~THINGS~

~I Have Learned~

  • I've learned that no matter how much I care, some people just don't care back.

  • I've learned that it takes years to build up trust, and only seconds to destroy it.

  • I've learned that it's not what you have in your life but who you have in your life that counts.

  • I've learned that you shouldn't compare yourself to the best others can do but to the best you can do.

  • I've learned that it's not what happens to people that's important. It's what they do about it.

  • I've learned that you can do something in an instant that will give you heartache for life.

  • I've learned that no matter how thin you slice it, there are always two sides.

  • I've learned that it's taking me a long time to become the person I want to be.

  • I've learned that it's a lot easier to react than it is to think.

  • I've learned that you should always leave loved ones with loving words. It may be the last time you see them.

  • I've learned that you can keep going long after you think you can't.

  • I've learned that we are responsible for what we do, no matter how we feel.

  • I've learned that either you control your attitude or it controls you.

  • I've learned that learning to forgive takes practice.

  • I've learned that my best friend and I can do anything or nothing and have the best time.

  • I've learned that sometimes the people you expect to kick you when you're down will be the ones to help you get back up.

  • I've learned that sometimes when I'm angry I have the right to be angry, but that doesn't give me the right to be cruel.

  • I've learned that true friendship continues to grow, even over the longest distance.

  • I've learned that no matter how good a friend is, they're going to hurt you every once in a while and you must forgive them for that.

  • I've learned that it isn't always enough to be forgiven by others. Sometimes you have to learn to forgive yourself.

  • I've learned that our background and circumstances may have influenced who we are, but we are responsible for who we become.

  • I've learned that sometimes when my friends fight, I'm forced to choose sides even when I don't want to.

  • I've learned that we don't have to change friends if we understand that friends change.

  • I've learned that you shouldn't be so eager to find out a secret. It could change your life forever.

  • I've learned that two people can look at the exact same thing and see something totally different.

  • I've learned that no matter the consequences, those who are honest with themselves get farther in life.

  • I've learned that your life can be changed in a matter of hours by people who don't even know you.

  • I've learned that even when you think you have no more to give, when a friend cries out to you, you will find the strength to help.

  • I've learned that the people you care most about in life are taken from you too soon.

  • I've learned that it's hard to determine where to draw the line between being nice and not hurting people's feelings and standing up for what you believe.

    • Author Unknown

    ~A Dog Looking For His Master~

    I found your dog today. No he has not been adopted by anyone.

    Most of us who live out here own as many dogs as we want, those who do not own dogs do so because they choose not to.

    I know you hoped he would find a good home when you left him out here, but he did not.

    When I first saw him he was miles from the nearest house and he was alone, thirsty, thin and limping from a cactus burr in his paw.

    How I wish I could have been you as I stood before him. To have seen his tail wag and his eyes brighten as he bounded into your arms, knowing you would find him, knowing you had not forgotten him.

    To see the forgiveness in his eyes for the suffering and pain he had known in his never-ending quest to find you...But I was not you.

    And despite all my persuasion, his eyes beheld a stranger. He did not trust, he would not come.

    He turned and continued his journey; one he was sure would soon bring him to you.

    He does not understand you are not looking for him. He only knows you are not there, he only knows he must find you.

    This is more important than food or water or the stranger who can give him these things.

    Persuasion and pursuit seemed futile; I did not even know his name.

    I drove home, filled a bucket with water and a bowl with food and returned to where we had met.

    I could see no sign of him, but I left my offering under the tree where he had sought shelter from the sun and a chance to rest.

    You see, he is not of the desert.

    When you domesticated him, you took away any instinct of survival out here.

    His purpose demands that he travel during the day.

    He doesn't know that the sun and heat will claim his life. He only knows he has to find you.

    I waited hoping he would return to the tree, hoping my gift would build an element of trust so I might bring him home, remove the burr from his paw, give him a cool place to lie and help him understand that the part of his life with you is now over.

    He did not return that morning and at dusk the water and food were still there untouched.

    And I worried. You must understand that many people would not attempt to help your dog.

    Some would run him off, others would call the county and the fate you thought you saved him from would be preempted by his suffering from days without food and water.

    I returned again before dark. I did not see him. I went again early the next morning only to find the food and water still untouched.

    If only you were here so you could call his name.

    Your voice is so familiar to him. I began pursuit in the direction he had taken yesterday, doubt overshadowing my hope of finding him.

    His search for you was desperate, it could take him many miles in 24 hours.

    It is hours later and a good distance from where we first met, but I have found your dog.

    His thirst has been stopped, it is no longer a torment to him. His hunger has disappeared, he no longer aches. The burrs in his paws bother him no more.

    Your dog has been set free from his burdens, you see, your dog has died.

    I kneel next to him and I curse you for not being here yesterday so I could have seen the glow, if just for a moment, in those now vacant eyes.

    I pray that his journey has taken him to that place I think you hoped he would find.

    If only you knew what he went through to reach it.... and I agonize, for I know, that were he to awaken at this moment, and

    I were to be you, his eyes would sparkle with recognition and his tail wag with forgiveness.

    -Author Unknown-

    ~I Am Famous Now~

    I was born today, one of 10. My daddy was very famous.

    I have lots of half brothers and sisters. My mother is very famous.

    Since she got famous, she has only had puppies. No more loving hands, nor more fun trips... just puppies.

    She is always sad when they leave her.

    I left home today. I didn't want to go, so I hid behind my mama and my three littermates that were left. I didn't like you.

    But one day, they said I would be famous. I wonder, is famous the same as fun and good times?

    So you picked me up and carried me away, even though you were concerned about me hiding from you. I don't think you liked me.

    My new home is far away. I am scared and afraid. My heart says be brave, my ancestors were.

    Did they go to good homes like mine?

    I'm hungry because I can't eat too much because it will be bad for my bones.

    I can't bite or snap when the children are mean to me.

    I just run and play and pretend that I am in a big green field with butterflies and robins and frogs.

    I can't understand why they kick me.

    I am quiet, but the man hits and says loud things.

    The lady doesn't feed me good things like I had with my mother.

    She just throws dry food on the ground, then goes away before I can get too close for touching and petting. Sometimes my food smells bad, but I eat it anyway.

    Today I had 10 puppies. They are so wonderful and warm. Am I famous now?

    I wish I could play with them, but they are so tiny.

    I am so young and playful that it is hard to lay here in this hole under the house nursing my puppies.

    They are crying now. I am so hungry.

    I scratch and worry my fur. I wish someone would throw me some food.

    I am also very thirsty. I now have eight.

    Two got cold during the night and I couldn't make them warm again.

    They are gone. We are all very weak. Maybe if I take them out on the porch, we can get some food.

    Today they took us away.

    It was too much trouble to feed us and so someone came to take us away.

    Someone grabbed my puppies, they were crying and whimpering.

    We were put in a truck with boxes in it.

    Are my babies famous now?

    I hope so, because I will miss them. They are gone.

    The place smelled of urine, fear and sickness. Why was I here?

    I was beautiful like my ancestors. Now I am hungry, dirty, in pain, and unwanted.

    Maybe the worse is unwanted. No one came though I tried to be good.

    Today someone came. They put a rope on my neck and led me to a room that was very clean and had a shiny table.

    They put me on the table. Someone held me and hugged me. It felt so good!!!

    Then I felt tired and laid over the last one who cared.

    I Am Famous Now. Today someone cared.

    Anonymous

    ~Pit Bulls Don't Cry~

    I see the children in the lane
    They look like friends, we'll have a game
    They've got a stick, oh boy, what fun
    They'll throw it for me and I'll run
    But someone stops me, I wonder whyTheir mother screams "Don't go near those" Horrid Dogs, come here, come close
    They're dangerous-I'll tell you why
    They bite little children and they die
    All I can do is watch and sigh
    Cause now I know that Pit Bull's don't cry

    Mum cuddles me up and says "My pet
    We love you dearly so don't you fret"
    But I love everyone out there
    Why can't they love me, I do care
    I wish they weren't made to pass me by
    I'm a Pit Bull, I don't cry

    I sit behind my padlocked gate
    From early morn til quite late
    When I go out it's on a lead
    Is mine the only heart to bleed
    I'm held in check as the world goes by
    I wish the Pit Bull heart could cry

    There are some dogs, and also men
    Who cannot tell a foe from a friend
    So all of us must bear the blame
    Expected to live a life of shame
    Condemned, alas and we know not why

    All we know is we will not cry!

    ~Author Unknown~

    ~Who Am I To You~

    As a pup I dreamed and wondered
    What life would hold in store
    For ME, I thought, there's something great
    Beyond that kennel door.

    Out there are needy people
    And I have much to give.
    Love and wit and gentleness
    To help them to live.

    I'd be someone's protector,
    Keep little ones from harm
    Or guide an old man's footsteps
    Or help to run a farm.

    I'd run and jump and bark and play
    With friends along a sandy shore.
    I'd roll in meadows thick and green
    That lie beyond that kennel door.

    I lay here waiting----- longing
    As the days and years went by.
    My owner kept me fed and brushed
    But inside, let me die.

    I do not think of greatness now,
    I'm old and filled with pain.
    My owner has some ribbons
    But I have lived in vain.

    I cannot think what might have been
    My dreams are filled with hope no more.
    Just floor and walls and broken heart
    For me behind this kennel door.

    by M. Kimmer

    ~A Friend Is A Treasure~

    A friend is someone we turn to
    When our spirits need a lift,

    A friend is someone we treasure
    For our friendship is a gift,

    A friend is someone who fills our lives
    With beauty, joy and grace
    And makes the world we live in
    A better and happier place.

    ~ Truisms ~

    If at first you don't succeed, destroy all evidence that you tried.

    A conclusion is the place where you got tired of thinking.

    Experience is something you don't get until just after you need it.

    For every action, there is an equal and opposite criticism.

    He who hesitates is probably right.

    Never do card tricks for the group you play poker with.

    No one is listening until you make a mistake.

    Success always occurs in private, and failure in full view.

    To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is research.

    Two wrongs are only the beginning.

    The problem with the gene pool is that there is no lifeguard.

    A clear conscience is usually the sign of a bad memory.

    Hard work pays off in the future. Laziness pays off now.

    Eagles may soar on high, but rats aren't sucked into jet engines.

    Half the people you know are below average.

    I used to have an open mind but my brains kept falling out.

    ~How Many Titles Does Your Dog Have?~

    AD = Attention Deficit
    ARB = Ace Refrigerator Bandit
    BW = Butt Wagger
    BWX = Butt Wagger Excellent
    CC = Cat Courser
    CCX = Cat Courser Excellent
    CP = Couch Potato
    CPX = Couch Potato Excellent
    CSX = Counter Surfer Extrordanaire
    GFIY = Go Fetch It Yourself
    HHP = House Hold Pet
    IDDI = I Didn't Do It
    ILF = I Like Food
    LLLF = I Like Lots Of Food
    IWFF = I Work For Food
    LD = Lap Dog
    LDX = Lap Dog Excellent
    OWTH = Oh, What The Heck
    TBF = Thick But Friendly
    TGS = Terribly Good Snorer
    TGAN = Terribly Good At Nothing
    TSIM = That Seat Is Mine
    TTIM = That Toy Is Mine
    UTCD = Under The Covers Dog
    UTCDX = Under The Covers Dog Excellent
    WM = Who Me?

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