Overfed but Undernourished (Part 2)

Spiritually speaking, we too are living in the midst of plenty but dying of starvation. Books, writings, magazines on religious subjects, other reading matters, including CDs, are easily accessible to everyone nowadays.

But are you still subsisting on junk food — novels, pulp magazines and other literally garbage that do not contribute to your mental and spiritual growth and development?
The irony of it all is that one can live on the midst on plenty and yet die of starvation. It is possible to work in a library for a whole lifetime, issuing cards, lending books to borrowers, accessioning new acquisitions, without reading a single page of the rich treasure reposing in that library.

By the same token, it is possible to be employed in a publishing house or other sister institutions — from apprenticeship up to the time of retirement — without reading a single chapter of the truth filled literature published. Thus we can die of spiritual hunger in such a place, just as it is possible to die of thirst while floating on the vast Pacific Ocean.
There are some high-powered bulbs which cast a shadow directly under them, so much so that you can read under them with the greatest difficulty due to poor illumination. It must be the height of irony to work for an institution or higher office of an organisation and still grope in darkness while doing so, as far as the beliefs of that organisation are concerned!
 

The Anxiety Disease

One of the most prevalent diseases afflicting mankind today is anxiety. Almost every one is suffering from this malady; men, women, and even children. Some children now are suffering from hypertension or heart disease.

The symptoms of anxiety are these: difficulty in getting breath or over breathing; skipping or racing of the heart; sensation of rubbery or “jelly legs;” bouts of excessive sweating; smothering or chocking sensation or numbness in some parts of the body; feeling that surroundings are strange, unreal, foggy or detached; difficulty in falling asleep; and avoiding situations because they frighten you.

Are you worried that you will not have enough to eat and that you may starve to death? Actually, one of the biggest problems in nutrition today is obesity. People have too much to eat! Watch our young people; they keep on munching junk foods from sunrise to sunset! Are you worried about what to wear? In tropical countries, where winters are unknown, clothes should be the last cause of worry among the people. The closets of many people are bursting at the seams due to many garments.

By all means, we should be concerned and be industrious and diligent to provide for the needs of our families. But we should never be worried, for worry like a rocking chair-it gives you something to do but it never takes you anywhere.

Someone whom I love said; “do not worry about tomorrow, let tomorrow worry about itself, each day already has enough trouble of its own.” Also according to St. Peter, “Put all your burdens on God for He cares for you.”To me, this is enough reason why I sleep soundly at night.



The Message of Flowers

Like music, the language of the soul, flowers speak volumes, especially when we share them with others. Their silent communication is sometimes more eloquent than our articulate speech. What, then, are some of the things which flowers may say?

• Three red roses given by a young man to his ladylove whisper “I Love You.”
   
• A corsage given during a birthday, wedding anniversary, graduation, or any other event, declares to the celebrant, “Congratulations! Manny happy returns of the day.”
   
• A brunch of beautifully arranged flowers shared with a sick loved one or friend either in hospital or at home, says “I’m missing you. Please get well soon.”
   
• A wreath sent to a grieving soul during bereavement affirms, “You are not alone in your grief. You are always in our thoughts.”

All around us, God gave us evidences that He loves us –they’re there for you to enjoy, free of charge!

Coping with Stress

It is a basic and elemental fact of the body-mind relationship that while positive thoughts promote health, negative attitudes tend to invite disease. Sympathy, peace, courage, hope, faith, appreciation, happiness, contentment, gratitude, forgiveness ─ these create a condition that is most favourable for the development of a vibrant health.

On the other side of the ledger, selfishness, hatred, anger, resentment, fear, anxiety, distrust, rebellion, grief, jealousy, discontent, remorse, frustration, depression, gloom, worry ─these sap your body’s vital forces, break down its defenses, and create a condition which is most conducive for the inroad of disease.

Don’t become easily disturbed, for instance, by what you hear people say against you. In fact sometimes criticism is a disguised compliment. Remember that people throw stones only at mango trees that are bearing fruits. What should worry you more is when people think you are not worth criticizing at all. That means you are not bearing any fruits worth throwing stones at!

Stress, if not handled properly, will only bring you angina, coronary hearty disease, palpitations, elevated blood cholesterol levels, high blood pressure, asthma, indigestion, peptic ulcer, colitis, so, when unfounded criticism is hurled at you, let if flow beautifully down your back as water flows on a duck’s back.

How about worry? Elizabeth Cheney put it rather facetiously in her “Overheard in an Orchard” when she wrote:
 

“Said the Robin to the Sparrow,
‘I should really like to know
Why these anxious human beings
Rush about and worry so,’
Said the Sparrow to the Robin,
‘Friend, I think that must be
That they have no Heavenly Father
Such as cares for you and me’”