top of the evening, friends....
i hope all is well with you and yours. things continue to progress well here, aside from a pulled muscle in my right ribs--which makes walking with a cane a little more challenging.
i received a praise report this week--i will be done with my MBA in about 13 weeks! it's been a long process, but i pray it will pay off down the road in the form of another job i'm passionate about. i was so blessed with a wonderful career with the division, i fear it will be hard to find something i love as much.
i came across my kindergarten picture today and because it cracked me up, i thought i'd share it with you. i'm the one with the VERY short dress, first row, 4th from the left. i can't wait for comments from elzie.
on a more serious note, i'd like to ask for prayer for my dad. during a CAT scan for kidney stones last week, the dr. found a baseball sized mass near where his stomach and small intestine come together. he goes in to be scoped (and/or a colonoscopy) very soon to determine if the mass is on the inside or outside of his intestine. if it is on the outside, the surgery will be much less complicated. whether the mass is malignant or benign, it must come out. the dr. said that that particular area is very congested with several organs and he does not want to risk any obstruction. while dad is concerned, he is confident that whatever happens we will deal with it. for those of you who don't know him, he's a pretty special guy and my "motorcycle buddy."
quote for the day:
"what if you gave someone a gift, and they neglected to thank you for it-would you be likely to give them another? life is the same way. in order to attract more of the blessings that life has to offer, you must truly appreciate what you already have"
-ralph marston-
-ralph marston-
Words Of A Feather
"There was once a man who loved to gossip. He loved the attention it brought him, and could not stop himself from speaking about others, sometimes sharing the good they did, but most often sharing the mistakes they made. "In time, however, he realized the harm his speech was causing and he sought to make amends. He went to his rabbi and explained the situation, and asked how he could make amends. "The rabbi thought for a moment and instructed the man to go to the marketplace and purchase two of the finest feather pillows he could find. He should then take the pillows to the top of the mountain overlooking the village, tear them open, and spill the feathers into the wind. "The man was surprised and pleased at the rabbi's advice. He thought repentance would be much harder than this. So he ran to the marketplace, purchased his pillows, and within an hour had scattered their feathers to the wind. "He returned to the rabbi all aglow. He was ready to be forgiven for his gossiping. Not just yet, the rabbi told him. There was one more thing to do. He had to return to the mountain and repack the pillows with the feathers that he had scattered. "'But that's impossible,' the man said. 'Those feathers have gone everywhere, there is no way I can take them back now.'" "The rabbi nodded solemnly and said, 'What is true of the feathers is true of the words. Once spoken they can never be retrieved. The harm caused by gossip cannot be undone.'"
—Rabbi Rami Shapiro from The Sacred Art of Lovingkindness-
"There was once a man who loved to gossip. He loved the attention it brought him, and could not stop himself from speaking about others, sometimes sharing the good they did, but most often sharing the mistakes they made. "In time, however, he realized the harm his speech was causing and he sought to make amends. He went to his rabbi and explained the situation, and asked how he could make amends. "The rabbi thought for a moment and instructed the man to go to the marketplace and purchase two of the finest feather pillows he could find. He should then take the pillows to the top of the mountain overlooking the village, tear them open, and spill the feathers into the wind. "The man was surprised and pleased at the rabbi's advice. He thought repentance would be much harder than this. So he ran to the marketplace, purchased his pillows, and within an hour had scattered their feathers to the wind. "He returned to the rabbi all aglow. He was ready to be forgiven for his gossiping. Not just yet, the rabbi told him. There was one more thing to do. He had to return to the mountain and repack the pillows with the feathers that he had scattered. "'But that's impossible,' the man said. 'Those feathers have gone everywhere, there is no way I can take them back now.'" "The rabbi nodded solemnly and said, 'What is true of the feathers is true of the words. Once spoken they can never be retrieved. The harm caused by gossip cannot be undone.'"
—Rabbi Rami Shapiro from The Sacred Art of Lovingkindness-
please continue to keep the following other people in your thoughts and prayers, as they are all facing difficulties right now: gina herbert, glenda woodgeard, dale robirds son ryan,
mary taylor, scott speakman's mom, & ernestine abrams.
congratulations to ginny fogt and mike nisky on their upcoming retirements! and thanks to my "breakfast at the barrel" friends for a wonderful time of fellowship friday!
until next time, be blessed!
lisa - 1095
