An eclectic collection of Thoughts and Reflections - Most of the information on these pages comes from notes that I have kept over the thirty five or more years as a Scouter in Malta and in Canada. Some items were sent to me by visitors like you, so, if you have some contribution for these sections please email it to me. As far as I know I have not included any copyrighted materials unless I gave the credit where the credit was due. Please let me know if you find any that I have missed. Thank you. And a hearty left handed shake from Canada.

Prayer of Saint Francis


Lord, make me an instrument of your peace, that
where there is hatred, I may bring love
where there is wrong, i may bring the spirit of forgiveness
where there is discord, I may bring harmony
where there is doubt, I may bring faith
where there is despair, I may bring hope
where there is darkness, I may bring light
where there is sadness, I may bring joy.

Lord, grant that I may seek rather to comfort than to be comforted
to understand than to be understood
to love, than to be loved

For it is by giving, that one receives ...
It is by self-forgetting that one finds ...
It is by dying that one awakens to eternal life.

Let us start now

  • Just for today, I will try to live through this day only, and not tackle my whole life problem at once. I can do some thing for twelve hours that would appal me if I had to do it for a lifetime.
  • Just for today, I will be happy. Abraham Lincoln once said that most folks are as happy as they make up their mind to be.
  • Just for today, I will admit myself to what is, and not try to adjust evrything to my own desires. I will take my "luck" as it comes and try to fit myself to it.
  • Just for today, I will try to strengthen my mind, even study. I will learn something useful and not be a complete mental loafer. i will read something that requires effort, thought, and concentration.
  • Just for today, I will exercise my inner self in three ways. I will do somebody a good turn, and no one will know it. If it is found out, it will not count. I will do at least three things I don't want to do - just for exercise. I will not show anyone that my feelings are hurt - they may be hurt, but today I will not show it.
  • Just for today, i will be agreeable. I will look as well as I can ... dress neatly ... try to talk low ... act courteously, not criticize nor find fault with anything, and especially I will not try to regulate anybody except myself.
  • Just for today, I will have a programme - I may not follow it exactly, but I will save myself from two pests - "Hurry;"e; and "Indecision;".
  • Just for today, I will have a quiet half hour all by myself, and relax. During this time, I will try and get a better perspective of my time.
  • Just for today, I will be unafraid of the future. I will not be afraid to enjoy what is beautiful and I will believe that "As; I give to the world, so the world will give to me".
  • Tomorrow I may slip back into the frustrations and selfishness of the life of uncertain values ... the biased intolerant frenzied bureaucratic way of life we are thrust into. I may wallow in self-piety because nobody does the things "I; think they should do" or "I; want them to do".
  • But tomorrow will never come. If I start each day with a constructive thought - "just; for today, I will .... ".

    • Lord Show Me How

    If I can do some good today
    If I can help along life's way
    If I can something helpful say
    Lord show me how.

    If I can make one's burden less
    If I can help one in distress
    If I can spend more happiness
    Lord show me how

    If I can help to dry a tear
    If I can help dispel a fear
    If I can make a problem clear
    Lord show me how.

    If I can teach that which I know
    If I can by example show
    If I can point the way to go
    Lord show me how

    If I can live the righteous way
    In all I do and think and say
    If I can do my best today
    Lord show me how

    If you can't be .....

    If you can't be the pine on the top of the hill,
    Be a shrub in the valley - but be the best little shrub by the side of the rill.

    Be a bush if you can't be a tree.
    If you can't be a bush, be a bit of grass, and some highway happier make.

    If you can't be a muskie then just be a bass
    But the liveliest bass in the lake.

    We can't all be captains - we've got to be crew
    There's something for all of us here
    There's big work to do - and there's lesser to do
    And the task you must do is the near.
    If you can't be a highway then just be a trail
    If you can't be the sun, then just be a star.
    It ain't by size that you win or you fail.
    Be the best of whatever you are ....

    Tell Him All

    God understands; it is sweet to know
    When we are tired and when the hand of pain
    Lies on our hearts and when we look in vain
    For human comfort, that the Heart Divine
    Still understands those cares of yours and mine.
    There is no sorrow that He will not share;
    No cross, no burden for our hearts to bear
    Without His help. No cares of ours too small
    To cast on Jesus - let us tell Him all.
    Lay at His feet the story of our woes
    And in His sympathy find sweet repose.

    Sioux Indian Prayer

    Great Spirit, help me not to judge another, until I have walked two weeks in his mocassins.

    Memories of Camp

    What shall I bring from camp with me
    Besides a coat of tan?
    A pinch of fern dust and a wisp
    Of wood smoke if I can!
    Bright memories of days that were
    And dreams of days to be ...
    I'm sure I'll bring back much more
    Than I take to camp with me.

    This day

    I will follow the upward road today
    I will keep my face to the light
    I will keep high thoughts as I go my way
    I will do what I know is right
    I will look for flowers by the side of the road
    I will laugh and love and be strong
    I will try to lighten another's load
    This day as I fare along.
    Errors like straws upon the surface flow
    He who would search for pearls must dive below
    The Fruit of. .
    "The fruit of Silence is Prayer
    The fruit of Prayer is Faith
    The fruit of Faith is Love
    The fruit of Love is Service
    The fruit of Service is Peace
    ~Mother Teresa~
    Father we thank Thee for the night
    For the blessing of thy light
    For rest and food and loving care
    And all that makes the world so fair. Amen.

    Forget - Remember

    Forget each kindness that you do
    The moment that you do it
    Forget the praise that falls to you
    The moment you have won it
    Forget the slander that you hear
    Before you can repeat it
    Forget each slight, each spite, each sneer
    Whenever you may meet it.

    Remember every kindness done
    To you, what'e'er its measure
    Remember praise by others won
    And pass it on with pleasure
    Remember every promise made
    And keep it to the letter
    Remember those who lend you aid
    And be a grateful debtor.

    In Life's Garden

    Count your garden by the flowers
    Never by the leaves that fall
    Count your days by golden hours
    Don't remember clouds at all
    Count your nights by stars not shadows
    Count your life with smiles not tears
    And with joy through all your lifetime
    Count your age by friends not tears.

    God's Promise

    God did not promise
    Skies always blue
    Flower-strewn pathways
    All our lives through.

    God did not promise
    Sun without rain
    Joy without sorrow
    Peace without pain.

    But God has promised
    Strength for the days
    Rest for the labour
    Light for the way.

    Grace fro the trials
    Help from above
    Unfailing sympathy
    Undying love.

    God's Boxes


    I have in my hands two boxes
    Which God gave me to hold.
    He said, "Put all your sorrows in the black box,
    And all your joys in the gold."

    I heeded His words, and in the two boxes
    Both my joys and sorrows I stored,
    But though the gold became heavier each day
    The black was as light as before.

    With curiosity, I opened the black,
    I wanted to find out why,
    And I saw, in the base of the box, a hole
    Which my sorrows had fallen out by.

    I showed the hole to God, and mused,
    "I wonder where my sorrows could be."
    He smiled a gentle smile and said,
    "My child, they're all here with me."

    I asked God, why He gave me the boxes,
    "Why the gold, and the black with the hole?"
    "My child, the gold is for you to count your blessings,
    The black is for you to let go."
    I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year
    Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown
    And he replied:
    "Go out into the darkness and put your hand in the hand of God.
    That shall be to you better than light and safer than a known way.

    [This was quoted by His Majesty King George VI in his Christmas 1939 broadcast to the Empire. I believe it originally was written by M. L. Haskins]

    Wesley's Rule

    Do all the good you can
    By all the means you can
    In all the ways you can
    At all the time you can
    In all the places you can
    To all the people you can
    As long as ever you can.

    FOOTPRINTS IN THE SAND



    One night I dreamed I was walking Along the beach with the Lord.

    Many scenes from my life flashed across the sky. In each scene I noticed footprints in the sand.

    Sometimes there were two sets of footprints.
    Other times there were one set of footprints.

    This bothered me because I noticed that During the low periods of my life when I was Suffering from anguish, sorrow, or defeat, I could see only one set of footprints,

    So I said to the Lord, "You promised me, Lord, that if I followed You, You would walk with me always.

    But I noticed that during the most trying periods Of my life there have only been One set of prints in the sand.

    Why, When I have needed You most, You have not been there for me?"

    The Lord replied, "The times when you have seen only one set of footprints Is when I carried you."

    I have always presumed this to be public domain, but recently I have found that it was written by Mary Stevenson © 1984
    For a site devoted to FOOTPRINTS IN THE SAND, please click here

    FOOTPRINTS...A New Version

    Imagine you and the Lord Jesus are walking down the road together.

    For much of the way, the Lord's footprints go along steadily, consistently, rarely varying the pace.

    But your footprints are a disorganized stream of zigzags, starts, stops, turnarounds, circles, departures, and returns.

    For much of the way, it seems to go like this, but gradually your footprints come more in line with the Lord's, soon paralleling His consistently.

    You and Jesus are walking as true friends!

    This seems perfect, but then an interesting thing happens:
    Your footprints that once etched the sand next to Jesus' are now walking precisely in His steps.

    Inside His larger footprints are your smaller ones, you and Jesus are becoming one.

    This goes on for many miles, but gradually you notice another change.

    The footprints inside the large footprints seem to grow larger.

    Eventually they disappear altogether.

    There is only one set of footprints they have become one.

    This goes on for a long time, but suddenly the second set of footprints is back.

    This time it seems even worse!

    Zigzags all over the place. Stops. Starts.

    Gashes in the sand. A variable mess of prints.

    You are amazed and shocked.

    Your dream ends. Now you pray:

    "Lord, I understand the first scene, with zigzags and fits. I was a new Christian; I was just learning. But You walked on through the storm and helped me learn to walk with You."

    "That is correct."

    "And when the smaller footprints were inside of Yours, I was actually learning to walk in Your steps, following You very closely."

    "Very good.. You have understood everything so far."

    When the smaller footprints grew and filled in Yours, I suppose that I was becoming like You in every way."

    "Precisely."

    "So, Lord, was there a regression or something? The footprints separated, and this time it was worse than at first."

    There is a pause as the Lord answers, with a smile in His voice.

    "You didn't know? It was then that we danced!"

    To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven: A time to weep, a time to laugh, A time to mourn, and a time to dance.

    Ecclesiastes 3:1,4.

    FOOTPRINTS IN THE SNOW

    I had a dream one wintry night
    as the moon was full and bright.
    Before me was an evergreen tree,
    Standing alone, just like me.
    Then a man came walking by
    whose caring look caught my eye.

    It was Jesus walking there,
    calmly in the cold night air.
    in my heart at once I knew,
    all I'd learned of Him was true.
    He's the light in children's eyes
    and shining stars in clear night skies,
    Life's answer to each hurt and wrong,
    the peace we've needed for so long.

    It was the holy Christmas season,
    and He had come by for a reason.
    He put a bow on top of the tree,
    as a symbol of His gift for me.
    I woke up thinking of what I'd dreamed
    amazed at how real it all had seemed.

    Beyond my window, I heard not a sound;
    Falling snow was covering the ground.
    On the tree I saw a beautiful bow,
    crimson red on the pure white snow.
    Streamers were flowing down the tree,
    like the blood He shed for me.
    I was in awe of the bright red bow...
    then I saw His 'Footprints in the Snow.

    ©2002 Jerry & Sandi Knode
    One ship drives East and another West
    With the selfsame winds that blow
    'Tis the set of the sails and not the gales
    Which tells us the way to go.

    Like the winds of the sea are the ways of fate
    As we voyage along through life
    'Tis the set of the Soul that decides its goal
    And not the calm or the strife.

    I KNOW.....

    · I know He is the beginning, so why do I worry about the end
    · I know He is the creator, so why do I wonder who will destroy
    · I know He has forgiven me, so why can't I forgive myself
    · I know He is a healer, so why do I speak of sickness
    · I know He can do all things, so why do I say I can't
    · I know He will protect me, so why do I fear
    · I know He will supply all my needs, so why can't I wait
    · I know He is my strength and my salvation, so why do I feel weak
    · I know that everything and everyone has a season, so why when someone's season is over do I weep instead of rejoice
    · I know He is the right way, so why do I go the wrong way
    · I know He is the light, so why do I choose to walk in darkness
    · I know that whatever I ask of God, God will give me, so why am I scared to ask
    · I know tomorrow is not promised, so why do I put off for tomorrow what I can do today
    · I know that the truth shall make me free, so why do I continue to lie
    · I know He gives us revelation knowledge and understanding, so why do I lean on my own understanding
    · I know I should live in the spirit as well as walk in the spirit, so why do I chose to live in the spirit but walk in the flesh
    · I know that when praises go up blessings come down, so why do I refuse to praise Him
    · I know I am saved, so why do I refuse the word He has given me
    · I know He has a plan for me, so why am I rushing it because I am eager to do His will, when it is His time not my time

    Author Unknown

    Take Time

  • .... to THINK - it is a source of power
  • .... to PLAY - it is the secret of perpetual youth
  • .... to READ - it is the fountain of Wisdom
  • .... to PRAY - it is the greatest Power on earth
  • .... to BE FRIENDLY - it is the road to Happiness
  • .... to LOVE and BE LOVED - it is a God-given privilege
  • .... to LAUGH - it is the music of the soul
  • .... to GIVE - it is too short a day to be selfish
  • .... to WORK - it is the price of Success.

    • Take Time.... [another version]

    Take time to think;
    It is the source of power.

    Take time to read;
    It is the foundation of wisdom.

    Take time to play;
    It is the secret of staying young.

    Take time to be quiet;
    It is the opportunity to seek God

    Take time to be aware;
    It is the opportunity to help others.

    Take time to love and be loved;
    It is God's greatest gift.

    Take time to laugh;
    It is the music of the soul.

    Take time to be friendly;
    It is the road to happiness.

    Take time to dream;
    It is what the future is made of.

    Take time to pray;
    It is the greatest power on earth.

    THOUGHTS TO LIVE BY

    Take time to dream - It hitches our soul to the stars.
    Take time to work - It's the price of success.
    Take time to think - It's the source of power.
    Take time to play - It's the secret of youth.
    Take time to read - It's the foundation of knowledge.
    Take time to worship - It's the highway to your soul.
    Take time to laugh - It helps with life's load.
    Take time for health - It's the true treasure of life.
    Take time for friends - They are a source of happiness.
    Take time to love - It's the source of great joy.
    Take time for family - They are the source of our roots and unconditional love.
    Take time for reflection - The past has made us who we are.
    Take time to count your blessings - It helps us appreciate what we have.
    Take time to brighten someones day - Your's will be brightend too.

    This One Day

    Look well into this one day ... for it, and it alone, is life.
    In the brief course of this one day lie all the verities and realities of your existence, the joy of growth, the splendour of beauty, the glory of action.
    Yesterday is but a dream, and tomorrow is only a vision, but today well lived makes every yesterday a dream of happiness ... and each tomorrow, a vision of hope.
    Look well, therefore to this one day. For it alone is life.
    Such is the salutation of the dawn.

    From the Sanskrit

    BOYS GROW BEST WHEN:

    1. They are with adults who are at ease with them and who seem to enjoy them most of the time.
    2. They are permitted to make mistakes which will not harm them unduly, and are permitted to live with adults who do not themselves pretend to be perfect.
    3- Those about them believe in them and express confidence through words and through giving them freedom.
    4. Those about them understand what they are trying to achieve and support and team with them in their endeavors.
    5. Those about them permit them to express doubts, to raise questions, and to try their ow ideas.
    6. They understand the limits of the freedom within which they can make decisions, and when this freedom in limited to the responsibility they feel able to carry at their stage of development.
    7. Those about them deal with them with firmness and consistency.
    8. Adults around them behave as adults and show what the adult way is like.
    9. Those about them help than to succeed when they need help, but let them struggle when they are winning by themselves.
    10. Those about them gear their expectancy of a child's behaviour to his capacity for that behaviour.
    11. Those about them understand how they grow and develop, and provide motivation and opportunity for encouraging sound growth.
    12. They feel strong within themselves, when they feel they are just the kind of person wanted by their family, their friends, their community, and nation.
    13. There is an atmosphere of friendliness and warmth whether with adults or with children.
    14. They meet actual life situations, emotionally charged, and deal with them successfully whether with or without adult help.
    15. Their performance expectancy is related to themselves and not to others.
    16. They are interested in what they are doing for its own sake. They will be interested when it has meaning for them. Children forced to perform tasks in which they have no interest or understanding are not helped but are actually blocked. Those who attempt it are battling against human nature and will lose in the end.

    This thought is summarized from "Understanding Boys" by Clarence G. Moser, published by the Association Press. In my humble opinion, it should be in the library of every youth leader.

    Dear Father,
    help us to see the good in other people and their work, and then acknowledge that good, thereby making their lives more pleasant while they live amongst us.
    We know from experience that these little pats on the back cost so little and yet mean so much.

    For this we'll give Thee the Praise.

    I shall be busy today, Lord
    I may forget Thee
    but please do not forget me.

    The Apostolate of Smiling

    Just a Little Smile on Your Lips
    Cheers your heart
    Keeps you in good humour
    Preserves peace in your soul
    Promotes your health
    Beautifies your face
    Induces kindly thoughts
    Inspires kindly deeds

    SMILE TO YOURSELF.
    until you notice that your constant seriousness, or even severity, has vanished.

    SMILE TO YOURSELF.
    until you have warmed your own heart with the sunshine of your cheery countenance.

    Then ... Go Out And Radiate Your Smile

    THAT SMILE ...
    has work to do - Work io do for God.
    You are an Apostle now, and Your Smile Is Your instrument, for Winning Souls.

    Sanctifying Grace Dwelling in Your Soul Will Give the Special Charm to Your Smile Which Will Render it Productive of Much Good.

    SMILE-on the lonely faces
    SMILE-on the timid faces
    SMILE-on the sorrowful faces
    SMILE-on the sickly faces
    SMILE-on the fresh young
    SMILE-on the wrinkled old faces
    SMILE-on the familiar faces of your family and friends - let all enjoy the beauty and inspiring cheer of your smiling face.

    COUNT ...
    if you will, the number of smiles your smile has drawn from others in one day. The number will represent how many times you have promoted contentment, joy, satisfaction, encouragement, or confidence in the hearts of others. These good dispositions always give birth to unselfish acts and noble deeds. The influence of your smile is spreading though you do not always see the wonders it is working.

    YOUR SMILE
    can bring new life and hope and courage into the hearts of the weary, the overburdened, the discouraged, the tempted, the despairing.

    YOUR SMILE
    can help to develop vocations, if you are a Priest, a Brother, or a Sister.

    YOUR SMILE ...
    can be the beginning of conversions to the Faith.
    YOUR SMILE ...
    can prepare the way for a sinner's return to God.
    YOUR SMILE ...
    can win for you a host of devoted friends.
    SMILE, TOO, AT GOD . .
    Smile at God in loving acceptance of whatever He sends into your life, and you will merit to have the radiantly Smiling Face of Christ gaze on you with special love throughout eternity.

    ST JOSEPH'S PROTECTORY PRINT, PITTSBURGH, PA.
    Given to me by my wife, Irčne who had it in her purse since she was a young girl

    Hang In There

    There may be days when you get up in the morning and things aren't the way you had hoped they would be.

    That's when you have to tell yourself that things will get better.

    There are times when people disappoint you and let you down.

    But those are the times when you must remind yourself to trust your own judgments and opinions, to keep your life focused on believing in yourself!

    There will be challenges to face and changes to make in your life, and it is up to you to accept them.

    Constantly keep yourself headed in the right direction for you. It may not be easy at times,

    but in those times of struggle you will find a stronger sense of who you are.

    So when the days come that are filled with frustration and unexpected responsibilities, remember to believe in yourself and all you want your life to be.

    Because the challenges and changes will only help you to find the goals that you know are meant to come true for you!

    Keep Believing in Yourself!!!

    The Job

    There was an important job to be done so EVERYBODY was sure SOMEBODY would do it. ANYBODY could have done it but NOBODY did it. Somebody got angry about that because it was EVERYBODY's job. EVERYBODY thought ANYBODY could do it, but NOBODY realized that EVERYBODY wouldn't do it. It ended up that EVERYBODY blamed SOMEBODY when NOBODY did what ANYBODY could have done.

    One Solitary Life

    A child is born in an obscure village. He is brought up in another obscure village. He works in a carpenter shop until he is thirty, and then for three brief years is an itinerant preacher, proclaiming a message and living a life. He never writes a book. He never holds an office. He never raises an army. He never has a family of his own. He never owns a home. He never goes to college. He never travels two hundred miles from the place where he was born.

    He gathers a little group of friends about him and teaches them his way of life. While still a young man the tide of popular feeling turns against him. One denies him; another betrays him. He is turned over to his enemies. He goes through the mockery of a trial; he is nailed to a cross between two thieves, and when dead is laid in a borrowed grave by the kindness of a friend.

    Those are the facts of his human life. He rises from the dead. Today we look back across nineteen hundred years and ask, What kind of trail has he left across the centuries? When we try to sum up his influence, all the armies that ever marched, all the parliaments that ever sat, all the kings that ever reigned are absolutely picayune in their influence on mankind compared with that of this one solitary life...

    Dr. James Allan Francis, 1926

    One Solitary Life
    [Another Version]

    Here is a man who was born in an obscure village, the child of a peasant woman. He grew up in another village. He worked in a carpenter shop until He was thirty. Then for three years He was an itinerant preacher. He never owned a home. He never wrote a book. He never held an office. He never had a family. He never went to college. He never put His foot inside a big city. He never traveled two hundred miles from the place He was born. He never did one of the things that usually accompany greatness. He had no credentials but Himself...

    While still a young man, the tide of popular opinion turned against him. His friends ran away. One of them denied Him. He was turned over to His enemies. He went through the mockery of a trial. He was nailed upon a cross between two thieves. While He was dying His executioners gambled for the only piece of property He had on earth – His coat. When He was dead, He was laid in a borrowed grave through the pity of a friend.

    Nineteen long centuries have come and gone, and today He is a centerpiece of the human race and leader of the column of progress.

    I am far within the mark when I say that all the armies that ever marched, all the navies that were ever built; all the parliaments that ever sat and all the kings that ever reigned, put together, have not affected the life of man upon this earth as powerfully as has that one solitary life.

    Note: This piece was orignially attributed to "unknown". However I am led to believe that the original author is Dr James Allan Francis, a Baptist Pastor. There are other variations, and this one was recited By Johnny Cash many times at his Concerts

    Crayons

    We could learn a lot from crayons:
    some are sharp, some are pretty,
    some are dull, some have weird names,
    and all are different colors...but
    they all exist very nicely in the same box.