Category Archives: Inspirational

Why does Rice play Texas?

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Some may ask why a small school like Rice University plays such a big school like the University of Texas.  JFK said why…

… But why, some say, the moon? Why choose this as our goal? And
they may well ask why climb the highest mountain? Why, 35 years ago, fly
the Atlantic? Why does Rice play Texas?

We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this
decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because
they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the
best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we
are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which
we intend to win, and the others, too.

John F. Kennedy – September 12, 1962 – Rice University Stadium

JFKatRice

Prayer to the Blessed Virgin

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This prayer has helped several in the family during times of need.

PRAYER TO THE BLESSED VIRGIN

OH MOST BEAUTIFUL FLOWER OF MT. CARMEL, FRUITFUL VINE
SPLENDOR OF HEAVEN BLESSED MOTHER OF THE SON OF GOD,
IMMACULATE VIRGIN, ASSIST ME IN MY NECESSITY.  OH, STAR OF THE
SEA, HELP ME AND SHOW ME HEREIN YOU ARE MY MOTHER.  OH,
HOLY MARY, MOTHER OF GOD, QUEEN OF HEAVEN AND EARTH! I
HUMBLY BESEECH YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART TO SUCCOR ME
IN THIS NECESSITY.  THERE ARE NONE THAT CAN WITHSTAND YOUR
POWER. OH, SHOW ME HERERIN YOU ARE MY MOTHER.
OH MARY CONCEIVED WITHOUT SIN, PRAY FOR US WHO HAVE
RECOURSE IN THEE (3X).  HOLY MOTHER, I PLACE THIS CAUSE IN
YOUR HANDS (3X).  HOLY SPIRIT, YOU WHO SOLVE ALL PROBLEMS,
LIGHT ALL ROADS SO THAT I CAN ATTAIN MY GOAL.  YOU WHO GAVE
ME THE DIVINE GIFT TO FORGIVE AND FORGET ALL EVIL AGAINST
ME AND THAT IN ALL INSTANCES IN MY LIFE YOU ARE WITH ME,
I WANT IN THIS SHORT PRAYER TO THANK YOU FOR ALL THINGS
AS YOU CONFIRM ONCE AGAIN THAT I NEVER WANT TO BE
SEPARATED FROM YOU IN ETERNAL GLORY.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR MERCY TOWARD ME AND MINE.

*Say this prayer 3 consecutive days.  After 3 days, the request will be granted.
Publish this prayer after the favor is granted.

Madonna

It is not the critic that counts…

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This quote was given to me during a particularly trying time at work.  At the time, it felt like I was in the center of a storm dealing with issues from everywhere and everyone.   A good manager slipped this on my desk one day…

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points
out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives
valiantly; who errs, and comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who
knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly,
so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.”

– Theodore Roosevelt, 26th US President, From CITIZENSHIP IN A REPUBLIC, Delivered at the Sorbonne, Paris, April 23, 1910.

Roosevelt, Theodore. History as Literature. New York:
Charles Scribner’s sons, 1913; Bartleby.com, 1998. http://www.bartleby.com/56/ .
27 Oct 2000.

The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena…

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This is a variation of the “It is not the critic who counts” made by John F. Kennedy.

“The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spends himself in a worthy cause;

who at best, if he wins, knows the thrills of high achievement, and, if he fails, at least fails daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.”

– John F Kennedy, 35th US President, 1961
comment quoted by William Manchester in frontispiece for The Last Lion
Little, Brown 83.

Simpson, James B., comp. Simpson’s Contemporary Quotations. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1988.  www.bartleby.com/63/
. 13 Sep 2003.