The Maverick Man Who Helped Me
A man commonly known as the Maverick Man used to be a fixture in the city I live in. He lived in a 1970's van parked in a parking lot and walked up and down the same street for 20 years. Everyone who knew him loved him and all the local businesses help him out. They allowed him shave in the mens room and the Jack in the Box would even give him free food. He spent his time helping and giving advice to everyone that he saw. One time I walked by him, crying and very upset. He saw me walking by the street and went up to me while I was waiting for the bus. I told him that a very close person in my life, had passed away and then I broke down crying. Maverick Man sat down by me and said "Little girl..do not weep for ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by bae6
- Mar 21, 2008
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Reaching Out To A Stranger
Yesterday a woman struggling with her addiction to alcohol reached out looking for help. I don't know her but felt like I crossed her path for a reason so I asked her how I could help. She said that she was tired of being drunk all of the time and it is hurting her family and small children. I have known some alcoholics close to me and admire anyone who reaches out and tries to change their path in life. She was grateful for my offer to help and told me her story. She wanted so much to break the cycle that has plagued her father, grandfather and others. I offered to send her a care package to help her as she goes through this. Her husband is in the military so he is not around to help her as much as she could use. Last night, I bought a ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by MakeSomeoneSmile
- Mar 21, 2008
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Just A Little Boost
My good-willed but completely overwhelmed sister-in-law has 2 dogs which got loose a couple of months ago and were picked up by animal control. When she bailed them out of the shelter, she was mandated to get rabies vaccinations and send proof to the city by a certain date. Typically, she let this slide until the city sent her a threatening follow up letter and began leaving notes on her door. Instead of just dealing with it, she reacted with anxiety and did nothing - not even open the letter from animal control. Of course this made her even more anxious. But no amount of encouragement or warnings my husband or I gave her seemed to be able to move her to take any action. I was afraid the city might do something drastic and create even more severe problems for someone who already could barely handle her current situation, so I finally decided to contact animal control myself and explained that I ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by falsemonkeypuzzl
- Mar 20, 2008
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On Albert Einstein
When Albert Einstein was making the rounds of the speaker's circuit, he usually found himself eagerly longing to get back to his laboratory work. One night as they were driving to yet another rubber-chicken dinner, Einstein mentioned to his chauffeur (a man who somewhat resembled Einstein in looks & manner) that he was tired of speech making. "I have and idea, boss," his chauffeur said. "I've heard you give this speech so many times. I'll bet I could give it for you." Einstein laughed loudly and said, "Why not? Let's do it!" When they arrive at the dinner, Einstein donned the chauffeur's cap and jacket and sat in the back of the room. The chauffeur gave a beautiful rendition of Einstein's speech and even answered a few questions expertly. Then a supremely pompous professor ask an extremely esoteric question about anti-matter formation, digressing here and there to let everyone in the audience know that ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by perseverance
- Mar 20, 2008
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Girl Scout Cookies Come Full Circle!
Friday afternoon I was at the grocery store when I saw two young girls selling Girl Scout cookies. I smiled and thought of who I could "tag" with some cookies. Well, to my dismay, when I opened my wallet I realized that I had just $2.50. The cookies cost $3.50 (and of course they don't take credit cards!) so I pondered my dilemma for a moment or two.
Then I knew just what to do.... I went up to the girls' mother and said "I'd really like to buy a box of cookies, but I'm a dollar short....could you take this money and tell the next person who comes to buy from you that they only owe you a dollar? I was going to give the cookies away anyway!" The mom was really happy and surprised and got the idea right away and said sure, no problem.
I wandered off to do my shopping and thought no more about it.
Well, imagine my surprise when I came home the next day and found
a box of Girl Scout cookies "gifted" to my family from a neighbor!
Pretty cool, eh?! :-)
- Posted by cabbage
- Mar 20, 2008
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Teaching Kids About Paying it Forward
A friend of ours experienced an "incident" when her friend's child was visiting. The child apologized and wrote a letter to my friend saying that he would be happy to "rake leaves, clean the house, do chores...anything to make up for the mistake". Well, my friend wrote back saying "How about instead of doing it for us, you find someone in your neighborhood--an elderly person or someone else who needs help, and you give us the gift of helping that person".
By giving the child grace and the opportunity to make a relationship with an elderly neighbor, I am sure he will learn far more than if he had been "punished" for his misdeed.
Give someone you know the opportunity to pay it forward--what a gift
that ripples all over!! :-)
- Posted by cabbage
- Mar 20, 2008
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Small Dose of Hope, Thirty Years Ago
When I was in my first year of college, I hit a stretch where every area of my life was a disaster, I felt hopeless and alone, and more depressed than I knew was possible. On one such day, I was walking from class across campus to catch my bus home, head down, fighting tears of total despair, when a guy came down the sidewalk toward me. I had never seen him before. Embarrassed at being seen in such an emotional mess, I turned my head away and hoped to hurry past. I figured he'd walk on by, but he moved until he was directly in front of me, waited until I looked up, then smiled. Looking into my eyes, this stranger spoke in a quiet voice: "Whatever is wrong will pass. You're going to be ok, just hang on." He, then, smiled again and walked away. I can't explain ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by EsTeeBee
- Mar 18, 2008
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My Chat Mate
Lately these days, I have a regular chat mate. We chat for an hour. She makes me laugh. She lessens my homesickness in this foreign land when I see her smile on the Web cam. Every time I see her lowering her head as she types the letters, I anticipate what she has to type. Just this afternoon, she learned how to use the audibles. It was an afternoon filled with fun and love.
Throughout the entire time we chat, though, I can't understand a single word. My chat mate is my dearest sister who has Downs Syndrome.
Chatting with her is the most remarkable feeling. She may not understand what I am typing on the screen and I may not understand what she's typing but I can see the way she nods and she can see the way I laugh, and deep in our hearts, we feel connected.
Always eager, we both show up for each other everyday. We try to communicate with words and typed sentences, but really, no words are even needed.
- Posted by inspiringstories
- Mar 17, 2008
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Lending A Hand To My Parents
Yesterday I went to visit and clean for my mum and stepfather. Whenever I go, I always feel like I've ironed out a few problems for them; you see, my mum is disabled and my step-dad is her carer.
Sometimes, I do there shopping on line for them -- anything I can do for them that helps to make life easier I do. Like last week, my step-dad was in a panic because he needed to take there car to the garage as the headlights were set to high and other drivers had been flashing at him, so I explained that it may be that they just needed adjusting on the dashboard and that I could do that, so off I went and sorted it. He said he never knew you could do that, and he thought he was going to have to make a special journey to the garage and that it was a weight of his mind.
Little things like this are gigantic worries for old folks and can easily be sorted. I phone them every day and they know that I am always on the other end of the phone and this gives them peace of mind ... and it makes me feel good.
- Posted by clasar
- Mar 17, 2008
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Mother And Son With Autism Going On The Road
[We have put our home on sale, to underwrite the costs of going on tour. Learn more online. --Monica ] Monica Moshenko of Clarence has her own twice-a-week radio program, a show on disabilities that has featured interviews with actors Henry Winkler and Teri Garr and Lt. Gov.-elect David A. Paterson. Not to be outdone, her son, Alex, 13, has his own radio show, "Al's Wrestling Talk," which airs live on the Internet every Saturday night. This is a high-powered tandem -- a mother who has become a passionate advocate for the disabled and a teen with a very high-functioning form of autism.The Moshenkos plan to take their radio shows on the road for the coming year, touring America in a recreational vehicle. The goal is to meet and greet people with disabilities, raise the public's awareness about the disabled -- and perhaps catch a few wrestling matches along the ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by Monica
- Mar 17, 2008
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Just One Hand
All it takes is one hand to change the world.
Three days ago, at Wal-Mart, I saw a mother holding a sleeping baby girl, she was alone and trying to get all of her groceries and things onto the sliding thing.
I noticed that it looked kind of difficult with only one hand and an entire cart! So I peeked over and asked if she needed any help. She paused for a moment and smiled, and said, "Yes, she's very tired."
So I grabbed her things and put them on the sliding thing. It really wasn't much but it felt good and I'm glad that I did it.
- Posted by alyssa
- Mar 17, 2008
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The 99 Club
Once upon a time, there lived a King who, despite his luxurious lifestyle, was neither happy nor content. One day, the King came upon a servant who was singing happily while he worked. This fascinated the King; why was he, the Supreme Ruler of the Land, unhappy and gloomy, while a lowly servant had so much joy. The King asked the servant, "Why are you so happy?" The man replied, "Your Majesty, I am nothing but a servant, but my family and I don't need too much - just a roof over our heads and warm food to fill our tummies." The king was not satisfied with that reply. Later in the day, he sought the advice of his most trusted advisor. After hearing the King's woes and the servant's story, the advisor said, "Your Majesty, I believe that the servant has not been made part of The 99 Club." "The 99 Club? And ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by warmth
- Mar 15, 2008
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On The Way To a Lottery Ticket
Like many people in this world, I was down, way down. Questioning everything. The light at the end of my tunnel was dim. I was financially, emotionally and mentally strapped. Hope was fading for relief. It seemed no matter how many steps I took forward, I was going twice as many backwards. Tension and strain filled my home. In the midst of all the hardships I was enduring, I worked harder then ever on my faith. Yet, even with my children and husband, I felt alone and hopeless. Because of my disability, I rarely leave my home. With the help of a very small disability check once a month and the Internet, I ran the house. Banking, bill paying, all household business was done on my computer. Money started to get tighter, bills started to pile. Once you get behind, it is almost impossible to catch up. The electric, water, ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by Tammymay
- Mar 14, 2008
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A Cold Night in Tennessee
Today, I handed out my first Smile Card! A man came in to the MickeyD's with a complimentary cup and asked if he could have some water. The guy at the register nods in agreement. Then he asked if they gave food to the homeless. He was a young guy, maybe 34, and I knew it was hard for him to ask for food. The guy at the register says NO! The homeless man simply says, "Ok, thank you" and went and sat down with his water. My family and I were about to leave when he, sitting in the back, started to tear up. Just sitting there looking like he was starving. And he was geninuely asking for food, not like asking for money and then buying a cigarette or something. So we gave him $10.00 and said get yourself something to eat and God bless. We handed him the ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by Nickgrand
- Mar 14, 2008
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Three Bucks In A Garage
This may seem a small thing, but to me, at the time, it meant everything. I had been downtown with a job counselor who was helping me choose an interview outfit. Part of this program, that helps people with disabilities get jobs, was a clothing voucher. So my counselor and I headed to a store, parked in the garage and got our parking stickers stamped with the time we thought we needed. Well, you put 2 women picking out clothes with a strict budget and that too, during a sale ... and what you get is "overtime". My counselor left just before me, so when I went to leave, sure enough, I had overstayed the time allowed by the stamped ticket, and owed $3.00. I had no cash with me, as I had forgotten to grab some change before leaving, and was otherwise broke and overdrawn at the bank. So while three dollar ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by akbj
- Mar 12, 2008
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Art of Holding Babies
"Carol Lee?" On our flight to New Orleans, the "Fasten Your Seat Belts" sign had just come on. Carol Lee was reading her book. She lifted her head, "What do you want to do in life?" I asked. I expected her to say she wanted to travel to Europe. Carol Lee turned to me and said, "I would like to hold babies." "Hold babies?" I was stunned. "You've got grandchildren." "I would like to work in a hospital nursery and just hold the newborns." Newborns? Her desire was one to ponder, which I did with each salty peanut I crunched. I looked out my little round window at New Orleans in the distance. Hold babies? Was she serious? A beignet at Cafe Du Monde, the French Quarter, a walk and a tour of the Garden District - joie de vivre! St. Charles Avenue and the streetcar ride; moonlight dancing aboard a Mississippi riverboat; a final ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by Rod
- Mar 12, 2008
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In Debt To Strangers
V.P. Menon was a significant political figure in India during its struggles for independence from Britain. Eldest son of twelve children, he quit school at thirteen and worked as a laborer, coal miner, factory hand, merchant, and schoolteacher. He talked his way into a job as a clerk in the Indian administration, and his rise was meteoric-- largely because of his integrity and brilliant skills in working with both Indian and British officials in a productive way. (...) Two characteristics stood out as particularly memorable -- a kind of aloof, impersonal efficiency, and a reputation for personal charity. His daughter explained the background of this latter trait after he died. When Menon arrived in Delhi to seek a job in government, all his possessions, including his money and I.D., were stolen at the railroad station. He would have to return home on foot, defeated. In desperation he turned to ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by singlestep
- Mar 9, 2008
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Small Acts, Big Impact
The other day I was having lunch with my dad. He had come up to see my husband and I for lunch.
We were in the cafe at work and my friend Ruth walked up. I introduced them and she began telling him what a great daughter he had raised. She spoke so kindly of me, and that too, with example -- she told him how I had given her a ride to work when her car broke down and how my husband got her keys out when she locked them in her car. I honestly started to get embarrassed.
We have only known each other for a few months, and it was amazing to me how things that were a small thing to do for someone meant so much to her.
That kind of gratitude is a dwindling trait in our society. It meant a lot knowing that someone appreciates kindness so much. She truly brightened my day ,and to be frank, it is probably something I will always remember.
- Posted by All4Him
- Mar 7, 2008
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The Curse of Blessings
There was an Officer of the Law, a recent graduate, proud as you can imagine, in his uniform of blue with brass buttons and gold epaulets. He wore a hat with a plume and a sword with a gold and ivory handle. He was as pompous as could be. He was arrogant and bold and callous. Every letter of the alphabet served only to demonstrate his authority and exalt his being. One day he was walking his beat and heard a commotion in an alley. He ventured into the darkness, and there in the distance saw a man in rags. "Come forward," he commanded. "Come forward now!" But the man in rags did not come forward. "I am an Officer of the Law, and I command you, come forward!" The man in rags did not move. He shifted his weight from one foot to the other and spoke, "I don't know ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by moments
- Mar 7, 2008
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Pumping Gas For An Old Lady
Not a really stupendous story, but I was really jazzed after this small act.
I'd stopped to fill up the gas tank on my pickup and noticed an older lady (in her 80s) in the next lane. She was walking with one of the canes with outriggers and seemed to be having a problem getting around.
I watched for a bit, not wanting to insult her if she was making it. I finally asked her if I could help. Got a look like, "I don't know you." Then I asked if I could carry something in to the attendant for her. She considered this for a moment and handed me $30.00 to take in.
I did, and then pumped the gas for her.
It turns out that this woman, with the prettiest brown eyes, had hurt her knee, and was trying to get to her doctor. I'm glad I was able to lend a hand.
- Posted by merv
- Mar 6, 2008
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