I set out last week to make an apple pie. I ended up buying a frozen one. Sometimes, you have to take your pie any way you can get it. Even though I did not make the pie, I will gladly have some pie. I do take pleasure in making things come to fruition.  There is joy in delighting in the simple things, like eating a warm pie from the oven, on a brisk evening, after work.

It is not even about the pie. I get to enjoy it with family. I am truly grateful that I have food and even dessert. The smell is wafting from the kitchen. Hopefully, my kids will have wonderful memories of us having a warm apple pie from the oven, no matter who made it.

Friends are a great asset in life. I am blessed to have some of the most wonderful friends. They have been instrumental in helping me succeed in life. I love making new friends.

As an adult, this seems to be hard. When I intentionally set out to make new friends, it seems as if nothing happens. However, when I relaxed, I was able to make more friends. I became involved in some other organizations and have been blessed with even more friends.

I am feeling grateful that there are people who have been a part of my life, through good times and bad times. The importance of having friends, cannot be stressed enough.

A study found that friendships are declining. I hope to decrease that. I want to have more meaningful relationships in life. I hope to have many good friends. I hope to bless my friends.

We seem to think that when there is trouble, that it is there to make us feel bad and to ruin our day. Look at it another way. Instead of seeing something as a curse. How could it be a blessing?

I am not making light of tragedies. Sometimes, there a lessons that can be learned in the wake of some tragedies. That is what can propel us forward. People can come together for the greater good and work together.

There are lots of people who do good in the world. Just because there is trouble in the world, do not let it get you down. It is hard to see past what the issue sometimes. Moving past something that is bad and trying to find the good it is a wise action.

I volunteer for the mere pleasure of helping others. I won’t discuss all of the things that I do. It makes me gleeful to be able to help others achieve success. I have learned that it is important to inspire others to success.

I don’t know exactly how I am going to inspire others. I have learned some things from being in a leadership role. It is important to give recognition to others. To some it is like oxygen. Praising others for doing good work is imperative.

Letting others have a say in how things are done is important. Doing what I say I am going to do is key. Respecting others along the process is also a component to inspiring others. Listening to others is truly a valuable skill.

Accepting others for who they are or who they could be is also paramount to giving people inspiration. I do this all without pay. It is just how some want to be treated, despite any differences we may have.

When you feel as if your back is against the wall. All you can think of is fighting for what you want. Fighting to survive. Fighting to figure out what you want. When you figure out what you want, you will have to fight for it, especially if it is something big. Obstacles and distractions will pop up.

You may think that something is not right for you. You may feel defeated. You have to know if what you are fighting for is really what you want. There is a battle that takes place both in your mind and with the world. However, you can control your own mind.

I have been reading the book “Outwitting The Devil,” and your thoughts repeated over and over, can cause their physical manifestation. So if you worry, you create the exact opposite of what you really want.

You have to fight to keep your mind fixed on positive outcomes. You may not get the positive outcome you want. You just have to fight harder for what you want. You may not realize when something wonderful happens, because you were not expecting that exact miracle to happen.

Keep fighting for what is right. You can never go wrong fighting for the right thing.