The Little Things - Author Unknown As you might know, the head of a company survived 9/11 because…his son started kindergarten. Another man was alive because…it was his turn to bring donuts. One woman was late because…her alarm clock didn’t go off in time. One was late because of being stuck on the NJ Turnpike because…of an auto accident. One of them…missed his bus. One spilled food on her clothes and had to take…time to change. One person’s…car wouldn’t start. One went back to…answer the telephone. One ha a…child that dawdled and didn’t get ready as soon as he should have. One couldn’t…get a taxi. The one that struck me was the man who put on a new pair of shoes that morning, took the various means to get to work but before he got there, he developed a blister on his foot. He stopped at a drugstore to buy a Band-Aid! That is why he is alive today. Now when I am…stuck in traffic…miss an elevator…turn back to answer a ringing telephone…all the little things that annoy me. I think to myself, this is exactly where God wants me to be at this very moment. Next time your morning seems to be going wrong…the children are slow getting dressed…you can’t seem to find the car keys…you hit every traffic light…don’t get mad or frustrated; God is at work watching over you! May God continue to bless you will all those annoying little things and may you remember their possible purpose.   Marbles - Author Unknown The older I get, the more I enjoy Saturday mornings. Perhaps it’s the quiet solitude that comes with being the first to rise, or maybe it’s the unbounded joy of not having to be at work. Either way, the first few hours of a Saturday morning are most enjoyable. A few weeks ago, what began as a typical Saturday morning turned into one of those lessons that life seems to hand you from time to time. I turned on my radio and heard an older sounding gentlemen with a golden voice. You know the kind; he sounded like he should be in the broadcasting business himself. He was talking about ‘a thousand marbles’ to someone named ‘Tom’. I was intrigued and sat down to listen to what he had to say. “Well, Tom, it sure sounds like you’re busy with your job. I’m sure they pay you well but it’s a shame you have to be away from home and your family so much. Hard to believe a young fellow should have to work 60 or 70 hours a week to make ends meet. Too bad you missed your daughter’s dance recital.” He continued, “Let me tell you something Tom, something that has helped me to keep a good perspective on my own priorities.” And that’s when he began to explain his theory of a ‘thousand marbles.’ “You see, I sat down one day and id a little arithmetic. The average person lives about 75 years. I know, some live more and some live less, but on average, folks live about 75 years. Now then, I multiplied 75 times 52 and I came up with 3900, which is the number of Saturdays that the average person has in their lifetime. Now stick with me, I’m getting to the important part. It took me until I was 55 years old to think about all this in any detail, and by that time I had lived through over 2800 Saturdays! I thought that if I live until 75 years old, I only had about a thousand weekends left to enjoy. So I went to a toy store and bought every single marble they had. I had to visit three toy stores to roundup 1000 marbles. I took them home and put them inside a large, clear plastic container in my workshop next to the radio. Every Saturday since then, I have taken one marble out and thrown it away. I found that by watching the marbles diminish, I focused more on the really important things in life. There is nothing like watching your time here on this earth run out to help get your priorities straight. Now let me tell you one last thing before I sign-off with you and take my lovely wife out for breakfast. This morning, I took the very last marble out of the container. I figure if I make it until next Saturday, then God has blessed me with a little extra time to be with my loved ones. It was nice to talk to you, Tom. I hope you spend more time with your loved ones, and I hope to meet you again someday. Have a good morning!” You could have heard a pin drop when he finished…the talk show host didn’t have anything to say for a few moments. We all now had a lot to think about. I had originally planned to do some work, then go to the gym. Instead, I went upstairs and woke my wife up with a kiss. “C’mon honey, I’m taking you and the kids to breakfast.” “What’s brought this on?” she asked looking stunned! “Oh nothing special,” I said. “It has just been a long time since we spent a Saturday together with the kids. Hey, and while we’re out, I want to stop by a toy store. I need to buy some marbles.”  Love this site? Why not tell all your friends!       The Importance of Time - Author Unknown A young man learns what is most important in life from the guy next door. It had been some time since Jack had seen the old man. College, girls, career and life itself got in the way. In fact, Jack moved clear across the country in pursuit of his dreams. There, in the rush of his busy life, Jack had little time to think about the past and often no time to spend with his wife and son. He was working on his future, and nothing could stop him. Over the phone, his mother told him, “Mr. Belser died last night. The funeral is Wednesday.” Memories flashed through his mind like and old newsreel as he sat quietly remembering his childhood days. “Jack, did you hear me?” “Oh, sorry, Mom. Yes I heard you. It’s been so long since I thought of him. I’m sorry, but I honestly thought he died years ago,” Jack said. “Well, he didn’t forget you. Every time I saw him he’d ask how you were doing. He’d reminisce about the many days you spent over ‘his side of the fence’ as he put it,” Mom told him. “I loved that old house he lived in,” Jack said. “You know, Jack, after your father died, Mr. Belser stepped in to make sure you had a man’s influence in your life,” she said. “He’s the one who taught me carpentry,” he said. “I wouldn’t be in this business if it weren’t for him. He spent a lot of time teaching me things he thought were important…Mom, I’ll be there for the funeral,” Jack said. As busy as he was, he kept his word. Jack caught the next flight to his hometown. Mr. Belser’s funeral was small and uneventful. He had no children of his own, and most of his relatives had passed away. The night before he had to return home, Jack and his mom stopped by to see the old house next door one more time. Standing in the doorway, Jack paused for a moment. It was like crossing over into another dimension, a leap through space and time. The house was exactly as he remembered. Every step held memories. Every picture, every piece of furniture. Jack stopped suddenly. “What’s wrong, Jack?” his mom asked. “The box is gone,” he said. “What box?” Mom asked. “There was a small gold box that he kept locked on top of his desk. I must have asked him a thousand times what was inside. All he’d ever tell me was ‘the thing I value most,” Jack said. It was gone. Everything about the house was exactly how Jack remembered it, except for the box. He figured someone from the Belser family had taken it. “Now I’ll never know what was so valuable to him,” Jack said. I better get some sleep. I have an early flight home, Mom.” It had been about two weeks since Mr. Belser died. Returning home from work one day Jack discovered a note in his mailbox. “Signature required on a package. No one at home. Please stop by the main post office within the next three days,” the note read. Early the next day Jack retrieved the package. The small box was old and looked like it had been mailed a hundred years ago. The handwriting was difficult to read, but the return address caught his attention. “Mr. Harold Belser” it read. Jack took the box out to his car and ripped open the package. There inside was the gold box and an envelope. Jack’s hands shook as he read the note inside. “Upon my death, please forward this box and its contents to Jack Bennett. It’s the thing I valued most in my life.” A small key was taped to the letter. His heart racing, as tears filling his eyes, Jack carefully unlocked the box. There inside he found a beautiful gold pocket watch. Running his fingers slowly over the finely etched casing, he unlatched the cover. Inside he found these words engraved: “Jack, Thanks for your time! – Harold Belser.” The thing he valued most … was … my time. Jack held the watch for a few minutes, then called his office and cleared his appointments for the next two days. “Why?” Janet, his assistant asked. “I need some time to spend with my son,” he said. “Oh, by the way, Janet…thanks for your time!” Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take but by the moments that take our breath away.”   TODAY  -- Author Unknown Today I will delete from my diary two days: yesterday and tomorrow. Yesterday was to learn and tomorrow will be the consequence of what I can do today. Today I will face life with the conviction that this day will not ever return. Today is the last opportunity I have to live intensely; as no one can assure me that I will see tomorrow’s sunrise. Today I will be brave enough not to let any opportunity pass me by, my only alternative is to succeed. Today I will invest in my most valuable resource: my time, in the most transcendental work: my life. I will spend each minute passionately to make today a different and unique day in my life. Today I will defy every obstacle that appears on my way trusting I will succeed. Today I will resist pessimism and will conquer the world with a smile, with the positive attitude of expecting always the best. Today I will make of every ordinary task a sublime expression. Today I will have my feet on the ground understanding reality and the stars gaze to invent my future. Today I will take the time to be happy and will leave my footprints and my presence in the hearts of others. Today, I invite you to begin a new season where we can dream that everything we undertake is possible and we fulfill it, with joy and dignity.   Is Life Passing You By? – Unknown Author Too many people put off something that brings them joy just because they haven't thought about it, don't have it on their schedule, didn't know it was coming or are too rigid to depart from their routine. I got to thinking one day about all those women on the Titanic who passed up dessert at dinner that fateful night in an effort to cut back.  From then on, I've tried to be a little more flexible. How many women out there will eat at home because their husband didn't suggest going out to dinner until after something had been thawed?  Does the word "refrigeration" mean nothing to you? How often have your kids dropped in to talk and sat in silence while you watched 'Jeopardy' on television? I cannot count the times I called my sister and said, "How about going to lunch in a half hour?"  She would gas up and stammer, "I can't.  I have clothes on the line.  My hair is dirty.  I wish I had known yesterday, I had a late breakfast, It looks like rain."  And my personal favorite:  "It's Monday." .She died a few years ago. We never did have lunch together. Because Americans cram so much into their lives, we tend to schedule our headaches. We live on a sparse diet of promises we make to ourselves when all the conditions are perfect! We'll go back and visit the grandparents when we get Steve toilet-trained.  We'll entertain when we replace the living-room carpet.  We'll go on a second honeymoon when we get two more kids out of college. Life has a way of accelerating as we get older.  The days get shorter, and the list of promises to ourselves gets longer.  One morning, we awaken, and all we have to show for our lives is a litany of "I'm going to," " I plan on," and "Someday, when things are settled down a bit." When anyone calls my 'seize the moment' friend, she is open to adventure and available for trips.  She keeps an open mind on new ideas.  Her enthusiasm for life is contagious.  You talk with her for five minutes, and you're ready to trade your bad feet for a pair of Rollerblades and skip an elevator for a bungee cord. My lips have not touched ice cream in 10 years.  I love ice cream.  It's just that I might as well apply it directly to my stomach with a spatula and eliminate the digestive process.  The other day, I stopped the car and bought a triple-decker.  If my car had hit an iceberg on the way home, I would have died happy. Now...go on and have a nice day.  Do something you WANT to......not something on your SHOULD DO list. If you were going to die soon and had only one phone call you could make, who would you call and what would you say?  And why are you waiting? Have you ever watched kids playing on a merry go round or listened to the rain lapping on the ground?  Ever followed a butterfly's erratic flight or gazed at the sun into the fading night?  Do you run through each day on the fly?  When you ask "How are you?"  Do you hear the reply? When the day is done, do you lie in your bed with the next hundred chores running through your head?  Ever told your child, "We'll do it tomorrow."  And in your haste, not seen his sorrow?  Ever lost touch?  Let a good friendship die?  Just call to say "Hi"? When you worry and hurry through your day, it is like an unopened gift....Thrown away.... Life is not a race. Take it slower. Hear the music before the song is over. "Life may not be the party we hoped for...  but while we are here we might as well dance!"