How Do Ya Know?

[M&B]

xxxsqueezeooo back at ya. For who you are. For who we will see in the near future. Who we are for "knowing" you.

[jen]

Originally posted by M&B@Home
xxxsqueezeooo back at ya. For who you are. For who we will see in the near future. Who we are for "knowing" you.

Aww, c'mon M&B@Home, I get giddy!

Your squeezes rock, they're my very favorite kind.

Squeeze

[wrnakedru]

John Blanchard stood up from the bench, straightened his Army uniform, and studied the crowd of people making their way through Grand Central Station. He looked for the girl whose heart he knew, but whose face he didn't, the girl with the rose. His interest in her had begun thirteen months before in a Florida library.

Taking a book off the shelf he found himself intrigued, not with the words of the book, but with the notes penciled in the margin. The soft handwriting reflected a thoughtful soul and insightful mind. In the front of the book, he discovered the previous owner's name, Miss Hollis Maynell. With time and effort he located her address. She lived in New York City.

He wrote her a letter introducing himself and inviting her to correspond. The next day he was shipped overseas for service in World War II. During the next year and one month the two grew to know each other through the mail. Each letter was a seed falling on a fertile heart. A romance was budding. Blanchard requested a photograph, but she refused. She felt that if he
really cared, it wouldn't matter what she looked like.

When the day finally came for him to return from Europe, they scheduled their first meeting - 7:00 P.M. at the Grand Central Station in New York.

"You'll recognize me," she wrote, "by the red rose I'll be wearing on my lapel."

So at 7:00 he was in the station looking for a girl whose heart he loved, but whose face he'd never seen. I'll let Mr. Blanchard tell you what happened:

"A young woman was coming toward me, her figure long and slim. Her blonde hair lay back in curls from her delicate ears; her eyes were blue as flowers. Her lips and chin had a gentle firmness, and in her pale green suit she was like springtime come alive. I started toward her, entirely forgetting to notice that she was not wearing a rose. As I moved, a small, provocative smile curved her lips. "Going my way, sailor?" she murmured.

Almost uncontrollably I made one step closer to her, and then I
saw Hollis Maynell. She was standing almost directly behind the girl. A woman well past 40, she had graying hair tucked under a worn hat. She was more than plump, her thick-ankled feet thrust into low-heeled shoes. The girl in the green suit was walking quickly away. I felt as though I was split in two, so keen was my desire to follow her, and yet so deep was my longing for the woman whose spirit had truly companioned me and upheld my
own. And there she stood. Her pale, plump face was gentle and sensible, her gray eyes had a warm and kindly twinkle. I did not hesitate. My fingers gripped the small worn blue leather copy of the book that was to identify me to her. This would not be love, but it would be something precious, something perhaps even better than love, a friendship for which I had been and must ever be grateful. I squared my shoulders and saluted and held out the book to the woman, even though while I spoke I felt choked by
the bitterness of my disappointment.

"I'm Lieutenant John Blanchard, and you must be Miss Maynell. I am so glad you could meet me; may I take you to dinner?"

The woman's face broadened into a tolerant smile. "I don't know what this is about, son," she answered, "but the young lady in the green suit who just went by, she begged me to wear this rose on my coat. And she said if you were to ask me out to dinner, I should go and tell you that she is waiting for you in the big restaurant across the street. She said it was some kind of test!"

It's not difficult to understand and admire Miss Maynell's wisdom.

The true nature of a heart is seen in its response to the unattractive.

"Tell me whom you love," Houssaye wrote, "And I will tell you who you are."

[saranmark]

In the words of our dear friend Jen, "Wow. Just wow. "

This thread is truly inspiring. I want to go out right now and do something great, or help someone!

Have a wonderful day, folks-- and thanks for the warm fuzzy feeling I am leaving my house with today!

SARA

[OhioCouple]

There is a bank that credits your
_ account each morning with $86,400.
_ It carries over no balance from day to day.
_ Every evening deletes whatever part of the
_ balance you failed to use during the day. What
_ would you do? Draw out ALL OF IT, of
_ course!!!!

Each of us has such a bank. Its name is TIME.
_ Every morning, it credits you with 86,400
_ seconds._ Every night it writes off, as lost,
_ whatever of this you have failed to invest to good
_ purpose._ It carries over no balance. It allows no
_ overdraft.

Each day it opens a new account for you.
_ Each night it burns the remains of the day.
If you fail to use the day's deposits, the
_ loss is yours.

There is no going back. There is no
_ drawing against the "tomorrow."
_ You must live in the present on today's
_ deposits. Invest it so as to get from it the
_ utmost in health, happiness, and success!
_ The clock is running. Make the most of today.

To realize the value of ONE YEAR,
_ ask a student who failed a grade.

To realize the value of ONE MONTH,
_ ask a mother who gave birth to a premature
_ baby.

To realize the value of ONE WEEK,
_ ask the editor of a weekly newspaper.

To realize the value of ONE HOUR,
_ ask the lovers who are waiting to meet.

To realize the value of ONE MINUTE,
_ ask a person who missed the train.

To realize the value of ONE-SECOND,
_ ask a person who just avoided an accident.

To realize the value of ONE MILLISECOND,
_ ask the person who won a silver medal in the
_ Olympics.

Treasure every moment that you have! And
_ treasure it more because you shared it with
_ someone special, special enough to spend your
_ time.

And remember that time waits for no one.
_ Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery.
_ Today is a gift. That's why it's called the
_ present!!!

Friends are a very rare jewel, indeed.
_ They make you smile and encourage you to
_ succeed._ They lend an ear, they share a word
_ of praise, and they always want to open their
_ heart to us.

[wrnakedru]

A well-known speaker started off his seminar by holding up a $20.00 bill.

In the room of 200, he asked, "Who would like this $20 bill?" Hands started going up.

He said, "I am going to give this $20 to one of you but first, let me do this. He proceeded to crumple the $20 dollar bill up. He then asked, "Who still wants it?" Still the hands were up in the air.

Well, he replied, "What if I do this?" And he dropped it on the ground and started to grind it into the floor with his shoe. He picked it up, now crumpled and dirty. "Now, who still wants it?" Still the hands went into the air.

"My friends, we have all learned a very valuable lesson. No matter what I did to the money, you still wanted it because it did not decrease in value. It was still worth $20.

Many times in our lives, we are dropped, crumpled, and ground into the dirt by the decisions we make and the circumstances that come our way. We feel as though we are worthless.

But no matter what has happened or what will happen, you will never lose your value. Dirty or clean, crumpled or finely creased, you are still priceless to those who DO LOVE you.

The worth of our lives comes not in what we do or who we know, but by WHO WE ARE.

You are special - ALWAYS remember that."

[alabamafuntonig]

im reminded of all the friends ive yet to know in my life! it seems just like the "bus stop freinds" i have taken little time to get to know people they way i would like to be known. i do however do have a group of people i respect and always great with a smile and a kind word of encourage ment! We take these people for granted sometimes 2 or 3 times a day.. I on the other hand look forward to there freindly or sad looks each day as a token to my freedom and prosperity........................................ .................................................. ...........Who are they Bama you ask ,well there convieniance store workers ,coffee shop workers or plain old gas station attendents. Yes I look up to these people each day! Not to say i wish to be them but to find it in my soul to say hey man i feel your pain and hang in there ..some of these people know everthing i will purchase almost 90% of the time...."hey henry the man at the texeco says everyday at 7:15pm 3 packs of smokes, no gas today huy,hows dee...great..see ya tommorow..." Its always see you tommorow or have a great day. This man is making $6.00 a hour...and always have a nice day,always remembers what i buy and always has that good to see ya attitude!........There molly the coffee lady at the store i go to every morning for my new england style coffee(the only store in town who can brew a real pot of joe)...necer have to ask her twice ..she see the car and its ready before i walk in...now thats service...sure molly gets a .25 tip everday from me but imagine with that attitude and 100 cups a joe in a hour ..molly makes some good tip money everday...why becouse molly say s hi molly smiles ,molly makes you be her freind.....My hats off to all the store clerck and mollys in the world, with out you guys the world would be a dull place.

[BradAndJanet]

'bama, you are so right! Mama always said, "Be nice to the people you meet on your way up, 'cause you might need them on the way down!" So, I always treat everyone I meet, no matter their station in life, with the greatest respect. I think everyone deserves at least that, and I've made a lot of 'bus stop' friends that way!

-B

[azwildcat]

ya know about 7yrs ago when i lived way out in the middle of no where almost {remember this is az, all desert} anyhow, i saw a couple who had broken down on the side of the road they had two little kids and this was during the summer, here that frying temp's anyhow even though i was already late for work i stopped for several different reasons. the kids, the heat and just out of kindness and compassion for others well, i helped them and gave them a lift to the nearest car repair shop/and tow truck. after that i went to work really late but i felt good about helping them out when so many drivers just buzzed on by them.

well, about i'd say a month later i was the one broken down on the side of the road and guess what the same couple i helped stopped and helped me, the guy said that he never stoped to help anyone out before he needed the help himself then after that day i did they stopped for everyone they saw on the side of the road, they told me it's always nice to help a little, cuz you never know if or when it'll be you in that spot the next time



{ i know it doesn't sound like me cuz i didn't say "bite me" but i did to all the car's that drove past me }

[wrnakedru]

At an airport I overheard a father and daughter in their last
moments together. They had announced her plane's departure and standing near the door, he said to his daughter, "I love you, I wish you enough".

She said, "Daddy, our life together has been more than enough.
Your love is all I ever needed. I wish you enough, too, Daddy."
They kissed good-bye and she left.

He walked over toward the window where I was seated. Standing there I could see he wanted and needed to cry.
I tried not to intrude on his privacy, but he welcomed me in by
asking, "Did you ever say good-bye to someone knowing it would be forever?"

"Yes, I have," I replied. Saying that brought back memories I had of expressing my love and appreciation for all my Dad had done for me. Recognizing that his days were limited, I took the time to tell him face to face how much he meant to me.

So I knew what this man was experiencing. "Forgive me for
asking, but why is this a forever good-bye?" I asked.

"I am old and she lives much too far away. I have challenges ahead and the reality is, her next trip back will be for my funeral, " he said.

"When you were saying good-bye I heard you say, 'I wish you
enough.' May I ask what that means?"

He began to smile. "That's a wish that has been handed down from other generations. My parents used to say it to everyone." He paused for a moment and looking up as if trying to remember it in detail, he smiled even more.

"When we said 'I wish you enough,' we were wanting the other
person to have a life filled with enough good things to sustain them," he continued and then turning toward me he shared the following as if he were reciting it from memory.

"I wish you enough sun to keep your attitude bright.
I wish you enough rain to appreciate the sun more.
I wish you enough happiness to keep your spirit alive.
I wish you enough pain so that the smallest joys in life appear
much bigger.
I wish you enough gain to satisfy your wanting.
I wish you enough loss to appreciate all that you possess.
I wish you enough 'Hello's' to get you through the final 'Good-bye.' "

He then began to sob and walked away.

I wish you enough, my friends.

[jen]

Everyone should always have enough

[Elusive BiFem]

Originally posted by jen
Everyone should always have enough

And somedays, the friends we find right here, are just enough to make it enough.

-EBF

[OhioCouple]

Originally posted by wrnakedru
I wish you enough, my friends.

Wow, just wow.

[hmr]

Bama, I read you thread entry and had to add a thought of my own. I own a small remodelling company. Because of this I'm in contact with a lot of people constantly. Also, due to epilepsy my wife cannot drive. With three teenage kids at home, there are a lot of things I must do on a daily basis. All of this involves encounters with other people.
It always amazes me when I see people who go to the local Lowes or grocery store or even corner shop( 7-11, stop n'go, etc. )and raise hell with the people working there as if they are the ones making the executive descisions. My local Lowes store has been in the top 5 busiest in the country since it opened. Yes, it seems to be always short staffed. Yes, its not always easy to find help when you need it. However, I'm in this store about 5-10 times a week. When I walk around the store I say Hello to those I know who work there and smile to those I don't.
What happens? When i do go in there with that confused look on my face that we've all seen, I don't have to ask for help. It comes to me. The people who I will give a smile to when they do not have one of there own, will go out of there way to help. In a book I read a long time ago( you may recognize this) it says to give away and it will come back to you 30, 70 even 100 times.
How great it was, when my wife was recently in the hospital, to have people take care of dinner, and sit with my wife so I could work( I'm sole support), they made sure my family was seen to. All these things came from taking a second to smile for someone who needed it. The attitude you give is soo much a part of the attitude you recieve.
Its amazing, I've been told I'm a good speaker, but, I tend to ramble on when I write. I hope all understand the point I'm trying to make. Some times its a little tough when your eyes are wet.
Thanks for reading through.

Mr. HMR

[jen]

Wow, just wow



good grief dorky smilies
please imagine cute little angel smilie above