Mom's newspaper clipping Gems
"A Parable of Immortality"
by Henry Van Dyke
"I am standing upon the seashore. A ship at my side spreads her white sails to the morning breeze and starts for the blue ocean. She is an object of beauty and strength, and I stand and watch until at last she hangs like a speck of white cloud just where the sun and sky come down to mingle with each other. Then someone at my side says, There she goes!'
Gone from my sight"Gone where?
- that is all. She is just as large in mast and hull and spar as she was when she left my side and just as able to bear her load of living freight to the places of destination.
"Her diminished size is in me, not in her. And just at the moment when
someone at my side says, There she goes!' there are other eyes watching her coming and other voices ready to take up the glad shout, 'Here she comes!"
Visualize Your Dreams
People who
soar are those who refuse to sit back,
sigh and wish things would change.
They neither
complain of their lot
nor passively dream of some distant ship coming in.
Rather, they
visualize in their minds that they are not quitters;
they will not allow life's circumstances to push them down and hold them under.
Trans
GOD USES THINGS THAT ARE BROKEN
God uses most for His glory those people and things which are perfectly broken. The sacrifices He accepts are broken and contrite hearts. It was through the breaking down of Jacob's natural strength at Peniel that got him where God could clothe with spiritual power. It was by breaking the surface of the rock at Horeb by the stroke of Moses' rod, that it let out the cool waters to thirsty people.
It was when the three hundred elect soldiers under Gideon broke their pitchers, a type of breaking themselves, that the hidden lights shone forth to the consternation of their adversaries. It was when the poor widow broke the seal of the little pot of oil, and poured it forth, that God multiplied it to pay her debts and supply means of support.
It was when Ester risked her life and broke through the rigid etiquette of a heathen court that she obtained favor to rescue her people from death. It was when Jesus took the five loaves and broke them that the food was multiplied in the very act of breaking, sufficient to feed five thousand. It was when Mary broke tier beautiful alabaster box, rendering it
henceforth useless, that the pent-up perfume filled the whole house. It was when Jesus allowed His precious body to be broken to pieces by thornes and nails and spear, that His inner life was poured out, like a crystal ocean for thirsty sinners to drink and live.
It is when a beautiful grain of corn is broken up in the earth by death, that its inner heart sprouts forth and bears hundreds of other grains. And thus on and on, through all history, and all biography, and all vegetation, and all spiritual life, God must have BROKEN THINGS.
Those who are broken in wealth, and broken in self-will, and broken in their ambitions, and broken in their beautiful ideas, and broken in worldly reputation, and broken in-their affections, and broken oft-times in health, and those who are despised, and seem utterly helpless and forlorn, the Holy Ghost is seizing upon, and using for God's glory. It is "the lame that take the prey," Isaiah tells us. It is the weak that overcome the devil. God is waiting to take hold of our failures and nothingness and shine through them.
"Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men" 1 Cor. 1-25.
"As often as you did it for one of my least brothers and sisters, you did it for me."
Matthew 25:40
What Makes a Dad
God took the strenght of a mountain.
The majesty of a tree.
The warmth of a summer sun.
The calm of a quiet sea,
The generous soul of nature.
The comforting arm of night.
The wisdom of the ages.
The power of the eagles flight.
The joy of a morning in Spring.
The faith of a mustard seed.
The patience of eternity.
The depth of a family need.
Then God combined thses qualities,
When there was nothing more to add,
He knew his masterpeice complete
And he called it Dad.
Dead At Seventeen
Agony claws my mind. I am a statistic. When I first got here, I felt very much alone. I was overwhelmed by grief, and I expected to find sympathy.
I found no sympathy. I saw only thousands of others whose bodies were as badly mangled as mine. I was given a number and placed in a category.
The category was called "traffic fatalities."
The day I died was an ordinary school day. How I wish I had taken the bus. But I was too cool for the bus. I remember how I wheedled the car out of Mom. "Special favor," I pleaded. "All the kids drive" When the 2:50 p.m. bell rang, I threw my books in the locker …free until tomorrow morning.
I ran to the parking lot, excited at the thought of driving a car and being my own boss.
It doesn't matter how the accident happened. I was goofing off- going too fast, taking crazy chances. But I was enjoying my freedom and having fun. The last thing I remember was passing an old lady who seemed to be going awfully slow. I heard a crash and felt a terrific jolt. Glass and steel flew everywhere. My whole body seemed to be turning inside out. I heard myself scream.
Suddenly, I awakened. It was very quiet. A police officer was standing over me. I saw a doctor. My body was mangled. I was saturated with blood. Pieces of jagged glass were sticking _out all over. Strange that I couldn’t feel anything.
Hey don’t pull that sheet over my head.
I can't be dead. I'm only 17. I've got a date tonight. I'm supposed to a wonderful life ahead of me. I haven’t lived yet. I can't be dead. Later, I was placed in a drawer. My folks came to identify me. Why did they have to see me like this? Why
did I have to look at Mom's eyes when she faced the most terrible ordeal of her life? Dad suddenly looked very old.He told the man in charge, "Yes,
he's our son."The funeral was weird. I saw all
o£ my relatives and friends walk toward the casket. They looked at me with the saddest eyes I've ever seen.Some of my buddies were crying. A few of the girls touched my hand and as they walked by. Please somebody - wake me up. Get me out of here. I can't bear to see Mom and Dad in such pain. My grandparents are so weak from grief they can barely walk.
My brother and sister are like zombies. They move like
robots. In a daze.
Everybody. No one can believe this. I can't believe it, either. Please,
don't bury me. I'm not dead. I have a lot of living to do. I want to laugh and
run again. I want to sing and dance. Please don't put me in the ground. I
promise if you give me just one more chance, God, I'll be the most
careful driver in the whole world. All I want is one more chance. Please,
God, I'm only 17.
