May be...

     There was an old farmer who had worked his crops for many years. One day his horse ran away. Upon hearing the news his neighbours came to visit. "Such bad luck," they said sympathetically. "May be," the farmer replied.

     The next morning the horse returned, bringing with it three other wild horses. "How wonderful !" the neighbours exclaimed. "May be," replied the old man. The following day, his son tried to ride one of the untamed horses, was thrown, and broke his leg. The neighbours again came to offer their sympathy on his misfortune. "May be," answered the farmer.

     The day after, military officials came to the village to draft young men into the army. Seeing that the son's leg was broken, they passed him by. The neighbours congratulated the farmer on how well things had turned out. "May be," said the farmer.

Moral :  Whatever happens happens for good !

The Woman and The Stone...

     A wise woman who was traveling in the mountains found a precious stone in a stream. The next day she met another traveler who was hungry, and the wise woman opened her bag to share her food. The hungry traveler saw the precious stone and asked the woman to give it to him. She did so without hesitation. The traveler left, rejoicing in his good fortune. He knew the stone was worth enough to give him security for a lifetime. But a few days later he came back to return the stone to the wise woman.

    " I've been thinking,"  he said, " I know how valuable the stone is, but I give it back in the hope that you can give me something even more precious. Give me what you have within you that enabled you to give me the stone. "

Pan Cakes...

     Six years old Brandon decided one saturday morning to fix his parents pancakes. He found a big bowl and spoon, pulled a chair to the counter, opened the cupboard and pulled out the heavy flour canister, spilling it on the floor. He scooped some of the flour into the bowl with his hands, mixed in most of a cup of milk and added some sugar, leaving alfoury trail on the floor which by now had a few tracks left by his kitten. Brandon was covered with flour and getting frustrated. He wanted this to be something very good for Mom and Dad, but it was getting very bad. He did't know what to do next, whether to put it all into the oven or on the stove, (and he didn't know how the stove worked ! ) . Suddenly he saw his kitten licking from the bowl of mix and reached to push her away, knocking the egg carton to the floor. Frantically he tried to clean up this monumental mess but slipped on the eggs, getting his pajamas white and sticky.


     And just then he saw Dad standing at the door. Big crocodile tears welled up in Brandon's eyes. All he'd wanted to do was something good, but he'd made a terrible mess. He was sure a scolding was coming, maybe even a spanking. But his father just watched him. Then, walking through the mess, he picked up his crying son, hugged him and loved him, getting his own pajamas white and sticky in the process.


     That's how God deals with us. We try to do something good in life, but it turns into a mess. Our marriage gets all sticky or we insult a friend or we can't stand our job or our health goes sour. Sometimes we just stand there in tears because we can't think of anything else to do. That's when God picks us up and loves us and forgives us, even though some of our mess gets all over Him. But just because we might mess up, we can't stop trying like Brandon to 'make pancakes,' for God or for others. Sooner or later we'll get it right, and then they'll be glad we tried.

Destiny...

     During a momentous battle, a Japanese General decided to attack even though his army was greatly outnumbered. He was confident they would win, but his men were filled with doubt.

     On the way to the battle, they stopped at a religious shrine. After praying with the men, the General took out a coin and said, " I shall now toss this coin. If it is heads we shall win. If tails, we shall lose. Destiny will now reveal itself."

     He threw the coin into the air and all watched intently as it landed. It was heads. The soldiers were so overjoyed and filled with confidence that they vigourously attacked the enemy and were victorious. After the battle a lieutenant remarked to the General, " No one can change desiny." "Quite right" the General replied as he showed the Lieutenant the coin, which had heads on both sides.

     Faith can move mountains. There is nothing like the power of positive thinking. If you believe in yourself or that a higher power is on your side, you can accomplish anything.

The Burden...

     Once upon a time many moons ago, two monks were walking in silence through the forest ; a younger monk, Anjan, and an older monk Nanda. Eventually their path led to a stream. There they saw a beautiful young lady, exquisitely clad, standing on the bank. She was in great distress because she wanted to cross the stream, but did not know how, without getting her fine long robes wet.

     Without hesitation, Nanda scooped her up, crossed the stream, and set her down on dry ground. She thanked him and continued on her way, and the monks continued on theirs, again in silence. Anjan was uncertain, distressed and confused.

     He became more and more restless and then finally he spoke. " Brother Nanda," he said, " I do not know what to make of it. You know our order is an austere order, and we cannot so much as speak to a woman. But.... but.... you saw that lady, you.... uh .... picked her up and carried her across the stream ! And yet...." he continued, almost choking, " You just keep on walking as if nothing happened !"

     " It is quite simple," Nanda replied. Our order also instructs us to help people in need. I carried a helpless woman and set her down on the opposite bank, but you, Brother Anjan, are still carrying her !" So who, indeed , had the lighter burder, and the lighter step?

     Purity is a state of mind, an awareness of one's nature and freedom from attachment of any kind. An act is good or bad according to the quality of thoughts.

Unconditional Love...

     A store owner was putting up a sign that read "Puppies for Sale". Soon a little boy came along and asked, " How much are you gonna sell those puppies for ? "  The store owner replied, "Anywhere between $30 to $50." The little boy reached into his pocket and pulled out some change. He said, " I have only $2.37, but can I have a look at them?" The store owner smiled and whistled.
      Out of the kennel came his dog named Lady, running down the aisle followed by five little puppies.

     One puppy was lagging considerably behind. The little boy immediately singled him out. He asked the owner what was wrong with that one and the owner explained that the pup was born with a bad hip socket and would limp all his life.

     The little boy was all set to buy that particular pup. The store owner tried to convince him that he would not really want a lame pup, but the little boy was adamant to buy the same for the same price as the others. He did not want the store owner to give the pup to him free. He looked him straight in the eye and said, " This pup is worth every bit as much as the other dogs and I'll pay the full price. In fact, I will give you $2.37 now and 50 cents every month until I have him paid for." Still the store owner tried to tell the boy that the pup would not be able to run, jump and play like the other puppies. Then the little boy reached down and rolled up his pant leg to reveal a badly twisted, crippled left leg supported by a big metal brace. He looked up at the man and said, "Well, I don't run so well myself and the little puppy will need someone who understands."

      Tears welled up in the store owner's eyes and he smiled and said, "Son, I hope and pray that each and every one of these puppies will have an owner such as you."

     We may never know of a greater character unless there is in ourselves something congenial to it. In life, it does'nt matter who you are, but whether, someone appreciates you for what you are, accepts you and loves you unconditionally.

The Scar That Changed to Beauty...

     A little boy invited his mother to attend his school's first parent-teacher conference. To the little boy's dismay she agreed to go. He immediately felt that this would be the first time his classmates and his teachers would meet his mother and he somehow was embarrassed by her appearance. Although his mother was beautiful; she had a very prominent scar that covered nearly the entire right side of her face. The little boy never had the courage to talk about this scar either with his mom or anyone else. During the conference, he overheard the conversation between his mother and his teacher as he stood hiding a little far away from where his mom stood. In the course of their conversation, the teacher did ask his mother how she got her face scared. And his mother was telling her... When my son was a baby, suddenly one day the room he was in, caught fire. Nobody wanted to go in because the fire was out of control. At that moment, she rushed in. As she ran towards his crib, she saw a beam coming down and so she placed herself over her body to shield him. In the process, she was knocked unconscious and a fireman fortunately came in and saved both of them. She then went on to say that the scar would be permanent and she never regretted doing what she did.

     At that moment, the little boy hearing this ran up to his mother and hugged her with tears in his eyes. At once he felt an overwhelming sense of pride for his mother which changed his feelings for her, all at once. 

      In this story even the scarred appearance changed to beauty.


       

Echo Of Life...

   A man and his son were walking in the forest. Suddenly the boy trips and feeling a sharp pain and he screams, " Ahhhh !"
     Surprised, he hears a voice coming from the mountain, " Ahhhh !"
     Filled with curiosity, he screams, " Who are you? "
     But the only answer he receives is : " Who are you? "
     This makes him angry so he screams, " You are a coward !"
     and the voice answers : " You are a coward ! "
     He looks at his father, asking, " Dad, what is going on? "
     "Son," the man replies, " pay attention ! "
     Then he screams : " I admire you ! "
     The voice answers : " I admire you ! "
     The father shouts : " You are wonderful ! "
     The voice answers : " You are wonderful ! "
    
     The father explains, " People call the 'ECHO' but truly it is 'LIFE'. Life always gives you back what you give out. Life is a mirror of our actions. "

Take One Step at a Time...

     A farmer's donkey fell into a well and the poor animal brayed piteously for hours, as the farmer did not know what to do. Since the animal was old, the farmer decided that it just wasn't worth retrieving the donkey and decided to cover up the well as well. So he called all his neighbours to help him shovel mud into the well to cover it up. At first the donkey realised what was happening and brayed horribly. Then, to everyone's amazement, he quietened down.

     A few shovel loads later, the farmer finally looked down the well and was astonished at what he saw. With every shovel of mud that hit the donkey's back, he was doing something amazing. He would shake it off and take a step up. Pretty soon, everyone was amazed to see the donkey stepping up over the edge of the well and trotting off.

     Life is so much like this,  all kinds of dirt is shovelled on our lives. Like the donkey, we too can shake it off and take a step up.  Life isn't easy... that's just the way it is.

A Glass of Milk...

     One day, a poor boy who was selling goods from door to door to pay his way through school, found he had only one thin dime left and he was hungry. He decided he would ask for a meal at the next house. However, he lost his nerve when a lovely young woman opened the door. Instead of a meal he asked for a drink of water. She thought he looked hungry so brought him a glass of milk. He drank it slowly and then asked, "How much do I owe you?"
     "You don't owe me anything", she replied. "Mother taught us never to accept pay for a kindness."
     He said, "Then I thank you from my heart."

     Years later that young woman became critically ill. The local doctors were baffled. They finally sent her to the big city, where they called in specialists to study her rare disease. Dr. Howard Kelly was called in for the consultation. When he heard the name of the town she came from, a strange light filled his eyes. Immediately he rose and went down the hall of the hospital to her room.

     Dressed in his doctor's gown, he went in to see her. He recognized her at once. He went back to the consultation room determined to do his best to save her life. From that day he gave special attention to the case. After a long struggle, the battle was won. Dr. Kelly requested the business office to pass the final bill to him for approval. He looked at it, then wrote something on the edge and the bill was sent to her room. She feared to open it, for she was sure it would take the rest of her life to pay for it all. Finally, she looked, and something caught her attention on the side of the bill. She read these words....

                               " Paid in full with one glass of milk."
                                       
                                                     signed
                                             Dr. Howard Kelly

    



    
   

You Have Two Choices...

     Jerry is the manager of a restaurant. He is always in a good mood. When someone would ask him how he was doing, he would always reply, " If I were any better, I would be twins !"

     Many of the waiters at his restaurant quit their jobs when he changed jobs , so they could follow him around from restaurant to restaurant...because Jerry was a normal motivator. If an employee was having a bad day, Jerry was always there, telling the employee how to look on the positive side of the situation. Seeing this style really made me curious, so one day I went up to Jerry and asked him, "I don't get it ! No one can be a positive person all of the time. How do you do it?" Jerry replied, "Each morning I wake up and say to myself, I have two choices today. I can choose to be in a good mood or I can choose to be in a bad mood. I always choose to be in a good mood. Each time something bad happens, I can choose to be victim or I can choose to learn from it. I always choose to learn from it. Everytime someone comes to me complaining, I can choose to accept their complaining or I can point out the positive side of life. I always choose the positive side of life."
     "But it's not always that easy," I protested.
     "Yes it is," Jerry said.
     "Life is all about choices. When you cut away all the junk every situation is a choice. You choose how you react to situations. You choose how people will affect your mood. You choose to be in a good mood or bad mood. It's your choice how you live your life."

     Several years later, I heard that Jerry accidentally did something you are never supposed to do in the restaurant business. He left the back door of his restaurant open and then in the morning, he was robbed by three armed men. While Jerry trying to open the safe box, his hand shaking from nervousness, slipped off the combination. The robbers panicked and shot him. Luckily, Jerry was found quickly and rushed to the hospital. After 18 hours of surgery and weeks of intensive care, Jerry was released from the hospital with fragments of the bullets still in his body.

     I saw Jerry about six months after the accident. When I asked him how he was, he replied, " If I were any better, I'd be twins. Want to see my scars?" I declined to see his wounds, but did ask him what had gone through his mind as the robbery took place.

     "The first thing that went through my mind was that I should have looked the back door," Jerry replied, "Then after they shot me as I lay on the floor, I remembered that I had two choices : I could choose to live or could choose to die. I choose to live."
     "Weren't you scared?" I asked. Jerry continued, "The paramedics were great. They kept telling me I was going to be fine. But when they wheeled me into the Emergency Room and I saw the expression on the faces of the doctors and nurses. I got really scared. In their eyes, I read 'He's a dead man!' I knew I needed to take action."
     "What did you do?" I asked, "Well, there was a big nurse shouting questions at me," said Jerry.
     "She asked if I was allergic to anything."
     "Yes" I replied.
     The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply. I took a deep breath and yelled, "Bullets !"
     "Once their laughter," I told them, "I am choosing to live. Please operate on me as if I am alive, not dead !"

     Jerry lived thanks to the skill of his doctors, but also because of his amazing attitude. I learned from him that everyday you have the choice to either enjoy your life or to hate it.

Who I am Makes a Difference...

     A teacher in New York, decided to honour each of her seniors in High School by tellling them the difference each of them had made. She called each student to the front of the class one at a time. First she told each of them how they had made a difference to her and the class. Then she presented each of them with a blue ribbon, imprinted with gold letters, which read, "Who I am Makes a Difference."

     Afterwards, the teacher decided to do a class project, to see what kind of impact recognition would have on a Community. She gave each student three more blue ribbons, and instructed them to go out and spread this acknowledgement ceremony. Then they were to follow up on the results, see who honored whom and report to the class in about a week.

     One of the boys in the class went to a junior executive in a nearby company, and honored him for helping him with his career planning. He gave him a blue ribbon, and put it on his shirt. Then he gave him two extra ribbons and said, "We're doing a class project on recognition, and we'd like for you to go out, find some one to honour, and give them a blue ribbon.

     Later that day, the junior executive went into see his boss, who had a reputation of being kind of a grouchy fellow. He told him that he deeply admired him for being a creative genius. The boss said, "Well sure." The junior executive took one of the blue ribbons and placed it right on his boss's jacket, above his heart, and then he asked, offering him the last ribbon, "Would you take this extra ribbon, and pass it on by honouring somebody else?... the teenager who gave me these is doing a school project, and we want to keep this ribbon cermony going and see how it affects people."

     That night, the boss came home and sat down with his 14 years old son. He said, "The most incredible thing happened to me today. I was in my office, and one of my employees came in and told me he admired me, and gave me a blue ribbon for being a creative genius. Imagine ! He thinks I am creative genius ! Then he put a blue ribbon on me that says, "Who I am Makes a Difference." He gave me an extra ribbon and asked me to find somebody else to honor. As I was driving home tonight, I started thinking about who I would honour with this ribbon, and I thought about you. I want to honour you.....My days are hectic and when I come home, I don't pay a lot of attention to you. I yell at you for not getting good enough grades and for your messy bedroom. Somehow tonight, I just wanted to sit here and , well,  just let you know that you do make a difference to me. Besides your mother, you are the most important person in my life. You're a great kid, and I love you !"

     The startled boy started to sob and sob, and he couldn't stop crying. His whole body shook. He looked up at his father and said through his tears, "Dad, earlier tonight I sat in my room and wrote a letter to you and Mom, explaining why I had took my life, and I asked you to forgive me. I was going to commit suicide tonight after you were asleep. I just didn;t think that you cared at all. The letter is upstairs. I don;t think I'll need it after all."
     His father walked upstairs and found a heartfelt letter full of anguish and pain.

     The boss went back to work a changed man. He was no longer a grouch, but made sure to let all of his employees know that they made a difference.

     The junior executive helped many other young people with career planning, one being the boss' son, and never forgot to let them know that they made a difference in his life.
     In addition, the young boy and his classmates learned a valuable lesson : "Who you are DOES make a difference."


     I'm passing the blue ribbon to you  ;)

Footprints...

     One night I had a dream. I dreamed I was walking along the beach with GOD... and across the sky flashed scenes of my life. For each scene I noticed two sets of footprints in the sand... one belonged to me and the other to GOD.

     When the last scene of my life flashed in the sand, I noticed that at times along the path of life there was only one set of footprints. I also noticed that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times of my life. This really bothered me and I questioned GOD about it.

     "GOD, you said that once I decided to follow you, you would walk with me all the way. But I noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life there is only one set of footprints. I don't understand why. In times when I needed you most, you would leave me."

     GOD replied, " My precious, precious child, I love you and I would never ever leave you during your times of trials and sufferings. When you see only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you."