“Happiness … not in another place but this place,
not for another hour but this hour.”
— Walt Whitman

http://leelavadeeflower.blogspot.com/2014/06/still-with-mother-nature-in-forest.html

This post has been reshared 23 times on Google+
View this post on Google+

This post has been reshared 24 times on Google+
View this post on Google+

People have to forgive. We don’t have to like them, we don’t have to be friends with them, we don’t have to send them hearts in text messages, but we have to forgive them, to overlook, to forget. Because if we don’t we are tying rocks to our feet, too much for our wings to carry!

― C. JoyBell C.

By Ven. Dr. K. Sri Dhammananda

While the best thing would be to live close to our aged parents to help them physically, there are many other things we can do to show them our gratitude for their kindnesses to us when we were young. First of all, remember how when we were young, we always wanted our parents to talk to us, to show us that they cared for us? Well, now we can do that, by calling them on the telephone regularly, sending them little gifts or cash that they can show off to their friends.

Parents like to be proud of their children and talk about how good their children are. They need proof that their children are good and caring. The gifts need not be expensive. Even the occasional card saying, “I just thought I’d send this to you because I thought of you” is kind and considerate. We need not wait for special occasions. Of course, we should visit our parents as often as possible and let them know how much we miss them – Mom’s cooking or Dad’s advice.

Parents like to know that they are important in our lives. It is not good enough to say, “Ah, they know I love them. I don’t need to show it all the time.” Love and gratitude need to be physicalised.

This post has been reshared 111 times on Google+
View this post on Google+

By Ven. Dr. K. Sri Dhammananda

Satisfaction with our condition is not equivalent to being lazy. This point must be seen in the context of distinguishing between our needs and our wants. Our needs are limited and must be fulfilled. However, our wants are infinite, dynamic and keep increasing and cannot be satisfied due to the inner craving within us.

In another context, is it wrong to be ambitious? No, it is not. However, we must know when to stop wanting as it is a desire machine within us that will never be satisfied, thus never being happy nor contented. Contentment produces happiness, but contentment is not equivalent to apathy or laziness. 

Life is beautiful, when you spend your time wisely, especially with Mother Nature.
Always provide a one way service – a service without expectation, not even a simple
‘Thank You’ in return. ~Jendhamuni

Healing doesn’t mean the damage never existed.
It means the damage no longer controls our lives.

~Unkown 

By Ven. Dr. K. Sri Dhammananda

In a true marriage, man and women think more of the Partnership than they do of themselves. It is an interweaving of interests and a facing of sacrifice together for the sake of both.

A feeling of security and contentment comes from mutual efforts.

Most of the trouble and worries occuring* amongst husband and wife, parents and children, their relatives and friends are due to misunderstanding and impatience. The husband should not treat the wife as a servant. Although he is the bread-winner of the family, it is his duty whenever he is free to help his wife in the household. On the other hand the wife should not always nag or grumble at her husband whenever there is any shortage at home. She should not also be suspicious of her husband. If he really has some weakness she could correct him by talking it over with him kindly. A wife has to tolerate a lot of things without bothering her husband. A husband also has to act wisely.

Marriage is a blessing but many people turn their married life into a curse due to lack of understanding, tolerance and patience. Poverty is not the main cause of an unhappy married life. Husband and wife must learn to share the pleasure and pain of everything in their daily life. Mutual understanding is the secret of a happy family life.