| Prior Date | Archive Index | Next Date |
|
WITandWISDOM(tm) - June 10, 2004 ISSN 1538-8794 ~~~~~~~ THOUGHTS: One kind word can warm three winter months. - Japanese saying ~~~~~~~ SPECIAL THOUGHTS: When William Stidger taught at Boston University, he once reflected upon the great number of un-thanked people in his life. Those who had helped nurture him, inspire him or who cared enough about him to leave a lasting impression. One was a schoolteacher he'd not heard of in many years. But he remembered that she had gone out of her way to put a love of verse in him, and Will had loved poetry all his life. He wrote a letter of thanks to her. The reply he received, written in the feeble scrawl of the aged, began, "My dear Willie." He was delighted. Now over 50, bald and a professor, he didn't think there was a person left in the world who would call him "Willie." Here is that letter: ~~~ My dear Willie, I cannot tell you how much your note meant to me. I am in my eighties, living alone in a small room, cooking my own meals, lonely and, like the last leaf of autumn, lingering behind. You will be interested to know that I taught school for 50 years and yours is the first note of appreciation I ever received. It came on a blue-cold morning and it cheered me as nothing has in many years. ~~~ Not prone to cry easily, Will wept over that note. She was one of the great un-thanked people from Will's past. You know them. We all do. The teacher who made a difference. That coach we'll never forget. The music instructor or Sunday school worker who helped us to believe in ourselves. That scout leader who cared. We all remember people who shaped our lives in various ways. People whose influence changed us. Will Stidger found a way to show his appreciation -- he wrote them letters. Who are some of the un-thanked people from your past? It may not be too late to say, "Thanks." Steve Goodier Steve Goodier is the editor of The Life Support System, a motivational e-newsletter delivered daily to 85,000 subscribers in over 100 nations. His inspirational newsletter and books are available through his website at http://www.lifesupportsystem.com Source: Life Support System, mailto:LifeSupport-subscribe@yahoogroups.com ~~~~~~~ THIS & THAT: The “Perfect” Pastor The perfect pastor preaches exactly 10 minutes. He condemns sin roundly but never hurts anyone's feelings. He works from 8 AM until midnight and is also the church janitor. The perfect pastor makes $40 a week, wears good clothes, drives a good car, guys good books, and donates $30 a week to the church. He is 29 years old and has 40 years experience. Above all, he is handsome. The perfect pastor has a burning desire to work with teenagers, and he spends most of his time with the senior citizens. He smiles all the time with a straight face because he has a sense of humor that keeps him seriously dedicated to his church. He makes 15 home visits a day and is always in his office to be handy when needed. The perfect pastor always has time for church council and all of its committees. He never misses the meeting of any church organization and is always busy evangelizing the unchurched. The perfect pastor is always in the next church over! If your pastor does not measure up, simply send this notice to six other churches that are tired of their pastor, too. Then bundle up your pastor and send him to the church at the top of the list. If everyone cooperates, in one week you will receive 1,643 pastors. One of them should be perfect. Have faith in this letter. One church broke the chain and got its old pastor back in less than three months. (This all goes to show that we often have unrealistic expectations of our Pastors.) Submitted Marilyn Graham ~~~~~~~ KEEP SMILING: At our daughter's high school graduation, I couldn't help noticing a young man sporting a long bleached-blond ponytail sprouting from the top of his otherwise-shaved head. A heavy link chain hung around his neck, and one ear displayed several earrings. I had to smile when I heard him say to his friend, "Man, I feel so out of place. I'm the only guy here not wearing a tie." Contributed to "Short Takes" by Deborah Snyder Source: Reader's Digest, http://www.readersdigest.com/ ~~~~~~~ TRIVIA: What’s So Great About Family Dinner? Teens who ate dinner five to seven times a week with their families were 45% less likely to try alcohol, 24% less apt to smoke marijuana and 67% more likely to get A’s compared with kids who never or rarely dined with their families, according to the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University. Source: Ladies’ Home Journal, May 2004, http://www.lhj.com |