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SPELL SUCCESS IN YOUR LIFE>
SPELL SUCCESS - LIVE FOR TODAY
Spell SUCCESS E-Zine
by Peter Colwell © 2008
LIVE FOR TODAY
ISSUE 19
Welcome to the "Spell SUCCESS" e-newsletter, a publication
designed to give you insights and ideas for more effective
living. Thank you for being a subscriber and reader. Please
feel free to forward this newsletter to family, friends,
and colleagues who are interested in self-improvement!
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THOUGHT TO PONDER
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"Just for today I will be unafraid, especially I will not
be afraid to be happy, to enjoy what is beautiful, to love,
and to believe that those I love, love me."
- SYBYL PARTRIDGE (from poem "Just for Today")
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Hello everyone!
Let me preface this newsletter by saying HOW WONDERFUL IT
IS TO BE ALIVE!
Last month, I went camping with my wife Trevia and two
children (Peter, age 5 and Vanessa, 10 months). It has
become a tradition over the last 5 years to venture out
into the woods each summer for a camping expedition. We
have been to the Catoctin Mountains and Greenbrier State
Park the last few years. This year, we tried a place called
Deep Creek Lake State Park in Swanton, Maryland (located on
the western tip of Maryland in Garrett County). Deep Creek
Lake boasts a 3,900-acre lake with beautiful vacation
rentals lining the area. It attracts many visitors each
summer and in fact offers plenty of activities year round.
The first 4 days of our 5-day trip offered plenty of
opportunities to swim in their fresh lake, go hiking on
various trails, see some red-tailed hawks and screech owls,
cook over a campfire, and even see a couple of shooting
stars on a clear night. And the weather was perfect; not
too hot, and no thunderstorms.
It was on the beginning of our last day when things really
got interesting. Rather than edit the e-mail sent to my
coworkers the following day, I will leave everything in
word for word...
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Date: June 13, 2008
Subject: Bear Encounter!
"Just wanted to share with you the incredible events of
yesterday at Deep Creek! We woke up at 6:30am to the sound
of a "visitor" to our camp site. The "visitor" was about 8
feet tall and weighed between 400 and 500 pounds - a black
bear!!!!!
I heard some rumbling and then a loud thud (it was the bear
knocking over our ice cooler which had drinks in it!).
Trevia peered out the screen of the tent and whispered a
play-by-play of what was happening. The bear came as close
as 2 feet from her (the front of our tent) and made a hole
in the netting of the clubhouse next to us where we store
our food (in sealed containers). The bear then grabbed a
zip lock bag with its teeth consisting of Vanessa's food
(Gerber oatmeal, rice cereal, and Zwieback toast) and
walked about 20 feet away to feast on Vanessa's food.
At this point, I was up on my feet (inside the tent, of
course) and could see the monstrous bear devouring the
food. Words cannot describe what we were feeling at that
moment! There was one other group of campers a little down
the road from us that saw the whole thing going on and
stood frozen in their tracks, watching the bear's every
move!
Luckily, the kids were asleep during all this. We watched
the bear finish all the food in the bag it had taken, and
then... proceeded directly toward our tent, presumably for
more food. Moment of truth!! Luckily, I had a whistle with
me in the tent which I brought with me in case I
encountered a bear (which I never in a million years
dreamed would actually happen). As the bear approached
within 10-15 feet, I blew the whistle as loudly as I could.
The bear stopped in its tracks, startled, then moved
forward another step. I kept blowing maybe 10-15 more times
as loudly as possible, and the bear retreated and moved in
the opposite direction, and luckily kept going.
As soon as the coast was clear, we swooped the kids out of
the tent and into the van just to play it safe, and we saw
the bear at the top of the hill walk away with three of its
cubs following behind... It took us several hours for our
adrenaline levels to get back to normal!
Needless to say, we cut our trip short a night early (we
had already been there 4 nights, so we got our money's
worth, as we had a blast up to that point). We didn't want
to take any chances on a return visit the following night,
especially since the bear knew we had food on our campsite.
Trevia was so dazed by what happened that she drove home in
the wrong direction (I was equally dazed and didn't
notice), and what should have been a 3-hour trip home took
us 7 hours. We got a scenic tour of West Virginia though -
lovely this time of year!
It's good to be home (and safe)! Next stop, Boston!
Peter
P.S. I had a camera and should have taken a picture but was
afraid of drawing attention in case the flash went off!
It's ok though - the image is well imprinted in my mind!"
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GROW FROM YOUR EXPERIENCES
Encountering that bear was without question the scariest
moment of my life (and equally so for my wife, who was
first to peer out at the bear rummaging through our
campsite). We were on the one hand, fascinated and, on the
other hand, frightened out of our minds. But luckily, we
were able to keep our composure, and utilize the resources
we had available (in this case, a whistle!), and things
worked out in our favor.
One major benefit of confronting my fear head on (and
living to tell the story!) is that it has given me a
renewed sense of confidence in being able to handle any
challenge life throws my way. It has also made me realize
how precious life is, and thereby encourages me to avoid
putting off doing the things I really want to do in life.
What challenges are you facing in your life right now? How
can you turn a seemingly negative experience into a
positive one? Napoleon Hill, author of Think and Grow Rich,
is famous for saying that "every adversity... carries
within it the seed of an equivalent or greater benefit."
What are some common things people are fearful of?
• Rejection/Disapproval of others
• Other people’s opinions of them
• Failing/falling short of expectations
• Making a fool of oneself
• Too much responsibility
• Asking for what you want
Surpassing your fear of something builds confidence in your
ability to confront other fears in your life – and to meet
them head on! Susan Jeffers, in her famous book Feel the
Fear and Do It Anyway, encourages people to practice
confronting those areas of our lives where we feel
uncomfortable – and doing something to improve them.
Success breeds success. Confidence in one area of your life
leads to confidence in all areas of your life!
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"TODAY IS LIFE – the only life you are sure of. Make the
most of today. Get interested in something. Shake yourself
awake. Develop a hobby. Let the winds of enthusiasm sweep
through you. Live today with gusto!"
- from the writings of DALE CARNEGIE
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BOOK RECOMMENDATION!
A good friend and mentor of mine by the name of Larry Welch
recently published a book, Quotations for Positive People.
This book is a collection of quotes that Larry has
researched over the last several years and used in his
newsletter On The Run. I first met Larry in 1998. He was my
instructor in a Speechcraft Workshop I took at the Navy
Yard in Washington, D.C. Larry encouraged me to stick with
public speaking and turned me on to Toastmasters
International, a worldwide organization dedicated to
improving people’s speaking and leadership skills. My
involvement in Toastmasters was instrumental in developing
my career as a motivational speaker and author.
A humanitarian, Larry feeds the homeless, promotes programs
to find a cure for breast cancer, and runs marathons to
raise money to help those suffering from spina bifida,
kidney disease, Downs syndrome, and leukemia. Proceeds from
book sales are donated to The Blue Dragon Children's
Foundation, Hanoi, Vietnam, to benefit street children with
medical care, housing, education, and job training. You
can order your copies from www.trafford.com (the publisher)
or go to www.amazon.com. This book is an excellent volume
for speakers, writers, and those who like to read and think
positive thoughts. The book sells for $18, and is well
worth the investment!
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"Look to this day! For it is life, the very life of life.
In its brief course lie all the verities of your existence:
The bliss of growth, The glory of action, The splendor of
beauty. For yesterday is but a dream and tomorrow is only a
vision. But today well lived makes every yesterday a dream
of happiness and every tomorrow a vision of hope. Look
well, therefore, to this day!"
- KALIDASA
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CLOSING THOUGHTS
Remember: Live for today! Make the most of every moment and
every opportunity. Grow from your experiences, surpass your
fears, and savor the joy of being alive! To quote Dale
Carnegie once again: "Let the winds of enthusiasm sweep
through you!"
See you next time,
Peter
Peter Colwell helps organizations turn negatives into
POSITIVES! Peter is the author of Spell SUCCESS in Your
Life, a highly acclaimed motivational book, published in
Argentina, Romania, China, India, Thailand, Indonesia, and
South Korea. Peter offers professional keynote speeches,
seminars, and workshops to corporations, associations, and
nonprofit groups.
For more details about his book and speeches, visit
http://www.PeterColwell.com.
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