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Our feed
I put my carry-on in the luggage compartment and sat down in my assigned seat. It was going to be a long flight. “I’m glad I have a good book to read. Perhaps I will get a short nap,” I thought.
Just before take-off, a line of ten soldiers came down the aisle and filled all the vacant seats, totally surrounding me. I decided to start a conversation. “Where are you headed?” I asked the soldier seated nearest to me.
“Petawawa. We’ll be there for two weeks for special training, then we’re being deployed to Afghanistan.”
After flying for about an hour, an announcement was made that sack lunches were available for five dollars. It would be several hours before we reached the east, and I quickly decided a lunch would help pass the time. As I reached for my wallet, I overheard a soldier ask his buddy if he planned to buy lunch.
“No, that seems like a lot of money for just a sack lunch. Probably wouldn’t be worth five bucks. I’ll wait till we get to the base,” he said. His friend agreed.
I looked around at the other soldiers. None was buying the lunch. I walked to the back of the plane and handed the flight attendant a fifty-dollar bill. “Take a lunch to all those soldiers.”
She grabbed my arms and squeezed tightly. Her eyes wet with tears, she thanked me. “My son was a soldier in Iraq ; it’s almost like you are doing it for him,” she answered.
Picking up ten sacks, she headed up the aisle to where the soldiers were seated. She stopped at my seat and asked, “Which do you like best: beef or chicken?”
“Chicken,” I replied, wondering why she asked. She turned and went to the front of plane, returning a minute later with a dinner plate from first class. “This is your thanks.”
After we finished eating, I went again to the back of the plane, heading for the rest room. A man stopped me. “I saw what you did. I want to be part of it. Here, take this.” He handed me twenty-five dollars.
Soon after I returned to my seat, I saw the Flight Captain coming down the aisle, looking at the aisle numbers as he walked; I hoped he was not looking for me, but noticed he was looking at the numbers only on my side of the plane. When he got to my row, he stopped, smiled, held out his hand, and said, “I want to shake your hand.”
Quickly unfastening my seatbelt, I stood and took the Captain’s hand. With a booming voice he said, “I was a soldier and I was a military pilot. Once, someone bought me a lunch. It was an act of kindness I never forgot.” I was embarrassed when applause was heard from all of the passengers.
Later, I walked to the front of the plane so I could stretch my legs. A man who was seated about six rows in front of me reached out his hand, wanting to shake mine. He left another twenty-five dollars in my palm.
When we landed, I gathered my belongings and started to deplane. Waiting just inside the airplane door was a man who stopped me, put something in my shirt pocket, turned, and walked away without saying a word. Another twenty-five
dollars!
Upon entering the terminal, I saw the soldiers gathering for their trip to the base. I walked over to them and handed them seventy-five dollars. “It will take you some time to reach the base. It will be about time for a sandwich. God
Bless You.”
Ten young men left that flight, feeling the love and respect of their fellow travelers. As I walked briskly to my car, I whispered a prayer for their safe return. These soldiers were giving their all for our country. I could only give them a couple of meals.
It seemed so little…
A veteran is someone who, at one point in his life, wrote a blank check made payable to America, for an amount of up to and including my life.
That is Honor, and there are way too many people in this country, who no longer understand it. May God give you the strength and courage to pass this along to everyone on your e-mail buddy list.
–Author Unknown
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Email This StoryWhen the Vietnam conflict broke out, the son went to war. He was very courageous and died in battle while rescuing another soldier. The father was notified and grieved deeply for his only son.
About a month later, just before Christmas, there was a knock at the door. A young man stood at the door with a large package in his hands.
He said, ‘Sir, you don’t know me, but I am the soldier for whom your son gave his life. He saved many lives that day, and he was carrying me to safety when a bullet struck him in the heart and he died instantly. He often talked about you, and your love for art.’ The young man held out this package. ‘I know this isn’t much. I’m not really a great artist, but I think your son would have wanted you to have this.’
The father opened the package. It was a portrait of his son, painted by the young man. He stared in awe at the way the soldier had captured the personality of his son in the painting. The father was so drawn to the eyes that his own eyes welled up with tears. He thanked the young man and offered to pay him for the picture. ‘Oh, no sir, I could never repay what your son did for me. It’s a gift.’
The father hung the portrait over his mantle. Every time visitors came to his home he took them to see the portrait of his son before he showed them any of the other great works he had collected.
The man died a few months later.. There was to be a great auction of his paintings. Many influential people gathered, excited over seeing the great paintings and having an opportunity to purchase one for their collection.
On the platform sat the painting of the son. The auctioneer pounded his gavel. ‘We will start the bidding with this picture of the son. Who will bid for this picture?’
There was silence.
Then a voice in the back of the room shouted, ‘We want to see the famous paintings. Skip this one.’
But the auctioneer persisted.. ‘Will somebody bid for this painting. Who will start the bidding? $100, $200?’
Another voice angrily. ‘We didn’t come to see this painting. We came to see the Van Goghs, the Rembrandts. Get on with the real bids!’
But still the auctioneer continued. ‘The son! The son! Who’ll take the son?’
Finally, a voice came from the very back of the room. It was the longtime gardener of the man and his son. ‘I’ll give $10 for the painting.’ Being a poor man, it was all he could afford.
‘We have $10, who will bid $20?’
‘Give it to him for $10. Let’s see the masters.’
‘$10 is the bid, won’t someone bid $20?’
The crowd was becoming angry.. They didn’t want the picture of the son.
They wanted the more worthy investments for their collections.
The auctioneer pounded the gavel. ‘Going once, twice, SOLD for $10!’
A man sitting on the second row shouted, ‘Now let’s get on with the collection!’
The auctioneer laid down his gavel. ‘I’m sorry, the auction is over.’
‘What about the paintings?’
‘I am sorry. When I was called to conduct this auction, I was told of a secret stipulation in the will. I was not allowed to reveal that stipulation until this time. Only the painting of the son would be auctioned. Whoever bought that painting would inherit the entire estate, including the paintings.
The man who took the son gets everything!’
God gave His son 2,000 years ago to die on the cross. Much like the auctioneer, His message today is: ‘The son, the son, who’ll take the son?’
Because, you see, whoever takes the Son gets everything.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...a woman has strengths that amaze men
she can handle trouble and carry heavy burdens
she holds happiness, love and opinions
she smiles when she feels like screaming
she sings when she feel like crying, cries when
she’s happy and laughs when she’s afraid
Her love is Unconditional!
There’s only one thing wrong with her
She sometimes forgets what she is worth…
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Imagine there is a bank that credits your account each morning with 86,400. It carries over no balance from day to day. Every evening deletes whatever part of the balance you failed to use during the day. What would you do? Draw out every cent, of course!!!!
Each of us has such a bank. Its name is TIME.
Every morning, it credits you with 86,400 seconds.
Every night it writes off, as lost, whatever of this you have failed to invest to good purpose.
It carries over no balance. It allows no overdraft.
Each day it opens a new account for you.
Each night it burns the remains of the day.
If you fail to use the day’s deposits, the loss is yours.
There is no going back.
There is no drawing against the “tomorrow”.
You must live in the present on today’s deposits.
Invest it so as to get from it the utmost in health, happiness, and success!
The clock is running.
Make the most of today.
To realize the value of ONE YEAR, ask a student who failed a grade.
To realize the value of ONE MONTH, ask a mother who gave birth to a pre-mature baby.
To realize the value of ONE WEEK, ask the editor of a weekly newspaper.
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! And treasure it more because you shared it with someone special, special enough to spend your time.
And remember that time waits for no one.
Yesterday is history
Tomorrow is mystery
Today is a gift
That’s why it’s called the present!!
Note:
Friends are a very rare jewel, indeed.
They make you smile and encourage you to succeed.
They lend an ear, they share a word of praise, and they always want to open their hearts to us.
Show your friends how much you care…..
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...They have been married for two years. He loves literature and often posts his work on the net, but nobody ever reads them. He is also into photography and he handles their wedding photos. He loves her very much. Likewise with her. She has a quick temper and always bullies him. He is a gentleman and always gives in to her.
Today, she’s being willful again.
Her: “Why can’t you be the photographer for my friend’s wedding? She promised she’d pay.”
Him: “I don’t have time that day.”
Her: “Humph!”
Him: “Huh?”
Her: “Don’t have time? Write less of those novels, and you will have all the time you need.”
Him: “I… someone will definitely recognize my work some day.”
Her: “Humph! I don’t care, you’ll have to do it for her!”
Him: “No.”
Her: “Just this once?”
Him: “No.”
Negotiation’s broken. So, she gave the final warning: “Give me a Yes within three days, or else…”
First day, she “withheld” the kitchen, bathroom, computer, refrigerator, television, hi-fi… Except the double bed, to show her “benevolence”.
Of course, she has to sleep on it too. He didn’t mind, as he still has some cash in his pockets.
Second day, she conducted a raid and removed everything from his pockets and warned, “Seek any external help, and you bear the consequences.”
He’s nervous now. That night, on the bed, he begs for mercy, hoping that she’ll end this state. She doesn’t give a damn. No way am I giving in, whatever he says. Until he agrees.
Third day, night. On the bed. He’s lying on the bed, looking to one side. She’s lying on the bed, looking to the other side.
Him: “We need to talk.”
Her: “Unless it’s about the wedding, forget it.”
Him: “It’s something very important.”
She remains silent.
Him:”Let’s get a divorce.”
She did not believe her ears.
Him: “I got to know a girl.”
She’s totally angry, and wanted to hit him. But she held it down, wanting to let him finish. But her eyes already felt wet. He took a photo out from his chest. Probably from his undershirt pocket, that’s the only place she didn’t go through yesterday. How careless.
Him: “She’s a nice girl.”
Her tears fell.
Him: “She has a good personality too.”
She’s heartbroken because he puts a photo of some other girl close to his heart.
Him: “She says that she’ll support me fully in my pursue for literature after we got married.”
She’s very jealous because she said the same thing in the past.
Him: “She loves me truly.”
She wishes to sit up and scream at him “Don’t I?”
Him: “So, I think she won’t force me to do something that I don’t want to do.”
She’s thinking, but the rage won’t subside.
Him: “Want to take a look at the photo I took for her?”
Her: “…!”
He brings the photo before her eyes. She’s in a total rage, hits his hand away and leaves a burning slap on his face.
He sighs. She cries.
He puts the photo back to his pocket. She pulls her hand back under the blanket.
He turns off the light, and sleeps. She turns on the light, and sits up. He’s asleep. She lost sleep. She regrets treating him the way she treated him.
She cried again, and thought about a lot of things. She wants to wake him up. She wants to have a intimate talk with him. She doesn’t want to push him anymore. She stares at his chest. She wants to see how the girl looks.
She slips the photo out. She wanted to cry and she wanted to laugh.
It’s a nicely taken photo. A photo he took for her. She bends down, and kissed him on his cheek.
He smiled. He was just pretending to be asleep.
“You learn to love, not by finding a perfect person, but by learning to see an imperfect person perfectly.”
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Thank God for my shoes–they fit only me.
I woke up one day and I realized that there were many things
about my life I was not satisfied with.
And I said to myself, “Why should anyone envy me and want to be
in my shoes.” They don’t know how far I’ve come, they don’t
know what lies ahead of me, and neither do they know how
dissatisfied I get with myself from time to time.
People don’t know the troubles that you’ve had or the price you
had to pay to get to where you are. All they know is that they
wish they were like you.
Why should you wish you were in anybody’s shoes when you don’t
know how they fit?
When you’ve worn your shoes for a while, they take the shape of
your feet and align to the way you walk.If you were to wear my shoes, you will not be comfortable in them.
So I stopped wishing that I am in someone else’s shoes because
they might not fit. Rather I thank God for my shoes, because
they fit!
I have learned to be the best in what I do, and I know no one
can replace me anywhere.
I am an original.
God is not in the cloning business. He makes originals.
Make the best of what you do. Besides, you have this beautiful
life to live only once.
Live it to the fullest.
– an anonymous author in Nigeria
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Like any good mother, when Karen found out that another baby was on the way, she did what she could to help her 3-year-old son, Michael, prepare for a new sibling.
They find out that the new baby is going to be a girl, and day after day, night after night, Michael sings to his sister in Mommy’s tummy.
The pregnancy progresses normally for Karen, an active member of the Panther Creek United Methodist Church in Morristown, Tennessee. Then the labor pains come. Every five minutes, every minute. But complications arise during delivery. Hours of labor. Would a C-section be required?
Finally, Michael’s little sister is born. But she is in serious condition. With siren howling in the night, the ambulance rushes the infant to the neonatal intensive care unit at St. Mary’s Hospital, Knoxville, Tennessee. The days inch by. The little girl gets worse. The pediatric specialist tells the parents, “There is very little hope. Be prepared for the worst.”
Karen and her husband contact a local cemetery about a burial plot. They have fixed up a special room in their home for the new baby now they plan a funeral. Michael, keeps begging his parents to let him see his sister, “I want to sing to her,” he says.
Week two in intensive care. It looks as if a funeral will come before the week is over. Michael keeps nagging about singing to his sister, but kids are never allowed in Intensive Care. But Karen makes up her mind. She will take Michael whether they like it or not. If he doesn’t see his sister now, he may never see her alive.
She dresses him in an oversized scrub suit and marches him into ICU. He looks like a walking laundry basket, but the head nurse recognizes him as a child and bellows, “Get that kid out of here now! No children are allowed. The mother rises up strong in Karen, and the usually mild-mannered lady glares steel-eyed into the head nurse’s face, her lips a firm line.
“He is not leaving until he sings to his sister!”
Karen tows Michael to his sister’s bedside. He gazes at the tiny infant losing the battle to live. And he begins to sing. In the pure hearted voice of a 3-year-old, Michael sings:
“You are my sunshine, my only sunshine, you make me happy when skies are gray…”
Instantly the baby girl responds. The pulse rate becomes calm and steady.
Keep on singing, Michael.
“You never know, dear, how much I love you, Please don’t take my sunshine away…”
The ragged, strained breathing becomes as smooth as a kitten’s purr.
Keep on singing, Michael.
“The other night, dear, as I lay sleeping, I dreamed I held you in my arms…”
Michael’s little sister relaxes as rest, healing rest, seems to sweep over her.
Keep on singing, Michael.
Tears conquer the face of the bossy head nurse. Karen glows.
“You are my sunshine, my only sunshine. Please don’t, take my sunshine away.”
Funeral plans are scrapped. The next day, the very next day, the little girl is well enough to go home! Woman’s Day magazine called it “the miracle of a brother’s song.” The medical staff just called it a miracle. Karen called it a miracle of God’s love!
Never give up on the people you love.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...When you are together with that special someone,
you pretend to ignore that person.
But when that special someone is not around,
you might look around to find them.
At that moment, you are in love.
Although there is someone else who always makes you laugh,
your eyes and attention might go only to that special someone.
Then, you are in love.
Although that special someone was supposed to have called you long back, to
let you know of their safe arrival, your phone is quiet.
You are desperately waiting for the call!
At that moment, you are in love.
If you are much more excited for one short e-mail from
that special someone than other many long e-mails,
you are in love.
When you find yourself as one who cannot erase all the
messages in your answering machine because of one message
from that special someone, you are in love.
When you get a couple of free movie tickets, you would
not hesitate to think of that special someone.
Then, you are in love.
You keep telling yourself, “that special someone is just a friend”, but you
realize that you can not avoid that person’s special attraction. At that
moment, you are in love.
While you are reading this page, if someone
appears in your mind,
then u are in love with that person.
(3 votes, average: 5 out of 5) Loading ...A man came home from work late, tired and irritated, to find his 5-year old son waiting for him at the door.
SON: ‘Daddy, may I ask you a question?’
DAD: ‘Yeah sure, what it is?’ replied the man…
SON: ‘Daddy, how much do you make an hour?’
DAD: ‘That’s none of your business. Why do you ask such a thing?’ the man said angrily.
SON: ‘I just want to know. Please tell me, how much do you make an hour?’
DAD: ‘If you must know, I make $50 an hour.’
SON: ‘Oh,’ the little boy replied, with his head down.
SON: ‘Daddy, may I please borrow $25?’
The father was furious, ‘If the only reason you asked that is so you can borrow some money to buy a silly toy or some other nonsense, then you march yourself straight to your room and go to bed. Think about why you are being so selfish… I don’t work hard everyday for such childish frivolities.’
The little boy quietly went to his room and shut the door.
The man sat down and started to get even angrier about the little boy’s questions. How dare he ask such questions only to get some money?
After about an hour or so, the man had calmed down , and started to think:
Maybe there was something he really needed to buy with that $25.00 and he really didn’t ask for money very often The man went to the door of the little boy’s room and opened the door.
‘Are you asleep, son?’ He asked.
‘No daddy, I’m awake,’ replied the boy.
‘I’ve been thinking, maybe I was too hard on you earlier’ said the man. ‘It’s been a long day and I took out my aggravation on you. Here’s the $25 you asked for…’
The little boy sat straight up, smiling. ‘Oh, thank you daddy!’ he yelled. Then, reaching under his pillow he pulled out some crumpled up bills.
The man saw that the boy already had money, started to get angry again.
The little boy slowly counted out his money, and then looked up at his father.
‘Why do you want more money if you already have some?’ the father grumbled.
‘Because I didn’t have enough, but now I do,’ the little boy replied.
‘Daddy, I have $50 now. Can I buy an hour of your time? Please come home early tomorrow. I would like to have dinner with you.’
The father was crushed. He put his arms around his little son, and he begged for his forgiveness.
It’s just a short reminder to all of you working so hard in life. We should not let time slip through our fingers without having spent some time with those who really matter to us, those close to our hearts. Do remember to share that $50 worth of your time with someone you love.
If we die tomorrow, the company that we are working for could easily replace us in a matter of hours. But the family & friends we leave behind will feel the loss for the rest of their lives.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...A woman was at work when she received a phone call that her daughter was
very sick with a fever. She left her work and stopped by the pharmacy to
get some medication for her daughter.
Upon returning to her car she found that she had locked her keys in the
car. She was in a hurry to get home to her sick daughter. She didn’t
know what to do, so she called her home and told the baby sitter what
had happened and that she did not know what to do.
The baby sitter told her that her daughter was getting worse. She said,
“You might find a coat hanger and use that to open the door.” The woman
looked around and found an old rusty coat hanger that had been thrown
down on the ground, possibly by someone else who at some time or other
had locked their keys in their car. Then she looked at the hanger and
said, “I don’t know how to use this.” So she bowed her head and asked
God to send her some help.
Within five minutes an old rusty car pulled up, with a dirty, greasy,
bearded man who was wearing an old biker skull rag on his head. The
woman thought, “This is what you sent to help me?” But, she was
desperate, so she was also very thankful.
The man got out of his car and asked her if he could help. She said,
“Yes, my daughter is very sick. I stopped to get her some medication and
I locked my keys in my car. I must get home to her. Please, can you use
this hanger to unlock my car?”
He said, “Sure”. He walked over to the car, and in less than one minute
the car was opened.
She hugged the man and through her tears she said, “Thank You So Much!
You are a very nice man.”
The man replied, “Lady, I am not a nice man. I just got out of prison
yesterday. I was in prison for car theft and have only been out less
than 24 hours.”
The woman hugged the man again and with sobbing tears cried out loud,
“Oh, Thank you God! You even sent me a Professional!”
God may not always send us what we expect, but He will always send us
what we need. It’s up to us to have the wisdom to recognize the
difference and be thankful.
– Author Unknown–
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