If being a bookworm was a crime, John would be convicted for life. But what I love the most about John’s large collection of books is that I can borrow books anytime, anywhere and without due dates! One unforgettable book John lent me was a book with stories embedded with inspirational messages. Though I was initially attracted to the awesome scenery on the cover page, I found out that the inspirational message brought about by each story is much, much more magnificent! Here are three of the stories and the inspirational messages that go along with them:

• Mrs. Isadore Strauss was one of the few first-class women passengers who went down with the Titanic in 1912. She drowned because she could not bear to leave her husband. Mr. and Mrs. Strauss helped scared women and children to find a spot aboard lifeboats. Then, Mr. Strauss forced his wife to enter a lifeboat. Mrs. Strauss was seated only for a moment, when she climbed back on the deck before Mr. Strauss could stop her. “Where you go, I will go,” Mrs. Strauss said.

Love in its true form is a decision, not a feeling. It is a decision to sacrifice when necessary and re-deciding to do it over again, tomorrow, the next day and the next day after.

• A man walking down the street saw his friend crawling on his hands and feet looking for something. “I lost my key,” his friend told him. The man felt sorry for his friend so he decided to help him look for it. After some time, the key was still missing so the man asked his friend when he lost his key. The friend says, “Oh, I lost it in my house.” Outraged, the man angrily asks why he was looking on the street. His friend replies, “because there is more light here.”

Everyone is in search of the purpose of their life. But the funny thing is that they search everywhere—except inside of themselves.

• Josh, a successful executive, was driving so fast in his 12-cylinder Jaguar XKE when a brick sailed out of nowhere. The hullabaloo damaged the side door of his new car. Infuriated he shouted and grabbed the kid responsible for it. “Please mister, I’m sorry! I didn’t know what else to do! It’s my brother, he rolled off the curb and fell out of his wheelchair and I can’t lift him up. Would you please help me get him back into his wheelchair?”

Don’t drive through life so fast that someone needs to throw a brick at you first to get your attention.

I would have wanted to give you more examples of inspirational messages and positive words etched in the lives of ordinary men and women. But, then again, I know that you will one day, in the most unexpected moment, discover the hidden inspirational messages so beautifully engraved in ordinary and not so ordinary moments in the life of strangers in the very seconds of your life.

Claire may not have Professor Xavier’s intelligence or Spiderman’s spider sense, but she is our superhero. Why? It’s just that Claire has the ability of saving us from the claws of despair, of frustration, of depression, of pessimism. No, she can’t read minds or turn back the hands of time. But you know what her secret weapon is? Positive words.

Affirmations or positive words are statements that Claire would make us repeat over and over again whenever we feel down or when doing a task. She says that positive words impress on the subconscious mind and trigger it into positive action. Once consistently repeated with attention, conviction, interest and desire, these positive words can help you focus your mind, let you take charge, and invalidate pessimistic ideas. Here are a few of Claire’s positive words / phrases:

• I am healthy and happy
• Wealth is pouring into my life
• I am sailing on the river of wealth
• My body is healthy and functioning in a very good way
• I have a lot of energy
• I can do this!
• I study and comprehend fast
• My mind is calm
• I am calm and relaxed in every situation
• My thoughts are under my control
• I radiate love and happiness
• I am surrounded by love
• I have the perfect job for me
• I have a wonderful and satisfying job
• I can overcome these challenges
• I am successful in whatever I do
• There’s no stopping me!
• I am blessed and talented
• I am beautiful and intelligent
• I can be the best that I can be
• I am loved

These are only a few examples of positive words. Affirmations / positive words give you the power to state what you want in your life then give you a clear mental and emotional feel of those desires regardless of present circumstances. By being convinced of these positive words, you attract positive things in your life and repel bad and depressing thoughts. Remember that your subconscious mind accepts as true what you keep saying and will eventually attract corresponding events to your life. If negative statements fill your mind, then you will definitely not be able to do anything and eventually fail. Positive words can lend you a hand in transforming your life. So go on, think positive as if your life depends upon it! Because it really does!