The Stories
LESSON #1. Most Important Question 2. Eight Gifts that Do Not Cost A Cent A woman came out of her house and saw 3 old men with
long white beards sitting in her front yard. She did
not recognize them. She said "I don't think I know
you, but you must be hungry. Please come in and have
something to eat." "Is the man of the house home?", they asked. "No", she
said. "He's out." "Then we cannot come in", they replied. In the evening when her husband came home, she told
him what had happened. "Go tell them I am home and
invite them in!" The woman went out and invited the
men in. "We do not go into a House together," they
replied. "Why is that?" she wanted to know. One of the old men explained: "His name is Wealth," he
said pointing to one of his friends, and said pointing
to another one, "He is Success, and I am Love." Then
he added, "Now go in and discuss with your husband
which one of us you want in your home."
The woman went in and told her husband what was said.
Her husband was overjoyed. "How nice!!", he said.
"Since that is the case, let us invite
Wealth. Let him come and fill our home with wealth!" His wife disagreed. "My dear, why don't we invite
Success?" Their daughter-in-law was listening from the
other corner of the house. She jumped
in with her own suggestion: "Would it not be better to
invite Love? Our home will then be filled with love!"
The woman went out and asked the 3 old men, "Which one
of you is Love? Please come in and be our guest."
Love got up and started walking toward the house. The
other 2 also got up and followed him. Surprised, the
lady asked Wealth and Success: "I only invited
Love, Why are you coming in?"
The old men replied together: "If you had invited
Wealth or Success, the other two of us would've stayed
out, but since you invited Love, Wherever He
goes, we go with him. Wherever there is Love, there is
also Wealth and Success!!!!!!"
OUR WISH FOR YOU... Where there is pain, we wish you
peace and mercy.
Where there is self-doubting, we wish you a renewed
confidence in your ability to work through them.
Where there is tiredness, or exhaustion, we wish you
understanding, patience, and renewed strength.
Where there is fear, we wish you love, and courage.
Peace to you
6. The Anthem of Love Tales of all supernatural, this one is, perhaps, the
best documented, the most disturbing, the most
difficult to explain and yet the most painful cause
behind the Tragic end of Titanic....Though I doubt its
authenticity, I reckon its convincing enough:
The Princess of Amen-Ra lived some 1,500 years b4
Christ. When she died, she was laid in an ornate
wooden coffin and buried deep in a vault at Luxor,
on the banks of the Nile.
In the late 1890s, 4 rich young Englishmen visiting
the excavations at Luxor were invited to buy an
exquisitely fashioned mummy case containing the
remains of the Princess of Amen-Ra.
They drew lots. The man who won paid several Thousand
pounds and had the coffin taken to his hotel . A few
hours later, he was seen walking out towards the
desert. He never returned.
The next day, one of the remaining 3 men was shot by
an Egyptian servant accidentally. His arm was so
severely wounded it had to be amputated.
The 3rd man in the foursome found on his return home
that the bank holding his entire savings had failed.
The 4th guy suffered a severe illness, lost his job
and was reduced to selling matches in the street.
Nevertheless, the coffin reached England (causing
other misfortunes along the way), where it was bought
by a London businessman. After 3 of his family members
had been injured in a road accident and his house
damaged by fire, the businessman donated it to the
British Museum.
As the coffin was being unloaded from a truck in the
museum courtyard, the truck suddenly went into
reverse and trapped a passer-by.
Then as the casket was being lifted up the stairs by 2
workmen, 1 fell and broke his leg. The other,
apparently in perfect health, died unaccountably
two days later.
Once the Princess was installed in the Egyptian Room,
trouble really started. Museum's night watchmen
frequently heard frantic hammering and sobbing from
the coffin. Other exhibits in the room were also
often hurled about at night . One watchman died on
duty; causing the other watchmen wanting to quit.
Cleaners refused to go near the Princess too. When
a visitor derisively flicked a dust cloth at the face
painted on the coffin, his child died of measles soon
afterwards.
Finally, the authorities had the mummy carried down to
the basement. Figuring it could not do any harm down
there. Within a week, one of the helpers was
seriously ill, and the supervisor of the move was
found dead on his desk.
By now, the papers had heard of it. A journalist
photographer took a picture of the mummy case and when
he developed it, the painting on the coffin was of a
horrifying, human face. The photographer was said to
gone home then, locked his bedroom door and shot
himself.
Soon afterwards, the museum sold the mummy to a
private collector. After continual misfortune (and
deaths), the owner banished it to the attic.
A well known authority on the occult, Madame Helena
Blavatsky, visited the premises. Upon entry, she was
sized with a shivering fit and searched the house for
the source of "an evil influence of incredible
intensity".
She finally came to the attic and found the mummy
case. "Can you exorcise this evil spirit ?" asked the
owner. "There is no such thing as exorcism. Evil
remains evil forever . Nothing can be done about it.
I implore you to get rid of this evil as soon as
possible." But no British museum would take the
mummy; the fact that almost 20 people had met with
misfortune, disaster or death from handling the
casket, in barely 10 years, was now well known.
Eventually, a hard-headed American archaeologist (who
dismissed the happenings as quirks of circumstance),
paid a handsome price for the mummy and arranged for
its removal to New York.
In Apr 1912, the new owner escorted its treasure
aboard a sparkling, new White Star liner about to
make its maiden voyage to New York.
On the night of Apr 14, amid scenes of unprecedented
horror, the Princess of Amen-Ra accompanied 1,500
passengers to their deaths at the bottom of the
Atlantic . The name of the ship was Titanic.
Keep dreaming. Never stop forming those dreams, and when you dream, dream big!
Throughout, however,many trusted the love we shared.
Always firmly believe that if love is true it will survive.
Love is a little like uranium you can bury it or break it into tiny pieces,
but it lives no matter what and it will return. Be patient, and be strong.
If you are suffering from an injustice at a job, realize that no one can take
your good reputation or experience away. That also lives and continues with you,
everywhere.
If you got fired for not being up to the qualifications of the job,
there is always the possibility of going back to school or finding a
better setting for your talents. Should you try to help things along?
Of course! We should always give our best! But I am not addressing the
honest and clean effort we put into things because
I am assuming that you are already doing that.
Step back and take a bird�s eye view of what is going on.
See the situation as a watcher not a participant.
Figure out what the hero or heroine on the stage would do next
-- be the director of your own life�s play..
During my second month of nursing school, 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 50s, but how would I know her name?
I handed in my paper, leaving the last question blank.
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."
LESSON #2. Pickup in the Rain
One night, at 11:30 PM, an older African American woman was standing
on the side of an Alabama highway trying to endure a lashing rain
storm. 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 1960s. The man took her to safety, helped her get
assistance. She seemed to be in a big hurry! She wrote down his
address, thanked him and drove away.
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 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
LESSON #3. 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?"
"Fifty cents," replied the waitress. The little boy pulled his hand
out of his pocket and studied a number of coins in it. "How much is a dish
of plain ice cream?" he inquired. Some people were now waiting for a table
and the waitress was a bit impatient. "Thirty-five cents,"
she said brusquely. The little boy again counted the coins. "I'll have the
plain ice cream," she walked away.
The boy finished the ice cream, paid the cashier and departed. When
the waitress came back, she began wiping down the table and then
swallowed hard at what she saw. There, placed neatly beside the empty dish
were two nickels and five pennies - her tip.
LESSON #4. 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 big stone out of
the way. Then a peasant came along carrying a load of vegetables. On
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. As 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 others never understand. Every obstacle presents
an opportunity to improve one's condition.
LESSON #5. Giving Blood
Many years ago, when I worked as a volunteer at Stanford Hospital, I
got to know a little girl named Liz who was suffering from a rare and
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 illness.
The doctor explained the situation to her little brother, and asked
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 Liz."
As the transfusion progressed, he lay in bed next to his sister and
smiled, as we all did, seeing the color returning to her cheeks. 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
boy had misunderstood the doctor; he thought he was going to have to give
his sister all of his blood. Attitude, after all, is everything.
See with your heart and you'll know the answer.
Give unconditionally and you'll receive abundantly.
Work like you don't need the money.
Love like you've never been hurt.
Dance like nobody's watching.
1) THE GIFT OF LISTENING...
But you must REALLY listen.
No interrupting, no daydreaming,
no planning your response.
Just listening.
2) THE GIFT OF AFFECTION...
Be generous with appropriate hugs,
kisses, pats on the back and handholds.
Let these small actions demonstrate the
love you have for family and friends.
3) THE GIFT OF LAUGHTER...
Clip cartoons.
Share articles and funny stories.
Your gift will say, "I love to laugh with you."
4) THE GIFT OF A WRITTEN NOTE...
It can be a simple
"Thanks for the help" note or a full sonnet.
A brief, handwritten note may be remembered for
a lifetime, and may even change a life.
5) THE GIFT OF A COMPLIMENT...
A simple and sincere,
"You look great in red," "You did a super job"
or "That was a wonderful meal"
can make someone's day.
6) THE GIFT OF A FAVOR...
Every day, go out of your way
to do something kind.
7) THE GIFT OF SOLITUDE...
There are times when we want nothing better
than to be left alone.
Be sensitive to those times and give the gift of
solitude to others.
8) THE GIFT OF A CHEERFUL DISPOSITION...
The easiest way to feel good is
to extend a kind word to someone,
really it's not that hard to say,
Hello or Thank You.
The beauty of a woman
Is not in the clothes she wears,
The figure that she carries,
Or the way she combs her hair.
The beauty of a woman
must be seen from in her eyes,
Because that is the doorway to her heart,
the place where love resides.
The beauty of a woman
is not in a facial mole,
But true beauty in a woman
Is reflected in her soul.
It is the caring that she lovingly gives,
The passion that she shows,
And the beauty of a woman
With passing years-only grows!
You don't stop laughing because you grow old;
you grow old because you stop laughing
I dreamed I had an interview with God.
"Come in," God said. "So, you would like to interview Me?"
"If you have the time," I said. God smiled and said:
"My time is eternity and is enough to do everything; what questions do you have in mind to ask me?"
"What surprises you most about mankind?"
God answered:
"That they get bored of being children, are in a rush to grow up, and then long to be children again.
That they lose their health to make money and then lose their money to restore their health.
That by thinking anxiously about the future, they forget the present, such that they live neither for the present nor the future.
That they live as if they will never die, and they die as if they had never lived..."
God's hands took mine and we were silent for while and then I asked...
"As a parent, what are some of life's lessons you want your children to learn?"
God replied with a smile:
"To learn that they cannot make anyone love them.
What they can do is to let themselves be loved."
To learn that what is most valuable is not what they have in their lives, but who they have in their lives.
To learn that it is not good to compare themselves to others. All will be judged individually on their own merits, not as a group on a comparison basis!
To learn that a rich person is not the one who has the most, but is one who needs the least.
To learn that it only takes a few seconds to open profound wounds in persons we love, and that it takes many years to heal them.
To learn to forgive by practicing forgiveness.
To learn that there are persons that love them dearly, but simply do not know how to express or show their feelings.
To learn that money can buy everything but happiness.
To learn that two people can look at the same thing and see it totally different.
To learn that a true friend is someone who knows everything about them...and likes them anyway.
To learn that it is not always enough that they be forgiven by others, but that they have to forgive themselves."
I sat there for awhile enjoying the moment. I thanked Him for his time and for all that He has done for me and my family, and He replied,
"Anytime. I'm here 24 hours a day. All you have to do is ask for me, and I'll answer."
by the Apostle Paul - 1st century A.D. The Anthem of Love
Even if I speak in the tongues of men
and of angels,
if I have not love,
I am but a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.
Even if I have prophetic powers,
and understand all mysteries and all knowledge,
and if I have all faith,
so as to carry mountains away,
if I have not love, I am nothing.
Even if I give away all I have,
and seek glory by self-sacrifice,
if I have not love, I gain nothing.
Love is patient and kind;
love is not jealous or boastful;
it is not arrogant or rude.
Love does not insist on its own way;
it is not irritable or resentful;
it does not rejoice at wrong,
but rejoices in the right.
Love bears all things,
believes all things,
hopes all things,
endures all things.
Love never ends;
as for prophecies, they will pass away;
as for tongues, they will cease;
as for knowledge, it will pass away.
For our knowledge is imperfect
and our prophecy is imperfect;
but when the perfect comes,
the imperfect will pass away.
When I was a child, I spoke like a child,
I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child;
when I became a man, I gave up childish ways.
For now we see dimly, with imperfect sight,
but then we shall see face to face.
Now I know in part;
then I shall understand fully,
even as I have been fully understood.
And so there always remain faith, hope, and love,
these three;
but the greatest of these is love.
The Apostle Paul, from the first letter to the church at Corinth
(paraphrase: kph)
Time, and time again
To realize the value of ONE YEAR,ask a student who failed his exams...
To realize the value of ONE MONTH, ask a mother who gave birth to a
premature baby...
To realize the value of ONE WEEK, ask the editor of a weekly newspaper...
To realize the value of ONE DAY, ask a daily wage laborer...
To realize the value of ONE HOUR, ask the lovers who are waiting to meet...
To realize the value of ONE MINUTE, ask a person who missed the train...
To realize the value of ONE SECOND, ask a person who just avoided an
accident...
To realize the value of ONE MILLISECOND, ask the person who won a silver
medal in the Olympics...
Treasure every moment that you have!!
YESTERDAY is history.
TOMORROW is a mystery.
TODAY is a gift. That's why it's called the PRESENT!!
I knelt to pray but not for long,
I had too much to do.
I had to hurry and get to work
For bills would soon be due.
So I knelt and said a hurried prayer,
And jumped up off my knees.
My duty toward god was now done
My soul could rest at ease.
All day long I had no time
To spread a word of cheer.
No time to speak of God to friends,
They'd laugh at me I'd fear.
No time, no time, too much to do,
That was my constant cry,
No time to give to souls in need
But at last the time the time to die.
I went before the Lord,
I came, I stood with downcast eyes.
For in his hands God held a book;
It was the book of life.
God looked into his book and said
"Your name I cannot find.
I once was going to write it down...
But never found the time"
When I examine myself and my methods of thought,
I come to the conclusion that the gift of fantasy has
meant more to me than my talent for absorbing positive knowledge.
If we die tomorrow, the company that we are working
for could easily replace us in a matter of days.
But the family we left behind will feel
the loss for the rest of their lives.
And come to think of it, we pour
ourselves more into work than to our family an unwise investment indeed.
So what is the morale of the story????
Don't work too hard... and you know what's the full word of family?
FAMILY = (F)ATHER (A)ND (M)OTHER, (I) (L)OVE (Y)OU
Very touching .... must read!!!
When you came into the world, she held you in her arms.
You thanked her by wailing like a banshee.
When you were 1 year old, she fed you and bathed you.
You thanked her by crying all night long.
When you were 2 years old, she taught you to walk.
You thanked her by running away when she called.
When you were 3 years old, she made all your meals with love.
You thanked her by tossing your plate on the floor.
When you were 4 years old, she gave you some crayons.
You thanked her by coloring the dining room table.
When you were 5 years old, she dressed you for the holidays.
You thanked her by plopping into the nearest pile of mud.
When you were 6 years old, she walked you to school.
You thanked her by screaming, "I'M NOT GOING!"
When you were 7 years old, she bought you a baseball.
You thanked her by throwing it through the
next-door-neighbor's window.
When you were 8 years old, she handed you an ice cream.
You thanked her by dripping it all over your lap.
When you were 9 years old, she paid for piano lessons.
You thanked her by never even bothering to practice.
When you were 10 years old, she drove you all day, from
soccer to gymnastics to one birthday party after another.
You thanked her by jumping out of the car and never looking back.
When you were 11 years old, she took you and your friends to the movies.
You thanked her by asking to sit in a different row.
When you were 12 years old, she warned you not to watch certain TV shows.
You thanked her by waiting until she left the house.
Those teenage years
When you were 13, she suggested a haircut that was becoming.
You thanked her by telling her she had no taste.
When you were 14, she paid for a month away at summer camp.
You thanked her by forgetting to write a single letter.
When you were 15, she came home from work, looking for a hug.
You thanked her by having your bedroom door locked.
When you were 16, she taught you how to driver her car.
You thanked her by taking it every chance you could.
When you were 17, she was expecting an important call.
You thanked her by being on the phone all night.
When you were 18, she cried at your high school graduation.
You thanked her by staying out partying until dawn.
Growing old and gray
When you were 19, she paid for your college tuition,
drove you to campus, carried your bags.
You thanked her by saying good-bye outside the dorm so you wouldn't
be embarrassed in front of your friends.
When you were 20, she asked whether you were seeing anyone.
You thanked her by saying, "It's none of your business."
When you were 21, she suggested certain careers for your future.
You thanked her by saying, "I don't want to be like you."
When you were 22, she hugged you at your college graduation.
You thanked her by asking whether she could pay for a trip to Europe.
When you were 23, she gave you furniture for your first apartment.
You thanked her by telling your friends it was ugly.
When you were 24, she met your fiance and asked about your plans for the future.
You thanked her by glaring and growling, "Muuhh-ther, please!"
When you were 25, she helped to pay for your wedding, and she cried and told
you how deeply she loved you.
You thanked her by moving halfway across the country.
When you were 30, she called with some advice on the baby.
You thanked her by telling her, "Things are different now."
When you were 40, she called to remind you of an relative's birthday.
You thanked her by saying you were "really busy right now."
When you were 50, she fell ill and needed you to take care of her.
You thanked her by reading about the burden parents become to their children.
And then, one day, she quietly died. And everything you never did came
crashing down like thunder.
"Rock me baby, rock me all night long."
"The hand who rocks the cradle...may rock the world".
Let us take a moment of the time just to pay tribute/show appreciation to
the person called MOM though some may not say it openly to their mother.
There's no substitute for her. Cherished every single moment.
Though at times she may not be the best of friends, may not agree to our
thoughts, she is still your mother!!!
She will be there for you...to listen to your woes, your braggings, your
frustations, etc.
Ask yourself.....have you put aside enough time for her, to listen to her
"blues" of working in the kitchen, her tiredness???
Be tactful, loving and still show her due respect though you may have a
different view from hers.
Once gone, only fond memories of the past and also regrets will be left.
**DON'T TAKE FOR GRANTED THE THINGS CLOSEST TO YOUR HEART. CLING TO THEM AS
U WOULD YOUR LIFE, FOR WITHOUT THEM, LIFE IS MEANINGLESS*
Look at every gesture made by the ones near and dear to u in the positive
light. There are so many unsaid things that really mean so much, but are
we smart enough to understand them?" Indeed - something for all of us to
learn from !
A bit long - but definitely worth the few extra minutes !!!
There are times when we are timid and shy about expressing the love we
feel.For fear of embarrassing the other person, or ourselves, we hesitate
to saythe actual words "I love you." So we try to communicate the idea in
otherwords. We say take care' or 'don't drive too fast' or 'be good.' But
really,these are just other ways of saying 'I love you,' 'you are
important to me,' 'I care what happens to you,' 'I don't want you to get hurt.'
We are sometimes very strange people. The only thing we want to say, and
the one thing that we should say, is the one thing we don't say. And yet,
because the feeling is so real, and the need to say it is so strong, we
are driven to use other words and signs to say what we really mean. And
many times the meaning never gets communicated at all and the other person
is left feeling unloved and unwanted.
Therefore, we have to LISTEN FOR LOVE in the words that people are saying
to us. Sometimes the explicit words are necessary, but more often, the
manner of saying things is even more important. A joyous insult carries
more affection and love within the sentiments which are expressed insincerely.
An impulsive hug says I LOVE YOU even though the words might be saying
very different. Any expression of a person's concern for another says I
love you.Sometimes the expression is clumsy, sometimes even cruel.
Sometimes we must look and listen very intently for the love that
contains. But it is often there, beneath the surface.
A mother may nag her son constantly about his grades or cleaning his
room.The son may hear only the nagging, but if he listens carefully, he
will hear the love underneath the nagging. His mother wants him to do
well, to be successful. Her concern and love for her son unfortunately
emerge in her nagging. But it is love all the same.
A daughter comes home late, way past her curfew, and her father confronts
her with angry words. The daughter may hear only the anger, but if she listens
carefully, she will hear the love under the anger. "I was worried about
you," the father is saying. 'Because I care about you and I love you. You
are important to me. We say I love you in many ways- with birthday gifts,
and little notes, with smiles and sometimes with tears. Sometimes we show
our love by just keeping quiet and not saying a word, at other
times by speaking out, even brusquely.
We show our love sometimes by impulsiveness. Many times we have to show
our love by forgiving someone who has not listened to the love we have
tried to express. The problem is listening for love is that we don't
always understand the language of love which the other person is using. A
girl may use tears or emotions to say what she wants to say, and her
boyfriend may not understand her because he expects her to be talking his
language. Thus, we have to force ourselves to really listen for love.
The problem with our world is that people rarely listen to each other.
They hear the words, but they don't listen to the actions that accompany
the words or the expression on the face. Or people listen only for
rejection or misunderstanding. They do not see the love that is there just
beneath the surface, even if the words are angry. We have to listen for
love in those around us. If we listen intently we will discover that we
are a lot more loved than we realize. Listen for love and we will find
that the world is a very loving place after all.
LOVE is a happy thing.
It makes us laugh.
It makes us sing.
It makes us sad.
It makes us cry.
It makes us seek the reason why.
It makes us take.
It makes us give.
Above all else it makes us LIVE.
It is not the presence or absence of people that makes the difference
because a person need not be lonely even if he is alone. Sometimes it is
good to be alone. But that does not make us lonely. It is not a matter of
being present WITH someone. It is a matter of being present TO someone. So
remember ... If you love someone, tell them.
Remember always to say what you mean. Never be afraid to express yourself.
Take this opportunity to tell Someone what they mean to you. Seize the day and
have no regrets.
Most importantly, stay close to your friends and family, for they have
helped make you the person that you are today and are what it's all about
anyway. Pass this along to your friends. Let it make a difference in your
day and theirs.
Don't keep a good thing to yourself !
Gifts
Online @ Rediff.com