THE BUILDER
An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. He told his employer-contractor
of his plans to leave the housebuilding business and live a more leisurely
life with his wife, enjoying his extended family. He would miss the
paycheck, but he needed to retire. They could get
by.
The contractor was sorry to see his good worker go and asked if he
could build just one more house as a personal favor. The carpenter
said yes, but in time it was easy to see that his heart was not in
his work. He resorted to shoddy workmanship and used inferior materials.
It was an unfortunate way to end his career.
When the carpenter finished his work and the builder came to inspect
the house, the contractor handed the front-door key to the carpenter.
"This is your house," he said, "my gift to you."
What a shock! What a shame! If he had only known he was building his
own house, he would have done it all so differently. Now he had to
live in the home he had built none too well.
So it is with us. We build our lives in a distracted way, reacting
rather than acting, willing to put up less than the best. At important
points we do not give the job our best effort. Then with a shock we
look at the situation we have created and find that we are now living
in the house we have built. If we had realized, we would have done
it differently.
Think of yourself as the carpenter. Your life today is the result
of your attitudes and choices in the past. YOUR LIFE TOMORROW WILL
BE THE RESULT OF YOUR ATTITUDE AND THE CHOICES YOU MAKE TODAY!
--source unknown
Another inspirational story -- YOUR SUPPORT SYSTEM
Have you noticed how help is often available just when you need it?
A few years ago, a California artist carved a unique Christmas gift
for his parents in Connecticut. It was a four-foot tall statue of
a hitch-hiker, with thumb extended. (The perfect gift for the discriminating
home-owner...)
His gift was unusual, but his method of shipping the statue to his
folks was even stranger.
He simply set it beside the road and let it "hitch" its way across
the continent. Around the statue's neck he hung a sign bearing his
parent's New England address, and across its chest was printed the
word "Connecticut" in large letters. Several weeks and some 2,500
miles later, unknown hands delivered the gift to the woodcarver's
parents in time for Christmas.
I find it heartening to remember that there are always those willing
to help. And it's true regardless of the circumstance. There is someone
willing to extend a hand, lend an ear or share a heart. Whether you
need temporary assistance or your life has experienced a meltdown,
there is someone who wants to help.
In every important way, you are never really alone. You have a life
"support system" consisting of people you may have never met! And
it's one of your greatest resources.
From the book, ONE MINUTE CAN CHANGE A LIFE by Steve Goodier
