Some Common Sense

The following is the philosophy of Charles Schulz, the creator of the ‘Peanuts’ comic strip.

You don’t have to actually answer the questions.

Just read this straight through, and you’ll get the point.

1. Name the five wealthiest people in the world.

2. Name the last five Heisman trophy winners.

3. Name the last five winners of the Miss America pageant.

4. Name ten people who have won the Nobel or Pulitzer Prize.

5. Name the last half dozen Academy Award winners for best actor and actress.

6. Name the last decade’s worth of World Series winners.

How did you do?

The point is , none of us remember the headliners of yesterday.

These are no second-rate achievers.

They are the best in their fields.

But the applause dies..

Awards tarnish.

Achievements are forgotten.

Accolades and certificates are buried with their owners.

Here’s another quiz. See how you do on this one:

1. List a few teachers who aided your journey through school.

2. Name three friends who have helped you through a difficult time.

3. Name five people who have taught you something worthwhile.

4. Think of a few people who have made you feel appreciated and special!!

5. Think of five people you enjoy spending time with.

Easier?

The lesson:

The people who make a difference in your life are not the ones with the most credentials..

the most money…or the most awards.

They simply are the ones who care the most‘Don’t worry about the world coming to an end today.

‘Be Yourself. Everyone Else Is Taken!’

Might as well Dance

A beautiful story: enjoy!

When I drove up in my taxi cab at 2:30 a.m., the building was dark 
except for a single light in a ground floor window. 
  Under these circumstances, many taxi drivers would just honk once or 
twice, wait a minute, and then drive away.
But I had seen too many impoverished people who depended on taxis as their
only means of transportation. Unless a situation smelled of danger, I 
always went to the door. This passenger might be someone who needs my 
assistance, I reasoned to myself. 
 So I walked to the door and knocked. ‘Just a minute’, answered a frail, 
elderly voice. I could hear something being dragged across the floor. 
  After a long pause, the door opened. A small woman in her 90’s stood 
before me. She was wearing a print dress and a pillbox hat with a veil 
pinned on it, like somebody out of a 1940s movie. 
By her side was a small nylon suitcase. The apartment looked as if no one 
had lived in it for years. All the furniture was covered with sheets. 
There were no clocks on the walls, no knickknacks or utensils on the
counters. In the corner was a cardboard box filled with photos and 
glassware. 
‘Would you carry my bag out to the car?’ she said. I took the suitcase to 
the cab, then returned to assist the woman. 
She took my arm and we walked slowly toward the curb. 
She kept thanking me for my kindness. ‘It’s nothing’, I told her. ‘I just 
try to treat my passengers the way I would want my mother treated’.
‘Oh, you’re such a good boy’, she said. When we got in the cab, she gave
me an address, and then asked, ‘Could you drive through downtown?’
‘It’s not the shortest way,’ I answered quickly. 
‘Oh, I don’t mind,’ she said. 
  ‘I’m in no hurry. I’m on my way to a hospice’. 
I looked in the rear-view mirror. Her eyes were glistening. ‘I don’t have
any family left,’ she continued. ‘The doctor says I don’t have very long.’ 
I quietly reached over and shut off the meter. 
‘What route would you like me to take?’ I asked.
For the next two hours, we drove through the city. She showed me the
building where she had once worked as an elevator operator. 
We drove through the neighborhood where she and her husband had lived when 
they were newlyweds. She had me pull up in front of a furniture warehouse 
that had once been a ballroom where she had gone dancing as a girl. 
  Sometimes she’d ask me to slow in front of a particular building or corner
and would sit staring into the darkness, saying nothing.
As the first hint of sun was creasing the horizon, she suddenly said , 
‘I’m tired. Let’s go now.’ 
We drove in silence to the address she had given me.It was a low building, 
like a small convalescent home, with a driveway that passed under a 
portico.
 Two orderlies came out to the cab as soon as we pulled up. They were 
solicitous and intent, watching her every move. They must have been 
expecting her. 
  I opened the trunk and took the small suitcase to the door. The woman was 
already seated in a wheelchair. 
‘How much do I owe you?’ she asked, reaching into her purse. 
‘Nothing,’ I said 
‘You have to make a living,’ she answered. 
‘There are other passengers,’ I responded. 
  Almost without thinking, I bent and gave her a hug. She held onto me 
tightly. 
‘You gave an old woman a little moment of joy,’ she said. 
‘Thank you.’ 
  I squeezed her hand, and then walked into the dim morning light. Behind 
me, a door shut. It was the sound of the closing of a life. 
I didn’t pick up any more passengers that shift. I drove aimlessly lost in 
thought. For the rest of that day, I could hardly talk. What if that woman 
had gotten an angry driver, or one who was impatient to end his shift? 
What if I had refused to take the run, or had honked once, then driven 
away? 
  On a quick review, I don’t think that I have done anything more important 
in my life. 
  We’re conditioned to think that our lives revolve around great moments. 
But great moments often catch us unaware-beautifully wrapped in what 
others may consider a small one. 
  PEOPLE MAY NOT REMEMBER EXACTLY WHAT YOU DID, OR WHAT YOU SAID, ~BUT~THEY 
WILL ALWAYS REMEMBER HOW YOU MADE THEM FEEL.

  Life may not be the party we hoped for, but while we are here we might as 
well dance. 
  

Farewell to 2007

Alas ,tis time to say a fond farewell to 2007. What has this year done for you? What have you not completed? I will think back to January. I was not excited about the playoffs like I am now. My Packers were not in the playoffs last year. In February, I spotted Cissy. She was the littlest runt of the litter of my neighbor and friend, Pat. Pat told me her birthday was the same as mine!  I had to have her!  In seven weeks, I did go get her and she is a little sweetie. I then had two little puffy topped heads that ran through my home and I loved it.  In March, I ordered some trees from the National Arbor Foundation. I got them for planting in early May. I also got some rose bushes from my father.  I planted them and had a good garden in the summer too.  We set up a new pool this summer.  My husband made better steps and deck to get in  and out of the pool too.  My husband was in the bar outside of town and the bartender told him she had a litter of kittens that she really needed to give away as she had too many on her farm. In late July my husband brought home the littlest runt of her litter.  The bartender’s daughter picked out the cutest one for my husband she said. My son named her Muffin as he had never named a pet before.  She is special because she has fives toes on each paw and is a very pretty cat.  We had vehicle problems this year as well. We did purchase a new vehicle too this year mainly because of the problems we had with the other ones. We went to a family reunion this past summer as well. I saw family from my Mom’s side that I hadn’t seen since I was a teen. I had a great time as we traveled up to Munising,Michigan. It’s where my Mom was born. I got to see my Grandma and Grandfather’s grave-sites.  I had never met Everett when he was alive as he died from burns from a house fire, so I told him ,hi. My Grandma had died in 2006 and this was my first visit to her resting place. I also saw my Mom’s grave in Brevort,Michigan. It was a much needed trip. This year went by fast and I still am going to the doctor for my back pain. I hope next year I have good luck and good times. I wish all of you the same.

More soon: off to go figure out my new toy, a digital camera I got for Christmas.