Give Thanks Unto The Lord ... :) Shangy! >Here are the details on our Yahoo ShangyFunList: To Subscribe send a blank email to ShangyFunList-subscribe@yahoogroups.com Group home page: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ShangyFunList or Web Site: http://www.ShangralaFamilyFun.com/ShangyFunList.html Group email address: ShangyFunList@yahoogroups.com or email me here: bcrsystems@earthlink.net =========================== >-->In The 'Shangy' News >Hot Off The 'SHANGY' Press... This one comes from our friend Betty... If you are a woman and/or love dogs you'll more then likely enjoy this one. Others should like it to pass it on to their friends just for the fun of it :) _,=.=,_ ,'=. `\___, / \ (0 | / \ ___/ | | \) P L E A S E ', _/ .--' `"`; ( P A S S [[[[]]_..,_ / .--""``\\ T H I S .' .\,,|| ( .' -""`| `""` O N |\ / __| \| .-' `\ \ _ | jgs ( .-' ) `""""""""""""` Buy A Dog? http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/buyadog.html Buy A Dog? --- ...Thanks Betty - This was a sweet one with a delicious twist! -<..>- Speaking of delicious... I've started doing my Thanksgiving meal planning as perhaps many of you have too. Like always, I have to look up how long to defrost the turkey since it has been about a year since I cooked one. .-""""-._.'| / '.| | / | / | -= | /| ( | |/`< ) ) ( ; -=| _| ) \ \ / ____ /) '._ _.-""-.< .' `\/) / / \ / _ .'`/| _ / | '-._( __\ (__/_/=, ( \| \ -=/ /--;==========` ._,;'\==='-,..__/__/__.' `'--/,/ || ' \ / | / || ' \ \/ . || ; jgs / / || | | . || | / '=------| / ' ; ; ;| `-.___.___.___.___._/ I found some good info here: Turkey Safety http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/turkey/safety.html For in-between Thanksgiving or for Christmas, I love cooking just the breast of Turkey. Usually get one of the biggest ones I can get for the family. Takes only a few hours to cook in comparison and I don't need a big roasting pan. Just throw it in a cooking bag and a couple hours later viola - a Christmas turkey fit for the King himself! Yummy. I'll be spending most of my free time now until Thanksgiving shopping, preparing, and cooking. It's always so much fun. Our Inspirations Today Center on being Thankful. Enjoy :) ===================================== >BibleStudy: __ _,--="=--,_ __ / \." .-. "./ \ / ,/ _ : : _ \/` \ \ `| /o\ :_: /o\ |\__/ `-'| :="~` _ `~"=: | \` (_) `/ _ .-"-. \ | / .-"-. _ (_'-{ }-| /,.-'-.,\ |-{ }-'_) (_.=(_)_)_)=\_/`~-===-~`\_/=(_(_(_)=._) jgs OVERCOMING NEGATIVE THINKING It has been brought up to me many years ago that you cannot think negative thoughts when you are being thankful. This is an enormous statement with impact that can change your life in a positive and victorious manner. Let us take a look at what God's Word says back in the Old Testament. PSALM 107: 1 -- O give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever. God says to give thanks to Him because He is good. You can wake up in the morning and you can be disgusted and discouraged with life or you can thank God that you are alive to live another day. We really and absolutely have a choice every day to keep God first and to be thankful or to let the world drag us down and defeat us. As soon as we wake up in the morning, we should pray and think about all the things that we have to look forward to. I know this takes some effort on our part, but it isn't really that hard to do. Let us take a look at the next verse and see what God wants us to be thankful for. Is it just for certain things? Visit Here for this Full Teaching: http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/BibleStudy/overcomenegative.html ====================================================================== >The Envelope Story Editor: by Lisa Swindler Joyce Schowalter South Carolina, USA .-. __ _ .-. | ` / \ | / '.()--\ | '._/ _| O _ O |_ =\ '-' /= In 1998, a week before Thanksgiving, '-._____.-' /`/\___/\`\ I took our 10-month-old baby /\/o o\/\ (_| |_) jgs |____,____| (____|____) daughter to the doctor for a check-up. The nurse commented how well she looked. Fifteen minutes later we were headed to the hospital emergency room. Ruth's oxygen level was below 90 and she was having difficulty breathing. It was her fourth hospitalization that year. Ruth had stopped breathing twice in six months, and was on steroids after being diagnosed as a severe asthmatic. This time they discovered that her stomach acid was going into her lungs; this along with asthma made breathing difficult for her. Five days later, two days before Thanksgiving, we were able to take her home. Her 3-year-old brother Kyle was excited to have his baby sister home; he's always been eager to help "baby Ruth". My husband Sam and I took turns giving our daughter her breathing treatments every two hours around the clock. Thanksgiving came and went despite our sheer exhaustion. Two days after Thanksgiving the smoke detector in our home went off at 5:30 am. The kitchen was in flames, the house filled with smoke. The fire department saved our home, but since the entire house had smoke damage our daughter could not live there. With our very sick 10-month-old and rambunctious 3-year-old Kyle, we moved into a motel nearby. We weren't feeling very thankful. Our real struggles had just begun. I carried the insurance for our family, so I had to work. Sam stayed in the motel with our children by day, cleaned our home by night and fought with the insurance company. They were denying the medical necessity for our daughter to be in a smoke-free environment. For over two weeks we had to pay everything out of pocket, including meals eaten out. I tried to keep my spirits up around my family, but at work it was very difficult to smile. Christmas was a week away. We didn't have the first gift for the children, we had no tree. We hoped our son wouldn't realize Christmas was coming, but no luck. Kyle played with "baby Ruth", telling her about Santa Claus and the toys he would bring her. Between living expenses and medications, Sam and I were at the bottom of the barrel in funds. Christmas looked bleak. Six days before Christmas, one of my friends at work asked me to come to the break room. She hugged me and handed me an envelope. In it was $700! My co-workers -- my friends -- knew that my family needed help. They knew I would never ask for it. At one of the lowest times in my life I was suddenly the happiest. I cried, and went around to thank everyone in the office; I put pride aside and opened up to those who cared. We were able to buy gifts for Christmas, get a Christmas tree, and pay our motel bill. By Christmas day, we were back in our home -- with a renewed faith in mankind. =======HeroicStories======= >-->From Heartwarmers: _,, _.-'` ',\ \ .-;`'(,____ \.-'\ _\-` __.-; \_.-'_.-'0 \/ / .'0 __ | /_.' .'o \ / .-. ,;--._\___/--. __./ | WAIT! Don't anybody move! .-/ \ ^_> |\ /\ \ / <;/ \ \_/ |___/__\__|` <; | |) \ o ( <; |__.\ |o \ <; \ \ / o _\ <\.)-'`| =====""` \ /\__/__/^\____.-; | | | | | / \____|\____/ |===||===| jgs __/[](_||__l[]_ / || '. \ '-----'-''-'-.__/ >THE RICHEST THANKSGIVING OF ALL It was November, 1976. I had just moved back to Jacksonville, Florida, with my three young daughters after many years away. We were struggling, and I wondered what kind of a Thanksgiving I was going to be able to have for my children. We were living in a small trailer, and I was looking for a job while trying to convince my girls, and myself, that this was all an adventure. My youngest child, Helen, was barely three years old. But from the beginning of her first lisped words, Helen seemed to have a sense of decency and wisdom way beyond her years. The children were all excited about Thanksgiving. The anticipated feast was all the girls talked about. Two days before Thanksgiving, there was a flash fire in a nearby home, and a young family lost everything. The entire community became involved in the rescue of the couple and their young daughter. Shelter was donated by a church, and it seemed that everyone was involved in the collection of food, household items, bedding and clothes. I was thankful that even I was able to spare a few things. Brigades of busy people willingly donated their time, as well as money. I was certain the tragedy was especially hard for the family this close to Thanksgiving, and I was grateful that someone was available to come to our house and pick up our donated items. Helen was very thoughtful for one so young, and I made myself a little crazy imagining what she must be thinking about the fire. Finally, on the afternoon before Thanksgiving, two lovely women came to our house to collect our donations. How I wished I had more to give, I said, as I helped carry the donations out. They reassured me that the family would be well provided for. The girls and I stood outside chatting, as the ladies climbed back into their station wagon. All of a sudden Helen shrieked, " WAIT! Don't anybody move!" She streaked into the trailer door, crying aloud, "WE FORGOT SOMETHING!" I looked apologetically at the ladies, but before I could follow her, Helen was back outside, holding onto her favorite teddy bear -- the bear that I had made for her birthday, just two months before. Helen held out the bear, her green eyes searching my face. "Mommy," Helen implored, "the little girl doesn't have any toys. She needs this bear! I have to give it to her." My heart quaked. I thought about the few toys Helen had and how many hours I had spent sewing that little bear. Now she wanted to give it away. We stood in stunned silence, the ladies staring at me. I struggled with my feelings. All the love I'd put into that bear. All the things we needed and didn't have. Surely Helen could find another toy. Then I stooped down to face Helen, who was still holding out the bear -- worry lines creasing her little forehead. I searched her little heart shaped face, my fingers brushing aside her red-gold hair. My eyes filled as I realized that my heart would never be as big as the heart pounding in that little chest. My voice broke, as I said, "Of course, Helen, you're right. We forgot the toy. How thoughtful of you to remember." Helen, grinning, handed over the beautiful bear. When the ladies drove away, I took my little girl and held her close. For she had made our Thanksgiving the richest Thanksgiving of all. -- Jaye Lewis ___________________________________________ Jaye is a Heartwarmer Gem and lives with her family in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains of southwestern Virginia. Jaye says, "This is a true story about my daughter, Helen, who is now 28 years old. Helen is studying to be an engineer. She still has red-gold hair and green eyes, and she is still one of the most remarkable people I've ever known." -<>- >MRS. MITCHELL'S WARM THANKSGIVING ) ( ___ .-'_ =\ jgs c=<___\-_) ~~~~~~~~~~~~ by Diane Dean White "Mom," our youngest son said, "did you notice Mrs. Mitchell sitting in church today? She was blowing into her handkerchief and wiping her eyes." Our daughter said she thought it must be because her son had just passed away. I was stunned. My husband and I looked at one another and asked how she knew about this -- we hadn't heard a thing! We knew about her son, but only that he had been wounded in the war and didn't live in the area. "I guess she hasn't seen him for a while. He lived some place in another state and I only knew about it because Rene's dad was helping her with the burial arrangements," our daughter said. I thought about the prayer chain that was used for everything from an illness with a newborn to someone who had been diagnosed with cancer and yet nobody had shared a thing about Mrs. Mitchell and her son. As the meal ended my husband said he would call Rene's dad and talk with him. I knew Mrs. Mitchell wouldn't be at the evening service that night, she hardly ever ventured out after dark, but something was telling me I should stop by to see her. My husband agreed. He said his telephone conversation had assured him that her son had been in and out of the hospital a number of times and last week Mrs. Mitchell received a call from the authorities that he had fought his last battle. "Oh dear, I exclaimed! How could she handle this alone? I'm going over to see her right now," I told my husband as I reached for my keys, purse and coat "I'll take some of these brownies and tell her I was thinking of her and just wanted to stop by." The snow was still coming down as I rang the front door bell of the old Victorian house on Main Street. Mrs. Mitchell had been widowed for over ten years, and yet she was a sweet and loving lady, always ready to help out when she could. "Hello dear," a smile appeared on the kindly wrinkled older face. "What on earth are you doing out on this cold night?" She ushering me into the foyer. "I was thinking about you today and one of the boys said he saw you in church and thought you might have a cold. I just wanted to bring some brownies by to see how you were feeling," I gently said. She invited me in for some hot tea and we talked about some of the coming church functions and then she said she'd like to share something with me. I prepared myself to listen to a mother's heart as she bravely spoke. Her son had been a Vietnam veteran and was battling some type of disease and emotional problems from his years during the war. He was in and out of the VA Hospital in the state where he resided. She had sent him a card inviting him to have Thanksgiving and Christmas with her, as she was all alone. Then she received the call from the hospital about his death. She knew she couldn't make the trip, so she and Rene's father made the arrangements with the Veterans Administration. She said he had been to see her a few months ago and they spoke on the telephone often. His battle had been a hard one and she remembered their last conversation and how he looked when he had been home. She would carry that memory of him in her heart. He would be laid to rest next to her late husband. "I'm so very sorry, Mrs. Mitchell. I only wish you had told us. We would have been over to help you in anyway we could." I felt it seemed like such a weak thing to say in view of the situation. "I do want you to plan to be with us on Thanksgiving, this Thursday, please plan to come. I don't want you to be alone at this special time of year." "You know," the silver haired lady smiled happily, "I would love it if you and your family would be my guest and come over and have dinner with me on Thursday. When my husband was alive we used to have several families from the area share that day with us and I would enjoy thinking about the dinner, making pies, salads, cakes and the turkey. Will you say 'yes', it would make me so happy." She was practically gleaming with excitement. I could see her mind was reliving memories that were special to her. "Well, we have invited a new family from the church to come to our house for dinner, but I know they'd enjoy sharing the day with you too, and we certainly would, but are you sure you're up to this crowd?" I was thoughtful of her doing too much. "Of course I am! I've entertained all my life, and will enjoy doing this too. And it will give me something happy to think about. Actually, I'll be 'thankful' to you for joining me on Thanksgiving." After talking a few minutes more I wished her goodnight and told her I'd be in touch. When I arrived home and told the children about going to Mrs. Mitchell's for Thanksgiving dinner, they were all happy. Our oldest son said she had a great hill for sledding and our daughter loved her big old house and Mrs. Mitchell was like a grandmother, she said. Later that evening as my husband and I were talking, I said it would be different not to get up early in the morning and put a turkey in the oven, but how Mrs. Mitchell had actually said she would be "thankful" if she could host the dinner at her home. I was grateful that at a sad time in someone's life having a crowd for Thanksgiving dinner would help. Even in the cold snowy weather I felt the warmth from an older woman who in the face of loss, was reaching out to share with others. -- Diane Dean White ____________________________________________ Diane is a newspaper columnist and freelance writer. She is the author of Beach Walks and Carolina in the Morning. She and her husband Stephen are the parents of three grown children and three grand-gals and reside on the Carolina Coast. Diane is the Editor of HeartCatchers, a weekly mailing, and you can visit her website at http://www.DianeDeanWhite.com ____________________________________________ >i Am Thankful _ _ /` \/ `\_ _ \ /` \/ `\ '. .\ / Thank You! \/ '. .' jgs \/ I am thankful for the wife who says, "Hot dogs for supper!" Because she is home with me, not someone else. I am thankful for the husband who is on the sofa being a couch potato Because he is home with me and not out at the bars. I am thankful for the teenager who is complaining about doing dishes Because she is at home and not out on the streets. I am thankful for the taxes I pay Because it means I am employed. I am thankful for the mess to clean after a party Because it means I have been surrounded by friends. I am thankful for the clothes that fit a little too snug Because it means I have enough to eat. I am thankful for my shadow that watches me work Because it means I am out in the sunshine. I am thankful for a lawn to mow, windows to clean and gutters to fix Because it means I have a home. I am thankful for the complaining I hear about the government Because it means we have freedom of speech. I am thankful for the parking spot I find at the far end of the parking lot Because it means I am able to walk and I have been blessed with transportation. I am thankful for my huge heating bill Because it means I am warm. I am thankful for the pile of laundry and ironing Because it means I have clothes to wear. I am thankful for weariness and aching muscles at the end of the day Because it means I have been able to work. I am thankful for the alarm that rings early in the morning hours Because it means I am alive. ======================================================================== >-->From ReadersDigest: .="=. _/.-.-.\_ _ ( ( o o ) ) )) |/ " \| // \'---'/ // jgs /`"""`\\ (( Best Helping Hands / /_,_\ \\ \\ \_\\_'__/ \ )) /` /`~\ |// / / \ / ,--`,--'\/\ / '-- "--' '--' Craig Cook is a 41-year-old quadriplegic, and Minnie is a 5-pound, 15-inch-high capuchin monkey. In 1996, Cook�s life as he knew it came to an end when a car accident left him paralyzed from the neck down. His fianc�e and her child left him, and he lost his job and the comfortable lifestyle to which he had grown accustomed. Thanks to a program called Helping Hands, Cook was paired up with Minnie, a monkey companion who helps him with daily tasks. She also helped him beat his depression and meet his girlfriend of nearly a year. Says Cook, �Once Minnie arrived, I never looked back.� Visit Here to Read the full story: http://www.rd.com/content/a-capuchin-monkey-helps-a-quadriplegic/ ==================================================================== >-->From BarefootLass: ,;, #(|)# #|||# ||| ||| ||| _|||_ .' ||| '. / ||| \ | ||| | On Nov. 18, 1995, Itzhak Perlman |_ ||| _| ,_)=|||=(_, the violinist, came on stage to give a ) ||| ( / ||| \ | ||| | jgs | \~~~/ | \ \ / / `-.__Y__.-' concert at Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center in New York City. If you have ever been to a Perlman concert, you know that getting on stage is no small achievement for him. He was stricken with polio as a child, and so he has braces on both legs and walks with the aid of two crutches. To see him walk across the stage one step at a time, painfully and slowly, is an awesome sight. He walks painfully, yet majestically, until he reaches his chair. Then he sits down, slowly, puts his crutches on the floor, undoes the clasps on his legs, tucks one foot back and extends the other foot forward. Then he bends down and picks up the violin, puts it under his chin, nods to the conductor and proceeds to play. By now, the audience is used to this ritual. They sit quietly while he makes his way across the stage to his chair. They remain reverently silent while he undoes the clasps on his legs. They wait until he is ready to play. But this time, something went wrong. Just as he finished the first few bars, one of the strings on his violin broke. You could hear it snap -- it went off like gunfire across the room. There was no mistaking what that sound meant. There was no mistaking what he had to do. People who were there that night thought to themselves: "We figured that he would have to get up, put on the clasps again, pick up the crutches and limp his way off stage to either find another violin or else find another string for this one." Visit here to read the full story: http://members.tripod.com/~Barefoot_Lass/story.html ===================================================================== >-->From InspiredBuffalo: | \ / _\/_ .-'-. //o\ _\/_ _ ___ __ _ --_ / \ _--_ __ __ _ | __/o\\ _ =-=-_=-=-_=-=_=-_= -=======- = =-=_=-=_,-'|"'""-|-,_ =- _=-=-_=- _=-= _--=====- _=-=_-_,-" | jgs=- =- =-= =- = - -===- -= - ." >LITTLE MIRACLES By: Joseph J. Mazzella It had been a week of heavy frosts in the evenings here. The frozen nights had just about killed off the grass and most of the flowers were gone as well. The bitter, morning air was a reminder that Fall was almost over and that Winter was just around the corner. I noticed too as I walked my dogs on that cold afternoon that the trees in the woods were getting as bare as the top of my head. It seemed like it November's gloom was everywhere. It was then, however, that I saw it. A single yellow butterfly was floating in the breeze and feasting on the few remaining dandelions left in my yard. It was a little miracle that filled my soul with delight. I smiled and thanked God for this message of joy and for all the little miracles in this world. So many people in this life pray for big miracles but fail to notice the little miracles that are all around them. Every sunrise and sunset is a little miracle. Every flower that blooms and leaf that changes is one as well. I have seen little miracles in the loving hearts and beautiful smiles of handicapped children. I have seen them in the shopping carts of people living paycheck to paycheck, who still buy something extra to donate to the local food drive. I have seen them in my community where every car that breaks down will have three others stop to help. I have seen them in the lives of my friends as well. There is my wheelchair bound friend who spends hours each day sending out inspirational messages on the internet. There is my teacher friend who lost first her sight and then her job but now dedicates her life to volunteer work and bringing joy to people who are homebound. There are so many others too whose lives are daily miracles of love. The best thing about little miracles, though, is not that they are all around you but that you can be one yourself. You can share love, spread joy, and help others so much. Remember God made you, God loves you, and God gave you this life. Live it like the miracle you are. -<>- >Live A Life That Matters .0. / \ ; \_/ ; | | | | | | _______; ;_______ `======='\ /`=======` \ / _ | | _ _( \____|=|____/ )_ ( .---. .---. ) `-' / \ '-' / HUG \ ; ; | .---.|__, jgs : / :--' .--\ \ | `" `"".-' < =""` `"== `""""""` =""` `"""===="""` =""` `""==="""` Ready or not, some day it will all come to an end. There will be no more sunrises, no minutes, hours or days. All the things you collected, whether treasured or forgotten, will pass to someone else. Your wealth, fame and temporal power will shrivel to irrelevance. It will not matter what you owned or what you were owed. Your grudges, resentments, frustrations, and jealousies will finally disappear. So, too, your hopes, ambitions, plans, and to-do lists will expire. The wins and losses that once seemed so important will fade away. It won't matter where you came from, or on what side of the tracks you lived, at the end. It won't matter whether you were beautiful or brilliant. Even your gender and skin color will be irrelevant. .'| () .-' | / .-} /.-} | .-} / |_| ( |_|-.| |_|/\ (_), \(_) (_) / | \X\ | \\ | \/ What Will matter? |\_/\\_ |\_/ |\_\ |:| \/ |:| \:\ |:| |:| |\:| j|:| |:| ||:| ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ How will the value of your days be measured? What will matter is not what you bought, but what you built; not what you got, but what you gave. What will matter is not your success, but your significance. What will matter is not what you learned, but what you taught. What will matter is every act of integrity, compassion, courage or sacrifice that enriched, empowered or encouraged others to emulate your example. What will matter is not your competence, but your character. What will matter is not how many people you knew, but how many will feel a lasting loss when you're gone. What will matter is not your memories, but the memories that live in those who loved you. What will matter is how long you will be remembered, by whom and for what. Living a life that matters doesn't happen by accident. It's not a matter of circumstance but of choice. Choose to live a life that matters. --Author Unknown -<,,>- >Beauty of Our Friendship _ _ (,\- )_ /` b `-D | ,__/ \,_____,' / \ /_|--|___|\ / \ \ |\_) / _'-' / | / \ / \| |` \__ | /_\ ___) jgs (____) Friendship is a Priceless Gift That cannot be bought or sold, But its value is far greater Than a mountain made of Gold. For gold is cold and lifeless, It can neither see nor hear And in the time of trouble It is powerless to cheer-- It has no ears to listen Nor heart to understand, It cannot bring you comfort Or reach out a helping hand So when you ask God for a gift be thankful if HE sends Not diamonds, pearls or riches But The Love of Real True Friends. --Helen Steiner-Rice -<,,>- _..----...__ .-" `"-. | | |__.==========.____| | | .======. | | ____ | | | | | | _.-' ""--.._ |__| '======' |___ | .' '-. _.-'`` '==========' ``""'--.._ / \' '. / ,,,,,,,,, |._.,,;;;''''''''';;;;;;;;;, | ; .;;;;;;;;;;;\ | ,;;;;;| .) .) `;;;;;;;;, / | /;;;;;;;;;;;;;;| ;;;;;/ (_ ';;;;;;;-'` | /;;;;;;;;;;;;;;|| ;;;;;| `;;;;;; | |;;;;''' '/| ';;;;\ '----' ;;;;;' | |;;;' (' (' \\ `''''`---.___.- __;;''` ; |;;' _) \`) |~\ .-' '---'` ``"-. \ |;;;, .___. |/ / \_/__ _/\ _..,/`\ '-._ \"` `-' .'--"----"; `; '-..-/ \| `;;,--`-._____...-' ; ; ; `; \| || >A SIMPLE SMILE By: Joseph J. Mazzella I went in to take a shower the other evening after a long and busy day. I glanced at myself in the mirror before getting in the shower and noticed a long, frowning face staring back at me. The furrowed brow and down turned lips made it seem older than my thirty seven years on this Earth would suggest. I felt even more tired looking at myself like that, so I decided to try a little experiment: I smiled. The effect was amazing. Almost instantly a bunch of wrinkles appeared around my eyes and in my cheeks, but instead of making me look older they made me look young, happy, alive, and energetic. The furrowed brow above my eyes disappeared and my eyes sparkled with a new light. I felt vital, joyous, and full of love and oneness with God once again. I was no longer tired and I even sang in the shower. And it was all due to a simple smile. The great psychologist William James wrote that we do not smile because we are happy, but rather we are happy because we smile. This is so true. God loves us so much and wants us to be happy, full of love, and joyous in our lives. God, however, will not force us to do what we don't want to do. If we want to be happy we have to smile and choose happiness everyday. If we want to be full of love we have to invite God's love into our hearts and souls and then share it with others. If we want to be joyous in our lives then we have to find the joy within ourselves and then give it to the world. Take responsibility for your life then. Choose your happiness, share your love, and give your joy to others today. Know that joy begets more joy, love begets more love, and smiles beget more smiles. We are all journeying down the same road in this life, so why don't we make the trip with a loving heart, a joyous soul, and a smiling face. -<,,>- >Links for Your Enjoyment Where God Wants Me http://www.buffalosjokes.com/12348.htm Beer Commercial http://buffalosjokes.com/112434.htm Say Your Sorry http://buffalosjokes.com/112435.htm The Son-in-Law http://www.buffalosjokes.com/112451.htm Being Fat Can Be Handy http://buffalosjokes.com/112452.htm Don't Quit http://www.inspiredbuffalo.com/buffalo/dontquit.html Parent Reflections http://www.inspiredbuffalo.com/buffalo/parents.html Staying Safe In This World http://www.inspiredbuffalo.com/buffalo/stayingsafe.html TO Subscribe send a blank email to: the-inspired-buffalo-subscribe@yahoogroups.com ============================================================= >-->THE THANKFUL BOX @%@%@%@%@%@%@ * THANKFUL * * BOX! * jgs @%@%@%@%@%@%@ It's just a little box that we use at this time each year, But what is in that little box will always bring a tear. It's something that we do each year for all to benefit, Everyone has placed a little note inside of it. We all named it our "thankful box" and what the notes will say, Are all the things we're thankful for on this Thanksgiving Day. One of us will read the notes as we all sit around, And slowly read what each note says and what we've written down. We do not sign the little notes or put our names on it, But as the little notes are read we know just who they fit. Sometimes the notes are thankful for a loving mom and dad, Sometimes the notes are thankful for a victory that they had. Sometimes the notes are thankful for a husband or a wife, Sometimes the notes are thankful for a new start with their life. A new one in the family will draw a note or two, Especially if the stork has brought it to our family new. Each year we read the little notes and then we laugh and cry, Realizing that this year has almost passed us by. The year is drawing to a close and there has been some change, Some thankful things are near to us but some are out of range. This year as we read the notes they seemed to ring out clear, We didn't take for granted many things we had this year. Some things that were read from the notes we never heard before, It seemed we took them all for granted until this new war. Thankful for our freedom... yes, the words now come alive. Thankful for our way of life and not just to survive. Thankful that we have a home with friends and family, Living free and just enjoying all that we can see. Having laws and government that still protect our rights, Having those in charge so we sleep peaceful through our nights. Yes, this year has made our thankful box more meaningful, But the last note found inside our box made life seem beautiful. Scribbled in a crayon were some printed words in blue, We knew one of the kids had done it, which one, no one knew. They always needed help to write, so this was very odd, It was just a simple message that spelled out, _..._ .~ `~. / } \ _.'`~~/ {_,} -( "Thank You God." ,'-,___.' / |_ /| / ` |_/ / \ / / '--;_ _\ `\ / |`-.___. / ^^^jgs^^^`--`------'`--`^^^^^^^^^^^^^ -- James "PoppyK" Kisner =================================== Happy moments, praise God. Difficult moments, seek God. Quiet moments, worship God. Painful moments, trust God. Every moment, thank God. ---> Visit my CyberHome - ALWAYS OPEN HOOUSE :)Shangy! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ http://www.ShangralaFamilyFun.com/index.html Shangrala ------------------------------------------------------------------------ -->Bigham's Computer Rescue - PC Sales && Service You can trust us to provide you with quality computer sales and repair. We've been servicing the Van Wert area since 1981 and can help you with all your computer needs. 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