Optimism vs. Fear and Superstition

07 May 2015 Leave a comment

by John P.Schulz in quotes and notes Tags: , , , ,

Quotes and notes #183, May 7

“Human spirit is the ability to face the uncertainty of the future with curiosity and optimism. It is the belief that problems can be solved, differences resolved. It is a type of confidence. And it is fragile. It can be blackened by fear and superstition.”—Bernard Beckett—

To my mind, this is a well stated observation. Look at the idea that curi

Fear and Superstition will set a cloud in front of optimism

Fear and Superstition will set a cloud in front of optimism

osity and optimism help us to face uncertainty but that these qualities may be influenced in a negative way by fear and superstition.

Superstition may be looked at as a traditional and unfounded method for dealing with fear.

And that brings us to dealing with the influence fear as a factor in facing the uncertainty of the future. The solution is to isolate and examine the sources of our fears and to understand them. This will lead to the ability to deal with future unknowns with confidence and optimism.

Share a smile
Everything is going to be all right
John P. Schulz
“Sweetie Drives on Chemo Days.”

Humor In Everything

22 Apr 2015 Leave a comment

by John P.Schulz in quotes and notes Tags: , , ,

Quotes and Notes #169, April 22

“Humor is perhaps a sense of intellectual perspective: an awareness that some things are really important, others not; and that the two kinds are most oddly jumbled in everyday affairs.”—Christopher Morley—

Become more aware of the way happenings fit together and you will find the humor. It seems to me that there is a humorous side to just about anything. I remember a children’s book that I used to read to my son when he was young, the tag line to each scenario was, “Could be worse…” –and that somehow always seemed to be funny. Optimism and humor can be practiced and, thereby, made stronger.

Share a smile

Everything is going to be all right

“Sweetie Drives on Chemo Days.”

What can I say?

What can I say?

Practice Makes Perfect

16 Apr 2015 2 Comments

by John P.Schulz in Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , ,

Quotes and Notes #163, April 16

“Just as we develop our physical muscles through overcoming opposition—such as lifting weights—we develop our character muscles by overcoming challenges and adversity.”—Stephen Covey—

Practice and exercise will develop character muscles.–The same goes with optimism and humor, these qualities may be greatly enhanced through practice and exercise.The idea is to keep moving forward with a good attitude.

A little over two years ago, due to a life giving operation, I could only communicate by using pen and paper or with hand signals. Yesterday, I spoke in a radio interview about “Sweetie Drives on Chemo Days.” I felt new strength permeate my body as the self-doubts and fears disappeared. You can only imagine how good that felt. Practice makes perfect.

Share a smile

Everything is going to be all right.

John P. Schulz “Sweetie Drives on Chemo Days.”

My wife, Dekie, and Randy Davis helped with the confidence infusion.

My wife, Dekie, and Randy Davis helped with the confidence infusion.

Can You See It?

07 Apr 2015 Leave a comment

by John P.Schulz in quotes Tags: , ,

Quotes and Notes #154, April 7

“There are always flowers for those who want to see them.”—Henri Matisse–

With this one I can only tell my mother’s story about the two children—one an optimist, the other a pessimist. Researchers put the little pessimist boy in a room with every childhood delight imaginable. When he sat sadly in the corner, he was asked why. “Well,” he said, “If I play with the toys I’ll break them and if I eat all the cake and ice cream I’ll get sick.”

The little optimist boy was shown into a room that contained nothing but a pile of horse manure. The boy said, “oboy, oboy” and started grinning and digging furiously in the manure. When asked what he was doing, he replied, “There’s a pony here somewhere.”

Draw your own conclusions.

Share a smile

Everything is going to be all right.

“Sweetie Drives on Chemo Days.”

I wanted to look at the view but the flowers got in my way

I wanted to look at the view but the flowers got in my way

Good Weather

05 Mar 2015 Leave a comment

by John P.Schulz in quotes Tags: ,

Quotes and Notes #122, March 5

“Sunshine is delicious, rain is refreshing, wind braces us up, snow is exhilarating; there is really no such thing as bad weather, only different kinds of good weather.”–John Ruskin

This is well-practiced optimism at its best. We are happiest if we find good in all of life’s circumstances. My mind frequently goes to the optimistic little boy happily digging around in the pile of horse manure while he tells himself, “There’s a pony here…I know there is.”

Look at the bright side, share a smile

Everything is going to be all right.

John P. Schulz

Clouds in My Life

24 Feb 2015 Leave a comment

by John P.Schulz in quotes Tags: , ,

Quotes and Notes #113, February 24

"There is a different sunset every day"--Bill Land

“There is a different sunset every day”–Bill Land

“Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain or to usher storm, but to add color to my sunset sky.”–Rabindranath Tagore, “Stray Birds”

Much of the time, when things become problematic, we take a bit of pleasure and satisfaction in dealing with the problems and finding closure. The true optimist looks for the good side of things even though the good side may be a bit obscure.

So enjoy the sunset today. If there’s not much of a sunset today or tomorrow, there will be one sooner or later. Someone once asked of my grandmother, “Ms. Tommie, do you think it will rain?” She gave them her sternest look and said, “It always has.” Share a smile.

Everything is going to be all right

John P. Schulz

What you get by achieving your goals

10 Feb 2015 5 Comments

by John P.Schulz in quotes Tags: , , , , ,

Quotes and Notes #100, February 10
”What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals.”–Henry David Thoreau

Today is a milestone on my endeavor to provide 365 of these short observations.

John Prine wrote a line, “We talked …until you said something neither of us knew.”

In the writing of these posts I have come to realize several things, among them:

  • Smiling creates happiness. Sharing a smile is important.
  • Optimism becomes stronger through practice.
  • I can choose my own attitude.
  • “Use your gifts faithfully, and they shall be enlarged.” (Arnold)

Perhaps somewhere, somehow, these realizations are making a difference.

Everything is going to be all right

John P. Schulz

The Power to Choose

09 Feb 2015 Leave a comment

by John P.Schulz in Uncategorized Tags: , , ,

Quotes and Notes #99, February 9

“The greatest weapon against stress is our ability to choose one thought over another.”–William James

This is a wonderful concept. It’s like choosing one flavor of ice cream over another. If I choose chocolate, I then also have the power to tell myself, “I think I would enjoy ice cream more than an anchovy sandwich.” The same goes with taking care of problems. I can choose to figure out ways to deal with the problem instead of spending my time worrying about it. I can choose what I will think about. I have that power. Remember, practice makes you a better optimist. Smiling creates happiness.

Everything is going to be all right.

John P. Schulz

Use your gifts faithfully…

04 Feb 2015 Leave a comment

by John P.Schulz in Uncategorized Tags: ,

Quotes and Notes #95, February 4

“Use your gifts faithfully, and they shall be enlarged; practice what you know and you shall attain to higher knowledge.”–Matthew Arnold

Practice is the key word for today. Improve your talents in some area. Sing a song to yourself that only you can hear. Practice optimism. The days are getting longer and spring is on its way.

Share a smile

Everything is going to be all right

John P. Schulz

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