The Circle Of Joy!!

And old story tells that one day, a countryman knocked hard on a monastery door. When the monk tending the gates opened up, he was given a magnificent bunch of grapes. - Brother, these are the finest my vineyard has produced. I’ve come to bear them as a gift. - Thank you! I will take them to the Abbot immediately, he’ll be delighted with this offering. - No! I brought them for you. For whenever I knock on the door, it is you opens it. When...

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The Finest Steel Come From The Hottest Furnaces

I’ll never forget the night in 1946 when disaster and challenge visited our home. My brother, George, came home from football practice and collapsed with a temperature of 104 degrees. After an examination, the doctor informed us it was polio. This was before the days of Dr. Salk, and polio was well known in Webster Groves, Missouri, having killed and crippled many children and teenagers. After the initial crisis passed, the doctor felt duty...

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How the Poor Live!!

One day, a father of a very wealthy family took his son on a trip to the country with the firm purpose of showing his son how poor people live. They spent a couple of days and nights on the farm of what would be considered a very poor family. On their return from their trip, the father asked his son, “How was the trip?” “It was great, Dad.” “Did you see how poor people live?” the father asked. “Oh yeah,” said the son. “So, tell me, what did...

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Injured Soldiers!!

This heart-warming, true story was written by Ronnie Polaneczky, a columnist for the Philadelphia Daily News, and ran on page 6 of that paper on Dec. 22, 2005. It started last Christmas, when Bennett and Vivian Levin were overwhelmed by sadness while listening to radio reports of injured American troops. “We have to let them know we care,” Vivian told Bennett. So they organized a trip to bring soldiers from Walter Reed Army Medical Center...

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The Grass Cutting Days

The pastor called me to come forward. I walked to the pulpit confident and proud. I looked out at my family. Some wore somber expressions. Others had faces still damp with tears. Then I gazed down at the shiny black coffin crowned with yellow flowers. My father, Charlie Lyons, was gone. It was my turn at his funeral earlier this year to pay tribute to the man who taught me so much growing up on the Northside. How do you sum up a lifetime in...

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How 2 Control Temper

Once upon a time there was a little boy who was talented, creative, handsome, and extremely bright. A natural leader. The kind of person everyone would normally have wanted on their team or project. But he was also self-centered and had a very bad temper. When he got angry, he usually said, and often did, some very hurtful things. In fact, he seemed to have little regard for those around him. Even friends. So, naturally, he had few. “But,” he...

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Interesting Animal Facts!!

All species have their own unique abilities. Humans have highly developed brains. Ants never sleep. Elephants can smell water 3 miles away. Snails can grow new eyes… Enjoy this little journey to the miraculous world of animals. Hope you learn a thing or two along the way! Australian termites can build mounds twenty feet high and at least 100 feet wide. Birds don’t urinate. Ants never sleep. Also they don’t have lungs. Worker ants may live...

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Each Person Shines His Own Way

A samurai who was known for his nobility and honesty, went to visit a Zen monk to ask him for his advice. When the monk had finished his prayers, the Samurai asked, “Why do I feel so inferior? I have faced death many times, have defended those who are weak. Nevertheless, upon seeing you meditating, I felt that my life had absolutely no importance whatsoever.” “Wait. Once I have attended to all those who come to see me today, I shall answer...

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Thee Black Dot!!

A small town chamber of commerce invited a speaker to address its annual dinner. The community’s economy was bad, people were discouraged, and they wanted this motivational speaker to give them a boost. During her presentation, the speaker took a large piece of white paper and made a small black dot at the center with a marking pen. Then she held the paper up before the group and asked them what they saw. One person quickly replied, “I see...

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