A small poem::

Persons are gifts:

Persons are gifts; Gift from the Lord to you,

to us, the country and the world.
Some are wrapped very beautifully;
Some are very attractive when we first see them.
Some are wrapped in very ordinary wrapping paper,
Others have been mishandled in the mail,
Once in a while there is a "Special Delivery".

Some children are gifts,

Which come very loosely wrapped,
Others very tightly.
But the wrapping is NOT the gift;
It is so easy to make this mistake;
Sometimes we need others to help.
Is it because we are afraid? Does it hurt?
May be they have been opened up before and thrown away!
Iam a person; therefore I am a gift too!
A gift to myself, first of all, God the Father gave myself to me.

Have I ever really looked inside the wrapping? Am I afraid to?

Perhaps I have never accepted the gift that I am,
Could God's gift be anything but beautiful?
I love the gifts, which those who love me give to me,
Why not this gift, myself-from God our father?
I am a gift to other persons!
Am I willing to be given by God to others?
A person-for others?
Or do others have to be content with my wrappings,
Never permitted to enjoy the gift?

Is it a thing devoid of relationship to the given or a giver?

Friendship is a relationship between persons,
Who see themselves as they really are,
Gift of God to each other, for others,
Brothers and Sisters.
A friend is a gift not just to me,
But to others through me.
When I keep my friend, possess him or her,
I destroy his or her "Gift-ness",
If I lose it for others, I save it.
Persons are gifts, gifts received and gifts given,
Gift of God the giver.

2. We like some people because they are good looking, gentle, kind,
friendly,
loving, honest, pleasant, responsible. We are attracted towards them.

3. We keep some people far away from us or avoid them because they
appear
serious, not good-looking, dark, harsh, rude, angry, shouting at others,
not well-groomed.
We are not attracted towards them.
4. I AM A TREASURE WRAPPED WITH A HARSH EXTERIOR:

Beneath the rough and harsh exterior of our being, lie the hidden
treasures of
sweetness and gentleness. Constantly I have to enter into myself and
discover the beauty and
loveliness and affirm that I am a treasure.

5. MY WHOLE ANATOMY IS A PRECIOUS GIFT OF LOVE:

My whole being is a source of surprises and thrills. My anatomy is

so unique that there
is not other person to replace ME. The whole of me is a precious gift
of God's love. I am very
differently made. There will never be another ME in this world. I
must spend sometime reflecting on
the wonder of ME each day. I must unfold my self by removing the
wrappings and let the beautiful
ME emerge.

6. UNACCEPTABLE EXTERIOR CREATES COMPLEXES:

Complexes are the outcome of a want of acceptance of ourselves.

Self-knowledge does
not come easily. What influences us is what others say about us or
even think of us. We are
afraid to open up because we are afraid of others' opinions. We build
up complexes and have
fears. We are afraid of being rejected by others, and in turn we
reject ourselves. Having received
messages that we are not lovable, not acceptable, we get into a shell
which we ourselves create and
choose to live in.

OUR BEHAVIOUR CHANGES ACCORDING TO OUR

EXPERIENCES WITH PEOPLE AND EVENTS.

7. No one is born with an inferiority complex. It is we who create it

for ourselves and for others, and
develop a low self-esteem. The big EGO in us is shouting for attention
and admiration, at the same time
we are afraid of being hurt and we build walls around us and hide the
treasure. What pains us is not the
fact of being rejected but the rejection that confirms our
unworthiness and unlovableness. Then we
come up with different complexes, such as fear, hatred, jealousy and
we feel lost. Numerous are the
occasions we are confronted with. Our self-image sometimes suffers a
severe blow and feelings of
worthlessness build up. This is the time to strengthen our belief in
the treasure that lies deep within.

8. We must recognize the treasure within and affirm to ourselves this

treasure constantly. Self-affirmation
has a great impact on our attitude towards self. When we accept,
appreciate and constantly affirm, we
experience what we affirm and believe in and we begin to live
according to our affirmation.

9. When people have had bad experiences in life, like being humiliated
in public or being rejected by
sister/parents/family/teachers/friends they may be consciously or
unconsciously decide not to show
or express their feelings or emotions. They hide their feelings. In
other words they wear a mask.
When they put on these masks they are not their realselves. Other
people sometimes can see through
the mask.

Something to remember:

One song can spark a moment,

One flower can make a dream,
One tree can start a forest,
One bird can herald spring.

One smile begins a friendship

One handclasp lifts a soul.
One star can guide a ship at sea,
One word can frame the goal.

One vote can change the nation,

One sunbeam lights a room.
One candle wipes out darkness,
One laugh will conquer gloom.

One step must start each journey,

One word must start each prayer.
Our hope will raise our spirits,
One touch can show you care.

One voice can speak with wisdom,

One hear can know what’s true.
ONE LIFE CAN MAKE THE DIFFERENCE,
YOU SEE, IT’S UP TO YOU.

KILLER PHRASES:

Don’t be ridiculous
We tried that before
It costs too much
It can’t be done
That’s beyond our responsibilities
It’s too radical to change
We don’t have the time
We are too small for it
That’s not our problem
We have never done it before
Let’s get back to reality
Why change it? It’s working O.K.
You are years ahead of time
We are not ready for that.
Can’t teach an old dog new tricks
Too hard to sell
We’ll be the laughing stock
Let’s shelve it for the time being
We did all right without it
Has anyone else tried it?
It wouldn’t work here.

Endearing words:

Please, Thank you, I love you, I appreciate you, you have gone out of your way to he
me
etc. These words mend relationaships, enable one to continue communication, build
trust and appreciation for each other.

Words that break relationships:

Shut up, get out, you are lazy, you are good for nothing, get lost, etc. These words
do not
help one to continue in communication, raise the level of anger, stress and
intolerance.
The communicators feel misunderstood and unaccepted.

When there is confidence, clarity, etiquette and above all, when the message is
clearly given,
there is no scope for confusion.
Factors that make communication effective:

Clarity in expressing oneself by being clear about what one wants to communicate.

Politeness that endears oneself by using words likee please, excuse me, Thank you
sorry.(PETS)

Listening attentively to the other and checking out whether the other has
understood me and
I have understood him or her through the feedback which may either be verbal or
non-verbal.

THE TONE OF VOICE

It’s not so much what we say,

As the manner in which we say it.
It’s not so much the language we use,
As the tone in which we convey it.

“Come here!” I sharply ordered,

and a child cowered and wept.
“Come here”,I softly whispered,
and into my arms he crept.

Words may be mild and fair,

But the tone pierces like a dart.
Words may be soft as summer air,
But the tone can break a heart.