Overcome early disappointments.

A famous Sufi master was invited to give a course in California. The auditorium was full at 8AM - the time announced - when one of the assistants came onto the stage. "The master is just waking up. Please be patient." 

Time passed, and people started leaving the room. 

At midday, the assistant returned to the stage, saying that the master would be starting the lecture the minute he finished talking to a pretty girl he had just met. Most of the remaining audience left. 

At 4PM the master appeared - apparently drunk. This time, all but 6 people stormed out. 

"I will teach you this," said the master, ceasing to act drunk. "Whoever wishes to go down a long path, must learn that the first lesson is to overcome early disappointments." -

http://www.spiritual-short-stories.com/

Dear Potential Business Owner:

If you are like me, you've searched the Internet over and wasted lots of time and money with "get rich quick" businesses that turned out to be schemes. I've always wanted to start my own business that was LEGITIMATE and HONEST (and not a "pie in the sky" fairy tale). Well, I did it! I've officially started my own home business as an affiliate with SFI (Strong Future International). Here are some of the reasons why I decided to go with SFI:

* Their parent company has been around since 1985. 

* It's free to get started. 

* They're in over 190 countries worldwide. 

* You can do everything from home on your computer. 

* 24-hour support. 

* Free training and free Website. 

* They're growing rapidly and there's lots of money to be made.

There's nothing to lose and everything to gain here, including more time with your family and more money in your wallet. It's well worth looking at SFI and investing in your future with us. For more information, see www.sfi4.com/12392488/

Happy Valentines Day!

Instead of the usual lovey-dovey Valentines Day love stories (Don't get me wrong I love them too) I found this one , it really reflects a 'Valentine' heart!!

The Buddha was sitting on the side of the road when a handsome and trim young soldier walked by. Seeing the Buddha’s size, he said, “you look like a pig.” 

The Buddha calmly replied, “And you look like a god.”

The soldier was dumbfounded and asked him what he meant. The Buddha replied, “We don’t really see what’s outside of us. Rather, we see what’s inside of us and project it. I’ve been sitting here thinking about God, so when I look out, that’s what I see. You, on the other hand, must be contemplating other things.”

Dear Potential Business Owner:

If you are like me, you've searched the Internet over and wasted lots of time and money with "get rich quick" businesses that turned out to be schemes. I've always wanted to start my own business that was LEGITIMATE and HONEST (and not a "pie in the sky" fairy tale). Well, I did it! I've officially started my own home business as an affiliate with SFI (Strong Future International). Here are some of the reasons why I decided to go with SFI:

* Their parent company has been around since 1985. 

* It's free to get started. 

* They're in over 190 countries worldwide. 

* You can do everything from home on your computer. 

* 24-hour support. 

* Free training and free Website. 

* They're growing rapidly and there's lots of money to be made.

There's nothing to lose and everything to gain here, including more time with your family and more money in your wallet. It's well worth looking at SFI and investing in your future with us. For more information, see www.sfi4.com/12392488/

It All Seems So Obvious

Rabbi Ben Zoma was asked:

"Who is wise?"

"He who always finds something to learn from others," said the Rabbi.

"Who is strong?"

"The man who is capable of dominating himself," responded the Rabbi.

"Who is wealthy?"

"He who knows the treasure he has: his days and hours of life, which can change everything which goes on around him."

"Who deserves respect?"

"He who respects himself and his neighbor."

"These things are all so obvious," commented one of those present. The Rabbi concluded by saying:

"That is why they are so difficult to observe."

DID YOU KNOW? The U.S. Social Security Board reports that 85 out of 100 Americans reaching age 65 don't possess as much as $250. And only 2% are self-sustaining (the rest dependent on family, church, or the government)! Want to know what the "2-percenters" know that you don't? www.sfi4.com/12392488/FREE

I have never seen an online business so well-constructed and well-organized as SFI. There are so many opportunities to achieve success here. The support at SFI is also magnificent. Just learn as much as you can and put it to good use in your business. I highly recommend SFI to everyone! 
S. Moiz 

Record-breaking growth has driven us to the top of Internet marketing businesses. You can build a profitable home-based business working part-time from your home computer! Training, support, Websites, and products all provided! Enroll FREE! www.sfi4.com/12392488/FREE

Where else can you find a FREE and established system that encompasses network marketing, Internet marketing and eCommerce on a single platform? SFI is the answer for people wanting to change their life for the better! 
I. Bencze 

On that lovely beach at sunset, with the Devil.

The man is admiring the sunset on a beautiful beach, beside his wife, enjoying well-deserved holidays. Everything seems absolutely in place, when all of a sudden, from the bottom of his heart there comes a nice, friendly voice that asks him a difficult question:

"Are you happy?" 

"Yes, I am," he answers. 

"Then look around you carefully." 

"Who are you?" 

"I am the devil. And you can't be happy, because you know that sooner or later tragedy can appear and upset your world. Look carefully around you, and you will understand that virtue is just one of the faces of terror". 

And the devil began to show everything that was happening on the beach. The excellent family man who at that very moment was packing and helping the children to get dressed would like to have an affair with his secretary, but was terrified at how his wife would react.

Terror in each one of those persons on that lovely beach at a sunset that would take your breath away. The terror of remaining alone, the terror of the dark that filled their imagination with devils, the terror of doing something not included in the manual of good behavior, the terror of God's judgment, the terror of the comments of men, the terror of justice that punished any fault, the terror of the injustice that left the guilty free and threatening. The terror of risking and losing, the terror of winning and having to live with the envy of others, the terror of loving and being rejected, the terror of asking for a raise, of accepting an invitation, of going to unknown places, of not managing to speak a foreign language, of not having the ability to impress others. The terror of growing old, of dying, of being noticed because of your defects, of not being noticed because of your qualities, of not being noticed neither for your defects nor your qualities.

"I hope that this has made you calmer," concluded the devil. "After all, you are not alone in your fears."

"Please don't go away until you hear what I have to say," answered the man. "We have the incredible capacity to detect pain, remorse, wounds -- or terror, as you prefer to call it. But my father once told me the story of an apple-tree that was so laden with apples that its branches could not sing in the wind. Someone passing by asked why it did not try to call attention like all the other trees did. 'My fruits are my best advertisement,' answered the apple-tree.

"Of course, I am no different from anyone else, and my heart is filled with many fears. But despite everything, the fruits of my life speak for me, and if some day a tragedy happens, I know that I have not spent my life without taking risks."

And the devil, disappointed, left him to try to scare other -- weaker - people.

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www.sfi4.com/12392488/FREE

I am on a JOURNEY OF DISCOVERY.

One of Yu's disciples was talking to a disciple of Rinzai: "My master is a man capable of doing miracles, that is why he is respected by all his pupils. I have seen him do things far beyond our capabilities. And your master? What great miracles can he do?" 

"My master's greatest miracle is that he doesn't need to display any great wonder, in order to show his pupils that he is a wise man." 

I agree that in SFI we usually don't toot our horns or blow our trumpets in order to draw attention to what we have achieved or accomplished. But here is what others have to say about us:

I am excited about the opportunity afforded me here at SFI. Now the rest is up to me. If I do my part, the rewards are great. Thank you SFI. Emily Bernstein, EA 
E. Bernstein 

I have been searching for proof that people can really earn money online. SFI ended my search and has given me a real source of extra income online. It is not a GET RICH QUICK SCHEME; it takes time to build, but it is worth all the time and hard work. Thank you SFI. 
M. Vibar 

When my mother and sister told me about SFI, I was very reluctant to even listen to them. As the year as progressed, I watched them enjoying themselves with SFI--especially my mother, who shows such enthusiasm for this program--my curiosity began to peak...I am now an SFI Affiliate and am reading and understanding all the possibilities that are open to me, which has made me believe that I have made the right choice and wish to continue on my journey of making my life better. What impressed me most about SFI was the fact that it is so friendly, open, honest, and reliable. The way each person above and below in my downline encourage and talk to each other, it's like a family that is all over the world. I am proud to be a member of the SFI family. I am on a JOURNEY OF DISCOVERY. Thank you. 
J. West 

It would'nt be right for me to say anything more so if you really want a program that has stood the test of time , delivered on its promises and holds its people in high esteem then sign up and I'll be more than happy to show you around. Did I tell you?  Its Free! No Obligation.

http://www.sfi4.com/12392488/first

May you be Forgotten!

From Paulo Coelho's Online Blog

At the Sceta monastery, the abbot Lucas gathered the monks for the sermon.

"May you never be remembered," he said.

"What do you mean?" replied one of the brothers, "May our example not help those who might need it?"

"In the days when everything was just, no one paid attention to exemplary people," answered the abbot. "Everyone gave their best, without pretensions, and so fulfilled their duty to their fellow men. They loved their neighbor because they understood that this was part of life, and they thought nothing of respecting a law of nature. They shared their possessions in order not to accumulate more than they could carry, since journeys last a lifetime. They lived together in freedom, giving and receiving, without demanding or blaming anything on others.

That is why their deeds were not handed down, and there is no story known about them."

My bet is that God isn’t going to ask us, “Have you been saved?” but “Have you been spent? And if so, on what?” — Margaret Si 

Dear Potential Business Owner:

If you are like me, you've searched the Internet over and wasted lots of time and money with "get rich quick" businesses that turned out to be schemes. I've always wanted to start my own business that was LEGITIMATE and HONEST (and not a "pie in the sky" fairy tale). Well, I did it! I've officially started my own home business as an affiliate with SFI (Strong Future International). Here are some of the reasons why I decided to go with SFI:

* Their parent company has been around since 1985. 

* It's free to get started. 

* They're in over 190 countries worldwide. 

* You can do everything from home on your computer. 

* 24-hour support. 

* Free training and free Website. 

* They're growing rapidly and there's lots of money to be made.

There's nothing to lose and everything to gain here, including more time with your family and more money in your wallet. It's well worth looking at SFI and investing in your future with us. For more information, see www.sfi4.com/12392488/

As long as there's Life, theres Hope!

"Perhaps Jesus sent some of His apostles to Hell to save souls," said John, "even in the worst of torments, not all is lost." 

The idea surprises me. We are chatting in one of the few bars in Los Angeles. John is a firefighter, and today is his day off. 

"Why do you say that?" I ask. 

"Because I have experienced the same torment here on earth. I enter buildings in flames, see desperate people trying to get out and have often risked my life to save them. I am just a particle in this immense universe, forced to act like a hero in the middle of fire and despair. If I, who am no one of importance, can manage to act in this way, imagine what Jesus can do! For sure, some of His apostles are infiltrated in Hell, saving souls." 

Paulo Coelho

A glimpse about the author

Paulo Coelho is a Brazilian author who has sold more than 100 million books, which include 14 short story collections and the novel "The Alchemist." He has been a fan of the Internet since the early 1990s. He spends at least three hours a day online, writing e-mails back and forth with his readers and posting photos on Flickr, MySpace and a blog. 

Coelho's online activities also include promoting pirated copies of his own books. Since 2005 he's been directing his readers to an online site where they can download his books, in languages from German to Japanese, for free. "I always thought that when, at the beginning of your career, you strive to be read, you can't change your mind later and become greedy about it." 

DID YOU KNOW? The U.S. Social Security Board reports that 85 out of 100 Americans reaching age 65 don't possess as much as $250. And only 2% are self-sustaining (the rest dependent on family, church, or the government)! Want to know what the "2-percenters" know that you don't? www.sfi4.com/12392488/FREE