The Serenity Share Forum

WHY DON'T WE START A QUIET TIME?

Just five minutes every day.

We'll stop... then listen...

to the hum of the refrigerator,

the ticking of the clock,

the sound of wind outside, the rain.

People talk about listening to birds -

does anyone ever do it?

I feel so crowded by the noise

that's everywhere...

all the time...

maybe if we stop and listen

we can hear our thoughts

and get to know ourselves!

I FEEL STRESS TOO -

like everyone else, when you expect too much of me.

Look at your expectations.

I still am very little, am I ready for them?

Can you cut the list in half?

Does it really matter if I always wash my hands

or always put my toys away?

The messy room will still be there tomorrow and dirty hands

sometimes won't hurt!

Let's just sit down if we can find a place!

Look at a picture book and forget the

"shoulds"and"shouldn'ts".

Don't worry - they'll catch up with us all

soon enough!

WHILE YOU'RE BUSY WORKING...

could we talk?

We could talk about so many things.

Sometimes I feel lonely when you tell me, "Go and play".

We could talk -of what we did yesterday, of what we'll do

tomorrow.

I'd learn a lot and I'd feel included.

If you share your thoughts with me.

THE LITTLE CHILD I AM TODAY

will always be within me, sending out feelings

into my "grownup" mind.

Time and experience may seem to bury him,

but the child will be there.

If I am secure now, feel loved, and little hurts are healed,

in later years I'll feel down deep, not cries of fear and

pain, but rather... songs.

DECISIONS, DECISIONS, DECISIONS,

Are you making every single one for me?

Am I being told what I must do, not do, say and even feel?

How am I going to know how to live by myself?

This may come as a shock but remember...

you're not going to always be here!

Let me feel that I have choices.

Let me learn from those choices.

Begin now -

Which shirt should I wear...

blue or yellow?

Shall we walk to the park, or to the store?

Little decisions, help me feel

there's an "I" who can make them,

and "I" who lets you decide the big ones!

IS GOD ONLY IN STORIES...

That happened a long time ago?

Is He living a long way off?

Or is He a part of our everyday life

so I can feel He is here right now?

If you include Him in our happy times,

ask for His help in troubled times,

let Him be real,

let Him be close,

then I'll not have to search for Him

when I am grown.

IF I'M TO GROW

I cannot always say "yes"

I have to try out "no"

whether I mean it or not,

to see if I can differ,

just a bit, from you,

and still feel sure you love me.

My "no" is not just naughtiness ---

it's growth!

The Little Boy and the Old Man

Said the little boy, "Sometimes I drop my spoon."

Said the little old man, "I do that too."

The little boy whispered, "I wet my pants."

"I do that too," laughed the old man.

Said the little boy, "I often cry."

The old man nodded. "So do I."

"But worst of all," said the boy, "it seems

Grown-ups don't pay attention to me."

And he felt the warmth of a wrinkled old hand.

"I know what you mean," said the little old man.

By Shel Silverstein

Our Deepest Fear

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.

Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.

It is our Light, not our Darkness, that most frightens us.

We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous,

talented, fabulous?

Actually, who are you NOT to be?

You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the World.

There is nothing enlightening about shrinking so that other

people won't feel unsure around you.

We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.

It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone.

As we let our own Light shine; we unconsciously give other

people permission to do the same.

As we are liberated from our own fear; our presence

automatically liberates others.

By Marianne Williamson