Insight

Sometimes it's not the wealth you have but what's inside you that

Others need....

A wise woman, who was traveling in the mountains, found a precious

Stone in a stream. The next day she met another traveler, who was hungry.

The wise woman opened her bag to share her food. The hungry traveler

Saw the precious stone and asked the woman to give it to him. She did

So without hesitation.

The traveler left, rejoicing in his good fortune. He knew the stone

Was worth enough to give him security for a lifetime.

But, a few days later, he came back to return the stone to the wise

Woman.

"I've been thinking," he said. "I know how valuable this stone

Is, but I give it back in the hope that you can give me something even

More precious. Please give me what you have within you that enabled

You to give me this stone."

Taken from Wisdom of Life

Plant A SEED

A successful business man was growing old and knew it was time to choose a successor to take over the business.

Instead of choosing one of his Directors or his children, he decided to do something different. He called all the young executives in his company together.

He said, "It is time for me to step down and choose the next CEO. I have decided to choose one of you. "The young executives were Shocked, but the boss continued. "I am going to give each one of you a SEED today - one very special SEED. I want you to plant the seed, water it, and come back here one year from today with what you have grown from the seed I have

given you. I will then judge the plants that you bring, and the one I choose will be the next CEO."

One man, named Jim, was there that day and he, like the others, received a seed. He went home and excitedly, told his wife the story. She helped him get a pot, soil and compost and he planted the seed. Everyday, he would water it and watch to see if it had grown. After about three weeks, some of the other executives began to talk about their seeds and the plants that were beginning to grow.

Jim kept checking his seed, but nothing ever grew.

Three weeks, four weeks, five weeks went by, still nothing.

By now, others were talking about their plants, but Jim didn't have a plant and he felt like a failure.

Six months went by -- still nothing in Jim's pot. He just knew he had killed his seed. Everyone else had trees and tall plants, but he had nothing. Jim didn't say anything to his colleagues, however, he just kept watering and fertilizing the soil - He so wanted the seed to grow.

A year finally went by and all the young executives of the company brought their plants to the CEO for inspection.

Jim told his wife that he wasn't going to take an empty pot. But she asked him to be honest about what happened. Jim felt sick to his stomach, it was going to be the most embarrassing moment of his life, but he knew his wife was right. He took his empty pot to the board room. When Jim arrived, he was amazed at the variety of plants grown by the other executives. They were beautiful-- in all shapes and sizes. Jim put his empty pot on the floor and many of his colleagues laughed, a few felt sorry for him!

When the CEO arrived, he surveyed the room and greeted his young executives.

Jim just tried to hide in the back. "My, what great plants, trees and flowers you have grown," said the CEO. "Today one of you will be appointed the next CEO!"

All of a sudden, the CEO spotted Jim at the back of the room with his empty pot. He ordered the Financial Director to bring him to the front. Jim was terrified. He thought, "The CEO knows I'm a failure! Maybe he will have me fired!"

When Jim got to the front, the CEO asked him what had happened to his seed- Jim told him the story.

The CEO asked everyone to sit down except Jim. He looked at Jim, and then announced to the young executives, "Behold your next Chief Executive Officer!

His name is Jim!" Jim couldn't believe it. Jim couldn't even grow his seed.

"How could he be the new CEO?" the others said.

Then the CEO said, "One year ago today, I gave everyone in this room a seed. I told you to take the seed, plant it, water it, and bring it back to me today. But I gave you all boiled seeds; they were dead - it was not possible for them to grow.

All of you, except Jim, have brought me trees and plants and flowers. When you found that the seed would not grow, you substituted another seed for the one I gave you. Jim was the only one with the courage and honesty to bring me a pot with my seed in it. Therefore, he is the one who will be the new Chief Executive Officer!"

* If you plant honesty, you will reap trust

* If you plant goodness, you will reap friends

* If you plant humility, you will reap greatness

* If you plant perseverance, you will reap contentment

* If you plant consideration, you will reap perspective

* If you plant hard work, you will reap success

* If you plant forgiveness, you will reap reconciliation

So, be careful what you plant now; it will determine what you will reap later.

Think about this for a minute....

~May you be well and happy always~

Bai Fang Li: Poor man who is RICH

His name is BAI FANG LI. He is a rickshaw operator most of his life, providing services to people who need to go from one place to another for a small fee. 

His body is small, even too small compared to other rickshaw operators. However, he is very energetic and enthusiast. He starts his routine at 6am and ends his days after the hard work not sooner than 8pm.

All his customers like Bai Fang Li, because he is friendly, and his smile never leaves his face. He never determines the fee that his customers must pay, but he relies on the customers' generosity to pay for his services. Because of his good heart, more people prefer to use his services than others. Perhaps because of compassion to him, many people are willing to pay more than the going rates that most rickshaw operators charge. Maybe this is because they see how hard he, with his small body sweating, has to push till his breathing is heavy. 

Bai Fang Li lives in an old and rusty hut in a slum area of the city where many rickshaw operators and garbage collectors live. He rents a portion of the hut and pays daily for a place to sleep. There is practically no furniture in the hut, but an old rug to sleep on after a very long and hard day at work. There is only one room under the roof to share with several other people. In this room, he often received visitors who come to get help from him. Inside the room, there is also an old cardboard box where he store an old, badly torn and stitched blanket. There is also a tin plate, which he probably found in the pile of garbage around the hut, for him to eat, and a tin can for him to drink. At the corner of the hut, there is an oil lamp to give light to the room at night.

Bai Fang Li has no family or relatives. People just know that he comes from another place. However, he never feel lonely because he is always surrounded by people who love his company. They love him for his positive attitude and his generosity. He helps everybody who needs help, and he does it with joy in his heart and without expecting anything in return.

From what he earns, he should be able to afford better food and clothes. However, he donated most of his earning to an unknown orphanage that takes care of over 300 orphans in Tianjin. This orphanage also runs a school for the orphans and other poor children in the area.

An incident that changes his way of life

Bai Fang Li started giving his donation at the age of 74. This is the story how his heart was touched and how he made the decision to do what he was doing.

One day he was resting after dropping off a customer. He saw a tiny and skinny six year old boy on the street offering his service to an older lady to carry her groceries that she bought from a nearby market. He saw this little boy carry the heavy grocery bags with a lot of struggle, but he was determined to do the job well. There was a big smile on the boy's face when had completed the duty and receive some change from the lady for his service. This boy looked up the sky mumbling something as if he was thanking God for the blessing that he has just receive. Bai watched the boy doing it to several ladies who were shopping in the market, and every time he received payment for his services, he would looked up to the sky and mumbled something.

Later, he saw the boy going to a pile of garbage and dug into the garbage looking for something. When he found a dirty piece of bread, he was so happy. He cleaned the bread the best he could, and he put the bread in his mouth and enjoyed it as if it were a piece of bread from heaven. Bai's heart was so touched by what he saw. He approached the boy and offered him to share his lunch with him. Bai was wondering why the boy did not buy a decent lunch with the money he earned from providing services to the ladies. The boy said, "I will use the money to buy food for my siblings." Bai asked, "Where are your parents?" The boy replied, "My parents were separating stuff from garbage everyday. However, one month ago, they disappeared and I have never seen them again. Thus, I have to work to feed myself and my two younger sisters."

Bai Fang Li asked to boy to take him to his sisters. Bai's heart was crying when he saw the two girls, 5 and 4 years old. The girls were dirty and skinny, and their clothes were very dirty. The neighbours did not care about the condition of these three children, because they were struggling to cope with their own lives too.

Bai Fang Li took these three children to an orphanage in Tianjin. He told the manager of the orphanage that he would bring all the money he made and give it to the orphanage to help the children there to get food, care and education. Since then Bai Fang Li decided to work harder and with more determination in operating the rickshaw to earn money for the orphanage. He started early and finished late to get the extra money. From all his earning everyday, he put aside some to pay rent for his living space in the hut, to buy two raisin breads for his lunch and a small piece of meat and egg for his dinner. The rest of the income was donated to the orphanage to help them to feed and care for the children. 

He is very happy doing all these things, despite his limitation. He felt that it was a luxury that he had a place to live, food to eat and clothes to wear, even clothes that he got from a disposal. He was always thankful for what he had.

Bai Fang Li worked as rickshaw operator 365 days a year, regardless of the weather, and often when it was snowing or when the sun was very strong and hot. When asked why he would sacrifice so much for these children, he always said, "It is OK that I suffer, as long as the poor children have something to eat and can have the proper education. I am happy to do all these things." 

Giving without expecting anything in return

Last moment of his life as he suffered from lung cancer

Bai Fang Li started donating to the orphanage since 1986. He has never asked anything in return from the orphanage. He does not even know which children benefit from his donation. For the next 20 years, Bai Fang Li operated his rickshaw for one purpose: to be able to give donation to the orphanage in Tianjin. At the age of 90, he brought all his saving of about RMB500 (about US$80) that he has stored neatly in a box to the school named Yao Hua that was run by the orphanage.

Bai Fang Li said in a sad voice, "I am too old and weak to operate rickshaw now. I cannot continue with the donation. This could be my last donation.." All the teachers in the school were touched and cried. When Bai Fang Li died at the age of 93, he died in poverty. Despite of that, he had donated RMB 350,000 (about US$53,000) to the orphanage and the school that was run by the orphanage. 

The last photograph that his friends have about him has an inscription

"An extraordinary love for an extraordinary person."

Readers, let us be inspired by the action of Mr. Bai Fang Li. The truly happiness is indeed achieved when you can give your best for serving the helpless people. At the end, having more materialistic things can not guarantee happiness.

~ May all beings be well and happy always ~

Hiu Kecil

Dalam resep masakan Jepang, kita tahu bahwa ikan salmon akan lebih enak utk dinikmati jika ikan tersebut masih dalam keadaan hidup saat hendak diolah utk disajikan.
Jauh lebih nikmat dibandingkan dg ikan salmon yg sdh diawetkan dgn es.
Itu sebabnya para nelayan selalu mmasukkan salmon tangkapnya ke suatu kolam buatan yg dibuat dalam kapal agar dlm perjalanan menuju daratan salmon2 tsb bisa tetap hidup.
Meski demikian pada kenyataannya banyak salmon yg mati dikolam buatan tsb.

Bagaimana cara nya mereka menyiasatinya?
Para nelayan itu memasukkan seekor hiu kecil dikolam tsb. Ajaib!! Hiu kecil tsb "memaksa " salmon2 itu terus brgerak karena jgn sampai dimangsa.
Akibatnya jumlah salmon yg mati justru menjadi sangat sedikit !

Inilah suatu contoh yg baik buat hidup manusia, Diam akan membuat kita mati ! Bergerak akan membuat kita tetap hidup !

Barangkali kurang lebih itulah pesan moral yg dpt kita tangkap dr gambaran diatas.

Lalu hal-hal apa saja yg membuat kita diam ? Saat tdk ada masalah dlm hidup dan saat kita sudah berada dlm zona nyaman.
Situasi seperti ini kerap membuat kita terlena. Begitu terlenanya sehingga kita tdk sadar bahwa sebenarnya kita telah “mati” ; Ironis , bukan?

Lalu hal apa saja yg bisa membuat kita terus bergerak?
Masalah, Pergumulan dan Tekanan Hidup.
Saat masalah datang mendera dalam hidup kita , secara otomatis naluri kita akan membuat kita bergerak aktif dan brusaha bagaimana caranya mengatasi semua masalah , kesulitan dan pergumulan dalam hidup kita itu

Disaat saat banyak Persoalan dan Masalah seperti itu biasanya kita akan ingat Tuhan dan berharap agar Tuhan menolong kita. Tdk hanya itu, kita akan menjadi lebih kreatif, dan potensi diri kitapun akan keluar semua dan menjadi berkembang luar biasa !!

Ingatlah bahwa kita akan bisa belajar banyak dlm hidup ini bukan pada saat keadaan nyaman, tapi justru pada saat kita menghadapi badai dalam hidup kita.

Itu sebabnya bila dalam Hidup Anda ada “ Hiu Kecil “ syukurilah hal itu, krn itu yang akan terus memaksa kita utk bergerak dan tetap survive !

Jadi kalau ada Masalah hidup ini pandanglah dari segi positif dan segi baiknya , karena sebenarnya hal itulah yg akan membuat kita bisa terus “hidup” dan menjadi lebih baik.

Jangan buat diri anda terlena dalam Zona Nyaman, carilah selalu kegiatan2 positif yang bisa mengisi hidup anda dan menjadikan diri kita tetap produkrif dan berguna bagi orang banyak.

Semoga bisa menambah wawasan kita semua.

adopted from: Facebook - TiongHoa Indonesia's article

Ice Cream

Pada suatu hari seorang anak kecil masuk ke sebuah restoran terkenal. Dengan langkah riang dan sedikit berlari, anak kecil itu duduk di salah satu bangku kosong di sana. “Sangat ramai.” gumamnya. Anak kecil itu kemudian mengangkat tangannya untuk memanggil salah satu pelayan restoran. Seorang pelayan perempuan pun segera datang menghampiri anak kecil itu dengan membawa buku menu makanan.

“Mau pesan apa, dik?” Tanya pelayan itu. “Berapa harga satu porsi es krim bertabur strawbery dan coklat itu?” Si anak balik bertanya sambil menunjuk salah satu gambar yang terpampang di tembok restoran.

“2 Dollar.” Jawab si pelayan dengan ramah. Anak itu kemudian memasukkan tangannya ke dalam saku dan mengeluarkan beberapa keping uang receh dan menghitungnya. “Kalau es krimnya tanpa strawberry dan coklat berapa?”. “1 Dollar.” jawab pelayan itu dengan sedikit aneh.

Anak itu kemudian memasukkan tangannya ke saku yang lain, dia mengeluarkan recehan lagi, dan mulai menghitungnya. “Kalau es krimnya tanpa strawberry dan coklat, serta cuma separuh porsi saja berapa?” “Setengah Dollar!” jawab pelayan itu agak ketus. “Baik, saya pesan itu saja.” Kata si anak lagi.

Pelayan itu segera kembali ke dapur. Beberapa saat kemudian pelayan kembali ke meja si anak sambil membawa pesanannya. Anak itu pun segera memakan es krim tersebut dengan lahap. Setelah es krim selesai dimakan, pelayan kembali menemui anak itu sambil membawa nota pembayaran.

“Semua setengah dollar.” Kata pelayan sambil menyodorkan nota kepada si anak. Si anak lalu mengeluarkan semua uang receh miliknya dan memberikannya pada pelayan. “Ini setengah dollar.” Katanya. Kemudian, tangan anak itu merogoh saku belakangnya dan mengeluarkan selembar uang 10 Dollar. “Dan ini tips untuk kamu.” Kata anak itu sambil menyerahkan 10 dollar itu.

(author unknown – ditulis ulang dan diterjemahkan dari buku “Six Great Lesson” oleh Mary Jane)

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Memang, kadang manusia hanya melihat sesuatu dari luarnya. Bahkan saya sendiri pun sering mengalami hal itu. Kesibukan dan keruwetan kejadian sehari hari bisa membuat seseorang lupa untuk ‘melihat lebih dalam’ orang-orang di sekitarnya. Sangat wajar jika terkadang seseorang yang sudah pakai Jas mulai menganggap remeh orang-orang yang hanya menggunakan T-Shirt.

Tapi cerita di atas mengingatkan saya lagi, dan mungkin Anda... bahwa sesuatu yang berharga kadang muncul dari hal-hal yang biasa-biasa saja. Rejeki bisa datang dari arah yang tak terduga, bahwa mata manusia kadang terlalu sempit untuk dapat melihat spektrum kepribadian seseorang. Seperti halnya hujan yang tetap bisa turun saat matahari bersinar terik....

(ceritainspirasi.net)