Category: Family

Posted on

Politeness and respectfulness is learned by example


DSCF0007Today I feel like talking about manners, politeness and having respect for one another. I remember when I was a child how my mother and father tried hard to instill in me the mannerisms such as showing respect to others and to be polite to everyone I meet and that I should be this way to those I know, don’t know, like or dislike. Seems politeness and respect are becoming either a thing of the past or is considered less important in our youth today.I think we were far better off when we had politeness and respect as a part of our upbringing. My parents were also the type that would try to practice what they preached, at least in front of us kids they did their best not to lose their tempers, speak ill of others or be disrespectful of anyone. This of course goes to say that they may have done such behind our backs but in general they stayed true to what they preached.

Politeness and respectfulness is learned by example, so most kids are usually imitating what they have seen at home and at school. This is why parents, educators and youth group leaders should practice politeness and respectfulness in front of the children.

Just some thoughts that passed through my mind today.

God Bless and peace to all.

Ray Barbier

Related articles
Posted on

All we do is lose the essence of who we are


rayraydRemember that child that saw the world as brand new and awesome,? Remember that child who had unbreakable faith and faced fear with conviction? Remember when you saw life as an adventure both in your imagination and day-to-day life? Remember when that child was forced to be hidden within you by society and your peers? Why does it have to be that we must put away the goodness of Ourselves in order to live in the world? Yes the bible speaks of putting away childish things, it was speaking of the immaturity of being a child and the naivety. The essence of who you are was formed during childhood and that part being a child we shouldn’t had left behind. We allow the stress, competition and rigidness of adult life to become more important than all our loves, friendships and even sometimes family. We keep who we are close to our vest and rarely show others who we truly are. We do such in hopes of protecting ourselves but in the end all we do is lose the essence of who we are.

We should be who we truly are and not hide the wondrous person god had made us to be. We may be ever-changing but there is a core of our personality we always have and should embrace. That silly, playful and all loving child within is the person God had meant us to be. That child that has no hate, anger or jealousy beyond a fleeting moment, that child that loves everyone and forgives quicker than he can be hurt. That child who looks for the goodness is everyone he meets. It takes a brave person to be and show their true self and that inner child.

Do not let the world and its cold rigidness hold back the warm and loving nature God has made within you. For its better to be a child of God than a person of the world.

Ray Barbier

Related articles
Posted on

Take a few moments out of each day


IMG_1387Take a few moments out of each day to tell those you love how you feel about them, let them know how special and important they are. Take a moment or two each day to be kind to friends and even strangers, be an example for others to follow and be a person you can be proud to be. Find happiness in the joy of others and help bring joy into all whom you meet along the way. When you begin to think negatively just think no over and over till the negative thought subsides and/or try to think or a more positive thought to take its place. Don’t complain about what is wrong, learn how to fix it or at least how to avoid it. Sometimes there are things you can not change, you do not have to accept them, you just have to learn to work around them.

Don’t be afraid to be yourself and embrace that silly child still within you. Do not become cynical and bitter for it will only put a wall between you and happiness.  Do not worry about grey hairs and wrinkles, they are part of aging. We are all unique in how we look, act, think and perceive this world.  To one you may look old, to another you may look young and you are good-looking to some and not to others. It is all superficial and really unimportant in the end. It is who you are inside and how you interact with this world along with how you treat others that counts. Plus to God all of us are beautiful and he loves us all for who and what we are. We should look at each other in that same way, love one another as is and know we are all beautiful and loved.

Inspire others to be kind, accepting and compassionate, teach others to love themselves and others unconditionally. Encourage others to be themselves and not just a carbon copy of the so-called popular or in crowd.

Ray Barbier

Related articles
Posted on

Live each day as if it was your first day and your last


024 We only have a short time to experience, enjoy and live our life. Some of us have longer some have shorter but in the grand scheme of things all our lifetimes are but a drop in an endless sea of time. This is why we shouldn’t hold on to negative emotions and thoughts for any length of time because they are usually a waste of energy and cause more harm to ourselves than it does to anyone else. We should cherish each moment we have, be thankful for each day we are blessed to wake and see. We should help one another and be kind, for if we all did such this world would be a much happier place to live in. We all want happiness and we all want happiness for our family and friends. Even though our vision of what happiness may vary in the end it’s all about living in peace and harmony with each other. Kind thoughts, words and actions are the key to happiness for both you and those you interact with. Sure there are some people for one reason or another choose to be bitter, unresponsive to kindness or love. But that shouldn’t sway you from the path of kindness, peace and love.

Live each day as if it was your first day and your last, See the world as a child and cherish is like a person who would die tomorrow. Look at everything in wonder like it’s the first time you’ve seen it. Watch the sunrise and enjoy it like you did as a young child. Embrace life and accept one another as is. For none of us truly knows when our day will come to meet our end. So many family members and friends I have had have already left this world. And so much was unsaid and undone.

Live each day as both the child and the elderly, keep wonder in your heart and be thankful as well as cherish each morning.

Ray Barbier

Related articles
Posted on

Thank you for being a part of my life


006To all my readers, friends, family and extended family, I pray that you have a merry Christmas. I also pray that in the new year to come you find peace within yourself, love for all living things including yourself. May you be guided by the hand of god and may his love fill your heart and lives. Know that I love every single one of you and that I know I have been blessed to have all of you in my life. I know I may not always have expressed how much you meant to me in the past because like everyone else I allowed the madness of modern life to keep me from the people and things that matter most. Thank you for being a part of my life and may God bless you all.

I know many of you will never see or read this post but I know within my heart you will feel it within your heart.

Merry Christmas to All

Ray Barbier

Related articles
Posted on

It’s the Gifts given to us through grace


p10114Time for Thanks is every day, the blessings of giving is also something to be enjoyed each day of our lives. The holidays of the season are here to remind us to be thankful for all are blessings through out the year and our lives.  It isn’t the gifts we receive on Christmas or the food we eat on thanksgiving it’s the Gifts given to us through grace and the thankful hearts we should have.

May each and every one of you enjoy the holidays to come and may God’s love fill your hearts throughout the season and throughout your remaining days here on earth. May you never forget to be thankful for the life you have and the Grace given to us all.

God Bless

Ray Barbier

Posted on

The reason for the season


p10121The holiday season is upon us and the sale ads are pouring out like a tropical storm. Time to go spend your hard-earned cash on Thanksgiving diner and Christmas presents. Just remember through out all of the spending frenzy and the sales the reason for the season. Thanksgiving is the day to give thanks for another year of survival and for the blessing of having food upon your table. Christmas of course is the celebrated day of our savior’s birth and the salvation he brought us all. Don’t get caught up in all the commercialization of the holidays and remember to focus on the family more than on the gifts you are going to give and receive.

May God bless your Holiday Season and Remember to Give thanks every day for the blessings in our life.

Happy Holidays

Ray Barbier

Related articles
Posted on

There is no guarantee we have tomorrow


jesus-christ-0206 Too many times we take those we love for granted, expect them to be there tomorrow and forget to show them how much we need, love and care about them. There is no guarantee we have tomorrow so we should show how much people mean to us today, we should never put off something as important as how we feel for one another till another day. God gave us the ability to love, care for and to help one another and we should use those gifts daily. We need to learn how to put our self and our ego’s behind us so that we can fully show our love and compassion for others.

We should live our lives, love others and be the best we can be for God and Jesus each day.

Raymond Barbier

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution By license.
Related articles
Posted on

Just some reflections on a Friday


May29^02Remembering those who have went home to god before us is natural and expected for we feel the loss of someone who was a big part of our lives. We shouldn’t remember them in sadness, we should remember them in happiness and with thankfulness that they were a part of our life for so long and we were blessed to have known them and loved them as well. Sure we feel like there is a big hole in our life now that they have passed on to the other side, but they still exist in our memories and in our selves because each person influences another and we all become a part of each other mentally and emotionally. They live within our memories and within our hearts, my dad may he rest in peace still is there to give advice and guide me through my memories of who and what he was. His influence upon my life still exists in me and it is a part of his legacy that lives on. I see my dad in my brother and my nephew as well, the influence he had on them shows in their mentality and even some of their actions. I see so much of my dad in myself as well, this is why I no longer mourn for my loss of my dad, he may not be here in physical form but he never left me in my mind and heart.

Just some reflections on a Friday

Ray Barbier

Related articles
Posted on

My dad taught me one last lesson


scan0002 The loss of a love one is always a hard thing for someone to cope with, no matter how close or estranged your relationship you had with the deceased you still had love as a bond between you. It has been almost 6 years since my dad passed away, even though the pain isn’t as severe within my heart it’s just as deep as it ever was. I thin about my dad often, funny though I don’t seem to think about his shortcomings, I think more about the times I spent with him as a child, teen and young adult years. I don’t care to remember the bad times because they don’t matter as much as the good times I had with him. I can remember his silly laugh and his kind heart he had. Unfortunately we did grow somewhat apart before his death, between me living my own life and my stupidity of holding on to mistakes both of us made in my early years and also my mom and him divorcing. I regret  I let such pet things stand in the way of my love for my dad, but in the end we did find peace between us and the last image I have of him was him with a childlike smile telling me good night.

Seems we never realize how silly or stupid we are about stuff until we loose a loved one and look back to see how much time was wasted on petty emotions such as anger and bitterness. It did teach me a lot losing my dad but it also cost me a lot in many ways as well. After 5+ years I have come close to being back to normal with a few omissions by choice and a few scars to remind me of my mistakes. My dad taught me one last lesson through his passing away, he taught me never to take anyone you love for granted for you never know when their number or even yours will come up.

Thank you Dad (Stephen M. Barbier) for everything you did for me, how hard you worked for us all. And may you Rest in peace knowing we all love and remember you as the good-hearted man you truly were.

Ray Barbier

Related articles
Website Built with WordPress.com.