The Wooden Bowl

The Wooden Bowl
A frail old man went to live with his son, daughter-in-law, and four-year-old grandson.
The old man's hands trembled, his eyesight was blurred, and his step faltered

The family ate together at the table. But the elderly grandfather's shaky hands and
failing sight made eating difficult. Peas rolled off his spoon onto the floor.
When he grasped the glass, milk spilled on the tablecloth.

The son and daughter-in-law became irritated with the mess.
'We must do something about father,' said the son.
'I've had enough of his spilled milk, noisy eating, and food on the floor.'

So the husband and wife set a small table in the corner.
There, Grandfather ate alone while the rest of the family enjoyed dinner.
Since Grandfather had broken a dish or two, his food was served in a wooden bowl.

When the family glanced in Grandfather's direction, sometimes he had a tear in his eye as he sat alone.
Still, the only words the couple had for him were sharp admonitions when he dropped a fork or spilled food.

The four-year-old watched it all in silence.

One evening before supper, the father noticed his son playing with wood scraps on the floor.
He asked the child sweetly, 'What are you making?' Just as sweetly, the boy responded,
'Oh, I am making a little bowl for you and Mama to eat your food in when I grow up.
' The four-year-old smiled and went back to work..

The words so struck the parents so that they were speechless. Then tears started to stream down their cheeks. Though no word was spoken, both knew what must be done.

That evening the husband took Grandfather's hand and gently led him back to the family table.
For the remainder of his days he ate every meal with the family. And for some reason,
neither husband nor wife seemed to care any longer when a fork was dropped, milk spilled, or the tablecloth soiled.

On a positive note, I've learned that, no matter what happens, how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow.

I've learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he/she handles four things:
a rainy day, the elderly, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights.

I've learned that making a 'living' is not the same thing as making a 'life..'

I've learned that life sometimes gives you a second chance.

I've learned that you shouldn't go through life with a catcher's mitt on both hands. You need to be able to throw something back sometimes.

I've learned that if you pursue happiness, it will elude you
But, if you focus on your family, your friends, the needs of others,
your work and doing the very best you can, happiness will find you

I've learned that whenever I decide something with an open heart, I usually make the right decision.

I've learned that even when I have pains, I don't have to be one.

I've learned that every day, you should reach out and touch someone.

People love that human touch -- holding hands, a warm hug, or just a friendly pat on the back.

I've learned that I still have a lot to learn. 

Happy Easter......

Let this Easter egg remind

you that nothing can destroy

your dreams & love.

Have a very joyful Easter.

Good morning.....

Blessings or lessons.......

And so it is....... which one are you????

Living in Africa

Over the last couple of weeks it has come to my attention how much negative publicity about our beautiful South Africa, Facebook friends are 'sharing' and 'liking' and commenting on.  So obviously I live in a dream world, or am I the only one that really loves my country enough to have some kind of hope for our future.  I often wonder why I was born on this continent and why I do not have the compulsion to leave in the hope of finding greener pastures.  I have finally accepted that this is where I was born and this is where I will be buried.  Yes, we do not live in ideal circumstances, but we know how to control the world around us.  Yes, we have the highest crime statistics, but we teach our children how to protect themselves.  Yes, there is negative publicity all around us, but we do not have to spread the negativeness, instead we should be sharing the positive achievements in our daily lives.  Now these are my personal thoughts and only my humble opinion.  But once again, I point out that those same people never fail to post a picture of South Africa, their birth land, every single week. The longing never seems to leave the hearts of true Africans.

So I leave you with these words from Helen Keller.... after all we live in the Jungle, the Jungle of life......

Interesting facts about Thailand...

THE KINGDOM OF THAILAND, we will be visiting this crazy land in 75 days :)

I'll bet you never knew this!!!

In the original native culture of Thailand , when males reached the age of 18 they had to participate in the following community ceremony.

They lay themselves stark naked in a large circle, feet facing inward. A beautiful young naked girl kneels over the ankles of each the men.

She places a blob of honey and various crushed sweet fruits around his navel to attract flies and insects.

(This keeps them off his face during the ceremony.)

A specially chosen nubile and very beautiful naked girl then does a sexy and sensuous dance in the center of the circle.

As soon as all the men become fully aroused and develop erections, the kneeling girls then reach over the knees, pull the fully erected penises downwards as much as they can and then on a given signal from the center dancer release them.

The men's penises would then spring back up and go "WHAP!" against their belly.

This exercise was a measurement of the strength of their masculinity . . .the man who killed the most flies was elected to the court of the King.

And that folk's, is why the current capital of Thailand came to be named Bangkok .

 

 

Happy birthday little sister.....

(Sharon - back left, me, brother Kevin - the arty photographer and my first born niece, Miss Teagy-popz)

Sharon, today is your birthday, and my one and only wish is that I could be there to wish you in person.  The miles have separated us for many years now, and more and more I feel it is time we spend more time together.  My family means the world to me and not to be able to celebrate with you today is taking it's toll.  But, hey, it is a happy day today, so enough of the doom and gloom and more of the good stuff.

I was all of 10 years old when you came into my life.  And, I guess that was the day a star was born.  I am so proud to be your sister, you have achieved so very much in your life, sometimes beyond all of our expectations.... you are now a successful business woman with your own family including my 2 little nieces which when looking at them portray you and your values.  

Happy birthday my sister, may your day be filled with happiness and love.