Letter to my future lover

Source: Tumblr

Girl's on fire

Suspended coffees

1. We enter a little coffeehouse with a friend of mine and give our order. While we’re aproaching our table two people come in and they go to the counter:
   ‘Five coffees, please. Two of them for us and three suspended’ They pay for their order, take the two and leave.
   
   I ask my friend: “What are those ‘suspended’ coffees?”
   My friend: “Wait for it and you will see.”
   
   Some more people enter. Two girls ask for one coffee each, pay and go. The next order was for seven coffees and it was made by three lawyers - three for them and four ‘suspended’. While I still wonder what’s the deal with those ‘suspended’ coffees I enjoy the sunny weather and the beautiful view towards the square infront of the café. Suddenly a man dressed in shabby clothes who looks like a beggar comes in throught the door and kindly asks
   ‘Do you have a suspended coffee ?’
   
   It’s simple - people pay in advance for a coffee meant for someone who can not afford a warm bevarage. The tradition with the suspended coffees started in Naples, but it has spread all over the world and in some places you can order not only a suspended coffee, but also a sandwitch or a whole meal.
   
   Wouldn’t it be wonderful to have such cafés or even grocery stores in every town where the less fortunate will find hope and support ? If you own a business why don’t you offer it to your clients… I am sure many of them will like it.

   
   Source: Tumblr 

Ten Tips for Positive Parenting Your Strong-Willed, Spirited Child

 

1. Avoid power struggles by using routines and rules. That way, you aren't bossing them around, it’s just that “The rule is we use the potty after every meal and snack,” or “The schedule is that lights-out is at 8pm. If you hurry, we’ll have time for two books,” or "In our house, we finish homework before computer, TV, or telephone time." The parent stops being the bad guy.

2. Your strong-willed child wants mastery more than anything. Let her take charge of as many of her own activities as possible. Don’t nag at her to brush her teeth, ask “What else do you need to do before we leave?” If she looks blank, tick off the short list:“Every morning we eat, brush teeth, use the toilet, and pack the backpack. I saw you pack your backpack, great job! Now, what do you still need to do before we leave?” Kids who feel more independent and in charge of themselves will have less need to rebel and be oppositional. Not to mention they take responsibility early.

3. Give your strong-willed child choices. If you give orders, he will almost certainly bristle. If you offer a choice, he feels like the master of his own destiny. Of course, only offer choices you can live with and don’t let yourself get resentful by handing away your power. If going to the store is non-negotiable and he wants to keep playing, an appropriate choice is: “Do you want to leave now or in ten minutes?”

4. Give her authority over her own body. “I hear that you don’t want to wear your jacket today. I think it is cold and I am definitely wearing a jacket. Of course, you are in charge of your own body, as long as you stay safe and healthy, so you get to decide whether to wear a jacket. But I’m afraid that you will be cold once we are outside, and I won’t want to come back to the house. How about I put your jacket in the backpack, and then we’ll have it if you change your mind?” She’s not going to get pneumonia, unless you push her into it by acting like you’ve won if she asks for the jacket. And once she won’t lose face by wearing her jacket, she’ll be begging for it once she gets cold. It’s just hard for her to imagine feeling cold when she’s so warm right now in the house, and a jacket seems like such a hassle. She's sure she's right -- her own body is telling her so -- so naturally she resists you. You don't want to undermine that self-confidence, just teach her that there's no shame in letting new information change your mind.

5. Don't push him into opposing you. Force always creates "push-back" -- with humans of all ages. If you take a hard and fast position, you can easily push your child into defying you, just to prove a point. You'll know when it's a power struggle and you're invested in winning. Just stop, take a breath, and remind yourself that winning a battle with your child always sets you up to lose what’s most important: the relationship. When in doubt say "Ok, you can decide this for yourself." If he can't, then say what part of it he can decide, or find another way for him to meet his need for autonomy without compromising his health or safety.

6. Side step power struggles by letting your child save face. You don’t have to prove you’re right. You can, and should, set reasonable expectations and enforce them. But under no circumstances should you try to break your child’s will or force him to acquiesce to your views. He has to do what you want, but he's allowed to have his own opinions and feelings about it.

7. Listen to her.You, as the adult, might reasonably presume you know best. But your strong-willed child has a strong will partly as a result of her integrity. She has a viewpoint that is making her hold fast to her position, and she is trying to protect something that seems important to her. Only by listening calmly to her and reflecting her words will you come to understand what’s making her oppose you. A non-judgmental “I hear that you don’t want to take a bath. Can you tell me more about why?” might just elicit the information that she’s afraid she’ll go down the drain, like Alice in the song. It may not seem like a good reason to you, but she has a reason. And you won’t find it out if you get into a clash and order her into the tub.

8. See it from his point of view. For instance, he may be angry because you promised to wash his superman cape and then forgot. To you, he is being stubborn. To him, he is justifiably upset, and you are being hypocritical, because he is not allowed to break his promises to you. How do you clear this up and move on? You apologize profusely for breaking your promise, you reassure him that you try very hard to keep your promises, and you go, together, to wash the cape. You might even teach him how to wash his own clothes! Just consider how would you want to be treated, and treat him accordingly.

9. Discipline through the relationship, never through punishment. Kids don’t learn when they’re in the middle of a fight. Like all of us, that’s when adrenaline is pumping and learning shuts off. Kids behave because they want to please us. The more you fight with and punish your child, the more you undermine her desire to please you. If she's upset, help her express her hurt, fear or disappointment, so they evaporate. Then she'll be ready to listen to you when you remind her that in your house, everyone speaks kindly to each other.


10. Offer him respect and empathy. Most strong-willed children are fighting for respect. If you offer it to them, they don’t need to fight to protect their position. And, like the rest of us, it helps a lot if they feel understood. If you see his point of view and think he's wrong -- for instance, he wants to wear the superman cape to synagogue and you think that's inappropriate -- you can still offer him empathy and meet him part way while you set the limit. "You love this cape and wish you could wear it, don't you? But when we go to Temple we dress up, and we can't wear the cape. I know you'll miss wearing it. How about we take it with us so you can wear it on our way home?"

Source: ahaparenting.com

Một mình

Đời mong manh quá, kể chi chuyện mình

http://mp3.zing.vn/bai-hat/Mot-Minh-Tran-Thai-Hoa/IW679C7F.html

Sớm mai thức giấc, nhìn quanh một mình

Ngoài hiên nắng lóe, đàn chim giật mình
Biết lời tỏ tình, đã có người nghe

Nắng xuyên qua lá, hạt sương lìa cành
Đời mong manh quá, kể chi chuyện mình
Nắng buồn cuộc tình, bỗng tắt bình minh

Đường xưa quen lối, tình dối người mang
Tình duyên trăm mối, một kiếp đa đoan
Cứ tìm tình chồng chất ngổn ngang

Còn bao lâu nữa khi ta bạc đầu
Tình cờ gặp nhau, ngỡ ngàng nhìn nhau
Để rồi còn gì nữa cho nhau

Sáng trưa khuya tối, nhìn quanh một mình
Đường quen không tới, tìm nhau ngại ngùng
Chỉ vì đời mình, chưa có bình minh 

T.G.I.F

Things to do when you're sad

I'd like to share a list of things that you can try to do when you're sad. Everyone will have their own ways to find happiness. Whatever it is.

For Monday

Source : Tumblr

Love, Dad

In June of 1971, just days before his 26-year-old son, Michael, got married, future-U.S. President Ronald Reagan sent him the following letter of advice. It really is quite stunning.

(Source: Reagan: A Life In Letters; Image: Ronald Reagan, via.)

Michael Reagan
Manhattan Beach, California
June 1971

Dear Mike:

Enclosed is the item I mentioned (with which goes a torn up IOU). I could stop here but I won't.

You've heard all the jokes that have been rousted around by all the "unhappy marrieds" and cynics. Now, in case no one has suggested it, there is another viewpoint. You have entered into the most meaningful relationship there is in all human life. It can be whatever you decide to make it.

Some men feel their masculinity can only be proven if they play out in their own life all the locker-room stories, smugly confident that what a wife doesn't know won't hurt her. The truth is, somehow, way down inside, without her ever finding lipstick on the collar or catching a man in the flimsy excuse of where he was till three A.M., a wife does know, and with that knowing, some of the magic of this relationship disappears. There are more men griping about marriage who kicked the whole thing away themselves than there can ever be wives deserving of blame. There is an old law of physics that you can only get out of a thing as much as you put in it. The man who puts into the marriage only half of what he owns will get that out. Sure, there will be moments when you will see someone or think back to an earlier time and you will be challenged to see if you can still make the grade, but let me tell you how really great is the challenge of proving your masculinity and charm with one woman for the rest of your life. Any man can find a twerp here and there who will go along with cheating, and it doesn't take all that much manhood. It does take quite a man to remain attractive and to be loved by a woman who has heard him snore, seen him unshaven, tended him while he was sick and washed his dirty underwear. Do that and keep her still feeling a warm glow and you will know some very beautiful music. If you truly love a girl, you shouldn't ever want her to feel, when she sees you greet a secretary or a girl you both know, that humiliation of wondering if she was someone who caused you to be late coming home, nor should you want any other woman to be able to meet your wife and know she was smiling behind her eyes as she looked at her, the woman you love, remembering this was the woman you rejected even momentarily for her favors.

Mike, you know better than many what an unhappy home is and what it can do to others. Now you have a chance to make it come out the way it should. There is no greater happiness for a man than approaching a door at the end of a day knowing someone on the other side of that door is waiting for the sound of his footsteps.

Love,

Dad

P.S. You'll never get in trouble if you say "I love you" at least once a day.

Source: lettersofnote.com

Our Differences Unite Us

Tuesday, 6 November 2012

Just last week, 10-year-old Sophia Bailey-Klugh wrote and illustrated an endearing letter to U. S. President Barack Obama and, as the daughter of a gay couple, thanked him for supporting same-sex marriage. She then asked for advice on how to respond to those who saw such a thing as "gross and weird." Her letter, and the reply she soon received, can be seen below.

Note: Obama's response has since been verified as genuine by an official spokesperson.

Transcripts follow each letter.

(Source: Huffington Post; Image of Obama via)

Transcript

Dear Barack Obama,

It's Sophia Bailey Klugh. Your friend who invited you to dinner. You don't remember okay that's fine. But I just wanted to tell you that I am so glad you agree that two men can love each other because I have two dads and they love each other. But at school kids think that it's gross and weird but it really hurts my heart and feelings. So I come to you because you are my hero. If you were me and you had two dads that loved each other, and kids at school teased you about it, what would you do?

Please respond!

I just wanted to say you really inspire me, and I hope you win on being the president. You would totally make the world a better place.

Your friend Sophia

P.S. Please tell your daughters Hi for me!

Transcript

President Barack Obama

November 1, 2012

Miss Sophia Bailey-Klugh

Dear Sophia,

Thank you for writing me such a thoughtful letter about your family. Reading it made me proud to be your president and even more hopeful about the future of our nation.

In America, no two families look the same. We celebrate this diversity. And we recognize that whether you have two dads or one mom what matters above all is the love we show one another. You are very fortunate to have two parents who care deeply for you. They are lucky to have such an exceptional daughter in you.

Our differences unite us. You and I are blessed to live in a country where we are born equal no matter what we look like on the outside, where we grow up, or who our parents are. A good rule is to treat others the way you hope they will treat you. Remind your friends at school about this rule if they say something that hurts your feelings.

Thanks again for taking the time to write to me. I'm honored to have your support and inspired by your compassion. I'm sorry I couldn't make it to dinner, but I'll be sure to tell Sasha and Malia you say hello.

Sincerely,

(Signed, 'Barack Obama')

Source: letterofnote.com

Spread the love

INNER BEAUTY

Valentines is all about spreading the love. Have you thought about spreading some love to yourself? It all starts there. Here are some words of wisdom for you, me and all of us today. Happy Valentines! Love!

“I am my own experiment. I am my own work of art.”

― Madonna

“When a woman becomes her own best friend life is easier.”

― Diane Von Furstenberg

“The person in life that you will always be with the most, is yourself. Because even when you are with others, you are still with yourself, too! When you wake up in the morning, you are with yourself, laying in bed at night you are with yourself, walking down the street in the sunlight you are with yourself.What kind of person do you want to walk down the street with? What kind of person do you want to wake up in the morning with? What kind of person do you want to see at the end of the day before you fall asleep? Because that person is yourself, and it's your responsibility to be that person you want to be with. I know I want to spend my life with a person who knows how to let things go, who's not full of hate, who's able to smile and be carefree. So that's who I have to be.”

― C. JoyBell

“I now see how owning our story and loving ourselves through that process is the bravest thing that we will ever do.”

― Brene Brown

“When I loved myself enough, I began leaving whatever wasn't healthy. This meant people, jobs, my own beliefs and habits - anything that kept me small. My judgement called it disloyal. Now I see it as self-loving.”

―Kim McMillen

“People who love themselves come across as very loving, generous and kind; they express their self-confidence through humility, forgiveness and inclusiveness.”

― Sanaya Roman

“You can be the most beautiful person in the world and everybody sees light and rainbows when they look at you, but if you yourself don't know it, all of that doesn't even matter. Every second that you spend on doubting your worth, every moment that you use to criticize yourself; is a second of your life wasted, is a moment of your life thrown away. It's not like you have forever, so don't waste any of your seconds, don't throw even one of your moments away.”

― C. JoyBell

Source: inner-outerbeauty.com

Have a nice weekend!

Source: Tumblr

Độc thân kiêu hãnh

Chờ đợi tình yêu là một thứ vô vọng của tuổi thanh xuân. Chúng ta trải qua nó theo những cách khác nhau, chúng ta có điểm đến là tình yêu. Nhưng hành trình đi tới nó, ta nên rẽ trái hay rẽ phải? Ai biết tình yêu chờ ta sau góc phố nào?

Chuyện chờ đợi tình yêu khiến tôi nhớ đến một câu chuyện nhỏ, nó làm thay đổi gần như toàn bộ quan điểm sống của tôi. Đó là lần tôi hẹn gặp một người con trai. Chàng trai đến chỗ hẹn trước, gọi điện cho tôi, tôi nói rằng tôi đang bắt đầu đi xuống lầu, và chừng năm phút nữa, tôi sẽ đến chỗ hẹn. Thế nhưng khi tới đó, tôi chỉ nhìn thấy chiếc ô tô đỗ dưới tán cây mà không hề thấy người bạn đâu!
Một phút sau người bạn tôi chạy tới, mỉm cười, và nói anh đã thay giầy để tranh thủ chạy bộ vài vòng quanh cái sân bóng ngay cạnh đó. Chạy bộ tốt cho sức khỏe, anh vẫn chạy bộ hàng ngày. Và kể cả khi chỉ rảnh ra năm phút trống, thay bằng chờ đợi, anh dành thời gian để làm việc anh ưa thích!
Sau này, mỗi khi hẹn gặp, đi chơi, đi học, đi gặp đối tác hoặc đi họp, chúng tôi thường không quên xách theo bộ quần áo và đôi giày để tranh thủ chơi bóng rổ với nhau chừng nửa tiếng trước khi chia tay. Anh bạn tôi cũng nói rằng, đồng nghiệp và bạn gái của anh rất nhiều, nhưng chơi thể thao với anh chẳng mấy cô nàng.
Cho đến giờ đó vẫn là một trong những hình ảnh đẹp đẽ nhất mà tôi nhìn thấy từ một người đàn ông. Họ yêu hoạt động, họ không chờ đợi bất cứ thứ gì, mà họ biết tranh thủ thời gian để làm cho bản thân tốt đẹp hơn, khỏe hơn hoặc thú vị hơn. Từ đó, tôi cũng đã hoàn toàn bỏ thói quen chờ đợi một điều gì đó tới từ tương lai, và biết biến ngày hôm nay của mình trở nên bận rộn.
Một trong những thứ khiến bạn trở nên yếu đuối, đó là chuyện, bạn để ý quá nhiều đến xung quanh. Người có lứa đôi dập dìu trên phố quá nhiều khiến bạn bất an với sự lẻ loi của bản thân. Những vụ tỏ tình gây sốc trên mạng khiến bạn ước mong một lần. Những đám cưới xa hoa và ảnh cưới ngọt ngào khiến bạn thấy mình khiếm khuyết, không có người yêu dường như là lỗi của chính bạn, bạn đã thiếu một điều gì đó để được hạnh phúc!
Vì thế nên một trong những bí quyết khiến bạn trở nên kiêu hãnh, đó là hãy tự tin rằng, bản thân bạn rất ổn, rất xứng đáng để yêu và được yêu thương. Chỉ là hạnh phúc của bạn chậm chân hơn hạnh phúc của người khác vài tháng, vài năm mà thôi. Nhưng ta sẵn sàng trở nên tuyệt vời hơn trong thời gian đi tới hạnh phúc và yêu thương ấy. Bởi ta chẳng chờ đợi, mà ta luôn bận rộn, luôn có say mê, luôn có háo hức tìm kiếm. Ta quá bận rộn để không hề cảm thấy lẻ loi, và ta đủ say mê để không phải mượn lấy bờ vai ai sát bên thì mới thấy ấm áp.
Sự kiêu hãnh của những cô nàng độc thân đủ lấp lánh để ngay cả những cô nàng đã yêu, đã cưới cũng phải thèm muốn. Vấn đề là, bạn có biết cách tự tỏa sáng hay không!
Nếu bạn rất thích quán bar, nhưng rất sợ vào đó một mình, thì phải hiểu rằng, thực ra nỗi sợ ấy là vì, bạn không biết nhảy, bạn đỏ mặt ngay từ ngụm cocktail hay ly bia lạnh đầu tiên, bạn thiếu tự tin khi một mình đỗ xe trước cậu bảo vệ ngoài cửa. Có gì đâu, hãy bắt đầu bằng một lớp học sexy dance và rủ cả lớp vào quán bạn thích. Vào bar gọi bất cứ đồ uống nào bạn thấy tuyệt vời nhất, và có thể chỉ cần uống mùi hương và màu sắc cùng không gian thôi mà, ai bắt bạn sẽ phải dốc tận đáy một ly B52 đang cháy lửa xanh tím trước mặt! Hoặc, hãy chọn một chiếc taxi để dừng tận cửa quán bar! Và rất nhiều nàng đồng nghiệp, thực ra rất muốn được bạn rủ tới một nơi họ cũng (vì ái ngại, vì một mình) chưa từng bước chân tới.
Kiêu hãnh là lúc không đổ lỗi nỗi buồn của mình cho người khác. Không có hoàng tử, công chúa vẫn cứ là công chúa!
Nếu bạn đi qua một quán cà phê tuyệt đẹp và lãng mạn, có giàn hoa leo trên tường rất dễ thương, chỗ ngồi với góc nhìn ra mặt hồ ngọt ngào vô cùng, rồi nghĩ thầm: Bao giờ mình có người yêu sẽ dẫn nhau vào đây cầm tay, uống một ly cà phê lãng mạn chiều thứ 7, thì bạn nhầm rồi đấy! Cứ nghĩ thế thì bạn sẽ độc thân cho tới lúc cái quán đó đóng cửa và đổi chủ. Và bạn gặm nhấm sự chua chát của nỗi cô đơn không người yêu suốt thời gian đó!
Hãy mang theo cuốn sách bạn yêu thích, rồi chiều thứ Bảy nào tới cái quán xinh đẹp đó, ngồi chỗ bạn thích, gọi thứ đồ uống lãng mạn nhất, và nhâm nhi hạnh phúc của mình đi! Nếu chưa ai yêu bạn, không có nghĩa là bạn không có quyền yêu chính bản thân mình! Và dành cho bản thân mình điều ngọt ngào nhất trên đời!
Độc thân, còn cô đơn, không có nghĩa là không có quyền được sung sướng, ngọt ngào, lãng mạn. Chờ người khác yêu chi bằng hãy yêu lấy chính bản thân mình trước đã!

Tác giả: Trang Hạ

Source: Yahoo

Nothing good gets away

Source: Nothing good gets away

In November of 1958, John Steinbeck — the renowned author of, most notably, The Grapes of Wrath, East of Eden, and Of Mice and Men — received a letter from his eldest son, Thom, who was attending boarding school. In it, the teenager spoke of Susan, a young girl with whom he believed he had fallen in love.

Steinbeck replied the same day. His beautiful letter of advice can be enjoyed below.

(Source: Steinbeck: A Life in Letters )

New York
November 10, 1958

Dear Thom:

We had your letter this morning. I will answer it from my point of view and of course Elaine will from hers.

First—if you are in love—that’s a good thing—that’s about the best thing that can happen to anyone. Don’t let anyone make it small or light to you.

Second—There are several kinds of love. One is a selfish, mean, grasping, egotistical thing which uses love for self-importance. This is the ugly and crippling kind. The other is an outpouring of everything good in you—of kindness and consideration and respect—not only the social respect of manners but the greater respect which is recognition of another person as unique and valuable. The first kind can make you sick and small and weak but the second can release in you strength, and courage and goodness and even wisdom you didn’t know you had.

You say this is not puppy love. If you feel so deeply—of course it isn’t puppy love.

But I don’t think you were asking me what you feel. You know better than anyone. What you wanted me to help you with is what to do about it—and that I can tell you.

Glory in it for one thing and be very glad and grateful for it.

The object of love is the best and most beautiful. Try to live up to it.

If you love someone—there is no possible harm in saying so—only you must remember that some people are very shy and sometimes the saying must take that shyness into consideration.

Girls have a way of knowing or feeling what you feel, but they usually like to hear it also.

It sometimes happens that what you feel is not returned for one reason or another—but that does not make your feeling less valuable and good.

Lastly, I know your feeling because I have it and I’m glad you have it.

We will be glad to meet Susan. She will be very welcome. But Elaine will make all such arrangements because that is her province and she will be very glad to. She knows about love too and maybe she can give you more help than I can.

And don’t worry about losing. If it is right, it happens—The main thing is not to hurry. Nothing good gets away.

Love,

Fa