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WITandWISDOM(tm) - March 2, 2007 ISSN 1538-8794 ~~~~~~~ THOUGHTS: When will we ever learn that there are no hopeless situations, only people who have grown hopeless about them? What appears as an unsolvable problem to us is actually a rather exhilarating challenge. People who inspire others are those who see invisible bridges at the end of dead-end-streets. - Charles Swindoll, Dropping Your Guard, http://isbn.nu/0849915538 Source: Marcella's Inspiring Collection http://tinyurl.com/w9nb9 ~~~~~~~ SPECIAL THOUGHTS: One day a beautiful, but very troubled little girl came through the door of my Day Nursery. From the very beginning I became captivated by this child who had so little but needed so much. I was heartbroken that a four-year-old could suffer such heartache and pain. She was born in prison after her mom had used marijuana, crack and cocaine her entire pregnancy. The little girl was nonverbal and had very little control. I knew her progress would be a mighty battle. Whenever somebody approached her, she became violent for long periods and ended up in a fetal position on the floor crying out. I found myself praying for her day in and day out. As months rolled on, I began to bond with this child that no one wanted. She and I worked very hard taking one step forward and four steps back. Daily, we sat in the big rocking chair in my office, swaying back and forth and back and forth. During our rocking time I sang "Jesus Loves Me." She always settled down and became very still at the melody. Though she never spoke, peace seemed to fill her face as she listened to the song. One day after a very long battle I held my special girl to again calm her fears and pain. In silence we rocked back and forth and back and forth and back and forth. Then she looked at me with tear-filled eyes and spoke for the first time, "Sing to me about that Man who loves me." Blinking back tears, I knew the battle had been won. © 2001 from Chicken Soup for the Caregiver's Soul by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen and LeAnn Thieman. All rights reserved, http://isbn.nu/0757301592 ~~~~~~~ THIS & THAT: About Pennsylvanians: You've never referred to Philadelphia as anything but "Philly" and New Jersey has always been " Jersey" You refer to Pennsylvania as "PA" (pronounced Pee-ay). How many other states do that? "You guys" is a perfectly acceptable reference to a group of men & women You know how to respond to the question "Djeetyet?" (Didyoueatyet?) You learned to pronounce Bryn Mawr, Wilkes-Barre , Schuylkill , the Pocono's Tamaqua, Tunkannock, Bala Cynwyd, Duquesne & Monongahela. You know what a "Mummer" is, and are disappointed if you can't catch at least highlights of the parade. You know what " Punxsutawney Phil" is, and what it means if he sees his shadow. The first day of buck & the first day of doe season are school holidays. You know how to get 'rid' of things and how to read up. You can use the phrase "fire hall wedding reception" and not even bat an eye. You can't go to a wedding without hearing the Chicken Dance," at least one polka and either an Italian song (sung in Italian) or "Hava Nagila." At least 5 people on your block have electric "candles" in all or most heir windows all year long. You own only 4 condiments: salt, pepper, mustard & ketchup. Words like "hoagie," "crick," "chipped ham," "sticky buns," "shoo-fly pie," pierogies" & "pocketbook" actually mean something to you. You can eat cold pizza (even for breakfast) and know others who do the same. (Those from NY find this "barbaric.") You not only have heard of Birch Beer, but you know it comes in several colors: Red, White, Brown, Gold. You know several places to purchase or that serve Scrapple, Summer Sausage and Hot Bacon Dressing You know the difference between a cheese steak & a pizza steak sandwich, and know that you can't get a really good one outside PA. Except Atlantic City on the boardwalk. You live for summer, when street & county fairs signal the beginning of funnel cake season. Customers ask the waitress for "dippy eggs" or breakfast. You know what a township, borough, and commonwealth is. You can identify drivers from New York , New Jersey , or other neighboring states by their unique and irritating driving habits. A traffic jam is10 cars waiting to pass a horse-drawn carriage on the highway in Lancaster County. You carry jumper cables in your car & your female passengers know how to use them. You still keep kitty litter, starting fluid, de-icer, or a snowbrush in your trunk, even if you now live in the south. Driving is always better in winter because the potholes are filled with snow. As a kid you built snow forts and leaf piles that were taller than you were. Your graduating class consisted of mostly Polish, German, & Italian names. Submitted by Nancy A Thomas ~~~~~~~ KEEP SMILING: "Ginger Rogers did everything Fred Astaire did, but she did it backwards and in heels." Source: Weekend Encounter, by Dick Innes, Copyright (c) ACTS International, 2004, http://www.actsweb.org/subscribe.php ~~~~~~~ TRIVIA: Cary Grant donated his entire fee for 'Arsenic and Old Lace' ($100,000) to the U.S. War Relief Fund and gave his earnings from 'The Philadelphia Story' to the British war effort. Submitted by Lorraine