The Man Who Didn't Like The Sun

The man hated the bright burning thing in the sky. It hovered over him all day long, no matter where he went. He hated the Sun's harsh light, the heat it created and the shadows it cast on the earth around him.He felt like the sun was stealing something from him, separating him from things when what he craved was unity.

At least at night everything looks the same, he thought. hat's why he liked the darkness. The Sun had become his enemy.

One day, unable to stand it any longer, he decided to dig a hole to protect himself from the intolerable rays of sunlight. His skin, which had been burned a deep brown, began to turn white again, and the shadows of day ceased to annoy him. But then, sitting in his hole, he realized that the sun continued to flood his hiding place with light from above, and that his shelter was even brighter than the land outside.

He went back to work and had soon dug himself a tunnel and a cave. And there he finally found protection from the Sun. He spent years in his hole, meditating in solitude, in the coolness of the dark where the Sun never penetrated. Up on the surface other men grew food and warmed themselves in the heat of the all-giving star. They saw the Sun as a good and protecting God. The Sun was their ally as they learned to tame its extremes. They lived through the seasons, one after the other.

All were thankful for the Sun's presence, all except for the man who wanted to avoid the light and the contrasts it created. In the end the poor hermit perished in his cave, in darkness, in the calmness and unity of the shadows, but desperate and alone.

And after he died the people didn't even have to dig a grave for him.

It was already there...

Moral of the Story

Accepting people's differences, living with others and their strange habits and sometimes incomprehensible behaviour, can be difficult. We are often tempted to retreat like a hermit into the calmness of home, into the shadows. But life is composed of diversity, of exchange and of change. When you cut yourself off from your friends, your neighbours and your community, you also lose a part of yourself.

Don't Ever Be Late

A parish priest was being honored at a dinner on the twenty-fifth
anniversary of his arrival in that parish.

A leading local politician, who was a member of the congregation, was chosen
to make the presentation and give a little speech at the dinner, but he was
delayed in traffic, so the priest decided to say his own few words while
they waited.

You will understand, he said, the seal of the confessional, can never be
broken. However, I got my first impressions of the parish from the first
confession I heard here. I can only hint vaguely about this, but when I came
here twenty-five years ago I thought I had been assigned to a terrible
place.

The very first chap who entered my confessional told me how he had stolen a
television set, and when stopped by the police, had almost murdered the
officer. Further, he told me he had embezzled money from his place of
business and had an affair with his boss's wife. I was appalled.

But as the days went on I knew that my people were not all like that, and I
had, indeed come to,
a fine parish full of understanding and loving people. Just as the priest
finished his talk, the politician arrived full of apologies at being late.

He immediately began to make the presentation and give his talk. "I'll never
forget the first day our parish priest arrived in this parish, said the
politician. In fact, I had the honor of being the first one to go to him in
confession."

Moral: DON'T EVER BE LATE

KEEP IN MIND......

Once upon a time ...

There was a rich King who had 4 wives.

He loved the 4th wife the most and adorned her with rich robes and treated her to the finest of delicacies. He gave her nothing but the best.

He also loved the 3rd wife very much and was always showing her off to neighboring kingdoms. However, he feared that one day she would leave him for another.

He also loved his 2nd wife. She was his confidante and was always kind, considerate and patient with him. Whenever the King faced a problem, he could confide in her to help him get through the difficult times.

The King's 1st wife was a very loyal partner and had made great contributions in maintaining his wealth and kingdom. However, he did not love the first wife and although she loved him deeply, he hardly took notice of her.

One day, the King fell ill and he knew his time was short. He thought of his luxurious life and pondered, "I now have 4 wives with me, but when I die, I'll be all alone.

Thus, he asked the 4th wife, "I have loved you the most, endowed you with the finest clothing and showered great care over you. Now that I'm dying, will you follow me and keep me company?"

"No way!" replied the 4th wife and she walked away without another word.

Her answer cut like a sharp knife right into his heart.

The sad King then asked the 3rd wife, "I have loved you all my life. Now that I'm dying, will you follow me and keep me company?"

"No!" replied the 3rd wife. "Life is too good! When you die, I'm going to remarry!"

His heart sank and turned cold. He then asked the 2nd wife, "I have always turned to you for help and you've always been there for me.  When I die, will you follow me and keep me company?"

"I'm sorry, I can't help you out this time!" replied the 2nd wife. "At the very most, I can only send you to your grave."

Her answer came like a bolt of thunder and the King was devastated.

Then a voice called out: "I'll leave with you and follow you no matter where you go." The King looked up and there was his first wife.

She was so skinny, she suffered from malnutrition.

Greatly grieved, the King said, "I should have taken much better care of you when I had the chance!"

In Truth, we all have 4 wives in our lives ...

Our 4th wife is our body. No matter how much time and effort we lavish in making it look good, it'll leave us when we die.

Our 3rd wife is our possessions, status and wealth. When we die, it will all go to others.

Our 2nd wife is our friends. No matter how much they have been there for us, the furthest they can stay by us is up to the grave.

AND

And our 1st wife is our Parents, often neglected in pursuit of wealth, power and pleasures of the ego. However, our Parents are the only thing that will follow us and guide wherever we go.

So Love them at ur best ..... They need and Love you most !!! You are their greatest gift

Let them Smile and Cherish..

Scars of Love

Some years ago on a hot summer day in south Florida a little boy decided to go for a swim in the old swimming hole behind his house.

In a hurry to dive into the cool water, he ran out the back door, leaving behind shoes, socks, and shirt as he went. He flew into the water, not realizing that as he swam toward the middle of the lake, an alligator was swimming toward the shore.

His mother, in the house, was looking out the window and saw the two as they got closer and closer together. In utter fear, she ran toward the water, yelling to her son as loudly as she could. Hearing her voice, the little boy became alarmed and made a U-turn to swim to his mother.

It was too late. Just as he reached her, the alligator reached him. From the dock, the mother grabbed her little boy by the arms just as the alligator snatched his legs. That began an incredible tug-of-war between the two.

The alligator was much stronger than the mother, but the mother was much too passionate to let go.

A farmer happened to drive by, heard her screams, raced from his truck, took aim and shot the alligator. Remarkably, after weeks and weeks in the hospital, the little boy survived.

His legs were extremely scarred by the vicious attack of the animal. And, on his arms, were deep scratches where his mother's fingernails dug into his flesh in her effort to hang on to the son she loved.

The newspaper reporter who interviewed the boy after the trauma, asked if he would show him his scars. The boy lifted his pant legs; and then, with obvious pride, he said to the reporter, "But look at my arms. I have great scars on my arms, too. I have them because my mom wouldn't let go."

You and I can identify with that little boy. We have scars, too.

No, not from an alligator, or anything quite so dramatic. But, the scars of a painful past. Some of those scars are unsightly and have caused us deep regret. But, some wounds, my friend, are because God has refused to let go. In the midst of your struggle, He's been there holding on to you.

The Scripture teaches that God loves you. But sometimes we foolishly wade into dangerous situations. The swimming  hole of life is filled with peril - and we forget that the enemy is waiting to attack. That's when the tug-o-war begins - and if you have the scars of His love on your arms, be very, very grateful. He did not - and will not - let you go.

Making a Difference

A man was walking down the beach at sunset. As, he walked along, he saw another man in the distance. He noticed this man kept leaning down, picking up something and throwing it out into the water, again and again. As, he approached even closer, he noticed that the man was picking up starfish that had been washed up on the beach. He was throwing them back into the water, one by one.

Puzzled, he approached the man and said,

"Good Evening. I was wondering what you are doing."

"I'm throwing these starfish back into the ocean. You see, it's low tide and all these starfish have been washed up onto the shore. If, I don't throw them back into the ocean, they'll die up here from lack of oxygen."

"But, there must be thousands of starfish on this beach. You can't possible get to all of them. And, don't you realize this is probably happening on hundreds of beaches all up and down this coast. Can't you see that you can't possibly make a difference?"

The man bent down and picked up yet another starfish, and threw it back into the ocean. With a smile he replied, "Made a difference to that one !!!"

Just remember, no matter how small the deed it really does makes a difference.Make a difference today.