Humor 2/17/98: Instructions For Life

Hey,

I hope you had a good long President's Day / Valentine's Day weekend. I
had a great time in a tiny town in New Hampshire with friends from my
small group. Although the weather was quite cold, it was already very
clear. At night, we could see many stars and constellations. We did a
variety of fun things the whole weekend, but one of my favorites was
walking through the snow covered woods. We only did this very briefly
because it was so cold and we were not properly dressed for it.

Anyway, this week's email comes to us from Cindy Fong. I think most of
them are very valuable. Sorry if you've already received it. The
second part comes from the Chicken Soup for the Soul series. Enjoy!

-Josh.
_______________________________________

Instructions For Life

1. Give people more than they expect and do it cheerfully.
2. Memorize your favorite poem.
3. Don't believe all you hear, spend all you have or sleep all you
want.
4. When you say, "I love you", mean it.
5. When you say, "I'm sorry", look the person in the eye.
6. Be engaged at least six months before you get married.
7. Believe in love at first sight.
8. Never laugh at anyone's dreams.
9. Love deeply and passionately. You might get hurt but it's the only
way to live life completely.
10. In disagreements, fight fairly. No name calling.
11. Don't judge people by their relatives.
12. Talk slow but think quick.
13. When someone asks you a question you don't want to answer, smile and
ask, "Why do you want to know?".
14. Remember that great love and great achievements involve great risk.

15. Call your mom.
16. Say "bless you" when you hear someone sneeze.
17. When you lose, don't lose the lesson.
18. Remember the three R's: Respect for self; Respect for others;
Responsibility for all your actions.
19. Don't let a little dispute injure a great friendship.
20. When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps to
correct it.
21. Smile when picking up the phone. The caller will hear it in your
voice.
22. Marry a man you love to talk to. As you get older, his
conversational skills will be as important as any other.
23. Spend some time alone.
24. Open your arms to change, but don't let go of your values.
25. Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.
26. Read more books and watch less TV.
27. Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think
back, you'll get to enjoy it a second time.
28. Trust in God but lock your car.
29. A loving atmosphere in your home is so important. Do all you can to
create a tranquil harmonious home.
30. In disagreements with loved ones, deal with the current situation.
Don't bring up the past.
31. Read between the lines.
32. Share your knowledge. It's a way to achieve immortality.
33. Be gentle with the earth.
34. Pray -- there's immeasurable power in it.
35. Never interrupt when you are being flattered.
36. Mind your own business.
37. Don't trust a man who doesn't close his eyes when you kiss him.
38. Once a year, go someplace you've never been before.
39. If you make a lot of money, put it to use helping others while you
are living. That is wealth's greatest satisfaction.
40. Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a stroke of
luck.
41. Learn the rules then break some.
42. Remember that the best relationship is one where your love for each
other is greater than your need for each other.
43. Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.
44. Remember that your character is your destiny.
45. Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon.
____________________________________________

Passing the Test

It was 5:30a.m. in May of 1947. I was eating a bowl of cold cereal and a
slice of toast in the parsonage kitchen in a little
town 20 miles east of Des Moines, Iowa. All night I had been wrestling
with and praying about a dilemma. I still owed $50 on
my tuition at Drake University and today began the finals for my senior
year. Rules of the business office stated that all tuition
and fees must be paid before prospective graduates would be allowed to
take their final exams. Dare I write a "hot" check? Where would I get
the money to cover it?

My wife and I had married in my freshman year and by the end of my
sophomore year our first child was born. Now we had two boys and my wife
had undergone surgery the past summer. As student pastor in this
small-town church we were privileged to live in the parsonage and
receive a small salary. To supplement our income I had worked after
school hours and Saturdays at the Des Moines Register and Tribune. Now I
was so close to the end of the struggle - but yet so far.

Just then the phone rang. It was Ed, the church treasurer. "I hated to
call at this early hour, but last night I got to thinkin'. We've been
takin' up a little collection among the members to give to you at the
time of your graduation, and I got to thinkin' maybe you needed that
now, and knowin' you go into class early I thought I'd better call."

My heart leaped. "Ed," I said, "you've been thinking right and you must
be an answer to my prayer. Do I ever need it now! I
still have a tuition payment that has to be in before I start taking
finals today."

"Well, I'll be right over." Ed was soon at my door. I thanked him for
the envelope he handed me and stepped into my car
to head to the university. As I pulled out onto the street, I opened the
envelope and looked inside at the assortment of bills. When I counted
them, it was exactly $50!

By N. Gayle Fischer
from A Cup of Chicken Soup for the Soul
Copyright 1996 by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen & Barry Spilchuk