Leave your Heartprints

Author Unknown (If you know the author, pl let me know)

Whatever our hands touch -
We leave fingerprints!
On walls, on furniture
On doorknobs, dishes, books.
There's no escape.

As we touch we leave our identity.

Wherever I go today
Help me leave heartprints!
Heartprints of compassion
Of understanding and love.
Heartprints of kindness
And genuine concern.

May my heart touch a lonely neighbor
Or a runaway daughter
Or an anxious mother
Or perhaps an aged grandfather.

Send me out today
To leave heartprints.
And if someone should say,
'I felt your touch,'
May they also sense the love
that is deep within my heart.

Only One Childhood

By Author Unknown

I stopped to watch my little girl busy playing in her room.
In one hand was a plastic phone; in the other a toy broom.
I listened as she was speaking to her make believe little friend
I'll never forget the words she said, even though it was pretend.

She said, "Suzie's in the corner cos she's not been very good.
She didn't listen to a word I said or do the things she should."
In the corner I saw her baby doll all dressed in lace and pink.
It was obvious she'd been put there to sit alone and think.

My daughter continued her conversation as I sat down on the floor.
"I'm all fed up, I just don't know what to do with her anymore?
She whines whenever I have work and wants to play games, too.
She never lets me do the things that I just have to do?

She tries to help me with the dishes,
but her arms just cannot reach...
And she doesn't know how to fold towels.
I don't have the time to teach.

I have a lot of work to do
and a big house to keep clean.
I don't have the time to sit and play
don't you know what I mean?"

And that day I thought a lot about making some changes in my life;
As I listened to her innocent words that cut me like a knife.
I hadn't been paying enough attention to what I hold most dear.
I'd been caught up in responsibilities that increased throughout the year.

But now my attitude changed, because, in my heart, I realize...
I saw the world in a different light through my little darling's eyes. 

Let the cobwebs have the corners and the dust bunnies rule the floor,
I'm not going to worry about keeping up with them anymore.

I'm going to fill the house with memories
of a child and her mother...
For we are granted only one childhood,
and we will never get another.

The Cold Within

Author Unknown, Source Unknown

Six humans trapped by happenstance
In black and bitter cold.
Each one possessed a stick of wood,
Or so the story's told.

Their dying fire in need of logs,
The first woman held hers back
For on the faces around the fire,
She noticed one was black.

The next man looking cross the way
Saw one not of his church,
And couldn't bring himself to give
The fire his stick of birch.

The third man sat in tattered clothes;
He gave his coat a hitch.
Why should his log be put to use
To warm the idle rich?

The rich man just sat back and thought
Of the wealth he had in store.               

And how to keep what he had earned
From the lazy poor.

The black man's face bespoke revenge
As the fire passed from his sight,
For all he saw in his stick of wood
Was a chance to spite the white.

And the last man of this forlorn group
Did naught except for gain.
Giving only to those who gave
Was how he played the game.

The logs held tight in death's still hands
Was proof of human sin.
They didn't die from the cold without,
They died from the cold within.

Everything I Needed

Author Unknown

 

I asked for strength and
God gave me difficulties to make me strong.

I asked for wisdom and
God gave me problems to solve.

I asked for prosperity and
God gave me brawn and brains to work.

I asked for courage and
God gave me dangers to overcome.

I asked for patience and
God placed me in situations where I was forced to wait.

I asked for love and
God gave me troubled people to help.

I asked for favors and
God gave me opportunities.

I received nothing I wanted
I received everything I needed.

My prayers have all been answered.

One Life

Author Unknown

One SONG can spark a moment
One FLOWER can wake the dream
One TREE can start a forest                     

One BIRD can herald spring
One SMILE begins a friendship
One HANDCLASP lifts a soul
One STAR can guide a ship at sea 

One WORD can frame the goal

One VOTE can change a nation
One SUNBEAM lights a room
One CANDLE wipes out darkness
One LAUGH will conquer gloom
One STEP must start each journey
One WORD must start a prayer
One HOPE will raise our spirits
One TOUCH can show you care
One VOICE can speak with wisdom
One HEART can know what is true
One LIFE can make a difference.

Love your children as you love strangers

Author Unknown

I ran into a stranger as he passed by.
"Oh, excuse me please" was my reply.
He said, "Please, excuse me too,
Wasn't even watching for you."

We were very polite, this stranger and I.
We went on our way and we said good-bye.
But at home a different story is told,
How we treat our loved ones, young and old.

Later that day, cooking the evening meal,
My daughter stood beside me very still.
When I turned, I nearly knocked her down.
"Move out of the way," I said with a frown.

She walked away, her little heart broken
at how harshly I had spoken.
While I lay awake in bed,
God's still small voice came to me and said,

"While dealing with a stranger, common courtesy you use,
But the children you love, you seem to abuse.
Look on the kitchen floor,
You'll find some flowers there by the door.

Those are the flowers she brought for you.
She picked them herself, pink, yellow and blue.
She stood quietly not to spoil the surprise,
And you never saw the tears in her eyes."

By this time, I felt very small,
and now my tears began to fall.
I quietly went and knelt by her bed;
"Wake up, little girl, wake up," I said.

"Are these the flowers you picked for me?"
She smiled, "I found 'em, out by the tree.
I picked 'em, because they're pretty like you.
I knew you'd like'em, especially the blue."

I said, "Daughter, I'm sorry for the way I acted today;
I shouldn't have yelled at you that way."
She said, "Oh, Mom, that's okay.
I love you anyway."

I said, "Daughter, I love you too,
And I do like the flowers, especially the blue."

The Hug!

-Author Unknown-

It's wonderous what a hug can do.
A hug can cheer you when you're blue.
A hug can say, "I love you so,"
Or, "Gee, I hate to see you go."

A hug is, "Welcome back again."
And, "Great to see you! Where've you been?"
A hug can soothe a small child's pain,
and bring a rainbow after rain.

The hug! There's just no doubt about it-
we scarcely could survive without it!
A hug delights and warms and charms.
It must be why God gave us arms.

A hug can break the language barrier,
and make your travels so much merrier.
No need to fret about your store of 'em,
the more you give, the more there's more of 'em.

So stretch those arms without delay
and give someone a hug today!

God Knows

~Author Unknown~

When you are tired and discouraged from fruitless efforts;
God knows how hard you have tried.
When you've cried so long and your heart is in anguish;
God has counted your tears.

If you feel that your life is on hold and time has passed you by;
God is waiting with you.
When you're lonely and your friends are too busy even for a phone call;
God is by your side.

When you think you've tried everything and don't know where to turn;
God has a solution.
When nothing makes sense and you are confused or frustrated;
God has the answer.

If suddenly your outlook is brighter and you find traces of hope;
God has whispered to you.
When things are going well and you have much to be thankful for;
God has blessed you.

When something joyful happens and you are filled with awe;
God has smiled upon you.
When you have a purpose to fulfill and a dream to follow;
God has opened your eyes and called you by name.

Remember that wherever you are or whatever you 're facing;

God Knows!!

Joy & Sorrow

I have in my hands two boxes
Which God gave me to hold He said,
"Put all your sorrows in the black,
And all your joys in the gold."

I asked, "God, why give me the boxes,
Why the gold, and the black with the hole?"
"My child, the gold is for you to count your blessings,
The black is for you to let go."

I heeded his words, and in the two boxes
Both my joys and sorrows I store
But though the gold became heavier each day
The black was as light as before.

With curiosity, I opened the black
I wanted to find out why
And I saw, in the base of the box,
A hole which my sorrows had fallen out by.

I showed the hole to God, and mused aloud,
"I wonder where my sorrows could be."
He smiled a gentle smile at me.
"My child, they're all here with me."

What goes around, comes around

Author Unknown

It was a rainy night.

At a bus station in the town,
I watched a young girl weeping
As her baggage was taken down.

It seems she'd lost her ticket
Changing buses in the night.
She begged them not to leave her there
With no sign of help in sight.

The bus driver had a face of stone
And his heart was surely the same.
"Losing your ticket's like losing cash money" he said,
And left her in the rain.

Then an old man stood up
And blocked the driver's way
And would not let him pass
Before he said what he had to say.

"How can you leave that girl out there?
Have you no God to fear?
You know she had a ticket.
You can't just leave her here.
You can't put her out in a city
Where she doesn't have a friend.
You will meet your schedule,
But she might meet her end."

The driver showed no sign
That he'd heard or even cared
About the young girl's problem
Or how her travels fared.

So the old gentleman said,
"For her fare I'll pay.
I'll give her a little money
to help her on her way."

He went and bought the ticket,
Helped her to her place
And helped her put her baggage
In the overhead luggage space.

"How can I repay," she said,

"the kindness you've shown tonight?
We're strangers who won't meet again.
A mere ' 'thank you ' doesn't seem right."

He said, "What goes around comes around.

This I've learned with time –
What you give, you always get back;
What you sow, you reap in kind.
Always be helpful to others.
And give what you can spare;
For by being kind to strangers,
We help angels unaware."

Do not quit

Unknown

When things go wrong as they sometimes will,

When the road you’re trudging seems all up hill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,

When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest if you must, but don’t you quit.

Life is queer with its twists and turns,

As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about
When he might have won had he stuck it out.

Don’t give up though the pace seems slow–

You may succeed with another blow,
Success is failure turned inside out–
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far;

So stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit–

It’s when things seem worst that you must not quit.

The Clay pot

Author Unknown 

 
The Master was searching for a vessel to use;
On the shelf there were many - which one would He choose?

"Take me", cried the gold one, "I'm shiny and bright,
I'm of great value and I do things just right.
My beauty and luster will outshine the rest
And for someone like You, Master, gold would be the best!"

The Master passed on with no word at all;
He looked at a silver urn, narrow and tall;
"I'll serve You, dear Master, I'll pour out Your drink, and
I'll be at Your table whenever You dine,
My lines are so graceful, my carvings so true,
And my silver will always compliment You."

Unheeding the Master passed on to the brass,
It was wide mouthed and shallow, and polished like glass.
"Here! Here!" cried the vessel, "I know I will do,
Place me on Your table for all men to view."
"Look at me", called the goblet of crystal so clear,
"My transparency shows my contents so dear,
Though fragile am I, I will serve You with pride,
And I'm sure I'll be happy in Your house to abide."

The Master came next to a vessel of wood,
Polished and carved, it solidly stood.
"You may use me, dear Master", the wooden bowl said,
"But I'd rather You used me for fruit, not for Bread!"
Then the Master looked down and saw a vessel of clay.
Empty and broken it helplessly lay.
No hope had the vessel that the Master might choose,
To cleanse and make whole, to fill and to use.

"Ah! This is the vessel I've been hoping to find,
I will mend and use it and make it all Mine."
"I need not the vessel with pride of its self;
Nor the one who is narrow to sit on the shelf;
Nor the one who is big mouthed and shallow and loud;
Nor one who displays his contents so proud;
Not the one who thinks he can do all things just right;
But this plain earthy vessel filled with My power and might."

Then gently He lifted the vessel of clay.
Mended and cleansed it and filled it that day.
Spoke to it kindly. "There's work you must do,
Just pour out to others as I pour into you."

My Grandma

- Author Unknown -

The computer swallowed My grandma
Yes, honestly its true
I pressed 'control' and 'enter'
And she disappeared from view.

It devoured her completely
The thought just makes me squirm
She must have caught a 'virus'
Or been eaten by a 'worm.'

I've searched through the 'recycle bin'
And files of every kind
I've even used the 'Internet'
But nothing did I find.

In desperation, I asked Jeeves
My searches to refine
The reply from him was negative
Not a thing was found 'online.'

So if inside your 'Inbox'
My Grandma you should see
Please 'Copy,' 'Scan' and 'Paste' her
And send her back to me!

The Stairs

You have a choice

-- Author Unknown ---

This is an autobiography of a person wonderfully expressed in just five short chapters. It goes like this:

CHAPTER ONE       (a helpless victim of life)
I walk down the street.
There's a hole in the sidewalk.
It is a very deep hole.
I fall in... I am helpless.
It isn't my fault.
It takes forever to find a way out.

CHAPTER TWO           (victim of self)
I walk down the same street.
There's a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I pretend I don't see it.
I fall in... again.
I can't believe I'm in the same place, but it isn't my fault.
It still takes a long time to get out.

CHAPTER THREE             (taking responsibility)
I walk down the same street.
There's a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I see it is there.
I still fall in... it's a habit, but my eyes are open.
I know where I am.
It is my fault.
I get out immediately.

CHAPTER FOUR                   (self discipline)
I walk down the same street.
There's a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I walk around it.

CHAPTER FIVE                 (making better choices)
I walk down ANOTHER street.

What a marvelous progression from...

a helpless victim of life...
to a victim of self... 

to taking responsibility...
to self-discipline... 

to making better choices!