Contemplation on Choosing Friends

“Judge nothing, you will be happy. 
Forgive everything, you will be happier. 
Love everything, you will be happiest.” 
- Sri Chinmoy

---

"Align yourself with

People that you can learn from,

People who want more out of life,

People who are stretching

And searching and seeking

Some higher ground in life."

- Les Brown

"People inspire you,

Or they drain you. 

Pick them wisely."

- Hans F. Hasen

"When people treat you

Like they don't care, believe them."

"Avoid toxic people. 

Hang out with people who respect you,

People who inspire you

And people who put their energies

To build up rather than destroy."

"Let go of the people who dull your shine,

Poison your spirit, and bring you drama. 

Cancel your subscription to their issues."

"It is better to be yourself and have no friends 
than to be like your friends and have no self." 
- Unknown

"One of the happiest moments ever 
is when you find the courage 
to let go of what you can't change."
- Unknown

"Un-drama yourself

Be who you were before all that drama happened

Which distracted you from who you really are

And what you want for your life."

- Karen Salmansohn

"People who are not happy with their life will

Often try to start drama in yours."

- Karen Salmansohn

"Respond Intelligently even to unintelligent treatment.”

- Lao Tzo

"Don't let negative and toxic people rent space in your head. 

Raise the rent and kick them out."

- Robert Tew

"I will not let anyone walk through my mind with their dirty feet."

- Mahatma Gandhi

"You cannot change the people around you,

But you can change the people that you choose to be around."

"Avoid people who mess with your head,

Who intentionally and repeatedly do 
and say things that they know upset you,

Who expect you to prioritize them 
but refuse to prioritize you,

Who can't and won't apologize sincerely,

Who act like the victim when confronted 
with their abusive behavior."

"Free yourself from negative people.
Spend time with nice people who are smart,
driven and like-minded.
Relationships should help you, not hurt you.
Surround yourself with people
who reflect the person you want
to be.  Choose friends who you are proud to know,
people you admire, who love and respect you - people
who make your day a little brighter simply by being in it."

"Walk with those seeking truth.
Run from those who think they've found it."
- Deepak Chopra

Contemplation on Setbacks

"Fall seven times, stand up eight." - Japanese Proverb

---

"Every setback is an invitation to grow, to evolve and come back better."
-Sheena Jayne Martin

"Setbacks have an upside; they fuel new dreams."
-Dara Torres

"Pursue your dreams and see the opportunities in life's setbacks."
-Steve Jobs

"If it doesn't challenge you, it doesn't change you."
-Fred DeVito

"Sometimes small setbacks are just blessings in disguise.  They enhance your determination and whole-hearted dedication to achieving your goals."
-Robert Cheeke

"Progress.  Just make progress.  It's OK to have setbacks ... It's OK to draw a line in the sand and start over again and again.  Just make sure you're moving the line forward ... Take baby steps, but at least take steps that stop you from being stuck. The change will come.  And it will be good"
-Unknown

"I've grown most, not from victories, but setbacks.  If winning is God's reward, then losing is how he teaches us."
- Serena Williams

"The beautiful thing about setbacks is they introduce us to our strengths."
-Robin S. Sharma

"Hardship often prepares an ordinary person for an extraordinary destiny."
-C. S. Lewis

"Your setback is the platform for your comeback."
- Unknown

"The comeback is always stronger than the setback."
-Unknown

"Temporary setbacks are overshadowed by persistence."
-Quentin L. Cook

"Part of abandoning the all-or-nothing mentality is allowing yourself room for setbacks.  We are bound to have lapses on the road to health and wellness, but it is critical that we learn how to handle small failures positively so that we can minimize their long-term destructive effects.  One setback is one setback -- it is not the end of the world, nor is it the end of your journey toward a better you."
-Jillian Michaels

"To take the difficulties, setbacks and sorrows of life as challenge to overcome makes us stronger, rather than unjust punishment which should not happen to us, requires faith and courage."
- Erich Fromm

Reflections on Tyranny

“Caging people is neither a
Democrat nor Republican policy.
It is unadulterated evil.
Silence only serves to bolster
tyranny and condone evil.”
- Anonymous

---

"When government fears the people, there is liberty.
When the people fear the government, there is tyranny."

"Dissent is the highest form of patriotism"

"Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty."

"When injustice becomes law,
resistance becomes duty."

"If a law is unjust,
a man is not only right to disobey it,
he is obligated to do so."

"If we are to guard against ignorance and remain free,
it is the responsibility of every American to be informed."

"Tyranny is defined as
that which is legal for the government
but illegal for the citizenry."

"When the speech condemns a free press,
you are hearing the words of a tyrant."

"All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is
for people of good conscience to remain silent.”

“I have sworn upon the altar of god,
eternal hostility against every form of
tyranny over the mind of man.”

- Quotes attributed to Thomas Jefferson

---

A Trail's Diversion

A Trail's Diversion - Reflections on Alzheimer's

---

Sometimes the tough things

That happen in our lives

Put us directly on the path

To the best thing

That will ever happen to us.

- Unknown

Difficult roads

Often lead to

Beautiful destinations.

- Unknown

Nothing prepares you for this disease.  

No one is prepared for the isolation. 

Friends disappear because 

The person they knew is no longer there. 

The caregiver gets trapped with the patient.

It is very lonely and isolating.

- Meryl Comer

We don't know how strong we are

until being strong is the only

choice we have.

- Alzheimer's Awareness

Survival is not how you end an experience,

But how you live through an experience. 

It means not being a victim of the circumstance,

But taking hold of the experience, the circumstance,

And turning it into an achievement." 

- Dorothy Webb

When you forget I will remember for us both

When you get lost I will find you

When you are sad I will be sad with you

When the fear comes I will comfort you

When you cry I will dry your tears

When you lash out at me I will not be angry

When you repeat I will have patience

When you forget my name I will understand

When you cannot eat I will feed you

When your legs fail I will carry you

When you long for home I will be your safe place

When your journey is ending I will be by your side

I will love you for eternity

I will ...

- Michata DeSocio

Those with dementia are still people

And they still have stories

And they still have character

And they are all individuals

And they are all unique. 

And they just need to be 

Interacted with on a human level." 

- Carey Mulligan

Do not ask me to remember,

Don't try to make me understand. 

Let me rest and know you're with me,

Kiss my cheek and hold my hand.

I'm confused beyond your concept,

I'm sad and sick and lost. 

All I know is that I need you,

To be with me at all cost.

Do not lose your patience with me,

Do not scold or curse or cry. 

I can't help the way I'm acting,

I can't be different though I try. 

Just remember that I need you,

That the best of me is gone. 

Please don't fail to stand beside me,

Love me 'til my life is gone."

- Unknown

What the mind can't remember,
the heart never forgets.
- Unknown

There is one thing
Alzheimer's cannot take
away, and that is love.
Love is not a memory - it's 
a feeling that resides in 
your heart and soul.
- Unknown

 When Caring Takes Courage

Today I will stay with you.

I will be right here, right now.

I will fight my desire to retreat to our 

yesterday's where I can still find us.

I will resist the pull of practicality that

keeps me worried about our tomorrows.

Today I will stay with you.

I will be right here, right now.

- Mara Botonis

Remember that in the long run
you will benefit ...
You will have no regrets knowing that
you did what you could and 
what was right.
-Gail L.

Your Mother is always with you.  She's the 

whisper of the leaves as you walk down the 

street, she's the smell of certain foods you

remember, flowers you pick, the fragrance of

life itself. She's the cool hand on your brow

when you're not feeling well, she's your breath

in the air on a cold witer's day.  She is the

sound of the rain that lulls you to sleep, the

colors of a rainbow, she is Christmas morning.

Your mother lives inside your laughter.  She's

the place you came from, your first home, and 

she's the map you follow with every step you

take.  She's your first love, your first friend.

Nothing on earth can separate you.  

Not time, not space

not even death.

- Unknown

"The ache for home lives in all of us. 
The safe place where we can go, as
we are, and not be questioned."
- Maya Angelou

"If you learn to listen for
clues as to how I feel
instead of what I say
you will be able to
understand me
much better."
— Mara Botonis

That You Remember Me

I've learned so much throughout my life
but there's much I don't recall.
I know it's in there somewhere
but it's hard to find it all.
It's not that I've forgotten you,
or the things I said I'd do;
I remember everything
but it's hidden somewhere I can't see
just beyond my view.

You see, there is a shadow where
there didn't used to be,
and sometimes when I look right there
it just confuses me.

My mind has ways of taking me
where I don't want to go.
I know I know your name, you see;
just right now it's hard for me
to think of things I really know,
and to know what really is,
and what may not be so.

Though I may forget you,
it's important that you see
just how much it means to me
that you remember me.
- Danel Mark Extrom

“Dementia does not
rob someone of their
dignity, it's our
reaction to them that
does.”
-Teep Snow

"Courage doesn't always roar, 
sometimes courage is a quiet voice 
at the end of the day saying 
'I will try again tomorrow.'"
- Mary Ann Radmacher

"Don't let the fear of tomorrow 
take away the joy of today."
- Unknown

"Things turn out best 
for people who make the best 
of the way things turn out."
- Art Linkletter

"Caregiving often calls us 
to lean into love 
we didn't know possible." 
- Tia Walker

"A hero is an ordinary individual 
who finds the strength to persevere and endure 
in spite of overwhelming obstacles."  
- Christoper Reeve