THE CORNER 4 WOMEN

Tuesday 9 July 2024

"I'M ON MY WAY" (author unknown)

"I'M ON MY WAY"
(author unknown)

I'm on my way

To heal myself

To witness a brighter tomorrow

To better myself

To evolve, to grow and to love

To conquer my fears and stay above

To thwart the doubts pulling me down

And to have faith in what lies beyond

I'm on my way to seek my soul

To give of myself and find peace untold

To discover my spirit and find my essence

And to share this joy with everyone else

I was lost, i was weary, I was trying too hard

To find happiness in things that do not last

I pray that this wisdom that I have found

Stays with me till I'm homeward bound

I'm on my way to be me

To not pretend and wander aimlessly

To know the true meaning of life in all its simplicity

And to accept and face my challenges fearlessly

To live in the present for this is all I need

To turn each moment into a beautiful memory

With faith and determination I will succeed

To be the best version of me

I'm on my way...

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"THE BARREN TREE"

"THE BARREN TREE" (author unknown)

There was a tree in the forest, an olive tree called Amalia. Sadly, she was barren, and that pained her greatly. Unlike her mates, she never bore any fruit ever since she came of age.

Amalia was insulted, mocked and called useless by the other trees in the forest. They taunted her too many times; shouted at her and threw rotten fruits at her due to her inability to produce fruits.

One day, a king and his woodcutters came to the forest to cut down a big tree for a building project. The king asked the trees as loudly as possible,

"We've come to cut down a useless tree! So tell us, which tree is useless?"

All the trees pointed at Amalia and began to wail,

"It's Amalia! It's Amalia! She is entirely useless and worthless! She has been struck down by a terrible curse! She has not bore a single fruit in her whole life! Cut her down! Cut her!"

Without hesitation, the king ordered his woodcutters to cut down Amalia. However, just as they were about to slash her with an axe, Amalia pleaded,

"Please, don't kill me, I'm begging you! I may be barren, but I swear I'm not useless. Why not ask the animals? If they say I'm useless, then cut me down!"

The king and his woodcutters stopped for a moment. The king called all the nearby animals and asked as loudly as possible,

"Hey, animals, I want to ask you all a simple question! Is Amalia a useless tree?"

At once, the monkey hollered,

"Amalia has been a tremendous help to me. She provides a home for me and my family! We are very grateful to her!"

The bird chirped,

"Amalia is extremely helpful to me. She let me build my nests on her strong branches. I can't thank her enough!"

The squirrel whistled,

"Amalia has been a big help to me and my brother this winter. She let us sleep inside her hollow to stay warm. We are deeply indebted to her for her help!"

The deer bleated,

"Amalia has been incredibly helpful to me and the herd. On hot summer days, we come to her shade to take a rest. She has been such a blessing!"

Upon hearing all that, the king smiled widely and exclaimed,

"Wow, you're such a useful tree, Amalia! You don't deserve to be cut down! We'll just look for another tree to cut down!"

MORAL OF THE STORY:

Truly, in this world, there is no one person who is useless. The notion that some people are useless or that others are more important is pure fallacy, everyone has different roles to play, time and opportunity happens to us. And at the right time, our usefulness will unfold. Every bad situation will have something positive. Even a dead clock shows correct time twice a day. Learning to appreciate other people can play a vital role in erasing the mindset that they are not useful, this can help to remind them of their self worth, how valuable they can be and teach them to make the most of themselves.

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"THE WISE COCKROACH" by Chima Dickson

"THE WISE COCKROACH" by Chima Dickson

Three hungry cockroaches came to a farmer and asked him for food. He willingly offered them some bread and some cheese. They ate to satisfaction and saved food to take home to their families.

Upon leaving, the farmer told them,

"Listen roaches, instead of begging for food as you always do, why don't I offer you a job in my farm? We offer good pay, food, and protection for your families."

The cockroaches asked,

"What work do we have to do, and how much salary do we get?"

The farmer answered,

"There are four positions available in my farm, with each having a different pay. It's up to you to choose which of them you prefer! The worker whose job is to inform my chickens that food is ready gets paid $3,000 every month. The worker whose job is to peel and slice my garlic gets $5,000 monthly. The worker whose job is to chase pesky lizards out of the farm gets $4,000 every month. And lastly, the worker whose job is to sing and dance for my goats gets only $250 monthly. You can make your choice now!"

The first cockroach exclaimed,

"I choose the $5,000 job! I want to peel and slice your garlic!"

The second cockroach chorused,

"I want the $4,000 job! Let me chase the pesky lizards out of the farm!

The third cockroach thought for a long moment, then said surprisingly,

"I would prefer the $250 job! I want to sing and dance for your goats!"

For a moment, the two other cockroaches glared at her and thought she was very dumb.

"How could she have chosen the lowest paying job in the farm? Is she that silly and unreasonable?" they thought within themselves.

The following morning, the three cockroaches arrived for their first day of work. However, as they began their duties, the first and the second cockroaches died all of a sudden.

The curious farmer then called the third cockroach and asked,

"Tell me, why did you choose the lowest paying job?"

She took a deep breath and answered,

"Firstly, chickens favourite food is cockroaches- why would I choose a job where I have to go close to chickens? Secondly, the pungent smell of garlic can quickly kill a cockroach- why would I choose a job where I have to peel and slice garlic? Thirdly, lizards love to snack and prey on cockroaches- why would I choose a job where I have to chase lizards out of the farm? It's not about the money at all, it's about putting my life into consideration."

LESSON TO LEARN:

Be careful of the deals you accept from people. Don't jump into every offer made to you. Don't be so blinded by money and material things that you refuse to pause and carefully consider the ramifications before taking a decision. Be wise!

Author: Chima_Dickson Official

https://tc4women.nicheebookcollections.com/NEWSLETTER-EBOOK-LIBRARY-SIGNUP.html We now have over 1900 e-books on our library shelves for your reading pleasure, so do come along and check us out.

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Monday 8 July 2024

"THE FLOWER OF MENDING" by Vachel Lindsay

"THE FLOWER OF MENDING"
by Vachel Lindsay

When Dragon-fly would fix his wings,

When Snail would patch his house,

When moths have marred the overcoat

Of tender Mister Mouse,

The pretty creatures go with haste

To the sunlit blue-grass hills

Where the Flower of Mending yields the wax

And webs to help their ills.

The hour the coats are waxed and webbed

They fall into a dream,

And when they wake the ragged robes

Are joined without a seam.

My heart is but a dragon-fly,

My heart is but a mouse,

My heart is but a haughty snail

In a little stony house.

Your hand was honey-comb to heal,

Your voice a web to bind.

You were a Mending Flower to me

To cure my heart and mind.

*********

by Vachel Lindsay

Art by Margaret Clark

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Sunday 7 July 2024

"THE MAN AND THE SNAIL" by Chima Dickson

"THE MAN AND THE SNAIL" by Chima Dickson

A Short Moral Story.

One day, a snail saw a man walking into the woods, then he began to scream for attention,

"Mister! Mister! Come over here! Please, do me a favour! Mister!"

The man suddenly stopped and walked towards the snail, asking,

"What's the matter with you?"

The snail whistled,

"Get me out of my shell, please. I'm so uncomfortable inside it. Please, get me out!"

The man stood, wondering for a short moment, then asked,

"But why? Isn't that funny? Why do you want to come out of your protective shell?"

The snail snapped,

“I told you I feel very uneasy inside it! It's a heavy burden for me to carry all alone! I want freedom! Please, pull me out of this nasty shell!"

The man leaned forward, then whispered,

"You're not serious, are you?"

The snail hollered suddenly,

"Well, I am very serious! I want to be free like other creatures, such as: the slug, the worm, the squid, the octopus, the snake, etc. I wish to move around freely in my environment, but I feel so trapped inside my cursed shell! So will you help me get out of my shell?"

The man paused for a moment, then uttered silently,

"Listen, while you seek freedom, you should understand that your shell is a gift from God to you, a unique gift. It protects you from the harsh environment and even from predators. However, if you choose to come out of it, you will lose that precious gift forever and you will never be able to get back inside it."

Unable to keep the impatience out of his voice, the snail wailed,

"Oh, Mister... I don't care about that, with all due respect! I just need you to do what I told you. Get me out of my shell, please. Now, please!"

The snail persistently begged for a long time, until the man agreed to his request. He picked him up and gently pulled him out of his shell. Although, the process was a bit painful, the snail was happy to have finally gained freedom.

However, as the excited snail began to crawl away, a hungry bird suddenly flew down, struck it hard and swallowed it immediately. Upon seeing that, the man shook his head in pity and walked away.

How easy it is for us to take our blessings for granted. We find it easy to complain and be ungrateful for what we have. We have been blessed in so many areas, yet so often, we dwell on what we don't have and strive to be someone else. We compare ourselves to others, forgetting our innate ability that makes us unique or stands us out from others. We shouldn't be desperate, selfish and cruel to ourselves. The truth is, when we don't understand our worth and value our lives, we tend to lose something special. We need to cultivate a culture where we count our blessings more than we complain. If we sat still and started counting our blessings and naming them one by one, we would never have time to complain or try to be like someone else.

********

Author: Chima_Dickson Official

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"THE CLOUD ANGELS" by Joanne Boyle

"THE CLOUD ANGELS"

by Joanne Boyle

The cloud angels watched

from their window view.

Eagerly awaiting

to come down to you.

They had heard whispers

In the skies up above,

about mum's and dad's

who had a thing called love.

They longed for their turn.

They had heard it named birth.

They had read story books

about a place called earth.

They kept asking God,

"When can I go?"

and God always answered

"You will just know."

"How will we know?

Will grandparents be there?

Will they love us too

and will they care?"

God smiled at the children

that were yet to arrive.

Where love and protection

would help them to thrive.

Each child would watch,

but in the blink of an eye,

a cloud would transport them

down from the sky.

They were delivered

straight to a heart.

For a lifetime of love

about to start.

**********

Author ~Joanne Boyle~ Heartfelt

Art ~ Steffi Krenzek

https://tc4women.nicheebookcollections.com/NEWSLETTER-EBOOK-LIBRARY-SIGNUP.html We now have over 1900 e-books on our library shelves for your reading pleasure, so do come along and check us out.

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"TURN BACK THE HANDS OF TIME" by Tahlia Hunter

"TURN BACK THE HANDS OF TIME"
by Tahlia Hunter

As I stare into the mirror of my past,

it whispers to me:

“Were you to erase every mistake you ever made

and every past version of yourself you ever were,

then every lesson that you once learned,

and the self that you are now

would cease to exist.

For with every mistake you learn from,

you make one less mistake.

And the mistakes of your past

no longer reflect the person you have become.

As with each mistake you make,

two versions of yourself are born:

who you were before,

and who you are now.

And the memory those from your past have of you

is merely a photograph,

as who you are today

is not who you were yesterday.

For were you to live the same day over again,

with the wisdom you have gained,

you would now choose differently.

This is how it is possible to live thousands of lifetimes within one.

And though you may wish to turn back the hands of time

and live your life once over,

how precious it is

that you may now live the rest of your life this way.

**********

Words by Tahlia Hunter

https://www.facebook.com/TahliaHunterBlog

Artwork by Christian Schloe Digital Artwork

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"REMEMBER ME IN YOUR HEART" by Margaret Mead

"REMEMBER ME IN YOUR HEART"
by Margaret Mead

To the living, I am gone,

To the sorrowful, I will never return,

To the angry, I was cheated,

But to the happy, I am at peace,

And to the faithful, I have never left.

I cannot speak, but I can listen.

I cannot be seen, but I can be heard.

So as you stand upon a shore gazing at a beautiful sea,

As you look upon a flower and admire its simplicity,

Remember me.

Remember me in your heart:

Your thoughts, and your memories,

Of the times we loved,

The times we cried,

The times we fought,

The times we laughed.

For if you always think of me,

I will never have gone ..

**********

by Margaret Mead

Artist Credit ; Karel Hendee

https://tc4women.nicheebookcollections.com/NEWSLETTER-EBOOK-LIBRARY-SIGNUP.html We now have over 1900 e-books on our library shelves for your reading pleasure, so do come along and check us out.

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