Happiness — Page 56

The Greatest Gift

December 18, 2013 By ChuckBehrens Leave a Comment

Wouldn’t it be great?

You think you’re home for the evening; you have no plans or DO YOU?

Your doorbell rings. You contemplate even answering it, but you do. There’s a man in an elegant tuxedo, top hat, white gloves and a cane. You see over his shoulder that there’s a luxurious limo and he tells you he’s here to escort you to a very special place where “NO” doesn’t exist. You throw on a pair of jeans that don’t have last night’s dinner remains on it and a shirt that doesn’t have the powder sugar your donut snowed all over it just before the doorbell rang.

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Love’s NOT the Greatest Thing

December 13, 2013 By ChuckBehrens 2 Comments

First time for me in 33 years of Ministry. A double-wedding ceremony.

It took place at the David Simpson Hospice House in Cleveland around 10:15 a.m. on 12/11/13.

Their mother is very sick and is declining rather quickly. “THEY” wanted to do something about as special as a son and a daughter can do for an ailing mother. Take her to a wedding: THEIR’S!

With a small amount of family and friends gathered into The Mediation Room that overlooked an angry Lake Erie on a dishwater gray Winter morning, they wheeled the bed of their mother into that small gathering.

I told them as we began the service, that no matter what Cathedral or highly adorned Sanctuary they’d ever find themselves, it would never be any more sacred than the walls of family and friends that surrounded them right then.

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December 2, 2013 By ChuckBehrens Leave a Comment

WARNING: G R A T I T U D E ALERT!

IF Thanksgiving is all about family gathers and feasts upon feasts that last entire weekends. . .

IF Thanksgiving is all about huge football rivalries that have you sitting on the edge of your chairs…

IF Thanksgiving is all about Pilgrims and Indians re-enactment of cute plays with moral meanings…

IF Thanksgiving is all about Gray Thursdays, Black Friday’s Pewter Saturdays, Cyber Mondays. . .

IF Thanksgiving is all about short vacations and getting out of work and school. . .

IF Thanksgiving is all about fine wine, cocktails, the first of holiday parties. . .

IF Thanksgiving is all about leftovers. . .

THEN IT IS O V E R!

But. . .

IF Thanksgiving is all about Gratitude. . .

Then it hasn’t begun. . .

Then it hasn’t concluded. . .

Then it HAS only C O N T I N U E D!

Pass me a Slice of Sincerity and a Cup of Compassion and let us proceed on the Gratitude Trail picking up others along The Way. . . .

http://thecaringcatalyst.com/224/

Spelling C-O-M-P-A-S-S-I-O-N

November 25, 2013 By ChuckBehrens Leave a Comment

So often we don’t think COMPASSION is an Inside Job or our Responsibility–It’s Someone Else’s job or at least their turn and it’s something, at the least, just mystically happens.

WRONG!

It doesn’t matter if it’s Health Care, or Education or Politics, or the Arts. It doesn’t matter what Gender or age or weight or height. Compassion is more than a Feeling or even a glancing high-tech Touch.

Enough!

Sympathy says, “I’m sorry,”

Compassion Yells, “HOW CAN I HELP?”

Studies actually show that when we feel most in tune with another, even our autonomic nervous systems join a in a harmonious rhythm.

Compassion is more than a “Good Thing.” “A Nice thing to do” “A Good way to be.”

Our world has never been in more need of this one simple, consistent Act as it is right now.

Compassion is the least expensive, less evasive, most powerful non-pharmological means to actually change, heal, complete another’s life.

You really want to know how to spell C-O-M-P-A-S-S-I-0-N?

It’s this simple: Y-O-U!

Y O U have the ability to not only enhance and actually change a life. . .but actually SAVE ONE!

Now! Do this now!

Even reading this has wasted precious time for Someone you can help with a word, a deed, a look, a smile, a touch, a hand attached to an arm you could drape around a shoulder and hug a little closer.

Y-O-U. . .”The Answer!”

Your Garbage

November 15, 2013 By ChuckBehrens Leave a Comment

Everyone has it: GARBAGE!

Garbage day is never missed is it? We all have THAT day, and we, in a strange sort of way SAVE up for it all week, don’t we? All week long, we bag, pack, haul our garbage to place where it finally can get picked up and shipped away for good. . .or, or does it?

Imagine taking piles of garbage to the curb and as the Garbage truck comes down the street and is just about ready to pull up and haul your garbage away, you frantically run out, STOP, prevent them from doing their job and in fact, bring all of your garbage back into the house again—the whole week’s worth! Plus, you have the truck back up to your front door and have them dump all they’ve collected from their daily pick up right there in your LIVING ROOM!

Absurd? Unheard of? Ludicrous?

It is, isn’t it. . . until we bring back all that garbage we’ve allegedly long discarded to find out we’re worse than Hoarders keeping out of date fliers and junk mail piled to the ceiling.

It’s THIS simple: When you throw out YOUR Garbage, KEEP IT OUT. There’s a reason it’s garbage and IT STINKS! Why keep it or worse, Still Carry It Around?

To the Curb!

Leave IT!

Don’t Bring IT back in again.

Carry Yourself. . .and NOT IT!

Fix You

November 11, 2013 By ChuckBehrens Leave a Comment

Is there a worse feeling, EVER?

You want to help, but there seemingly is nothing you can do. No word to speak, no phrase to utter, no deed to do, no wish to be granted. A painful helplessness. Terrible.

But all is not lost. There’s the absolute one thing, maybe the only thing that’s better than any prescription, therapy, intervention, or experiment.

YOU. Just You. Your Presence. Not your words. Not your deeds. Not your, “There, there’s. . . .”

Just YOU.

Show up and watch the healing take place!

It’s the most curing, the most compassionate, caring thing you can ever share.

You! Show up! Watch the healing begin. . .and forget to end!

What’s Your STARING Frog?

November 6, 2013 By ChuckBehrens Leave a Comment

Everyone has one…some may even have a whole herd or a farm of them! What Frog stares you down everyday? What’s the ONE thing you put off or maybe just postpone, ok, PROCRASTINATE!

Procrastination is the one WTF Wrestler we all tangle…some more than others, but all of us, just the same. We all seem to run from or at least put off things we see as painful or difficult. The Catch: We often bring more pain on ourselves. The Bigger Catch: Even though we know the consequences of procrastination can be severe, oh yeah…WE STILL DO IT!

There’s a very old saying that spouts, “If the first thing you do in the morning is to eat a live frog, then nothing worse can happen for the rest of the day.” What’s YOUR STARING FROG? What’s the worst thing you look forward to as you wake up? Exercising? A meeting? Paperwork? Obligations that aren’t all that pleasing?

But once…only ONCE: Eat THAT Frog! Get rid, right up front, of the one thing that Stares you down and taunts you with every second you try to avoid IT. Just ONCE, eat THAT Frog and see the energy it gives you…Makes an Extreme 5-Hour Energy drink, blush. But. . .but, you let him stare you down and it’ll put a huge straw right in your heart and suck the Life and Essence right out of it without so much as a satisfying belch.

Here’s the Deal that only you can make for yourself: JUST ONCE! Do it once and never again unless
the Frog, totally intimidated, looks down and has not the guts or the energy to even think about Staring back!

Just Once. . . .

Rings True

November 1, 2013 By ChuckBehrens Leave a Comment

Of all nights. . .I just came back from conducting the wedding of a young couple who wanted to get married on Halloween. It wasn’t a “dress up” wedding and I just wore a suit with no Robe/vestments or Priest’s collar. It was just a few select family members and friends, nothing fancy, nothing complicated or drawn out.

They were apologetic about their rings–they were borrowed because they couldn’t afford the ones they wanted and asked me if I would bless them when they picked them out.

During the Ceremony I pointed out that we don’t wear wedding rings because they show the world, especially people we’ve yet to meet, that we are no longer ‘available.’ We wear rings, exchange them, to remind us, and especially people we’ve yet to meet, that like the Roundness of the ring, which has no beginning or ending, we complete one another.

Wait there’s more. . .According to the tradition in some countries, the wedding ring is worn on the left ring finger because the vein in the left ring finger, referred to as the vena amoris, was believed to be directly connected to the heart, a forever symbol of love in any language or country.

Halloween, Christmas, Valentine’s Day, Easter or May Day–that Rings True, doesn’t it?

Still, no matter how powerful the symbol, it never compares to the ‘Real Thing.’ Wear That and you’ll truly find that your best days are the ones yet to be created, but longed to be lived. . .loved. . . .

Flat Compassion

October 28, 2013 By ChuckBehrens Leave a Comment

Yes…this is correct! Your eyes Do Not Deceive you. I’m not a huge fan of Flat Stanley.

For years our sister-in-law, Tracy, lived in Arizona and taught elementary school and had her class send Flat Stanley’s all over the country and one of them would inadvertently would find itself here in Bay Village, OH. It was great for the youngster who didn’t have anywhere else to send Flat Stanley because he would go everywhere in Northeast Ohio. The Art and History Museums, The Rock & Roll Hall of fame, Church, Lake Erie, Diners, Parks and yes, even my colonoscopy, unbeknownst to me, with his little blue booties and cap on.

I hate him. . . .

But, I’ve go to admit, Flat Stanley has been more places and and has touched more people’s lives than I will ever in the next 1000 years. He’s brought more smiles, stimulated more conversations, brought more people together and generally have made more people/kids feel good than my wildest imagination could ever conjure.

Hey, if Flat Stanley can do that, what about me, you, us? Maybe it’s a uphill battle or an unconquerable feat, but what a horizon to chase, huh? Because when it’s all said, done and complained about, Flat Stanley’s greatest trip is the one that takes us to the very center of Compassion. Now maybe, just maybe that’s the greatest, most adventurous trip he’s ever taken. . .and one that he continually invites and inspires!

Besides if you can’t strangle, dispose or beat him. . .uhhh, yeah, Join him. There’s much Compassion to not only receive, but ultimately to share and share and share again and again and. . . .

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