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WITandWISDOM(tm) - October 5, 1999 ~~~~~~~ THOUGHTS: "There is no limit to what can be accomplished if it doesn't matter who gets the credit." - Emerson (E-zine: WEEKEND ENCOUNTER http://www.gospelcom.net/actsi/weekly/) ~~~~~~~ SPECIAL THOUGHTS: In 1989 an 8.2 earthquake almost flattened Armenia, killing over 30,000 people in less than four minutes. In the midst of utter devastation and chaos, a father left his wife securely at home and rushed to the school where his son was supposed to be, only to discover that the building was as flat as a pancake. After the traumatic initial shock, he remembered the promise he had made to his son: "No matter what, I'll always be there for you!" And tears began to fill his eyes. As he looked at the pile of debris that once was the school, it looked hopeless, but he kept remembering his commitment to his son. He began to concentrate on where he walked his son to class at school each morning. Remembering his son's classroom would be in the back right corner of the building, he rushed there and started digging through the rubble. As he was digging, other forlorn parents arrived, clutching their hearts, saying: "My son!" "My daughter!" Other well meaning parents tried to pull him off of what was left of the school saying: "It's too late!" "They're dead!" "You can't help!" "Go home!" "Come on, face reality, there's nothing you can do!" "You're just going to make things worse!" To each parent he responded with one line: "Are you going to help me now?" And then he proceeded to dig for his son, stone by stone. The fire chief showed up and tried to pull him off of the school's debris saying, "Fires are breaking out, explosions are happening everywhere. You're in danger. We'll take care of it. Go home." To which this loving, caring Armenian father asked, "Are you going to help me now?" The police came and said, "You're angry, distraught and it's over. You're endangering others. Go home. We'll handle it!" To which he replied, "Are you going to help me now?" No one helped. Courageously he proceeded alone because he needed to know for himself: "Is my boy alive or is he dead?" He dug for eight hours . . . 12 hours . . . 24 hours .. . . 36 hours . . . then, in the 38th hour, he pulled back a boulder and heard his son's voice. He screamed his son's name, "ARMAND!" He heard back, "Dad!?! It's me, Dad! I told the other kids not to worry. I told ‘em that if you were alive, you'd save me and when you saved me, they'd be saved. You promised, ‘No matter what, I'll always be there for you!' You did it, Dad! . . ." "What's going on in there? How is it?" the father asked. "There are 14 of us left out of 33, Dad. We're scared, hungry, thirsty and thankful you're here! When the building collapsed, it made a wedge, like a triangle, and it saved us!" "Come on out, boy!" "No, Dad! Let the other kids out first, ‘cause I know you'll get me! No matter what, I know you'll be there for me!" "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you." (Deuteronomy 31:5) (E-zine: CHICKEN SOUP FOR THE SOUL http://www.soupserver.com/ ) ~~~~~~~ THIS & THAT: ENGINEER IDENTIFICATION Part 1 of 2 [Oct 5 & 15] (If there's somebody in your life who you think is trying to pass as an engineer, evaluate him with the following to discern the truth.) 1. When you walk into a room and notice that a picture is hanging crooked, you: a. Straighten it b. Ignore it c. Buy a CAD system & spend the next six months designing a solar-powered, self-adjusting picture frame while often stating aloud your belief that the inventor of the nail was a fool. An engineer will answer "a" but partial credit can be given to someone who responds, "It depends." 2. Engineers have different objectives when it comes to social interaction. Ordinary people expect to accomplish several unrealistic things from social interaction: Stimulating and thought-provoking conversation. Important social contacts. A feeling of connectedness with other humans. In contrast to ordinary people, engineers have rational objectives for social interactions: Get it over with as soon as possible. Avoid getting invited to something unpleasant. Demonstrate mental ability and mastery of all subjects. 3. To the engineer, all matter in the universe can be placed into one of two categories: Things that need to be fixed, and Things that will need to be fixed after you've had a few minutes to play with them 4. Engineers like to solve problems. If there are no problems handily available, they will create their own problems. Ordinary people don't understand this concept; they believe that if it isn't broken, don't fix it. Engineers believe that if it isn't broken, it doesn't have enough features yet. 5. No engineer looks at a television remote control without wondering what it would take to turn it into a stun gun. No engineer can take a shower without wondering if some sort of Teflon coating would make showering unnecessary. To the engineer, the world is a toy box full of sub-optimized and feature-poor toys. (E-zine: HUMORG Mailto:Judib@kktv.com) ~~~~~~~ KEEP SMILING: CALLED TO JURY DUTY JUDGE: Is there any reason you could not serve as a juror in this case? JUROR: I don't want to be away from my job that long. JUDGE: Can't they do without you at work? JUROR: Yes, but I don't want them to know it. (E-zine: THE FUNNIES Mailto:andychaps_the- funnies-subscribe@egroups.com) ~~~~~~~ TRIVIA: Each year a farmer entered his corn in the state fair where it won a blue ribbon. One year a newspaper reporter interviewed him and discovered that the farmer shared his seed corn with his neighbors. "Why do you share your best seed corn with your neighbors when they are entering corn in competition with yours each year," the reporter asked. "Why sir," said the farmer, "don't you know? The wind picks up pollen from the ripening corn and swirls it from field to field. If my neighbors grow inferior corn, cross-pollination will steadily degrade the quality of my corn. If I am to grow good corn, I must help my neighbors grow good corn." By James Bender, in his book, How to Talk Well (New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, Inc., 1994) (E-zine: SERMON FODDER http://www.onelist.com/subscribe.cgi/Sermon_Fodder ) |