This Magic Moment... :) Shangy! >Here are the details on our Yahoo ShangyFunList: To Subscribe send a blank email to ShangyFunList-subscribe@yahoogroups.com To UnSubscribe send a blank email to ShangyFunList-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com Group home page: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ShangyFunList Through no fault of my own we suddenly became an adult club in the love and romance directory so you will have to confirm that you are an adult when you go here. I still have no idea how to change this back as it sends me around in a circle when I try! or Web Site: http://www.ShangralaFamilyFun.com/ShangyFunList.html Group email address: ShangyFunList@yahoogroups.com or email me here: bcrsystems@earthlink.net ================ *~* A REMINDER: PLEASE Send me sweet, interesting, funny, inspiring, family type forwards ANY TIME here... bcrsystems@earthlink.net I Need them, Love them, Use them, and Share them! THANK YOU!! AND For Facebook Users: Please Friend Me / Like Me here... http://tinyurl.com/cma6all ^~^ May God SUPER BLESS You As You Do! THANK YOU! ================ >-->In The 'Shangy' Updates... I'm STILL on a mission! I need to modernize the Animated Gallery by consolidating categories that have 50 or more animations in them into a single page. I worked hard and completed 2 more animation pages! __ ",'. ",\ / Y , _,'--.\ \_-( ;--(/\ ) \'. )6,6 /) \ \_ \ _, |_ ', '--/'---'- /_/'-._ '-'-L._ -|/ /-._ / | |-~'--._'-._/(, ,_/> / ''--~ /\<_ _/ // "-'-'\ ,~-. ._ ) / \_/ '\ / / \ | / /` _\ | ( ,/ _.-' __.' / / [((---' / / ) ) / / \/ K=/ snd / _> )_/ We now have a PETER PAN And a TINKERBELL Page you can access off their main Directory here: Animated Gallery P-T http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/agifs_p-t.html -<>- |\ || \ | | | /.,, / ( / \ ( \ \ \_\__ .' '--._ ,__,-., / _";__( ,__._7 / ) \_ Y,=; \d ( _.' ~/ 6, '-, \___ ; ( _,-. Y) (C(/\. ) /I-._\(_'-' \_\_,-,_ /,,/ '-7) \ |"\_ \ ` \ _\ \_ \___ (` \_ '.<,_))) snd `-\,))) *~* We Had A Fabulous Month Of Caring And Sharing Last Month! PLEASE CHECK These Out And SHARE Them With All Your Friends :) Useless Signs! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/uselesssigns.html Fire Tornado! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/firetornado.html Frost Flowers! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/frostflowers.html Kilroy Was Here! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/kilroywashere.html Bobcat On Cactus! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/bobcatoncactus.html Extreme Dog Grooming! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/doggrooming.html Beauty Mushrooms! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/mushrooms.html Diddi 3D Drawings! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/diddidrawings.html Montreal Show! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/montrealshow.html Nanny Animals 3! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/nannyanimals3.html _ ______ / `'. ,-"` '. / /'-.'. ___ .' \ \/ '.\.' ' | .| .'`\ | /`"'--., / \ , _.--'` \/_ | ,----.| _ `_--;` ``` `\-. | | \ | -- C -- _/ \ \ | \ 0 0 / . | | \| ) | '. _.' |.__/ ; \ `'---` / / __ '. .' | (__) /'-._____,-` \ /---'.-""-.\ '. / ||,- \\ ;---`;-._||-= |\ , ."""-. \ ) `|'.___.' \ ___ \'. / '-. \ /`-`-; / \ ,/ `) \ \| \ `` | | \|| / /'.| )_ / || | | \/ .' \ \ .-'/ ` |` |.-' .-~ ~-~-._ |.'` \ ` '-. \___/,__/ ~` _ `~~-., `-.,_\_)`-.,_\) `~-,___ ~___~,,..-~~/ jgs \___/`\____/'._.' *~* GOD'S MOST ABUNDANT BLESSINGS TO ALL OUR CONTRIBUTORS! THANK YOU! =========================================================== >-->From Heartwarmers: _____ .---...-. ,' -. `. ,' _____...' / - _ - \ : .' _ _ \\ : ' _)' : | :-(_).(_):: (_ ;) | | -' || \ _ / ; | _ || `..___..' `-'..____.'`' ;._: _; :_ / \ SSt ,' `' `. SSt >SISSY BOYS by Roger Dean Kiser As we kids left the dining room at the orphanage, my friend David "Freddie" Hutchins came running up to me. "Roger, I got something I want to show you!" "What is it?" I asked him. "Can't show you until tonight. However, you have to cross your heart that you will never tell anyone. NEVER, ok?" "Ok." I waited all the way until bedtime but David never came to see me. "Roger, wake up." David was shaking me awake. "What are you doing, David?" "Come with me. I want to show you something important," he told me. On my tiptoes, I followed David down the hallway. Down the backstairs we went until we reached the door next to the telephone room. Very carefully he unlocked the door, and outside we went. We made our way over to a fifteen-foot tree that we boys always called, The Christmas Tree. David got down on his knees and began to dig. Within a minute or two he retrieved a small tin box that he had buried. He sat down on the ground and pried off the lid. Then he took out the contents of the box. "Gosh! That's only for girls," I told him. "I know. But it's something for us to do." What David said was true. We had no toys and there was nothing for us kids to do, except work all the time. Every day was spent raking the large grounds of the orphanage. That, together with cleaning toilets, and washing pots and pans, was all we had to do. Almost every night David and I would sneak out of the building and dig up the small tin box. We would play with the contents for about an hour. Each time David would remind me we could never tell anyone about what we were doing. David and I were about thirteen or fourteen when the orphanage sent us off to the Florida Boys Reform School, at Marianna. When we arrived at the school, we were sent to the main office where we sat for almost an hour. David and I were both scared and said not a word to anyone. "OK, you two follow me over to Mr. Curry's Office," said a large man who only had one arm. "Who's Mr. Curry?" David asked the man. "Curry is the school psychologist. He will make the decision on where you boys will be assigned." We entered a small building, and were instructed to stand with our noses in the corner. About ten minutes later we were taken into Mr. Curry's office. Sitting at a large wooden desk was a balding, heavy-set man in his fifties. He was one mean looking man. He had big bushy eyebrows and eyes that stuck out from their sockets. David and I just sat there staring at him. "You aren't sissy boys, are you?" asked Mr. Curry. We sat there looking at one another, wondering what the heck he was talking about. Neither one of us said anything. "Sissy boys! Sissy boys!" he repeated in a gruff voice. Still, we just sat there staring at him. He swung around in his big wooden chair and then he sat forward. He picked up a pencil off his desk and pointed it directly at us. "Have either one of you two ever worn girl's clothing, like panties, bra, anything like that?" he asked, as he raised his eyebrows again. "I rode a girl's bicycle one time," I told him. "I won't count that," he responded. All at once, Mr. Curry got up from his desk and he walked out into the outer office. I looked over at David and said, "What about that tin box?" "You keep your mouth shut about that box," he said, as he shook his balled up fist at me. "But that would be telling a lie," I told him. "You promised. Remember?" He was still shaking his fist at me. Within an hour our interview was complete. David was assigned to cottage one, Washington Cottage, and I was assigned to cottage twelve. Cottage twelve was for children who were in need of further psychological evaluation. Ten months later David was released and returned to Jacksonville, Florida. Several months later, I was released. It was almost forty years before he and I saw one another again. David had gone on to become a police officer, and later a private investigator. As for me, I had made my way to jail and then on to prison. After we finally met again, it was less than a year before David developed cancer. The day before he died, I was standing beside his bed at the hospital. "Roger, I know that I am not going to make it much longer," he said to me. I reached down and took his hand. I did not say a word. "Do you remember that tin box at the orphanage?" he asked. "I remember Mr. Curry at the reform school," I told him. David smiled. "I wonder if that tin box was ever found," he said. "Don't know. But it sure was nice to have something to do once in a while." The next day David died. Several days after his funeral I drove to Jacksonville and once again entered the orphanage grounds. I parked in front of our old dormitory building. I looked around and did not see The Christmas Tree, which had once stood at the end of the cement walkway. I walked over to where it had once been and found the ground was flat and hard. It was hard to tell for sure where it had been. Yes, I will forever remember David and I sneaking out almost every night for nearly two years. We would dig down into the ground about six or eight inches, and retrieve the small tin box. Once the lid had been forced off we would take out the long slender rope, with its two red handles, and we would take turns jumping rope. As I look back at how our lives turned out, it was probably best that we did not say anything to Mr. Curry about jumping rope together. After all, I cannot think of anything more ridiculous than an ex-cop and an ex-con jumping rope together. -- Roger Kiser ___________________________________________ Roger is a Heartwarmer Gem and one of our most beloved and renowned contributors. You can learn more about Roger's fascinating life by visiting his website at: http://www.rogerdeankiser.com ========================================================== >-->From Our Friend Bunni :) .------------------------. | PSYCHIATRIC | | HELP 5˘ | |________________________| || .-"""--. || || / \.-. || || | ._, \ || || \_/`-' '-.,_/ || || (_ (' _)') \ || || /| |\ || || | \ __ / | || || \_).,_____,/}/ || __||____;_--'___'/ ( || |\ || (__,\\ \_/------|| ||\||______________________|| |||| | |||| THE DOCTOR | \||| IS [IN] _____| \|| (______) jgs `|___________________//||\\ //=||=\\ >What Are We Expecting? (Author Unknown) A young man was getting ready to graduate from college. For many months he had admired a beautiful sports car in a dealer's showroom, and knowing his father could well afford it, he told him that was all he wanted. As Graduation Day approached, the young man awaited signs that his father had purchased the car. Finally, on the morning of his graduation, his father called him into his private study. His father told him how proud he was to have such a fine son, and told him how much he loved him. He handed his son a beautifully wrapped gift box. Curious, and somewhat disappointed, the young man opened the box and found a lovely, leather-bound Bible, with the young man's name embossed in gold. Angry, he rose his voice to his father and said "with all your money you give me a Bible?" and stormed out of the house. Many years passed and the young man was very successful in business. He had a beautiful home and wonderful family, but realized his father was very old, and thought perhaps he should go to him. He had not seen him since that graduation day. Before he could make arrangements, he received a telegram telling him his father had passed away, and willed all of his possessions to his son. He needed to come home immediately and take care of things. When he arrived at his father's house, sudden sadness and regret filled his heart. He began to search through his father's important papers and saw the still new Bible, just as he had left it years ago. With tears, he opened the Bible and began to turn the pages. His father had carefully underlined a verse, Matt. 7:11, "And if ye, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Heavenly Father which is in Heaven, give to those who ask Him?" As he read those words, a car key dropped from the back of the Bible. It had a tag with the dealer's name, the same dealer who had the sports car he had desired. On the tag was the date of his graduation, and the words PAID IN FULL. How many times do we miss God's blessings because they are not packaged as we expected? --- ...Great classic! Thanks Bunni! -<>- ,--.,-"";-"-. .-;-/ / / .- `\ .-. ` ( ' ' ` ; `\/ \ "For God So Loved The World..." \ / \ / (. C . ) | .-. | | _ / (` / | \ /}| | )(\ | `-> (____.| / ||| / \=====| | |\| | |====| \ _/ ` \__/=====| |` `-'======| \ |=======/ | |=======| | .--, ########\ |/ / jgs |_|__|| ` `--. ,---;-'--'\ `--. `---`-------'-.___,___.---' >Scriptures: God's glory doesn't just reflect Him. It is the way He makes Himself known or shows Himself mightly. He wants to reveal Himself to us. God's glory is the way He shows us who He is. Read Isaiah 43:6-7 Surrender your HURT to Him without holding nothing and invite Him to work miracles from your misery. Be patient and get to know Him through the process of healing. Read Jeremiah 33:9 The only thing you and I could NOT survive is the loss of the Love of God, and that is a loss we will NEVER have to lose. His love endures forever. That's what is meant when the Bible says that "perfect love drives out fear." Read 1 John 4:18 Perhaps you are loved by someone who is not very demonstrative. Many people have difficulty showing affection but remember that God is not one of them. Read Psalms 86:5 Because God is Love, He cannot keep from showing it. He loves us through blessing, answered prayer, loving chastizement, constant care, and many many more ways. Read Psalms 86:5 The Word of God uncovers the answer to our greatest phychological, emotional need, and puts it into a capsule phrase for us: Our need for "unfailing love." Read Proverbs 19:22 The better we know God, the more we trust Him. The more we trust Him, the more we sense His peace when the wintry winds blow against us and the world offers us nothing to fight back with. Read Micah 4:2 Every great company or brand or career, has been built in exactly the same way ---- bit by bit, step by step little by little. Read 1 Corinthians 12:11 (When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child but when I became a man, I put away childish things.) Ask Jesus Christ to come into your heart to forgive you and help you. When you do, Christ will take up residence in your life by His holy spirit and when you face temptations and trials you will no longer face them alone. Read 1 Peter 5:6-7 (Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, so that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, because he cares about you.) When you place your faith in God, life becomes a grand adventure energized by the power of God. Read Genesis 18:24 (Is anything too hard for the LORD????) Christmas for the Christian is the time when God gave us His Son Jesus who did NOT stay in a manger but grew to pay the price for our sins. Christmas for others means so many different things. Those things have become traditions that we continue with and seem to add to each year.. The bibical meaning of Christmas should be us giving the greatest gift of all and that is the good news that Jesus Paid it All and All to Him I owe. Read John 3:16 (For God so loved the world He gave His only begotten son that whosoever believeth on Him should not perish but have everlasting life.) God tells us to pray for the Jewish People. Read Psalms 122:6 and Romans 10:1 Whether the Isralites fell victim to their taskmasters in Egypt or walked in slavery because of disobedience and idolatry, God had deliverance in mind for them. As long as the sun comes up in the morning, God will keep offering to deliver His children. AMEN! Read Exodus 3:7 --- ...Sweet reads! Thanks Bunni! ======================================================= >-->From Archives InspiredBuffalo: _ _|_|_ ,|_| |_|_ || | | |_| || | | | | || | | | | _|| | | | | ||)\ ^ ^ ^ | || | | || | | || | | \\ | \\ / ejm )\ ( / \ \ / \ \ \ \ >PRAYING By: Joseph J. Mazzella A friend wrote me a letter the other day and asked me if I pray? This friend told me that he just couldn't seem to find time to pray in his own life. I didn't criticize him, because I too used to feel like I didn't have time to just sit down and pray. One day, however, I remember reading something written by a very wise man. It said, "Prayer is nothing more than talking to God.' This I thought is something we can do at anytime and in any place. Now days I pray all the time. My prayers are nothing fancy. My simplest one is just to say 'Thank you God' in my mind often during the day. I thank God for my life. I thank God for the many blessings in it. I thank God for the problems and troubles I face that help me to grow stronger in love, joy, and faith. Another prayer is simply to say 'I love you God.' By looking at all the good God does for me every day I can clearly see how much God loves me. Once I see how much God loves me it is then not hard to love God back. Two more prayers are 'Help me to choose love and joy every second I possibly can' and 'Help me to share that love and joy with everyone everywhere, expecting nothing in return.' I pray these prayers because I have grown to know that God is love and God is joy. By choosing love and joy I am choosing to grow in oneness with God. By sharing this love and joy I am sharing the spirit of God. And by expecting nothing in return, I am knowing that with love and joy I already have everything. These are a few of the simple prayers I say each day. Yours may be different and that is great. As long as they bring you closer to God say them. What you say isn't important. What is important is that you talk to God each day and allow His love into your life. -<>- %%%% %%%%-( _%%%%%_/ \ ' / _%%%%%%%% - (_) - _%%%%%%%/ \% / , \ %%%%%%%%%\\ \_ %%%%%% \ \\ ) /\_/ /(___. \ '----' ( / ) ---....____/ (_____ __ _ ___ ___ __ _ _ _____ _ _ ___ / )---...___ =-= = -_= -=_= _-=_-_ -=- =-_ ,' ( ```--.._= -_= -_= _-=- -_= _=- ,-' ) ``--._=-_ =-=_-= _-= _ '-._ '-..___( ``-._=_-=_- =_-= ``---....__) `-._-=_-_=- )|)| `-._=-_ gnv '-'-.\_ `-. >Don't Ever Stop Dreaming Your Dreams Don't ever be reluctant to show your feelings when you're happy, give in to it. When you're not, live with it. Don't ever be afraid to try to make things better you might be surprised at the results. Don't ever take the weight of the world on your shoulders. Don't ever feel threatened by the future, take life one day at a time. Don't ever feel guilty about the past what's done is done. Learn from any mistakes you might have made. Don't ever feel that you are alone there is always somebody there for you to reach out to. Don't ever forget that you can achieve so many of the things you can imagine.. It's not as hard as it seems. Don't ever stop loving don't ever stop believing, don't ever stop dreaming your dreams. -Unknown -<>- (\.-./) / \ .' : '. _.-'` ' `'-._ .-' : '-. ,'_.._ . _.._', '` `'-. ' .-'` `' '. : .' \_. ._/ \ |^| | jgs | ; \'.___.' / '-....-' >This Magic Moment By Jennifer Anderson It was like many Maui mornings, the sun rising over Haleakala as we greeted our divers for the day's charter. As my captain and I explained the dive procedures, I noticed the wind line moving into Molokini, a small, crescent-shaped island that harbors a large reef. I slid through the briefing, then prompted my divers to gear up, careful to do everything right so the divers would feel confident with me, the dive leader. The dive went pretty close to how I had described it: The garden eels performed their underwater ballet, the parrot fish grazed on the coral, and the ever-elusive male flame wrasse flared their colors to defend their territory. Near the last level of the dive, two couples in my group signaled they were going to ascend. As luck would have it, the remaining divers were two European brothers, who were obviously troubled by the idea of a "woman" dive master and had ignored me for the entire dive. The three of us caught the current and drifted along the outside of the reef, slowly beginning our ascent until, far below, something caught my eye. After a few moments, I made out the white shoulder patches of a manta ray in about one hundred and twenty feet of water. Manta rays are one of my greatest loves, but very little is known about them. They feed on plankton, which makes them more delicate than an aquarium can handle. They travel the oceans and are therefore a mystery. Mantas can be identified by the distinctive pattern on their belly, with no two rays alike. In 1992, I had been identifying the manta rays that were seen at Molokini and found that some were known, but many more were sighted only once, and then gone. So there I was: a beautiful, very large ray beneath me and my skeptical divers behind. I reminded myself that I was still trying to win their confidence, and a bounce to see this manta wouldn't help my case. So I started calling through my regulator, "Hey, come up and see me!" I had tried this before to attract the attention of whales and dolphins, who are very chatty underwater and will come sometimes just to see what the noise is about. My divers were just as puzzled by my actions, but continued to try to ignore me. There was another dive group ahead of us. The leader, who was a friend of mine and knew me to be fairly sane, stopped to see what I was doing. I kept calling to the ray, and when she shifted in the water column, I took that as a sign that she was curious. So I started waving my arms, calling her up to me. After a minute, she lifted away from where she had been riding the current and began to make a wide circular glide until she was closer to me. I kept watching as she slowly moved back and forth, rising higher, until she was directly beneath the two Europeans and me. I looked at them and was pleased to see them smiling. Now they liked me. After all, I could call up a manta ray! Looking back to the ray, I realized she was much bigger than what we were used to around Molokini - a good fifteen feet from wing tip to wing tip, and not a familiar-looking ray. I had not seen this animal before. There was something else odd about her. I just couldn't figure out what it was. Once my brain clicked in and I was able to concentrate, I saw deep V- shaped marks of her flesh missing from her backside. Other marks ran up and down her body. At first I thought a boat had hit her. As she came closer, now with only ten feet separating us, I realized what was wrong. She had fishing hooks embedded in her head by her eye, with very thick fishing line running to her tail. She had rolled with the line and was wrapped head to tail about five or six times. The line had torn into her body at the back, and those were the V-shaped chunks that were missing. I felt sick and, for a moment, paralyzed. I knew wild animals in pain would never tolerate a human to inflict more pain. But I had to do something. Forgetting about my air, my divers and where I was, I went to the manta. I moved very slowly and talked to her the whole time, like she was one of the horses I had grown up with. When I touched her, her whole body quivered, like my horse would. I put both of my hands on her, then my entire body, talking to her the whole time. I knew that she could knock me off at any time with one flick of her great wing. When she had steadied, I took out the knife that I carry on my inflator hose and lifted one of the lines. It was tight and difficult to get my finger under, almost like a guitar string. She shook, which told me to be gentle. It was obvious that the slightest pressure was painful. As I cut through the first line, it pulled into her wounds. With one beat of her mighty wings, she dumped me and bolted away. I figured that she was gone and was amazed when she turned and came right back to me, gliding under my body. I went to work. She seemed to know it would hurt, and somehow, she also knew that I could help. Imagine the intelligence of that creature, to come for help and to trust! I cut through one line and into the next until she had all she could take of me and would move away, only to return in a moment or two. I never chased her. I would never chase any animal. I never grabbed her. I allowed her to be in charge, and she always came back. When all the lines were cut on top, on her next pass, I went under her to pull the lines through the wounds at the back of her body. The tissue had started to grow around them, and they were difficult to get loose. I held myself against her body, with my hand on her lower jaw. She held as motionless as she could. When it was all loose, I let her go and watched her swim in a circle. She could have gone then, and it would have all fallen away. She came back, and I went back on top of her. The fishing hooks were still in her. One was barely hanging on, which I removed easily. The other was buried by her eye at least two inches past the barb. Carefully, I began to take it out, hoping I wasn't damaging anything. She did open and close her eye while I worked on her, and finally, it was out. I held the hooks in one hand, while I gathered the fishing line in the other hand, my weight on the manta. I could have stayed there forever! I was totally oblivious to everything but that moment. I loved this manta. I was so moved that she would allow me to do this to her. But reality came screaming down on me. With my air running out, I reluctantly came to my senses and pushed myself away. At first, she stayed below me. And then, when she realized that she was free, she came to life like I never would have imagined she could. I thought she was sick and weak, since her mouth had been tied closed, and she hadn't been able to feed for however long the lines had been on her. I thought wrong! With two beats of those powerful wings, she rocketed along the wall of Molokini and then directly out to sea! I lost view of her and, remembering my divers, turned to look for them. Remarkably, we hadn't traveled very far. My divers were right above me and had witnessed the whole event, thankfully! No one would have believed me alone. It seemed too amazing to have really happened. But as I looked at the hooks and line in my hands and felt the torn calluses from her rough skin, I knew that, yes, it really had happened. I kicked in the direction of my divers, whose eyes were still wide from the encounter, only to have them signal me to stop and turn around. Until this moment, the whole experience had been phenomenal, but I could explain it. Now, the moment turned magical. I turned and saw her slowly gliding toward me. With barely an effort, she approached me and stopped, her wing just touching my head. I looked into her round, dark eye, and she looked deeply into me. I felt a rush of something that so overpowered me, I have yet to find the words to describe it, except a warm and loving flow of energy from her into me. She stayed with me for a moment. I don't know if it was a second or an hour. Then, as sweetly as she came back, she lifted her wing over my head and was gone. A manta thank-you. I hung in midwater, using the safety-stop excuse, and tried to make sense of what I had experienced. Eventually, collecting myself, I surfaced and was greeted by an ecstatic group of divers and a curious captain. They all gave me time to get my heart started and to begin to breathe. Sadly, I have not seen her since that day, and I am still looking. For the longest time, though my wetsuit was tattered and torn, I would not change it because I thought she wouldn't recognize me. I call to every manta I see, and they almost always acknowledge me in some way. One day, though, it will be her. She'll hear me and pause, remembering the giant cleaner that she trusted to relieve her pain, and she'll come. At least that is how it happens in my dreams. -<>- >From LynnLynn Links: Melva http://silverandgoldandthee.com/Anns/A_LCS.html ACTRESS EILEEN BRENNAN DIES AT 80 http://deathbeeper.com/5215781.html Poems Of The Week http://inhisservice.bravesites.com/ Wall for Iraq and Afghan War Casualties Via Jings http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=WEPBQGu74oo Way up on the Mountain/Marlene/Gospel http://www.wtv-zone.com/summerhoosier3/html1/Way-Up-On-The-Mountain.html Ladies Unleashed! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/ladies.html Dog Days Of Summer! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/dogdays.html Hugs With Patches http://www.adreamandasmile.com/Smiles-6/Patched_Hugs.html -<>- Never Give Up! http://www.ShangralaFamilyFun.com/BibleStudy/nevergiveup.html Believe In Your Dreams http://www.ShangralaFamilyFun.com/poems/dream.html Whale Rescue 2 http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/whalerescue2.html Miracle Coyote http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/coyote.html Until We Write Again http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/write.html Margaret The Giraffe http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/giraffe.html Beautiful Bridges 2 http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/bridges2.html -<>- >From Our Friend Linda :) Starry Starry Night http://tinyurl.com/a88krl9 --- ...Most beautiful and Peaceful! Thanks Linda! Visit Melissa's Online Store You can get anything you want (except for Melissa ) at the online store http://pdhomes.net/mall/babylissa/mySTORES/ISELL4.html ========================================================== .---. .---. | .' | .' |-' |-' | | .---. .---. (:::::)________________(:::::) / \/ \/ \/ \/ \/ \/ \/ \/ \/ \ __ /(_)(_)(_)(_)(_)(_)(_)(_)(_)(_)\ __ ( ) _.-. /''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''\ ( ) _.-. ||-| `-._ \ ||-| `. || | `. \ || | `. ||-|_.-`-._ `. \ ||-|_.-`. `. || / .'`-. .' \ || .'`-. .' || /.-' _.-' \ || .-' _.-' || /`._.-' \ || `._.-' || / \ || //\\ //\\ // \\ // \\ // /\ \\ // /\ \\ // / \ \\ // / \ \\ // / /\ \ \\ // / /\ \ \\ /_|_|/__\_\_\\ /_|_|/__\|_|_\ / _ _ _ _\____________________________________/ _ _ _ \ || |_| |_| |_| |------------------------------------|_| |_| |_| |_|| |______________|[=][=][=][=][=][=][=][=][=][=][=][=]|______________| |--------------|____________________________________|--------------| | _______ |------------------------------------| _______ | | | _ | | | .-. / | | _ | | | |.'* *'.| | \ _..--('[|)-..__ | | |.'* *'.| | | |'. * .'| | |_.-' .-'/'\'-. '-._/ | |'. * .'| | | '. )_( .' | / _.-' .' '. '-._ \ | '. )_( .' | | '._.' | /_.-' _.-' '-._ '-._\ | '._.' | |______________| |_.--' '--._| |______________| |-. .--. .-| /' '\ ' |-. .--. .-| | \ / \ / | | | .' | | \ / \ / | | * v * * v * | || '. | || | * v * * v * | | * * | || || | || | * * | | || || | || | | | || | | || | | | [=][=][==][=][=]'. ' | | ' `.[=][=][==][=][=] | | | | | | | || | | | | | | | | || | | || \ \ / / || | | |'. '/______________________\' `| | [=][=][==][=][=] ' \----------------------/ / [=][=][==][=][=] | | '. | | .` | | | | .`-` `-`. | | | | `:\ /:` | | | | ' .` `. ' | | |LGB |--` `--| | `--...____...--' `--...____...--' >The County Fair Lesson Story Editor: by Darryll Sherman Joyce Schowalter Washington, USA My son, Christopher, is disabled. Although 21, he's about the size of a 6-year-old, with the functioning mind of a toddler. He can only walk with assistance, his main ride is a wheelchair, and he doesn't feed himself. Thankfully he eats regular food, but we feed him everything. While he uses the toilet well, scheduling is important, so he wears diapers full-time. He doesn't talk, but makes enough noises that we can tell if he's happy, hungry or not feeling well. We're fortunate that for the most part, he is healthy. Happiness in life for him is simple. He loves to eat, laugh, and play with toys. He loves to swim (kicking around hanging on a "noodle" while being attended to), watch bright lights (perhaps fuzzy for him), and watch fireworks. Being the parent of a disabled child causes me to see life differently. I've had to accept that people react inappropriately when they see him since he's different. They make assumptions based on what they see and think. In 2009 we took Christopher to a local County Fair. He likes the animals, loves to watch the lights and rides, and likes the bright, fun environment. Near the evening's end my wife and I were pushing him through the games area to the exit. We tried hard to avoid eye contact with all the carnies challenging us to knock over lead-laden pins or throw darts at balloons. As we kept our pace up and ignored them, we heard one guy calling after us. He continued to yell, "Hey! Wait a minute!" Glancing back, we saw he was actually coming after us with something in his handŠ He caught up to us. Grinning widely, he said, "Here, I think your son dropped this." He held out a silly stuffed animal we'd never owned. We explained that another child must've dropped it. With twinkling eyes, he winked and said, "Here, I'm sure this belongs to your son," and pressed it into our son's lap. Still smiling, he walked away to our joint "Thank you." Time stood still as my eyes filled with tears and I realized what had just happened. I'd been as guilty as anyone at stereotyping people who work carnivals, "the carnies," as unclean, sleazy, chain-smoking, etc. Perhaps there are elements of truth to those stereotypes, however, hundreds of people that evening had gawked at or ignored our son or tried to avoid us. Yet this guy chased us down to give Christopher a gift. He didn't have to. I'd never suspected "someone like him" would do such a thing. The simplest of gestures from one person showed me the error of my ways and reminded me to judge not, lest I be judged. That ugly little stuffed orange orangutan sits in a prominent place in my son's room. It poignantly reminds me to not judge someone from their outward appearance, and to not make assumptions based on who they are and what they do. =======HeroicStories======= >-->From Kidwarmers: >THE FUNNY THINGS KIDS SAY _--"-. .-" "-. |""--.. '-. | ""--.. '-. |.-. .-". ""--..". |'./ -_' .-. | | .-. '.-' .-' '--.. '.' .- -. ""--.. '_' : ""--.. | ""-' mga Charlie, 8, had a "food tasting" at his school. All of the students brought cultural dishes and shared them. When he got home his mother asked him how he had liked all the different foods. "It was delicious!" he said. "I wish I had a 'back button' so I could do it again!" -- Natalie (mother of Charlie) of Marietta, Georgia Quinn, 2, saw a picture of the Statue of Liberty. She pointed to the picture and said, "Look, Mommy -- she has to hold her ice cream up so Tyson (the family dog) doesn't get it!" -- Angela Cox (mother of Quinn) of Lee's Summit, Missouri o |'-._ | '-._ | _.-' |.--' _____ | _.-' ___ '-._ | .' _.-' '-._ '. | / .' .-. '. \| / / .' '. \ \ / / .' .-. '. \ \ '-' / ( W ) \ '-' '-' | G '-' | '-' '-'_|_ \ | _|_'-' /-- '---------' --\ / ((Q)) ((Q)) \ (=========================) ^-----. _____ .-----^ |_-_| )__|_____|__( |_-_| |_-_|// \\|_-_| |_-_| |_-_| LGB Fiona has started paying Emma, 5, 20 baht per week for helping around the house. On Sunday night, after receiving her pocket money for the first time, Emma not only put her dishes in the dishwasher, she also put in her mother's coffee cup and glass. "I've been such a good help," Emma said, "don't you think you should increase my pocket money to 50 baht?!" Fiona, Emma's mother, notes that living in Thailand teaches children negotiation skills very early. -- Fiona Thomson of Bangkok, Thailand Ryan's dog Ginger had to be put to sleep. Ryan, 6, loved Ginger very much and he was devastated. His grandmother called to comfort him. As she was telling Ryan how sorry she was about Ginger's death, Ryan decided to comfort his grandmother by saying, "Don't worry, Grandmother, you will be the first to see her again!" -- Sandra Neale (mother of Ryan) of Crofton, Maryland \ \ \ / / \ \ \ \/ / \ \ | / \ \ | | \ \ | | \\ \ \ | ---------#----- - ------ \| --------#------ -------- | | \ | | | | | | | | | | | | | _+m#m+_ | | Jp qh | | O O | | Yb dY | | "Y5m2Y" | | | | / /\ \ Elijah, 4, was out in the yard with his dad and twin sister Samantha. He ran into the house to tell his mother he needed water because the grass was dead and he wanted to make it alive. Curious to see what he was talking about -- because the house they were renting had no grass in the yard -- his mother followed him outside and saw Samantha leaning over looking at weeds growing between the crack in the concrete. Elijah's mother told him and Samantha that those were weeds, not grass. The twins didn't seem to understand so their mother said, "Weeds are bad grass." Elijah asked, "Mom, why are they bad? They don't listen?" -- Jacqueline Matos (mother of the twins) of Belleville, New Jersey When Peggy was about 10 she was bad and her mother told her to sit down and be quiet. After sitting for a while, she started singing. Her mother snapped, "I told you to be quiet." Peggy answered, "But Mommy, Paul and Silas sang while they were in prison." That ended the punishment for that day! -- Peggy Collins of Morrison, Colorado When Andrew was 2, he was a very light sleeper. His brother Danny, 1, was not a light sleeper... so Andrew dubbed him a "dark sleeper!" -- Sara (mother of Andrew and Danny) of Palominas, Arizona ,=""=, c , _,{ /\ @ ) __ / ^~~^\ <=.,__/ '}= (_/ ,, ,,) \_ _>_/~ ~\_(/-\)'-,_,_,_,-'(_)-(_) -Naughty While pregnant with her second child, Samantha's first, a 4-year-old girl, was feeling the baby move around in her stomach. She put her hand on top of Samantha's belly and said, "Mommy, is this where his feet are?" Samantha said yes. Then she moved to the bottom of Samantha's stomach and said, "Mommy, is this where his head is?" She said yes. Then she asked, "Where are his eyes?" To appease her, Samantha rubbed around the bottom of her belly and said, "Right around here." She then quickly grabbed Samantha's hand so that she could not move it and said, "Mommy, you have to be careful. You could poke him in the eye!" -- Samantha Lang of Dover, Ohio Adrienne, 6, is playing basketball at church. Her coach had the team running laps around the gym. Adrienne noticed that one little girl was really cutting off the corners so she told her mother, "That girl isn't running all of her lap tops!" -- Ruthie Garvin (grandmother of Adrienne) of Humboldt, Tennessee ____ / __\ |: /---) \ / ___ \:( _/ \ / /_ \ \ \ \/ \_\::) \_ \ _0""0_ / _/ \ \/= \/ =\/ / \ | (||) | / \_\______/_/ __// \\__ /__//====\\__\ _ //__//====\\__\\ _ _ //__//====\\__\\ _ _ // /( )\ \\ _ _ / /( )\ \ _ |( )| / \ / /||\ \ \:_/\_:/ S@yaN 11.11.02 Char was eating at Red Lobster with her niece, Tabatha, who was 3 at the time. When it came time to place their orders, Tabatha proudly told the waiter that she wanted "naked shrimp." (She meant shrimp without the breading!) -- Char Boldt of Madison, Wisconsin ========================================================== ,-`"-=') =/////// ,== _,_(((((-`6\ ==.| /,,...\\\C _| .--. ((((\\\\\` _, /;_| )9 )))))./ `. / } _\,_ ,-'))) \ / /=-. ,-./ \/ '))) . /\_/ / \ (,-.%\ / /-' ') \/\ / ( \ (/ \ ' /( ' `-/ \( \ ,- / ( `-' \ . / / \ \ &_) /\ \ | ( /--.- \ \----,------=;% | _/ _); `. ` `-. .`\ ) +++/ \ ,," %&-. ; \\| `-` `-=.;_,.__.__\_,/ )_/___+_/_________\,"(_//_(__)______:-._) gpyy >-->Everyone Needs Someone People need people and friends need friends And we all need love for a full life depends Not on vast riches or great acclaim, Not on success or on worldly fame, But just in knowing that someone cares And holds us close in their thoughts and prayers- For only the knowledge that we're understood Makes everyday living feel wonderfully good, And we rob ourselves of life's greatest need When we "lock up our hearts" and fail to heed The outstretched hand reaching to find A kindred spirit whose heart and mind Are lonely and longing to somehow share Our joys and sorrows and to make us aware That life's completeness and richness depends On the things we share with our loved ones and friends. ~Helen Steiner Rice~ >Updated FUN STUFF URLS - Oh Yeah Shangy! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ http://www.ShangralaFamilyFun.com/urls.html FUN URLS ------------------------------------------------------------------------ -->BECOMING A CHRISTIAN HOW TO BE A CHRISTIAN! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ -->FULL LENGTH - FREE On line AUDIO MP3 Christian Foundational Class http://www.truthortradition.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=61 NEW LIFE IN CHRIST! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ -->This is for all you who love food and DARE to make it at home Yep. You guessed it - Recipes. These are Tried and True, Yummy to the Tummy, good old fashioned home cooking recipes that are EASY to do Visit Shangy's Easy-Does-It Home Recipes: http://www.ShangralaFamilyFun.com/easy.html Home Recipes >Got A good Recipe? SHARE IT HERE: Share A Recipe ************************************************************************ >TO SUBSCRIBE: Visit Here This Weeks regular Shangy emails OR For the Yahoo ShangyFunList: To Subscribe send a blank email to ShangyFunList-subscribe@yahoogroups.com ************************************************************************