The little boy

Sally jumped up as soon as she saw the surgeon come out of the operating room. She said: How is my little boy? Is he going to be all right? When can I see him? The surgeon said, Im sorry. We did all we could, but your boy didnt make it. Sally said, Why do little children get cancer? Doesnt God care any more? Where were you, God, when my son needed you? The surgeon asked, Would you like some time alone with your son? One of the nurses will be out in a few minutes, before hes transported to the university. Sally asked the nurse to stay with her while she said good-bye to son. She ran her fingers lovingly through his thick red curly hair. Would you like a lock of his hair? the nurse asked. Sally nodded yes. The nurse cut a lock of the boys hair, put it in a plastic bag and handed it to Sally. The mother said, It was Jimmys idea to donate his body to the university for study. He said it might help somebody else. I said no at first, but Jimmy said, Mom, I wont be using it after I die. Maybe it will help some other little boy spend one more day with his Mom. She went on, My Jimmy had a heart of gold. Always thinking of someone else. Always wanting to help others if he could. Sally walked out of Childrens mercy Hospital for the last time, after spending most of the last six months there. She put the bag with Jimmys belongings on the seat beside her in the car. The drive home was difficult. It was even harder to enter the empty house. She carried Jimmys belongings, and the plastic bag with the lock of his hair to her sons room. She started placing the model cars and other personal things back in his room exactly where he had always kept them. She laid down across his bed and, hugging his pillow, cried herself to sleep. It was around midnight when Sally awoke. Laying beside her on the bed was a folded letter. The letter said: Dear Mom, I know youre going to miss me; but dont think that I will ever forget you, or stop loving you, just cause Im not around to say I LOVE YOU. I will always love you, Mom, even more with each day. Someday we will see each other again. Until then, if you want to adopt a little boy so you wont be so lonely, thats okay with me. He can have my room and old stuff to play with. But, if you decide to get a girl instead, she probably wouldnt like the same things us boys do. Youll have to buy her dolls and stuff girls like, you know. Dont be sad thinking about me. This really is a neat place. Grandma and Grandpa met me as soon as I got here and showed me around some, but it will take a long time to see everything. The angels are so cool. I love to watch them fly. And, you know what? Jesus doesnt look like any of his pictures. Yet, when I saw Him, I knew it was Him. Jesus himself took me to see GOD! And guess what, Mom? I got to sit on Gods knee and talk to Him, like I was somebody important. Thats when I told Him that I wanted to write you a letter, to tell you good-bye and everything. But I already knew that wasnt allowed. Well, you know what Mom? God handed me some paper and His own personal pen to write you this letter. I think Gabriel is the name of the angel who is going to drop this letter off to you. God said for me to give you the answer to one of the questions you asked Him Where was He when I needed him? God said He was in the same place with me, as when His son Jesus was on the cross. He was right there, as He always is with all His children. Oh, by the way, Mom, no one else can see what Ive written except you. To everyone else this is just a blank piece of paper. Isnt that cool? I have to give God His pen back now. He needs it to write some more names in the Book of Life. Tonight I get to sit at the table with the God for supper. Im, sure the food will be great. Oh, I almost forgot to tell you. I dont hurt anymore. The cancer is all gone. Im glad because I couldnt stand that pain anymore and God couldnt stand to see me hurt so much, either. Thats when He sent The Angel of Mercy to come get me. The Angel said I was a Special Delivery! How about that?
Signed with Love from: God & Me.

A gift of love!
Can I see my baby? the happy new mother asked. When the bundle was nestled in her arms and she moved the fold of cloth to look upon his tiny face, she gasped. The doctor turned quickly and looked out the tall hospital window. The baby had been born without ears. Time proved that the babys hearing was perfect. It was only his appearance that was marred. When he rushed home from school one day and flung himself into his mothers arms, she sighed, knowing that his life was to be a succession of heartbreaks. He blurted out the tragedy. A boy, a big boy called me a freak. He grew up, handsome for his misfortune. A favourite with his fellow students, he might have been class president, but for that. He developed a gift, a talent for literature and music. But you might mingle with other young people, his mother reproved him, but felt a kindness in her heart. The boys father had a session with the family physician. Could nothing be done? I believe I could graft on a pair of outer ears, if they could be procured, the doctor decided. Where upon the search began for a person who would make such a sacrifice for a young man. Two years went by. Then, You are going to the hospital, Son. Mother and I have someone who will donate the ears you need. But its a secret, said the father. The operation was a brilliant success, and a new person emerged. His talents blossomed into genius, and school and college became a series of triumphs. Later he married and entered the diplomatic service. But I must know! He urged his father, Who gave so much for me? I could never do enough for him. I do not believe you could, said the father, but the agreement was that you are not to know not yet. The years kept their profound secret, but the day did come one of the darkest days that a son must endure. He stood with his father over his mothers casket. Slowly, tenderly, the father stretched forth a hand and raised the thick, reddish-brown hair to reveal that the mother had no outer ears. Mother said she was glad she never let her hair be cut, he whispered gently, and nobody ever thought Mother less beautiful, did they? Real beauty lies not in the physical appearance, but in the heart. Real treasure lies not in what that can be seen, but what that cannot be seen. Real love lies not in what is done and known, but in what that is done but not known.

Positive Thinking
Jerry was the kind of guy you love to hate. He was always in a good mood and always had something positive to say. When someone would ask him how he was doing, he would reply, If I were any better, I would be twins! He was a unique manager because he had several waiters who had followed him around from restaurant to restaurant. The reason the waiters followed Jerry was because of his attitude. He was a natural motivator. If an employee was having a bad day, Jerry was there telling the employee how to look on the positive side of the situation. Seeing this style really made me curious, so one day I went up to Jerry and asked him, I dont get it! You cant be a positive person all of the time. How do you do it? Jerry replied, Each morning I wake up and say to myself, Jerry, you have two choices today. You can choose to be in a good mood or you can choose to be in a bad mood. I choose to be in a good mood. Each time something bad happens, I can choose to be a victim or I can choose to learn from it. I choose to learn from it. Every time someone comes to me complaining, I can choose to accept their complaining or I can point out the positive side of life. I choose the positive side of life. Yeah, right, its not that easy, I protested. Yes it is, Jerry said. Life is all about choices. When you cut away all the junk, every situation is a choice. You choose how you react to situations. You choose how people will affect your mood. You choose to be in a good mood or bad mood. The bottom line: Its your choice how you live life. I reflected on what Jerry said. Soon thereafter, I left the restaurant industry to start my own business. We lost touch, but often thought about him when I made a choice about life instead of reacting to it. Several years later, I heard that Jerry did something you are never supposed to do in a restaurant business: he left the back door open one morning and was held up at gunpoint by three armed robbers. While trying to open the safe, his hand, shaking from nervousness, slipped off the combination. The robbers panicked and shot him. Luckily, Jerry was found relatively quickly and rushed to the local trauma center. After 18 hours of surgery and weeks of intensive care, Jerry was released from the hospital with fragments of the bullets still in his body. I saw Jerry about six months after the accident. When I asked him how he was, he replied, If I were any better, Id be twins. Wanna see my scars? I declined to see his wounds, but did ask him what had gone through his mind as the robbery took place. The first thing that went through my mind was that I should have locked the back door, Jerry replied. Then, as I lay on the floor, I remembered that I had two choices: I could choose to live, or I could choose to die. I chose to live. Werent you scared? Did you lose consciousness? I asked. Jerry continued, The paramedics were great. They kept telling me I was going to be fine. But when they wheeled me into the emergency room and I saw the expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses, I got really scared. In their eyes, I read, Hes a dead man. I knew I needed to take action. What did you do? I asked. Well, there was a big, burly nurse shouting questions at me, said Jerry. She asked if I was allergic to anything. Yes, I replied. The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply I took a deep breath and yelled, Bullets! Over their laughter, I told them, I am choosing to live. Operate on me as if I am alive, not dead. Jerry lived thanks to the skill of his doctors, but also because of his amazing attitude. I learned from him that every day we have the choice to live fully. Attitude, after all, is everything.