by Life Positive

praise of a good Woman

Who can find a virtuous woman?
For her price is far above rubies.
The heart of her husband doth safely
trust in her,
so that he shall have no need of spoil.
She riseth also while it is yet night,
and giveth meat to her household,
and a portion to her maidens.
She considereth a field, and buyeth it:
with the fruit of her hands she planteth a vineyard.
She girdeth her loins with strength,
and strengtheneth her arms.
She perceiveth that her merchandise is good:
her candle goeth not out by night.
She layeth her hands to the spindle,
and her hands hold the distaff.
She stretcheth our her hand to the poor;
yea, she reacheth forth her hands to the needy.
She is not afraid of the snow for her household:
for all her household are clothed with scarlet.
She maketh herself coverings of tapestry;
Her clothing is silk and purple.
Her husband is known in the gates,
when he sitteth among the elders of the land.
She maketh fine linen, and selleth it;
and delivereth girdles unto the merchant.
Strength and honour are her clothing;
and she shall rejoice in time to come.
She openeth her mouth with wisdom;
and in her tongue is the law of kindness.
She looketh well to the ways of her household,
and eateth not the bread of idleness.
Her children arise up, and call her blessed;
her husband also, and he praiseth her.
The Bible, Proverbs, 31

teaching story

The Pencil

The little boy was watching his grandfather writing a letter. At a certain moment he asked, “Are you writing a story that happened to us? And is it by any chance a story about me?”

The grandfather stopped writing, smiled and said to his grandson, “I’m writing about you, that’s true. But the pencil I am using is more important than the words I am writing. I hope you are like it when you grow up.”

The boy looked at the pencil with curiosity, but did not see anything special about it. “But it’s just like all the other pencils I have ever seen in my life!”

‘It all depends on how you look at things. There are five qualities in it that if you can manage to keep in yourself will make you a person always at peace with the world.” “The first quality: you can do great things but you must never forget that there is a hand that guides our steps. This hand we call God, and He must always guide it according to His will.

“The second quality: from time to time I need to stop what I am writing and use a sharpener. This makes the pencil suffer a little, but in the end it becomes sharper. So, learn how to bear some pains, because they will make you a better person.

“The third quality: the pencil always lets you use an eraser to rub out what was wrong.  Understand that correcting something that we have done is not necessarily bad, but rather something important to keep us on the path of justice.

“The fourth quality: what really matters in the pencil is not the wood or its outer shape but rather the lead that is inside it.  So, always take care of what happens inside you.

“Lastly, the pencil’s fifth quality: it always leaves a mark.  In the some way, know that everything you do in life will leave traces, and try to be aware of each and every action.”
Paulo Coelho; Translated by James Mulholland

Concept
Shreya and Preya

Explored at length in the Katha Upanishads, these twinned concepts can lead us either into eternal happiness or into the misery and despair of a wasted life. Preya stands for what is pleasant, that which is attractive and compelling to the senses like delicious food, a great movie, a picnic by the sea, designer clothes and what have you. Shreya, on the other hand, exerts a far more subtle pull for she stands for what is good, i.e., in our best interests, such as a healthy diet, wholesome exercise, self-restraint, self-sufficiency, developing life skills, doing your duty and the like.

But who has time for quiet little Shreya when glamorous Preya exerts such a siren appeal?  All of us in our daily lives experience the constant tussle between Preya and Shreya. Blow up your money on clothes and holidays or set it aside for future studies? Spend time with your mother or curl up with the latest best-seller? Gupshup on the phone or meditate? Each of our decisions shapes the life we lead.

So how do we learn to choose Shreya? The matter is simple. All we have to do is not follow Preya. When a gulab jamun hovers tantalizingly before us, we smile politely and say a firm no. When housework beckons, we do not retreat into a novel. When your son is going the wrong way, you do not play ostrich. By not following Preya, you automatically follow Shreya. In time Preya will flounce out of your life and quiet little Shreya will take over the reins. Hurray, you are saved.

hope floats
The healing song
It’s just a tiny song, more of a chorus really, and it took just five minutes to compose. But Alaska-based Libby Roderick’s How Could Anyone has been embraced by the whole world including prisoners, AIDS orphans in Zambia, participants of a women’s conference in China, eating disorder patients in Japan and participants of a sexual assault prevention workshop in Alaska. It has even been used in a US presidential campaign.

So what’s so special about this song? It gives a message that readers of Life Positive will resonate with, for it tells us that whatever we may be or have done, we are intrinsically whole and perfect.

How could anyone ever tell you you were anything less than beautiful?

How could anyone ever tell you you were less than whole?

How could anyone fail to notice that your loving is a miracle?

How deeply you’re connected to my soul?   

A simple message, but the most beautiful one you can hear when you are going through a bad spell.

The 46-year-old singer-songwriter composed it after she got a call in 1988 from a friend going through an emotional, confidence-draining spell.

Its healing message has worked wonders across the world. Vern Herd came upon the song in 1990 when he was serving a 27-year-sentence in Washington state for a robbery-related murder. The song was foreign to the message that he grew up hearing; that he was ugly and stupid and would never amount to anything. After being released nine years ago, Herd became a prison counsellor, and he wraps up workshops on violence alternatives and

self-esteem with Roderick’s song. He that is good is free, though he be a slave; he that is evil is a slave, though he be a king    – Augustine

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