Forget-me-Not's Posts

Where is Karenina ? Have you heard from her ?

Posted by Forget-me-Not on November 8, 2010

Dear EC friends and members,I have hesitated a bit before writting this post, but as I am the kind of person who wish to understand everything, i decided to ask you all if you know what happened to Karenina. She was extremely active here on EC and since a few days I saw nothing from her...no new posts on her blog and no little words from her in my mailbox.I checked for her page and it seems it has dissapeared... So my question is, what happened to her. I would be VERY happy if someone could answer this question.Thanks in Advance...Manuela

Gently with the flow

Posted by Forget-me-Not on November 7, 2010

If the sky above seems cloudy, and you are left out in the rain,If you are searching for a rainbow, but the colors bring you pain,If your world is not revolving, and there is no end in sight,If you are looking for the sunshine, but all you see is night,If all around are smiling, but all you can do is frown,If you are tired of all this living, when life just brings you down,Then look beyond your teardrops, at the wonders of this land,The beauty of a flower, like velvet in your hand.Feel the air around you, the smell of new mown hay,Laughing children in the park, the innocence there at play,Imagine floating with a butterfly, as she flutters between the trees,Or the whispers of the ocean, on warm hot summer's breeze,Think of the taste of candy floss, as it melts upon your tongue,Or the melody of morning birds, as they greet each day with song,Remember words of beauty, told in your mother's embrace,Feel the gentleness of her touch, as she softly kissed your face,Seek the good within you, cast the clouds from your sky,Don't look toward the pavement, but hold your head up high,Think not what life owes you, but of all you have to give,Forget about tomorrow, then you can start to live.So bless this age you are living in, with the gifts you can bestow,Don't disregard the stream of life,Go gently with the flow.Shawnee Kellie

How to Squash Negative Thought Patterns

Posted by Forget-me-Not on November 6, 2010

Suppose you have the bad habit of dwelling too much on the same negative thoughts. And suppose there’s no outward physical manifestation associated to them. It’s just negative thinking, like “I’m so depressed” or “I hate my job” or “I can’t do this” or “I hate being fat.” How do you break a bad habit when it’s entirely in your mind?There are actually quite a number of ways to decondition a negative thought pattern. The basic idea is to replace the old pattern with a new one. Mentally resisting the negative thought will usually backfire — you’ll simply reinforce it and make it even worse. The more you fire those neurons in the same way, the stronger the pattern becomes.Here’s a little method I use to break negative thought patterns. It’s basically something I conconcted from a combination of the swish pattern from NLP and a memory technique known as chaining. I usually find the swish pattern alone to be weak and ineffective, but this method works very well for me.Instead of trying to resist the negative thought pattern, you will redirect it. Think of it like mental kung fu. Take the energy of the negative thought and rechannel it into a positive thought. With a little mental conditioning, whenever the negative thought occurs, your mind will automatically flow into the linked positive thought. It’s similar to Pavlov’s dogs learning to salivate when the bell rang.Here’s how it works:Let’s assume your negative thought is a subvocalization, meaning that it’s like you hear a voice in your head that says something you want to change, like, “I’m an idiot.” If the negative thought is visual (a mental image) or kinesthetic (a gut feeling), you can use a similar process. In many cases the thought will manifest as a combination of all three (visual, auditory, and kinesthetic).Step 1: Turn the negative thought into a mental image.Take that little voice, and turn it into a corresponding mental picture. For example, if your thought is, “I’m an idiot,” imagine yourself wearing a dunce cap, dressed very foolishly, and jumping around like a dork. See yourself surrounded by other people all pointing at you while you shout, “I’m an idiot.” The more you exaggerate the scene, the better. Imagine bright colors, lots of animation, rapid movement, and even sexual imagery if it helps you remember. Rehearse this scene over and over in your mind until you reach the point where thinking the negative thought automatically brings up this goofy imagery.If you have trouble visualizing, you can also do the above in an auditory fashion. Translate the negative thought into a sound, such as a jingle that you sing. Go through the same process with sound instead of imagery. It works either way. I happen to prefer the visual method though.Step 2: Select an empowering replacement thought.Now decide what thought you’d like to have instead of the negative one. So if you’ve been thinking, “I’m an idiot,” maybe you’d like to replace that with “I’m brilliant.” Choose a thought that empowers you in a way that disrupts the disempowering effect of the original negative thought.Step 3: Turn the positive thought into a mental image.Now go through the same process you used in Step 1 to create a new mental scene from the positive thought. So with the example “I’m brilliant,” you might imagine yourself standing tall, posing like Superman with your hands on your hips. Picture a giant light bulb appearing just above your head. The bulb turns on so bright that it’s blinding, and you see yourself yelling, “I’m bbbbbrrrrilllllllliannnntttt!” Again, keep rehearsing this scene until merely thinking the positive line automatically brings up the associated imagery.Step 4: Mentally chain the two images together.Now take the images in Step 1 and Step 3, and mentally glue them together. This trick is used in memory techniques like chaining or pegging. You want to morph the first scene into the second scene. The NLP swish pattern would have you do a straight cut from one scene to the next, but I recommend you animate the first scene into the second. A cut is very weak glue and often won’t stick. So instead pretend you’re the director of a movie. You have the opening scene and the closing scene, and you have to fill in the middle. But you only have a few seconds of film left, so you want to find a way to make the transition happen as quickly as possible.For example, one of the hecklers in the first scene might throw a light bulb at the idiot version of you. The idiot you catches the bulb and screws it into the top of his head, wincing at the pain. The bulb then grows into a giant bulb and turns on so bright it blinds all the hecklers. You rip off your dorky clothing to reveal a shining white robe beneath it. You stand tall like Superman and yell confidently, “I’m bbbbbrrrrilllllllliannnntttt!” The hecklers fall to their knees and begin worshipping you. Again, the more exaggeration you use, the better. Exaggeration makes it easier to remember the scene because our brains are designed to remember the unusual.Once you have the whole scene worked out, mentally rehearse it for speed. Replay the whole scene over and over until you can imagine it from beginning to end in under 2 seconds, ideally in under 1 second. It should be lightning fast, much faster than you’d see in the real world.Step 5: Test.Now you need to test your mental redirect to see if it works. It’s a lot like an HTML redirect — when you input the old negative URL, your mind should automatically redirect you to the positive one. Merely thinking the negative thought should rapidly bring up the positive thought. If you’ve done this correctly, you won’t be able to help it. The negative thought is the stimulus that causes your mind to run the whole pattern automatically. So whenever you happen to think, “I’m an idiot,” even without being fully aware of it, you end up thinking, “I’m brilliant.”If you’ve never done visualizations like this before, it may take you several minutes or longer to go through this whole process. Speed comes with practice. The whole thing can literally be done in seconds once you get used to it. Don’t let the slowness of the first time through discourage you. This is a learnable skill like any other, and it probably will feel a bit awkward the first time.I recommend you experiment with different types of imagery. You’ll likely find some variations more effective than others. Pay particular attention to association vs. dissociation. When you’re associated in a scene, you’re imagining seeing it through your own eyes (i.e. first-person perspective). When you’re dissociated you’re imagining seeing yourself in the scene (i.e. third-person perspective). I usually get the best results when I dissociate in both scenes. Your results may vary. You may have to do some mental camera work if you switch from dissociated to associated or vice versa, but it can be done with practice.I did a lot of this type of mental conditioning during the early 90s. Whenever I uncovered a negative thought, I plucked it out and redirected it. Within a few days, I had reprogrammed dozens of negative thought patterns, and pretty soon it became hard for my mind to even produce a negative thought or emotion. Everything kept getting redirected to the positive side. I think that’s partly why I felt so confident about starting my own business right out of college — I used mental conditioning to redirect the thoughts of self-doubt to a more can-do mindset. I also used this a lot while in college, and I’m sure it helped me graduate faster than normal. I still had to deal with plenty of real-world challenges, but at least I wasn’t battling my own self-doubt at the same time.This type of mental conditioning gave me a lot more conscious control over my internal states. Today it’s so internalized that I just do it automatically without even thinking about it. My subconscious took over at some point, so whenever I have a thought like “I can’t,” it automatically gets twisted into “How can I?” That’s actually supposed to happen – with enough mental conditioning practice, your subconscious will take over. Memory experts similarly report that with practice, techniques like pegging and chaining are taken over by the subconscious, just like riding a bicycle.Give this process a try the next time you notice yourself dwelling on a negative thought. I think you’ll find it very empowering. And feel free to share it with others who could use a mental pick-me-up.by Steve Pavlinahttp://www.stevepavlina.com

I have nothing else to offer...

Posted by Forget-me-Not on October 30, 2010

No strings attachedI've nothing else to offer,So, to you, it's love I'll send,It's nothing that I borrowed,And it's nothing that I'd lend.It has no dollar value,And it can't be overused;It isn't fragile, so it can't break,Though, often it's abused.I've given it to others,But each time it's unique,Its meaning's always different;It depends on what you seek...Author unknow.

The crackpot story… a touching story for all my friends

Posted by Forget-me-Not on August 16, 2010

An elderly chinese woman had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a pole which she carried accross her neck.One of the pot had a crack in it while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion od water.At the end of the long walk from the steam to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full.For a full two years, this went on daily, with the woman bringing home only one and a half pot of water. Of course the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments but the poorcracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfections and miserable that it could only do half of what it had been made to do.After two years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, it spoke to the woman one day by the steam.“I am ashamed of myself, because the crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your house”The old woman smiled : “Did you notice that there are flowers on your side of the path, but not on the other pot’s side ? That’s because i have always known your flaw, so i planted flowers seeds on your side of the path and every day while we walk back home, you water them. For two years i have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table.Without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace the house.”Each of us has our own unique flaw...But its the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives together so very interesting and rewarding.You just got to take each person for what they are and look for the good in them.To all my “crackpot” friends, have a great day and remember to smell the flowers on your side of the path.

Who I was born to be

Posted by Forget-me-Not on August 14, 2010

Amazing song ... The lyrics really talk to me and the voice and music take me to heaven...When I was a childI could see the wind in the treesAnd I heard a song in the breezeIt was there, singing out my nameBut I am not a girlI have known the taste of defeatAnd I've finally grown to believeIt will all came around againAnd though I may not know the answersI can finally say I am freeAnd if the questions led me hereThen I am who I was born to beAnd so here am IOpen arms and ready to standI've got the world in my handsAnd it feels like my turn to flyThough I may not know the answersI can finally say I am freeAnd if the questions led me hereThen I am who I was born to beWhen I was a childThere were flowers that bloomed in the nightUnafraid to take in the lightUnashamed to have braved the darkThough I may not know the answersI can finally say I am freeAnd if the questions led me hereThen I am who I was born to beI am who I was born to beSung by Susan Boyle.Photo from googlethese lyrics are submitted by BURKUL

The benefits of "hugs"

Posted by Forget-me-Not on August 10, 2010

I will not play at tug o' war.I'd rather play at hug o' war,Where everyone hugsInstead of tugs,Where everyone gigglesAnd rolls on the rug,Where everyone kisses,And everyone grins,And everyone cuddles,And everyone wins."--Shel Silverstein

On the road again....

Posted by Forget-me-Not on July 8, 2010

I have departed Belgium, sails open wide to the Summer winds.If you miss me, find me in the eyes of a loved one, the smile on a stranger's face, the morning birdsongs, the last colors of the sunset, the coolness of a creek water on a hot day, or in the ripples that the wind blows through the tall prairie grasses in a golden dreamscape.Please dear friends, forgive me if it takes me a long time to answer your posts and messages, i don't have always an internet connection where i am, but i carry you all in my heart and thoughts.Peace and love to each one of you,Manuela

Thanks for your time... another touching story my 95 years old friend sent me.

Posted by Forget-me-Not on June 30, 2010

A young man learns what's most important in life from the guy next door.It had been some time since Jack had seen the old man.. College, girls,career, and life itself got in the way. In fact, Jack moved clear across thecountry in pursuit of his dreams.There, in the rush of his busy life, Jack had little time to think aboutthe past and often no time to spend with his wife and son. He was working onhis future, and nothing could stop him.Over the phone, his mother told him, "Mr. Belser died last night. Thefuneral is Wednesday." Memories flashed through his mind like an old newsreelas he sat quietly remembering his childhood days."Jack, did you hear me?""Oh, sorry, Mom. Yes, I heard you. It's been so long since I thought ofhim. I'm sorry, but I honestly thought he died years ago," Jack said."Well, he didn't forget you. Every time I saw him he'd ask how you weredoing. He'd reminisce about the many days you spent over 'his side of thefence' as he put it," Mom told him."I loved that old house he lived in," Jack said."You know, Jack, after your father died, Mr. Belser stepped in to makesure you had a man's influence in your life," she said"He's the one who taught me carpentry," he said. "I wouldn't be in thisbusiness if it weren't for him. He spent a lot of time teaching me things hethought were important...Mom, I'll be there for the funeral," Jack said.As busy as he was, he kept his word. Jack caught the next flight to hishometown. Mr. Belser's funeral was small and uneventful. He had no childrenof his own, and most of his relatives had passed away.The night before he had to return home, Jack and his Mom stopped by to seethe old house next door one more time.Standing in the doorway, Jack paused for a moment. It was like crossingover into another dimension, a leap through space and time The house wasexactly as he remembered. Every step held memories.. Every picture,every piece of furniture....Jack stopped suddenly.."What's wrong, Jack?" his Mom asked."The box is gone," he said"What box?" Mom asked."There was a small gold box that he kept locked on top of his desk. I musthave asked him a thousand times what was inside. All he'd ever tell me was'the thing I value most,'" Jack said.It was gone. Everything about the house was exactly how Jack rememberedit, except for the box. He figured someone from the Belser family had takenit."Now I'll never know what was so valuable to him," Jack said. "I betterget some sleep. I have an early flight home, Mom."It had been about two weeks since Mr. Belser died Returning home from workone day Jack discovered a note in his mailbox. "Signature required on apackage. No one at home. Please stop by the main post office within the nextthree days," the note read.Early the next day Jack retrieved the package. The small box was old andlooked like it had been mailed a hundred years ago. The handwriting wasdifficult to read, but the return address caught his attention. "Mr. HaroldBelser" it read. Jack took the box out to his car and ripped open thepackage.There inside was the gold box and an envelope. Jack's hands shook as heread the note inside."Upon my death, please forward this box and its contents to Jack Bennett.It's the thing I valued most in my life." A small key was taped to theletter. His heart racing, as tears filling his eyes, Jack carefully unlockedthe box. There inside he found a beautiful gold pocket watch.Running his fingers slowly over the finely etched casing, he unlatched thecover. Inside he found these words engraved:"Jack, Thanks for your time! -Harold Belser.""The thing he valued most was....my time"Jack held the watch for a few minutes, then called his office and clearedhis appointments for the next two days. "Why?" Janet, his assistant asked."I need some time to spend with my son," he said."Oh, by the way, Janet, thanks for your time!""Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take but by the momentsthat take our breath away,"This mail Buster sent me made me really think about a few things, and it was also a good english lesson as i had to check for many words in the dictionary.Thanks dear Buster, you have always been a fantastic friend.

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

Posted by Forget-me-Not on June 27, 2010

You have been numerous to like this photo and i have always wonder myslef, why this one more than another. Now, through your captation, i will have a clue of what it evokes to you. Thanks

Happy friendship day to all my friends around the world

Posted by Forget-me-Not on June 24, 2010

Dear friends,God knew what He was doingwhen He sent a gentle breezeand brought a beautiful butterflyto set my heart at ease.The happiness of your friendshipand the gentleness of your wordshave touched my life in a special wayand now I feel assured.Thank you for your encouragementand your thoughtfulness tooGod knew what He was doingwhen He sent me a friend like you.I may not be online often enough to always answer your messages, but i wish you to know that, all what your post on my wall or on private messages gives me a tender smile, warm my heart and nurrish my soul.Thanks to all of you for this wonderful gift.Manuela

Happy father's day to every fathers.

Posted by Forget-me-Not on June 13, 2010

What Makes a DadGod took the strength of a mountain,The majesty of a tree,The warmth of a summer sun,The calm of a quiet sea,The generous soul of nature,The comforting arm of night,The wisdom of the ages,The power of the eagle's flight,The joy of a morning in spring,The faith of a mustard seed,The patience of eternity,The depth of a family need,Then God combined these qualities,When there was nothing more to add,He knew His masterpiece was complete,And so,He called it ... DadAuthor Unknown

How to stay young. A touching mail a 95 years old friend of mine sent me 2 days ago. A great lesson of life for all of us

Posted by Forget-me-Not on June 11, 2010

Two days ago, a friend of mine who is 95 years old sent me this nice text; i don't know where he found it, but it made me smile as i know how he is still young at heart, optimistic and always joking to make people laugh.I met him when he came in Belgium and in Normandy (France) for the 50th anniversary of the World War second and he was among the american vets who landed on the beach in Normandy. He was then a young Baptist pastor who had to take care of all the dying soldiers on the beach. He saw hundreds of them and all this tragedy made of him a wonderful human being, someone who really cares about others... still now.A year ago he had a surgery for a cancer, and is now going around in a wheelchair but by sending me this email, he showed me, again, that he still has a great sense of humor.These are all the principles he has always followed in his lifeA great lesson of life for all of us...So, here is what he wrote.Throw out nonessential numbers,this includes age, weight and height.let the doctors worry about themthat is why you pay themKeep only cheerful friendsthe grouches put you downKeep learning,Learn more about computer, crafts, gardening, whatever....Never let the brain idle ! An idle mind is the devil’s workshopAnd the evil name is Alzheimer’sEnjoy the simple thingsLaugh often, long and laudLaugh until you gasp your breath.The tears happen. Endure grieve, and move on.The only person who is with us our entire life is ourselves.Be alive while you are alive.Surround yourself with what you love, whether it’s your family, pets, keepsakes, musicPlants, hobbies... whatever. Your home is your refuge.Cherish your health.If it is good, preserve it, if it is unstable, improve it.If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.Don’t take guilt trips.Take a trip to the mall, even to the next country... to a foreign country but not where the guilt is.Tell the people you love them, at every opportunity and always remember :Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, bu by the moments that take our breath away.

Writing Challenge #19: Tribute to a Friend

Posted by Forget-me-Not on May 12, 2010

“A true friend reaches for your hand and touches your heart”.~Attributed to Heather PryorMy friend : PocheHow we became friends : I met her years ago, through an ex boyfriend, when i was in the States.She is his cousin.Why we stayed friends : because it is a matter of heart feelings. Distance and years couldn’t earase what we feel for eachothers. Pola and i are closer to each other than my sisters and i.My friend’s best qualities : Funny,supportive, sensitive, cheerful, straight (frank) and she has a huge heart.Why my friend is like family. I would even say that she is more than my family to me. She is the only one who i can call at 4:00 in the morning if i feel in a deep blue and i am the one who will fly to Ohio for her in a 12 hours delay if she needs me. Our children love eachothers and they all feel at home when they are together here or in the States. Pola’s whole family became my family too and we all became close.Friendship highlight : spending (for four years) a whole month each summers, on a desert little island in the Ohio river, living as Robinson Crusoe in a little wood cabine we built, without electricity, drinking water or convenience.The last time i saw my friend (last February), we went for a long walk in a park covered by 50 centimeters of snow.My note : Dear Poche,Thanks for being the faihtful friend you are to me. No matter the distance that keeps us apart, you are always there to share the good and the bad. You make me laugh when i feel like crying and you make me move when i feel like doing nothing.You are the rational one who reminds me to keep my feet on the ground and you always lift me up when i need it. You do not hesitate to drive two hours in the heavy snow to pick me up at the airport, neither to ask me to fly over to support you at a funerals. You are my guarding angel on earth, the little clown who makes me laugh, the funny go lucky woman who likes to do crazy things with me, and the most beautiful flower in my friendship garden. Between us, it is a “receiving-giving” love story that, i am sure, will never end.I can not leave this post without writting my favorite friendship quotes, the ones that really means something to me."True friendship isn't about being there when it's convenient; it's about being there when it's not.”"Best friends are the ones who can be the farthest away but there the fastest when you call.”"I value the friend who for me finds time on his calendar, but I cherish the friend who for me does not consult his calendar". ~Robert Brault"I don't need a friend who changes when I change and who nods when I nod; my shadow does that much better". ~Plutarch"The friend is the man who knows all about you, and still likes you." ~Elbert Hubbard,"A friend accepts us as we are yet helps us to be what we should". ~Author Unknown"A true friend is someone who is there for you when he'd rather be anywhere else".~ Len Wein"A friend is someone who knows the song in your heart, and can sing it back to you when you have forgotten the words."Thanks Tara for this wonderful opportunity you gave us to write a tribute to our dearest friend.

Mother's day quotes. To all mothers in the world...

Posted by Forget-me-Not on May 9, 2010

"My mom is a neverending song in my heart of comfort, happiness, and being. I may sometimes forget the words but I always remember the tune." ~Graycie Harmon"A mother is a person who seeing there are only four pieces of pie for five people, promptly announces she never did care for pie " Tenneva Jordan“The heart of a mother is a deep abyss at the bottom of which you will always find forgiveness.” Honoré de Balzac"The mother's heart is the child's schoolroom." - Henry Ward Beecher"A mother is not a person to lean on, but a person to make leaning unnecessary." - Dorothy Canfield Fisher"Being a full-time mother is one of the highest salaried jobs... since the payment is pure love." - Mildred B. Vermont"Mother love is the fuel that enables a normal human being to do the impossible." -Marion C. Garretty"Mother is the name for god on the lips and hearts of all children". -Brandon Lee"Becoming a mother makes you the mother of all children. From now on each wounded, abandoned, frightened child is yours. You live in the suffering mothers of every race and creed and weep with them. You long to comfort all who are desolate." - Charlotte Gray"Mothers hold their children's hands for a short while, but their hearts forever." ~Author Unknown"Making the decision to have a child is momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body". ~Elizabeth Stone

Never stop to believe....

Posted by Forget-me-Not on May 2, 2010

To believe is to knowthat every day is a new beginning.It is to trust that miracles happen,and dreams really do come true.To believe is to see angels dancing among the clouds,to know the wonder of a stardust sky,and the wisdom of the man in the moon.To believe is to know the value of a nurturing heart,the innocence of a child's eyes,and the beauty of an aging hand;for it is through their teachings we learn to love.To believe is to find the strength and couragethat lies within us when it is timeto pick up the pieces and begin again.To believe is to know we are not alone,that life is a gift,and this is our time to cherish it.To believe is to know that wonderful surprisesare just waiting to happen,and all our hopes and dreamsare within reach..."If only we believe"~Author Unknown

Writing Challenge #18: Top ten list, of the places I'd like to see in the world.

Posted by Forget-me-Not on April 11, 2010

What a great challenge ! I don't know who organized it but i am very happy to be part of it as it gives me the opportunity to talk about my passion for travels which goes, so well, along with photography.

Here is my "top ten" list of places where i have never been and that i would like to see before i die.

Those places make me dream and my love for them comes, often, from books i read when i was a kid, documentaries i saw on television, or people i met from those countries.

So, here there are :

1.The Silk Road.

After reading a book so many years ago, it became my dream number one. From Istanbul to Shangai. As i already did the turkish part, i would start in Aleppo,Syria. Then would go to Iran, Irak, and up North to Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and the city of Samarkand where i really want to see the amazing Tamerlan monuments with their beautiful blue mosaic. Then Tajikistan, Kazakstan and finally China and its big Wall.

2. Yemen

The main reason i wish to go there is for it's incredible and unique architecture. It's also a country where traditions are still alive and where people are said to have a deep sense of hospitality. I also have a friend there.

3. Morocco

Marakech for its magic, the city of Fès, the kasbah of Telouet, the Valley of Dadès for its amazing red color, the desert cities, the delicious food, these are all the reasons i would love to go there.

4.Nepal

Firstly for its inhabitants and their culture. But also to visit the city of Katmandu and its Valley. I have read many books about this country and although is is said that this place has changed so much in the last few years, i still wish to see the city of Katmandu where so many "Peace and Love" people from the late sixties moved to. It's a myth !

5. Myamar

Because its a country that is still out of time. It has amazing natural beauties, reparian villages and beautiful temples as the Shwedagon Pagoda. Once again, and as in most asian countries, people are wonderfuly kind.

6. Cambodgia

It is said that Cambogian inhabitants are the kindness people on earth, so that could be the only reason to go there. But, i also wish to learn more about their culture and i really want to go to Angkor.

7. Laos

The country of "No stress" As this country is in the same area then Myamar and Cambodgia, it would be on my way. I would go there to see the Luang Praban which is part of the Unesco World Heritage. I am very interested by the Budhism and i would have there the opportunity to visit many temples.

8. Vietnam

Mainly for the Along Bay; for me it's a magical area, with a beautiful light, a great place to make remarkable pictures.

9. India

India always appealled me and i don't know why. Among many other things, I am fascinated by the white Taj Mahal architecture. I also have Indian friends and they are waiting for me there :)

10. Bolivia

Why Bolivia ? Because when i was a teenager i saw a wonderful movie called " the missing" which had been filmed in this country.The landscapes in the Andes are breathtaking and though people are so poor, they are always smiling. I also like the culture of the south american people and i would love to see the pre-colombian archeological site of Tiwanaku.

Whaou, this was a challenge to write all this but i had a lot of fun ! I hope you have enjoyed reading it.

“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.” – Mark Twain

Manuela

The Color of Love

Posted by Forget-me-Not on April 7, 2010

Some are black and some are white,
Some are wrong and some are right,
Some get rich and some stay poor,
Some make peace and some make war.

Some are yellow, some are brown,
Some are up and some are down,
Some go far, some fall behind,
Some are mean and some are kind.

Some are reds and some are greens,
Some stay quiet, some make scenes,
Some say yes and some say no,
Some will tell you where to go.

But underneath our different skin,
The same heart beats, deep within.
For brothers, sisters all are we,
Meant to live in harmony

By Michael Roy

What we do for others counts most in life...

Posted by Forget-me-Not on March 24, 2010

Be alert to give Service.....
What we do for others counts most in life...

Learn to understand first
and to be understood second.

Don't underestimate the power of a touch,
a smile, a kind word, a listening ear,
an honest compliment, or the smallest act of
caring ,all of which have the potential
to turn a life around....

Life ends when you stop Dreaming,
Hope ends when you stop Believing,
Love ends when you stop Caring,
Friendship ends when you stop Sharing....

Be Genuinely Interested in People.
If you try, you can like everybody, and
Everybody will like you.....

When you find a Dream inside your heart
Don't ever let it go
For Dreams are the tiny seeds from
Which beautiful Tomorrows Grow

Anonymous

Thanks for being part of my life...

Posted by Forget-me-Not on March 6, 2010

People always come into our life for a reason, a season and a lifetime. When we figure out which it is, we know exactly what to do.

When people come into our life for a SEASON, it is because our turn has come to share, grow, or learn. They may bring us an experience of peace or make us laugh. They may teach us something we have never done. They usually give us an unbelievable amount of joy. Believe it! It is real! But, only for a season. And like Spring turns to Summer and Summer to Fall, the season eventually ends.

LIFETIME, relationships teach us a lifetime of lessons; those things we must build upon in order to have a solid emotional foundation. Our job is to accept the lesson, love the person/people (anyway), and put what we have learned to use in all other relationships and areas in our life. It is said that love is blind but friendship is clairvoyant.

Author Brian A. "Drew" Chalker.