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WITandWISDOM(tm) - August 19, 2005 ISSN 1538-8794 ~~~~~~~ THOUGHTS: "Miracles are not a contradiction of nature. They are only in contradiction to what we know of nature." - St. Augustine Source: Illustrations, http://www.cybersaltlists.org ~~~~~~~ SPECIAL THOUGHTS: I was a college junior on my year abroad in Paris. It should have been wonderful. It wasn't. Everything was so different: the clothes, the food, the language. I longed for something – anything - familiar. My tight-knit Armenian family was in Florida, thousands of miles away. One Sunday I called to say hi. Their voices on the telephone were the first familiar sounds I'd heard in weeks. I cried after I hung up. I'd never felt so homesick before. If only I were close to someone here, I thought. I took a walk across town. I'd passed the Armenian church in Paris many times before, but I had never gone in. I realized that back in America, my family would be going to church too. Maybe being there now would make me feel closer to them. I took a seat in the back pew just as the service started. I looked around. The priest, the prayers, the faces in the congregation - this church was a lot like my family's church in Florida. For now, these people will be my family. Please, God, let me feel that. I looked up and saw an old woman coming slowly up the aisle, leaning heavily on a cane. I asked her - in Armenian - if she wanted to sit. She nodded and I slid over. The old woman bowed her head, losing herself in prayer. I tried to pay attention to the service, but I couldn't keep my eyes off her. There was something familiar in her face; she could have been my own grandmother. But I didn't know this woman. She noticed me staring and smiled. "You’re not from here, I are you?" she whispered. "No," I said. "I come from the United States." She nodded. After a moment, she said, "I've lost touch with them, but I used to have some nephews in America - in Florida. Sarkis, Dikran and... " A lump rose in my throat. I knew exactly what she was going to say. "Ara," I finished. "Ara Garibian. My father." The old woman took my hand. "Asdudzo kordz," she whispered - God's work. "I am your great-aunt. We are family." By Natalie Garibian Source: Guideposts, Copyright (c) January 2004, http://www.guideposts.org ~~~~~~~ THIS & THAT: Back when I was in the Air Force, in the 50's, nicknames were used primarily to identify formation members. For instance, I was “Panic”. A four-plane formation would make me “Panic Lead” while the other three planes would be “Panic 2”, “Panic 3”, and “Panic 4”. However, when we were not in formation, our ID was simply the plane identification number: AF Jet 19555. Or, as we called it, “The Triple Nickel.” We all loved to fly that thing. As soon as we'd take off, that was who we were, “Triple Nickel.” I remember coming back one to Laredo AFB after a cross-country flight. I contacted the tower and said, “Laredo tower, this is Triple Nickel chromium plated stovepipe, space ace on base, boots down and laced, like to bounce and blow!” Obviously the tower had heard that kind of stuff before. They didn't even hesitate in answering, “Roger dodger, Triple Nickel, chromium plated stovepipe, space ace on base, with your boots down and laced. You've got the nod. Hit the sod.” Submitted by B.B. ~~~~~~~ KEEP SMILING: Murray put this announcement in his local synagogue's newsletter... LOST: Near or in the overgrown greenery by the back parking lot, a black leather wallet containing precious family photos, personal ID documents, and about 6.000 South African rand (about $US875). Finder can keep the photos and documents but will please return the money, to which I am attached for sentimental reasons Submitted by Michele ~~~~~~~ TRIVIA: Historic Scenes If you’ve never seen the 1960 Nixon-Kennedy debates, you can now at the History Channel’s site, along with hundreds of other streaming-video and –audio clips of memorable moments past, from Gehrig’s farewell to Gandhi’s call for Indian independence. http://historychannel.com/broadband Source: Popular Science, Copyright © April 2005, http://popsci.com