Paid In Full

My little boy came into the kitchen this evening while I was fixing supper. He handed me a piece of paper he'd been writing on. After wiping my hands on my apron, I read it, and this is what it said:

For mowing the grass, $5.00

For making my own bed this week, $1.00

For going to the store $.50

For playing with baby brother while you went shopping, $.25

For taking out the trash, $1.00

For getting a good report card, $5.00

And for raking the yard, $2.00

Well, I looked at him standing there expectantly, and a thousand memories flashed through my mind. So, I picked up the paper, and turning it over, this is what I wrote:

For the nine months I carried you, growing inside me, No charge.

For the nights I sat up with you, doctored you, prayed for you, No charge.

For the time and the tears, and the cost through the years, No charge.

For the nights filled with dread, and the worries ahead, No charge.

For advice and the knowledge, and the cost of your college, No charge.

For the toys, food and clothes, and for wiping your nose, No charge.

Son, when you add it all up, the full cost of my love is No charge.
Well, when he finished reading, he had great big tears in his eyes. He looked up at me and he said, "Mama, I sure do love you."

Then he took the pen and in great big letters he wrote,

P A I D I N F U L L!

The Cracked Pot

A water bearer in India had two large pots, each hung on each end of a pole which he carried across his neck. One of the pots had a crack in it, and while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water at the end of the long walk from the stream to the master's house, the cracked pot arrived only half full. For a full two years this went on daily, with the bearer delivering only one and a half pots full of water in his master's house. Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments, perfect to the end for which it was made. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it was able to accomplish only half of what it had been made to do.
After two years of what it perceived to be a bitter failure, it spoke to the water bearer one day by the stream. "I am ashamed of myself, and I want to apologize to you." "Why?" asked the bearer. "What are you ashamed of?" "I have been able, for these past two years, to deliver only half my load because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your master's house. Because of my flaws, you have to do all of this work, and you don't get full value from your efforts," the pot said.
The water bearer felt sorry for the old cracked pot, and in his compassion he said, "As we return to the master's house, I want you to notice the beautiful flowers along the path."
Indeed, as they went up the hill, the old cracked pot took notice of the sun warming the beautiful wild flowers on the side of the path, and this cheered it some. But at the end of the trail, it still felt bad because it had leaked out half its load, and so again it apologized to the bearer for its failure.
The bearer said to the pot, "Did you notice that there were flowers only on your side of your path, but not on the other pot's side? That's because I have always known about your flaw, and I took advantage of it. I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back from the stream, you've watered them. For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate my master's table. Without you being just the way you are, he would not have this beauty to grace his house."
Each of us has our own unique flaws. We are all cracked pots. But if we will allow it, the Lord will use our flaws to grace His Father's table. In God's great economy, nothing goes to waste.
So as we seek ways to minister together, and as God calls you to the tasks He has appointed for you, don't be afraid of your flaws. Acknowledge them, and allow Him to take advantage of them, and you, too, can be the cause of beauty in His pathway.
Go out boldly, knowing that in our weakness we find His strength, and that "In Him every one of God's promises is a Yes".

Discover A Momentary Miracle

Each moment is filled with miracles—very special treasures to discover. All we need to do to see miracles is look with a spirit of gratitude.
We usually think of "seeing" with our physical eyes. However, when we begin looking deeper than physical sight, we begin to see the perspectives with which we color our experiences. When we take notice of all that we have to be thankful for, miracles appear.
Today holds the chance to build new dreams, achieve new successes, and show new kindnesses to others. There will be moments in which to see, hear, touch, taste, feel, laugh, and love that we have never had before. Our senses and emotions are the windows through which we view these unrepeatable miracle moments.
Take a few moments just for yourself, and notice what you are experiencing. What do you see? Look around the room. Notice the different shapes, colors, lights, and shadows.
Listen to the sounds around you. Notice how you suddenly became aware of the loudness, textures, and rhythms of various sounds. Notice also any silences.
Notice the sensations of touch and the awareness of aliveness within you from head to toe. Become aware of any smells, or recall a favorite fragrance such as a bouquet of roses, and orchard filled with apple blossoms, or a rain-drenched pine forest.
Be aware, most of all, of the relationships and friendships that have added joy to your life. Notice the various qualities your thoughts give to each of your experiences.
Italian novelist Cesare Pavese (1908-1950), said, "We do not remember days, we remember moments."
If you were to list the greatest miracles in your life, what would they be? Think of those special moments you are grateful for. Then share a miracle with someone today.
May you continue to celebrate all the wonders and precious moments that make your life special!


~ Author Steve Brunkhorst.

Desiderata

Desiderata


Go placidly amid the noise and haste and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even the dull and ignorant; they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexatious to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others, you may become bitter or vain, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs; for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals; and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself.
Especially, do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is perennial as the grass.
Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness. Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself.
You are the child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should. Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be, and whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul. With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful.
Strive to be happy.

~ Author Max Ehrmann

Desiderata Video

The Confused History of "Desiderata"

The author is Max Ehrmann, a poet and lawyer from Terre Haute, Indiana, who lived from 1872 to 1945. It has been reported that Desiderata was inspired by an urge that Ehrmann wrote about in his diary:
"I should like, if I could, to leave a humble gift -- a bit of chaste prose that had caught up some noble moods."
Around 1959, the Rev. Frederick Kates, the rector of St. Paul's Church in Baltimore, Maryland, used the poem in a collection of devotional materials he compiled for his congregation. (Some years earlier he had come across a copy of Desiderata.) At the top of the handout was the notation, "Old St. Paul's Church, Baltimore A.C. 1692." The church was founded in 1692.
As the material was handed from one friend to another, the authorship became clouded. Copies with the "Old St. Paul's Church" notation were printed and distributed liberally in the years that followed. It is perhaps understandable that a later publisher would interpret this notation as meaning that the poem itself was found in Old St. Paul's Church, dated 1692. This notation no doubt added to the charm and historic appeal of the poem, despite the fact that the actual language in the poem suggests a more modern origin. The poem was popular prose for the "make peace, not war" movement of the 1960s.
When Adlai Stevenson died in 1965, a guest in his home found a copy of Desiderata near his bedside and discovered that Stevenson had planned to use it in his Christmas cards. The publicity that followed gave widespread fame to the poem as well as the mistaken relationship to St. Paul's Church.
As of 1977, the rector of St. Paul's Church was not amused by the confusion. Having dealt with the confusion "40 times a week for 15 years," he was sick of it.
This misinterpretation has only added to the confusion concerning whether or not the poem is in the public domain.

By the way, Desiderata is Latin for "Things to be Desired."

The Eyes Of Love

A grandmother and a little girl whose face was sprinkled with bright red freckles spent the day at the zoo.
The children were waiting in line to get their cheeks painted by a local artist who was decorating them with tiger paws.
“You’ve got so many freckles, there’s no place to paint!” a boy in the line cried.
Embarrassed, the little girl dropped her head. Her grandmother knelt down next to her. “I love your freckles,” she said.
“Not me,” the girl replied.
“Well, when I was a little girl I always wanted freckles” she said, tracing her finger across the child’s cheek. “Freckles are beautiful!”
The girl looked up. “Really?”
“Of course,” said the grandmother. “Why, just name me one thing that’s prettier than freckles.”
The little girl peered into the old woman’s smiling face. “Wrinkles,” she answered softly.

~ Author Unknown

The Hospital Window

The Hospital Window

~ Author Unknown

Two men, both seriously ill, occupied the same hospital room. One man was allowed to sit up in his bed for an hour each afternoon to help drain the fluid from his lungs. His bed was next to the room's only window. The other man had to spend all his time flat on his back. The men talked for hours on end. They spoke of their wives and families, their homes, their jobs, their involvement in the military service, where they had been on vacation.
Every afternoon when the man in the bed by the window could sit up, he would pass the time by describing to his roommate all the things he could see outside the window.
The man in the other bed began to live for those one-hour periods where his world would be broadened and enlivened by all the activity and color of the world outside.
The window overlooked a park with a lovely lake. Ducks and swans played on the water while children sailed their model boats. Young lovers walked arm in arm amidst flowers of every color and a fine view of the city skyline could be seen in the distance.
As the man by the window described all this in exquisite detail, the man on the other side of the room would close his eyes and imagine the picturesque scene.
One warm afternoon the man by the window described a parade passing by. Although the other man couldn't hear the band - he could see it. In his mind's eye as the gentleman by the window portrayed it with descriptive words.
Days and weeks passed.
One morning, the day nurse arrived to bring water for their baths only to find the lifeless body of the man by the window, who had died peacefully in his sleep. She was saddened and called the hospital attendants to take the body away.
As soon as it seemed appropriate, the other man asked if he could be moved next to the window. The nurse was happy to make the switch, and after making sure he was comfortable, she left him alone.
Slowly, painfully, he propped himself up on one elbow to take his first look at the real world outside. He strained to slowly turn to look out the window beside the bed.
It faced a blank wall. The man asked the nurse what could have compelled his deceased roommate who had described such wonderful things outside this window.
The nurse responded that the man was blind and could not even see the wall. She said, "Perhaps he just wanted to encourage you."

Epilogue: There is tremendous happiness in making others happy, despite our own situations.
Shared grief is half the sorrow, but happiness when shared, is doubled.
If you want to feel rich, just count all the things you have that money can't buy.
Today is a gift, that's why it is called the present.

Twenty Words That Should Exist

1. ACCORDIONATED (ah kor' de on ay tid) adj. Being able to drive and refold a road map at the same time.

2. AQUADEXTROUS (ak wa deks' trus) adj. Possessing the ability to turn the bathtub faucet on and off with your toes.

3. AQUALIBRIUM (ak wa lib' re um) n. The point where the stream of drinking fountain water is at its perfect height, thus relieving the drinker from (a) having to suck the nozzle, or (b) squirting himself in the eye (or ear).

4. BURGACIDE (burg' uh side) n. When a hamburger can't take any more torture and hurls itself through he grill into the coals.

5. BUZZACKS (buz' aks) n. People in phone marts who walk around picking up display phones and listening for dial tones even when they know the phones are not connected.

6. CARPERPETUATION (kar' pur pet u a shun) n. The act, when vacuuming, of running over a string or a piece of lint at least a dozen times, reaching over and picking it up, examining it, then putting it back down to give the vacuum one more chance.

7. DIMP (dimp) n. A person who insults you in a cheap department store by asking, "Do you work here?"

8. DISCONFECT (dis kon fect') v. To sterilize the piece of candy you dropped on the floor by blowing on it, somehow assuming this will remove all the germs.

9. ECNALUBMA (ek na leb' ma) n. A rescue vehicle which can only be seen in the rear view mirror.

10. EIFFELITES (eye' ful eyetz) n. Gangly people sitting in front of you at the movies who, no matter which direction you lean in, follow suit.

11. ELBONICS (el bon icks') n.The actions of two people maneuvering for one armrest in a movie theater.
12. ELECELLERATON (el a cel er ay' shun) n. The mistaken notion that the more you press an elevator button the faster it will arrive.

13. FRUST (frust) n. The small line of debris that refuses to be swept onto the dust pan and keeps backing a person across the room until he finally decides to give up and sweep it under the rug.

14. LACTOMANGULATION (lak to man gyu lay' shun) v. Manhandling the "open here" spout on a milk container so badly that one has to resort to the illegal side.

15. NEONPHANCY (ne on' fan see) n. A fluorescent light bulb struggling to come to life.

16. PEPPIER (pehp ee ay') n. The waiter at a fancy restaurant whose sole purpose seems to be walking around asking diners if they want ground pepper.

17. PETROPHOBIC (pet ro fob' ik) adj. One who is embarrassed to undress in front of a household pet.

18. PHONESIA (fo nee' zhuh) n. The affliction of dialing a phone number and forgetting whom you were calling just as they answer.

19. PUPKUS (pup kus') n. The moist residue left on a window after a dog presses it nose to it.

20. TELECRASTINATION (tel e kras tin ay' shun) n. The act of always letting the phone ring at least twice before you pick it up, when you're only six inches away.

Rules For Being Human

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Why Women Love Men

The Man That Inspires Me Every Day

Why Women Love Men

They've got that comfortable place on their shoulder that's perfect for snuggling into while we fall asleep.
They fall in love so hard, once they finally fall.
Bravery around snakes, water bugs, bats and flat tires.
Their unapologetic lust for a nice hunk of beef or chocolate cake.
Their ability to solve problems simply by throwing a ball around.
The glimpse you get, when they wear their baseball cap backward of their inner Little Leaguer.
How tender they get when they cry, and how seldom they do it.
What they lack in talk, they tend to make up for in action.
They make excellent companions when driving through rough neighborhoods or walking past dark alleys.
They really love their moms. They remind us of our dads.
They don't mind accompanying a woman to a party even though she looks like a movie star and they look like the chauffeur.
Their near-endless appetite for discussing the ins and outs of work and money - ours as well as theirs.
Their genuine ardor for tinkering with toilets, changing oil and assembling gas grills - jobs any intelligent woman can do but would be nuts to volunteer for.
They never care what their horoscope, their mother-in-law, nor the neighbors say.
They rarely lie about their age, their weight, or their clothing size.
How awestruck they are in the face of a homemade cookie.
How great their hands look holding ours.
Their face is a treasure to behold when they give us a present they picked out.
Their ignorance is usually amusing.
They give great hugs, (and always melt our hearts when a sweet "I love you honey," is added)
Though they often try to hide it, they're very tenderhearted and caring.
They have an uncanny ability to look deeply into our eyes and connect with our heart, even when we don't want them to.
They don't care whether colors match, but are willing to be concerned if we want them to be.
They give us a peek at the little boy inside when they get sick or happy or hurt.

~Author Unknown

How Students Earn Their Desks

September of 2005, a social studies school teacher from Arkansas did something not to be forgotten. On the first day of school, with permission of the school superintendent, the principal, and the building supervisor, she took all of the desks out of the classroom.
The kids came into first period, they walked in; there were no desks.
They obviously looked around and said, "Where's our desks?"
The teacher said, "You can't have a desk until you tell me how you earn them."
They thought, "Well, maybe it's our grades."
"No," she said.
"Maybe it's our behavior."
And she told them, "No, it's not even your behavior."
And so they came and went in the first period, still no desks in the classroom. Second period, same thing. Third period. By early afternoon television news crews had gathered in the class to find out about this crazy teacher who had taken all the desks out of the classroom. The last period of the day, the instructor gathered her class.
They were by this time sitting on the floor around the sides of the room.
She said, "Throughout the day no one has really understood how you earn the desks that sit in this classroom. Now I'm going to tell you."
She went over to the door of her classroom and opened it, and as she did 27 U.S. veterans, wearing their uniforms, walked into that classroom, each one carrying a school desk. And they placed those school desks in rows, and then they stood along the wall. By the time they had finished placing the desks those kids, for the first time I think perhaps in their lives, understood how they earned those desks.
Their teacher said, "You don't have to earn those desks. These guys did it for you. They put them out there for you, but it's up to you to sit here responsibly, to learn, to be good students and good citizens, because they paid a price for you to have that desk, and don't ever forget it."

~ Author Unknown

Twenty Dollars

A well known speaker started off his seminar by holding up a $20 bill. In the room of 200, he asked. "Who would like this $20 bill?"
Hands started going up. He said, "I am going to give this $20 to one of you - but first, let me do this."
He proceeded to crumple the 20 dollar note up. He then asked. "Who still wants it?" Still the hands were up in the air.
"Well," he replied, "what if I do this?" He dropped it on the ground and started to grind it into the floor with his shoe. He picked it up, now crumpled and dirty. "Now, who still wants it?"
Still the hands went into the air.
"My friends, you have all learned a very valuable lesson. No matter what I did to the money, you still wanted it because it did not decrease in value. It was still worth $20.
Many times in our lives, we are dropped, crumpled, and ground into the dirt by the decisions we make and the circumstances that come our way. We feel as though we are worthless; but no matter what happened or what will happen, you will never lose your value.
Dirty or clean, crumpled or finely creased, you are still priceless to those who love you. The worth of our lives comes, not in what we do or who we know, but by... WHO WE ARE.
You are special - don't ever forget it."

~ Author Unknown

You Should Write A Book

By Heino Molls

The average age of us baby-boomers today is pretty close to sixty. Some say it is over sixty.Regardless of what the number is, we all share one thing in common. We have all been on a life journey. In that journey we have all picked up stories that we tell about our experiences. The stories reflect our thoughts, our perspectives, and our opinions. We should all be writing them down.At this age, many of us have gone through the heartache of losing one of our parents. Some of us have lost both. Almost all of us have lost someone close to us; a friend, a mentor or a person that we knew well and respected.How many times have we wished that we had asked that person a certain question that we did not think of before? How many times have we thought that if only we could call on that person today for their advice or viewpoint, we could have a better perspective on a certain challenge or decision that we are facing?If they had written a book or kept a journal we would not only have a document of their journey through life but an understanding of their thoughts, their perspectives, even their opinions on all the challenges they had faced. Such a book would be invaluable.For those reasons alone, we should consider writing our own book. Today, we are the mentors. We are parents. We are close to many people who value our thoughts, our perspectives and our opinions.Writing a book about yourself is not an egotistical exercise if it is truthful. It may be one of the most unselfish things you can do. In all the time that people knew you, loved you and respected you, what was in your heart? What went through your mind at different times in the history of your time? Why not write it down? Those who care about you would cherish your words. Just like you would cherish the words of someone you have lost.Today, we have the tools to easily write our stories at our fingertips. Almost everyone has a keyboard of some kind. No need to flatter ourselves to think that our book should be a literary masterpiece or that any publisher is going to pick it up and sell it to the masses.Type it up and run off a few copies at the local copy shop. Put it in a good hardy binder. Write it in your own style of words. If you didn't do it that way, it would not be a reflection of the character you are. After all, if it didn't have all the faults and quirks that people know you for, it would be like fiction. And that would be worthless.We are all different. But all of us are on a journey through life. Our journeys will take us to all kinds of different places and circumstances. It stands to reason that all of our stories will be unique and different. Perhaps in the years to come your story may be meaningful to a stranger who will never meet you. But they will know you, through your book. Perhaps your story will inspire them to write about their journey.That would be a wonderful achievement. Because at the end of the day, all that we are and all that any of us will ever be, is a story.

The Car

A young man was getting ready to graduate from college. For many months he had admired a beautiful sports car in a dealer's showroom, and knowing his father could well afford it, he told him that was all he wanted. As graduation day approached, the young man awaited signs that his father had purchased the car. Finally, on the morning of his graduation, his father called him into his private study. His father told him how proud he was to have such a fine son, and told him how much he loved him. He handed his son a beautifully wrapped gift box. Curious, and somewhat disappointed, the young man opened the box and found a lovely, leather-bound Bible, with the young man's name embossed in gold. Angry, he rose his voice to his father and said," With all your money you give me a Bible and stormed out of the house."

Many years passed and the young man was very successful in business. He had a beautiful home and wonderful family, but realized his father was very old, and thought perhaps he should go to him. He had not seen him since that graduation day. Before he could make arrangements, he received a telegram telling him his father had passed away, and willed all of his possessions to his son. He needed to come home immediatelyand take care of things. When he arrived at his father's house, sudden sadness and regret filled his heart. He began to search through his father's important papers and saw the still new Bible, just as he had left it years ago. With tears, he opened the Bible and began to turn the pages. His father had carefully underlined a verse, Matt.7:11. And if ye, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Heavenly Father which is in Heaven, give to those who ask Him?
As he read those words, a car key dropped from the back of the Bible.It had a tag with the dealer's name, the same dealer who had the sports car he had desired. On the tag was the date of his graduation, and the words PAID IN FULL.

How many times do we miss God's blessings because they are not packaged as we expected.

~ Author Unknown

Native American Wisdom

"The beauty of the trees,

the softness of the air,

the fragrance of the grass speaks to me.
The summit of the mountain,

the thunder of the sky,

the rhythm of the sea speaks to me.
The strength of the fire,

the taste of salmon,

the trail of the sun, and the life that never goes away,they speak to me.

And my heart soars."

Chief Dan George