A friend

What is the work/function of people we call friends in our lives? When asked, people agreed that its not about the financial weight attached but the Value of whatever they do; Sometimes all you need from them might just be a Smile to get uplifted, a Call to restore your wounded self-esteem and confidence, a Rebuke to put you in the right path, a Compliment to encourage you, a 'Sorry' to let you know they care.

But there is one aspect many of us are blind to and refuse to admit…..

True friends are either 'Scaffolds' or 'Structures': 'Structures' stay forever and give you the befitting shape while the 'Scaffolds' come in to help strengthen you in one aspect/area of your life and removed when they serve a purpose before they are removed cos if they remain, the don't give the 'Building’ a befitting look. 

In every relationship you're involved in, you're faced with categorizing them into 'Scaffolds' or 'Structures'; the 'Scaffolds you must remove and you need wisdom to know when they are due and how to remove them - its a hurting experience but they must be removed to give the building the magnificent look it should be.

The ‘Structures’ must remain irrespective of their weak points cos without them, the ‘Building’ cannot stand; instead when such weaknesses are discovered, they are reinforced to be Stronger-though it may be emotionally-tasking, time-consuming, resource-draining but at the end the Building is filled with joy that it wasn’t a wrong decision.

Now you’re through, go through the questions and:

1. Sincerely answer them for yourself.

2. Apply it to everyone you call your friend.

Questions

1. ‘What does the person I consider closest to me represent in my life?’

(a) Structure (b) Scaffold

2. ‘Who am I to the person closest to me?’

(a) Structure (b) Scaffold

Have a nice day!!

9 THINGS TEACHERS WISH PARENTS KNEW

Parents, do you wonder what it takes to help your kids do their very best at school? Good Housekeeping went into classrooms at schools around the country and talked to the teachers who spend their days with your children. Here's what they said about how you can help them help your kids:

1. Don't be a stranger!
Talk to your child's teacher early and often. Back-to-school night shouldn't be the only time you connect, but it's a great time to introduce yourself and find out the best way to contact her in the future. Then stay in touch with updates on how things are going at home, questions about your child and his work, or to schedule conferences to head off trouble (should you worry about that string of C's?). Most teachers have e-mail at school, which is a great way to check in.
Related: 5 Tips for Talking with Your Child's Teacher

2. Learning doesn't stop at 3:15.
You can help the teacher do a better job by encouraging your child to show you something he's working on at school, suggests Ron Martucci, who teaches fourth grade in Pelham, New York. It doesn't have to be a big deal: "Ask him to demonstrate how he does long division or to read his book report out loud," says Martucci. "Every time your child gets a chance to show off what he knows, it builds confidence."
Related: Prepare Your Child for School with These Print-and-Go Shopping Lists

3. Stay involved — even when you don't know the material.
You can provide moral support and be your child's cheerleader no matter how well (or poorly) you did in a certain subject. "Parents tell me they didn't take trigonometry or flunked chemistry, so how can they check the homework?" says Tim Devine, a high school social science teacher in Chicago. "But we don't expect you to be an expert on every subject." Just knowing a parent is paying attention can be very motivating for a student.
Related: Check Out These Free Online Tutoring Resources

4. Keep your child organized.
That means helping teachers with the paper chase. "I spend way too much time tracking down tests or forms I've sent home for a parent's signature," says Judy Powell, a fifth-grade teacher from Richmond, Virginia. Usually, the missing items are crumpled up in the bottom of the kid's backpack, along with lunch leftovers and other clutter. Powell's solution: Have your child empty his backpack every day as part of a regular after-school routine. Set up a special place, such as a box in the kitchen, where he can put the day's papers, and provide another spot, such as a desk drawer, for old assignments that you want to save. A bright-colored folder is a good idea, too, for toting homework — and signed papers — to and from school. And about those supplies: Keep plenty on hand. "Kids run out of pencils and paper, and it'll be three weeks before they'll remember to tell you," says Powell.
Related: The Best Kids' Backpacks

5. Let your child make mistakes.
Don't forget, he's learning. Teachers don't want perfect students, they want students who try hard. "Sometimes parents get caught up in thinking every assignment has to be done exactly right, and they put too much pressure on their child," says Brian Freeman, a second-grade teacher from Red Spring, North Carolina. "But it's OK for kids to get some problems wrong. It's important for us to see what students don't know, so we can go over the material again."

Is your child struggling with an assignment? Help him brainstorm possible solutions. If he's still stuck, resist the temptation to write a note. Instead, encourage your child to take charge by asking the teacher for help the next day.

Hands off bigger assignments, too, says Marty Kaminsky, a fourth-grade teacher in Ithaca, New York. "I assigned a project on inventors, and several kids brought in amazingly detailed reports with slide-shows. They looked great, but they clearly weren't the work of a nine-year-old," he says. "I was much happier with the posters with the pictures glued on crooked, because I knew those children did the work themselves. What matters isn't the final result; it's letting a child have ownership of the project."
Related: Is Your Child Cheating? How to Deal with It

6. Raise a good reader.
Even if your child isn’t a natural-born bookworm, you can encourage him to love literature. Keep reading together, even if your kid can breeze through a book on his own. Reading aloud can expand his vocabulary, and your chats about the book will help him understand and enjoy more. But you might want to shelve books that seem way over his head. It’s tempting to push literary limits, but the goal is understanding and enjoyment.

Use audiobooks as a tool to inspire love of reading. They aren’t “cheating;” they’re a terrific way to engage kids in a good yarn.  Check out bookadventure.com for more with books kids will enjoy.
Related: Top 13 Books for Middle and High Schoolers

7. If the teacher deserves a good grade, give her one.
Teaching isn't easy, and there are days when a kid has a tantrum, or a teacher feels like crying because a parent speaks to her harshly. So why not e-mail or call when your child enjoys a class event or says something nice about the instructor? And if you feel the teacher is doing a good job, let the principal know. Volunteering is another way to demonstrate your enthusiasm and support, even if you only have time to help out once a year. It shows your child — and his teacher — that you really care about his education.
Related: What to Do When Your Child and Teacher Don't Get Along

8. The teacher's on your side — give her the benefit of the doubt.
Rachel James, a third-grade teacher in Reson, Florida, was having a terrible time with one of her students. For days, the boy had been disruptive, rolling his eyes and sighing dramatically whenever anyone spoke to him. Naturally, she had to reprimand him. "His mom called and accused me of picking on her son," says James. "When I told her what was going on, she was shocked." After the mom had calmed down, they worked out some ways to change the boy's behavior. "A lot of parents go into attack mode when their child complains about a teacher," says James. "Or they take the problem to the principal, so the teacher feels blindsided. But parents need to get all the facts before they react."
Related: Etiquette Tips for Dealing with Teachers and Other Parents

9. There is a secret to better grades.
Set up a brief get-together with your child's teacher(s) early in the school year. A one-on-one conversation is the perfect time to bring up important issues, like the fact that your child struggled in math last year or tended to hand in homework late. Also check in with the school district’s or teachers’ website in order to stay on top of your child’s assignments, grades, test dates and scores — and more. Find out what resources there are for you, and use them.  If your child is having a tough time in a particular class, don’t just swoop in and try to make things right. Encourage your child to meet with his teacher to resolve a problem on his own.

If there’s issue between your child and a teacher, don’t automatically run to the principal behind the teacher’s back. Certain situations that involve your child’s safety do merit a meeting with the head of school, but otherwise, going over the teacher’s head signals a lack of respect. When you can’t agree on a solution, set up a meeting with the teacher and a school administrator, who can help work things out.

THE DIARY OF AN ALIEN

We should understand by now that we are aliens here on earth, and our purpose is what we have to discover, talk, walk, leave monuments of impact, and then will enjoy rest. Our position on earth is transitorily classified. We only have a duty to perform, like we all know, when purpose is not known abuse is inevitable by all means. Funny enough, this principle apply to every aspect of our lives. To this end, I would say that when a man does not understand and know his purpose in life, two things are bound to happen; he would abuse himself and more so, abuse everything that he encounters, yet not take responsibility for them, rather would blame God and nature. This has caused so many frictions in life, who can tell. The truth is you can not actually tell what your life entails until you know the purpose for which your life is made, which will you an organized thought pattern, simplified life style. By this I would reflect that “you can not under estimate the unimportance of practically everything”

THE DIARY OF AN ALIEN 2

Diary of an alien is supposed to oppose every sense of irresponsibility, negligence, value system, and the sense of indecency that has left us relegated to mundane things. Now you may begin to think what I call mundane, I mean that anything we do outside our purpose in life is mundane because it does not reflect our potentials. Now let me tell you  may wonder at this that we are always fulfilling purpose at one time or the other, that is to say you are fulfilling someone else’s purpose not yours. Fulfilling purpose has two facets, you either God’s purpose or devil’s. We do this by default. That means we fulfill purpose by default, that is way our lives functions, even when is abusing his or herself, you are still functioning under the purpose of self destruction which the devil usually perpetrate. The yardstick to measure this is not in the amount of money one is able to acquire in a life’s time. Purpose is not a function of how much money one has, but the relative impact your life makes in a life time, which supposedly has left indelible mark in people’s lives. That is eternalizing your name in the hearts of men. This is fulfilling purpose. We can not forget the likes of Mahatma Gandhi of India, Martin Luther King Jr, George Washington of the United States of America, Nelson Mandela of South Africa, Henry Fords of Fords Motors, Thomas Edison, Michael Faraday, to mention just a few. You see that how much indelible becomes or can be is a function of fulfilling purpose.

BENEFIT OF CAPTIVITY

        Show me a man who has excelled in life, and I will show a man who discovered

And made use of his prowess in captivity. A situation will make you better, only if you don’t let it make you bitter.

CAPTIVITY, as it were, is an opportunity for greatness. It is a function of; dormain discovery only for those who know who they are and also what they are living for. In ways we can not tell, we have seen ourselves in captivity –a situation that question what to do.

And most of the times, we question God’s integrity concerning us when we say such thing as; ---why me; ---for how long, God why---, but the truth is, as Solomon posits, --- He makes all things beautiful in his own time; if everything is alright with us at all time, we will actually place God no where in our lives, ;-- make all things beautiful…, but how Gold must pass through the fire before it gets purified, the sand paper must rub the wood rough and wicked to get it smooth and polished, carbon must pass through hard pressures and heat below the earth’s crust to form diamond.Hey.;fire burns, yet purifies, sand paper lacerates; yet leaves the surface smooth and heat melt ;yet form diamond. You can imagine the benefits of captivity. The concept of benefits of captivity runs outside the box. It is a must in a believer’s life.

       We must begin to tell ourselves the truth that manner will not fall again, this time, I must say this, captivity is a place of self-discovery, a place where one’s potential is explored, simple put, captivity is your dormant. The bible has explicit account to demystify my assertiveness. Virtually, every body that succeeded in the scriptures did that from the place of captivity. Check the like of David who reared sheep at the back side of desert.-Joseph a guy who moved progressively from pit to prison and to the palace, Daniel –an Hebrew boy who purposed in his heart not to defile himself with the king’s meat, maid of Naaman—who referred her master to Elisha to be healed of leprosy. Time will not permit me to talk of Nehemiah, Esther, oh.Apostle Paul-a man who rejoiced in tribulation, shedrack, meshack, Abednego, etc.All these were able to understand that the captivity they found themselves in was their dormant, and by this, they excelled more than their equals.           

               I make this submission to porter a solution as well as make us to understand our dormant in life has always been a place that questions our liberty and purpose in life. in every captivity experience, we will end up either victims or victors if and only if we know who we are—it is a function of choice. That is to say for any individual to be in place [dormain]. The place in question may be any place—for sure land of captivity, where your potentials are needed, hence, they are initiated, explored and exploited, But not the likes of –how can we sung the lord’s song in a strange land --, in that case where is the place for soul winning. For one of us to discover and enjoy the benefits of captivity, we must.

1. Discover ourselves
2. Discover God
3. Discover our areas of influence.

In that case, what are the benefits of captivity? You may ask, they are vis

Fulfill your purpose in life.

Make a name for yourself.

Set a standard for other to conform

Become a witness of God

Die without potentials.

…[you can put your own thought here]

Captivity, indeed, has benefits—no doubt.

But only for those who have discovered themselves, God; and areas of influence.

   Make a meaning out of that captivity,

BEING FRANK

Life does not only consist in being so good, nice, happy, etc with the other person, but being frank. I have discovered that I have actually excelled in some relationship because I was frank about them. The other person must be in suspense to anticipate what is in your mind, and this is why people keep making mistakes in relationship, especially with the opposite sex or otherwise. Being frank could as well be looked at as being true. Of course, if you had told that lady that what you wanted was sex, I suppose, the relationship wouldn’t have gone sour or broken down. The truth is, behind every action, there is a motion, and behind every motion, there is a motive. And this is what drives us in every relationship we find ourselves.

Now, on the note of being frank, what is it all about? You may ask. The world would have been a paradise if we usually bare our minds before we do anything. It could be well seen as being definitive. Being frank is an absolute stance you take as you exude your motive behind the motion in your action. It bears the true nature of your intentions. It is a combination of being honest still maintaining your integrity. When you are frank, the fear of the unknown becomes illusive; even at this point, God will begin to pay homage to your thoughts. Being frank, what a way to live life in a relationship-nothing like it.

Why should I be frank? This is another question that should bothering your mind, I presume, the reason is when your real intentions are known, two things are bound to happen; either you create doubts or eliminate doubts. For instance, if you are a lady, and your interest about a guy is money, two things are to happen; it is either he gives you the money-if he has it, or he withholds it. The truth is if you are not frank in any relationship, no matter how good your intentions are, you also stand a chance of being deceptive. This may not sound too good to you, but I am saying the truth. Any time you did not lie yet unable to tell the truth, that’s deception. You are not being frank.

Being frank, what a value and a way to live

WHERE WE ARE

The world as it were, is as a result of a perfect thought from a perfect designer.