LET'S SEE WHAT BRIDGET MENEREZ SAYS ABOUT GROWING OLD.

Do you fear of growing old?

Are you satisfied with how you look?  Does your self-esteem revolve around your physical appearance?

This is  time to broaden your concept of beauty.  Love your body – it is the extraordinary instrument through which your spirit expresses itself.

In the world today, millions are being spent by both men and women on their body, whether its botox or liposuction or whatever processes that make them outwardly beautiful.

Accept ageing with grace.  Accept what you see in the mirror.  Be at peace with yourself as you let go of impossible self-imposed.   

Live in the present, not in the past (how you used to look) or the future (how you will look when you find time for more exercises).

One of the many fears in life is of growing old.  Too many, youth means life; age means death.

Fear robs men of their courage, enthusiasm and hope.  The secret to a full life is to have no fear of death.

How does one rid oneself of fears?  It is with knowledge and understanding.  Take a look at the fear of ageing.

When  man incorrectly identifies himself as a physical body, he becomes afraid, however, when he experiences himself as an immortal spiritual being, the fear of death disappears.

When I am in my state of self-respect, I am internally stable, whatever the situation outside may be.

Even insults do not stop me from moving forward.

True beauty is long lasting, and is not destroyed by age. It is reflected not in physical features, but in spiritual qualities such as contentment, happiness and peace.

The inner beauty is reflected on the outside.

Unlike physical features, spiritual qualities improve with the passage of time.

The sun 27/2/12.

Personally, I like to read articles from this author.  I won’t miss to get The Sun on every Monday at the 7e. The words are easy to understand and mostly reminding us on happiness, love, peace and contentment in life.

The topic today is very interesting – about getting old. Yes, if we were to sit down and try to imagine of how our ageing life would be...it scares us. Will we be healthy throughout or will be full of sickness ..or worse still, will we become a vegetable..with life totally depending on others.  Will our family take good care of us...Those are the questions that will always linger in our mind, immaterial to whether we say it out loud or not.  Islam teaches us to always remember of death, for, that way it reminded us the need to  improve the qualities of our remaining life. It teaches us to become more closer to The Al Mighty, and the most important thing is to purify our heart from any sorts ill feelings.  Anything bad comes from the heart.  This is because the heart acts faster than the mind.  So dear heart...be good to your master.

It pains us to see our family or friends who has to suffer because of illness and the initiatives taken by the people around them to care for the sick. The difficulties face by the family in the everyday life..with lots of patience and strength needed to care for them. But the greatest value will come when the care given is with full of TLC (tender loving care). As we know’ many a time the person who cares for the sick becomes more sick mentally that the sick...and then we run out of patience.

I experienced of taking care of the sick..of my late mother-in-law in her earlier dymentia. Then of my late mother when she was warded at Hosp Putrajaya after an operation of the hip bones.  She was mourning of pain and I was there accompanying her.  I remembered a Kelantan Chinese lady (spoke very good malay) saying that I was very patience attending to my late mom. Actually in that situation, what can I do?  Get angry with her? Well, she was expressing her pain and I have to understand her conditions. Discharged after that.

On my retirement day, she was warded at Hosp Serdang.  I was at the hospital with her. I remembered well, after having sleepless nites, I intended to go back to sis’s place to have  some hours sleep. It was ramadhan and I wanted to wait until she had fallen asleep and I would go. After breaking fast, I went to Alamanda Putrajaya to buy her needs.  Came back and waited for her to sleep. I noticed that her breathing was fast. Called the nurse, they attended to her and shortly after that, she drew the last breath. I would have regretted so much should I have gone back and left her alone. The nite before that, while having sahur, I was watching the TV at the ward about orang yang nazak – that we shouldn’t cry and let them go peacefully...because pemergiannya adalah untuk menyahut panggilan  Yang Maha Esa. It was as though that the message was a reminder to me. About 1 month later, my mother-in-law passed away.

Yes, you need a lot of patience, endurance and strength to care for aged and the sick, especially in  dymentia.  The frequently same asked questions that you have to answer. At least, in all I have  the experiences of taking care of the aged and the sick...

Well, that much that I can share about getting through old age...

Pujangga Bahagia...

" Kita melihat kebahagiaan  itu seperti pelangi,

tidak pernah berada di atas kepala sendiri,

tetapi akan selalu berada di atas kepala orang lain" 

Thomas Hardy

Dear Heart...

Giving someone all your love is never an assurance that 

they’ll love you back.

Don’t expect love in return.

Just wait for it to grow 

in their heart.

But if it doesn’t.....

Be content that it grew in yours.

WHAT BRIDGET MENEREZ SAYS....

TREASURES  IN  LIFE 

The greatest treasure in life in love, peace and happiness.

To increases these treasures, give them away.  Even if you have only one virtue, share and watch it grow.

For example, if I want to be tolerant and I do not have this in abundance, then, whatever opportunity I have, I must practise it and then it will certainly start to increase.

When we give or share with wrong motives, then, whatever we do, is never satisfying or beneficial for the self.  We may feel that others are ungrateful, insensitive, even selfish but the real problem is that we are ignorant of our wrong motives.

Wrong motives are based on ‘How do I gain from this?’.  If the central motives of my life is “to get”, then I can rest assured that I will never get anything.

When we extend our energy in our dealing with others, we do so without selfish motives because energy is self-renewing.  It never gets drained, on the contrary, we become refreshed.

Instead of thinking about what I want to get, I need to pay more attention to what I have, so that I can do my best using these resources to acquire what I want.  thus, I will experience progress in my life, whether the situations are positive or not.

Giving happiness, a word of solace, a word of hope, enthusiasm, zeal and self-confidence are great acts of charity.  Even though it may not be possible to give material support, powerful positive thoughts will support others and they will be able to stand up and face various adverse situations in life.

Emerson said it well: “ Rings and jewels are not gifts, but apologies for gifts.  The only gift is a portion of thyself”.

Bridget Menerez is the author of Self-Empowerement and Spiritual Counsellor. her articles appear  every Mondays on The Sun.

MAHOGANY FRUITS...

 

Herbal Use of Mahogany

Mahogany fruits has flavonoids and substances called saponins. Flavonoids is useful for blood circulation, so for people with a disease that causes congestion of blood flow could use this fruit as a medicine. Flavonoids efficacy is also able to reduce cholesterol, the accumulation of fat in blood vessels, reduce pain, bleeding and bruises, and act as antioxidants to eliminate free radicals.

Meanwhile, saponins have efficacy as a pest deterrent, could also be used to reduce the fat in the body, helps boost the immune system, prevent blood clotting, and strengthen heart function and slow the blood clotting process.

Now a lot of mahogany fruit sold in mahogany extract form. Mahogany efficacy could also increase breasts size and very useful to smoothen the skin.

Mahogany could also heal:

• High blood pressure (hypertension),
• Lack of appetite,
• Fever;
• Diabetes (Diabetes Mellitus),
• Cold,
• Ekzema,
• Rheumatism

Utilization of Mahogany, parts used are seeds of mahogany which is dried and finely grounded into powder.

Usage:
Powdered mahogany seed is consumed by drinking 1 / 2 teaspoon.

Specific usage:

1. Hypertension and Low Appetite. 8 grams of freshly brewed beans with 2 cups hot water. After the temperature lowers, then the brew is filtered and divided into 2 parts. The mahogany brew is to be consumed in the morning and afternoon. We could also use 1 / 2 teaspoon of powdered mahogany added with hot water and also 1 tablespoon of honey. Drink while warm, 2-3 times a day.
2. Diabetes. 1 / 2 teaspoon of powdered mahogany seeds and 1 / 3 cup of hot water. Drink while warm, 30 minutes before eating 2-3 times a day.

Mahogany seeds, also known as "sky fruit" seeds to those who are native to the areas where mahogany trees grow, are familiar with taking these seeds as part of a varied and healthful diet. People grind the seeds into powder and drink them with water. Now mahogany seeds are more widely available, often in capsule form, as a dietary supplement. Mahogany seeds contain 33 types of flavonoids and 27 types of saponins, making them even more nutritionally rich that other nutrient-dense plants, such as their relative ginseng. They also contain various vitamins, minerals, proteins and fatty acids that are necessary to healthy body function.

Blood Sugar Regulation

• Another positive benefit of mahogany seeds is their effect on regulating blood sugar. For diabetics, taking 1/2 tsp. powdered mahogany seed with warm water before a meal may help keep their blood sugar steady. The various saponins contained by the mahogany plant are directly responsible for helping even out the blood sugar of those who take the seed internally.

Other Uses

• Mahogany fruit extract and powdered mahogany seed are both nutritional supplements that can be taken for various positive results. The health benefits of mahogany fruit and seeds include: fighting free radicals with antioxidants, lowering fat build up in the bloodstream, lowering cholesterol levels and enhancing the immune system. Taking a regular mahogany seed supplement can help you improve your health in numerous ways, and thus lead to a better general well-being.