Each day we come in contact with many people. The way we act and react towards them is a direct reflection of our own life. When someone pulls in front of us on the road, we should not blast them with our tongue nor ride on their tail. We should calmly give them more room.

When someone says bad things about us, we should not retaliate but just smile and go on. When a loud-mouthed, incompetent people seem to be getting the best of us, we should only have to be patient and wait for them to self-destruct. It never fails.

We've got to fight against the urge to try to say and do what other people want of us. That's not how we earn their respect. They will most respect us for thinking and doing what they didn't think or what they didn't dare. Here's a narrative by an unknown person who one day, learned a valuable lesson from and taxi driver.

One day I hopped into a taxi and we took off for the airport. We were driving in the right lane when suddenly a black car jumped out of a parking space right in front of us.

My taxi driver slammed on his brakes, skidded, and missed the other car by just inches! The driver of the other car whipped his head around and started yelling at us. My taxi driver just smiled and waved at the guy. And I mean, he was really friendly.

 So I asked him,  "Why did you just do that? That guy almost ruined your car and sent us to the hospital!" This is when my taxi driver taught me what I now call, 'The Law of the Garbage Truck.'  He explained that many people are like garbage trucks.

They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger, and full of disappointment. As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it and sometimes they'll dump it on you. Don't take it personally. Just smile, wave, wish them well, and move on.

Don't take their garbage and spread it to other people at work, at home, or on the streets. The bottom line is that, successful people do not let garbage trucks take over their day.  Life's too short to wake up in the morning with regrets, so ... love the people who treat you right, pray for the ones who don't.

Life is 10% what you make it and 90% how you take it! Have a blessed, garbage-free day!

By Tim Pedrosa

Treat a person as he is, and he will remain as he is. Treat him as he could be, and he will become what he should be. Some people are unbelievably cheerful in the midst of difficulty or obstacles; others bemoan the slightest inconvenience. Those who look for the upside of any trouble are the ones who come out ahead in quality of life. And the radiance of their positive attitude sheds light on the paths of others.