Faith

Story told by a man which is most frightening yet thought-provoking experiences of his life. He had been on a long flight. The first warning of the approaching problems came when the sign on the airplane flashed on: "Fasten your seat belts."Then, after a while, a calm voice said, "We shall not be serving the beverages at this time as we are expecting a little turbulence. Please be sure your seat belt is fastened."

As he looked around the aircraft, it became obvious that many of the passengers were becoming apprehensive. Later, the voice of the announcer said, "We are so sorry that we are unable to serve the meal at this time. The turbulence is still ahead of us."

And then the storm broke. The ominous cracks of thunder could be heard even above the roar of the engines. Lightening lit up the darkening skies, and within moments that great plane was like a cork tossed around on a celestial ocean. One moment the airplane was lifted on terrific currents of air; the next, it dropped as if it were about to crash.

The man confessed that he shared the discomfort and fear of those around him. He said, "As I looked around the plane, I could see that nearly all the passengers were upset and alarmed. Some were praying. 

The future seemed ominous and many were wondering if they would make it through the storm. And then, I suddenly saw a girl to whom the storm meant nothing. She had tucked her feet beneath her as she sat on her seat and was reading a book.

Everything within her small world was calm and orderly. Sometimes she closed her eyes, then she would read again; then she would straighten her legs, but worry and fear were not in her world. When the plane was being buffeted by the terrible storm, when it lurched this way and that, as it rose and fell with frightening severity, when all the adults were scared half to death, that marvelous child was completely composed and unafraid."

The man could hardly believe his eyes. It was not surprising therefore, that when the plane finally reached its destination and all the passengers were hurrying to disembark, he lingered to speak to the girl whom he had watched for such a long time.

Having commented about the storm and behavior of the plane, he asked why she had not been afraid. 

The sweet child replied, "Sir, my Dad is the pilot, and he is taking me home."

The Dreams

Dear Readers, this is the one I got through mining the world of web and this is the one which was a must read for every one.

The first day of school our professor introduced himself and challenged us to get to know someone we didn't already know. I stood up to look around when a gentle hand touched my shoulder. I turned around to find a wrinkled, little old lady beaming up at me with a smile that that lit up her entire being. 

She said, "Hi, handsome. My name is Rose. I'm eighty-seven years old. Can I give you a hug?" I laughed and enthusiastically responded, "Of course you may!" and she gave me a giant squeeze. 

"Why are you in college at such a young, innocent age?" I asked.

She jokingly replied, "I'm here to meet a rich husband, get married, have a couple of children, and then retire and travel." 

"No seriously," I asked. I was curious what may have motivated her to be taking on this challenge at her age. 

"I always dreamed of having a college education and now I'm getting one!" she told me. 

After class we walked to the student union building and share a chocolate milkshake. We became instant friends. Every day for the next three months we would leave class together and talk nonstop. I was always mesmerized listening to this "time machine" as she shared her wisdom and experience with me. 

Over the course of the year, Rose became a campus icon and she easily made friends wherever she went. She loved to dress up and she reveled in the attention bestowed upon her from the other students. She was living it up. 

At the end of the semester we invited Rose to speak at our football banquet. I'll never forget what she taught us. She was introduced and stepped up to the podium. As she began to deliver her prepared speech, she dropped her three by five cards on the floor. Frustrated and a little embarrassed she leaned into the microphone and simply said, "I'm sorry I'm so jittery. I gave up beer for Lent and this whiskey is killing me! I'll never get my speech back in order so let me just tell you what I know." 

As we laughed she cleared her throat and began: "We do not stop playing because we are old; we grow old because we stop playing. There are only few secrets to staying young, being happy, and achieving success. "You have to laugh and find humor every day. You've got to have a dream. When you lose your dreams, you die. We have so many people walking around who are dean and don't even know it!" 

"There is a huge difference between growing older and growing up. If you are nineteen years old and lie in bed for one full year and don't do one productive thing, you will turn twenty years old. If I am eighty-seven years old and stay in bed for a year and never do anything I will turn eighty-eight. Anybody can grow older. That doesn't take any talent or ability. The idea is to grow up by always finding the opportunity in change." 

"Have no regrets. The elderly usually don't have regrets for what we did, but rather for things we did not do. The only people who fear death are those with regrets." 

She concluded her speech by courageously singing The Rose. She challenged each of us to study the lyrics and live them out in our daily lives. At the years end Rose finished the college degree she had begun all those years ago. 

One week after graduation Rose died peacefully in her sleep. 

Remember : GROWING OLDER IS MANDATORY, GROWING UP IS OPTIONAL

Lunch With God

A little boy wanted to meet God. He knew it was a long trip to where God lived, so he packed his suitcase with a bag of potato chips and a six-pack of root beer and started his journey.

When he had gone about three blocks, he met an old woman. She was sitting in the park, just staring at some pigeons. The boy sat down next to her and opened his suitcase. He was about to take a drink from his root beer when he noticed that the old lady looked hungry, so he offered her some chips. She gratefully accepted it and smiled at him.

Her smile was so pretty that the boy wanted to see it again, so he offered her a root beer. Again, she smiled at him. The boy was delighted! They sat there all afternoon eating and smiling, but they never said a word.

As twilight approached, the boy realized how tired he was and he got up to leave; but before he had gone more than a few steps, he turned around, ran back to the old woman, and gave her a hug. She gave him her biggest smile ever.

When the boy opened the door to his own house a short time later, his mother was surprised by the look of joy on his face. She asked him, "What did you do today that made you so happy?" He replied, "I had lunch with God." But before his mother could respond, he added, "You know what? She's got the most beautiful smile I've ever seen!"

Meanwhile, the old woman, also radiant with joy, returned to her home. Her son was stunned by the look of peace on her face and he asked, "Mother, what did you do today that made you so happy?" She replied! "I ate potato chips in the park with God." However, before her son responded, she added, "You know, he's much younger than I expected."

Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around. People come into our lives for a reason, a season, or a lifetime! Embrace all equally!

The Boy and the Starfish

One day, an old man was walking along the beach in the early morning and noticed the tide had washed thousands of starfish up on the shore. Up ahead in the distance, he spotted a boy who appeared to be gathering up the starfish, and one by one tossing them back into the ocean.

He approached the boy and asked him why he spent so much energy doing what seemed to be a waste of time.

The boy replied, "If these starfish are left out here like this, they will bake in the sun, and by this afternoon they will all be dead."

The old man gazed out as far as he could see and responded, "But, theremust be hundreds of miles of beach and thousands of starfish. You can'tpossibly rescue all of them. What difference is throwing a few back going to make anyway?"

The boy then held up the starfish he had in his hand and replied, "It is sure going to make a lot of difference to this one!"

Think about a time when your efforts made a difference.

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Most of us know the story till here........ .......
Do you know what happened then?

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The boy tossed that starfish into the water. He then looked intently at the old man and said "I will save as many as I can." The old man had no reply.
He was really ashamed of his own attitude. He stood speechless for a while. Then slowly he picked up a starfish and threw it into the water, joining the boy in his efforts. The boy gave him a gentle smile and soon both of them were silently tossing one starfish after another into the water..

Soon, the boy and the old man saw that they were not alone. Other people who had come to the beach for a walk noticed them both working diligently to save the starfish. One by one, people started joining in the effort.

As the sun rose higher in the sky, hundreds of people silently worked to save the starfish. Young people, old people, rich people, poor people all joined hands in the noble task.

Amazingly within a couple of hours, the beach was almost clear of starfish. As the last starfish was thrown into the sea, a thunderous cheer spontaneously arose from the people. Each one of them felt they had done something important, something that made a difference. They cheered and hugged each other. Some of them even exchanged names and numbers and promised to stay in touch.

Nothing is impossible if we work together. But someone needs to be bold enough to take the first step. Many others will follow. Even one person's determination and conviction can change the world.

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Take the first step in CREATING your IDEAL WORLD today and you will see the WORLD will follow you.

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Thus dear Readers, I hope you had enjoyed this story. I'm asking in particular because me too enjoyed this story very much and this is one of the stories I like most.

BOSS

A man goes into a pet shop to buy a monkey.The shop owner points to 3 identical looking monkeys on a perch and says the monkey on the left cost $ 500.00,Why does that one cost so much? asked the shopper.The owner says well the monkey knows how to use a computer.The man then asks about the next monkey and was told that this one cost $1000.00 because it can do everything the other monkey can do plus he knows the Unix operating system.Naturally the increasingly startled man asks about the third monkey to be told that it costs $ 2000.00 .Needless to say this begs the question.What can it do?To which the owner replies:"To be honest I have never seen him do a thing but the other two call him BOSS"

 

God is at our Work in Our Lives

The only survivor of a shipwreck was washed up on a small, uninhabited

island.



He prayed feverishly for God to rescue him, and everyday he scanned

the horizon for help, but none seemed forthcoming.



Exhausted, he eventually managed to build a little hut out of

driftwood to protect himself from the elements and to store his few

possessions.



One day, after scavenging for food, he arrived home to find his little

hut in flames with smoke rolling up to the sky.



The worst had happened! Everything was lost!



He was stunned with disbelief, grief, and anger: "God, how could you

do this to me?" he cried.



Early the next day he was awakened by the sound of a ship that was

approaching the island. It had come to rescue him.



"How did you know I was here?" asked the weary man of his rescuers.



"We saw your smoke signal!" they replied.



Moral of the story:



It's easy to get discouraged when things are going bad, but we

shouldn't lose heart, because God is at work in our lives, even in the

midst of pain and suffering.



Remember that the next time your little hut seems to be burning to the

ground: it just may be a smoke signal that summons the grace of God.



You may want to consider passing this on … because you never know who

feels like their hut is on fire today!






"Unselfishness is more paying, only people have not the patience to
practice it. It is more paying from the point of view of health also."

CW I p.33.Complete works of Swami Vivekananda. Volume I.



"Can anyone get
liberation, my child, unless He Himself removes shackles? Have deep faith
in God. Look upon the Master as your refuge, even as children regard their
parents."

TN348.Swami Tapasyananda and
Swami Nikhilananda. Sri Sarada Devi, the Holy Mother;
Life and Conversations. Madras:
Sri Ramakrishna Math, 1977.