Category Archives: Better Living

Johnny’s New Word

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Shocked MomJohnny was a very observant little boy who loved being the center of attention. Every Wednesday Johnny’s mom had several women over to the house for lunch. When Johnny came running into the house saying a terrible word, everyone gasped. Johnny was sent to his room. He was told to never say that word again.

The next week Johnny’s mom said, “Do you remember the word I told you to never say again.” He said he did. Johnny’s mom said, “Remember the women from the church are coming over. If you will be a perfect gentleman, and you don’t say that bad word I will give you a quarter.”
The ladies came over for lunch. Johnny was a perfect gentlemen. He said all the right words. The ladies had a delightful time. When it was time for everyone to go, Johnny brought them all their coats. When everyone left, Johnny was given the quarter he was promised.

The next week Johnny knew the ladies from church were coming over to the house. Johnny decided to have a little discussion with his mom. “Is today the day the ladies from church are coming over for lunch?” “Yes Johnny.” “Do you remember the word you gave me a quarter to never say again?” “Yes, Johnny”. “Now, I have a word that I think is worth a buck.”

Humor and laughter strengthen your immune system, boosts your energy, diminishes pain, and protects you from the damaging effects of stress. When laughter is shared it binds people together and increases happiness. Those with a good sense of humor have a good sense of life. Learning how to look at all situations with a sense of humor will help lighten life’s burdens. Laugh at life daily.

A Horse Trade Story

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u32_jacob-hamblin-bustWhen I was a young child I lived in Kanab, Utah and loved the feel of living in a small town where you could roam free and not be in danger of many things. Below is a story as told by Jacob Hamblin a Mormon pioneer and resident of this little town in southern Utah.

When I was about twelve years old our family lived in Kanab, Utah. A band of Piute Indians were camped a few miles away, across the wash. My father, Jacob Hamblin, the Indian missionary, said to me, “son, I want you to go to the indian camp this afternoon and trade the little bay pony for some blankets, which we will need this winter.”

When the midday meal was over, I climbed astride old, Billy, led the little bay pony, and rode bareback across the flat toward the Indian camp.

When I rode in, the chief helped me off the horse and asked, “you Jacob’s boy. What you want?”

When I told him my errand, he looked at the trade pony and grunted his assent. He led to to his wigwam where there was a pile of handwoven Indian blankets. He piled out a number of them. Determined to show my father that I was a good trader, I asked for another blanket. The chief looked at me out of the corner of his eye and added another blanket to the pile. Then I asked for another and another and still another. By now the chief was grinning broadly but added as many blankets as I demanded.

Satisfied that I had really made a good trade, I closed the deal. The chief piled the blankets on the back of old Billy and lifted me up.

Father met me in the yard and looked at the blankets. Then he made two piles of about equal size. One pile he placed on the horse and put me back on, saying, “Go back and these to the chief. You got enough blankets for two horses.”

As I approached the camp, I could see the old chief. When I rode up, he laughed out loud and said, “I know Jacob sent you back. He is an honest man. He my father as well as your father.”

Several years later when Jacob was alone with a band of angry, hostile Indians, the fact that he had always been honest with them saved his life.

Louise Lee Udall, as told by Jacob Hamblin, Jr.

Jacob Hamblin, was a wonderful example to many people.

The Power of Love

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Several years ago my dad was a math teacher at East High School in Salt Lake City, Utah. I never heard him say he was going to work, He said “I am going to school.” May dad was originally going to be a dentist, and would have been an excellent one. His love was teaching, and he was great at making a difference in a child’s life. He decided to change his major to high school mathematics, and never regretted this decision.

Every year on the first day of school he would write his full name up on the chalkboard in bold letters Melvin Cottam Fish, the kids thought that was hilarious. There was usually a long line of students trying to get into his class every semester because everyone knew they would learn math effectively, and he cared.

One year he had two opposing gang members in the same class, things were getting out of control, and he knew he needed to do something fast. One of the things he did was change his classroom around so his desk would face the door. As students entered his classroom each day, in his mind he would call each student by name and say “I love you.” My dad realized there was power in the words he spoke aloud, and in his mind.

At my dads funeral there were a few students that came to pay their final respects to their beloved math teacher. One of them told my mom that they didn’t remember all of their teachers names however they remember where they sat in their math class, and knew Mr. Fish loved them. What a great tribute to my father at his passing. I know he must have been smiling and sending us more love in that moment.

A Cup of Tea

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Once, a long time ago, there was a wise Zen master. People from far and near would seek his counsel and ask for his wisdom. Many would come and ask him to teach them, enlighten them in the way of Zen. He seldom turned any away.One day an important man, a man used to command and obedience came to visit the master. “I have come today to ask you to teach me about Zen. Open my mind to enlightenment.” The tone of the important man’s voice was one used to getting his own way.

The Zen master smiled and said that they should discuss the matter over a cup of tea. When the tea was served the master poured his visitor a cup. He poured and he poured and the tea rose to the rim and began to spill over the table and finally onto the robes of the wealthy man. Finally the visitor shouted, “Enough. You are spilling the tea all over. Can’t you see the cup is full?”

The master stopped pouring and smiled at his guest. “You are like this tea cup, so full that nothing more can be added. Come back to me when the cup is empty. Come back to me with an empty mind.”

Goals Take You Places

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A lesson I learned from Skip Ross, at a youth summer camp in Michigan, was how to prioritize and set goals. What a thrill it was to learn great wisdom every morning from this wonderful man. I learned that a goal not written down is only a wish. Also, visualization helps you reach your goals. Put things you want to achieve on 3×5 cards. Read them every morning and night. Also, cut out pictures of the things you want. Put them on a poster board so you can look at them daily.
Before I went to the Circle A. Ranch I was getting a C+ average in school. The next school year, I was getting a B+ average. I was also very shy. I didn’t like this. My transformation into the person I am today started in high school as a result of setting goals.
You can become anything you want to become in this life. Skip Ross would say, “Say yes to your potential.” Anything you can conceive and believe, you can achieve.
About six years ago, I realized I had stopped dreaming and writing down goals. Life comes and goes quickly. Then, in the blink of an eye, one year turned into ten.
I have always loved listening to motivational cassette tapes and audio books. So I started listening to them again with almost an obsession. Some audio books I listen to on a regular basis. In most of these audio books they talked about the importance of first deciding exactly what you want. Be specific by writing down your goals and visualizing what you want to achieve with emotion.
I got excited with the idea of making a vision board after I heard the story of a man who wanted to live in beautiful mansion. He found a picture of a home in a magazine. He cut out the mansion from the magazine. Then he put it on his dream board. Four years later he was unpacking his dream board from one of his moving boxes. He realized the home on his dream board was the home he had just moved into. Dreams do come true. You can achieve any goal you want to achieve, if you believe.
I made a dream board putting it on my bedroom wall where I can see it every day. One of the things I put on the dream board is, “Our family loves to travel,” with pictures of fun places to travel to.
We have traveled more in the past six years then I ever dreamed of. We have been to Washington D.C, to see the monuments; Maryland to visit Cassie’s Dad; In Virginia we went to see George Washington’s home; Pennsylvania, to visit the Amish and Gettysburg, Delaware, to swim in the Atlantic Ocean. We went to California having fun visiting the Pacific Ocean and Disneyland. Later we went to Washington and Oregon to visit Cassie’s brother and go to the beach. Then we went with my parents to visit the Grand Canyon and Zion National Park over a long school holiday.
Another thing that my wife Cassie and I like to do is go to a community theatre where we have seasons tickets. We see wonderful musicals like My Fair Lady, or magical plays like A Christmas Carol. These are things we didn’t do until we put them on our dream board. I get excited just writing about our adventures.
The next thing that I do is set a deadline for my goal. I wrote on my dream board, “I am excited we have bought season tickets to the community theater. Today is August 1, 2011.” Every year, this is when we buy our tickets.
Every year we prioritize our goals, then we take action. Smaller goals don’t take as much planning. Our goal to go to the Grand Canyon was easier to achieve because we live closer to Arizona.
Our goal to go to the Oregon Coast took more planning. We knew we wanted to rent a beach house and it would be more costly, so it took action on our part by planning to save our money and reserve the beach house. It was well worth the dream when we achieved this goal. Remember to do something everyday that will move you toward your most important goal, whatever it is at the time.

Can’t Judge a Book by it’s Cover

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Man with tattoo


He was covered with tattoos
Skin art galore
How trashy, I thought
I could look at him no more
I disliked him immensely
For his arty obsession
And right then and there
I formed a hasty impression
Circumstances brought us together
Closer than I would have dared
And I was forced to get to know him
When his soul to me he bared
He is only human, I came to realize
With love in his heart and pain in his eyes
How wrong I was about him,
I felt so much shame
To hate him, distrust him,
to ridicule and blame
Can’t judge a book by its cover
It has often been said
I truly believe that
Now I look deeper instead.
Patty E. Padgett.

Thank you Patty for being inspired.

Programming For Success

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One day, as a small child, Thomas Edison came home from school and gave a paper to his mother. He said to her, “Mom, my teacher gave this paper to me and told me only you are to read it. What does it say?” Her eyes welled with tears as she read the letter out loud to her child… “your son is a genius. This school is too small for him and doesn’t have good enough teachers to train him. Please teach him yourself.”

Many years after Edison’s mother had died, he became one of the greatest inventors of the century. One day he was going through a closet and he found the letter that his old teacher wrote his mother that day. He opened it… The message written on the letter was, “your son is mentally deficient.We won’t let him come to school any more.” Edison became emotional upon reading it and then wrote in this diary… “Thomas A. Edison was a mentally deficient child whose mother turned him into the genius of the century.”

A positive word of encouragement can help change anyone’s destiny.