Real Estate Information Archive

IF I WERE A CARPENTER . . . !

Picture a builder hiring a new framing carpenter to help construct his new homes. The first day on the job, the new carpenter shows up without a tool belt . . . and without any tools . . . and asks, "Where do I begin?" How much progress do you think would be made by the end of the first day?

Most of us at some point in our lives are like the unprepared carpenter. We show up, but have no tools, and haven't the slightest clue what we want to build. Within us, we have the power to build any life we choose, yet at day's end, nothing has changed.

Oh sure, we actively pursue the day-to-day activities of our chosen career, yet we don't take time to visualize the finished product - our life. Thoreau said it best: "Live the life you've imagined." Steven Covey said it this way: "Begin with the end in mind."

To "build your own world," begin by deciding what that world will be like. Next, gather the tools required to begin construction. Finally, begin practicing until you are an accomplished master.

If you want to be a renowned musician, choose an instrument, take lessons, and practice eight hours each day. If you want financial independence, determine a method, learn how others have achieved wealth, and mimic their approach and techniques.

Just remember, the world you get is the world you chose. It's an awesome responsibility - knowing that what you become is the result of the choices you have made. It's also an awesome opportunity to enjoy all the peace, contentment, freedom and riches life has to offer.

Carpe diem! Seize the day!

Small World!

The brand new pastor and his wife, newly assigned to their first ministry to reopen a church in urban Brooklyn, arrived in early October excited about their opportunities. When they saw their church, it was very run down and needed much work. They set a goal to have everything done in time to have their first service on Christmas Eve.

They worked hard, repairing pews, plastering walls, painting, etc. and on Dec. 18 were ahead of schedule and just about finished. On Dec 19 a terrible tempest - a driving rainstorm - hit the area and lasted for two days. On the 21st, the pastor went over to the church.

His heart sunk when he saw that the roof had leaked, causing a large area of plaster about 6 feet by 8 feet to fall off the front wall of the sanctuary just behind the pulpit, beginning about head high.

The pastor cleaned up the mess on the floor, and not knowing what else to do but postpone the Christmas Eve service, headed home. On the way he noticed that a local business was having a flea market type sale for charity so he stopped in.

One of the items was a beautiful, hand-made, ivory colored, crochet table cloth with exquisite work, fine colors and a cross embroidered right in the center. It was just the right size to cover up the hole in the front wall. He bought it and headed back to the church.

By this time it had started to snow. An older woman running from the opposite direction was trying to catch the bus. She missed it. The pastor invited her to wait in the warm church for the next bus 45 minutes later. She sat in a pew and paid no attention to the pastor while he got a ladder, hangers etc. to put up the tablecloth as a wall tapestry. The pastor could hardly believe how beautiful it looked and it covered up the entire problem area.

Then he noticed the woman walking down the center aisle. Her face was like a sheet. "Pastor," she asked, "Where did you get that tablecloth?" The pastor explained. The woman asked him to check the lower right corner to see if the initials EBG were crocheted into it there. They were. These were the initials of the woman, and she had made this tablecloth 35 years before, in Austria.

The woman could hardly believe it as the pastor told how he had just gotten the tablecloth. The woman explained that before the war she and her husband were well-to-do people in Austria. When the Nazis came, she was forced to leave. Her husband was going to follow her the next week. She was captured, sent to prison and never saw her husband or her home again.

The pastor wanted to give her the tablecloth; but she made the pastor keep it for the church. The pastor insisted on driving her home - that was the least he could do. She lived on the other side of Staten Island and was only in Brooklyn for the day for a housecleaning job.

What a wonderful service they had on Christmas Eve. The church was almost full. The music and the spirit were great. At the end of the service, the pastor and his wife greeted everyone at the door and many said that they would return. One older man, whom the pastor recognized from the neighborhood, continued to sit in one of the pews and stare, and the pastor wondered why he wasn't leaving. The man asked him where he got the tablecloth on the front wall because it was identical to the one that his wife had made years ago when they lived in Austria before the war and how could there be two tablecloths so much alike?

He told the pastor how the Nazis came, how he forced his wife to flee for her safety, and he was supposed to follow her, but he was arrested and put in a concentration camp. He never saw his wife or his home again for all the 35 years in between.

The pastor asked him if he would allow him to take him for a little ride. They drove to Staten Island to the same house where the pastor had taken the woman three days earlier. He helped the man climb the three flights of stairs to the woman's apartment, knocked on the door, and saw the greatest Christmas reunion he could ever imagine.

A true story

TAKE A SIESTA!

When setting goals and planning our future, we sometimes fail to look far enough ahead. Consider the following story:

An American investment banker was at the pier of a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several large yellow fin tuna. The American complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took to catch them.

The Mexican replied, "Only a little while." The American then asked, "Why didn't you stay out longer and catch more fish?" The Mexican said, "With this I have more than enough to support my family's needs." The American then asked, "But what do you do with the rest of your time?"

The fisherman said, "I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take siesta with my wife, then stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine and play guitar with my amigos. I have a full and busy life."

The banker scoffed, "I'm a Harvard MBA and could help you. You should spend more time fishing; and with the proceeds, buy a bigger boat. With the proceeds from the bigger boat you could buy several boats. Eventually you would have a fleet of fishing boats. You would eventually open your own cannery and control the product, processing and distribution. You could leave this small coastal fishing village and move to Mexico City, then Los Angeles, and eventually New York where you will run your ever-expanding enterprise."

The fisherman asked, "But, how long will this all take?" To which the American replied, "15 to 20 years." "But what then?" asked the fisherman. The banker laughed and said, "That's the best part. When the time is right you would announce an IPO and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich. You would make millions."

"Millions? And then what?" The American said, "Then you would retire. Move to a small coastal village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take siesta with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos." (!!!)

So . . . what are you working for? The IPO or the good life? Stop working toward "someday," and appreciate your success on this day. Take time to enjoy the siesta!

JOIN THE VOLUNTEER BRIGADE!

Back in the '70s, CB radios became popular, especially among the nation's truckers. You could tune in Channel 19 and listen to a constant chatter among truckers and others with radios. If you were traveling on an interstate highway, you could get info on traffic, weather, wreck scenes to avoid, radar traps, and other useful tidbits. It was like there was a whole other world of activity going on around you IF you had a CB radio. Those who didn't were oblivious to the activity - yet it was still there.

The same is true of the volunteer brigade - those who offer their time and talents to worthy causes without reward. In any given community, there is a work force that operates 24/7 without any expectation of reward. If you're not one of them, you are probably oblivious to their daily actions to serve the community - but they are out there working whether or not you know it.

There are many ways to make a life-altering contribution to others as a volunteer. Most are not as glamorous as saving a life, yet all contribute to the many unmet needs of community members. Each of us has talents that can be put to use for those in need. A little self-examination will help identify your potential contribution. With all the blessings we enjoy in this country, each of us should make an effort to reach out to others. Why not join the volunteer brigade today?

GIVE YOURSELF A PRESENT!

Regardless of who you have been in the past - why not give yourself a "present"? Each of us experiences regret from time to time over what we have done - or left undone - in the past. Perhaps our transgressions were great - or just seemed so in our heart.

To become a different person in the future, St. Jerome suggests that you must "begin to be" that person now. If your career is overwhelming you, begging to be tamed, begin now to untangle it. Begin today to simplify your activities.

If you would like to be more caring, begin today by complimenting someone. Want to be more understanding? Listen carefully to one you love - today. Want greater financial independence? Analyze your income and your expenses, then earn more and live on less - beginning today.

Nothing happens until you "begin to be." Interestingly, however, the moment you BEGIN, you actually ARE the person you desire to be, provided you continue to be. The moment you change anything in your life, the past is over, forever.

Want a new beginning in your life? Don't wait for some earth-shattering, life-changing event to get your attention. Get started today!

ME, MYSELF & I - A GROUP OF ONE!

Remember this tune from the protest era? "One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do." The poignant lyrics call attention to the reality that being alone, being a group of one, can be a very lonely, uncomfortable, and sometimes challenging situation.

When it comes to the important issues in your life, it's much more comforting to know that others are standing with you. You stand up for a student issue at a PTO meeting, and others stand with you. You call attention to a social injustice, and are backed by a majority of the members in your organization. Together, the group gives strength and credibility to the views of its leader.

What, then, if the leader and followers are a group of just one? What value is there in taking a position with no one to back you up? What's more, acting alone often stimulates inner questioning, self-doubt, and ultimately self-defeat.

So, where do you stand when it comes to defending your own principles of living? When you witness cheating, dishonesty, or unfair criticism of others, do you stand up as a group of one when no one else cares to stand with you? Do you then feel like the "lone voice in the wilderness?"

Our world has few leaders and many followers. The stand you take alone may provide the inspiration needed by followers who agree, but who do not have the ability to speak out on their own. As Ghandi counseled, just because you're "the lone voice . . . doesn't mean you're wrong."

REMEMBER YOUR YOUTH!

Ever watched a healthy smiling child try to walk? For each step attempted, a dozen result in miserable failure and a bump on the head. Does the child admit defeat and stop trying? Never! The child doesn't know enough, doesn't have enough information or experience, to understand the concept of quitting. The child attempts the impossible, and succeeds.

So - what happens over the years that stops us from attempting the "impossible?" Og Mandino reminds us in "The Greatest Miracle In The World":

"You weep for all your childhood dreams that have vanished with the years. You weep for all your self-esteem that has been corrupted by failure. You weep for all your potential that has been bartered for security. You weep for all your individuality that has been trampled by the mobs. You weep for all your talent that has been wasted through misuse."

To paraphrase Og's words, we let our life's experiences rob us of the innocent optimism of our childhood. We come to know too much about life's hard knocks - making us prudent, cautious, afraid, and wary of trying. We avoid failure by not attempting.

OK - so it's too late for us to return to the innocence of the cradle. So . . . what now? We must identify the source of and overcome our fear of failure. By developing courage and faith, we can deny fear a foothold in our lives. As someone once commented, "Fear knocked at the door. Faith answered. No one was there!"