INSPIRATIONAL STORY (UBUNTU)

 An anthropologist suggested a game to the kids in an African tribe. He put a basket full of fruit near a tree and told the kids that who ever got there first won the sweet fruits.

When he told them to run, they all took each others hands and ran together, then sat together enjoying the wonderful sweet fruit.

When he asked them why they had run like that when only one could have had all the fruit for himself, they replied, "UBUNTU! How can one of us be happy if all the other ones are sad?"

INSIGHT: "UBUNTU" in the Xhosa culture means: "I am because we are."


Unity is the creation of harmony!

BE BLESSED!

PRAYER (The Fireman's Prayer)

When I am called to duty, God
Wherever flames may rage,
Give me strength to save some life
Whatever be their age.

Help me embrace a little child
Before it is too late,
Or save an older person
From the horror of that fate.

Enable me to be alert,
And hear the weakest shout,
And quickly and efficiently
Rush to put the fire out.

I want to fill my calling
And give the best in me,
To guard my every neighbor
And protect their property.

And if according to Your Will
I should happen to lose my life,
Please bless with Your Protecting Hands
My children and my wife.


May we always remember the bravery and courage shown by Firefighters. We must always remember, like Jesus Christ, they are willing to put their lives on the line for us ALL!

THANK A FIREFIGHTER NEXT TIME YOU SEE HIM!

BE BLESSED!

HUMOR HELPS HAPPINESS (Can You Give Me a Push?)

    A man was in bed with his wife when he hears a rat-a-tat-tat on the front door. He rolls over and looks at his clock, grumbling when he sees it's 3:30 in the morning.
     "I'm not getting out of bed this time." he says to himself and rolls over to go back to sleep. Then, a harder louder knock follows.
     "Aren't you going to answer that?" says his wife.
     So he drags himself out of bed and goes downstairs. He opens the front door and notices it's his neighbor, drunk and swaying from side to side
     "Hi there," says the drunk neighbor. "Can you give me a push?"
     "No! Get lost! It's 3:30 in the morning! I was in bed" the man angrily shouted. Then he slammed the door shut, goes back to bed and tells his wife what happened.
     "Dave, that wasn't very nice of you. Don't you remember the time our car broke down in the pouring rain on the way to pick the kids up from the baby-sitter? Remember when you knocked on that man's door and asked if he could help us get our car started again? What if he would have told us to get lost?"
     "But the guy is drunk!" said the husband.
     "It doesn't matter," says the wife. "He needs our help and the right thing to do is to help him."
     So the husband gets out of bed again, gets dressed and goes to the front door. He opens it but doesn't see the man so he shouts, "HEY, DO YOU STILL WANT A PUSH?"
     Then, in the near distance, he hears the voice of the drunk neighbor. "Yes, please."
     The husband wasn't able to see the neighbor so he shouts, "WHERE ARE YOU?"
     And the drunk neighbor replies, "I'm over here. On your swing."


Please pass this on to others who may be needing a little laughter today.1

BE BLESSED!

MORAL STORY (The Donkey in the Well)

     One day a farmer's donkey fell down into a well. The animal brayed pitifully for hours as the farmer tried to figure out what to do. Finally, he decided, because the animal was old and the well needed to be covered up anyway so nobody else would fall into it, it would be better just to bury the donkey there.
     He invited all his neighbors over to help him. They all grabbed a shovel and began to shovel dirt into the well.
     At first, the donkey, realizing what was happening, became frightened and began to bray hysterically. But suddenly, he became very quiet.
     A few shovel loads later, the farmer, thinking the donkey had died from being buried under the dirt, finally looked down the well. He was astonished at what he saw.
     With each shovel of dirt that hit his back, the donkey did something nobody ever thought he would or could do. He would shake it off and take a step up.
     As the farmer's neighbors continued to shovel dirt on top of the donkey, he would shake it off and take a step up until eventually, he was able to step over the edge of the well and happily trotted off.


MORAL:
     Life is going to shovel dirt on you, all kinds of dirt. The trick is to shake it off and step up. Each of our troubles are a steppingstone. We can get out of the deepest well just by not stopping.

NEVER GIVE UP!!!

SHAKE IT OFF AND TAKE A STEP UP!!!

Remember the five rules to be happy:

1.)  Free your heart from hatred --- FORGIVE!

2.)  Free your mind from worries --- THINK POSITIVE!

3.)  Live simply and appreciate what you have.

4.)  Give more.

5.)  Expect less from other people but more from yourself.


Please share this valuable lesson by passing it on to somebody else.

 

BLESS AND BE BLESSED!

HUNOR HELPS HAPPINESS (Kids Say The Darnest Things)

NUDITY:
     On a hot summer day, a lady was driving in the car with her three young children in the backseat when suddenly a naked woman in a convertable ahead of them stood up and waved. The woman was frantic that her children would see the naked lady.
     Then her 5 year-old shouts from the back seat, "Mommy, that lady isn't wearing a seat belt!"


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OPINIONS
     On the first Friday of school, a first-grader handed his teacher a note from his mother which read, "The opinions expressed by this child are not necessarily those of his parents."


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KETCHUP
     One day, a woman was trying hard to get the ketchup out of the jar. During her struggle the phone rang so she asked her 4-year-old daughter to answer the phone...
     "Mommy can't come to the phone to talk to you right now because she's hitting the bottle."

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MORE NUDITY
     A little boy got lost at the YMCA and found himself in the women's locker room. When he was spotted, the room burst into shrieks, with ladies grabbing towels and running for cover.
     The little boy watched in amazement and then asked, "What's the matter? Haven't any of you ever seen a little boy before?"

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POLICE # 1
     While taking a routine vandalism report at an elementary school, a police officer was interrupted by a little girl about 6-years-old. Looking up and down at the officers uniform, she asked, "Are you a policeman?"
     "Yes, I am." He answered and continued writing his report.
     "My mother said if I ever needed help I should ask the policeman. Is that right?"
     "Why, yes, that is right," he confidently told the little girl.
     "Well then," she said as she extended her foot toward him, "would you please tie my shoe?"

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POLICE #2
     It was the end of the day when a police officer parked his van in front of the station. While he was gathering his equipment, his K-9 partner, Jake, was in the back of the van and started barking. The officer turned around to see what the dog was barking at and noticed a little boy staring at him.
     "Is that a dog you got back there?" the little boy asked.
     "It sure is," replied the officer.
     Puzzled, the boy looked at him and then towards the back of the van then asked the officer, "Why are you taking him to jail? What did he do?"

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ELDERLY
     While working for an organization that delivers lunches to the elderly shut-ins, a volunteer would sometimes take her 4-year-old daughter on her afternoon rounds.
     The little girl was intrigued by the different equipment, such as the canes, walkers and wheelchairs, that the elderly people used.
     One day, the volunteer noticed the little girl staring at a pair of false teeth in a glass. The woman braced herself for the set of questions that her daughter would likely be ready to ask.
     The little girl merely turned and whispered to her mother, "The tooth fairy will never believe this!"

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DRESS UP
     A little girl was watching her parents get dressed for a dinner party. When she saw her dad putting on his tuxedo the little girl warned, "Daddy, you shouldn't wear that suit!"
     "And why not, darling?" asked the dad.
     "You know that it always gives you a headache the next morning."

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DEATH
     One day, when a minister was walking along the sidewalk in front of the church, he heard the intoning of a prayer that nearly made his collar wilt.
     Apparently, his 5-year-old son and his friends found a dead Robin. Feeling that proper burial should be performed, they placed it into a small box, then dug a hole and were ready for the disposal of the bird.
     The friends chose the ministers son to say the prayer and with dignity the boy intoned his version of what he thought his father always said, "Glory be unto the Father, and unto the Son, and into the hole he goes."

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 SCHOOL
     A little girl had just finished her first week of school. Frustrated she told her mother, "I'm just wasting my time. I can't read. I can't write and they don't let me talk!"

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BIBLE
     A little boy opened the family Bible. He was fascinated as he flipped through the old pages. Then suddenly, something fell out of the Bible. He picked it up and looked at it. What he saw was an old leaf that had been pressed in between the pages.
     "Mama, look what I found," the boy excitedly told his mother.
     "What have you got there, dear?" asked the mother.
     With astonishment in his voice, the boy answered, "I think it's Adam's underwear!"


Brighten someone's day and send this on to them.

 

BE BLESSED!

MORAL STORY (Legend of the Corn, Beans and Squash)

     Legend has it that three beautiful sisters were sent to Native Americans by the Great Spirit...


     Legend has it that corn, beans and squash were first given to Native Americans by the Great Spirit. These gifts were so precious, because they were able to sustain human life, so the care of the plants were entrusted to separate Spirits. These Spirits took on the form of three beautiful sisters who loved living together.
     These sisters were so fond of each other that they would protect and nourish one another, forming a "holy trinity" of cooperation and dependence. By living together in a single mound of earth, they could provide each other with physical protection and nutritional abundance.
     CORN,  the eldest sister, would be the first to begin her cycle of life. Growing tall and strong, her stalk would provide a natural trellis upon which her sister, BEANS, could grow. Her vines would encircle and gently hug sister CORN , while reaching for the sun.
     Soon, the youngest sister, SQUASH, would spread out to cover the mound of dirt where they lived together. Her shady leaves preserved the moisture in their earthly home and would steal away precious sunlight from weeds and other uninvited strangers. Her prickly stems also provided protection against pests attempting to invade her sisters' home.
     And so, the three sisters would continue to live and grow together, eventually presenting their own gifts to whomever helped tend their mound of earth. Within their fruits would be offspring for future generations of helpful, loving sisters, willing to share in the great cycle of life.


MORAL: We all have our own unique and special gifts. We can use our gifts to help and protect one another. In doing so, our youth will be witness to this and they will follow our example, and possibly begin to create a unified world. 

FAST FACT:
     Seeds for planting are perhaps the most important gifts shared by Native Americans with the first pilgrim settlers from Europe. In fact, sixty percent of all crops grown worldwide today originated with our Native American farmers.
    More than 1,000 years before the people of Mesopotamia, the cradle of Western civilization, began growing food crops, Native Americans thrived off the land. Many of their farming techniques are still in practice today.



HOW TO PLANT THREE SISTERS:

(1) Plant corn in the center of a small mound.

(2) After the corn has reached 4" plant beans in a circle around the corn.

(3) One week after beans sprout, plant the squash in a circle around the beans. Keep the soil moist.