Winning Words 3/23/12
“To be without some of the things you want is an indispensable part of happiness.” (Bertrand Russell) If I could order a new red Ferrari, is that the essence of joy? I saw a cartoon of a dog gripping a car bumper with his teeth. Over his head were the words, “OK, now what?” Someone has said, “The joy is in the chase.” I’ve had some happy times in my “dream” world. I sometimes still live there. Do you? ;-) Jack

FROM RG IN ARIZONA: I think through experience alone, like Russell and the dog in the cartoon point out, one learns that even when one acquires that which one wants or desires, satisfaction wanes. Happiness, now distinct from the pleasure of acquiring what one wants, seems to exist alongside the acceptance of the things of the world and our place within it, and the knowing that what one wants is just what one wants. What is righteous is always long-lasting; hence we can be confident that Happiness, Love, Peace, and all the fruits of the Spirit are eternal indeed.////FROM JACK: Even though the "science" of categorizing people as Type A or Type B personalities has been called into question, I continue to see some truth in it. The cartoon dog seems to be Type A...short-fused, aggressive, impatient, looking ahead. Do you know any people like that? I do. Happiness can be elusive.

FROM BEC DOWN THE ROAD: I like this one!////FROM JACK: Did you like it, because a dog is involved. My dog, Sparkie, used to chase cars, but never caught one.

FROM PASTY PAT: Absolutely. I wonder about today's kids growing up in a world with all this technology, where everything is so fast, so immediate. How do you learn to set a long-term goal and work towards it and then experience the satisfaction of reaching it? Or, as today's quote says ---"be without some of the things you want" and still be happy? (Honestly, I'm not against technology and appreciate the benefits, but also wonder about the downside.)////FROM JACK: Beautiful music is made by a combination of high and low notes. The secret lies in knowing how to arrange them.

FROM EMT SINGS IN MICHIGAN: I have always thought that the "game is the thing". Once achieved I believe that another goal is chosen. As I have always told my kids. We never arrive we are just on a journey. ////FROM JACK: I remember when we were on family trips...someone was bound to ask, "Are we there yet?" Adults become impatient, too. We all need to learn to "stop and smell the roses."

FROM BBC IN ILLINOIS: Loved your thoughts this grey gloomy morning; thank you for inspiration. ////FROM JACK: I call them "Winning Words" for a reason, hoping that they will be inspiring to someone. It's like preaching a sermon...you never know. I believe in the omnipresent Spirit of God.

FROM ME IN NEWPORT BEACH: Always. Extends life in the real world.////FROM JACK: Here's a philosophical question. When we are dreaming, are we not also in the real world? Is the world REAL only when we are awake?////FROM NEWPORT BEACH: My answers below in Bold.
Here's a philosophical question. When we are dreaming, are we not also in the real world? NO. Is the world REAL only when we are awake? YES.

FROM MEDD-O-LANE: As long as you realize the dream world is just a dream, that takes the possibility of having to live with a dream that you didn't want. ////FROM JACK: One of Martin Luther King's most famous speeches was, "I Have a Dream." It was given in front of the Lincoln Memorial. Not many people realize that it was first given in Detroit. When I was given the assignment of starting a new church, first in Grayslake, Illinois, and then in West Bloomfield, Michigan, I first had a "dream" that it could be accomplished. Who was it that first dreamed of a business to be called, Dairy Queen?

FROM PLAIN FOLKS CHESTER: If I had a a red Ferrari, the first thing I'd do is paint it yellow. Who wants to be like everybody else?////FROM JACK: The FIRST thing you'd have to do is learn how to drive it. The dealer won't let you out the door without showing you how it doesn't drive like the car you presently own.

FROM SAINT JAMES IN MICHIGAN: Sometimes wanting something is better than having it...there's just something about that...////FROM JACK: Or, as the saying goes, "Be careful what you wish for; you might get it."

FROM SHARIN' SHARON: We recently had a supply pastor who introduced us to the book"The Dream Giver" written by Bruce Wilkinson. I never understood the story of Abraham and Isaac from the Bible so deeply until I read in "The Dream Giver" that God needs us to be willing to give up our dream to Him for true happiness and true realizing our dream. Actually, I don't know how this could all tie into the dog wanting a car, maybe the dog's true dream is to ride in the car with the window open. Our dog really liked that.////FROM JACK: I often wondered about my dog's dreams when I saw him twitching and kicking.

FROM TAMPA SHIRL: A cartoon on our bulletin board from Family Circus pictures a grandmother with two grandchildren in her arms. She is saying that the best things in life are not things. I guess that sums up my philosophy. My life has been wonderful, and I hope to take the 13 remaining grandchildren on a trip of their dreams, as I have been able to do for the five older ones. The youngest are two 7 year olds, so, you see, I am an optimist.////FROM JACK: I'm glad that you're able to enjoy "the circus."

FROM BLAZING OAKS: Good thought to ponder...Maybe that is why the Jet-Set is so restless, there is nothing they have to deny themselves, materially or travel-wise, and what new thing can they look forward to? As we age, for most of us, good health supercedes Red Ferraris, or starring roles in Muni-Opera, or trips to some exotic place, etc. I'm sure there is a lot of truth in these WW...good to keep in mind!!////FROM JACK: Today I'm meeting with someone to strategize how to solve a (not major) problem. That kind of meeting makes me happy.

FROM HAWKEYE GEORGE: Good thought. In my speaking about my book, I've observed that the most well-adjusted people I've met had to work hard for what they want in life. Too many things given to them breeds complacency. Just look at South Korea and Germany and Japan for ones who lost everything, and then dug themselves out of their economic problems.////FROM JACK: Does anyone (anymore) wear boots with bootstraps? BTW, what are bootstraps?