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2024-06-07 11:10:17Dear World:
My son starts school today.
It's going to be strange and new to him for a while, and I wish you would sort of treat him gently.
You see, up to now, he's been king of the roost.
He's been boss of the backyard.
I have always been around to repair his wounds, and to soothe his feelings.
But now--things are going to be different.
This morning, he's going to walk down the front steps, wave his hand and start on his great adventure that will probably include wars and tragedy and sorrow.
To live his life in the world he has to live in will require faith and love and courage.
So, World, I wish you would sort of take him by his young hand and teach him the things he will have to know.
Teach him - but gently, if you can.
Teach him that for every scoundrel there is a hero; that for every crooked politician there is a dedicated leader; that for every enemy there is a friend.
Teach him the wonders of books.
Give him quiet time to ponder the eternal mystery of birds in the sky, bees in the sun, and flowers on the green hill.
Teach him it is far more honorable to fail than to cheat.
Teach him to have faith in his own ideas, even if everyone tells him they are wrong.
Teach him to sell his brawn and brains to the highest bidder, but never to put a price on his heart and soul.
Teach him to close his ears to a howling mob...and to stand and fight if he thinks he's right.
Teach him gently, World, but don't coddle him, because only the test of fire makes fine steel.
This is a big order, World, but see what you can do.
He's such a nice little fellow.
The story goes that some time ago, a man punished his 3-year-old daughter for wasting a roll of gold wrapping paper. Money was tight and he became infuriated when the child tried to decorate a box to put under the Christmas tree. Nevertheless, the little girl brought the gift to her father the next morning and said, "This is for you, Daddy.”
The man was embarrassed by his earlier overreaction, but his anger flared again when he found out the box was empty. He yelled at her, stating, "Don't you know, when you give someone a present, there is supposed to be something inside? The little girl looked up at him with tears in her eyes and cried, "Oh, Daddy, it's not empty at all. I blew kisses into the box. They're all for you, Daddy."
The father was crushed. He put his arms around his little girl, and he begged for her forgiveness. Only a short time later, an accident took the life of the child. It is also told that her father kept that gold box by his bed for many years and, whenever he was discouraged, he would take out an imaginary kiss and remember the love of the child who had put it there.
In a very real sense, each one of us, as humans beings, have been given a gold container filled with unconditional love and kisses... from our children, family members, friends, and God. There is simply no other possession, anyone could hold, more precious than this.
A friend of mine named Paul received an automobile from his brother as Christmas present. On Christmas eve, when Paul came out of his office, a street urchin was looking around the shining new car, admiring it.
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Unbreakable Vow 002
"Is this your car, Mister?" he said.Paul nodded, "My brother gave it to me for Christmas."The boy was astounded, "You mean your brother gave it to you, and didn't cost you anything?""Boy, I wish..." he hesitated.Of course Paul knew what he was going to wish for. He was going to wish he has a brother like that. But what the lad said jarred Paull all the way down his heels."I wish," the boy went on, "that I could be a brother like that."Paul looked at the boy in astonishment, then inpulsivly he added, "Would you like to take a ride in my car?""Oh, yes. I'd love that."After a short ride, the boy turned his eyes aglow, said, "Mister, would you mind driving in front of my house?"Paul smiled a little. He thought he knew what the lad wanted. He wanted to show his neighbours that he could ride home in a big automobile. But Paul was wrong again."Would you stop at those with two steps?" the boy asked.He ran up stairs. Then in a little while, Paul heard him coming back, but he was not
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I look at spiders and butter-flies . I watch caterpillars and moths . Sometimes I think I'm the only one who notices these things . But if it hadn't been for a crowded cafeteria , I wouldn't Have ever noticed Valeri . After all , I wasn't looking for new friends .Valeri was a new student . She walked to class with her boooks huddled against her chest and her head down . He talked only when the teacher asked her a question . After a month at our school , she hadn't made any friend . At recess , she sat on a bench and read . If you asked who she was , you'd get a response like this , "She's in my PE class , I can't remenber her name ."One day at lunch , I had nowhere to sit . Most tables were full , my friends scattered among them . But Valeri sat alone , book in hand , I walked over to her ."May I sit here ?"I asked ."Sure ,"she said .The cafeteria was noisy , but silence hung between us . Valeri didn't seem to mind , but it drove me crazy . I searched my mind for things to say .
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He looked at me and said, "Hey thanks!" There was a big smile on his face. It was one of those smiles that showed real gratitude. I helped him pick up his books, and asked him where he lived. As it turned out, he lived near me, so I asked him why I had never seen him before. He said he had gone to private school before now.I would have never hung out with a private school kid before.We talked all the way home, and I carried his books. He turned out to be a pretty cool kid. I asked him if he wanted to play football on Saturday with me and my friends. He said yes. We hung all weekend and the more I got to know Kyle, the more I liked him. And my friends thought the same of him.Monday morning came, and there was Kyle with the huge stack of books again. I stopped him and said, "Boy, you are gonna really build some serious muscles with this pile of books everyday!" He just laughed and handed me half the books.Over the next four years, Kyle and I became best friends. When we were seniors, w
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Sometimes I really doubt whether there is love between my parents. Every day they are very busy trying to earn money in order to pay the high tuition for my brother and me. They don’t act in the romantic ways that I read in books or I see on TV. In their opinion, “I love you” is too luxurious for them to say. Sending flowers to each other on Valentine’s Day is even more out of the question. Finally my father has a bad temper. When he’s very tired from the hard work, it is easy for him to lose his temper.One day, my mother was sewing a quilt. I silently sat down beside her and looked at her.“Mom, I have a question to ask you,” I said after a while.“What?” she replied, still doing her work.“Is there love between you and Dad?” I asked her in a very low voice.My mother stopped her work and raised her head with surprise in her eyes. She didn’t answer immediately. Then she bowed her head and continued to sew the quilt.I was very worried because I thought I had hurt her. I was in a gre
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Unbreakable Vow 008
No one’s born being good at all things. You become good at things through hard work. You’re not a varsity athlete the first time you play a new sport. You don’t hit every note the first time you sing a song.You’ve got to practice. The same principle applies to your schoolwork. You might have to do a math problem a few times before you get it right. You might have to read something a few times before you understand it.You definitely have to do a few drafts of a paper before it’s good enough to hand in.Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it. I do that every day. Asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness. It’s a sign of strengthbecause it shows you have the courage to admit when you don’t know something, and that then allows you to learn something new. So find an adult that you trust -- a parent, a grandparentor teacher, a coach or a counselor -- and ask them to help you stay on track tomeet your goals.Many people read on digital devices like c
Unbreakable Vow 007
Most people need to hear those "three little words" I love you. Once in a while, they hear them just in timeI met Connie the day she was admitted to the hospice ward, where I worked as a volunteer. Her husband, Bill, stood nervously nearby as she was transferred from the gurney to the hospital bed. Although Connie was in the final stages of her fight against cancer, she was alert and cheerful. We got her settled in. I finished marking her name on all the hospital supplies she would be using, then asked if she needed anything."Oh, yes," she said, "would you please show me how to use the TV? I enjoy the soaps so much and I don't want to get behind on what's happening." Connie was a romantic. She loved soap operas, romance novels and movies with a good love story. As we became acquainted, she confided how frustrating it was to be married 32 years to a man who often called her "a silly woman.""Oh, I know Bill loves me," she said, "but he has never been one to say he loves me, or send ca
Unbreakable Vow 006
Sometimes I really doubt whether there is love between my parents. Every day they are very busy trying to earn money in order to pay the high tuition for my brother and me. They don’t act in the romantic ways that I read in books or I see on TV. In their opinion, “I love you” is too luxurious for them to say. Sending flowers to each other on Valentine’s Day is even more out of the question. Finally my father has a bad temper. When he’s very tired from the hard work, it is easy for him to lose his temper.One day, my mother was sewing a quilt. I silently sat down beside her and looked at her.“Mom, I have a question to ask you,” I said after a while.“What?” she replied, still doing her work.“Is there love between you and Dad?” I asked her in a very low voice.My mother stopped her work and raised her head with surprise in her eyes. She didn’t answer immediately. Then she bowed her head and continued to sew the quilt.I was very worried because I thought I had hurt her. I was in a gre
Unbreakable Vow 005
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Unbreakable Vow 004
He looked at me and said, "Hey thanks!" There was a big smile on his face. It was one of those smiles that showed real gratitude. I helped him pick up his books, and asked him where he lived. As it turned out, he lived near me, so I asked him why I had never seen him before. He said he had gone to private school before now.I would have never hung out with a private school kid before.We talked all the way home, and I carried his books. He turned out to be a pretty cool kid. I asked him if he wanted to play football on Saturday with me and my friends. He said yes. We hung all weekend and the more I got to know Kyle, the more I liked him. And my friends thought the same of him.Monday morning came, and there was Kyle with the huge stack of books again. I stopped him and said, "Boy, you are gonna really build some serious muscles with this pile of books everyday!" He just laughed and handed me half the books.Over the next four years, Kyle and I became best friends. When we were seniors, w
Unbreakable Vow 003
I look at spiders and butter-flies . I watch caterpillars and moths . Sometimes I think I'm the only one who notices these things . But if it hadn't been for a crowded cafeteria , I wouldn't Have ever noticed Valeri . After all , I wasn't looking for new friends .Valeri was a new student . She walked to class with her boooks huddled against her chest and her head down . He talked only when the teacher asked her a question . After a month at our school , she hadn't made any friend . At recess , she sat on a bench and read . If you asked who she was , you'd get a response like this , "She's in my PE class , I can't remenber her name ."One day at lunch , I had nowhere to sit . Most tables were full , my friends scattered among them . But Valeri sat alone , book in hand , I walked over to her ."May I sit here ?"I asked ."Sure ,"she said .The cafeteria was noisy , but silence hung between us . Valeri didn't seem to mind , but it drove me crazy . I searched my mind for things to say .
Unbreakable Vow 002
"Is this your car, Mister?" he said.Paul nodded, "My brother gave it to me for Christmas."The boy was astounded, "You mean your brother gave it to you, and didn't cost you anything?""Boy, I wish..." he hesitated.Of course Paul knew what he was going to wish for. He was going to wish he has a brother like that. But what the lad said jarred Paull all the way down his heels."I wish," the boy went on, "that I could be a brother like that."Paul looked at the boy in astonishment, then inpulsivly he added, "Would you like to take a ride in my car?""Oh, yes. I'd love that."After a short ride, the boy turned his eyes aglow, said, "Mister, would you mind driving in front of my house?"Paul smiled a little. He thought he knew what the lad wanted. He wanted to show his neighbours that he could ride home in a big automobile. But Paul was wrong again."Would you stop at those with two steps?" the boy asked.He ran up stairs. Then in a little while, Paul heard him coming back, but he was not
Unbreakable Vow 001
Dear World:My son starts school today.It's going to be strange and new to him for a while, and I wish you would sort of treat him gently.You see, up to now, he's been king of the roost.He's been boss of the backyard.I have always been around to repair his wounds, and to soothe his feelings.But now--things are going to be different.This morning, he's going to walk down the front steps, wave his hand and start on his great adventure that will probably include wars and tragedy and sorrow.To live his life in the world he has to live in will require faith and love and courage.So, World, I wish you would sort of take him by his young hand and teach him the things he will have to know.Teach him - but gently, if you can.Teach him that for every scoundrel there is a hero; that for every crooked politician there is a dedicated leader; that for every enemy there is a friend.Teach him the wonders of books.Give him quiet time to ponder the eternal mystery of birds in the sky, bees in
