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Heart! ~ If you are not a subscriber and this has been passed on to you, join us by sending a blank e-mail to four_ears @ msn.com (remove spaces) with "subscribe" in the subject line. And get the love direct! Web site: http://www.geocities.com/jenniferioliver2001 Archives: http://geocities.com/jenniferioliver2001/Archives.htm ________________________________________________________ "Blessed are those who can give without remembering and take without forgetting." - Elizabeth Bibesco ______________________________________ Exercise While U Wait by Mark Davis The other night, while waiting in a long line at the pharmacy, I learned a small lesson in patience. A woman stood at the register while the cashier rang up the customers ahead of me. I could tell from her stance, she had been waiting for a while and was quietly fuming. At one point another cashier appeared and told the woman, "Ma'am, the assistant down at the last window will be able to help you with the information you've requested." "Can't you tell me what she has to say?" the woman snapped back. "Ma'am, I'm sorry, but she's better qualified to give you the information than I am." "Well, I'm sorry if I've taken up YOUR time," she sniped and stalked off. The cashier looked up at me, embarrassed, and asked, "Did you think I was being too rude? I didn't mean to make her mad." I shook my head reassuringly and said, "No, you did just fine. Waiting in line tends to bring out the worst in people." A woman behind me piped up, "You know what I do?" We both looked at her. "I count my blessings while I wait in line." "I think you need to tell your secret to that woman that just walked off," I joked. They laughed. She continued, "You know, I've had my share of troubles like everyone else. I've lost a husband to cancer, I've lost a baby at birth, and I've just found out that I have glaucoma." "My goodness, you've been through the grinder," I said. "But I'm not going to take this lying down," she said with a cheerleader smile. "Life is full of waiting in lines. Why not make the most of it? Count your blessings. Pretty soon you'll relax and smile and wonder where the time's gone. It's like exercising the positive and exorcising the negative. Get it? E-x-o-r-c-i-s-i-n-g?" "Hey, that's pretty clever," I said, laughing. "I can already think of one blessing," "And what's that?" "Meeting you." "Now you're just a big flirt trying to make an old lady feel good!" she said, chuckling and waving me off. I looked at my kids, who jumped up when I finished paying for their medicine. That's three more blessings. I logged onto the computer after dinner and e-mailed my sister. That's another blessing. And you know what? I didn't stop counting until I went to sleep that night. Mark Davis ruidosodavis @ hotmail.com Copyright © 2002 by Mark Davis. All rights reserved. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ About the author: I am a single father of three awesome kids who challenge the depths of my love daily. _________________________________________________________ QUOTE FROM LESSER KNOWN FOLKS The boys were in a public bathroom when Cody noticed the handicapped rail on the wall next to the toilet. "Mom," Cody said, "I know what that thing is for!" Four-year-old Matthew, always wanting to show off his smarts, interrupted excitedly and said, "Mom, I know what it's for! It's so kids can hang on to it and not fall in the toilet!" _________________________________________________________ FAMILY LOVE MOMENT I was rushing around the house, trying to get things done before going to the store. On a grocery list, I left a space open for my seven-year-old son, Taylor, to pencil in whatever he needed at the store. "Here it is, Mom," he said, handing me the list. I glanced at what he wrote. "5 minits." "Five minutes? What's that for?" "That's for you. I want you to relax for five minutes." - Barbie James _________________________________________________________ ON THE HOMEFRONT HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my super sister-in-law, Karen Oliver, whose big day happens to fall on Thanksgiving! We love ya! CONGRATULATIONS to my other super sister-in-law, Alexis Senger, who has been selected from candidates across the nation for a 2003 fellowship through the German Marshall Fund! We are all so proud of her as she will be traveling to Europe next summer to meet with European leaders as part of a national delegation to discuss a broad range of issues. For more information on the Marshall Memorial Fellowship program, check it out online at http://www.gmfus.org/apps/gmf/gmfwebfinal.nsf/ $UNIDViewAll/12420A80AF9069F585256BF9005325AF?OpenDocument&K1E73AC1A. Today I showed Matthew how to draw a turkey out of the outline of his hand. He colored in the feathers, added the wing, comb, and the "red beard" as he called it - that red squiggly thing that dangles from the bird's beak. While I watched him hard at work on his art, I thought of everything I was grateful for. Family, friends, steady paycheck, roof over our heads. I am also thankful for the subscribers who tune in every week to the latest heart story, quotes, and family love moments. I am thankful for the writers who generously share their heart moments with all of us. Your light cheers the darkest corners of the world. HAPPY THANKSGIVING from our home to yours...may you continue to count your blessings on this holiday and beyond! LOVE, JENNIFER I. OLIVER AND FAMILY four_ears @ msn.com "To live that in thy last long sleep, Smiles my be thine wile all around thee weep." - Nellie L. Wallace, June 24, 1873 _________________________________________________________ This E-mail may be forwarded in its entirety, but first ask the writer for permission before forwarding. Thank you for doing the decent thing! Ü ________________________________________________________ SUBMIT STORY, QUOTE, OR FAMILY LOVE MOMENT: http://www.geocities.com/jenniferioliver2001/submission.htm FEEDBACK: four_ears @ msn.com ________________________________________________________
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