Why Good news? Because it makes you feel good! And when you feel
good the world around you will feel good as well. This is an attempt to spread the word that there is good news happening
in this world all the time and it is about time you Knew about it. So check back to this page often for a regular dose of
good, positive, uplifting, full of smiles News!! one Good news Story out weighs a bad one any day!
Lee Shapiro is a retired judge. He is also one of the most genuinely loving people we know. At one point in his career,
Lee realized that love is the greatest power there is. As a result, Lee became a hugger. He began offering everybody a hug.
His colleagues dubbed him “the hugging judge” (as opposed to the hanging judge, we suppose). The bumper sticker
on his car reads, “Don’t bug me! Hug me!”
About six years ago Lee created what he calls his Hugger
Kit. On the outside it reads “A heart for a hug.” The inside contains thirty little red embroidered hearts with
stickums on the back. Lee will take out his Hugger Kit, go around to people and offer them a little red heart in exchange
for a hug.
Lee has become so well known for this that he is often invited to keynote conferences and conventions,
where he shares his message of unconditional love. At a conference in San Francisco , the local news media challenged him
by saying, “It is easy to give out hugs here in the conference to people who self-selected to be here. But this would
never work in the real world.”
They challenged Lee to give away some hugs on the streets of San Francisco
. Followed by a television crew from the local news station, Lee went out onto the street. First he approached a woman walking
by. “Hi, I’m Lee Shapiro, the hugging judge. I’m giving out these hearts in exchange for a hug.” “Sure,”
she replied. “Too easy,” challenged the local commentator. Lee looked around. He saw a meter maid who was being
given a hard time by the owner of a BMW to whom she was giving a ticket. He marched up to her, camera crew in tow, and said,
“You look like you could use a hug. I’m the hugging judge and I’m offering you one.” She accepted.
The television commentator threw down one final challenge. “Look, here comes a bus. San Francisco bus drivers
are the toughest, crabbiest, meanest people in the whole town. Let’s see you get him to hug you.” Lee took the
challenge.
As the bus pulled up to the curb, Lee said, “Hi, I’m Lee Shapiro, the hugging judge. This
has got to be one of the most stressful jobs in the whole world. I’m offering hugs to people today to lighten the load
a little. Would you like one?” The six-foot-two, 230-pound bus driver got out of his seat, stepped down and said, “Why
not?”
Lee hugged him, gave him a heart and waved good-bye as the bus pulled out. The TV crew was speechless.
Finally, the commentator said, “I have to admit, I’m very impressed.”
One day Lee’s friend
Nancy Johnston showed up on his doorstep. Nancy is a professional clown and she was wearing her clown costume, makeup and
all. “Lee, grab a bunch of your Huger Kits and let’s go out to the home for the disabled.”
When
they arrived at the home, they started giving out balloon hats, hearts and hugs to the patients. Lee was uncomfortable. He
had never before hugged people who were terminally ill, severely retarded or quadriplegic. It was definitely a stretch. But
after a while it became easier, with Nancy and Lee acquiring an entourage of doctors, nurses and orderlies who followed them
from ward to ward.
After several hours they entered the last ward. These were 34 of the
worst cases Lee had seen in his life. The feeling was so grim it took his heart away. But out of their commitment to share
their love and to make a difference, Nancy and Lee started working their way around the room followed by the entourage of
medical staff, all of whom by now had hearts on their collars and balloon hats on their heads.
Finally, Lee came
to the last person, Leonard. Leonard was wearing a big white bib which he was drooling on. Lee looked at Leonard dribbling
onto his bib and said, “Let’s go, Nancy . There’s no way we can get through to this person.” Nancy
replied, “C’mon, Lee. He’s a fellow human being, too, isn’t he?” Then she placed a funny balloon
hat on his head. Lee took one of his little red hearts and placed it on Leonard’s bib. He took a deep breath, leaned
down and gave Leonard a hug.
All of a sudden Leonard began to squeal, “Eeeeehh! Eeeeeehh!” Some of
the other patients in the room began to clang things together. Lee turned to the staff for some sort of explanation only to
find that every doctor, nurse and orderly was crying. Lee asked the head nurse, “What’s going on?”
Lee will never forget what she said: “This is the first time in 23 years we’ve ever seen Leonard smile.”
How simple it is to make a difference in the lives of others.
-by Jack Canfield and Mark V. Hansen
It Can’t Happen Here? “We need 4 hugs a day for survival. We need 8 hugs a day for maintenance. We need
12 hugs a day for growth.” -Virginia Satir
We always teach people to hug each other in our workshops and
seminars. Most people respond by saying, “You could never hug people where I work.” Are you sure?
Here
is a letter from a graduate of one of our seminars.
Dear Jack,
I started out this day in rather a bleak
mood. My friend Rosalind stopped over and asked me if I was giving hugs today. I just grumbled something but then I began
to think about hugs and everything during the week. I would look at the sheet you gave us on How to Keep the Seminar Alive
and I would cringe when I got to the part about giving and getting hugs because I couldn’t imagine giving hugs to the
people at work.
Well I decided to make it “hugs day” and I started giving hugs to the customers who
came to my counter. It was great to see how people just brightened up. An MBA student jumped up on top of the counter and
did a dance. Some people actually came back and asked for more. These two Xerox repair guys, who were kind of just walking
along not really talking to each other, were so surprised, they just woke up and suddenly were talking and laughing down the
hall.
It feels like I hugged everybody in the Wharton Business School , plus whatever was wrong with me this morning,
which included some physical pain, is all gone. I’m sorry that this letter is so long but I’m just really excited.
The neatest thing was, at one point there were about 10 people all hugging each other out in front of my counter. I couldn’t
believe this was happening.
Love, Pamela Rogers
P.S.: On the way home I hugged a policeman on 37th Street
. He said, “Wow! Policemen never get hugs. Are you sure you don’t want to throw something at me?”
Another seminar graduate sent us the following piece on hugging:
Hugging Is
Hugging is healthy. It
helps the immune system, cures depression, reduces stress and induces sleep. It’s invigorating, rejuvenating and has
no unpleasant side effects.
Hugging is nothing less than a miracle drug.
Hugging is all natural. It
is organic, naturally sweet, no artificial ingredients, nonpolluting, environmentally friendly and 100 percent wholesome.
Hugging is the ideal gift. Great for any occasion, fun to give and receive, shows you care, comes with its awn wrapping
and, of course, fully returnable.
Hugging is practically perfect. No batteries to wear out, inflation-proof, nonfattening,
no monthly payments, theft-proof and nontaxable.
Hugging is an underutilized resource with magical powers. When
we open our hearts and arms, we encourage others to do the same.
Think of the people in your life. Are there any
words you’d like to say? Are there any hugs you want to share? Are you waiting and hoping someone else will ask first?
Please don’t wait! Initiate!
-by Charles Faraone
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Third Eyez Open
Inspiring News
" Featuring"
Nick vujicic
Imagine being born without arms. No arms to wrap around someone,
no hands to experience touch, or to hold another hand with. Or what about being born without legs? Having no ability to dance,
walk, run, or even stand on two feet. Now put both of those scenarios together: no arms and no legs. What would you do? How
would that effect your everyday life?
Meet Nick Vujicic... Born in 1982 in Melbourne, Australia, without any medical
explanation or warning, Nicholas Vujicic (pronounced Voy-a-chich) came into the world with neither arms nor legs. Having had
an uneventful pregnancy and no family history to expect this condition, imagine the shock his parents felt when they saw their
first born, brand new baby boy, only to find he was what the world would consider imperfect and abnormal. A limbless son was
not what nurse Dushka Vujicic, and her husband Pastor Borris Vujicic had been expecting. How would their son live a normal
happy life? What could he ever do or become when living with what the world would see as such a massive disability? Little
did they know that this beautiful limbless baby would one day be someone who would inspire and motivate people from all walks
of life, touching lives all over the world.
Throughout his childhood Nick dealt not only with the typical challenges
of school and adolescence such as bullying and self-esteem issues; he also struggled with depression and loneliness as he
questioned why he was different to all the other kids surrounding him; why he was the one born without arms and legs. He wondered
what was the purpose behind his life, or if he even had a purpose. After a lot of frustration and feeling like the odd one
out in school, at seven years of age Nick tried out some specially designed electronic arms and hands, in hopes that he would
be more like the other kids. During the short trial period of the electronic arms, Nick realized that even with them, he was
still unlike his peers at school, and they turned out to be much too heavy for Nick to operate, effecting his general mobility
quite significantly.
As Nick grew up he learned to deal with his disability and started to be able to do more
and more things on his own. He adapted to his situation and found ways to accomplish tasks that most people could only do
by using their limbs, such as cleaning teeth, brushing hair, typing on a computer, swimming, playing sports, and much more.
As time went by Nick began to embrace his situation and achieve greater things. In grade seven Nick was elected captain of
his school and worked with the student council on various fund-raising events for local charities and disability campaigns.
According to Nick, the victory over his struggles throughout his journey, as well as his passion for life can
be credited to his faith, his family, his friends and the many people he's encountered during his life who have encouraged
him along the way.
After school Nick went on with further study and obtained a double bachelor degree majoring
in accounting and financial planning. By the age of 19, Nick had started to fulfill his dream of encouraging others by sharing
his story through motivational speaking. He found the purpose of his existence, and also the purpose in his circumstance.
Nick wholeheartedly believes that there is a purpose in each of the struggles we encounter in our lives and that our attitude
towards those struggles that can be the single most effective factor in overcoming them.
In 2005, Nick was nominated
for the "Young Australian of the Year" Award, which is a large honor in Australia. The award honors a young person
for their excellence and service to their local community and the nation, as well as their own personal accomplishments. Nominations
for this award are only given to truly inspirational people.
Now at 27 years old, this limbless young man has accomplished
more than most people even twice his age. Nick recently made the massive move from Brisbane, Australia to California, USA,
where he is the president of an international non-profit organization, and also has his own motivational speaking company;
Attitude Is Altitude. Since his first motivational speaking engagement back when he was 19, Nick has traveled around the world,
sharing his story with millions of people, speaking to a range of different groups such as students, teachers, youth, business
men and women, entrepreneurs, and church congregations of all sizes. He has also told his story and been interviewed on various
televised programs worldwide. However, Nick's speaking engagements have gone beyond purely motivational speaking, he has
had the opportunity to speak with several leaders, including the vice president of Kenya. This year alone Nick is set to speak
in over 20 countries.
People ask Nick, "How can you smile?" Then they realize there's got to be something
more to life than meets the eye if a guy without arms and legs is living a fuller life.
Nick shares with his audiences
the importance of vision and dreaming big. Using his own experiences in worldwide outreach as examples, he challenges others
to examine their perspective and look beyond their circumstances. He shares his view of ceasing to see obstacles as problems,
but instead begin to see them as opportunities to grow and reach out to others. He stresses the importance of how attitude
can be the most powerful tool we have at our disposal and illustrates how the choices we make can have a profound effect on
our lives and the lives of those around us. Nick shows through his own life that the major keys in fulfilling our biggest
dreams are persistence and choosing to embrace failure as a learning experience, rather than allowing the guilt and fear of
failure to paralyze us.
How does Nick Vujicic feel about his disability now? He accepts it, embraces it and oftentimes
pokes fun at his own circumstance as he shows off his many tricks. He meets challenges with his special blend of humor, perseverance
and faith always encouraging those around him to examine their perspective as they develop and define their vision. Using
those new definitions he challenges each person he meets to make changes in their lives so that they can begin the path to
fulfilling their biggest dreams. Through his amazing ability to connect with people from all walks of life and his incredible
sense of humor he captivates children, teens and adults alike, Nick is a true inspirational and motivational speaker.
NEW! Nick Vujicic is now an author. Life Without Limits: Inspiration for a Ridiculously Good Life.
