Live a life that keeps you honest with you. If you’ve done things you knew weren’t right, don’t try to kid anyone – especially yourself – by insisting it was somehow someone else’s fault. Own it.  It was your choice and your doing. 

When you do what you need to do between you and God, you leave the past behind once and for all.  It’s like cleaning out a crowded closet filled with stuff that was never meant to be hauled from house to house.  Dig in.  Unload your excess stuff by facing the truth.  Without a doubt you will make room for so much more that’s truly meaningful. 

At eleven I was an inquisitive child, but also minded my manners until, that is, one day when I was at my aunt and uncle’s and curiosity got the better of me.  On their dresser stand was a box that read (in my uncle’s handwriting), For the Brilliant Only.  When I opened it I found old coins outdated by almost a hundred years.

Uncles are sweet, but mine was the sweetest.  Knowing I had opened the box he asked what value I thought was inside.  Quickly he told me what one coin was worth, and then told me how many were inside.  In amazement I gave him the sum of it’s worth in just seconds.  Taking me up in his arms he exclaimed, “My girl, you’re exactly correct!”

Calculating what he believed the coins would be worth in about seven years, he then announced to my aunt, “Our Cindy’s going to college.  Our treat!” How lucky was I?  When I graduated from university I bought back one of those coins and put it in an envelope with a card that told them they were worth a million of these!

The wisdom I hope you take from this is that you never know how your hard work earlier in life (like learning otherwise boring multiplication tables!) can increase your life’s quality later.  And no, it’s never too late…no matter what your age.

I enjoyed sharing this and hope to reach you again soon.

The first thing that comes to mind for me about living a great life is to learn to do what needs to be done first, and then let the rest come. 

In my younger years I used to procrastinate, thinking it’s better to get the smaller jobs out of the way before tackling a big one.  Well, I didn’t get anything major done since there was always a lot of small things to keep me busy. 

In my older (wiser) years I learned the value of making a list and sticking to it.  I promised myself I would complete one project before starting another - large or small - which changed everything.  No longer did I have a home filled with half-completed projects. 

Besides getting things finally done, they were done in a timely way.  Best of all, over the years I felt better and better about myself because I finally stopped feeling guilty about what wasn’t getting done.  “No pressure living,” I call it now. Good to know you might benefit by it, too!