A TOUCH OF INSPIRATION
One particular day Mr.Miller was bagging some early potatoes for me. I noticed a small boy, delicate of bone and feature, ragged but clean, hungrily appraising a basket of freshly picked greenpeas. I paid for my potatoes but was also drawn to the display of fresh green peas. I am a pushover for creamed peas and new potatoes. Pondering the peas I couldn't help overhearing the conversation between Mr.Miller and the ragged boy next to me. "Hello Barry, how are you today ?" "H'lo, Mr. Miller. Fine, thank ya. Jus' admirin' them peas -- sure look good." "They are good, Barry. How's your Ma ?" "Fine. Gittin' stronger alla'time." "Good. Anything I can help you with ?" "No, Sir. Jus' admirin' them peas." "Would you like to take some home ?" "No, Sir. Got nuthin' to pay for 'em with." "Well, what have you to trade me for some of those peas ?" "All I got's my prize aggie -- best taw around here." "Is that right ? Let me see it." "Here 'tis. She's a dandy." "I can see that. Hmmmm, only thing is this one is blue and I sort of go for red. Do you have a red one like this at home ?" "Not 'zackley -- but, almost." "Tell you what. Take this sack of peas home with you and next trip this way let me look at that red taw." "Sure will. Thanks, Mr. Miller." Mrs. Miller, who had been standing nearby, came over to help me. With a smile she said: "There are two other boys like him in our community -- all three are in very poor circumstances. Jim just loves to bargain with them for peas, apples, tomatoes or whatever. When they come back with their red marbles, and they always do, he decides he doesn't like red after all and he sends them home with a bag of produce for a green marble or an orange one, perhaps." I left the stand, smiling to myself, impressed with this man. A short time later I moved to Utah but I never forgot the story of this man and the boys -- and their bartering. Several years went by each more rapid than the previous one. Just recently I had occasion to visit some old friends in that Idaho community and while I was there learned that Brother Miller had died. They were having his viewing that evening and knowing my friends wanted to go, I agreed to accompany them. Upon our arrival at the mortuary we fell into line to meet the relatives of the deceased and to offer whatever words of comfort we could. Ahead of us in line were three young men. One was in an army uniform and the other two wore short haircuts, dark suits and white shirts obviously potential or returned missionaries. They approached Mrs.Miller, standing smiling and composed, by her husband's casket. Each of the young men hugged her, kissed her on the cheek, spoke briefly with her and moved on to the casket. Her misty light blue eyes followed them as, one by one, each young man stopped briefly and placed his own warm hand over the cold pale hand in the casket.
Each left the mortuary, awkwardly, wiping his eyes. Our turn came to meet Mrs.Miller. I told her who I was and mentioned the story she had told me about the marbles. Eyes glistening she took my hand and led me to the casket. "This is an amazing coincidence," she said. "Those three young men, that just left, were the boys I told you about. They just told me how they appreciated the things Jim "traded" them. Now, at last, when Jim could not change his mind about color or size...they came to pay their debt.
We've never had a great deal of the wealth of this world," she confided, "but, right now, Jim would consider himself the richest man in Idaho." With loving gentleness she lifted the lifeless fingers of her deceased husband. Resting underneath were three, magnificently shiny, red marbles.
Children Are Like Kites (Author Unknown)
Children are like kites, You spend a lifetime trying to get them off the ground, You run with them, until you are both breathless, They crash, you add a longer tail, they hit the roof top, you pluck them out of the spout.
You patch and comfort, adjust and teach, You watch them lifted by the wind and assure them that someday They will fly.
Finally, they are airborne, But they need more string, You keep letting it out, and with each twist of the ball of twine There is sadness that goes with the joy, Because the kite becomes more distant. Somehow you know that it won't be long, Before that beautiful creature will snap the life line that bound you together And soar as they were meant to free and alone.
Attitude Determines Altitude (Author Unknown)
I woke up early today, excited over all I get to do before the clock strikes midnight. I have responsibilities to fulfill today. I am important. My job is to choose what kind of day I am going to have.
Today I can complain because the weather is rainy or I can be thankful that the grass is getting watered for free.
Today I can feel sad that I don't have more money or I can be glad that my finances encourage me to plan my purchases wisely and guide me away from waste.
Today I can grumble about my health or I can rejoice that I am alive.
Today I can lament over all that my parents didn't give me when I was growing up or I can feel grateful that they allowed me to be born.
Today I can cry because roses have thorns or I can celebrate that thorns have roses.
Today I can mourn my lack of friends or I can excitedly embark upon a quest to discover new relationships.
Today I can whine because I have to go to work or I can shout for joy because I have a job to do. I can complain because I have to go to school or eagerly open my mind and fill it with rich new tidbits of knowledge.
Today I can murmur dejectedly because I have to do housework or I can feel honored because the Lord has provided shelter for my mind, body and soul.
Today stretches ahead of me, waiting to be shaped. And here I am, the sculptor who gets to do the shaping.
What today will be like is up to me.
I get to choose what kind of day I will have!.. --
Houston - We Have A Problem (Author Unknown)
Haunting words out of deep space from a tiny capsule in dark void. Words conveying concern, requesting advise, seeking a solution. When these words are spoken there is a real problem to be solved. They know the difference between a problem and a momentary glitch.
Our lives are no different than theirs except our capsule is much bigger. And because its larger most have not learned what really is an emergency. Rushing through life some of the smallest things become huge obstacles because we have not learned to recognize the nature of our existence.
How often have you watched people rage in lost anger over a small thing.
True, there can be times when a trifling matter seems like the last straw. One of the secrets to life is knowing what is really a problem and what isn't. Life is filled with small and large glitches we magnify into major problems. A flat on the way to work, missing a important meeting, they are only a glitch. Wrecking your car, denting the fender, scratching the paint---is a glitch. The long line at the checkout when you are in a frantic hurry, the person who can never get your order right, the idiot neighbor you loathe, the boss who never recognizes your worth, the paycheck that never seems to go far enough.
These are all glitches in life, not major problems, for each of these glitches: YOU have the power to fix, to live with, to adjust to, they are a part of life. None of them should be a reason to call out "Houston We have a Problem."
A Problem is when the house burns down, not when the kids soil the rug. A scratched fender is a glitch, a wreck that hospitalizes you is a problem. The boy/girl friend that broke your heart is a glitch, a learning glitch. The spouse who abuses you and the kids, that who you still live with--is a problem.
Learn what is important in life, see the "glitches" from the problems. Glitches are but momentary inconveniences on the pathway of life. Problems are walls and canyons you may need help getting over. Knowing which is which can be the difference between a happy and sad life for you, friends, family, mates and lovers.
Next time something happens to you, or around you, just take a closer look and you may just be able to smile and say "Glitch!" :-)
What is an Internet Friend? (Author Unknown)
Some people just don't understand, how you can have friends in a far away land. Some may come from France, California, Pennsylvania or Spain, but no matter where they are from, the friendship remains.
Some are close and even from your home state. Some are on earlier, others are on late. An Internet friend listens, suggests, and may complain, but no matter where they are from, the friendship remains.
Some Internet friends have never met, and others met just once. Some have joined one another for dinners, others have for lunch. You are my Internet friend, we have a wonderful time, Of the friends on the Internet, I'm glad you are mine.
Please stay in touch, our conversational chats are divine. I am glad I am your friend and also that you are mine.
My Sleeping Beauty (Author Unknown)
I tiptoed in your room tonight and I looked down at you smiling in your sleep. You were so lovely my heart nearly broke; and I thought how much like Sleeping Beauty a little girl is. When I tuck you in at night I never know how old you'll be when you wake. One evening you crawl on your dad's lap and throw your arms around his neck, the next morning you might be much too grown up for that sort of thing.
You're so quickly approaching the awkward age, too young to drive the car and yet too old to be carried in the house half asleep on daddy's shoulder. I have a secret that I've never told you, Sleeping Beauty, you're going on a very exciting trip. You'll travel from yesterday all the way to tomorrow. It's a rapid journey and you'll travel light, leaving behind you - measles, mumps, freckles, bumps, bubble gum and me.
I promise not to feel too hurt when you discover that the world is more important than your daddy's lap. Yesterday you were blue jeans and pig tails, the neighborhood's best tree climber.
Tomorrow you'll have pony tails and you'll view the world from a loftier perch - a pair of high heel shoes.
Yesterday you could mend a doll's broken leg with a hug; tomorrow you'll be able to break a young man's heart with a kiss. Humph! Huh! Yesterday you could get lost one aisle away from me at a supermarket - now I have to worry about losing you down another aisle to some strange young man.
You see, just at the point where you're growing pains stop, mine begins. Yesterday you were kind of a pain in the neck when you were around, tomorrow you'll be an ache in my heart when your not.
Tomorrow you'll lay aside your jump rope and tie up the telephone lines and that little boy that used to push you in the mud; well, he'll fight to sit out a dance with you. The clock is counting the minutes for you and the sky upstairs is saving it's brightest stars; and the sun is waiting with its' shiniest day. Oh I, I can't expect you to live in a doll house forever. Sooner or later, the butterfly sheds it's cocoon and the smallest bird must try its wings. But when you grow up and out of my arms; when you finally get too big for my shirts, I'll still recall how you used to scatter dust and dolls and partially through every room in the house; but you spread sunshine too. The dust is settled, your mom picked up the dolls; but the sunshine will always fill the corners of our hearts.
So, here I am talking in your sleep, because, well if you saw this look on my face, you'd laugh and if I spoke with this lump in my throat, I'd cry. Yea! Honey when I looked at you tonight you were a Sleeping Beauty. So, I tiptoed over and I kissed you - you didn't wake up, I knew you wouldn't. According to the legend only the handsome young prince can open your eyes and I'm just the father of the future bride.
So you sleep on pretty thing, tomorrow you'll wake and you'll be a young lady and you won't even realize that you've changed courses in the middle of a dream. But you might notice a little change in me; I'll look a little different somehow. A little sadder, a little wiser, but a whole lot richer.
Tonight, I kissed a princess and I feel like a king.
Love, Dad
A Child's Ten Commandments to Parents (Author Unknown)
1. My hands are small; please don't expect perfection whenever I make a bed, draw a picture or throw a ball. My legs are short; please slow down so that I can keep up with you.
2. My eyes have not seen the world as yours have; please let me explore safely. Don't restrict me unnecessarily.
3. Housework will always be there. I'm only little for a short time, please take time to explain things to me about this wonderful world and do so willingly.
4. My feelings are tender; please be sensitive to my needs. Don't nag me all day long. ( You wouldn't want to be nagged for your inquisitiveness). Treat me as you would like to be treated.
5. I am a special gift from God; please treasure me as God intended you to do, holding me accountable for my actions, giving me guidelines to live by and disciplining me in a loving manner.
6. I need your encouragement to grow. Please go easy on the criticism; remember, you can criticize the things I do without criticizing me.
7. Please give me the freedom to make decisions concerning myself. Permit me to fail, so that I can learn from my mistakes. Then someday I'll be prepared to make the kinds of decisions that life requires of me.
8. Please don't do things over for me. Somehow that makes me feel that my efforts didn't quite measure up to your expectations. I know it's hard, but please don't try to compare me to my brother or sister.
9. Please don't be afraid to leave for a weekend together. Kids need vacations from parents, just as parents need vacations from kids. Besides, it's a great way to show us kids that your marriage is very special.
10. Please take me to Sunday School and church or synagogue regularly, setting a good example for me to follow. I enjoy learning more about
The Law Of Life (Author Unknown)
Whatever you give away today or think or say or do will multiply about tenfold and then return to you.
It may not come immediately, nor from the obvious source, but the LAW applies unfailingly through some invisible force.
Whatever you feel about another, be it love or hate or passion, will surely bounce right back to you in some clear or secret fashion.
If you speak about some person, a word of praise of two, soon tons of other people will speak kind words to you.
Our thoughts are broadcasts of the soul, not the secrets of the brain. Kind ones bring us happiness, petty ones, untold pain.
Giving works as surely as reflections in a mirror. If hate you send, hate you'll get back, but loving brings love nearer.
Remember, as you start this day, and duty crowds your mind, that kindness comes so quickly back, to those who first are kind!
Let that thought and this one Direct you through each day.... The only things we ever keep are the things we give away!
"That miracle is not to walk on water. The miracle is to walk on the green earth in the present moment, to appreciate he peace and beauty that are available now... It is not a matter of faith; it is a matter of practice."
Count Your Blessings (Author Unknown)
Today I stood at my window and cursed the pouring rain, Today a desperate farmer prayed for his fields of grain My weekend plans are ruined, it almost makes me cry While the farmer lifts his arms and blesses the clouded sky.
The alarm went off on Monday and I cursed my work routine, Next door a laid off mechanic feels the empty pockets of his jeans. I can't wait for my vacation, some time to take for me, He doesn't know tonight how he'll feed his family.
I cursed my leaky roof and the grass I need to mow, A homeless man downtown checks for change in the telephone. I need a new car, mine is getting really old, He huddles in a doorway, seeking shelter from the cold.
With blessings I'm surrounded, the rain, a job, a home, Though my eyes are often blinded by the things I think I own.
