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WITandWISDOM(tm) - January 25, 2000 ~~~~~~~ THOUGHTS: A sense of humor doesn't mean the ability to tell jokes or make wisecracks. It's a sense of proportion and the courage to smile. It's the ability to take yourself and your problems with a grain of salt, the ability to smile at yourself and the world as well. - John Luther - Bits & Pieces, October 14, 1993 (Magazine: BITS & PIECES http://www.epinc.com/ ) ~~~~~~~ SPECIAL THOUGHTS: "Near the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, stands the majestic Firth of Forth Bridge. Completed in May, 1880, it has a center span of 1710 feet. It was then the longest cantilever bridge in the world. At that time, it was one of the engineering wonders of the world. The day for the completion and dedication of the bridge arrived. For many long months, two separate work crews had been working toward each other from opposite sides of the bay. Now the time had come when the two huge steel structures would be connected in the middle of the bay. Everyone who could find a way to come was there for the great day. Countless boats bobbed on the water, people by the thousands lined the shores, dignitaries from various parts of the world came together to witness the joining together of the two sections of the bridge. Then came the giant shock! the two sections of the bridge would not come together. Officials began to squirm in embarrassment and humiliation as the steel workers sweated futilely under the overcast sky. But there was still a gap that refused to be closed. The bridge builders tried everything they could think of: tugboats tugged, cables strained, tractors pulled, cranes lifted, but the gap remained. They rechecked the blueprints. Everything seemed to be correct. So why the gap? Despair set in as they ran out of options. Their spirits were as low as the clouds hanging in the sky. Suddenly something happened! The warm sun broke through the overcast. The warm rays beamed down on the cold metal of the bridge. As the officials watched, an apparent miracle took place before their eyes. The gap between the two sections of the bridge began to gradually close. Warmed by the sun, the two long sections of the bridge began to inch toward each other high above the bay. In a while, the two sections came flush together. Hurriedly, the work crews put in the bolts and the bridge was finally fastened together. An enormous cheer went up along with a great sigh of relief. In all of our individual lives, there are tangled times when things just won't fit together. We sweat, struggle, and try everything humanly possible, but we still can't make things come together. The sky is overcast and our spirits droop. Feelings of futility, anguish, even panic, set in. Then the warmth of God's love breaks through the gloom and - miraculously - things begin to fit together. Behind the overcast skies . . . He has been there all the time!" By Donald Russel Robertson. "Dear You", Word Publishing 1989 (E-zine: GLORIOUS INSPIRATION Mailto:sharon.unger@usa.net) ~~~~~~~ THIS & THAT: A young man asked an old rich man how he made his money. The old guy fingered his worsted wool vest and said, "Well, son, it was 1932. The depth of the Great Depression. I was down to my last nickel. I invested that nickel in an apple. I spent the entire day polishing the apple and, at the end of the day, I sold the apple for ten cents. The next morning, I invested those ten cents in two apples. I spent the entire day polishing them and sold them at 5:00 pm for 20 cents. I continued this system for a month, by the end of which I'd accumulated a fortune of $1.37. Then my wife's father died and left us two million dollars." (E-zine: HUMORG Mailto:Judib@mgram.com) ~~~~~~~ KEEP SMILING: A priest was called to substitute for another. He began by explaining the meaning of the word "substitute." "If you break a window and place a piece of cardboard there, that's a substitute," he said. After Mass, the priest was shaking hands with a woman who had listened intently to his homily. Wishing to compliment him, she said, "Father, you were no substitute. You were a real pane." (E-zine: THE TIMOTHY REPORT Mailto:timothy-subscribe@topica.com) ~~~~~~~ TRIVIA: In an interesting experiment at Amherst College (Massachusetts), a band of steel was secured around a young squash. As the squash grew, it exerted pressure on the steel band. Researchers wanted to know just how strong a squash could be, so they measured the force it brought to bear on its constraints. They initially estimated that it might be able to exert as much as 500 pounds of pressure. In one month, the squash was pressing 500 pounds. In two months it was applying 1,500 pounds and, when it reached 2,000 pounds, researches had to strengthen the steel band. The squash eventually brought 5,000 pounds of pressure to bear on the band - when the rind split open. They opened the squash and found it inedible. It was full of tough, course fibers that had grown to push against the constraining obstacle. The plant required great amounts of nutrients to gain the strength needed to break its bonds, and its roots extended out about 80,000 feet in all directions. The squash had single-handedly taken over the garden space! By Steve Goodier, publisher of Your Life Support System (E-zine: YOUR LIFE SUPPORT SYSTEM Mailto:lifesupport- subscribe@topica.com) |