A Teacher for All Seasons

(from the net )

A teacher is like Spring,

Who nurtures new green sprouts,

Encourages and leads them,

Whenever they have doubts.

A teacher is like Summer,

Whose sunny temperament

Makes studying a pleasure,

Preventing discontent.

A teacher is like Fall,

With methods crisp and clear,

Lessons of bright colors

And a happy atmosphere.

A teacher is like Winter,

While it's snowing hard outside,

Keeping students comfortable,

As a warm and helpful guide.

Teacher, you do all these things,

With a pleasant attitude;

You're a teacher for all seasons,

And you have my gratitude!

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Sixtyish and Going On Strong...

Grand Father and His Grand Son...Imparting Words of Wisdom

(translated from original Chinese) excerpt from Joey Concepcion of GO Negosyo 

There are many 1000-year old trees in the mountain, but not many 100-year-old people.

At the most, only 1 in 100,000 people will live to be 100 years old.

So, if you are now 60 years old, if you live until you are: 

90, you only have 30 years more;

80, you only have 20 years more;

70, you have only 10 years more.

Because you don’t have many years to live, and you can’t bring anything with you when you die, you don’t have to be too thrifty. Spend wisely the money that should be spent, enjoy what should be enjoyed, donate what you are able to donate, and don’t leave everything to your children or grandchildren, for you don’t want them to become parasites.

Don’t worry about what will happen after you are gone because when you return to dust, you will feel nothing about criticisms or praises. Don’t worry too much about your children for children will have their own destiny and find their own way.  Don’t be your children’s slave.

Don’t expect too much from your children.  Caring children would be too busy with their jobs and commitments to render any help.  Uncaring children will fight over your assets even when you are still alive, and wish for your early demise so they can inherit your possessions. Your children may take for granted that they are rightful heirs to your wealth, but they really have no claims to your money, neither do you have any claim to theirs.

Don’t trade in your health for wealth because no amount of money can buy good health.

When should you stop making money, and how much is enough -- hundreds, thousands, one million, ten million?  Remember that out of 1000 hectares of good farmland, you can only consume three quarts (of rice) daily; and if you have a mansion of several thousand square meters, depending upon your size, height and weight, you can actually occupy only eight square meters of space to rest at night.

So as long as you have enough food and enough money to spend, that is good enough.

You should live happily. Every person and every family has its own problems.   Do not compare yourself or your family with others.  To compare yourself, your children, your family with others is foolish.  Fame, fortune, and social status do not really bring true happiness, good health, or longevity. It does not help to worry about things that you can’t change; worrying about them will only spoil your health.

Create your own level of well-being and happiness.  Try your best to always be in a good mood and to have happy thoughts.  Do things daily, which you give you fun and happiness, then you will pass your time happily every day. There is no certainty that everyday will be a happy one but every day of happiness is one day gained; sometimes you gain and win, sometimes you lose. Having a "good spirit" cures sickness, cures sickness fast, and even prevents sickness from coming to you. 

To have good health and happy life, get a suitable amount of daily exercise, exposure to the sun, variety of healthy food, reasonable amount of vitamins and minerals. Hopefully, you have 20, 30, or even more happy and healthy years ahead of you! 

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Borrowing Experience

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.

                                                                                                                                    Proverbs 1:7

In my last 40 years of existence, I have come to understand this fairly well. There are many means and method to shorten the learning curve or acquisition of knowledge and wisdom. One of this method is about having a Mentor. Before all of that,  we need to be grateful for the freewill and intellect that was given to us. All of these are the gifts from our Creator and we are considered as stewards of them. Need to ensure we make best of use of them as in the Parable of the Talents and improving on them for the glory of God. Enjoy! 

The Best Teacher?

We’ve all heard, “Experience is the best teacher,” but it’s simply not true. Experience is not the best teacher; it never has been and never will be.  Maturity doesn’t always come with time; sometimes age brings nothing more than wrinkles and gray hair.

Experience is not the best teacher; evaluated experience is the best teacher.  Reflective thinking is needed to turn experience into insight. We draw lessons from the past only when we study it. I have a habit of spending time each evening in reflective thinking. When I get ready for bed, I take ten minutes to look back on my day—conversations I’ve had, people I’ve met, things I’ve done, statements I’ve said—and I make note of significant lessons.

Now, the younger you are, the less experience you have to evaluate. Since you have limited firsthand experience yourself, look to borrow it from a mentor. Listen, learn, and ask questions from somebody successful who has gone before you. A wise leader never stops seeking to glean from the experiences of others.

Take Action: Looking for a Mentor

There’s no specific formula when it comes to finding a mentor, but these steps can aid your search.

1. Conduct an Honest Self-Assessment

Write down responses to the following questions: Where am I in my career? Where do I hope to be in the future? What are my strengths and weaknesses? What obstacles are keeping me from growing to my potential?

2. Clarify Your Purpose

Go into a mentoring relationship with a goal. Ask yourself: What do I hope to gain from the relationship? You may be interested in learning a specific skill, obtaining advice on an important decision, or gaining insight into a problem. Whatever the case, spend time on the front end to get clear about your purpose for pursuing the mentoring relationship. Put your purpose on paper. It will help narrow your search for the right mentor as well as keeping you focused on your main goals.

3. Consider Possible Mentors

After assessing where you are professionally and clarifying why you want to be mentored, the next step is to identify prospective mentors. Obviously, you want to find someone with experience and expertise in the areas where you hope to grow. Additionally, the more they share your values, the better.

You probably already have someone in your network with the combination of skills and experience that you’re looking for in a mentor. If not, ask for referrals from trusted coworkers and friends. Don’t feel like you have to find a mentor who can help you in every facet of life; just make sure they have something to offer in at least one area in which you hope to grow.

Make a list of everyone who comes to mind as a possible mentor, and then rank your top two choices. Research their interests, background, and involvements, looking for points of connection.

4. Come up with a Game Plan

Before approaching a prospective mentor, come up with a tentative framework for your mentoring relationship. How often would you meet? How would meetings be structured? What would be the duration of the mentoring relationship? Certainly, you’ll want to be accommodating of your mentor’s preferences, but having a plan in place will facilitate discussion about the nature of the relationship. Also, having a game plan in hand demonstrates to your mentor the forethought you’ve put in to the relationship.

5. Make the Connection

The last step is asking to be mentored. When approaching potential mentors, express what you respect about them and share why you are attracted by the idea of having them as a mentor. Then, concisely share your goal for the mentoring relationship. Articulate your expectations and be attentive to their goals and expectations as well.

Be mindful that you’re asking for a big favor. If they agree to mentor you, make the logistics (schedule, location, etc.) as easy as possible for them. Finally, both upfront and throughout the relationship, show appreciation for your mentor’s willingness to invest in you.

 To Your Success!

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The Mousetrap Story

And so you thought other people's problem and dilemma shouldn't be of your concern, think again! Let this mousetrap story tell you why should you bother and give others the attention they deserve ...

 A mouse looked through the crack in the wall to see the farmer and his wife open a package. What food might this contain? The mouse wondered - he was devastated to discover it was a mousetrap.

Retreating to the farmyard, the mouse proclaimed the warning:

"There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!"

The chicken clucked and scratched, raised her head and said, "Mr.Mouse, I can tell this is a grave concern to you, but it is of no consequence to me. I cannot be bothered by it."

The mouse turned to the pig and told him, "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!"

The pig sympathized, but said, I am so very sorry, Mr.Mouse , but there is nothing I can do about it but pray. Be assured you are in my prayers."

The mouse turned to the cow and said "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!"

The cow said, "Wow, Mr. Mouse. I'm sorry for you, but it's no skin off my nose."   

            

So, the mouse returned to the house, head down and dejected, to face the farmer's mousetrap alone.

That very night a sound was heard throughout the house -- like the sound of a mousetrap catching its prey. The farmer's wife rushed to see what was caught. In the darkness, she did not see it was a venomous snake whose tail the trap had caught. The snake bit the farmer's wife. The farmer rushed her to the hospital, and she returned home with a fever. 

Everyone knows you treat a fever with fresh chicken soup, so the farmer took his hatchet to the farmyard for the soup's main ingredient.

But his wife's sickness continued, so friends and neighbors came to sit with her around the clock. To feed them, the farmer butchered the pig.

The farmer's wife did not get well; in fact, she died.

So many people came for her funeral; the farmer had the cow slaughtered to provide enough meat for all of them.

The mouse looked upon it all from his crack in the wall with great sadness.

So, the next time you hear someone is facing a problem and think it doesn't concern you, REMEMBER:  

When one of us is threatened, we are all at risk.

  We are All involved in this journey called LIFE. 

We must keep an eye out for one another and 

make an extra effort to encourage one another. 

To Your Success!

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Is there still space for two bottles of beers?

The teacher placed a large glass jar on the table with two Zero-degree bottles of San Miguel Beer pale pilsen beside it. Then out of a bag he took ten stones, each the size of an orange, and began placing them, one by one, in the jar. When the jar was filled to the brim with stones, he asked his students: ‘Is it full?’ They all agreed that it was.

The teacher, however, took some gravel from another bag and by jiggling the large stones around inside the jar, managed to fit in quite a lot of gravel. ‘Is it full now?’ The students said, yes, this time it was definitely full. At that point, the teacher opened a third bag, this time full of fine sand, and he began to pour it into the jar. The sand filled up any empty spaces between the large stones and the gravel, right up to the top. ‘Right,’ said the teacher. ‘Now the jar is full.

What do you think I’ve been trying to demonstrate to you?’ ‘That it doesn’t matter how busy you are, there’s always room to fit in something else,’ said one student. ‘Not at all. What this little demonstration shows us is that we have to put the large stones in first because, afterwards, they won’t fit.

Now what are the important thing in our lives? What are the plans we postpone, the adventures we never have, the loves we fail to fight for? Ask which are the large, solid stones that keep God’s flame alive in you and put them into your jar of decisions now, because very soon there will be no room for them.’

Oops! Before I forget, the two bottles of Ice-Cold beers is for us to drink...there certainly is a space for it in our stomach my friend. To a more balanced life...Cheers!

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