Why am I writing this series?

In the spirit of giving, I wanted to give something beautiful to you. It may not be all my own words, but it is my heart.

Here are today’s seeds:

I will live this day as if it were Christmas. I will be a giver of gifts and deliver to my enemies the gift of forgiveness, my opponents, tolerance, my friends, a smile, my children, a good example, and every gift will be wrapped with unconditional love.

I will waste not even a precious second today in anger or hate or jealousy or selfishness. I know that the seeds I sow will harvest, because every action, good or bad, is always followed by and equal reaction. I will plant only good seeds today.

Words are like seeds. Every word we speak out-loud is similar to sowing seeds, and our lives are an open field. My daughter and I don’t say the word, ‘Hate’, out-loud. We may dislike what is happening, or the words of others, but let it go! Whatever is in our hearts will grow, so have no hate.

I will treat today as a priceless violin. One may draw harmony from it an another, discord, yet no one will blame the instrument. Life is the same, and if I play it correctly, it will give forth beauty, but if I play it ignorantly, it will produce ugliness.

I will condition myself to look on every problem I encounter today as no more than a pebble in my shoe. I remember the pain, so harsh I could hardly walk, and recall my surprise when I removed my shoe and found only a grain of sand.

Do you have a favorite pair of shoes?

You know, the ‘go to’ pair, that your foot slips easily into, and you could wear them all day. My favorite pair became so uncomfortable I asked my daughter for a new pair for Christmas!

I couldn’t believe how painful it became after being so comfortable! It felt like something stabbing into my foot every time I took a step. I reached my hand in several times, and felt nothing sharp, but as my foot pressed down, I felt pain.

My daughter mentioned that she had lost an earring. Flipping the shoe over, and looking at the sole, there was her earring. Pulled it out, handed her the stud, and my shoe felt good again. Such a small thing can cause great pain, but once aware, it can be removed. Every problem is a pebble.

Taken from The Seeds of Success, by Og Mandino.