sell both your eyes for a million dollars. or your legs. or your hands. or your hearing?  Add up what you do have, and you'll find that you won't sell them for all the gold in the world.  The best things in life are yours, if you can appreciate yourself.

Dale Carnegie

"I've really hit bottom," the young woman said.

"You'll still find hope there," I told her.

"How could I? I'm down so low in life I can't see a thing."

"Down is really a great place to be. Everything is always looking up!" I told her and then went on to explain.

I had been so depressed at one point in my life that I prayed to God to take my life. Every morning when I woke up, I'd curse the day. I was unemployed and in great debt.

But it wasn't until I crashed, literally hitting the floor that my life would change.

My life became very predictable. I had been desperately looking for a job. Each morning I woke up I'd grab the local newspaper from my porch. Bypassing the news, which during that time was depressing enough, I i mmediately looked for the want ads. Running my finger slowly down the page, I'd carefully scan for something new. Anything that caught my attention would be circled. It was early in 1990. There was little to circle.

That day there was nothing at all.

By this point I had already sent out hundreds of resumes to every conceivable employer within a 100-mile radius of my home. Of course, because of the economy, so did thousands of other unemployed mid-lifers.

I remember that day as clearly as I can see today. Sadness and despair washed over me like sweat on a hot, humid day.

I stood up from the kitchen table and walked, no, dragged myself into the living room. The paper slipped from my hands as I lost all touch with reality. My heart, my mind, my soul, my spirit, suddenly just gave up on life.

I looked up at the ceiling and tears gushed from my eyes.

With every last bit of energy I screamed, "God help me!" and fell to the floor on my knees. I wept openly for a few minut es and rolled over on my side. I lay there crying still, now curled up in a fetal position.

I don't remember much of my time lying there on the floor, but I do remember waking up and finding my Old English Sheepdog next to me.

I, too, was as low as I could be.

You might think, "How sad!" or "How very depressing!"

It actually saved my life.

Jim Rohn, professional speaker and inspirational writer would call such an event, "The day that turned my life around."

Des pair and anguish were like an infection running through my system.

Hopelessness and thoughts of being a failure were lies raging within my very soul.

That moment, my crashing to the floor was one of the greatest moments in my life.

I was down so low that "up" was the only option.

I believe, that my cry to God that day told Him that I was ready for Him to take over. Up until that very moment, although I may have prayed for help, I was never really willing to accept it at all.< BR>
There is a story about a man in search of an audience with a great Sage. The day they met the man began to tell his story, never ceasing, never yielding to the Sage's input.

Finally the Wise Man raised his hand to stop the conversation.

"Would you like a cup of tea?" he asked the man.

"Yes, that would be fine," the man replied and continued speaking.

The Wise Man placed the small tea cup in front of the man and began to pour from the tea pot. He continued pouring until the cup was filled beyond capacity and now overflowing onto the table.

"Stop!" the man shouted. "It is more than full!"

The Sage set the tea pot down on the table and said, "You came here for guidance but, like the cup before you, you are overflowing, unwilling and unable to add anything to your life."

Before I emptied myself by letting go of it all that day, I too, was much too full of myself to permit God to take over.

If you are struggling with life and find yourself face down on the floor, remember two things.

"Do wn is a great place to be, because everything is always looking up."

And..."You can't fall off the floor."

You are the only problem you will ever have and you are the only solution.<o:p></o:p>

Bob Proctor<o:p></o:p>

Class is an aura of confidence that is being sure without being cocky. Class has nothing to do with money. Class never runs scared. It is self-discipline and self-knowledge.  It's the sure-footedness that comes with having proved you can meet life.

Ann Landers

The old lady places her shawl on top of the bedside table and opens the door below. She removes two brightly colored doilies, which she has painfully knitted over the course of two weeks. She holds them with long fingers, gnarled with age. She has made them for the redheaded girl who comes to clean her room.

The old lady has come to anticipate the sounds of the girl's cleaning cart coming down the hall. The girl is friendly and the old dear loves to hear her talk of her daughter and her life as she bustles around the room, making the bed and cleaning the floor. They have a special relationship, these two. The old lady loves to talk of times past; she loves the way her stories fall on rapt ears and the way she feels when the girl sits down just to listen to her and her tales. The gho sts of memory also come with these visits, and they leave their little stamps of love and longing, but she would not change a thing. These daily meetings with this girl have given her a way to bring lost friends and family to life. The two exchange secrets and tips, and when something happens in the ward, the old lady can't wait to tell her special friend.

So she gives the girl the only thing she can, to show how much all this means. "I hope you like them," she says uncertainly as she hands the doilies over with shaking hands. The girl, choked up, says, "Of course I do, silly." Tears well up in the cleaners eyes, as she can see the obvious effort it must have taken the old girl to make these beautifully colored pieces with such terrible arthritis. The girl thinks, to herself, that this is what makes her job so worthwhile.</ P>

The cleaner moves on to the next room with more tears in her eyes and the doilies in her purse. The shift has just begun, and there are still 22 rooms to clean.

Money is one of the most important subjects of your entire life.  Some of life's greatest enjoyments and most of life's greatest disappointments stem from your decisions about money.  Whether you experience great peace of mind or constant anxiety will depend on getting your finances under control.

Robert G. Allen

Joy is the feeling of grinning inside.

Melba Colgrove

If I wanted to become a tramp, I would seek information and advice from the most successful tramp I could find.  If I wanted to become a failure, I would seek advice from people who have never succeeded.  If I wanted to succeed in all things, I would look around me for those who are succeeding, and do as they have done.

Joseph Marshall Wade

The world is a great mirror.  It reflects back to you what you are.  If you are loving, if you are friendly, if you are helpful, the world will prove loving and friendly and helpful to you.  The world is what you are.

Thomas Dreier

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.

Mark Twain

Continuous effort - not strength or intelligence - is the key to unlocking our potential.

Sir Winston Churchill

It doesn't matter how strong your opinions are.  If you don't use your power for positive change, you are, indeed, part of the problem.

Coretta Scott King

Margaret Thatcher