THE TABLECLOTH
The brand new pastor and his wife, newly assigned to their first ministry, to reopen a church in suburban Brooklyn, arrived in early October excited about their opportunities.
When they saw their church, it was very run down and needed much work. They set a goal to have everything done in time to have their first service on Christmas Eve.
They worked hard, repairing pews, plastering walls, painting, etc. and on Dec 18 were ahead of schedule and just about finished. On Dec 19 a terrible tempest - a driving rainstorm - hit the area and lasted for two days. On the 21st, the pastor went over to the church. His heart sank when he saw that the roof had leaked, causing a large area of plaster about 20 feet by 8 feet to fall off the front wall of the sanctuary just behind the pulpit, beginning about head high. The pastor cleaned up the mess on the floor, and not knowing what else to do but postpone the Christmas Eve service, headed home.
On the way he noticed that a local business was having a flea market type sale for charity so he stopped in. One of the items was a beautiful, handmade, ivory colored, crocheted tablecloth with exquisite work, fine colors and a Cross embroidered right in the center. It was just the right size to cover up the hole in the front wall. He bought it and headed back to the church. By this time it had started to snow. An older woman running from the opposite direction was trying to catch the bus. She missed it. The pastor invited her to wait in the warm church for the next bus 45 minutes later. She sat in a pew and paid no attention to the pastor while he got a ladder, hangers, etc., to put up the tablecloth as a wall tapestry.
The pastor could hardly believe how beautiful it looked and it covered up the entire problem area. Then he noticed the woman walking down the center aisle. Her face was like a sheet. "Pastor," she asked, "where did you get that tablecloth?" The pastor explained. The woman asked him to check the lower right corner to see if the initials, EBG were crocheted into it there. They were. These were the initials of the woman, and she had made this tablecloth 35 years before, in Austria. The woman could hardly believe it as the pastor told how he had just gotten the Tablecloth. The woman explained that before the war she and her husband were well-to-do people in Austria. When the Nazis came, she was forced to leave. Her husband was going to follow her the next week. She was captured, sent to prison and never saw her husband or her home again. The pastor wanted to give her the tablecloth; but she made the pastor keep it for the church.
The pastor insisted on driving her home, that was the least he could do. She lived on the other side of Staten Island and was only in Brooklyn for the day for a housecleaning job. What a wonderful service they had on Christmas Eve. The church was almost full. The music and the spirit were great. At the end of the service, the pastor and his wife greeted everyone at the door and many said that they would return. One older man, whom the pastor recognized from the neighborhood, continued to sit in one of the pews and stare, and the pastor wondered why he wasn’t leaving. The man asked him where he got the tablecloth on the front wall because it was identical to one that his wife had made years ago when they lived in Austria before the war and how could there be two tablecloths so much alike? He told the pastor how the Nazis came, how he forced his wife to flee for her safety, and he was supposed to follow her, but he was arrested and put in a prison. He never saw his wife or his home again all the 35 years in between.
The pastor asked him if he would allow him to take him for a little ride. They drove to Staten Island and to the same house where the pastor had taken the woman three days earlier. He helped the man climb the three flights of stairs to the woman’s apartment, knocked on the door and he saw the greatest Christmas reunion he could ever imagine.
T rue story - submitted by Pastor Rob Reid who says God does work in mysterious ways.
I asked the Lord to bless you as I prayed for you today, to guide you and protect you as you go along your way. His love is always with you. His promises are true, and when we give Him all our cares we know He will see us through.
So when the road you're traveling seems difficult at best, just remember I'm here praying and God will do the rest. Pass this on to those you want God to bless and remember to send it back to the one who asked God to bless you first.
When there is nothing left but God, that is when you find out that God is all you need. Take 60 seconds and give this a shot! All you do is simply say the following small prayer for the person who sent this to you.
Father, God, bless all my friends and family in what ever it is that You know they may be needing this day! May their lives be full of Your peace, prosperity and power as they seek to have a closer relationship with You. Amen.
Tampilkan postingan dengan label Reflection. Tampilkan semua postingan
Tampilkan postingan dengan label Reflection. Tampilkan semua postingan
Senin, 09 Desember 2013
Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up
MARRIED OR NOT, YOU SHOULD READ THIS ...
“When I got home that night as my wife served dinner, I held her hand and said, I’ve got something to tell you. She sat down and ate quietly. Again I observed the hurt in her eyes.
Suddenly I didn’t know how to open my mouth. But I had to let her know what I was thinking. I want a divorce. I raised the topic calmly. She didn’t seem to be annoyed by my words, instead she asked me softly, why?
I avoided her question. This made her angry. She threw away the chopsticks and shouted at me, you are not a man! That night, we didn’t talk to each other. She was weeping. I knew she wanted to find out what had happened to our marriage. But I could hardly give her a satisfactory answer; she had lost my heart to Jane. I didn’t love her anymore. I just pitied her!
With a deep sense of guilt, I drafted a divorce agreement which stated that she could own our house, our car, and 30% stake of my company. She glanced at it and then tore it into pieces. The woman who had spent ten years of her life with me had become a stranger. I felt sorry for her wasted time, resources and energy but I could not take back what I had said for I loved Jane so dearly. Finally she cried loudly in front of me, which was what I had expected to see. To me her cry was actually a kind of release. The idea of divorce which had obsessed me for several weeks seemed to be firmer and clearer now.
The next day, I came back home very late and found her writing something at the table. I didn’t have supper but went straight to sleep and fell asleep very fast because I was tired after an eventful day with Jane. When I woke up, she was still there at the table writing. I just did not care so I turned over and was asleep again.
In the morning she presented her divorce conditions: she didn’t want anything from me, but needed a month’s notice before the divorce. She requested that in that one month we both struggle to live as normal a life as possible. Her reasons were simple: our son had his exams in a month’s time and she didn’t want to disrupt him with our broken marriage.
This was agreeable to me. But she had something more, she asked me to recall how I had carried her into out bridal room on our wedding day. She requested that every day for the month’s duration I carry her out of our bedroom to the front door ever morning. I thought she was going crazy. Just to make our last days together bearable I accepted her odd request.
I told Jane about my wife’s divorce conditions. . She laughed loudly and thought it was absurd. No matter what tricks she applies, she has to face the divorce, she said scornfully.
My wife and I hadn’t had any body contact since my divorce intention was explicitly expressed. So when I carried her out on the first day, we both appeared clumsy. Our son clapped behind us, daddy is holding mommy in his arms. His words brought me a sense of pain. From the bedroom to the sitting room, then to the door, I walked over ten meters with her in my arms. She closed her eyes and said softly; don’t tell our son about the divorce. I nodded, feeling somewhat upset. I put her down outside the door. She went to wait for the bus to work. I drove alone to the office.
On the second day, both of us acted much more easily. She leaned on my chest. I could smell the fragrance of her blouse. I realized that I hadn’t looked at this woman carefully for a long time. I realized she was not young any more. There were fine wrinkles on her face, her hair was graying! Our marriage had taken its toll on her. For a minute I wondered what I had done to her.
On the fourth day, when I lifted her up, I felt a sense of intimacy returning. This was the woman who had given ten years of her life to me. On the fifth and sixth day, I realized that our sense of intimacy was growing again. I didn’t tell Jane about this. It became easier to carry her as the month slipped by. Perhaps the everyday workout made me stronger.
She was choosing what to wear one morning. She tried on quite a few dresses but could not find a suitable one. Then she sighed, all my dresses have grown bigger. I suddenly realized that she had grown so thin, that was the reason why I could carry her more easily.
Suddenly it hit me… she had buried so much pain and bitterness in her heart. Subconsciously I reached out and touched her head.
Our son came in at the moment and said, Dad, it’s time to carry mom out. To him, seeing his father carrying his mother out had become an essential part of his life. My wife gestured to our son to come closer and hugged him tightly. I turned my face away because I was afraid I might change my mind at this last minute. I then held her in my arms, walking from the bedroom, through the sitting room, to the hallway. Her hand surrounded my neck softly and naturally. I held her body tightly; it was just like our wedding day.
But her much lighter weight made me sad. On the last day, when I held her in my arms I could hardly move a step. Our son had gone to school. I held her tightly and said, I hadn’t noticed that our life lacked intimacy. I drove to office…. jumped out of the car swiftly without locking the door. I was afraid any delay would make me change my mind…I walked upstairs. Jane opened the door and I said to her, Sorry, Jane, I do not want the divorce anymore.
She looked at me, astonished, and then touched my forehead. Do you have a fever? She said. I moved her hand off my head. Sorry, Jane, I said, I won’t divorce. My marriage life was boring probably because she and I didn’t value the details of our lives, not because we didn’t love each other anymore. Now I realize that since I carried her into my home on our wedding day I am supposed to hold her until death do us apart. Jane seemed to suddenly wake up. She gave me a loud slap and then slammed the door and burst into tears. I walked downstairs and drove away. At the floral shop on the way, I ordered a bouquet of flowers for my wife. The salesgirl asked me what to write on the card. I smiled and wrote, I’ll carry you out every morning until death do us apart.
That evening I arrived home, flowers in my hands, a smile on my face, I run up stairs, only to find my wife in the bed -dead. My wife had been fighting CANCER for months and I was so busy with Jane to even notice. She knew that she would die soon and she wanted to save me from the whatever negative reaction from our son, in case we push through with the divorce.— At least, in the eyes of our son—- I’m a loving husband….
The small details of your lives are what really matter in a relationship. It is not the mansion, the car, property, the money in the bank. These create an environment conducive for happiness but cannot give happiness in themselves.
So find time to be your spouse’s friend and do those little things for each other that build intimacy. If you are not in a relationship now, remember this for the second (or third) time around. It's never too late.
If you don’t share this, nothing will happen to you.
If you do, you just might save a marriage. Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.
“When I got home that night as my wife served dinner, I held her hand and said, I’ve got something to tell you. She sat down and ate quietly. Again I observed the hurt in her eyes.
Suddenly I didn’t know how to open my mouth. But I had to let her know what I was thinking. I want a divorce. I raised the topic calmly. She didn’t seem to be annoyed by my words, instead she asked me softly, why?
I avoided her question. This made her angry. She threw away the chopsticks and shouted at me, you are not a man! That night, we didn’t talk to each other. She was weeping. I knew she wanted to find out what had happened to our marriage. But I could hardly give her a satisfactory answer; she had lost my heart to Jane. I didn’t love her anymore. I just pitied her!
With a deep sense of guilt, I drafted a divorce agreement which stated that she could own our house, our car, and 30% stake of my company. She glanced at it and then tore it into pieces. The woman who had spent ten years of her life with me had become a stranger. I felt sorry for her wasted time, resources and energy but I could not take back what I had said for I loved Jane so dearly. Finally she cried loudly in front of me, which was what I had expected to see. To me her cry was actually a kind of release. The idea of divorce which had obsessed me for several weeks seemed to be firmer and clearer now.
The next day, I came back home very late and found her writing something at the table. I didn’t have supper but went straight to sleep and fell asleep very fast because I was tired after an eventful day with Jane. When I woke up, she was still there at the table writing. I just did not care so I turned over and was asleep again.
In the morning she presented her divorce conditions: she didn’t want anything from me, but needed a month’s notice before the divorce. She requested that in that one month we both struggle to live as normal a life as possible. Her reasons were simple: our son had his exams in a month’s time and she didn’t want to disrupt him with our broken marriage.
This was agreeable to me. But she had something more, she asked me to recall how I had carried her into out bridal room on our wedding day. She requested that every day for the month’s duration I carry her out of our bedroom to the front door ever morning. I thought she was going crazy. Just to make our last days together bearable I accepted her odd request.
I told Jane about my wife’s divorce conditions. . She laughed loudly and thought it was absurd. No matter what tricks she applies, she has to face the divorce, she said scornfully.
My wife and I hadn’t had any body contact since my divorce intention was explicitly expressed. So when I carried her out on the first day, we both appeared clumsy. Our son clapped behind us, daddy is holding mommy in his arms. His words brought me a sense of pain. From the bedroom to the sitting room, then to the door, I walked over ten meters with her in my arms. She closed her eyes and said softly; don’t tell our son about the divorce. I nodded, feeling somewhat upset. I put her down outside the door. She went to wait for the bus to work. I drove alone to the office.
On the second day, both of us acted much more easily. She leaned on my chest. I could smell the fragrance of her blouse. I realized that I hadn’t looked at this woman carefully for a long time. I realized she was not young any more. There were fine wrinkles on her face, her hair was graying! Our marriage had taken its toll on her. For a minute I wondered what I had done to her.
On the fourth day, when I lifted her up, I felt a sense of intimacy returning. This was the woman who had given ten years of her life to me. On the fifth and sixth day, I realized that our sense of intimacy was growing again. I didn’t tell Jane about this. It became easier to carry her as the month slipped by. Perhaps the everyday workout made me stronger.
She was choosing what to wear one morning. She tried on quite a few dresses but could not find a suitable one. Then she sighed, all my dresses have grown bigger. I suddenly realized that she had grown so thin, that was the reason why I could carry her more easily.
Suddenly it hit me… she had buried so much pain and bitterness in her heart. Subconsciously I reached out and touched her head.
Our son came in at the moment and said, Dad, it’s time to carry mom out. To him, seeing his father carrying his mother out had become an essential part of his life. My wife gestured to our son to come closer and hugged him tightly. I turned my face away because I was afraid I might change my mind at this last minute. I then held her in my arms, walking from the bedroom, through the sitting room, to the hallway. Her hand surrounded my neck softly and naturally. I held her body tightly; it was just like our wedding day.
But her much lighter weight made me sad. On the last day, when I held her in my arms I could hardly move a step. Our son had gone to school. I held her tightly and said, I hadn’t noticed that our life lacked intimacy. I drove to office…. jumped out of the car swiftly without locking the door. I was afraid any delay would make me change my mind…I walked upstairs. Jane opened the door and I said to her, Sorry, Jane, I do not want the divorce anymore.
She looked at me, astonished, and then touched my forehead. Do you have a fever? She said. I moved her hand off my head. Sorry, Jane, I said, I won’t divorce. My marriage life was boring probably because she and I didn’t value the details of our lives, not because we didn’t love each other anymore. Now I realize that since I carried her into my home on our wedding day I am supposed to hold her until death do us apart. Jane seemed to suddenly wake up. She gave me a loud slap and then slammed the door and burst into tears. I walked downstairs and drove away. At the floral shop on the way, I ordered a bouquet of flowers for my wife. The salesgirl asked me what to write on the card. I smiled and wrote, I’ll carry you out every morning until death do us apart.
That evening I arrived home, flowers in my hands, a smile on my face, I run up stairs, only to find my wife in the bed -dead. My wife had been fighting CANCER for months and I was so busy with Jane to even notice. She knew that she would die soon and she wanted to save me from the whatever negative reaction from our son, in case we push through with the divorce.— At least, in the eyes of our son—- I’m a loving husband….
The small details of your lives are what really matter in a relationship. It is not the mansion, the car, property, the money in the bank. These create an environment conducive for happiness but cannot give happiness in themselves.
So find time to be your spouse’s friend and do those little things for each other that build intimacy. If you are not in a relationship now, remember this for the second (or third) time around. It's never too late.
If you don’t share this, nothing will happen to you.
If you do, you just might save a marriage. Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.
Jumat, 06 Desember 2013
Winter of My Life
This is so appropriate and meaningful. We never thought it would happen to us. Check it out.
AND THEN IT IS WINTER
I FIRST STARTED READING THIS EMAIL & WAS READING FAST UNTIL I REACHED THE THIRD SENTENCE. I STOPPED AND STARTED OVER READING SLOWER AND THINKING ABOUT EVERY WORD. THIS EMAIL IS VERY THOUGHT PROVOKING. MAKES YOU STOP AND THINK. READ SLOWLY!
You know. . . time has a way of moving quickly and catching you unaware of the passing years. It seems just yesterday that I was young, just married and embarking on my new life with my mate. Yet in a way, it seems like eons ago, and I wonder where all the years went. I know that I lived them all. I have glimpses of how it was back then and of all my hopes and dreams.
But, here it is... the winter of my life and it catches me by surprise...How did I get here so fast? Where did the years go and where did my youth go? I remember well seeing older people through the years and thinking that those older people were years away from me and that winter was so far off that I could not fathom it or imagine fully what it would be like.
But, here it is...my friends are retired and getting grey...they move slower and I see an older person now. Some are in better and some worse shape than me...but, I see the great change...Not like the ones that I remember who were young and vibrant...but, like me, their age is beginning to show and we are now those older folks that we used to see and never thought we'd be. Each day now, I find that just getting a shower is a real target for the day! And taking a nap is not a treat anymore... it's mandatory! Cause if I don't on my own free will... I just fall asleep where I sit!
And so...now I enter into this new season of my life unprepared for all the aches and pains and the loss of strength and ability to go and do things that I wish I had done but never did!! But, at least I know, that though the winter has come, and I'm not sure how long it will last...this I know, that when it's over on this earth...its over. A new adventure will begin!
Yes, I have regrets. There are things I wish I hadn't done...things I should have done, but indeed, there are many things I'm happy to have done. It's all in a lifetime. So, if you're not in your winter yet...let me remind you, that it will be here faster than you think. So, whatever you would like to accomplish in your life please do it quickly! Don't put things off too long!! Life goes by quickly. So, do what you can today, as you can never be sure whether this is your winter or not! You have no promise that you will see all the seasons of your life...so, live for today and say all the things that you want your loved ones to remember...and hope that they appreciate and love you for all the things that you have done for them in all the years past!! "Life" is a gift to you. The way you live your life is your gift to those who come after. Make it a fantastic one.
LIVE IT WELL! ENJOY TODAY! DO SOMETHING FUN! BE HAPPY ! HAVE A GREAT DAY
Remember "It is health that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver.
LIVE HAPPY IN THE REST OF 2013!
LASTLY, CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING:
K
TODAY IS THE OLDEST YOU'VE EVER BEEN, YET THE YOUNGEST YOU'LL EVER BE SO - ENJOY THIS DAY WHILE IT LASTS.
~Your kids are becoming you......but your grandchildren are perfect!
~Going out is good.. Coming home is better!
~You forget names.... But it's OK because other people forgot they even knew you!!!
~You realize you're never going to be really good at anything.... especially golf.
~The things you used to care to do, you no longer care to do, but you really do care that you don't care to do them anymore.
~You sleep better on a lounge chair with the TV blaring than in bed. It's called "pre-sleep". ~You miss the days when everything worked with just an "ON" and "OFF" switch..
~You tend to use more 4 letter words ... "what?"..."when?"... ??? ~Now that you can afford expensive jewelry, it's not safe to wear it anywhere.
~You notice everything they sell in stores is "sleeveless"?!!! ~What used to be freckles are now liver spots.
~Everybody whispers.
~You have 3 sizes of clothes in your closet.... 2 of which you will never wear.
~But Old is good in some things: Old Songs, Old movies, and best of all, OLD FRIENDS!!
Stay well, "OLD FRIEND!" Send this on to other "Old Friends!" and let them laugh in AGREEMENT!!! It's Not What You Gather, But What You Scatter That Tells What Kind Of Life You Have Lived.
AND THEN IT IS WINTER
I FIRST STARTED READING THIS EMAIL & WAS READING FAST UNTIL I REACHED THE THIRD SENTENCE. I STOPPED AND STARTED OVER READING SLOWER AND THINKING ABOUT EVERY WORD. THIS EMAIL IS VERY THOUGHT PROVOKING. MAKES YOU STOP AND THINK. READ SLOWLY!
You know. . . time has a way of moving quickly and catching you unaware of the passing years. It seems just yesterday that I was young, just married and embarking on my new life with my mate. Yet in a way, it seems like eons ago, and I wonder where all the years went. I know that I lived them all. I have glimpses of how it was back then and of all my hopes and dreams.
But, here it is... the winter of my life and it catches me by surprise...How did I get here so fast? Where did the years go and where did my youth go? I remember well seeing older people through the years and thinking that those older people were years away from me and that winter was so far off that I could not fathom it or imagine fully what it would be like.
But, here it is...my friends are retired and getting grey...they move slower and I see an older person now. Some are in better and some worse shape than me...but, I see the great change...Not like the ones that I remember who were young and vibrant...but, like me, their age is beginning to show and we are now those older folks that we used to see and never thought we'd be. Each day now, I find that just getting a shower is a real target for the day! And taking a nap is not a treat anymore... it's mandatory! Cause if I don't on my own free will... I just fall asleep where I sit!
And so...now I enter into this new season of my life unprepared for all the aches and pains and the loss of strength and ability to go and do things that I wish I had done but never did!! But, at least I know, that though the winter has come, and I'm not sure how long it will last...this I know, that when it's over on this earth...its over. A new adventure will begin!
Yes, I have regrets. There are things I wish I hadn't done...things I should have done, but indeed, there are many things I'm happy to have done. It's all in a lifetime. So, if you're not in your winter yet...let me remind you, that it will be here faster than you think. So, whatever you would like to accomplish in your life please do it quickly! Don't put things off too long!! Life goes by quickly. So, do what you can today, as you can never be sure whether this is your winter or not! You have no promise that you will see all the seasons of your life...so, live for today and say all the things that you want your loved ones to remember...and hope that they appreciate and love you for all the things that you have done for them in all the years past!! "Life" is a gift to you. The way you live your life is your gift to those who come after. Make it a fantastic one.
LIVE IT WELL! ENJOY TODAY! DO SOMETHING FUN! BE HAPPY ! HAVE A GREAT DAY
Remember "It is health that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver.
LIVE HAPPY IN THE REST OF 2013!
LASTLY, CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING:
K
TODAY IS THE OLDEST YOU'VE EVER BEEN, YET THE YOUNGEST YOU'LL EVER BE SO - ENJOY THIS DAY WHILE IT LASTS.
~Your kids are becoming you......but your grandchildren are perfect!
~Going out is good.. Coming home is better!
~You forget names.... But it's OK because other people forgot they even knew you!!!
~You realize you're never going to be really good at anything.... especially golf.
~The things you used to care to do, you no longer care to do, but you really do care that you don't care to do them anymore.
~You sleep better on a lounge chair with the TV blaring than in bed. It's called "pre-sleep". ~You miss the days when everything worked with just an "ON" and "OFF" switch..
~You tend to use more 4 letter words ... "what?"..."when?"... ??? ~Now that you can afford expensive jewelry, it's not safe to wear it anywhere.
~You notice everything they sell in stores is "sleeveless"?!!! ~What used to be freckles are now liver spots.
~Everybody whispers.
~You have 3 sizes of clothes in your closet.... 2 of which you will never wear.
~But Old is good in some things: Old Songs, Old movies, and best of all, OLD FRIENDS!!
Stay well, "OLD FRIEND!" Send this on to other "Old Friends!" and let them laugh in AGREEMENT!!! It's Not What You Gather, But What You Scatter That Tells What Kind Of Life You Have Lived.
I Already Told Gold
I told GOD:
Let all my friends be healthy and happy forever...!
GOD said:
But for 4 days only....!
I said:
Yes, let them be a Spring Day, Summer Day, Autumn Day, and Winter Day.
GOD said:
3 days.
I said:
Yes, Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow.
GOD said:
No, 2 days!
I said:
Yes, a Bright Day (Daytime) and Dark Day (Night-time) .
GOD said:
No, just 1 day!
I said:
Yes!
GOD asked:
Which day?
I said:
Every Day in the living years of all my friends!
GOD laughed, and said:
All your friends will be healthy and happy Every Day!
Let all my friends be healthy and happy forever...!
GOD said:
But for 4 days only....!
I said:
Yes, let them be a Spring Day, Summer Day, Autumn Day, and Winter Day.
GOD said:
3 days.
I said:
Yes, Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow.
GOD said:
No, 2 days!
I said:
Yes, a Bright Day (Daytime) and Dark Day (Night-time) .
GOD said:
No, just 1 day!
I said:
Yes!
GOD asked:
Which day?
I said:
Every Day in the living years of all my friends!
GOD laughed, and said:
All your friends will be healthy and happy Every Day!
Sabtu, 23 Maret 2013
From Slum Life To Disney Film
From slum life to Disney film: Ugandan teen chess star 'the ultimate underdog'
Phiona Mutesi relishes her first victory at the 2010 Chess Olympiad in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia
She grew up in one of the poorest spots on earth. She couldn't read or write. As a child, she scrounged for food each day for herself, her mother, and her brother.
But a chance encounter with a chess coach turned her into a rising international chess star, the subject of a book -- and the protagonist in a future Disney movie.
Ugandan teenager Phiona Mutesi is "the ultimate underdog," her biographer says.
Those who work with her believe she's 16. But since her birthday is unclear, she might still only be 15, they say.
Her father died from AIDS when Mutesi was around 3.
"I thought the life I was living, that everyone was living that life," the teenager told CNN, describing her childhood in Katwe, a slum in the Ugandan capital of Kampala.
I thought the life I was living, that everyone was living that life.
Phiona Mutesi, Ugandan chess star
"I was living a hard life, where I was sleeping on the streets, and you couldn't have anything to eat at the streets. So that's when I decided for my brother to get a cup of porridge."
Robert Katende, a missionary and refugee of Uganda's civil war, had started a chess program in Katwe. He offered a bowl of porridge to any child who would show up and learn.
"It teaches you how to assess, how to make decisions, obstructive thinking, forecasts, endurance, problem solving, and looking at challenges as an opportunity in all cases -- and possibly not giving up," he told CNN. "The discipline, the patience ... anything to do with life, you can get it in that game."
Mutesi did not become a top player overnight. But from the time she first showed up in 2005, her aptitude was clear.
Her talent is "extraordinary," said Katende.
Mutesi liked chess, and started training and practicing regularly. "It took me like a year" to get very good, she said.
She walked about four miles a day to practice -- and to get that precious food.
Soon she found herself beating the older girls and boys in the program.
Mutesi and her family faced pressure from some people in Uganda who insisted chess was a white man's game, or at least not something girls should be playing, according to her biographer, Tim Crothers.
But in her slum, so few people even knew what chess was that they didn't give her a hard time, Mutesi told CNN.
Eventually, she became her country's champion -- and represented Uganda at international tournaments. In 2009, she traveled to Sudan. Then, in 2010, she boarded an airplane to Siberia.
When the flight took off, "I thought that I was maybe in heaven," she wrote in a letter to her mother quoted in Crothers' book. "I asked God to protect me because who am I to fly to the europlane."
Mutesi had also never seen ice before.
This year, she played in Istanbul.
Mutesi is not one of the world's top chess players. But she is the first titled female Ugandan player. She has a fighter's instinct to reach the top level -- and to achieve much more.
"Chess gave me hope, whereby now I'm having a hope of becoming a doctor and ... a grand master," she said.
A grant from a program called Sports Outreach has allowed her to go back to school. She's learning to read and write.
Meanwhile, Mutesi is becoming an inspiration to people all over the world.
Some learned about her through Crothers' article for ESPN, which went viral. Others have seen a brief documentary about her on YouTube.
Crothers' book about her, "The Queen of Katwe," was published this fall.
"That she's from Africa makes her an underdog in the world. The fact that she's from Uganda makes her sort of an underdog in Africa, because it's one of the poorer countries in Africa. The fact that she's in Katwe makes her an underdog in Uganda because it's the most impoverished slum in the entire country. And then to be a girl in Katwe -- girls are not treated as equals to the boys," said Crothers.
"Every hurdle that the world can place in front of her it has placed in front of her."
The extreme poverty and deprivation in Katwe is hard for many around the world to imagine. Crothers wrote that "human waste from downtown Kampala is dumped directly into the slum. There is no sanitation."
utesi wakes at 5 a.m. every morning to "begin a two-hour trek through Katwe to fill a jug with drinkable water, walking through lowland that is often so severely flooded by Uganda's torrential rains that many residents sleep in hammocks near their ceilings to avoid drowning," he wrote.
In the country of 34 million people, about one-fourth live below the poverty line, according to the CIA World Factbook. About three-quarters of the men in Uganda are literate; only 58% of women are.
Mutesi told CNN she's never heard of Idi Amin, the so-called butcher of Uganda, who helped plunge his country into economic chaos throughout the 1970s.
She does know the name Joseph Kony, a brutal Ugandan warlord who was the subject of a viral video earlier this year. Kids talk about him, Mutesi said.
"He was in northern Uganda torturing people and could kidnap children. That's what I know."
Chess could prove to be Mutesi's ticket out of a hard life -- particularly through a project that lies ahead.
Disney has optioned the rights to "The Queen of Katwe," and is starting work on a movie, Crothers said.
It's all too much for Mutesi to fathom.
"I feel happy," she said when asked about the growing attention. "I'm excited. I didn't have hope that one time, one day, I would be like someone who can encourage people, and they start playing chess," she told CNN.
As her world travels take off, she's in for more and more culture shock.
"I don't like New York because there's too much noise in it," the teenager said with a big smile.
But while it may be somewhat overwhelming for her, Mutesi's success at the game she loves is bringing joy to her family.
"Some of them cried. Years back we didn't have hope that ... one day it can happen," she said. "So they are very excited."
She grew up in one of the poorest spots on earth. She couldn't read or write. As a child, she scrounged for food each day for herself, her mother, and her brother.
But a chance encounter with a chess coach turned her into a rising international chess star, the subject of a book -- and the protagonist in a future Disney movie.
Ugandan teenager Phiona Mutesi is "the ultimate underdog," her biographer says.
Those who work with her believe she's 16. But since her birthday is unclear, she might still only be 15, they say.
Her father died from AIDS when Mutesi was around 3.
"I thought the life I was living, that everyone was living that life," the teenager told CNN, describing her childhood in Katwe, a slum in the Ugandan capital of Kampala.
I thought the life I was living, that everyone was living that life.
Phiona Mutesi, Ugandan chess star
"I was living a hard life, where I was sleeping on the streets, and you couldn't have anything to eat at the streets. So that's when I decided for my brother to get a cup of porridge."
Robert Katende, a missionary and refugee of Uganda's civil war, had started a chess program in Katwe. He offered a bowl of porridge to any child who would show up and learn.
"It teaches you how to assess, how to make decisions, obstructive thinking, forecasts, endurance, problem solving, and looking at challenges as an opportunity in all cases -- and possibly not giving up," he told CNN. "The discipline, the patience ... anything to do with life, you can get it in that game."
Mutesi did not become a top player overnight. But from the time she first showed up in 2005, her aptitude was clear.
Her talent is "extraordinary," said Katende.
Mutesi liked chess, and started training and practicing regularly. "It took me like a year" to get very good, she said.
She walked about four miles a day to practice -- and to get that precious food.
Soon she found herself beating the older girls and boys in the program.
Mutesi and her family faced pressure from some people in Uganda who insisted chess was a white man's game, or at least not something girls should be playing, according to her biographer, Tim Crothers.
But in her slum, so few people even knew what chess was that they didn't give her a hard time, Mutesi told CNN.
Eventually, she became her country's champion -- and represented Uganda at international tournaments. In 2009, she traveled to Sudan. Then, in 2010, she boarded an airplane to Siberia.
When the flight took off, "I thought that I was maybe in heaven," she wrote in a letter to her mother quoted in Crothers' book. "I asked God to protect me because who am I to fly to the europlane."
Mutesi had also never seen ice before.
This year, she played in Istanbul.
Mutesi is not one of the world's top chess players. But she is the first titled female Ugandan player. She has a fighter's instinct to reach the top level -- and to achieve much more.
"Chess gave me hope, whereby now I'm having a hope of becoming a doctor and ... a grand master," she said.
A grant from a program called Sports Outreach has allowed her to go back to school. She's learning to read and write.
Meanwhile, Mutesi is becoming an inspiration to people all over the world.
Some learned about her through Crothers' article for ESPN, which went viral. Others have seen a brief documentary about her on YouTube.
Crothers' book about her, "The Queen of Katwe," was published this fall.
"That she's from Africa makes her an underdog in the world. The fact that she's from Uganda makes her sort of an underdog in Africa, because it's one of the poorer countries in Africa. The fact that she's in Katwe makes her an underdog in Uganda because it's the most impoverished slum in the entire country. And then to be a girl in Katwe -- girls are not treated as equals to the boys," said Crothers.
"Every hurdle that the world can place in front of her it has placed in front of her."
The extreme poverty and deprivation in Katwe is hard for many around the world to imagine. Crothers wrote that "human waste from downtown Kampala is dumped directly into the slum. There is no sanitation."
utesi wakes at 5 a.m. every morning to "begin a two-hour trek through Katwe to fill a jug with drinkable water, walking through lowland that is often so severely flooded by Uganda's torrential rains that many residents sleep in hammocks near their ceilings to avoid drowning," he wrote.
In the country of 34 million people, about one-fourth live below the poverty line, according to the CIA World Factbook. About three-quarters of the men in Uganda are literate; only 58% of women are.
Mutesi told CNN she's never heard of Idi Amin, the so-called butcher of Uganda, who helped plunge his country into economic chaos throughout the 1970s.
She does know the name Joseph Kony, a brutal Ugandan warlord who was the subject of a viral video earlier this year. Kids talk about him, Mutesi said.
"He was in northern Uganda torturing people and could kidnap children. That's what I know."
Chess could prove to be Mutesi's ticket out of a hard life -- particularly through a project that lies ahead.
Disney has optioned the rights to "The Queen of Katwe," and is starting work on a movie, Crothers said.
It's all too much for Mutesi to fathom.
"I feel happy," she said when asked about the growing attention. "I'm excited. I didn't have hope that one time, one day, I would be like someone who can encourage people, and they start playing chess," she told CNN.
As her world travels take off, she's in for more and more culture shock.
"I don't like New York because there's too much noise in it," the teenager said with a big smile.
But while it may be somewhat overwhelming for her, Mutesi's success at the game she loves is bringing joy to her family.
"Some of them cried. Years back we didn't have hope that ... one day it can happen," she said. "So they are very excited."
Jumat, 22 Maret 2013
Senin, 18 Maret 2013
One day passes with happiness, and then you gain one day
Sixty plus and still keep going
Don't worry about what will happen after you are gone, because when you return to dust, you will feel nothing about praises or criticisms.
Don't worry too much about your children for children will have their own destiny and find their own way.
Don't be your children's slave
Don't expect too much from your children.
Caring children, though caring, would be too busy with their jobs and commitments to render any help.
Uncaring children may fight over your assets even when you are still alive, and wish for your early demise so they can inherit your properties.
Your children take for granted that they are rightful heirs to your wealth; but you have no claims to their money.
60-year olds like you, don't trade in your health for wealth anymore………….
Because your money may not be able to buy your health………
When to stop making money, and how much is enough (hundred thousand, million, ten million)?
Out of thousand hectares of good farm land, you can only consume three quarts (of rice) daily;
Out of a thousand of mansions, you only need eight square meters of space to rest at night.
So as long as you have enough food and enough money to spend, that is good enough. So you should live happily.
Every family has its own problems. Just do not compare with others for fame and social status and see whose children are doing better, etc. but challenge others for happiness, health and longevity………….
Don't worry about things that you can't change because it doesn't help and it may spoil your health.
You have to create your own well-being and find your own happiness;
As long as you are in good mood, think about happy things, do happy things daily and have fun in doing, then you will pass your time happily every day.
One day passes, you will lose one day;…
One day passes with happiness, and then you gain one day.
In good spirit, sickness will cure;
in happy spirit, sickness will cure fast;
in good and happy spirit; sickness will never come.
With good mood, suitable amount of exercise, always in the sun, variety of foods, reasonable amount of vitamin and mineral intake, hopefully you will live another 20 or 30 years of healthy life.
Above all learn to cherish the goodness around ……and FRIENDS……..they all make you feel young and "wanted"…without them you are surely to feel lost!!
Wishing you all the best.
So share this with all your friends who are 60 plus and those who will be 60 plus after some time.
Don't worry about what will happen after you are gone, because when you return to dust, you will feel nothing about praises or criticisms.
Don't worry too much about your children for children will have their own destiny and find their own way.
Don't be your children's slave
Don't expect too much from your children.
Caring children, though caring, would be too busy with their jobs and commitments to render any help.
Uncaring children may fight over your assets even when you are still alive, and wish for your early demise so they can inherit your properties.
Your children take for granted that they are rightful heirs to your wealth; but you have no claims to their money.
60-year olds like you, don't trade in your health for wealth anymore………….
Because your money may not be able to buy your health………
When to stop making money, and how much is enough (hundred thousand, million, ten million)?
Out of thousand hectares of good farm land, you can only consume three quarts (of rice) daily;
Out of a thousand of mansions, you only need eight square meters of space to rest at night.
So as long as you have enough food and enough money to spend, that is good enough. So you should live happily.
Every family has its own problems. Just do not compare with others for fame and social status and see whose children are doing better, etc. but challenge others for happiness, health and longevity………….
Don't worry about things that you can't change because it doesn't help and it may spoil your health.
You have to create your own well-being and find your own happiness;
As long as you are in good mood, think about happy things, do happy things daily and have fun in doing, then you will pass your time happily every day.
One day passes, you will lose one day;…
One day passes with happiness, and then you gain one day.
In good spirit, sickness will cure;
in happy spirit, sickness will cure fast;
in good and happy spirit; sickness will never come.
With good mood, suitable amount of exercise, always in the sun, variety of foods, reasonable amount of vitamin and mineral intake, hopefully you will live another 20 or 30 years of healthy life.
Above all learn to cherish the goodness around ……and FRIENDS……..they all make you feel young and "wanted"…without them you are surely to feel lost!!
Wishing you all the best.
So share this with all your friends who are 60 plus and those who will be 60 plus after some time.
God is in your Heart
Potato Chips !!!
Take 60 seconds to read this wonderful story. It will give you time to settle your brain, gather your thoughts, calm down and be blessed.
A little boy wanted to meet God. He knew it was a long trip to where God lived, so he packed his suitcase with a bag of potato chips and a six-pack of juices and started his journey.
When he had gone about three blocks, he met an old man. He was sitting in the park, just staring at some pigeons. The boy sat down next to him and opened his suitcase. He was about to take a drink from his juices when he noticed that the old man looked hungry, so he offered him some chips. He gratefully accepted it and smiled at him.
His smile was so pretty that the boy wanted to see it again, so he offered him juice. Again, he smiled at him. The boy was delighted!
They sat there all afternoon eating and smiling, but they never said a word.
As twilight approached, the boy realized how tired he was and he got up to leave; but before he had gone more than a few steps, he turned around, ran back to the old man, and gave him a hug. He gave him his
biggest smile ever..
When the boy opened the door to his own house a short time later, his mother was surprised by the look of joy on his face. She asked him, "What did you do today that made you so happy?"
He replied, "I had lunch with God." But before his mother could respond, he added, "You know what? He's got the most beautiful smile I've ever seen!"
Meanwhile, the old man also radiant with joy, returned to his home.
His son was stunned by the look of peace on his face and he asked,
"dad, what did you do today that made you so happy?"
He replied "I ate potato chips in the park with God." However, before his son responded, he added, "You know, he's much younger than I expected."
Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.
People come into our lives for a reason, a season, or a lifetime !!!
Embrace all equally !!!
Have lunch with God...bring chips.
God is in your HEART
Take 60 seconds to read this wonderful story. It will give you time to settle your brain, gather your thoughts, calm down and be blessed.
A little boy wanted to meet God. He knew it was a long trip to where God lived, so he packed his suitcase with a bag of potato chips and a six-pack of juices and started his journey.
When he had gone about three blocks, he met an old man. He was sitting in the park, just staring at some pigeons. The boy sat down next to him and opened his suitcase. He was about to take a drink from his juices when he noticed that the old man looked hungry, so he offered him some chips. He gratefully accepted it and smiled at him.
His smile was so pretty that the boy wanted to see it again, so he offered him juice. Again, he smiled at him. The boy was delighted!
They sat there all afternoon eating and smiling, but they never said a word.
As twilight approached, the boy realized how tired he was and he got up to leave; but before he had gone more than a few steps, he turned around, ran back to the old man, and gave him a hug. He gave him his
biggest smile ever..
When the boy opened the door to his own house a short time later, his mother was surprised by the look of joy on his face. She asked him, "What did you do today that made you so happy?"
He replied, "I had lunch with God." But before his mother could respond, he added, "You know what? He's got the most beautiful smile I've ever seen!"
Meanwhile, the old man also radiant with joy, returned to his home.
His son was stunned by the look of peace on his face and he asked,
"dad, what did you do today that made you so happy?"
He replied "I ate potato chips in the park with God." However, before his son responded, he added, "You know, he's much younger than I expected."
Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.
People come into our lives for a reason, a season, or a lifetime !!!
Embrace all equally !!!
Have lunch with God...bring chips.
God is in your HEART
A Dad With Brain Cancer Wins Marathon
Iram Leon, Dad With Brain Cancer, Wins Marathon While Pushing Daughter In Stroller
Iram and Kiana cross the finish line.
Iram Leon was the first runner to cross the finish line at the Gusher Marathon in Beaumont, Texas on Saturday with a time of 3:07:35. But Leon, who has brain cancer, insists that his 6-year-old daughter was technically the winner -- he pushed her in a stroller the entire 26-mile race.
"Here sore, reflecting and grateful, I still can’t believe that I won a marathon. Well, I came in second behind Kiana," Leon wrote on his blog.
Leon, now 32, was diagnosed with a Grade 2 Diffuse Astrocytoma in Nov. 2010, shortly after his 30th birthday. "Life goes downhill fast after you turn 30,” he joked in an interview with The Huffington Post. Doctors have told Leon that he is not going to beat the cancer, but their goal is for him to live until he's 40.
His daughter, Kiana, knows that Dad is sick. Leon and Kiana’s mother are divorced and the first-grader lives with him the majority of the year. She has seen him suffer seizures. They practice "911 drills" at home. But Leon struggles with how much information to divulge to Kiana while she is still so young. “There’s no good balance between protecting a kid from this and sharing it with them,” Leon said. Through counseling, he has learned that he shouldn't alarm her, nor should he underplay how serious his disease is. "Daddy has a boo boo on his left temporal lobe," isn't the right approach, he explained.
Since the diagnosis, Leon's perspective on parenting has changed tremendously. “The one thing I'm not going to say on my death bed is, 'I wish I spent more time with my kid,'” he told HuffPost.
And so, six months after he found out he had cancer, when Kiana was 4, Leon decided that he no longer wanted to run -- an activity he's enjoyed since third grade -- without taking her along for the ride. Because of his cancer, which affects his memory and language skills, Leon isn't able to drive a car, work, or play contact sports like soccer. But running is "just one foot in front of the other," he said.
They completed their first half-marathon together in October 2012. Leon convinced his mother, who was then 60, to run with him and Kiana in a stroller too. Since then, father and daughter have competed in half a dozen races. On Saturday, at the Gusher, they took their first marathon medal home.
Before the race even started, Leon faced challenges. Marathons don’t typically permit strollers; he was turned down four different times before the Gusher said it was OK. Over the phone, he stressed that he was uncomfortable with the special treatment, but said the most important thing was being able to compete with Kiana.
Leon detailed what the race was like on his blog, noting several setbacks, including a flat tire on the stroller, strong winds and an untied shoelace. But Leon also took advantage of a teachable moment during the race. At one point, three bikers were cycling next to the pair. "Kiana asked why are they hanging out with us and why is everyone waving at us. I kept having to barrel down because of the wind and so I just told her to be polite and wave and say hi to anyone saying hi to her," he wrote on his blog.
One of the bikers captured video (above) of Leon singing Bon Jovi's "It's My Life" while pushing Kiana.
Kiana usually teases her Dad about placing behind her, but this time, Leon said, the girl was cheering "we won" when they crossed the finish line, instead of her usual "I won."
Still, Dad is always proud to give the credit to his daughter. "At the awards ceremony, I immediately placed [the medal] on her neck and like every other race she’s been part of it that medal hangs in her room," he wrote. Since the win, the two were featured in a local newspaper and on Outside Magazine’s website, and a photo of them was splashed across The Wall Street Journal's sports section. The Sports Society for American Health which hosts the Gusher Marathon has set up a college fund for Kiana with a goal of $30,000.
But perhaps the most touching keepsake from the race was made by Kiana, who loves to draw. She sketched her and her father running the Gusher, and he posted it on Facebook with the caption, "Kiana's version both better than the newsprint and my blog."
Iram Leon was the first runner to cross the finish line at the Gusher Marathon in Beaumont, Texas on Saturday with a time of 3:07:35. But Leon, who has brain cancer, insists that his 6-year-old daughter was technically the winner -- he pushed her in a stroller the entire 26-mile race.
"Here sore, reflecting and grateful, I still can’t believe that I won a marathon. Well, I came in second behind Kiana," Leon wrote on his blog.
Leon, now 32, was diagnosed with a Grade 2 Diffuse Astrocytoma in Nov. 2010, shortly after his 30th birthday. "Life goes downhill fast after you turn 30,” he joked in an interview with The Huffington Post. Doctors have told Leon that he is not going to beat the cancer, but their goal is for him to live until he's 40.
His daughter, Kiana, knows that Dad is sick. Leon and Kiana’s mother are divorced and the first-grader lives with him the majority of the year. She has seen him suffer seizures. They practice "911 drills" at home. But Leon struggles with how much information to divulge to Kiana while she is still so young. “There’s no good balance between protecting a kid from this and sharing it with them,” Leon said. Through counseling, he has learned that he shouldn't alarm her, nor should he underplay how serious his disease is. "Daddy has a boo boo on his left temporal lobe," isn't the right approach, he explained.
Since the diagnosis, Leon's perspective on parenting has changed tremendously. “The one thing I'm not going to say on my death bed is, 'I wish I spent more time with my kid,'” he told HuffPost.
And so, six months after he found out he had cancer, when Kiana was 4, Leon decided that he no longer wanted to run -- an activity he's enjoyed since third grade -- without taking her along for the ride. Because of his cancer, which affects his memory and language skills, Leon isn't able to drive a car, work, or play contact sports like soccer. But running is "just one foot in front of the other," he said.
They completed their first half-marathon together in October 2012. Leon convinced his mother, who was then 60, to run with him and Kiana in a stroller too. Since then, father and daughter have competed in half a dozen races. On Saturday, at the Gusher, they took their first marathon medal home.
Before the race even started, Leon faced challenges. Marathons don’t typically permit strollers; he was turned down four different times before the Gusher said it was OK. Over the phone, he stressed that he was uncomfortable with the special treatment, but said the most important thing was being able to compete with Kiana.
Leon detailed what the race was like on his blog, noting several setbacks, including a flat tire on the stroller, strong winds and an untied shoelace. But Leon also took advantage of a teachable moment during the race. At one point, three bikers were cycling next to the pair. "Kiana asked why are they hanging out with us and why is everyone waving at us. I kept having to barrel down because of the wind and so I just told her to be polite and wave and say hi to anyone saying hi to her," he wrote on his blog.
One of the bikers captured video (above) of Leon singing Bon Jovi's "It's My Life" while pushing Kiana.
Kiana usually teases her Dad about placing behind her, but this time, Leon said, the girl was cheering "we won" when they crossed the finish line, instead of her usual "I won."
Still, Dad is always proud to give the credit to his daughter. "At the awards ceremony, I immediately placed [the medal] on her neck and like every other race she’s been part of it that medal hangs in her room," he wrote. Since the win, the two were featured in a local newspaper and on Outside Magazine’s website, and a photo of them was splashed across The Wall Street Journal's sports section. The Sports Society for American Health which hosts the Gusher Marathon has set up a college fund for Kiana with a goal of $30,000.
But perhaps the most touching keepsake from the race was made by Kiana, who loves to draw. She sketched her and her father running the Gusher, and he posted it on Facebook with the caption, "Kiana's version both better than the newsprint and my blog."
Selasa, 12 Maret 2013
Animals With Love Tattoo
Langganan:
Postingan (Atom)
