A day can start off terribly but the ending is ultimately in our hands

12/4/10

A day can start off terribly but the ending is ultimately in our hands. Those that know me would say I’m positive to the point of being delusional. I’m always the master of myself and I try not to let outside factors dictate my feelings. Today was different. I don’t know if mercury was in retrograde or if I woke up on the wrong side of the bed but I had “One Of Those Days”. I guess that means I’m not impervious to the perils of life. But then again, how do you think you would feel if you just ruined the engine of the car of one of your family members? Yep, it was a bad start. When the mechanic said it wasn’t worth fixing the tone of the day was set.

When days like this try to bring me down I try to remember where I was sitting one year ago. It’s usually enough to bring me out of the funk. Luckily I also had some good friends remind me just who I am. Moping around is unbecoming of me and it doesn’t solve a thing. So I’m off my butt and I’m writing this blog. When I finish, I will begin writing a speech I’ve got to give on Wednesday.
I’m suddenly inspired to add a new section to my blog today. I don’t know why I didn’t think of it before. Since this organization is all about promoting literacy I will also start writing about whichever book I’m reading at that moment. Since don’t have a book today, I will write a list of ten must read books.

Siddartha ~ by Herman Hesse
The Alchemist ~ by Paul Cohelo
The Prince ~ by Niccolo Machiavelli
A Confederacy of Dunces ~ by John Kennedy Toole
Three Cups of Tea ~ by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin
Night ~ by Ellie Wiesel
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance ~ by Robert Persig
The Biography of Malcom X ~ by Malcom X
Crime and Punishment ~ by Fyodor Dostoyefsky
The Count of Monte Christo ~ by Alexander Dumas

Some of these books are very short. Some of them are very long. They will open your mind. They will show you a side of life you have never seen before. Some will make you laugh. Others will surely make you cry. If a book does any of these things; if it touches your heart; it is a good book. There is power in these words.

After thinking about the books above, I’m back on track and focused on my goal.