Back in the 19th century England, according to the account, Queen Victoria was once at a diplomatic reception in London . The guest of honor was an African chieftain. All went well during the meal until, at the end, finger bowls were served. The guest of honor had never seen a British finger bowl, and no one had thought to brief him beforehand about its purpose. So he took the bowl in his two hands, lifted it to his mouth, and drank its contents down!
For an instant there was breathless silence among the British privilege guests, and then they began to whisper to one another. All that stopped; however, when Queen Victoria silently took her finger bowl in her two hands, lifted it, and drank its contents! A moment later, 500 surprised British ladies and gentlemen simultaneously drank the contents of their own finger bowls.
It was the queen’s uncommon courtesy that guarded her guest from certain embarrassment.
This is a very rare but very effective human trait which only true leaders can demonstrate!
Moral of the story:
While the most common human trait is to look for chances to humiliate someone else or be neutral when they make a mistake, it takes presence of mind, uncommon courtesy to follow someone else’s mistake in order to guard them from embarrassment!
Monday, July 26, 2010
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
"The Praying Hands"
Back in the fifteenth century, in a tiny village near Nuremberg, lived a family with eighteen children. In order merely to keep food on the table for this mob, the father and head of the household, a goldsmith by profession, worked almost eighteen hours a day at his trade and any other paying chore he could find in the neighborhood. Despite their seemingly hopeless condition, two of Albrecht Durer the Elder's children had a dream. They both wanted to pursue their talent for art, but they knew full well that their father would never be financially able to send either of them to Nuremberg to study at the Academy.
After many long discussions at night in their crowded bed, the two boys finally worked out a pact. They would toss a coin. The loser would go down into the nearby mines and, with his earnings, support his brother while he attended the academy. Then, when that brother who won the toss completed his studies, in four years, he would support the other brother at the academy, either with sales of his artwork or, if necessary, also by laboring in the mines. They tossed a coin on a Sunday morning after church. Albrecht Durer won the toss and went off to Nuremberg.
Albert went down into the dangerous mines and, for the next four years, financed his brother, whose work at the academy was almost an immediate sensation. Albrecht's etchings, his woodcuts, and his oils were far better than those of most of his professors, and by the time he graduated, he was beginning to earn considerable fees for his commissioned works.
When the young artist returned to his village, the Durer family held a festive dinner on their lawn to celebrate Albrecht's triumphant homecoming. After a long and memorable meal, punctuated with music and laughter, Albrecht rose from his honored position at the head of the table to drink a toast to his beloved brother for the years of sacrifice that had enabled Albrecht to fulfill his ambition. His closing words were, "And now, Albert, blessed brother of mine, now it is your turn. Now you can go to Nuremberg to pursue your dream, and I will support you."
All heads turned in eager expectation to the far end of the table where Albert sat, tears streaming down his pale face, shaking his lowered head from side to side while he sobbed and repeated over and over, "No ... no ... no ... no."
Finally, Albert rose and wiped the tears from his cheeks. He glanced down the long table at the faces he loved, and then, holding his hands close to his right cheek, he said softly, "No, brother. I cannot go to Nuremberg. It is too late for me. Look ... look what four years in the mines have done to my hands! The bones in every finger have been smashed at least once, and lately I have been suffering from arthritis so badly in my right hand that I cannot even hold a glass to return your toast, much less make delicate lines on parchment or canvas with a pen or a brush. No, brother ... for me it is too late."
More than 450 years have passed. By now, Albrecht Durer's hundreds of masterful portraits, pen and silver-point sketches, watercolors, charcoals, woodcuts, and copper engravings hang in every great museum in the world, but the odds are great that you, like most people, are familiar with only one of Albrecht Durer's works. More than merely being familiar with it, you very well may have a reproduction hanging in your home or office.
One day, long ago, to pay homage to Albert for all that he had sacrificed, Albrecht Durer painstakingly drew his brother's abused hands with palms together and thin fingers stretched skyward. He called his powerful drawing simply "Hands," but the entire world almost immediately opened their hearts to his great masterpiece and renamed his tribute of love "The Praying Hands."
After many long discussions at night in their crowded bed, the two boys finally worked out a pact. They would toss a coin. The loser would go down into the nearby mines and, with his earnings, support his brother while he attended the academy. Then, when that brother who won the toss completed his studies, in four years, he would support the other brother at the academy, either with sales of his artwork or, if necessary, also by laboring in the mines. They tossed a coin on a Sunday morning after church. Albrecht Durer won the toss and went off to Nuremberg.
Albert went down into the dangerous mines and, for the next four years, financed his brother, whose work at the academy was almost an immediate sensation. Albrecht's etchings, his woodcuts, and his oils were far better than those of most of his professors, and by the time he graduated, he was beginning to earn considerable fees for his commissioned works.
When the young artist returned to his village, the Durer family held a festive dinner on their lawn to celebrate Albrecht's triumphant homecoming. After a long and memorable meal, punctuated with music and laughter, Albrecht rose from his honored position at the head of the table to drink a toast to his beloved brother for the years of sacrifice that had enabled Albrecht to fulfill his ambition. His closing words were, "And now, Albert, blessed brother of mine, now it is your turn. Now you can go to Nuremberg to pursue your dream, and I will support you."
All heads turned in eager expectation to the far end of the table where Albert sat, tears streaming down his pale face, shaking his lowered head from side to side while he sobbed and repeated over and over, "No ... no ... no ... no."
Finally, Albert rose and wiped the tears from his cheeks. He glanced down the long table at the faces he loved, and then, holding his hands close to his right cheek, he said softly, "No, brother. I cannot go to Nuremberg. It is too late for me. Look ... look what four years in the mines have done to my hands! The bones in every finger have been smashed at least once, and lately I have been suffering from arthritis so badly in my right hand that I cannot even hold a glass to return your toast, much less make delicate lines on parchment or canvas with a pen or a brush. No, brother ... for me it is too late."
More than 450 years have passed. By now, Albrecht Durer's hundreds of masterful portraits, pen and silver-point sketches, watercolors, charcoals, woodcuts, and copper engravings hang in every great museum in the world, but the odds are great that you, like most people, are familiar with only one of Albrecht Durer's works. More than merely being familiar with it, you very well may have a reproduction hanging in your home or office.
One day, long ago, to pay homage to Albert for all that he had sacrificed, Albrecht Durer painstakingly drew his brother's abused hands with palms together and thin fingers stretched skyward. He called his powerful drawing simply "Hands," but the entire world almost immediately opened their hearts to his great masterpiece and renamed his tribute of love "The Praying Hands."
Monday, July 12, 2010
"Nobody Can Hurt You Without Your Consent"
On the first day, as President Abraham Lincoln entered to give his inaugural address, just in the middle, one man stood up. He was a rich aristocrat. He said, “Mr. Lincoln, you should not forget that your father used to make shoes for my family.” And the whole Senate laughed; they thought they had made a fool of Abraham Lincoln.
But Lincoln and that type of people are made of a totally different mettle. Lincoln looked at the man and said, “Sir I know that my father used to make shoes in your house for your family, and there will be many others here…. Because the way he made shoes; nobody else can. He was a creator. His shoes were not just shoes; he poured his whole soul in it. I want to ask you, have you any complaint? Because I know how to make shoes myself. If you have any complaint I can make another pair of shoes. But as far as I know, nobody has ever complained about my father’s shoes. He was a genius, a great creator and I am proud of my father”.
The whole Senate was struck dumb. They could not understand what kind of man Abraham Lincoln was. He was proud because his father did the job so well that not even a single complaint had ever been heard.
Moral of the story:
“No one can hurt you without your consent.”
“It is not what happens to us that hurts us. It is our response that hurts us.”
But Lincoln and that type of people are made of a totally different mettle. Lincoln looked at the man and said, “Sir I know that my father used to make shoes in your house for your family, and there will be many others here…. Because the way he made shoes; nobody else can. He was a creator. His shoes were not just shoes; he poured his whole soul in it. I want to ask you, have you any complaint? Because I know how to make shoes myself. If you have any complaint I can make another pair of shoes. But as far as I know, nobody has ever complained about my father’s shoes. He was a genius, a great creator and I am proud of my father”.
The whole Senate was struck dumb. They could not understand what kind of man Abraham Lincoln was. He was proud because his father did the job so well that not even a single complaint had ever been heard.
Moral of the story:
“No one can hurt you without your consent.”
“It is not what happens to us that hurts us. It is our response that hurts us.”
Monday, July 5, 2010
Creating Covalent Apache 2.2 instance from ERS 4.0.2 httpd on Linux
1. Get the download of Apache 2.2 add-on "ers-4.0.2-apache-2.2.15-x86-linux-glibc2-20100326.zip.sfx"
2. Change file mode to make it executable
3. Invoke the file to self-extract the contents:
# ./ers-4.0.2-apache-2.2.15-x86-linux-glibc2-20100326.zip.sfx
The archive unpacks all files into the current directory. When it finishes, you should see the following:
apache2.2 ERS_LICENSE.txt fixrootpath.pl perl5.8 php5.2 servers
apache2.2-64 ers-server.pl licenses perl5.8-64 php5.2-64 tools
4. Invoke the fixrootpath.pl perl script
# perl fixrootpath.pl
5. Customize Apache2.2 httpd
# vi [ers-home_install-dir]/servers/test-apache2.2/conf/httpsd.conf
6. Test the Apache HTTP Server 2.2 installation with the provided servers/test-apache2.2
or servers/test-apache2.2-64 instances. For example, start the test-apache2.2 instance as follows:
# cd servers/test-apache2.2
# bin/apache_startup.sh start ( and to stop: # bin/apache_startup.sh stop )
7. Point browser to http://localhost:8080
Enter username "spring", with password "spring" to authenticate to the ERS httpd instance home page
Create new instance for non-test environments:
5a.Create ERS instance:
# perl ers-server.pl --server=apache2.2 --serverdir=servers/apache2.2 --apachever=2.2
ers-server.pl - install an ERS 4.0 server instance
from the default (_instance/ trees) template
Creating new server instance [ers-home_install-dir]/servers/apache2.2
Apache httpd version 2.2
Configuring for Apache 2.2
Use threaded 'worker' MPM [y/n]? y
Enable mod_php5 [y/n]? y
Enable mod_perl [y/n]? y
Enable mod_snmp [y/n]? y
Modify the httpsd.conf to make additional adjustments.
Server hostname (e.g. www.example.com) [apache2.2]? localhost [or x.x.x.x]
Administrator email [webmaster@x.x.x.x]?
Port for http:// traffic [8080]? 5000
Port for https:// SSL traffic [8443]? 5001
Port for ajp13, jk->tomcat [8009]? 5002
Tomcat ajp13 servername [localhost]?
Modify workers.properties to make additional adjustments.
Creating a sample conf/userfile, add initial users
New username (or <Enter> if done): [user]
New password: [password]
Re-type new password: [password]
Adding password for user [user]
New username (or <Enter> if done):
Enable SSL and create a default key [y/n]? n
New server instance created in
[ers-home_install-dir]/servers/apache2.2
Thank you for choosing SpringSource Enterprise Ready Server.
6a. Test the Apache HTTP Server 2.2 installation with new instance servers/apache2.2
# cd servers/apache2.2/
# bin/apache_startup.sh start
Starting Apache
Server started OK
7a. Point browser to http://localhost:5000
2. Change file mode to make it executable
3. Invoke the file to self-extract the contents:
# ./ers-4.0.2-apache-2.2.15-x86-linux-glibc2-20100326.zip.sfx
The archive unpacks all files into the current directory. When it finishes, you should see the following:
apache2.2 ERS_LICENSE.txt fixrootpath.pl perl5.8 php5.2 servers
apache2.2-64 ers-server.pl licenses perl5.8-64 php5.2-64 tools
4. Invoke the fixrootpath.pl perl script
# perl fixrootpath.pl
5. Customize Apache2.2 httpd
# vi [ers-home_install-dir]/servers/test-apache2.2/conf/httpsd.conf
6. Test the Apache HTTP Server 2.2 installation with the provided servers/test-apache2.2
or servers/test-apache2.2-64 instances. For example, start the test-apache2.2 instance as follows:
# cd servers/test-apache2.2
# bin/apache_startup.sh start ( and to stop: # bin/apache_startup.sh stop )
7. Point browser to http://localhost:8080
Enter username "spring", with password "spring" to authenticate to the ERS httpd instance home page
Create new instance for non-test environments:
5a.Create ERS instance:
# perl ers-server.pl --server=apache2.2 --serverdir=servers/apache2.2 --apachever=2.2
ers-server.pl - install an ERS 4.0 server instance
from the default (_instance/ trees) template
Creating new server instance [ers-home_install-dir]/servers/apache2.2
Apache httpd version 2.2
Configuring for Apache 2.2
Use threaded 'worker' MPM [y/n]? y
Enable mod_php5 [y/n]? y
Enable mod_perl [y/n]? y
Enable mod_snmp [y/n]? y
Modify the httpsd.conf to make additional adjustments.
Server hostname (e.g. www.example.com) [apache2.2]? localhost [or x.x.x.x]
Administrator email [webmaster@x.x.x.x]?
Port for http:// traffic [8080]? 5000
Port for https:// SSL traffic [8443]? 5001
Port for ajp13, jk->tomcat [8009]? 5002
Tomcat ajp13 servername [localhost]?
Modify workers.properties to make additional adjustments.
Creating a sample conf/userfile, add initial users
New username (or <Enter> if done): [user]
New password: [password]
Re-type new password: [password]
Adding password for user [user]
New username (or <Enter> if done):
Enable SSL and create a default key [y/n]? n
New server instance created in
[ers-home_install-dir]/servers/apache2.2
Thank you for choosing SpringSource Enterprise Ready Server.
6a. Test the Apache HTTP Server 2.2 installation with new instance servers/apache2.2
# cd servers/apache2.2/
# bin/apache_startup.sh start
Starting Apache
Server started OK
7a. Point browser to http://localhost:5000
Sunday, July 4, 2010
"Carrots, Eggs, & Coffee"
A carrot, an egg, and a cup of coffee...You will never look at a cup of coffee the same way again.
A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up, She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved, a new one arose.
Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to boil. In the first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil; without saying a word.
In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to her daughter, she asked, ' Tell me what you see.' 'Carrots, eggs, and coffee,' she replied.
Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. The mother then asked the daughter to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard boiled egg.
Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma. The daughter then asked,
'What does it mean, mother?'
Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity: boiling water. Each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened. The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water, they had changed the water.
'Which are you?' she asked her daughter. 'When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?
Think of this: Which am I? Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength?
Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat? Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and hardened heart?
Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water, the very circumstance that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it releases the fragrance and flavour. If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you. When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest do you elevate yourself to another level? How do you handle adversity? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?
May you have enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trials to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human and enough hope to make you happy.
The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything that comes along their way. The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past; you can't go forward in life until you let go of your past failures and heartaches.
May we all be COFFEE!!!
A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up, She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved, a new one arose.
Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to boil. In the first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil; without saying a word.
In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to her daughter, she asked, ' Tell me what you see.' 'Carrots, eggs, and coffee,' she replied.
Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. The mother then asked the daughter to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard boiled egg.
Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma. The daughter then asked,
'What does it mean, mother?'
Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity: boiling water. Each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened. The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water, they had changed the water.
'Which are you?' she asked her daughter. 'When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?
Think of this: Which am I? Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength?
Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat? Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and hardened heart?
Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water, the very circumstance that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it releases the fragrance and flavour. If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you. When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest do you elevate yourself to another level? How do you handle adversity? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?
May you have enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trials to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human and enough hope to make you happy.
The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything that comes along their way. The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past; you can't go forward in life until you let go of your past failures and heartaches.
May we all be COFFEE!!!
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