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WITandWISDOM(tm) - July 7, 2003 ISSN 1538-8794 ~~~~~~~ THOUGHTS: Contentment is not the fulfillment of what you want, but the realization of how much you already have. Source: The Funnies, http://groups.yahoo.com/group/andychaps_the-funnies ~~~~~~~ SPECIAL THOUGHTS: It was almost Mother's Day. For weeks I'd hoarded every penny I earned by digging dandelions from our front lawn. And I had saved twenty-eight cents to spend on a lovely gift for Mama. I was 6 years old then, and my heart raced as I thought of all the wonderful things that such a sum of money could buy. After convincing Mama that I was old enough to walk alone to our little village store, I tucked my coins into my pocket and hurried off. The familiar aromas of cloth, candy, and plastic greeted me as I pushed through the heavy store door a few minutes later. But one scent over-rode the others, for just ahead stood the perfume counter. Fancy bottles of golden liquid lined the mirrored shelf. Perfume would be a wonderful gift! A moment later I sucked in my breath at the prices those tiny bottles bore. Who ever could spend a whole dollar for just one of them? I will look at everything before I decide what to get, I told myself, feeling very wise. I looked through scarves, handbags, paring knives, heavy teacups with bright orange flowers painted on them - even a dog-eared book of poetry. But even that cost more than the coins that jingled in my pocket. I'd been foolish to think that my few pennies could purchase anything special for Mama. And then I saw it! A whole bin of gloves - the kind that proper ladies wore when they dressed up to go places. The sign overhead read "Two for 25¢!" Quickly I began to paw through the bin. There were black gloves, brown ones, and white and yellow and blue ones. But someone had separated the pairs. Undaunted, I began to pull out the white gloves. At last I found a glove I knew Mama would like. It had three tiny pearl buttons and some fine stitching down the top of the hand. I laid the glove aside, determined to find its mate. I had about given up when I spied another glove with three pearl buttons. I checked to make sure that one glove was for the left hand, the other for the right; then joyfully I hurried to the checkout counter. That night after supper I presented my carefully wrapped gift to Mama. I hoped she'd wear the gloves to church the next day - Mother's Day Sabbath. As Mama slipped them on she looked at them closely. "They fit perfectly," she said at last, wiggling her fingers to test them. The strange look in her eyes told me that she was very impressed with my abilities to choose well. I sat beside Mama at church the next day. Though I tried to pay attention to the sermon, I kept glancing at Mama's hands, clothed in my gift. And then I noticed it. The buttons on Mamas two gloves weren't sewn on in the same places. Worse yet, one cuff had a V-shaped notch and the other cuff was plain. The gloves were not a pair! My world blurred as tears threatened to spill. I looked away from the awful gloves, hoping that Mama hadn't noticed their differences. And then Mama took my hand in one of her gloved ones. She gave it a little squeeze and pulled me closer. Dreading what I might see in her eyes, I reluctantly looked up at her. To my relief, I saw only understanding and an encouraging smile on her face. "Thank you," she whispered. So Mama had known the gloves didn't match all along. But she'd worn them anyway. It wasn't the perfectness of my gift that mattered to her, but that I had given it with my whole heart. Each day I give my heart to God. It's an imperfect and often faltering heart. Though I frequently mess things up, with His help I try to keep it right. And so He looks down on my imperfect gift and, with a smile that encourages me to try again, accepts it. "Thank you," He says, remembering how His Son died on the cross for me. By Elaine Egbert, College Place, Washington. Source: Adventist Review, ISSN 0161-1119, (c) May 8, 2003, http://www.adventistreview.org/ Submitted by Nancy Simpson ~~~~~~~ THIS & THAT: Country Pearls . . . Part 1 of 2 [Jul 7, 17] Don't name a pig you plan to eat. Country fences need to be horse high, pig tight and bull strong. Life is not about how fast you run, or how high you climb, but how well you bounce. Keep skunks and bankers at a distance. Life is simpler when you plow around the stumps. Mortgaging a future crop is saddling a wobbly colt. A bumble bee is faster than a John Deere tractor. Trouble with a milk cow is she won't stay milked. Don't skinny dip with snapping turtles. Words that soak into your ears are whispered, not yelled. Meanness don't happen overnight. To know how country folks are doing, look at their barns, not their houses. Never lay an angry hand on a kid or an animal, it just ain't helpful. Teachers, bankers, and hoot owls sleep with one eye open. Forgive your enemies. It messes with their heads. (To be continued.) Source: Quotes of the Day, mailto:rheamo@centurytel.net?subject=Subscribe_Quotes_of_the_Day ~~~~~~~ KEEP SMILING: I was having lunch with my nine-year-old son, when the waitress came by to ask if we wanted a drink. "I'll have a decapitated coffee," my son said in all seriousness. The waitress smiled and poured him a cup. Not to be outdone, she later returned with the coffeepot a few minutes later and said, "Can I put a head on that for you?" Source: Marty's Joke of the Day, mailto:martysjotd-subscribe@yahoogroups.com ~~~~~~~ TRIVIA: Cemetery Plots In Tokyo It costs a lot to live in Japan, try dying: Cemetery plots on sale in Tokyo are priced at up to $86,800 each. The city government began taking applications Wednesday for the 50 newly opened spots at Aoyama Cemetery - the first such sale in 43 years. Tokyo is notorious as the world's most costly city, and through-the- roof real estate prices also register at cemeteries. Smaller plots at Aoyama start at $30,000, with a 40-square-foot lot going for $86,000. - The Associated Press Source: Peninsula Daily News, July 3, 2003, http://www.peninsuladailynews.com |