“Ask for what you want and be prepared to get it!”
                                                                                  ---Maya Angelou
 
The Lenten season offers us another opportunity to implement positive practices that will last long after the 40 days of the season. Many people’s New Year’s resolutions have already put aside. Now is a good time to reboot, possibly change the approach to reaching your goals. I suggest you “give up” being defeated and go forward with your plan of action.
 
For the past few weeks I have been reflecting on ideas for creating miracles in everyday life as suggested in Dr. Dyer’s book Real Magic. Implement a few of those concepts will offer us success in making positive changes. The world is starving for positive experiences with their own families, with their friends, and in their work and leisure environments. We can offer hope to many as positive changes are observed. Another practice from Dr. Dyer’s book Real Magic.
 

•  Learn to act as if the life you visualize were already here.

 
“Act as if that which you perceive in your mind were already here in the physical world. You create your thoughts, your thoughts create your intentions, your intentions create your reality. If you want to be energetic and you act fatigued, you are sabotaging your own vision.”
 
I believe affirmations can turn mere thinking into actual achievement by affirming our goals are already being manifested. Many miracles have happened in my life by using this practice. Below are just a few I achieved with daily affirmations. If you are a long-time follower of my blog these were mentioned before but they were for me powerful confirmations of this practice.
 
I am attracting a spouse into my life that wants to have a family, enjoy living a lifetime together and support me in my passion for living life to the fullest. When I was 19 years old I started saying this in the Jesuit Church in downtown New Orleans. Fifty-three years of marriage to my wife, the marriage and family life we share, are true testaments that this tool is effective.
 
When I returned home from Europe after two years of military service, I sought  a job in sales. Since nothing seemed available, I took a job that was “in an office.” That certainly did not fulfill my dreams or satisfy my ambitions. I started saying  the following affirmation: I am going on an interview for a Marketing Position and I will soon get this opportunity. To get the ball rolling I met with an employment agency to put in an application to work in sales. When I returned to the office of my employment the Regional Sales Manager called me into his office with the current Market Manager for the local area. Much to my amazement the Market Manager asked if I would be interested in taking over his territory because he was leaving the company. I retired from that position 43 years later.
 
After retirement Jeanne and I wanted to be a part of a group of people to gather together monthly and enjoy social activities around the city. We both affirmed the following I am attracting a group of people to celebrate life to the fullest in our retirement years.  Shortly after that we were invited to attend a meeting of people who had the same intentions. We were amazed that this happened as quickly as it did. As of this year 2021, that original group of 13 couples will be celebrating their 14th Anniversary of enjoying many social activities which have also included local and worldwide travel.
 
Affirmations work even if you have to fake it until you make it. They may seem impossible but just try it! Turn the negative thought into a positive affirmation. This seems to train the brain to believe what you are affirming is possible for you to achieve.
 
I would suggest you take time to listen to the conversations of many people who start their day with the same negative routine, commenting how tired and bad they feel; how the news has them so depressed. It has practically become an affirmation and can easily become a habit of which they are totally unaware. The opportunity is… to turn that day and that life around by saying an affirmation regarding the great things that are expected to happen. The following are a few suggestions:
 
 
I feel tired when I wake up.
I am feeling great after my first cup of coffee.
 
I have many aches and pains.
I am looking  forward to my daily exercise program that helps me to focus on my wellness.
 
I am depressed with the condition of the country.
I am reading inspirational resources about people doing so many great things during troubling times. 
 
Give daily affirmations a try for the next 40 days. It will offer you the opportunity to make positive changes that will have a definite impact on your life long after the Lenten season. You may want to share this post with family and friends so that you will have others participating in making positive changes in their lives for Lent.
 

​“Solution dreams can help you overcome obstacles that are preventing you from growing into your full potential.”
                                                                                            --- Pamela Cummins
 
Unfortunately Dream work is thought to be  done primarily by people who have explored metaphysical teachings. The following supports the credibility of Dream interpretation that I encourage my grandchildren to practice.
 
This quote is from biblestudy.org by Lawrence Luna “In Psychology, we have to understand the symbols in our dreams so that when we know it, we can identify its significance in our lives. Mastery of dream interpretation takes time and will undergo dream work exercises before you can master it. As you deal with guidance of dream specialist or psychotherapist (in the field of Psychology, not in occult groups) is much needed because if not guided, it may cause psychological problems and from that the psychological growth of the person will be at risk.”
 
One of the most common means used in Scripture to convey His will is through dreams (Numbers 12:6).
 
In my experience, resolving issues that come up in my dreams does assist me in achieving goals.
 
I did not deal with my fear-based dreams for many years that caused terrifying nightmares. Fortunately or providentially I met a Jesuit Priest who assisted me in interpreting my dreams. He suggested I start to journal my dreams and then look up the symbols. Through this process I got a better understanding of the source that created these recurring dreams. This happened thirty years ago.
 
I still use these resources when I talk to my grandchildren about their dreams. The first step for them is to write down their dream as soon as they awaken.(Initially we explore their dreams together.)  I then have them choose the symbols from the dream that seem most significant. These strongest symbols clue them in to the message the dream is giving them. It is gratifying to see their eyes light up when they get the message.
 
My Dream work continues to assist me in dealing with issues I am often not aware of on a conscious level. The following was a dream I had last week.
 
I was in a bookstore. A Catholic nun who was bubbly, happy, and very friendly starting talking to me. She said she loved doing what she did in life. She placed her hand over my heart and started massaging it. I said to her, “Are you a healer?” I told her it felt like something inside me has been healed.
 
I immediately wrote down the dream and picked out a few symbols to look up in my Dream book.
Nun. Aspect of personality that is giving up something but know it is the best choice for you.
Heart. Unconditional love, healing.
In one of my recent blog postings I suggested writing down anything we wanted to release as we begin a new year. I suggested tearing it up or shredding it.
 
I spent some time reflecting on what I needed to let go of and was ready to be healed within myself. I am basically a flexible person. I basically go along with the flow of life. But I thought about situations in which I get angry and have a difficult time moving on.
 
These situations basically arise when I experience what I perceive to be an injustice being imposed on someone I love. I spent time reflecting on my entire life and wrote down every event or circumstance I judged to be such a situation. I then shredded the list. This dream helped me clear up these issues from the past and allowed a healing to happen, removing any possible blocks to my goals for 2021.
 

 
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​“Two roads diverged in a wood and I – I took the one
less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.”
                                                                   ---Robert Frost
 
In 1982 the book The Road Less Traveled by Scott Peck was released, and it became an immediate best seller. I enthusiastically purchased a copy. It really spoke to me. It connected the dots in the way life was unfolding for me. My curiosity about so many aspects of life led me to workshops and experiences of personal growth that most of my friends and acquaintances had no interest in pursuing.
 
The following  are comments made about the book.
 "The Road Less Traveled" will make you realize that you CAN take charge of your life and your destiny. It is a journey toward self-acceptance that will affirm that life is worth living. It is one of the best books…
 
What does "take the Road Less Traveled by" mean?
Metaphorically speaking, someone who takes 'the road less traveled' is acting independently, freeing themselves from the conformity of others (who choose to take 'the road more often traveled'), generally making their own choices, and perhaps leaving a new trail that will become the road more often traveled (until, of course, someone takes the road ...”
 
Four years ago in November I took a risk of choosing a different path after retiring by publishing my first Positive Pops blog posting. I intended to write “my story” so my grandchildren would get to know about my life’s journey. They supported me by telling a few of their friends to check out my Pops’ blog.
 
I am amazed how ideas for the blog most often surface after I have journaled and meditated. The success I am currently experiencing comes from a support team who volunteered to travel with me.
 
On my fourth anniversary of Positive Pops I am grateful for the following helpful fellow travelers. My son-in-law, George, owner of GK Photography graciously handled all the technical work to set up the entire Positive Pops website and blog. He periodically updates the family pictures on my blog, which I promise is much easier than taking those family pictures of the 16 of us!
 
I am not a fluent writer, in terms of form. I just let the pen flow as I write my thoughts and stories then send the posting to my wife Jeanne’s computer for editing. Recently our friend Doug offered to do the final proofreading. Several weeks ago Roy, our good friend and a retired teacher, who has always had a passion for still life photography, offered to provide me with his beautiful photographic artwork for me to share on my blog.
 
The Hummingbird on last week’s blog posting “I Can Do It” is one of Roy’s most amazing photographs. Every week my loyal followers typically share my posting on Facebook. This posting was shared by 256 first-time readers with their family and friends throughout the country. It reached 11,000 people. Comments continue to come in daily.
Hopefully this success story will offer encouragement to you to explore the benefits of taking the road less traveled. Just think out of the box, explore new ideas to help change your world and surely that change will impact our world with positive possibilities.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
“If you paint in your mind a picture of bright and happy expectations,
 you put yourself into a condition conducive to your goal.”
---Norman Vincent Peale

When our friend Roy who now lives in Tennessee retired from his teaching career, he started spending much of his free time capturing the beauty of flowers, wildlife and nature in beautiful still life photography. He does this as a hobby and has no interest in marketing his artwork. He generously offered me availability of his artwork for use on my blog postings. His work stirs in me the same positive feelings as when I walk in nature. In the beauty of nature I am assured that there is surely a God that connects me to the Universal God presence in all things. The title he gave to the photo above is, Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow. That says it all, doesn’t it?
 
When we are in a positive environment of nature it is easy to see everything in rose colored glasses. Many readers of my blog have mentioned that they are amazed that I can see the positive perspective of so many things when we are living in such challenging times.
 
I have already written about several of the things I do daily. As I reflect over past years,  there were many turning points that helped me achieve this state of mind. When I was in school, I had no interest in doing any more reading than what was absolutely required.
 
Once I started my career in marketing, one of the very first books I read and have kept on my bookshelf is The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peale. It was published in 1952 and remained on the New York’s Best Seller book list for 182 weeks. The message is as pertinent today as when the book was first published 67 years ago. It certainly whetted my appetite for inspirational reading and that has been a passion of mine since.
 
I am not going to go into detail about the book. I do want to say that it greatly influenced me to start thinking, acting, and reacting positively. It is the way I want to encourage our grandchildren to think and process situations in their lives. Every positive thought and action taken will make this world a better place for all of us!
 
Listed below are a few of the titles of the chapters in this powerful book. You may want to reflect on them to see if they offer something you have already implemented yesterday or plan to do so today or tomorrow.
 

• Believe in Yourself
• A peaceful Mind Generates Power
• Try Prayer Power
• Expect the Best and Get It
• How to Break the Worry Habit
• Inflow of New Thoughts Can Remake You

 
 

​“He was free. All he had to do was let go of the chains.”
---Jody Hedlund
 
Looking back on my life I reflected on what I would consider the one thing I would change or do differently. For me it would be somehow learning more about my parents’ upbringing while they were still with me. Their family history influenced who they were and that became their school of learning on how they raised me and the values they felt were most important to instill in me.
 
There was an innate goodness about them that automatically surfaced from their heritage and resulted in their being loving and caring parents. As an adult I realized there were other factors that influenced intangibles or imperceptible behaviors that we don’t realize affect us.   It was the hidden fears my mother experienced as a child that she did not have control of that I absorbed. My dad experienced abandonment and insecurity when his mother died giving birth to her eighth child. The baby died also. His brothers and sisters were raised by different family members in different households.
 
Life seems to have a way of putting you in situations that force you to deal with issues that your parents never dealt with. In my case these issues were my mother’s fears and my dad’s insecurities.
It took me a long time to realize that those same issues were transmitted to me, very subtlety but most assuredly. I was forced to deal with my parents fears and insecurities when my father was on dialysis and dying. They could not make any decisions and they relied on me totally. That put a tremendous amount of pressure on me.
 
At the time of my father’s illness and passing, my job was threatened by a merger. I was awakened many nights by nightmares. It took me a long time to admit to myself that I needed professional help. That is when I started in therapy and sought a spiritual director and a therapist. This was the best gift I gave to myself and hopefully to our children and grandchildren. It helped me to face my issues and deal with them in a constructive way.
 
If we do not face the issues and let go of the chains that bind us we will continue to transmit them to those we love. To quote a priest I greatly admire, “If you do not transform your pain, you will transmit it.” Our parents were certainly not aware of this. I would venture to say they did not even realize their issues much less realize that they could or should deal with them in a healthy way. But today that is not the case. There are so many resources available both professionally and in self-help tools. No one’s childhood is perfect. No one’s life is without missteps, wrong turns, or misfortunes. But we can each strive to be the best we can be and seek the tools that enable us to live fulfilling lives.
 
It is a lot easier to have a second and third cocktail, eat and stuff our emotions, or distract ourselves with the latest gadgets and fashionable acquisitions. Unfortunately, the consequences of these escape will never lead us to the changes necessary to truly live a life of abundance and break free of the chains that unconsciously control our lives.   
You may want to write down in your note book everything you love about your parents. On the other side of the page write down things you think held them back from reaching their full potential.
​  
You have a great opportunity to stop passing this on by finding the best tools available to help you release all chains from past generations in your life. This will be the best gift you can give to your children, family,
friends and future generations!

​With realization of one's own potential and self-confidence
in one's ability, one can build a better world.
Dalai Lama
 

The following message came from our daughter after returning from the awards celebration at the school our grandson attends, Christian Brothers School, St Anthony Campus.
 
“I'm so proud of my boy. Jack has worked very hard this year and he received the Brother Amedy Award today. This award is given to one boy in each homeroom that exhibits outstanding scholarship, effort, and character both in and out of the classroom. He also ended the school year being on the “A” honor roll.”
 
Of course, as grandparents we are proud of his achievements but the story behind the scene is what makes this an amazing lesson for all of us.
 
While Jack was in a previous school the “A” students were awarded in class with snacks for their achievements. It broke my heart when I picked Jack up from school and he said he wasn’t one of the brighter kids because he did not receive a snack.
 
The atmosphere and the leadership of his current school focuses on emphasizing the positive, motivating and appreciating their staff and the students. Each student is made to feel they have unlimited potential. Jack could be a poster child that this philosophy works.
I was not a high academic achiever in school but because of the support and encouragement I received from my family I never once thought I could not achieve anything I wanted in life.
 
We all have the potential to change the lives of people we encounter daily. It is through this one-on-one influence that we can help change the world. So much of our time is spent discussing what is not working in government, schools and our communities. We sometimes lose hope that we can create a positive change in the world. We can!
 
It’s the simple things that can make a big difference. Last week I told the cashier at the grocery that I chose her checkout line because I noticed how fast she was. She smiled and replied, “I try hard to get my customers out as quickly as possible.” Whenever I experience outstanding service I call the company and speak to the manager so that their employee is recognized as an asset in their success.
 
We have the opportunity every day to bring out the best in our family, employees, and friends by “catching them doing something right.” This affirmative action can create a positive rippling effect on how they bring out the best in others.
 
 
 
 

​Happy is the man who finds a true friend, and far happier is he who finds that true friend in his wife.
 Franz Schubert


August 19, 1967 was a day that I had no doubt that God was present in my life. I still feel that way as we begin day one of our 50th year of celebrating our marriage and love we share for one another. I want to express my appreciation for the other half of Positive Pops, my wife in this posting. 

  We are a living proof that opposites attract and with hard work, communication and flexibility it can be a wonderful life together. We have been told by our spiritual intuitive friend Mary Jo “We came into this life to ride a bicycle for two.” Our friends and family say we are a Velcro couple because we enjoy and do so much together. We’re not sure if they mean that as a compliment or not!
 
My gift of being positive, creative and enthusiastic about experiencing everything certainly challenges someone who enjoys being home and is perfectly content to occasionally go out to a movie or a restaurant. Jeanne loves creating memories for the grandchildren by keeping photo albums from their birth to their current age for all eight of them. She is the behind the scene editor of my blog postings and she is a fantastic cook. Sometimes it seems the sound of the washing machine is music to her ears! Our children can verify that.
 
In spite of our differences in our comfort zones we have both learned to be flexible. We have traveled around the country and taken several trips to Europe. We have a social network of young minded seniors, the Good Timers, who enjoy eating out, attending theater, dancing, and actually innumerable events just to have “a good time.” I have also learned to enjoy quiet, down time at home. 
 
The keys to any successful experience in life include determination, tools, discipline and a driving passion to succeed. That is why I offer the readers of my blog many different tools from my toolbox that I have used with success. These same tools can be used to make a good marriage great, especially if we are both embracing them. For example our Dream Board is done together so we can manifest in our lives what we both enjoy doing.
 
Since I am talking today about our celebration of marriage I scanned our bookcases in the Living Room and quickly noticed a book co-authored by Fr. Charles Gallagher Embodied in Love. In our early years of marriage we were blessed to work closely with him for five years giving Marriage Encounter weekends and workshops. He was driven by his passion to make good marriages great.
 
Another quote in the book Embodied in Love is from, Andrew Greely author of The Denominational Society, “The perception of intimacy between the parents was the key factor more important than sending the children to Catholic (or any other denomination) schools, more important than family prayers, more important even than the parents’ going regularly to Sunday mass.”
 
One of Fr. Chuck’s memorable sayings was "The most important gift you can give to your children is for them to see the love you have for one another."
 
These same words come alive in creating great friendships and a close knit family. When we gather around people who appreciate us and bring out the best in us God’s presence becomes real. It is this environment this world is hungry to experience. We may feel helpless with the negativity in the news but we can be a positive influence by loving and being truly present to the people with whom we choose to spend our time.
 
Today you may want to write a note to someone you are close to and let them know a quality in them that you admire. For those of you enjoying wedded bliss you may want to write a love letter expressing the gift of that special relationship in your life and the qualities in that person that you truly experience and appreciate.
 

​ 
Great things are happening all around us. When we lose focus on our blessings we begin to magnify the negative things happening in our lives and in the world. Lately the local and world news could certainly put even an optimistic preacher like Joel Osteen in a state of despair.
 
Yesterday we watched our grandchildren while their parents went to the orientation for a new school their children will attend this year. When their parents came back home they were so fired up and excited it seemed as though they had just attended a motivational seminar.
 
All schools are confronted with the same challenges of educating young leaders who can and will change the world. The difference in their experience with this school is the positive approach by the great leadership. Teachers are inspired to be the best they can be for their students. These motivated teachers will influence their students to achieve higher levels of learning than they thought they were capable of attaining. In this kind of environment positive leaders are molded. Experiencing their excitement motivated me to reassess how I evaluate success in my own endeavors and implement the following changes in my mindset.

• I am a success driven person and I am empowered by the goals I am reaching, the accomplishments I am achieving. I am determined to move forward with what I truly believe in regardless of my judgement of the level of success I am experiencing.

• I am resolving now to continue to share my positive experience with others but to truly “Let Go and Let God.” I have high expectation of others. It has been difficult in the past for me to accept the reality if they do not want for themselves what I think would create a better life for them.

• I will seek out speakers, seminars and experiences that offer positive possibilities so I can then share these insights in blog postings. 

• I will take more risk in spite of my feelings and not allow a fear of failure to stifle my creativity and talents.

 
By doing these things I hope to become a true influence for positive change.
Inspiring Motivational Quotes on Leadership
Jeff Haden, Contributing Editor, Inc.

Here are some of my favorite leadership quotes. Tweet them, share them, but most important, use them to help you become an even better leader than you already are:

• “To handle yourself, use your head; to handle others, use your heart.”Eleanor Roosevelt
• “Example is not the main thing in influencing others. It is the only thing.” Albert Schweitzer
• “The greatest leader is not necessarily the one who does the greatest things. He is the one that gets the people to do the greatest things.” Ronald Regan
  
• “Don’t tell people how to do things, tell them what to do and let them surprise you with their results.” George Patton

 
I want to thank so many of my readers who have offered me support by writing in the comment section or sending me emails with positive resource information. As a result of being given that information I have increased my resources in my toolbox that I can share with others. A recent resource I received is a guide offered by Harvard Medical on Positive Psychology.  One topic of immediate interest was Feeling Young at Heart May Help You to Live Longer.
 
You may want to jot down your leadership attributes and how you can influence others through your example. Many of those leaders are living under your roof.