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Update on my sister and her hubby... And now for something completely different... Bloggers Christmas Wish List Time is runnning out!!! Kimi Peck has resurfaced... Chamber Haunted House opens tonight!!! Funny answering machine message 5 Lessons in life to make you think... Funny musical interlude for your enjoyment! Remembering Eric Porter June 08 July 08 August 08 September 08 October 08 November 08 December 08 January 09 February 09 March 09 April 09 May 09 June 09 July 09 August 09 September 09 October 09 November 09 
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5 Lessons in life to make you think...
Five (5) lessons to make you think about the way we treat people.
1 - First Important Lesson - Cleaning Lady.. During my second month of college, our professor gave us a pop quiz. I was a conscientious student and had breezed through the questions until I read the last one: 'What is the first name of the woman who cleans the school?' Surely this was some kind of joke. I had seen the cleaning woman several times.. She was tall, dark-haired and in her 50's, but how would I know her name? I handed in my paper, leaving the last question blank. Just before class ended, one student asked if the last question would count toward our quiz grade. 'Absolutely,' said the professor.. 'In your careers you will meet many people. All are significant. They deserve your attention and care, even if all you do is smile and say 'hello.' I've never forgotten that lesson. I also learned her name was Dorothy. 2. - Second Important Lesson - Pickup in the Rain One night, at 11:30 p.m., an older African American woman was standing on the side of an Alabama highway trying to endure a lashing rainstorm. Her car had broken down and she desperately needed a ride. Soaking wet, she decided to flag down the next car. A young white man stopped to help her, generally unheard of in those conflict-filled 60s.. The man took her to safety, helped her get assistance and put her into a taxicab. She seemed to be in a big hurry, but wrote down his address and thanked him. Seven days went by and a knock came on the man's door. To his surprise, a giant console color TV was delivered to his home. A special note was attached. It read: 'Thank you so much for assisting me on the highway the other night. The rain drenched not only my clothes, but also my spirits. Then you came along. Because of you, I was able to make it to my dying husband's bedside just before he passed away... God bless you for helping me and unselfishly serving others. Sincerely, Mrs. Nat King Cole. 3 - Third Important Lesson - Always remember those who serve. In the days when an ice cream sundae cost much less, a 10-year-old boy entered a hotel coffee shop and sat at a table. A waitress put a glass of water in front of him. 'How much is an ice cream sundae?' he asked. 'Fifty cents,' replied the waitress. The little boy pulled is hand out of his pocket and studied the coins in it. 'Well, how much is a plain dish of ice cream?' he inquired. By now more people were waiting for a table and the waitress was growing impatient. 'Thirty-five cents,' she brusquely replied. The little boy again counted his coins.. 'I'll have the plain ice cream,' he said. The waitress brought the ice cream, put the bill on the table and walked away. The boy finished the ice cream, paid the cashier and left. When the waitress came back, she began to cry as she wiped down the table... There, placed neatly beside the empty dish, were two nickels and five pennies.. You see, he couldn't have the sundae, because he had to have enough left to leave her a tip. 4 - Fourth Important Lesson. - The obstacle in Our Path. In ancient times, a King had a boulder placed on a roadway. Then he hid himself and watched to see if anyone would remove the huge rock. Some of the king's wealthiest merchants and courtiers came by and simply walked around it. Many loudly blamed the King for not keeping the roads clear, but none did anything about getting the stone out of the way. Then a peasant came along carrying a load of vegetables. Upon approaching the boulder, the peasant laid down his burden and tried to move the stone to the side of the road. After much pushing and straining, he finally succeeded. After the peasant picked up his load of vegetables, he noticed a purse lying in the road where the boulder had been. The purse contained many gold coins and a note from the King indicating that the gold was for the person who removed the boulder from the roadway. The peasant learned what many of us never understand! Every obstacle presents an opportunity to improve our condition. 5 - Fifth Important Lesson - Giving When it Counts... Many years ago, when I worked as a volunteer at a hospital, I got to know a little girl named Liz who was suffering from a rare & serious disease.. Her only chance of recovery appeared to be a blood transfusion from her 5-year old brother, who had miraculously survived the same disease and had developed the antibodies needed to combat the illness. The doctor explained the situation to her little brother, and asked the little boy if he would be willing to give his blood to his sister. I saw him hesitate for only a moment before taking a deep breath and saying, 'Yes I'll do it if it will save her..' As the transfusion progressed, he lay in bed next to his sister and smiled, as we all did, seeing the color returning to her cheek. Then his face grew pale and his smile faded. He looked up at the doctor and asked with a trembling voice, 'Will I start to die right away?'. Being young, the little boy had misunderstood the doctor; he thought he was going to have to give his sister ALL of his blood in order to save her but he had chosen to save her anyway.
7 comments from 6 users
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posted by
theColorNine
on Aug 13, 2009 at 05:11 PM
Those are great lessons! Thanks for sharing them.
posted by
donmason
on Aug 13, 2009 at 06:11 PM
Hi msearnheart,
About 20 years ago, a sweet older lady (about 60 or so) named Ashley came by my office to inquire about photo services. Ashley was alone in the world, and had no real family.
She was self employed, and made her living selling ads for her little publication called The Rental Guide. It was a small freebie booklet you find at places like the supermarket.
It wasn’t an easy way to make a living, but she worked long hours to make it work.
Ashley needed photos of apartments, preferably very good photos, in order to keep her fickle clients happy.
Because Ashley was alone and working so hard, I always did her work for a very low price, sometimes for free.
In fact, I think I lost money on every job, and at times it was frustrating, knowing I was turning away much better paying jobs to look after Ashley. She had a way of growing on a person over time. Sometimes, profit has to come last. My accountant thought I was being a bit foolish.
She didn’t have much, but was a very thrifty person always.
Ashley worked almost until the last year of her life. Her heart finally became very weak, and she passed away under hospice care. I mourned her loss, but was glad I was able to know and help her.
About 9 months after Ashley passed on, I received a registered letter in the mail from a law office.
Inside the letter was a check for me in the amount of $ 48,000.
Ashley had divided her estate into 4 parts, and gave it away to the 4 people she thought had helped her the most in her life.
Receiving that check brought me to tears, and reaffirmed my true belief that self interest is the least important thing in life.
Thank you Ashley, for the greatest, and most unexpected gift I’ve ever received.
I’ll never forget you. posted by
ALICEN
on Aug 13, 2009 at 06:57 PM
Beautiful stories, mrsearnhardt88: You succeeded in making me cloud up and get ready to squall. Thank you.
posted by
ALICEN
on Aug 13, 2009 at 06:58 PM
(You too, Don.) posted by
DonnaD
on Aug 14, 2009 at 12:28 AM
Thank you for sharing that. Those are wonderful lessons. posted by
Shwaine
on Aug 14, 2009 at 01:27 AM
That's a wonderful story Don. Thanks for telling it. I recall seeing the Rental Guide at markets back when I actually stopped to look at such things (I just breeze by now on my quest for food-stuffs). posted by
mrsearnhardt88
on Aug 14, 2009 at 11:02 AM
I agree Don! Thanks for adding that! I just wanted to lighten up the mood around here a little and make people sit back and realize that there is more to life than battling egos on a website...
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