Archive of ‘Inspiring Stories’ category

There’s power in your potential

If you have the drive today, use it today. Don't put it on a shelf and "save'' it for another day. Pick it up and go. Slackers are not allowed around here.

If you have the drive today, use it today. Don’t put it on a shelf and “save” it for another day. Pick it up and go while you have the desire to do better. it could lead to the next big thing.

 

By Chanda Temple

A friend texted me today, saying he wanted to work out but it was raining where he lived.

He knows I’m a big supporter of fitness, so I encouraged him to go for it. He texted back: “But I’m tired and sleepy. Plus, I left my headphones at work.”

I saw this exchange was gonna require some tough love. I texted back: “Did you have your headphones when you were downing that meal at P.F. Chang’s?”

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Motivation Monday: Just Start

Stuck on start? Get your engines going and just begin. Know this: It will be a beautiful journey because you are in the driver's seat.

Stuck on start? Get your engines going and just begin. Know this: It will be a beautiful journey because you are in the driver’s seat.

 

By Chanda Temple 

I ran into a friend at a coffee shop this morning and she said something that got me to thinking.

She talked about life and then expressed how she really wanted to write. She said she liked to write poetry and maybe write even a book. I had no idea she loved to write, so her words intrigued me.

When I asked her why she had not started, she said, “It’s not that I’m scared. I’m just worried no one will like it.”

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Write your own story

Write your own story.

Write your own story

 

By Chanda Temple 

What makes you smile? Do yourself a favor and do it.

Silly? Maybe. But it’s your first step to getting to your happy.

Stop letting others set your agenda. You are in charge, so take the lead.

By the end of the day, you’ll be glad you did.

Chanda Temple is a veteran reporter now working in public relations. She blogs at  http://www.chandatemplewrites.com. Follow her on Twitter at @chandatemple.

 

I’m here because of them

 

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In honor of the four girls killed in the Sept. 15, 1963 bombing of Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, I look back at how a Birmingham memorial in their honor became a reality in 2013. Located at the edge of Kelly Ingram Park in downtown Birmingham are statues in honor of Denise McNair, Carole Robertson, Addie Mae Collins and Cynthia Wesley, all Birmingham City Schools students at the time of their deaths. 
 
This story looks at how Mountain Brook native Elizabeth MacQueen, the Four Spirits Inc. and the City of Birmingham worked to see the memorial completed.  All photos by Chanda Temple
By Chanda Temple
In 2012, a Birmingham organization known as Four Spirits Inc. launched a national competition in search of entries for a memorial to honor the four girls killed in the 1963 bombing of Sixteenth Baptist Church.
There were five entries from men. Elizabeth MacQueen was the only female.
When MacQueen’s design was selected in April 2013, she halted a project she was working on in Thailand so she could dedicate all of her time to the Four Spirits memorial.

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Condoleezza Rice: Find something you are passionate about

Dr. Condi with students at Regions

Dr. Condoleeza Rice speaks to students in Birmingham, Ala. at Regions bank. Photo by Chanda Temple.

By Chanda Temple

Former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice always thought she’d be a concert pianist.

She could play the piano and read music before she could read. But by the end of her sophomore year in college, she attended a prestigious music festival and school where music prodigies at the age of 12 had put her piano playing skills to shame.

Hmm, she thought, maybe piano is not for me.

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Remembering mom this Mother’s Day

NOTE: This tribute to my mother appears in the May 2015 issue of Birmingham Magazine. Happy Mother’s Day!

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Chanda Temple holding a photo of her late mother, Ann Temple. Chanda Temple is a former journalist now working as the executive assistant to the superintendent and school board for Birmingham City Schools. (Photo by Major Colbert)

 

By Chanda Temple 

Sitting on my desk is one of my favorite photos of my mother.

In it, she’s wearing a pressed dress suit, perfectly coiffed hair and a high-wattage smile — some of my favorite things about her.

My younger sister and I are standing by her side after the two of us appeared in a children’s fashion show  —  a norm in our young lives during the 1970s in Huntsville. As we walked out of the venue, my mother slipped off her heels, took hold of our little hands and started to escort us down a pair of concrete stairs.

Something about that image must have struck my father because he snapped the photo.

“Cheese!”

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Put down the promises and pick up the payoffs

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By Chanda Temple

I was watching TV late one night and saw an interview with NBC’s Hoda Kotb. Her comments on  The Nate Berkus Show had me reaching for my notepad.

She said: “Someone once said the way you spend your days is the way you spend your life. So if you are dissatisfied with your life, just change Monday. And then you change Tuesday, Wednesday and a week.”

If that’s too tall of an order right now, think of how doing just those simple things will change you.

Still not convinced to change? Think of this: If you continue to drag into work on Monday, for example, that’s how you’ll live your life, she said.

So pick up the broken pieces at your feet and get ready to create another great masterpiece. Your future is waiting on you.

Note: This post is part of my #MakeMovesInMay series, a challenge to do things that will improve myself and others in May.

Chanda Temple is a former reporter now working in public relations. She blogs at  http://www.chandatemplewrites.com. Follow her on Twitter at @chandatemple.

Make moves in May

 

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By Chanda Temple

It’s 4 a.m. on the first day of May 2015 and I’m up thinking how will I “Make Moves in May.”

I know I’m not alone. Every time the first of the month rolls around, we promise ourselves that “this is the day I’ll do” this or that for improvement. And by the third day, we’ve fallen back into old habits.

Well, today is M-Day and it’s time to get serious. So for the next 31 days, I’m committing to making moves that will not only change my life but I hope will impact others. I’ll occasionally tweet about my journey and use the hashtag #makemovesinmay.

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Motivation Monday: Will you accept the 42 acts of kindness challenge?

 

Birmingham School Board member Sherman Collins Jr. challenges citizens to do 42 acts of kindness in memory of late wife

By Chanda Temple

“Clink! Clink! Clink” go the quarters as Sherman Collins Jr. drops them into an expired parking meter next to a stranger’s car.

“That should help somebody,” he says as he buys $2 worth of time and moves to the next meter in downtown Birmingham.

His actions today come with a special meaning. He’s doing them in honor of his late wife, Katrina Bethune Collins, who was always helping strangers in the smallest of ways.

“She wanted to bless people,” Collins says. “She’d buy people lunch. Feed expired meters. It didn’t have to be someone’s birthday. She would buy flowers and take them to (people’s) grandmothers.”

Birmingham School Board member Sherman Collins Jr. with his wife and their children. Photo credit: Special

Birmingham School Board member Sherman Collins Jr. with his wife and their children. Photo credit: Special

Sherman Collins Jr., a member of the Birmingham Board of Education, challenges citizens to do 42 acts of kindness in memory of late wife

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Be thankful for the little things

Thanksgiving

Thank God for everything, even the small things in life. Photo via Flickr/Creative Commons.

By Chanda Temple

Tonight as I worked on a blog post, I couldn’t figure out how to size a certain photo. I kept trying and nothing worked. Then all of a sudden, something appeared on my computer screen. It was just what I needed to fix the problem.

I then looked up and thanked God. He made it possible.

Right after I did that, I remembered my pastor’s message from this morning: In All Things, Give Thanks. Citing Matthew 14:15-21, my pastor gave us five ways on how to give thanks. With this being Thanksgiving week, I thought it would be a good time to share them.

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