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WITandWISDOM(tm) - June 7, 2002 ISSN 1538-8794 ~~~~~~~ THOUGHTS: "The meaning of earthly existence lies, not as we have grown used to thinking, in prospering, but in the development of the soul." - Alexander Solzhenitsyn Source: Weekend Encounter, by Dick Innes, Copyright 2002, http://www.actsweb.org/subscribe.htm Subjects: Success ~~~~~~~ SPECIAL THOUGHTS: Young Jesse decided that he too wanted to be the fastest human being on earth. The boy went to his track coach and told him of his new dream. His coach told him, "It's great to have a dream, but to attain your dream you must build a ladder to it. Here is the ladder to your dreams: "The first rung is determination! The second rung is dedication! The third rung is discipline! And the fourth rung is attitude!" Jesse began to climb that ladder. He didn't know it at the time, but that ladder would take him to the pinnacle of success against incredible odds. The Olympic Games of 1936 were held in Berlin. The man in charge of those games was Adolf Hitler. The German entry in the running broad jump was Luz Long, a blond, blue-eyed athlete who had trained all his life for this event. Hitler desperately wanted Long to win to support his propaganda for the "master" race. Representing the Americans was Jesse - Jesse Owens. In the trials he did badly. He had to jump a qualifying distance of twenty-four and a half feet, but he fouled on his first attempt. Luz Long qualified easily. On his second attempt Owens was extra cautious, and he fell three inches short of the qualifying distance. Owens was now extremely nervous. He might not even qualify to compete in the broad jump. Before his third and final try, he rested on one knee in prayer. Then someone called his name and put a calm, reassuring hand on his shoulder. It was Luz Long! "I think I know what is wrong with you," said Luz, seconds before Owens was to jump. "You give everything when you jump. I do the same. You cannot do halfway, but you are afraid you will foul again." "That's right," said Jesse. "I have answer," said Luz. "Same thing happen to me last year in Cologne." Luz told him to jump half a foot behind the take - off board - with full power. That way it was possible not to foul and yet not hold back. Luz then put his towel down at the exact spot from which Jesse should jump. It worked. Jesse not only qualified, he set an unofficial world record. Thanks to Luz, America's African-American was still in the running. The day of the finals, Luz Long jumped first, his first of three tries; Jesse Owens jumped a little farther. Luz's second jump outdid Jesse's first; Jesse then jumped a half inch farther. On his third and final try Luz Long outdid himself - a fast, high, long leap far in excess of the existing world record. Now it was Jesse Owen's final turn. Before he took off, he caught Luz Long's eye. He said later he felt that his opponent was "wordlessly urging me to do my best, to do better than I'd ever done." And Jesse did. Luz had jumped farther than any man had ever jumped before. But Jesse jumped even farther than Luz. "You did it!" said Luz. Then he held Jesse's arm up in the air. "Jazze Owenz! Jazze Owenz!" he shouted to the crowd. Soon more than 100,000 Germans were chanting along with him, "Jazze Owenz! Jazze Owenz!" Luz Long failed to prove Hitler's theory of the master race. Instead he proved himself one of the finest sportsmen of all time. From: Jesse: The Man Who Outran Hitler By Owens, Jesse, Published by Ballantine Books (Mm) (Feb 1, 1990) ISBN: 0449130568 http://isbn.nu/0449130568 Source: Never Give Up by Tim Crosby, Copyright (c) 2001 by The Quiet Hour http://www.thequiethour.org/ Subjects: Olympics ~~~~~~~ THIS & THAT: Vital Statistics Gone to the Dogs 68 Million - Number of dogs owned in the United States 44 - Percent of pet owners who buy souvenirs for their animals while on vacation 9.9 million - Number of dogs each year whose owners throw them a birthday celebration $19.95 - Cost of a pet birthday cake from Three Dog Bakery in Kansas City, Missouri $85 - Cost of a bath and nail-clip for an average dog at New York City's Le Chien Pet Salon, in the Trump Tower Source: Health, April 2002, http://www.health.com Subjects: Dogs ~~~~~~~ KEEP SMILING: While trying to pick a movie on TV with my six year old grandson, the PG 13 came up and he asked me "Grandma are you 13?" I said "No". He told me " We can't watch this then." Source: Just for Grins, http://www.coolnewsletters.com Subjects: Movies, Television ~~~~~~~ TRIVIA: On June 10, 2002, something extraordinary will happen to the setting Sun over North America. Full Story at: http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2002/03jun_sunset.htm?list691430 Source: NASA Science News, http://science.nasa.gov/ Subjects: Sun |