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| “A Kind Soul”Just a friend of mine :) There was a man who was walking down the streets of Manhattan looking for the bus stop. As he turned the corner, he spotted the bus stop in the distance, where he saw a young woman sit down. As he got closer to the bench, he realized that the woman was crying and her face was red and blotchy. She attracted stares from others passing by, mostly curious glances, but no one stopped to ask if she was okay. He sat down next to her, not speaking for awhile as she continued to sob. Then he said “Are you okay? You look confused, and scared. Can I help you?” in a sincere tone instead of mockery. She looked at him for a moment with complete sadness in her eyes. She finally spoke, “I just found out I have cancer, and I have only 3 months to live.” She looked down at the tissue in her hand and crumpled it up. The man looked at her again trying to figure out what to say. He said “Don’t you have any place to go?” “No, I don’t, I am alone now, my boyfriend has left me because he doesn’t want to waste the next 3 months with someone who is going to die so soon, and I have no family left.” “You look as though some hot chocolate and some macaroni and cheese may make things just a little better.” She said to him, “Why are you so nice to me? I don’t even know you.” He replied, “Because everybody deserves to be treated with care, and you have no one to care for you now.” The bus pulled up to the stop, and the man asked the woman if she would like to go to a café a couple blocks away, hesitantly she replied yes. They sat in silence on the bus, looking out the window. People were wrapped in coats and carrying shopping bags for Christmas presents. When they reached their stop, the walked off the bus, and headed to the café. The walked in the door, and a warm air welcomed them in from the bitter cold. They picked a table near the fogged windows and sat. A waitress came to take their order and then walked away. As they waited for their hot chocolate and macaroni and cheese, they talked some more about the usual things. The waitress brought the hot chocolate and macaroni and cheese. They stopped talking for a bit to take a sip of hot chocolate, it was warm against their tongues. They continued to talk for the next four hours, joking and laughing. The clock reached 8:00, and the café closed. They went back out into the winter cold and they reached the bus stop. They sat and the man looked at the woman who was no longer crying and sad. He asked her if she had a plan for where she was going to go tonight. She just looked down, a sad look returning to her face. She looked up at him with hopeful eyes. He wasn’t sure how to ask, but he finally did. He asked her if she would like to come to his home in Central Park. She gratefully excepted, not knowing what to expect. They reached his street and walked into the door of his house. It was a beautiful and clean place, with art on the walls and a winding staircase to the upper level. She was surprised when he offered her a separate room from his own, and was happy that he was not a bad person at all. She slept pleasantly all night. This man that she had met was not forward, and a good person. In New York City, its hard to trust strangers. She came down in the clothes she had on yesterday, and entered the kitchen. The man was already awake and making breakfast. He asked her if she wanted pancakes and served them both at the table. He looked at her clothes and she blushed embarrassed, she had no other clothes. He looked up and asked her if she wanted to go shopping today, his treat. She accepted, surprised at his generosity. They went to the mall downtown. She first went to bargain stores looking for the cheapest clothes. He suggested at her third bargain store that he take her to a better store, she looked embarrassed, and he knew why. She didn’t want to be a burden, and she wasn’t. After a day of shopping, he took her back to his house. A month went by, and they were getting married. She lived past her expected lifetime, but died after 2 years. As the man looked back to the day he first met her, he thought that if more people would help others, their lives would be so much better, like his. Help a stranger in need, it just might change your life. | | |
| “A Burden” Author Unknown A story is told about a soldier who was finally coming home after having fought in Vietnam. He called his parents from San Francisco. "Mom and Dad, I'm coming home, but I've a favor to ask. I have a friend I'd like to bring home with me. "Sure," they replied, "we'd love to meet him." "There's something you should know," the son continued, "he was hurt pretty badly in the fighting. He stepped on a land mind and lost an arm and a leg. He has nowhere else to go, and I want him to come live with us." "I'm sorry to hear that, son. Maybe we can help him find somewhere to live." "No, Mom and Dad, I want him to live with us." "Son," said the father, "you don't know what you're asking. Someone with such a handicap would be a terrible burden on us. We have our own lives to live, and we can't let something like this interfere with our lives. I think you should just come home and forget about this guy. He'll find a way to live on his own." At that point, the son hung up the phone. The parents heard nothing more from him. A few days later, however, they received a call from the San Francisco police. Their son had died after falling from a building, they were told. The police believed it was suicide. The grief-stricken parents flew to San Francisco and were taken to the city morgue to identify the body of their son. they recognized him, but to their horror they also discovered something they didn't know, their son had only one arm and one leg. “Watch and Listen Carefully” Kim
A man whispered, "God, speak to me"
A meadowlark sang...but the man did not hear.
The man yelled "God, speak to me!"
The thunder rolled across the sky...but the man did not listen.
The man looked around and said, "God let me see you."
A star shined brightly...but the man did not notice.
The man shouted, "God show me a miracle!"
A life was born...but the man did not know.
The man cried out in despair,
"Touch me God and let me know you are here!"
Where upon God reached down and touched the man...
but the man brushed the butterfly away and walked on.
Don't miss out on a blessing because it isn't packaged the way that you expect. | | |
| “It’s Hard to Give”Shannon Smith There was once a man who worked a train post to be sure that the tracks were always ready for any train that might go over the bridge. The man had a son who was about 4 years old, and when he came to work with him, he always reminded his son never to run out onto the tracks over the bridge. One day, he brought his son to work, and repeated that he must never run onto the tracks, but his son was too busy chasing a butterfly. The man just laughed and went to his post. He was working on his paperwork when he saw his little boy chasing the butterfly onto the train tracks, not stopping when he stepped onto the bridge. Right then, he heard the whistle of a train approaching. He yelled at his son to run back, but he was to far away. He knew that his little boy could never outrun the train. Then, he saw the train coming around the bend, with his son in the middle of the tracks. He had a switch that could be pulled to reverse the train tracks, but then the train full of people would crash into the river bellow and die. But if he didn’t pull the switch, his son, his little boy, would die. He could only watch as his son was smashed underneath the train, saving all those people, but killing his son. What would you do? | | |
| “That One Thing” As we grow up, we learn that even the one person that wasn't supposed
to ever let you down probably will.
You will have your heart broken probably more than once and it's harder
every time. You'll break hearts too, so remember how it felt when yours was broken.
You'll fight with your best friend.
You'll blame a new love for things an old one did. You'll cry because time is passing too fast, and you'll eventually lose someone you love.
So take too many pictures, laugh too much, and love like you've never
been hurt because every sixty seconds you spend upset is a minute of
happiness you'll never get back. "Don't be afraid that your life will end,
be afraid that it will never begin." This next story is my FAVORITE STORY!!! “Puppies for Sale”A storeowner was tacking a sign above his door that read "Puppies for Sale." Signs like that have a way of attracting small children, and sure enough a little boy appeared under the storeowner's sign. "How much are you going to sell the puppies for?" the little boy asked. The storeowner replied, "anywhere from $30 to $50." The little boy reached into his pocket and pulled out some change. "I have $2.37,” he said. "May I please look at them?" The storeowner smiled and whistled and out of the kennel came Lady, who ran down the aisle of his store followed by five teeny, tiny balls of fur. One puppy was lagging considerably behind. Immediately the little boy singled out the lagging, limping puppy and said, "What's wrong with that little dog?" The storeowner explained that the veterinarian had examined the little puppy and had discovered that it didn't have a hip socket. It would always limp. It would always be lame. The little boy became excited. "That is the puppy I want to buy." The storeowner said, "No, you don't want to buy that little dog. If you really want him, I'll just give him to you." The little boy got quite upset. He looked straight into the store owner's eyes, pointing his finger, and said, "I don't want you to give him to me. That little dog is worth every bit as much as all the other dogs and I'll pay full price. In fact, I'll give you $2.37 now and 50 cents a month until I have him paid for." The storeowner countered, "You really don't want to buy this little dog. He is never going to be able to run and jump and play with you like the other puppies." To his surprise, the little boy reached down and rolled up his pant leg to reveal a badly twisted, crippled left leg supported by a big metal brace. He looked up at the storeowner and softly replied, "Well, I don't run so well myself, and the little puppy will need someone who understands." | | |
| Well, obviously I am not getting as much feedback as expected...but hey, cant expect so much of random people I guess...I was hopeing for more subscribing, commenting, joining of the blogring...but oh well for that! Here is my next story since no one commented on the last one, I just figured no one bothered to comment, or they didnt like it. So hopefully, you will like this one a little better and comment for me! : \ “Advice for a Lifetime”Author Unknown Find a guy who calls you beautiful instead of hot, who calls you back when you hang up on him, who will stay awake just to watch you sleep. Wait for the guy who kisses your forehead, who wants to show you off to the world when you are in your sweats, who holds your hand in front of his friends. Wait for the one who is constantly reminding you of how much he cares about you and how lucky he is to have you. Wait for the one who turns to his friends and says, "...that's her." Two for today, this one is just tooo short!!!! And this one is quite a bit longer!!!!!!! :) “A Changed Life” Author Unknown One day, when I was a freshman in high school, I saw a kid from my class walking home from schools. His name was Kyle. It looked like he was carrying all off his books. I thought to myself, “Why would anyone bring home all his books on a Friday? He must really be a nerd.” I had quite a weekend planned (parties and a football game with my friends
tomorrow afternoon), so I shrugged my shoulders and went on. As I was walking, I saw a bunch of kids running toward him. They ran at him, knocking all his books out of his arms and tripping him so he landed in the dirt. His glasses went flying, and I saw them land in the grass about ten feet from him.
He looked up and I saw this terrible sadness in his eyes. My heart went out to him. So, I jogged over to him as he crawled around looking for his glasses, and I saw a tear in his eye.
As I handed him his glasses, I said, "Those guys are jerks. They really should get lives.”
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 h 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 some of his books. He turned out to be a pretty cool kid. I asked him if he wanted to play a little football with my friends. He said yes. We hung out 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, we began to think about college. Kyle decided on Georgetown, and I was going to Duke. I knew that we would always be friends, that the miles would never be a problem. He was going to be a doctor, and I was going for business on a football scholarship.
Kyle was valedictorian of our class. I teased him all the time about being a nerd. He had to prepare a speech for graduation. I was so glad it wasn't me having to get up there and speak
Graduation day, I saw Kyle. He looked great. He was one of those guys that really found himself during high school. He filled out and actually looked good in glasses. He had more dates than I had and all the girls loved him. Boy, sometimes I was jealous! Today was one of those days. I could see that he was nervous about his speech.
So, I smacked him on the back and said, "Hey, big guy, you'll be great!"
He looked at me with one of those looks (the really grateful one) and
smiled. "Thanks," he said. As he started his speech, he cleared his throat, and began. "Graduation is a time to thank those who helped you make it through
those tough years. Your parents, your teachers, your siblings, maybe a coach...but mostly your friends... I am here to tell all of you that being a friend to someone is the best
gift you can give them. I am going to tell you a story."
I just looked at my friend with disbelief as he told the story of the first day we met. He had planned to kill himself over the weekend. He talked of how he had cleaned out his locker so his Mom wouldn't have to do it later and was carrying his stuff home. He looked hard at me and gave me a little smile.
"Thankfully, I was saved. My friend saved me from doing the unspeakable."
I heard the gasp go through the crowd as this handsome, popular boy told
us all about his weakest moment. I saw his Mom and dad looking at me and smiling that same grateful smile. Not until that moment did I realize it's depth. Never underestimate the power of your actions. With one small gesture you can change a person's life. For better or for worse. God puts us all in each others lives to impact one another in some way. Look for God in others. | | |
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