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WITandWISDOM(tm) - August 9, 2006 ISSN 1538-8794 ~~~~~~~ THOUGHTS: Don't talk unless you can improve the silence. Submitted by Lorraine ~~~~~~~ SPECIAL THOUGHTS: Imagine what it must be like to be shipped like cargo along with your whole family to a place, the only purpose of which is to kill people. Imagine struggling to stay alive physically and spiritually in that setting, not knowing what has happened to the rest of your family, but believing that they were exterminated in gas chambers or ovens. This was the common experience of people referred to as holocaust survivors. One survivor was Viktor Frankl, a psychiatrist who emerged from the experience with extraordinary insights valuable to all of us. In "Man's Search for Meaning" he says, "We who lived in concentration camps can remember the men who walked throughout the huts comforting others, giving away their last piece of bread. They may have been few in number, but they offer sufficient proof that everything can be taken away from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms--to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way." "Every prisoner had a moral choice to make," he says, "to surrender one's inner self to the Nazis, or to find the meaning in one's life that would give one the strength to go on." The lessons we can learn are that no matter how bad our troubles are, we can survive them if we choose to survive. And the best way to survive--in fact, the best way to thrive--is to find meaning in every moment of existence, every memory and every possibility for our future. This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts. © 2006 Josephson Institute of Ethics; reprinted with permission. Michael Josephson, one of the nation's leading ethicists, is the founder of the Josephson Institute of Ethics and the premier youth character education program, CHARACTER COUNTS! For further information visit http://www.charactercounts.org ~~~~~~~ THIS & THAT: Only a Southerner knows . . . Only a Southerner knows the difference between a hissie fit and a conniption fit, and that you don't " HAVE" them, you "PITCH" them. Only a Southerner knows how many fish, collard greens, turnip greens, peas, beans, etc., make up "a mess." Only a Southerner can show or point out to you the general direction of "yonder." Only a Southerner knows exactly how long "directly" is, ... as in: "Going to town, be back directly." Even Southern babies know that "Gimme some sugar" is not a request for the white, granular sweet substance that sits in a pretty little bowl in the middle of the table. All Southerners know exactly when "by and by" is. They might not use the term, but they know the concept well. Only a Southerner knows instinctively that the best gesture of solace for a neighbor who's got trouble is a plate of hot fried chicken and a big bowl of cold potato salad. If the neighbor's trouble is a real crisis, they also know to add a large banana puddin! Only Southerners grow up knowing the difference between "right near" and "a right far piece." They also know that "just down the road" can be 1 mile or 20. No true Southerner would ever assume that the car with the flashing turn signal is actually going to make a turn A Southerner knows that "fixin" can be used as a noun, a verb, or an adverb. In the South, y'all is singular .... all y'all is plural Southerners know grits come from corn and how to eat them. Every Southerner knows tomatoes with eggs, bacon, grits, and coffee are perfectly wonderful; that red eye gravy is also a breakfast food; and that fried green tomatoes are not a breakfast food When you hear someone say, "Well, I caught myself lookin'," you know you are in the presence of a genuine Southerner! Only true Southerners say "sweet tea" and "sweet milk." Sweet tea indicates the need for sugar and lots of it -- we do not like our tea unsweetened. "Sweet milk" means you don't want buttermilk And a true Southerner knows you don't scream obscenities at little old ladies who drive 30 MPH on the freeway. You just say, "Bless her heart"... and go your own way. And to those of you who are still having a hard time understanding all this Southern stuff ... bless your hearts, I hear they are fixin' to have classes on Southernness as a second language! And for those who are not from the South but have lived here for a long time, all y'all need a sign to hang on y'alls front porch that reads "I ain't from the South, but I got here as fast as I could." Bless your hearts ... y'all have a blessed day. Submitted by Anita Bryant ~~~~~~~ KEEP SMILING: Sign In front of a service station: "Come in! Let us shock, tire, break and exhaust you." Submitted by Quirk ~~~~~~~ TRIVIA: The story was told some years ago of a pastor who found the roads blocked one Sunday morning and was forced to skate on the river to get to church, which he did. When he arrived the elders of the church were horrified that their preacher had skated on the Lord’s Day. After the service they held a meeting where the pastor explained that it was either skate to church or not go at all. Finally one elder asked, “Did you enjoy it?” When the preacher answered, “No,” the board decided it was all right! From: Today in the Word, MBI, December, 1989, p. 12 Source: SermonCentral Weekly Newsletter, http://www.sermoncentral.com/newsletter_subscribe.asp