There’s something in a simple hug
That always warms the heart;
It welcomes us back home
And makes it easier to part.

A hug’s a way to share the joy
And sad times we go through,
Or just a way for friends to say
They like you ’cause you’re you.

Hugs are meant for anyone
For whom we really care,
From your grandma to your neighbor,
Or a cuddly teddy bear.

A hug is an amazing thing -
It’s just the perfect way
To show the love we’re feeling
But can’t find the words to say.

It’s funny how a little hug
Makes everyone feel good;
In every place and language,
It’s always understood.

And hugs don’t need new equipment,
Special batteries or parts -
Just open up your arms
And open up your hearts.

-Jill Wolf

John is the kind of guy you love to hate. He is always in a good mood and always has something positive to say. When someone would ask him how he was doing, he would reply,

‘If I were any better, I would be twins!’

He was a natural motivator. If an employee was having a bad day, John was there telling the employee how to look on the positive side of the situation. Seeing this style really made me curious, so one day I went up and asked him,

‘I don’t get it!’ ‘You can’t be a positive person all of the time. How do you do it?’ He replied,

‘Each morning I wake up and say to myself, you have two choices today. You can choose to be in a good mood or…you can choose to be in a bad mood I choose to be in a good mood. Each time  something bad happens, I can choose to be a victim or…I can choose to learn from it. I choose to learn from it. Every time someone comes to me complaining, I can choose to accept their complaining or…I can point out the positive side of life. I choose the positive side of  life.’

‘Yeah, right, it’s not that easy,’ I protested.

‘Yes, it is,’ he said. ‘Life is all about choices. When you cut away all the junk, every situation is a choice. You choose how you react to situations. You choose how people affect your mood. You choose to be in a good mood or bad mood. The bottom line: It’s your choice how you live your life.’

I reflected on what he said. Soon hereafter, I left the Tower Industry to start my own business. We lost touch, but I often thought about him when I made a choice about life instead of reacting to it. Several years later, I heard that he was involved in a serious accident, falling some 60 feet from a communications tower. After 18 hours of surgery and weeks of intensive care, he was released from the hospital with rods placed in his back. I saw him about six months after the accident. When I asked him how he was, he replied,

‘If I were any better, I’d be twins…Wanna see my scars?’ I declined to see his wounds, but I did ask him what had gone through his mind as the accident took place.

‘The first thing that went through my mind was the well-being of my soon-to-be born daughter,’ he replied. ‘Then, as I lay on the ground, I remembered that I had two choices: I could choose to live or…I could choose to die. I chose to live.’

‘Weren’t you scared? Did you lose consciousness?’ I asked. He continued,

‘…the paramedics were great. They kept telling me I was going to be fine. But when they wheeled me into the ER and I saw the expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses, I got really scared. In their eyes, I read ‘he’s a dead man’. I knew I needed to take action.’

‘What did you do?’ I asked.

‘Well, there was a big burly nurse shouting questions at me,’ said John. ‘She asked if I was allergic to anything ‘Yes, I replied.’ The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply. I took a deep breath and yelled, ‘Gravity’ Over their laughter, I told them, ‘I am choosing to live. Operate on me as if I am alive, not dead.’

He lived, thanks to the skill of his doctors, but also because of his amazing attitude…I learned from him that every day we have the choice to live fully. Attitude, after all, is everything.

‘Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.’ Matthew 6:34.

After all today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.

You may recall the rumors about a new iPod Nano a couple of weeks ago; well it looks like they may be true, at least in part. Tom Krazit of Cnet has been invited to the rumored Apple event!

Apple has sent out invitations for a music-related event next week, and the smart money is on new iPods.

The invitation, titled “Let’s Rock,” went out Tuesday morning inviting media to the Yerba Buena Center for the Performing Arts in San Francisco next Tuesday at 10 a.m. PDT. Rumors have been building for weeks that Apple is set to introduce new iPods at what will be its fourth September iPod event in as many years…

Read the full post

While this does not mean that we will see a new iPod, it does seem a little more likely! Go Apple! To read more from my post on the rumord iPod, click here.

This could be the next big thing for the iPod product family. I think that this could be a real photo, taking into account that Apple is moving into a more aerodynamic form factor. Just take the new iPhone or the Mac Book Air. Rumor also has it that the entire iPod line could be redesigned; in addition, they would drop the price of the whole product line to be more competitive with the reasonably priced iPhone at $199. Let’s look at the facts, Apple has confirmed that there will be a new product that will change everything. Apple has also stated to its investors that the next quarter could see a loss in profits. All of this points to the possibility of the price drop. Also in the rumor world is the release of a new major revamp of iTunes. I don’t know any details; however, it would be nice to see a subscription model introduced to the iTunes music store. All of this could prove to be true as soon as September 9th. One thing is for sure, regardless to if this picture is real or not, Apple is about to change the world again, and I can’t wait to see what is next!

I sometimes have a hard time trying to come up with stuff to write; however, I would like to share what my cosine has to say about music. You may not agree with what she has to say; but, for her age, she shows great wisdom. It was originally posted in her notes on Facebook, and I have recommended that she start a real blog…

Hey people…Brooke here (ummm, yeaaaah……). I decided it might be fun to randomly write random notes about random stuff that is…random. SO yeah! Welcome to Brooke’s Thoughts #1-My take on music.

Have you ever seen the movie, “Titanic”? I haven’t, but even if YOU haven’t, you probably know the song…yeaaah, that song… “My Heart Will Go On”.

Isn’t it the most obnoxious song ever?!

My point is, music has the power to change emotions! It has the power to change you attitude! It has the power to change your reactions to things! It has the power to change your LIFE!…

…And that song just makes me wanna smack the screamin’ chick offa the boat while yelling, “Clam up, freak!” until she screams like a limping monkey.

Um, yeah.

My mom tells a story about this pastor she heard speak once. He said, “When you listen to rock music, it does something traumatizing to your brain! If you listen to rock music, for instance, the brain waves corrode and you cannot lift your arms up for too long! BUT!!!!!!! When you listen to CLASSICAL music, your brain waves work right and you CAN stick your arms up…”

WAIT! Freeze right there?! At that point my mom and I agreed…Since when do you need to stick your arms up when you listen to classical music?! I mean, seriously, do you like…go into a store, hear bach and all of the sudden, strike a pose, shoot your arms in the air, fingers in the “rock on” sign…shouting at the top of your lungs…”YEEEEEEEEAAAAAHHHHHH-UHHHHHHHH!!!!!!! Rawk ON, BACH!!!!!!”?

UH, last time I remember…no.

Country music for instance has a power to it. I cannot stand country music, I am a yankee, yeah, I know, I don’t belong here. I’m reminded everyday when I flip through the radio stations and there are at least, oh, only a few, say, um, only ninety-eight different ones, yeah, that’s about it. And the occasional gangstah rap station, 60’s rock, gospel, r&b and…oh yeah, more country…

Country music has the power to make a southern gal bawl like a baby and sigh at the crooning of a cowboy.

Most girls here in NC find that romantic and emotional.

I just find that slightly weird…

The moral of this story is that music is so different! God gave us so much to choose from when it comes to music, so what do we do with it?

My personal thought is that all music is ok…but not all LYRICS are ok. If a band has foul language in at least one song, I can almost assure you they will probly be more song just like that. I choose to avoid bands/singers like that, it seems safer that way.

“And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.” -Philippians 4:8

You all probly remember this verse from awana back in those good old days. The meaning has never changed, the meaning is still beautiful. We need to honor God by what we cram in our ipods, computers, cd players…blahblahblahblah.

I know, I have heard this saying soooo many times, it makes me wonder if they really are serious in what they are saying.

“I just listen to the song just for the music…I don’t listen to the lyrics…”
But you still KNOW the lyrics, right?
Right.

The words and music combined in a song has the power to CHANGE YOU. I’m not kidding. What I’m NOT saying is when you listen to rock music, you all of the sudden wanna kill someone.

Uh, no, that really actually does not happen.

What DOES happen is that it is a slow, gradual prosess. You don’t just all of the sudden wanna kill someone (if you wanna kill someone whenever you hear distortioned guitar riffs, either 1. get help or 2. just tell your son to to turn his amp down, or buy him something quiet, like a flute. He might not get nice remarks from other boys, though…).

When you listen to a song, it goes on in your head for days. Don’t tell me it doesn’t, we all know that it does happen. It gets stuck in your head, it can rule you and your thoughts and can even make you angry. The lyrics can convince you to do something maybe you don’t want to do.

THAT is why we need to be soooooo careful to what we listen to.

Music? Yes. Lyrics? Be choosy.

Oh yeah, and if you totally love rock, no prob, no matter what some people say, Christian rock is God-honoring. Just be careful around other Christians who don’t think its such a great idea. We need to respect people like that.

“1 Accept other believers who are weak in faith, and don’t argue with them about what they think is right or wrong. 2 For instance, one person believes it’s all right to eat anything. But another believer with a sensitive conscience will eat only vegetables. 3 Those who feel free to eat anything must not look down on those who don’t. And those who don’t eat certain foods must not condemn those who do, for God has accepted them. 4 Who are you to condemn someone else’s servants? They are responsible to the Lord, so let him judge whether they are right or wrong. And with the Lord’s help, they will do what is right and will receive his approval. 5 In the same way, some think one day is more holy than another day, while others think every day is alike. You should each be fully convinced that whichever day you choose is acceptable. 6 Those who worship the Lord on a special day do it to honor him. Those who eat any kind of food do so to honor the Lord, since they give thanks to God before eating. And those who refuse to eat certain foods also want to please the Lord and give thanks to God. 7 For we don’t live for ourselves or die for ourselves. 8 If we live, it’s to honor the Lord. And if we die, it’s to honor the Lord. So whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. 9 Christ died and rose again for this very purpose—to be Lord both of the living and of the dead. 10 So why do you condemn another believer*? Why do you look down on another believer? Remember, we will all stand before the judgment seat of God. 11 For the Scriptures say,
“‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord,
‘every knee will bend to me,
and every tongue will confess and give praise to God.*’”
12 Yes, each of us will give a personal account to God. 13 So let’s stop condemning each other. Decide instead to live in such a way that you will not cause another believer to stumble and fall. 14 I know and am convinced on the authority of the Lord Jesus that no food, in and of itself, is wrong to eat. But if someone believes it is wrong, then for that person it is wrong. 15 And if another believer is distressed by what you eat, you are not acting in love if you eat it. Don’t let your eating ruin someone for whom Christ died. 16 Then you will not be criticized for doing something you believe is good. 17 For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. 18 If you serve Christ with this attitude, you will please God, and others will approve of you, too. 19 So then, let us aim for harmony in the church and try to build each other up.”

Yeah, it’s long, but doesn’t it make sense?

It’s not up to us to judge other people…

-Brooke