Always avoid "if only"

"Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do"
John Wooden- Legendary UCLA basketball coach

Strength, true strength

"Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will." ~ Mahatma Gandhi
Thanks Paul Raats

Love

Our ideal should not be to "fall in love" but rather "stand in love". Love and happiness are not heedless freefalls that just happen when gravity is on our side

Christopher Peterson - A Primer in Positive Psychology

Love and Happiness take work and direction, but they are worth the effort. give it try work at it, see what happens

Greg Sampson

Give Everything

Regardless of the game you are playing, never leave to field thinking "I could have done more, I could have given more". Given everything you have everytime you play. Life is a game, give it everything you have, everytime.

Greg Sampson

Always Finish

"To win the race, you must finish the race"

"No race has ever been won in the first corner; but many have been lost there"

Garth Stein from The Art of Racing in the RainPublish Post

Why "Crossing Bridges on Fast Horses"?

This blog is a called “Crossing bridges on fast horses” because this could be an allegory for life.

Crossing bridges on a fast horse can be scary, dangerous, thrilling, exhilarating, rewarding, out of control, or just plain fun, so is life. You may want to close your eyes on that horse on the bridge, but then you would miss the fun and the thrill of the ride. You may think of stopping the horse half way because you are scared or seemingly out of control, but you still have to get across eventually. Is going back really an option? You may not even want to start across the bridge because you are not sure you will make it, but hell why not, who knows how great it will be on the other side? For me this is just like life, so “Crossing Bridges on Fast Horses” seems to fit.

This blog gives you quotes and stories to help cope with life on a day to day ( maybe even moment to moment) basis, so you get across that bridge, enjoy the ride and find out what is on the other side, and then maybe find another bridge and another bridge and another bridge, to cross.

The quotes and stories are from many sources and take many forms, some inspirational, some funny, some irreverent, most practical and real, but they are there to help get over those bridges

Look Forward

"All the king's horses and all the king's men can't put the past together again."
Dale Carnegie

You can't cross the bridge by looking backwards

Not Just you

"The main ingredient of stardom is the rest of the team."
John Wooden

You need your horse to get across the bridge, you can't do it alone

Try New Things

"Never be afraid to try something new. Remember that amateurs built the ark. Professionals built the Titanic."
Anon

The Mule in the Well

This parable is told of a farmer who owned an old mule. The mule fell into the farmer's well. The farmer heard the mule praying or whatever mules do when they fall into wells. After carefully assessing the situation, the farmer sympathized with the mule, but decided that neither the mule nor the well was worth the trouble of saving. Instead, he called his neighbors together, told them what had happened, and enlisted them to help haul dirt to bury the old mule in the well and put him out of his misery.

Initially the old mule was hysterical! But as the farmer and his neighbors continued shoveling and the dirt hit his back, a thought struck him. It suddenly dawned on him that every time a shovel load of dirt landed on his back, HE WOULD SHAKE IT OFF AND STEP UP!

This he did, blow after blow. "Shake it off and step up...shake it off and step up...shake it off and step up!" He repeated to encourage himself. No matter how painful the blows, or how distressing the situation seemed, the old mule fought panic and just kept right on SHAKING IT OFF AND STEPPING UP!

It wasn't long before the old mule, battered and exhausted, stepped triumphantly over the wall of that well! What seemed like it would bury him actually helped him . . . all because of the manner in which he handled his adversity.

THAT'S LIFE! If we face our problems and respond to them positively, and refuse to give in to panic, bitterness, or self-pity.

THE ADVERSITIES THAT COME ALONG TO BURY US USUALLY HAVE WITHIN THEM THE VERY REAL POTENTIAL TO BENEFIT US!

Don't Quit

"Never give up, never surrender"
Galaxy Quest

The Only Time that Matters

"Right here, right now"
Fatboy Slim

Listen Carefully

"Well darkness has a hunger that's insatiable
And lightness has a call that's hard to hear"
Indigo Girls

So if it all seems dark you may have listen even more closely for the lightness, even when it is too dark to see your way you can still hear

Persistence

"Nothing in the world can take the place of Persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan 'Press On' has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race."

Calvin Coolidge