Freedom of Simplicity

By Bo Sanchez

Happiness is not found outside of you. It doesn't come from cars, clothes, cash, or Caribbean cruises. Happiness is found within. But how can you find it if you don't have the simplicity of time and space to discover the most important things in your life?

How can you search the depths of your soul if you are too busy impressing others, acquiring wealth, protecting your properties, and paying your debts?

Simplicity is not about the external either: living in a doghouse, eating in Hepatitis joints, wearing rags.

Let me define what it is: Simplicity is living from the core of your being.

A TREASURE MAP OF HAPPINESS

Simplicity will point to you where and what and who the gold is in your life. Let me share with you the seven powerful lessons I've learned on simple living:

1. LIVE ON LESS, AND DELIGHT IN THEM MORE
Some take their pleasure dining in classy restaurants, trips to Europe , and owning the latest home theatre-equipment. I've chosen the simple path: If I can simply be with my wife, or take a quiet stroll under a canopy of stars, or play with a child, or read a good book in my home, or laugh with friends over a pizza, I consider myself richly blessed. Focus on what you have and not on what you don ' t have.

2. STOP RUNNING AND WALK INSTEAD
Here ' s the truth: The person who has covered the greatest distance does NOT win, but the one who has most enjoyed the journey does. Stop running around chasing your own tail! Get off your hurried pace and learn to breathe. Replace doing with being. Learn to say no to invitations, appointments, and commitments, activities and events that will rob you of your focus. Learn to say "yes" to rest, to tranquility, to quietness.

3. YOU ARE MORE THAN YOUR WEALTH
I own very few things today. Because I am more than the brand of my watch, the logo of my shoes, the name of my car. I believe that if in my soul I deeply respect and value myself, people around me will sense that , and they too, will value and respect me-whether I ' m wearing Armani or not.

You are more than your wealth.

4. AVOID BUYING ON CREDIT
I don ' t believe in borrowing from credit cards. (For convenience, I use one card but I pay the whole amount at the end of each month.) If I need something really bad, I save up for it. Sometimes, at midpoint, I realize I don ' t really need the darn thing and give up the whole idea. The only exception I feel we should enter into a credit is when buying a non-depreciating item, such as housing or land. I believe we should always live within our earning capacity. Proverbs 22:7 says, "Those who borrow are slaves of moneylenders."

5. GIVE AS MUCH AS YOU CAN
If I content myself with P250 shirt instead of P4,000 Lacoste, I can help others more. Trust me, there is immense pleasure! You will find that the empty thrill of owning a diamond ring on your finger pales in comparison to the joy of handling a piece of bread to an orphan child. "And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work." (2 Corinthians 9:8)

The Old Testament of tithing, or giving 10% of your income is a good guideline to follow. The New Testament challenges us to give with a cheerful heart. (When you ' re cheerful, you may give more than 10%!) Make it a habit.

6. SAVE AS MUCH AS YOU CAN
Saving is essential to being good stewards of the money that God "lends" to us. Saving is an important way of providing for our future-both for our needs and to be generous to others. I recommend that you save at least 10% of your income. I can almost hear you now: "Bo, that ' s impossible!" Oh yeah? Well, how did you live three years back when your salary was one-half its present amount?" Sacrifice. Many of our needs are actually wants. Is cable TV a need? Will you suddenly die if you can't watch CNN or HBO? Are those new golf clubs essential to your existence? Invest in time deposits, long-term stocks and housing.

7. BUDGET, BUDGET, BUDGET
Make a list of all your monthly expenses, according to categories. Make also a list of irregular expenses-those that don't come monthly. Set up another savings account for these expenses and put in a little money each month. To differentiate this from the savings account, we call ours "freedom account" because it frees us from worrying about them when they suddenly attack. And stick to your budget!

ONE LAST WORD BEFORE WE CLOSE
Balance. Don ' t take living simply to the extremes! Living simply doesn't mean living in deprivation. There are special days when we can eat in a fancy restaurant. Or, when we splurge into a vacation. Very rare, yes, but my point is that you take living simply NOT as a rigid goal-but as a happy process towards the goals of generosity, inner peace and holiness.

Compiled from the email of:

Ronald H. Fookson

Email: fookson@gmail.com
Visit the Camiguin Island Beach Club

Website: http://www.camiguinisland.net/

Ronald Fookson's Family Photo in Camiguin Dec 27, 2007

Enjoy the Coffee

A group of alumni, highly established in their careers, got together to visit their old university professor. Conversation soon turned into complaints about stress in work and life.

Offering his guests coffee, the professor went to the kitchen and returned with a large pot of coffee and an assortment of cups - porcelain, plastic, glass, crystal, some plain looking, some expensive, some exquisite - telling them to help themselves to the coffee.

When all the students had a cup of coffee in hand, the professor said "If you noticed, all the nice looking expensive cups were taken up, leaving behind the plain and cheap ones. While it is normal for you to want only the best for yourselves, that is the source of your problems and stress. Be assured that the cup itself adds no quality to the coffee. In most cases it is just more expensive and in some cases even hides what we drink. What all of you really wanted was coffee, not the cup, but you consciously went for the best cups... And then you began eyeing each other's cups. Now consider this: Life is the coffee; the jobs, money and position in society are the cups. They are just tools to hold and contain Life, and the type of cup we have does not define, nor change the quality of Life we live. Sometimes, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to enjoy the coffee. "The happiest people don't have the best of everything. They just make the best of everything."

Compiled from the email of:

Sis Mayet Maniquez-Balmadres
Sydney, Australia
Email: cyrilbal@acay.com.au
Website: http://www.sydney.com.au/

10 Easy Steps to a Healthier Heart

Even if you follow just the first 7 steps below (and don’t smoke, of course), you’ll reduce the chance of having a heart attack by as much as 90 per cent compared to a typical person your age!

1. Walk for 30 minutes a day every day, no matter what – then phone someone.

2. Know your blood pressure and do whatever it takes to get it down to 120/80 or below.

3. Eat 30g of nuts a day.

4. Learn your HDL numbers and do what you can to raise it to 50 mg/dL.

5 Eat ten tablespoons of tomato sauce a week. Tomato sauce is loaded with blood- pressure- slashing potassium.

6. Floss your teeth regularly. By avoiding periodontal disease, you prevent inflammation in the arteries which helps you heads off heart disease.

7. Eat no more than 20 g of saturated fat a day and as little trans fat as possible.

8. Read labels and reject food that lists sugar as one of the first five ingredients.

9. Have a glass of wine or beer today. 7 drinks on Friday night is not the same as one every night!

10. Eat 9 servings of colourful fruit and vegetables a day.

6 Numbers Can Save Your Life

Keep track of these six health measurements that can warn you of trouble ahead.

Daily kilojoule needs. How much food do you actually eat? In a perfect world, you’d eat just enough to provide fuel for your body.

Waist size. Of all the ways to measure whether your weight is affecting the health of your heart, waist size is one of the best.

Cholesterol counts. It is important to know not just your total cholesterol reading but also your levels of bad LDL cholesterol and good HDL cholesterol.

Blood pressure. BP is the force of blood against the walls of your arteries – rises and falls naturally during the day.

Triglycerides. Triglycerides are made from the fats and carbohydrates you eat, which are converted into a form that can be stored in fat cells.

Pulse rate. Your pulse is the number of times your heart beats in one minute. Regular monitoring of your resting pulse first thing in the morning will help you see if your exercise regimen is strengthening your heart.

Compiled from the email of:

Sis Pearl Rosales-Cuanan
Sydney Australia
Email Address: pearlroses_2000@yahoo.com
Website: http://www.sydney.com.au/