Nothing Is Wasted

This was posted on my Facebook news feed this morning by Johnnette Benkovic.   A much needed reminder:
" if you want to love, you must be willing to be vulnerable. ...if you extend your hand often enough in a gesture of love, someone will drive a nail through it. If you love others, you may be deceived, betrayed, abandoned. If you love Christ, you must walk the difficult road to Calvary. But you will begin to see yourself borne by powers that are beyond you. ...Love inspired by the virtue of charity is one of the most potent forces in the world." -- Father Benedict Groeschel

Then, I thought of the poem, Anyway, which was supposed to have hung on Mother Teresa's wall.   It has been attributed to Dr. Kent Keith.   It hung on the wall of my classroom and I re-visit it from time to time when I need to be reminded to do it "anyway."


People are often unreasonable, illogical and self-centered;
Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives;
Be kind anyway.
If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies;
Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;
Be honest and frank anyway.
What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight;
Build anyway
If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous;
Be happy anyway.
The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow;
Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough;
Give the world the best you've got anyway.
You see in the final analysis, it is between you and God;
It was never between you and them anyway.



Thankful for these spiritual kicks in the pants just when I need them!

Comments

Post a Comment

Your comments are welcome!

Popular posts from this blog

First & From Without

Image
"Is she in there?" "I think so.  Should we knock?" This was part of the conversation from my fellow teachers outside my classroom door the morning I returned to work, two months after the birth of my first child.    My locked classroom door.   I managed to get into the building with no contact with others, cover my window on my door, and lock myself in for a good cry.    I did not take separation from my baby very well.   I called my husband and told him I just couldn't stay.   He called the personnel office and asked about my leave options.   Then, he called Mama.    "I know it's hard, Joey, but you have to let her face this; she just has to do it." Later, when I talked to Mama, she told me how she felt when she took me to my first day of school.   She said leaving me at that poor, old south Louisiana school building was one of the hardest things she ever did. ...
Read more

Master Bedroom Challenge: {pretty, happy, funny, real}

Image
This week, Leila at Like Mother, Like Daughter , announced a Master Bedroom Challenge: Make Your Bedroom Beautiful and Useful .   It was a perfectly timed challenge for me.   As part of the Reasonably Clean House series at the blog, Leila recommends beginning the process in your master bedroom.   Her reasoning is right on target, as I've learned after nearly sixteen years of keeping --or trying to keep--our house.   Our bedroom is last on our list to work on in this house.   Since we moved in over a year ago, we've worked on all the other rooms .   Now, it's time to start making the master bedroom come together.   It's a large wonderful space.   My mama always said the problem with a bigger house/space is it is easier to clutter it and you aren't as wise with organization.   She was right.   Lot of corners and spaces to "store" things in this room until I get to them.   Plu...
Read more

An Anniversary

Image
September 16, 2004 began as a typical morning.   Emmeline and I went for a walk and then she settled down for her morning nap while I worked on laundry.   I decided to call Mama; we usually talked to each other every day.   Since Emmeline was born nine months earlier, our conversations had grown to several times a day, as I called her to share Emmeline's latest "firsts."  She had called a little more than normal to check on me.   A month earlier I had my first severe reflux incident.   I was eating lunch when I experienced the normal discomfort, but this time, it got worse and it was as if my windpipe was closed and I couldn't breathe.   I felt like I was choking, but I could talk, so I knew that I wasn't.   I was alone with Emmeline, so I quickly snatched her out of the high chair and put her in her crib.   I worried about what I would do if this did not pass quickly and I stopped breathing. ...
Read more