More Mark Twain

Here are a couple more quotes from Mark Twian that I thought were clever: (the first post is here)

"The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and lightning bug."

"The time to begin writing an article is when you have finished it to your satisfaction.  By that time you begin to clearly and logically perceive what it is you really want to say."

"The rule is perfect: in all matters of opinion our adversaries are insane."

"The radical of one century is the conservative of the next.  The radical invents the views.  When he has worn them out, the conservative adopts them."

"The fear of death follows from the fear of life.  A man who lives fully is prepared to die at any time."

"Life would be infinatly happier if we could only be born at the age of eighty and gradually approach eighteen."

"It usually take me more than three weeks to prepare a good impromptu speech."

Maybe you can use these in your school...or just mull them over.  Either way, enjoy.

Cheers

Visiting

President N. Eldon Tanner (1898–1982) “We all should assume some responsibility in remembering those of our families and our neighbors who find themselves confined for any reason—either at home or in nursing establishments. They need to be visited or given transportation to places they wish to go. Just a brief visit at regular intervals would certainly help the confined person and give the visitor satisfaction and joy for the privilege of having ‘done something good in the world.” 
("Preparing for Old Age,” Ensign, Dec. 1976, 4)

I am so thankful that we can visit my "Grandma" Henderson.  What a blessing it is to go and take my children (and Mom) with me to visit a truly inspirational lady who has done so much in our life.  What a blessing to love, honor, and remember her this way. 

I am also so thankful for children who love her as much as I do.  Singing, playing piano, and giving her hugs.  What wonderful little men they are turning out to be.  I am honored to be their Mom.

Cheers

Writing With Mark Twain

Last month while at the dollar store, I picked up some really cheap "page a day" calenders.  One of them was all quotes from Mark Twain.

I love how witty he was.

I enjoy reading each of them each day, but as I tear them off I am a little sad I can't remember some of the more clever ones, so I decided to add a bit of variety to our daily cursive practice (and for my baby, just printing) we would write out some of the more humerous or witty ones.

Here are a couple of the ones we have done so far.  We have enjoyed them, maybe you will as well.

"The first half of life consists of the capacity to enjoy without the chance; the last half consists of the chance without the capacity."

"Procrastination - Never put off until tomorrow what you can do the day after tomorrow."

"Be good and you will be lonesome."

"Go to Heaven for the climate, Hell for the company."

"It is curious that physical courage should be so common in the world and moral courage so rare."

"Giving up smoking is the easiest thing in the world.  I know because I have done it thousands of times."

"Don't tell fish stories where the people know you; but particularly, don't tell them where they know the fish."

Cheers

Education

President Spencer W. Kimball:  "There is opportunity to get both [secular and spiritual learning] simultaneously.  ...If we spend our mortal days in accumulating secular knowledge to the exclusion of the spiritual then we are in a dead-end street, for this is the time for man to prepare to meet God; this is the time for faith to be built, for baptism to be effected, for the Holy Ghost to be received, for the ordinances to be performed.  Contemporary with this program can come the secular knowledge, for even in the spirit world after death our spirits can go on learning." 

Intelligence

"There is life or intelligence in all matter throughout the vast extent of all the eternities: it is in the rock, in the sand, in water, air, the gases, and in short, in every description and organization of matter, whether it be solid, liquid or gaseous particle operating within particle."  Brigham Young

"They are so marvelously organized that you can take one single little complex organization, it's called a cell, and it's fertilized by another cell and in 9 months, because of the DNA organization that is set up by a highly intelligent Heavenly Father, that will grow into a HUMAN BEING. And all by design! You almost stand in a worshipful feeling toward our Heavenly Father as you realize what is possible with that organizational structure."  Cleon Skousen

Both quotes taken from THIS talk about the Atonement.

Quote of the Day

As seen on a sign driving though town today:

The reason talk is cheap

is that the supply exceeds the demand.

Gave me a great giggle.

Cheers

Spring and the Atonement

"Jesus Christ lives. He is our Savior, our Redeemer. He is a glorious, resurrected being. He has the capacity to communicate love that is so powerful, so overwhelming as to surpass the capacity of the human tongue to express adequately. He gave His life to break the bonds of death. His Atonement made fully active the plan of happiness of His Father in Heaven.”
 Richard G. Scott, “He Lives! All Glory to His Name!” Ensign, May 2010, 76




As I yearn for spring, my mind inevitably turns to the amazing gift our Savior has given us.  We can be clean and be renewed as a young flower or tree.  We can be forgiven of everything that we do.  He loves us, He wants us to return to live with Him again.  We are literal children of our Heavenly Father.  He is real.

This is I know.

Gaining Eternity

"As we live the commandments of God, we can look forward with joyful anticipation to the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ and know that through our efforts we are worth, with our loved ones, to dwell in His presence for all eternity.  Surely nothing is too hard to gain this great goal.  We cannot let down for a moment.  We must prove, every day or our lives, that we are willing to do the will of the Lord - to spread the restored gospel, to bear testimony to the world, to share the gospel with others."  (The teachings of Ezra Taft Benson [1988], 341).

Love this Quote

"Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid."

- Albert Einstein

Thought

One of the most obvious facts about grownups to a child is that they have forgotten what it is like to be a child.
- Randall Jarrell

This has been on my mind lately, but only just found a quote that expressed it aptly.

How do you "become as a little child" (3 Nephi 11:37) if you have forgotten how to BE a little child? Not necessarily running around nekkid in the garden, but to have the freedom to do so, or the complete disregard to the conditions we have become accustomed to as adults.

Just a thought.

Cheers

Ponderings on my mostly sane mind...

So, I have been thinking and chatting with a friend about this subject for a few weeks now and thought I would put it out to you.

When I was growing up, I had a job since I was 11. I delivered papers, I babysat, I worked at Bonanza (remember that restaurant?!), I also worked at a greenhouse, a tree packing plant and a drug store. While going to college I was also an early morning janitor.

After I finished College I worked at "The Farm" (P's family farm...it is quite the operation), for P's Aunt, at a tree packing plant, babysitting, and housekeeping. (seems my jobs have a theme!)

After I miscarried my first child I stopped working so that I could carry my baby in safety. We have been pregnant 6 times and have 3 beautiful boys! What a blessing...but work HAS NOT STOPPED! I may not get paid, but I still have a huge job.

I get to clean my house (seems like every five min or so), do laundry, teach my children (everything but Math...thank you Davilyn!), teach women in my ward, learn new skills, do P's running around, be a secretary, be an errand runner, phone message taker, general do-it-all-type person. This is not something that you don't also do. I take comfort in the fact that I am not alone.

I came across this quote the other day...

In our day, many children grow up with distorted values because we as parents overindulge them. Whether you are well-to-do or, like most of us, of more modest means, we as parents often attempt to provide children with almost everything they want thus taking away from them the blessing of anticipating, of longing for something they do not have. One of the most important things we can teach our children is to deny themselves. Instant gratification generally makes for weak people. How many truly great individuals do you know who never had to struggle? ~Joe J. Christensen, “Greed, Selfishness, and Overindulgence,” Ensign, May 1999


This quote really hit home to me. I feel that my childhood, while not ideal to some, really taught me how to be a good adult. I feel grateful that I had to work. What a blessing to know the value of work. When I plant a garden, I know darn well that the carrots don't grow themselves...I know that I am going to have to work stinking hard to weed those babies! But O how sweet they taste when I harvest them! I enjoy them all the more because I have worked VERY hard to get them.

So, how do you teach your kids how to work? I really want to know. It is a different world out there now. I can't send my kids out to do papers in the morning by themselves, it is scary! (but they do go with P when he subs a route) Not many people get boy babysitters, but K is getting his certification this year so that he will be ready if someone does call him. We have a job chart, the boys get "paid" in monopoly money and they "buy" their privileges that way...but how do you teach YOUR kids the VALUE of work? I really want to know. I look forward to hearing from you.

Cheers

A few quotes...

When reading Orson Scott Card's column this week he had a great section with some pretty good quotes. Here are a few that I liked the most:

Strength is the capacity to break a chocolate bar into four pieces with your bare hands – and then eat just one of the pieces. – Judith Viorst
Civilization is a stream with banks. The stream is sometimes filled with blood from people killing, stealing, shouting and doing the things historians usually record, while on the banks, unnoticed, people build homes, make love, raise children, sing songs, write poetry and even whittle statues. The story of civilization is what happened on the banks. – Will Durant
When childhood dies, its corpses are called adults and they enter society, one of the politer names of hell. – Brian Aldiss
Honesty may be the best policy, but it's important to remember that apparently, by elimination, dishonesty is the second-best policy. – George Carlin

Speak the truth, but leave immediately afterword. – Slovenian proverb
A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, Conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects. – Robert A. Heinlein

Also for those who commented on my last post, I didn't get a mental health day...I just REALLY want one! :)

I am getting impatient, my body is aching (the lovely weather playing havoc with my arthritis) and I really want a break...a girls night would be nice.

Don't get me wrong, I love being home with my boys, I love that we Home School, but even teachers get PD days and other breaks...I want one too. :)

Just me venting. I will be better soon.

Cheers

How true...he he he he! :)

The conception of two people living together for twenty-five years without having a cross word suggests a lack of spirit only to be admired in sheep.
- Alan Patrick Herbert

Quote of the day

"Whatever women do they must do twice as well as men to be thought half as good. Luckily this is not difficult. "
- Charlotte Whitton

Quote

I get a bunch of quotes everyday on my homepage...well, this was one of them today.

Faith is a cop-out. If the only way you can accept an assertion is by faith, then you are conceding that it can’t be taken on its own merits. - Dan Barker

Makes you think huh? I really think that this guy is totally wrong, but it is nice to have your beliefs questioned once in a while so that you can reaffirm them to yourself or others.

What do you think?

Liked this quote...

Great people talk about ideas, average people talk about things, and small people talk about wine. - Fran Lebowitz

So where are we?!