Marriage

Most people get married believing a myth.
They believe that marriage is a beautiful box that is full of all the things they have longed for: companionship, sexual fulfillment, intimacy and friendship.

The truth is that marriage at the start, is an empty box. You must put something in before you can take anything out. There is no love in marriage. Love is in people and people put it into marriage. There is no romance in marriage. People infuse it into their marriage.

A couple must learn the art and form the habit of giving, loving, serving, praising, to keep the box full. If you take out more than you put in, the box will be empty.

I Owe You One

For 3 years Victor has been terribly sick. His arm was black and blue. He often passed out. His kidneys have failed and dialysis was not working. Victor was dying.

Tony, his brother, kept offering his kidney but Victor refused as he couldn't bear to think of his brother living with 1 kidney because of him. It took a long time to persuade Victor but finally he agreed.

Several times the brothers went to hospital but only to have the operation postponed because of Victor's infections. However, Tony never thought of backing out. After each disapointment, he announced: 'We are coming back!'. He even got Vincent a T-shirt that read 'I'M NO QUITTER!'

Finally, surgery was scheduled. The operation was harder on Tony. Doctors had to remove part of his ribs to get the kidney out. His recuperation took longer than Victor's and he had more pain.

Victor wrote: 'Because of Tony's unselfishness, I have a chance to see my four children grow up. I will never know my brother's pain, fears and feelings. All I know is the love we share. How can I tell him thanks? I can only tell everyone that I have the greatest brother in the world.'

Legacy

The greatest legacy that we can leave our children is happy memories.
Those precious moments are so much like pebbles on the beach that are plucked from the white sand and placed in tiny boxes that lie undisturbed on tall shelves until one day they spilled out and time repeats itself with joy and sweet sadness, when the child now becomes an adult.
Memories...
Love's best preservative.

That Kind of Love

This is indeed a beautiful story enjoy reading it...Its one of those very
touching ones......

It was a busy morning, approximately 8:30 am, when an elderly gentleman arrived to have stitches removed from his thumb. He stated that he was in a hurry as he had an appointment at 9:00 am. I took his vital signs and had him take a seat, knowing it would be over an hour before someone would to able to see him. I saw him looking at his watch and decided, since I was not busy with another patient, I would evaluate his wound.

On exam it was well healed, so I talked to one of the doctors, got the needed supplies to remove his sutures and redress his wound. While taking care of his wound, we began to engage in conversation I asked him if he had a doctor's appointment this morning, as he was in such hurry. The gentleman told me no, that he needed to go to the nursing home to eat breakfast with his wife. I then inquired as to her health. He told me that she had been there for a while and that she was a victim of Alzheimer Disease.

As we talked, and I finished dressing his wound, I asked if she would be worried if he was a bit late. He replied that she no longer knew who he was, that she had not recognized him in five years now. I was surprised, and asked him. "And you still go every morning, even though she doesn't know who you are?" He smiled as he patted my hand and said. "She doesn't know me, but I still know who she is."

I had to hold back tears as he left, I had goose bumps on my arm, and thought, "That is the kind of love I want in my life."

True love is neither physical, nor romantic. True love is an acceptance of all that is, has been, will be, and will not be. With all the jokes and fun that are in e-mails, sometimes there are some that come along that have an important message, and this is one of those kinds. Just had to share it with you all.

"The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the best of everything that comes along their way."

Peace is seeing a sunset and knowing who to thank.

You Are Special

One day a teacher asked her students to list the names of the other students in the room on two sheets of paper, leaving a space between each name.

Then she told them to think of the nicest thing they could say about each of their classmates and write it down.

It took the remainder of the class period to finish their assignment, and as the students left the room, each one handed in the papers.
That Saturday, the teacher wrote down the name of each student on a separate sheet of paper, and listed what everyone else had said about that individual.

On Monday she gave each student his or her list.
Before long, the entire class was smiling.
"Really?" she heard whispered. "I never knew that I meant anything to anyone!" and, "I didn't know others liked me so much." were most of the comments.

No one ever mentioned those papers in class again.
She never knew if they discussed them after class with their parents, but it didn't matter. The exercise had accomplished its purpose.
The students were happy with themselves and one another. That group of students moved on.

Several years later, one of the students was killed in Vietnam and his teacher attended the funeral of that special student. She had never seen a serviceman in a military coffin before. He looked so handsome, so mature. The church was packed with his friends. One by one those who loved him took a last walk by the coffin.
The teacher was the last one to bless the coffin.

As she stood there, one of the soldiers who acted as pallbearer came up to her.
"Were you Mark's math teacher?" he asked. She nodded: "yes."
Then he said: "Mark talked about you a lot."
After the funeral, most of Mark's former classmates went together to a luncheon. Mark's mother and father were there, obviously waiting to speak with his teacher.

"We want to show you something," his father said, taking a wallet out of his pocket. "They found this on Mark when he was killed. We thought you might recognize it." Opening the billfold, he carefully removed two worn pieces of notebook paper that had obviously been taped, folded and refolded many times.

The teacher knew without looking that the papers were the ones on which she had listed all the good things each of Mark's classmates had said about him.

"Thank you so much for doing that," Mark's mother said. "As you can see, Mark treasured it."

All of Mark's former classmates started to gather around. Charlie smiled rather sheepishly and said, "I still have my list. It's in the top drawer of my desk at home."

Chuck's wife said, "Chuck asked me to put his in our wedding album."
"I have mine too," Marilyn said. "It's in my diary."

Then Vicki, another classmate, reached into her purse and showed her frazzled list to the group. "I carry this with me at all times, " Vicki said and without batting an eyelash, she continued: "I think we all saved our lists."

That's when the teacher finally sat down and cried. She cried for Mark and for all his friends who would never see him again.

The density of people in society is so thick that we forget that life will end one day. And we don't know when that one day will be.

So please, tell the people you love and care for, that they are
special and important.

Tell them, before it is too late...

Remember, you reap what you sow, what you put into the lives of others comes back into your own.

Friends

Every day I look around me and see people who have problems far greater than mine and yet they confront life with a courage and honest determination within themselves. It makes me stop and realize how small my worries are in comparison and how I should try that much harder to be happy, tolerant, understanding, and caring toward others. It encourages me to believe in my own abilities, but most of all to be thankful for all I have every day of my life."
Deanna Beisser

The Greatest Love of All

I believe the children are our are future
Teach them well and let them lead the way
Show them all the beauty they possess inside
Give them a sense of pride to make it easier
Let the children's laughter remind us how we used to be
Everybody searching for a hero
People need someone to look up to
I never found anyone who fulfill my needs
A lonely place to be
So I learned to depend on me

I decided long ago, never to walk in anyone's shadows
If I fail, if I succeed
At least I'll live as I believe
No matter what they take from me
They can't take away my dignity
Because the greatest love of all
Is happening to me
I found the greatest love of all
Inside of me
The greatest love of all
Is easy to achieve
Learning to love yourself
It is the greatest love of all

I believe the children are our future
Teach them well and let them lead the way
Show them all the beauty they possess inside
Give them a sense of pride to make it easier
Let the children's laughter remind us how we used to be

And if by chance, that special place
That you've been dreaming of
Leads you to a lonely place
Find your strength in love

Rivers

Rivers hardly ever run in a straight line.
Rivers are willing to take 10 thousand meanders and enjoy everyone and grow from everyone.
When Rivers leave a meander, they are always bigger than when they entered it.
When Rivers meet an obstacle, they do not try to run it over. They merely go around but they always get to the other side.
Rivers accept things as they are. They conform to the shape they find the world in, yet nothing changes things more than rivers.
Rivers move even mountains into the sea.
Rivers hardly ever are in a hurry. Yet is there anything more likely to reach the point it sets out for than a river?

Prayers

WHEN I ASKED GOD

I asked for strength and God gave me difficulties to make me strong.

I asked for wisdom and God gave me problems to solve.

I asked for prosperity and God gave me brawn and brain to work.

I asked for courage and God gave dangers to overcome.

I asked for love and God gave me troubled people to help.

I asked for favors and God gave me opportunities.

I received nothing I wanted.

I received everything I needed.

My prayer has been answered.

Each Day

Make each day useful and cheerful and prove that you know the worth of time by employing it well. Then youth will be happy, elders will be without regret, and life will be a beautiful success.