With Valentine’s Day approaching, love is on the mind and in the air.

Love in its infinite variety is the most powerful emotion and, therefore, provides us with the greatest level of pleasure and the greatest depth of pain.  As we focus our attention on love in the month of February, perhaps you will find the following expressions helpful to keep in mind in order to maintain a healthy relationship with love:

• Love overlooks a lot
• Good looks won’t keep the fire burning
• Just because there is snow on the roof does not mean there is no fire within
• Love is blind and marriage is an eye-opener
• Only give your tears to someone who deserves them

As the holidays wind down and we return to work, you may have that feeling of “ugg” thinking about the office nonsense you will have to face.  Let’s face it, unless you have a trust fund, you have to work and not everyone at your workplace is someone you want to spend all day with.  You may find the following expressions helpful to remember when the offices games start to tap dance on your nerves:

• Empty barrels make the most noise
• Be above that
• Give them enough rope and they will hang themselves
• Consider the source
• Crème always rises to the top

I hope you find these wise words and witty expressions helpful as you navigate your workplace. Don’t let the shenanigans of others detract from your God-given right to be at peace.

It is easy to fall into this pattern when we race from task to task, some of which we enjoy and others we do out of obligation.  Then life sends us challenges we did not anticipate; things we wished for do not come true; things take longer than necessary, or are harder to accomplish than they should be.  When these patterns continue for what seems like too long, it can cause us to overlook the favorable aspects of our life and look enviably at someone else’s seemingly charmed life.  During these periods, it is helpful to remember:

If you could put down your troubles and pick up someone else’s, you would pick your own troubles back up again.

We all have challenges; even those who we believe have a better deal than us.

The next time life is sending you down a difficult path or just going by too quickly, don’t wait until Thanksgiving to remember how blessed you are.  You can find new healing energy by focusing on all the positive aspects of your life. That mindset will help see you through the challenge you find yourself faced with.

This tradition reminded me of an expression in my book, Wise Words & Witty Expressions:

He is a wolf in sheep’s clothing

While Halloween is great, innocent fun, there are those among us that practice Halloween year-round.  The costumes they wear are their outward appearances, which conceal the true person they are—one in pursuit of satisfying their own interests.

It is wise, therefore, to remain vigilant for these impostors and protect yourself from their hidden agendas.  Like celebrating Halloween, you will need to look carefully to see who is behind the costume. When you look hard enough at these fakers, eventually they do or say something that gives them away.

Happy Halloween!

It also reminds me of how hard you work as a student across many different classes.  Some you have great interest and aptitude in and others you do not.

For those of you that are students or have students in your life, I am reminded of an expression my father often said to me when I was faced with a challenge that I needed to overcome to achieve a larger goal:

Anything worth having is worth working hard for.

By remembering this expression when faced with a challenge, you will find the strength you need to continue on and a greater appreciation for what you have achieved. Those words may seem like just words, but by applying this attitude to any task you are involved in, it will help you develop confidence in your ability to meet challenges and a belief that you will not allow anything to stop you from reaching your goals.  As a matter of fact, by recalling this expression each time you are faced with a challenge, you will not only become a stronger and more confident person, you will be setting an example for others, some of which you may not even know are learning from you.

Your best days are ahead of you

When you are inundated with a lengthy and constant barrage of bad news, it can become easy to believe a situation is hopeless.  The truth, however, is that this painful time too shall pass.  We will survive and learn from this experience and derive a new confidence that comes from standing up to and staring down a hard time. The time that comes after this challenge, hopefully, will deliver us into a period filled with appreciation for what we have been able to accomplish and will have taught us to make better decisions moving forward.

Small minds with little to do

Don’t let the gossip of others or their thoughtless comments have a negative effect on you. 

Remember if they were so bright and talented, they would be spending their time on far more important things than finding ways to build themselves up by taking someone else down.  These are the qualities of someone with limited intellect and therefore fill their time up with petty behavior because they don’t know any better.

They are deserving of your pity.  Be brave and strong and ignore them so you can move on and do the great things you are meant to do.

In God’s due time

Sometimes it is very frustrating when we are working hard to achieve something or praying very hard for something that somehow eludes our grasp.

It is very easy to become so frustrated that we may give up on a project or dream or blame ourselves for not being able to achieve what we want so badly. 

It is at this time that we must remember that God is in control and regardless of how long something takes, there is a reason and it is not a punishment.  God is waiting for the right moment under the right circumstances to see our desires come to pass.  It may not happen when and how we imaged, but we are not abandoned or unheard.  We are just human and want what we want when we want it. 

Be patient.   God has only your very best interests at heart.