Friday, November 19, 2010

A Feel Good One...or Don't Let The Opportunity Pass You By

TGIF, Beatdowners!

So this is just a quick one that I think is worth sharing...my Aunt Janet sent this e-mail out to me today, and it's got a good message...live for today, don't hold anything back, and most of all, tell the people that matter and that you care about the most that you love them...TODAY.

Thanks for reading.  Thanks to Aunt Janet for forwarding this one.  And love to you and yours.

Until next time...
One day a teacher asked her students to list the names of the other students in the room on two sheets of paper, leaving a space between each name.  Then she told them to think of the nicest thing they could say about each of their classmates and write it down.

It took the remainder of the class period to finish their assignment, and as the students left the room, each one handed in the papers.

That Saturday, the teacher wrote down the name of each student on a separate sheet of paper, and listed what everyone else had said about that individual.

On Monday she gave each student his or her list.  Before long, the entire class was smiling.

"Really?", she heard whispered, "I never knew that I meant anything to anyone!", and, "I didn't know others liked me so much", and other comments like that.  

No one ever mentioned those papers in class again.  She never knew if they discussed them after class or with their parents, but it didn't matter.  The exercise had accomplished its purpose.  The students were happy with themselves and one another. 

That group of students moved on.


Several years later, one of the students, Mark, was killed in Vietnam, and the teacher attended the funeral.  The church was packed with his friends.  One by one those who loved him took a last walk by the coffin.  The teacher was the last one to walk by and pay her respects.

As she stood there, one of the soldiers who acted as pallbearer came up to her and asked, 'Were you Mark's math teacher?".  She nodded yes.  Then he said, "Mark talked about you a lot".


After the funeral, most of Mark's former classmates went together to a luncheon.

Mark's mother and father were there, and they wanted to speak with his teacher.


"We want to show you something", his father said.  The father took his wallet out and said, "They found this on Mark when he was killed...we thought you might recognize it".


Carefully opening the two worn pieces of notebook paper that had been taped, folded, and refolded many times, the father held it out for the teacher to see. 

She knew without reading the papers that it was the list of all the good things each of Mark's classmates had said about him so many years ago.
"Thank you so much for doing that", Mark's mother said.  "As you can see, Mark treasured it".


All of Mark's former classmates gathered around.

Charlie smiled and said, "I still have my list.  It's in the top drawer of my desk at home".


Chuck's wife said, "Chuck asked me to put his in our wedding album".


"I have mine too", Marilyn said.  "It's in my diary".


Vicki, another classmate, reached into her pocketbook, took out her wallet and showed her worn and frazzled list to the group.  "I carry this with me at all times...looks like we all saved our lists".


That's when the teacher finally sat down and cried.  She cried for Mark and for all his friends who would never see him again. 

The density of people in society is so thick that we forget that life will end one day.  And we don't know when that one day will be.  So please, tell the people you love and care for that they are special and important.  Tell them, because one day you won't be able to.

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