I appreciated now how patient, understanding, and kind she was to have spent her time on a little boy.
As Bill told me recently, it was not Tom's disability that inspired him so greatly, but his attitude towards life and helping others.
Now he knew he'd never play again
The game of making Sarah cry.
"I believe," the father answered, "that when God brings a child like this into the world, the perfection that He seeks is in the way people react to this child."
We may not have that last chance to tell those we love how much they mean to us. ... You can, you know. Live each day as if it were your last.
My heart sank. ... No one said a word. The preacher took his Bible and laid it on his stand. "Folks, I don't think I have to tell you what I am preaching about today."
Pa never had much compassion for the lazy or those who squandered their means and then never had enough for the necessities. But for those who were genuinely in need, his heart was as big as all outdoors. It was from him that I learned the greatest joy in life comes from giving, not from receiving.
Children deserve a little praise
For tasks they're asked to do
If they're to lead a happy life.
So much depends on you.
He had forgiven me and I had decided that his feelings were more important than any test he would ever take. I made a new promise to be a better mother and to accept that he was only a child.
I felt like she was a constant thorn in my side. I was embarrassed to be seen with her, so I made fun of her right along with the other children. ... What I saw in that book changed my life and my attitude about the way that I viewed my sister and other handicapped people like her.
A full 15 minutes later, he, too, pulled away and drove slowly home, praying for forgiveness and hugging a surprised wife and kids when he arrived.
That day I learned how generosity can go farther than the person you give to. By giving, you teach others how to give also.
Branches and thorns slapped his little face but he did not try to avoid them. He had a much higher purpose.
He said when he woke up this morning, he had decided that this was to be his last day on earth.
"You gave an old woman a little moment of joy," she said. "Thank you." I squeezed her hand, then walked into the dim morning light. Behind me, a door shut. It was the sound of the closing of a life.
"I have struggled with these feelings many times. It is as if there are two wolves inside me, ... The white wolf is good and does no harm. ... But, the black wolf is full of anger. The littlest thing will set him off into a fit of temper. ..."
The boy looked into his Grandfather's eyes, and asked, "Which one wins Grandfather?"
Seeing the beauty of a traditional Shabbat together with the warmth and kindness of this German-Jewish family made a deep impression on this young soldier.
As she turned to go, the astonished lad caught her by the hand, and looking up in her face, with tears in his eyes, answered the question with these words: "Are you God's wife?"
With Erik in my arms, I ran for the car. My husband was wondering why I was crying and holding Erik so tightly, and why I was saying, 'My God, my God, forgive me.' ... a child who saw a soul, and a mother who saw a suit of clothes.
The driver replied, "Aren't you the new pastor in town? I have been thinking lately about going to church somewhere. I just wanted to see what you would do if I gave you ten cents too much change."
He was known at times to convince his clients to settle their issue out of court, saving them a lot of money, and earning himself nothing.
They both stood up, and Brian took Julie into his arms. They still had a great deal of work to do before their marriage would be fully healed, but the promise of forgiveness had opened the way for them to solve the other problems in their marriage and to be completely reconciled.
In the conversations that followed, all the parents and the police officer agreed that no permanent record of the incident would be kept if the offenders would make up for their crime in more meaningful ways.
I stormed into his office, prepared to lose my job if needed, but not before I let the man know how I felt. ...
"Guess you got to Jack," they said. "You must have told him off good." I shook my head.
"Jack and I are becoming friends," I said in faith.
In many instances, the mind set of a co-worker or supervisor can restrict an employee's ability to become an excellent performer.
It didn't take a long time to see that this old man had an oversized heart crowded into that tiny body.
Thiessens feared titters and jeers from his college-educated CEO peers. Instead, he was overwhelmed by support.
A gang is their family. There is oneness, acceptance, agreement, and togetherness in a gang, and often it is the only format of being listened to and being heard. ... I am still not really used to the idea that my son is not here. ... But the loss we feel in our family has given me a great compassion for young men. I am interested in what moves them and what they think.
When asked why he thought that the team was winning all their games, even in the face of injury, one linebacker explained, in his soft, Charleston drawl, "Well, when you've been knocked down, and you can't seem to move, you look up and see Jenny Lewis, limping across the field, dragging her buckets and carrying her pillow. It makes anything the rest of us may suffer seem pretty insignificant."
The more kindness I showed to Sharon, the more I tried to love her by being caring, sensitive and loving, the more I found myself falling "in love" with her.
Mikey had scored all right, but in the wrong goal, ending the game in a tie. ... For a moment I held my breath, not sure how my son would react. I need not have worried.
One of my patients told me that when she tried to tell her story people often interrupted to tell her that they once had something just like that happen to them. Subtly her pain became a story about themselves. Eventually she stopped talking to most people. It was just too lonely. We connect through listening.
Tears welled up in my eyes, and a heart that had almost forgotten how to love opened wide. I took Wendy's mother in my arms. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," I muttered over and over, and we wept together.
In one of the rooms of this building may be seen the picture of the sweet face of the little girl whose 57 cents, so sacrificially saved, made such remarkable history.
"But when the doctors removed a lump from my groin and told me that it was malignant, then I got serious about locating God. ... nothing happened." ...
"But it would be ... sad to go through life and leave this world without ever telling those you loved that you had loved them." ...
"Here I was just beginning to open up to all the people I had actually been close to. Then, one day I turned around and God was there."
As I drove back through empty streets as the sun slowly rose on the most amazing Christmas Day of my life, I was sobbing with gratitude. And I will never forget the joy on the faces of my little ones that precious morning.
From then on, you were my source of inspiration. You showed me how to love life and live life to the fullest. With your simplicity and honesty, you showed me a world full of love and caring.
It was the last wish that I could grant her. I know she would be proud to know that other people are living better lives because of her.
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