人生百味类 知识点题库

    One of the many great lines in the movie Apollo 13 came from Ed Harris, who played NASA Director of Operations, Gene Kranz. The famous line was, “Gentleman, failure is not an option.” He said the words because he had a clear purpose that the three astronauts trapped in space must be sent home safely. The driving force behind their seeking of a solution was motivated by a true purpose.

    Here is the simple principle. If you have a big enough ‘why' in life, you will always figure out the ‘how.' A person without a purpose in life is like a boat without a rudder, floating aimlessly without a direction and going nowhere. In all walks of life, when referring to someone's success, we often hear the words “focus and determination”. But Merriam Webster defines the word “purpose” as the reason why something is done, a feeling of being determined to achieve an outcome. There are many talented and intelligent people in the world that are unsuccessful because they lack direction. I believe that our life depends on our purpose. Whether you're single or in a team, having a purpose allows you to start, evaluate, and improve your talents or abilities helps you find your path in  life and achieve your success finally.

    A friend of mine once told me that the most motivating speech he had ever heard was just three short words. It came from his wife when she said, “Honey I'm pregnant.” He said those few words instantly motivated him because he now had a big “why” in his life, a purpose to work hard to support his family. In fact, when your “why” gets bigger, you get better because you stop holding back and you'll go all out. It's why you often hear about some great people perform superhuman actions when failure is not an option!

    My parents knew their wealth: each other, their six children, and their faith. They tried to live simple lives so that they could have time for what was most important.

    They didn't busy themselves buying a bigger house, because that would mean working harder to pay the monthly mortgage(按揭贷款), working overtime or taking a second job. Who would go running with me then? Who would read stories to me?

    They didn't burden themselves with buying an expensive car because that would mean worrying about installment(分期付款) bills. Besides, walking to the shopping centre every Saturday afternoon with me gave my dad his needed exercise, and made me feel so special.

    One of my heart's delights was seeing Dad and Mom in their bedroom at night, after our nightly family prayer. The lights were turned off, and I'd see the figure of my father seated on his old chair and Mom standing behind him, gently massaging his shoulders. I'd hear them talk about what happened during their day. Even as a child, I sensed their quiet pleasure in being together.

    My question today: Could they have done this rich practice each night and nourished(滋润) their marriage if they had been busy paying for expensive clothes for themselves or their kids, or if they had been worrying about monthly bills for new hi-tech equipment? I don't think so. And I've made a choice: I don't want that of life either.

When milk arrived on the doorstep

    When I was a boy growing up in New Jersey in the 1960s, we had a milkman delivering milk to our doorstep. His name was Mr.Basille. He wore a white cap and drove a white truck. As a 5-year-old boy, I couldn't take my eyes off the coin changer fixed to his belt. He noticed this one day during a delivery and gave me a quarter out of his coin changer.

    Of course, he delivered more than milk. There was cheese, eggs and so on. If we needed to change our order, my mother would pen a note-"Please add a bottle of buttermilk next delivery"—and place it in the box along with the empty bottles. And then, the buttermilk would magically appear.

    All of this was about more than convenience. There existed a close relationship between families and their milkmen. Mr. Basille even had a key to our house, for those times when it was so cold outside that we put the box indoors, so that the milk wouldn't freeze. And I remember Mr. Basille from time to time taking a break at our kitchen table, having a cup of tea and telling stories about his delivery.

    There is sadly no home milk delivery today. Big companies allowed the production of cheaper milk thus making it difficult for milkmen to compete. Besides, milk is for sale everywhere, and it may just not have been practiced to have a delivery service.

    Recently, an old milk box in the countryside I saw brought back my childhood memories. I took it home and planted it on the back porch. Every so often my son's friends will ask what it is. So I start telling stories of my boyhood, and of the milkman who brought us friendship along with his milk.

    I was waiting for a phone call from my agent. He had left a message the night before, telling me that my show was to be cancelled. I called him several times, but each time his secretary told me that he was in a meeting and that he would call me later. So I waited and waited, but there was still no call. Three hours passing by, I became more and more impatient. I was certain that my agent didn't care about my work, and he didn't care about me. I was overcome with that thought. I started to shout at the phone, “Let me wait, will you? Who do you think you are?”

    At that time I didn't realize my wife was looking on. Without showing her surprise, she rushed in, seized the phone, tore off the wires, and shouted at the phone, “Yeah! Who do you think you are? Bad telephone! Bad telephone!” And she swept it into the wastebasket.

    I stood watching her, speechless. What on earth...?

She stepped to the doorway and shouted at the rest of the house, “Now hear this! All objects in this room—if you do anything to upset my husband, out you go!”

    Then she turned to me, kissed me and said calmly, “Honey, you just have to learn how to take control.” With that, she left the room.

    After watching a crazy woman rushing in and out, shouting at everything in sight , I noticed that something in my mood (情绪) had changed. I was laughing. How could I have trouble with that phone? Her anties helped me realize I had been driven crazy by small things. Twenty minutes later my agent did call. I was able to listen to him and talk to him calmly.

    A young man wandered through the desert for forty until he reached a beautiful castle at the top of a mountain. There lived the sage that he was looking for.

    With considerable patience, the sage listened attentively to the reason for the boy's visit, but told him that at that moment he did not have time to explain to him the secret of happiness.

    He suggested that the young man take a walk around his palace and come back in two hours' time.

    “However, I want to ask you a favor,” he added, handing the boy a teaspoon, in which he poured two drops of oil. “While you walk, carry this spoon and don't let the oil spill.”

    The young man began to climb up and down the palace staircases, always keeping his eyes fixed on the spoon. At the end of two hours he returned to the presence of the wise man.

    “So,” asked the sage, “did you see the Persian tapestries hanging in my dining room? Did you see the fantastic garden that the Master of Gardeners spent ten years in creating?”

    Embarrassed, the young man admitted that he had seen nothing.

    “So, go back and see the wonders of my world,” said the wise man. “You can't trust a man if you don't know his house.”

    Now more at ease, the young man took the spoon and wandered again through the palace, this time paying attention to all the works of art that hung from the ceilings and walls. He saw the gardens, the mountains all around the palace, and the delicacy of the flowers. Returning to the sage, he reported in detail what he had seen.

    “But where are the two drops of oil that I entrusted to you?” asked the Sage.

    Looking down at the spoon, the young man realized that he had spilled the oil.

     “Well, that is the only advice I have to give you,'' said the sage of sages. “The secret of happiness lies in looking at all the wonders of the world and never forgetting the two drops of oil in the spoon.”

    I arrived at my mother's home for our Monday family dinner. The smells of food flew over from the kitchen. Mother was pulling out quilt (被子) after quilt from the boxes, proudly showing me their beauties. She was preparing for a quilt show at the Elmhurst Church. When we began to fold and put them back into the boxes, I noticed something at the bottom of one box. I pulled it out. “What is this?” I asked.

    “Oh?” Mom said, “That's Mama's quilt.”

    I spread the quilt. It looked as if a group of school children had pieced it together; irregular designs, childish pictures, a crooked line on the right.

    “Grandmother made this?” I said, surprised. My grandmother was a master at making quilts. This certainly didn't look like any of the quilts she had made.

    “Yes, right before she died. I brought it home with me last year and made some changes, she said. “I'm still working on it. See, this is what I've done so far.”

    I looked at it more closely. She had made straight a crooked line. At the center of the quilt, she had stitched (缝) a piece of cloth with these words: “My mother made many quilts. She didn't get all lines straight. But I think this is beautiful. I want to see it finished. Her last quilt.”

    “Oh, this is so nice, Mom,” I said. It occurred to me that by completing my grandmother's quilt, my mother was honoring her own mother. I realized, too, that I held in my hands a family treasure. It started with the loving hands of one woman, and continued with the loving hands of another.

    It is common and usual to see people freak out when they face challenges in their life. We all pass in different life problems and challenges. No one is free of life problems. Only a dead man faces no problem. As long as you are alive, challenges are everywhere.

    How do you face problems and challenges in your life? Problems and challenges are the building blocks of your personality. They make you who you are. Besides, whether what happened in your life builds or destructs you depends on how you look at it. If you take your problems as troubles, they will be troubles and may cause destruction. If you take them as constructive tools, you are going to be built up on them.

    Problems are everywhere. No one can avoid them. And they are good too. They open up a different look and opportunity if you are willing to see. When you face troubles, do not frustrate or freak out. Just cool yourself to think in a different direction. Think in a positive way. Every problem has its own good as well as bad sides. Focus on the good one. Look at the bright side.  Besides, there is always a good person, perhaps your mom or dad, or one of your friends, right beside you who can turn everything into your best if you are willing to turn to them. No matter what happens, they will be there to help you. Trust them and they will never let you down. All you need to know is that you are loved wherever you are.

    Can you remember the first time you learned to ride a bike or drive a car? Learning theses kills changed your life forever and opened up new horizons (视野).Learning about computers can be like learning how to ride a bike or drive a car. Once you have employed the time to master the skills, you will never go back to the old days. The new technology is just too convenient and too powerful.

    Technological developments all through the years have enabled us to do more with less effort. We have continuously looked for better ways of doing things. Each invention and new development has allowed us to extend our capabilities. Today we see one of the most dramatic technologies ever developed—the computer. It extends the capabilities of our minds.

    Computers have saved organizations millions of dollars. Furthermore, these same computer systems have opened up new opportunities that would have gone undiscovered or ignored. There is no doubt that computers have a positive influence upon people's life, and the growth of computer usage is surprising. On the other hand, the computer can do serious damage. Invasion of privacy (侵犯隐私), fraud (欺诈),  and computer-related mistakes are just a few shocking examples. So the computer is like a double-edged sword. It has the ability to cut us free from some activities, but it can also cut deep into financial profits (利益), personal privacy and our society in general. The choice is yours, and only through a knowledge of computer systems will you be able to avoid the dangers while enjoying the many, many benefits of the computer age.

    A girl had to usually face adversity(逆境). One day, she couldn't help complaining to her father about her life and how things were so hard for her. She didn't know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved a new one arose.

    Her father, a chef, took her to the kitchen. He filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to a boil. In one he placed carrots, in the second he placed eggs, and in the last he placed ground coffee beans. He let them into the water and boil, without saying a word.

    The daughter waited impatiently, wondering what he was doing. In about twenty minutes he turned off the burners. He made the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. He pulled the eggs out and placed them in another bowl. Then he poured the coffee out and placed it in a cup. Turning to her, he asked, "What do you see?" "Carrots, eggs and coffee," she replied.

    He brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. He then asked her to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg. Finally, he asked her to sip the coffee. She smiled, as she tasted its rich aroma(香味). She humbly asked, "What does it mean, Father?"

    He explained that each of them had faced the same hardship, boiling water, but each reacted differently. The carrot had been strong and hard. But after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been easily broken. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior. But after going through the boiling water, its inside became hardened. The ground coffee beans were unique. After they were in the boiling water, they changed the water. "Which are you?" he asked his daughter. "When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean?"

    How about you, my friend? Are you the carrot that seems hard, but with pain and adversity you move back and become soft and lose your strength? Are you the egg, which starts off with a flexible heart? Were you a liquid spirit, but after a breakup, a divorce, or a layoff have you become hardened and stiff? Your shell looks the same, but are you bitter and tough with a stiff heart? Or are you like the coffee bean? The bean changes the hot water, the thing that is bringing the pain. When the water gets the hottest, it just tastes better. If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and make things better around you.

    Ask yourself how you handle adversity. Are you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean?

    This story starts with my two kids. We were hiking in the Oakland woods when my daughter noticed some plastic litter in a creek. She looked at me and said, "Daddy? That doesn't go there”.

    When she said that, it reminded me of my summer camp. On the morning of that camping day, right before they'd let our anxious parents come through the gates, our camp director would say Quick! Everyone pick up five pieces of litter, "We got one hundred kids each picking up five pieces, and pretty soon, we got a much cleaner camp. So I thought, why not apply that crowdsourced cleanup model to the entire planet? And that was the inspiration for Literati. The goal is to create a litter-free world. Let me show you how it started. I took a picture of a cigarette using Instagram.

    Then I took another photo, and another. And at the end of a few days, I had 50 photos on my hone and I had picked up each piece, and I realized that I was keeping a record of the positive impact I was having on the planet. That's 50 fewer things you might see, or you might step on, or some bird might eat. So I started telling people what I was doing, and they started participating. I realized that Litterati was more than just pretty pictures; we were becoming a community that was collecting data. Each photo tells a story. It tells us who picked up what, a geo-tag tells us where and a time stamp tells us when. Gradually, the community grew.

    Litter —it's blending into the back ground of our lives. But what if we brought it to the fore front? What if we understood exactly what was on our streets, our sidewalks and our school yards?

    How might we use that data to make a difference?

    Compassion（同情）is a desire within us to help others. With effort, we can translate compassion into action. An experience last weekend showed me this is true. I work part-time in supermarket across from a building for the elderly. These old people are our main customers, and it's not hard to lose patience over their slowness. But last Sunday, one aged gentleman appeared to teach me a valuable lesson. This untidy man walked up to my register（收款机）with a box of biscuits. He said he was out of cash, had just moved into his room, and had nothing in his cupboards. He asked if we could let him have the food on trust. He promised to repay me the next day.

    I couldn't help staring at him. I wondered what kind of person he had been ten or twenty years before, and what he would be like if fortune had gone his way. I had a hurt in my heart for this kind of human soul, all alone in the world. I told him that I was sorry, but store rules didn't allow me to do so. I felt stupid and unkind saying this, but I valued my job.

    Just then, another man, standing behind the first, spoke up. If anything, he looked more pitiable, “Charge it to me,” was all he said.

    What I had been feeling was pity. Pity is soft and safe and easy. Compassion, on the other hand, is caring in action. I thanked the second man but told him that was not allowed either. Then I reached into my pocket and paid for the biscuits myself. I reached into my pocket because these two men had reached into my heart and taught me compassion.

    I grew up in a home with a mother who believes that vaccines (疫苗) cause brain damage, and do not contribute to the health and safety of a society. The only shot I received was for tetanus (破伤风) when I was two months old. After that, nothing.

    At the beginning of each school year, I was very nervous. Delayed term paper? Mischievous (捣蛋的) behavior? Late for school? None of them. I'd be pulled out of class and brought to the headmaster's office. The school doctor would tell me I hadn't received any of the necessary shots to attend school. But the same thing occurred each time: my mom would free me from the shots and nothing would happen.

    After doing a lot of research, I found although people who don't vaccinate their children make up only a relatively small group, they can cause major consequences. People who, for health or age reasons, cannot receive vaccines are at a higher risk of catching a preventable disease.

    Eventually, I turned 18. In Ohio, where I live, I had to wait until I became a legal adult to make the decision to receive vaccine shots. A huge factor in taking the step to ensure my health was the message board website Reddit. Last November, I asked Reddit users for advice about what vaccines to ask for and how to go about getting them from a doctor. After my post received more than 1,000 comments, I made an appointment with my family physician. Despite how strongly my mother felt, I went through with it anyway.

    I did something every person should do. It wasn't special in any way. Vaccines protect the health and safety of not only yourself but also other people. Vaccination is important because someone could die if you don't get vaccinated. This was the biggest reason I got vaccines despite the opposition.

A famous teacher was speaking to the students at our school. He began his lesson by holding up a ￡100 bill. Then he said to the three hundred students  "Who would like to have this ￡100 bill?" The students began to put up their hands at once.

Then he said, "I am going to give this bill to one of you, but first, let me do this." He then made this bill into a ball. Then he said, "Who wants it?" Hands went into the air.

"Well," he said, "What if I do this?" and he dropped it on the floor and stepped on it. He picked up the dirty, crumpled bill and said, "Who still wants it?" Hands went back into the air.

"My friends," he said, "You've learned a valuable lesson today. No matter what I did to the money, you still wanted it because it didn't go down in value. It was still worth ￡100."

"Many times in our lives, we're dropped, crumpled, and stepped on by the chances we take and the things that happen to us. We feel as if we are worth nothing. But remember, no matter what has happened to you, you will never lose your value: you are always valuable to those who love you. Your value doesn't come from what you drop or whom you know, but WHO YOU ARE."

You are special and valuable. Don't ever forget it!

When I was a kid, my siblings (兄弟姐妹) and I used to have ice cream for dessert. Every day, we would choose which ice cream flavor to have, whether to eat it in a cone or a bowl. Then we would happily wolf down our treat (款待) as fast as we could.

Once, though, when I was probably about 10 or 11, our grandpa came to visit us. Grandpa always had a unique view on things. On this particular occasion, my sister and I were making bets as to who could finish our ice cream first. With a smile, Grandpa said, "Why would you want to finish first? If you eat slowly, it will last longer. You should have a competition to see who can finish last." Even now, I always try to taste my ice cream, but of course this is about more than just dessert.

Too often, kids want to scramble (争夺) for more, whether it's more ice cream, more toys, or more friends. This habit persists into our adult years, and we end up constantly scrambling for more. We never develop the skill of appreciating what we have. If we learn to recognize this pattern and change it, we can raise our kids a little differently, giving them the tool of tasting their widely known dessert, which could lead to a happier life for them.

What my grandpa taught me that day was really that if you take the opportunity to enjoy what's in front of you, the pleasure will last longer and be more rewarding than if you rush through life always trying to get the next treat. It's a lesson that, I think, has made my adult life happier, as well. These days, when I want something, I wait as long as I can before I allow myself to have it. Then, when I finally get it, I make sure to treasure it as long as possible, because I know that, no matter what it is, it will be gone all too soon.

Is smile just a facial expression? Of course not! It is not only used to express pleasure, affection, and friendliness, but also the commonest way to show our good will perfectly without saying anything. A Chinese saying runs: "Never hit a person who is smiling at you." It is a time-proven fact that smile is a language all its own-a universal language-understood by the people of every nation in the world. We may not speak the same tongue as our foreign neighbors, but we smile in the same tongue. We need no interpreter for thus expressing love, happiness, or good will.

One day while shopping in a small town in southern California, it was my misfortune to come across a clerk whose personality conflicted with mine. He seemed quite unfriendly and not at all concerned about my intended purchase. I bought nothing, and marched angrily out of the store. On the outside stood a young man in his early twenties. His expressive brown eyes met and held mine, and in the next instant a beautiful, brilliant smile covered his face. The magic power of that smile made all bitterness within me melt, and I found the muscles in my own face happily responding. "Beautiful day, isn't it?" I remarked, in passing. Then, obeying an impulse(冲动), I turned hack. "I really owe you a debt of gratitude," I said softly. His smile deepened, but he made no attempt to answer. A Mexican woman and two men were standing nearby. The woman stepped forward and eyed me inquiringly. "Carlos, he no speak English," she volunteered. "You want I should tell him something?" At that moment I felt changed. Carlos' smile had made a big person of me. My friendliness and good will toward all mankind stood ten feet tall. "Yes," my reply was enthusiastic and sincere, "tell him I said, 'Thank you!' " "Thank you?" The woman seemed slightly confused.

I gave her arm a friendly pat as I turned to leave. "Just tell him that " I insisted. "He'll understand, I am sure!"

Oh, what a smile can do! Although I have never seen that young man again, I shall never forget the lesson he taught me that morning. From that day on, I became smile-conscious, and I practice the art diligently, anywhere and everywhere, with everybody.

It's not easy to grow up. Actually, it's far from easy. Growing up can be a real "pain" for some of us. We are always doing things that someone else makes us do and aren't allowed to do all the things we like. Sometimes we feel trapped, sometimes we are fearful, and sometimes we just don't understand why we can't stay young forever. When we look back on all the hardships in life with a positive attitude, we realize that all of our growing pains actually turn into growing gains!

Throughout our lives we are going to face many challenges and pains, but we should never let these obstacles keep us from following our dreams. We must overcome every obstacle one small step at a time.

As a young girl my parents forced me to do so many things that I never liked. They made me learn to play the violin and then the piano. At that time I hated music, just because it was what they wanted me to do. But looking back now, I am so glad that my parents encouraged me to take music lessons. Music has enriched my life in so many ways. I realize that my parents and teachers were always pushing me along, not because they wanted me to suffer but because they wanted me to succeed in life. They've always wanted me to have a better life than they did themselves.

Every moment of our lives we are either living or dying, so live life to its fullest! We are all going to experience growing pains, but they are just small pains in life. They might seem so huge at the time but we must be strong. Think about how we would feel if we had no fear and live life like that.

The future is ours! A little hard work and sweat never hurt anyone! If we realize that these pains are just small bumps (凸块) on our road to success we will realize that our growing pains are actually growing gains!

Balancing preservation of the land with our desire to travel is a challenge for us travelers. When seeing cities face constant resource and waste problems, I couldn't help but think about how much travel can affect the environment.

Back in my youth, I was an environmental activist. But over the years, I leave the lights on. I fly a lot. I drink out of plastic bottles. I eat a lot of meat. And I love fish, especially tuna. However, recently, I've begun thinking harder about how travel affects the environment and how I affect the environment. In doing so, I've tried to be a lot more aware of my actions.

I don't know if there is an easy solution for this problem. The most environmentally friendly activity is not to travel at all, but that's unrealistic and too extreme. There's so much money in travel that I don't think the government and regulation can do much. Only when their profits are hurt will hotels, operators, and the industry as a whole begin to listen. Instead, it's all about the consumers. The only good way is to get people to be more environmentally conscious and make better decisions.

Consumers have a lot of power. Why did Wal-Mart start selling only sustainable fish and whole milk? Consumers wanted it. I think if we as travelers begin to demand more environmentally friendly practices and avoid companies with poor environmental records, we can change things.

Now, I recycle more, I use fewer water bottles, I shut off the lights, Most importantly, I use operators and stay at places that are reducing their environmental impact.

Travel can destroy the environment but it doesn't have to. We have the power to make things better. We can do small things and demand more of the places we stay and visit. We can and should demand more of places, and of ourselves.

When I worked as a global media coordinator(协调员)for the United Nations several years ago, I organized biweekly conference calls, during which I would ask my colleagues around the world to provide information by particular deadlines. My colleagues almost always responded with a yes, but all too often, the deadlines came and went without the requested material. Finally, my South African boss had to explain what would never have occurred to me: in many cultures, it is rude lo say no. So some people would say yes to anything I asked, regardless of whether they had any intention of delivering.

If communicating internally at the UN was challenging, interacting with the outside world was much harder. How would we reach people in places where newspapers are televisions are still not widely available? How could we generate media coverage there? Communicating globally may require changing the way you interviewing senior communication professionals in 31 countries about how they help clients modify their messages and strategies for particular cultures. I have found that some of the biggest factors to consider when communicating in a new culture involve emotion, context and social expectations.

As an example of emotional differences, if I were to do a media interview in the US and become visibly angry at a reporter's question, I would be seen as unstable. By contrast, in the Middle East (an area including the countries of Southwest Asia and Northeast Africa), when people are talking about a heated issue, they tend to display powerful feelings—those who stay cool and calm while discussing such a problem may be viewed as untrustworthy.

Another big cultural difference revolves around the level of "context" provided in a conversation. As an American, I am what is known as a low-context communicator (who communicates information in a direct manner that relies mainly on words rather than contextual elements such as tones and body language), so if I want something done, I say so frankly. In high-context cultures, as in Asia, people may do the opposite. You have to pick up on body language, tones, and other contextual cues to realize that your colleague who just said yes to you has actually communicated that she does not agree to your plan.

You are about to hear a strange but true story. Legend has it that, Harry Houdini, the master magician, once claimed that he could break out of any jail cell in the world. All he had to do was walk into that jail cell with his streets clothes on. "I will be out of there in one hour. No problem!" He said. A very old jail down South hear about Houdini's claims and they accepted the challenge. On the day of the event, many people gathered outside. Very confidently, Houdini walked into the jail and into the cell and they shut the metal door behind him.

The first thing Houdini did was to take off his coat. Then, very strangely, he took off his belt. Secretly hidden in Houdini's belt, was a ten-inch piece of steel; very tough and very flexible and Houdini started working.

In about 30 minutes, that confident expression Houdini had when he walked in disappeared. In one hour, he was bathed in sweat. And at the end of two hours, Houdini in defeat, collapsed against the door, which then opened. It opened because you you see, that door had never been locked. But that's not entirely true is it? That door was locked. It was firmly and thoroughly locked in Houdini's mind, which meant it was locked as if the best locksmith in the world had put his lock on it.

The mind is powerful. How many doors in your life do you think are locked but aren't? How many times have you been stuck in the mental prison of over thinking something that really had a simple solution. There is an ancient African proverb that says when there is no enemy within, the enemy outside can do us no harm.

Your mind is the most powerful force you will ever face. It will tell you lies. It will tell you can't do that. You're not meant for that. You're not good enough for that. You can't go on anymore. You don't have the energy. You must thank it for its opinion and carry on. Because as Houdini showed us the only locked doors that exist are in your own mind. The doors in reality are open and all you have to do is walk through.

I have a special place in my heart for libraries. I have for as long as I can remember. I was always an enthusiastic reader, sometimes reading up to three books a day as a child. Stories were like air to me and while other kids played ball or went to parties, I lived out adventures through the books I checked out form the library.

 My first job was working at the Ukiah Library when I was 16 years old. It was a dream job and I did everything from shelving books to reading to the children for story time.  

 As I grew older and became a mother, the library took on a new place and an added meaning in my life. I had several children and books were our main source of happiness. It was a big deal for us to load up and go to the local library, where my kids could pick out books to read or books they wanted me to read to them.  

I always read, using different voices, as though I were acting out the stories with my voice and they loved it! It was a special time to bond with my children and it filled them with the wonderment of books.

Now, I see my children taking their children to the library and I love that the excitement of going to the library lives on from generation to generation.

As a novelist, I've found a new relationship with libraries. I encourage readers to go to their local library when they can't afford to buy a book. I see libraries as a safe haven for readers and writers, a bridge that helps put together a reader with a book. Libraries, in their own way, help fight book piracy and I think all writers should support libraries in a meaningful way when they can. Encourage readers to use the library. Share library announcements on your social media. Frequent them and talk about them when you can.