Choices! What are yours?

"The really positive people wake up each morning deciding to love the world, even as they are fully conscious of their own and other people's sufferings"
--- Mark Van Valkenburg

"Bill Genovese is one of those, who despite his own troubles, chose a courageous and constructive life.

As a teen. He coped with the devastating and senseless murder of his older sister. In 1964, 28 year old Kitty Genovese was sexually assaulted and repeatedly stabbed by a man in her Queens, NY neighborhood. While she was being brutally attacked neighbors, who heard the screams but either did not understand the gravity of the situation or did not want to get involved, did nothing.

Bill Genovese struggled with his anger. Two years later he joined the Army and went to Vietnam. There both his legs were destroyed by an explosion and had to be amputated.

He was 19 years old.

Bill had a choice to make at that point and he could have understandably given into his anger and resentment and despair. Who would have faulted him given all he had experienced in his 19 short years on this earth?

Bill determined "not to sit on the sidelines of life".

He chose to love and live and forgive!

"He is grateful for the Blessings God gave him like meeting and marrying his wife Dale, a nurse, having three children, a home, a job, his Faith and eventually grandchildren."

He chose to love.

How different from Bill's are your circumstances today? Your challenges? Your struggles? Your first thoughts as you awake to take on the day?

We have a choice - and not just daily- hour to hour - minute to minute - to change our minds and CHOOSE happiness - CHOOSE joy - CHOOSE peace, CHOOSE to love and live and help and forgive!

No formal applications are needed - just accept it in your heart and minds and it will set you (us) on a path to joy and peace!

Stay Strong - and take time today to really reflect and remember all of your blessings as they often become buried in our perceived daily struggles!!

"I thank my stars every day of my life that I learned it is not money that makes you happy, but rather what kind of life you live. Real richness comes not from dollars, but with "sense".
- Eartha Kitt

(Story partially adapted from the Christopher News Letter)