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Adrift

2/26/2013

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© Patty Fitts. All Rights Reserved.
In 1982 Steven Callahan was crossing the Atlantic alone in his sailboat when it struck something and sank. He was out of the shipping lanes and floating in a life raft, alone. His supplies were few. His chances were small. Yet when three fishermen found him seventy-six days later (the longest anyone has survived a shipwreck on a life raft alone), he was alive – much skinnier than he was when he started, but alive.

His account of how he survived is fascinating. His ingenuity – how he managed to catch fish, how he fixed his solar still (evaporates sea water to make fresh) – is very interesting.

But the thing that caught my eye was how he managed to keep himself going when all hope seemed lost, when there seemed no point in continuing the struggle, when he was suffering greatly, when his life raft was punctured and after more than a week struggling with his weak body to fix it, it was still leaking air and wearing him out to keep pumping it up. He was starved. He was desperately dehydrated. He was thoroughly exhausted. Giving up would have seemed the only sane option.

When people survive these kinds of circumstances, they do something with their minds that gives them the courage to keep going. Many people in similarly desperate circumstances give in or go mad. Something the survivors do with their thoughts helps them find the guts to carry on in spite of overwhelming odds.

"I tell myself I can handle it," wrote Callahan in his narrative. "Compared to what others have been through, I'm fortunate. I tell myself these things over and over, building up fortitude...."

I wrote that down after I read it. It struck me as something important. And I've told myself the same thing when my own goals seemed far off or when my problems seemed too overwhelming. And every time I've said it, I have always come back to my senses.

The truth is, our circumstances are only bad compared to something better. But others have been through much worse. I've read enough history to know you and I are lucky to be where we are, when we are, no matter how bad it seems to us compared to our fantasies. It's a sane thought and worth thinking.

So here, coming to us from the extreme edge of survival, are words that can give us strength. Whatever you're going through, tell yourself you can handle it. Compared to what others have been through, you're fortunate. Tell this to yourself over and over, and it will help you get through the rough spots with a little more fortitude.


Source: Adam Khan,  Self-Help Stuff That Works.  Reprinted from Grace Drops, Volume II (2004).

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Butterfly Insights

2/20/2013

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© Patty Fitts. All Rights Reserved.
A marvelous lesson appeared for me just now as I was exiting through the garage to come to this little space I use an office. As I opened the garage door, I startled a large moth, which, upon spreading it's wings, displayed a bright red "tail" hidden by the motley brown wings, more a "butterfly" than a moth.

It flew immediately to its perceived escape, the circle-topped window where it frantically tried to exit through the invisible wall of closed glass. I raised the third-car garage door in hopes of aiding its escape. That caused it to fly higher and higher and become entangled in a spider web. Fearful that it would remain entangled in the web, I selected a long-handled broom to assist him escaping the tangled threads.

At this, he returned to furiously pumping his wings and banging into the glass, which was, in his perspective, the pathway of escape, but remained his cage. By simply turning his focus to one side, he would have easily exited his prison. Rather, due to his intent on one direction, he remained confined, captive.  

Can you relate? Have you ever stubbornly remained committed to a course of action that only served to delay or deny ultimate freedom? Sometimes we get more than one opportunity to learn this lesson. Sometimes not. That decision to turn from what we think is the only way is scary, but it can mean all the difference in the world.


Author: Joie Lake, Source Unknown.  Reprinted from Grace Drops, Volume II (2004).

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Life Support

2/18/2013

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© Patty Fitts. All Rights Reserved.
A knight returned to his castle at twilight. He was a mess. His armor was dented, his helmet askew, his face was bloody, his horse was limping and he listed to one side in the saddle. His lord met him at the gate, asking, "What has befallen you, Sir Knight?"

Straightening himself up as best he could, he replied, "Oh, Sire, I have been laboring in your service, robbing and burning and pillaging your enemies to the west."

"You have been what?" cried the startled nobleman. "But I haven't any enemies to the west!"
"Oh!" said the knight. And then, after a pause, "Well, I think you do now."

What about you? Enemies to the west? Or the north, or the south or the east? Few people will sail through life friends with everyone they meet. And though most conflict can be resolved and relationships healed, some issues may drive a permanent wedge between people. Heart-felt moral and political and religious stances, especially, can polarize folks who just as passionately hold differing positions. 


Former U.S. Ambassador Claire Booth Luce once observed: "I don't have a warm personal enemy left. They've all died off. I miss them terribly because they helped define me." 


Even those opposed to you and what you stand for can serve a purpose. They can teach you about you. They can teach you about yourself. They can help you see what you may have missed. They can sharpen your point of view. And they can teach you about being strong in the face of criticism. 


If enemies cannot become friends, they can become teachers. And if you listen, they will teach you what your friends cannot.


© 2004, John C. Fitts, III.  All Rights Reserved.  Reprinted from Grace Drops, Volume II (2004). 

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The Frogs

2/16/2013

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© Patty Fitts. All Rights Reserved.
There once was a bunch of tiny frogs,...who arranged a running competition. The goal was to reach the top of a very high tower. A big crowd had gathered around the tower to see the race and cheer on the contestants...The race began.

Honestly, no one in the crowd really believed that the tiny frogs would reach the top of the tower. You heard statements such as:

"Oh, WAY too difficult!! They will NEVER make it to the top." or:

"Not a chance that they will succeed. The tower is too high!"

The tiny frogs began collapsing. One by one...except for those who in a fresh tempo were climbing higher and higher. The crowd continued to yell,

"It is too difficult!!! No one will make it!"

More tiny frogs got tired and gave up...but one continued higher and higher and higher. This one wouldn’t give up!

At the end everyone else had given up climbing the tower. Except for the one tiny frog who after a big effort was the only one who reached the top! Then all of the other tiny frogs naturally wanted to know how this one frog managed to do it? A contestant asked the tiny frog how the one who succeeded had found the strength to reach the goal?

It turned out...that the winner was DEAF!!!!

The wisdom of this story is: Never listen to other people’s tendencies to be negative or pessimistic...cause they take your most wonderful dreams and wishes away from you. The ones you have in your heart!

Always think of the power words have. Because everything you hear and read will affect your actions!

Therefore:   ALWAYS be…POSITIVE!

And above all:   Be DEAF when people tell YOU that YOU can not fulfill YOUR dreams!


Reprinted from Grace Drops, Volume II (2004).

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Teamwork

2/14/2013

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© Patty Fitts. All Rights Reserved.
A man was lost while driving through the country. As he tried to read a map, he accidentally drove off the road into a ditch. Though he wasn't injured, his car was stuck deep in the mud. So the man walked to a nearby farm to ask for help.

"Warwick can get you out of that ditch," said the farmer, pointing to an old mule standing in a field. The man looked at the haggardly mule and looked at the farmer who just stood there repeating, "Yep, old Warwick can do the job." The man figured he had nothing to lose. The two men and Warwick made their way back to the ditch.

The farmer hitched the mule to the car. With a snap of the reins he shouted, "Pull, Fred! Pull, Jack! Pull, Ted! Pull Warwick!" And the mule pulled the car from the ditch with very little effort.

The man was amazed. He thanked the farmer, patted the mule and asked, "Why did you call out all of those other names before you called Warwick?"

The farmer grinned and said, "Old Warwick is just about blind. As long as he believes he's part of a team, he doesn't mind pulling."


Adapted from Some Folks Feel the Rain. . .Others Just Get Wet, James W. Moore.  Reprinted from Grace Drops, Volume II (2004).

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Life is Like a Cafeteria

2/12/2013

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© Patty Fitts. All Rights Reserved.
A friend's grandfather came to America from Eastern Europe. After being processed at Ellis Island, he went into a cafeteria in lower Manhattan to get something to eat. He sat down at an empty table and waited for someone to take his order. Of course nobody did. Finally, a woman with a tray full of food sat down opposite him and informed him how a cafeteria worked.

"Start out at that end," she said. "Just go along the line and pick out what you want. At the other end they'll tell you how much you have to pay."

"I soon learned that's how everything works in America," the grandfather told a friend. "Life's a cafeteria here. You can get anything you want as long as you are willing to pay the price. You can even get success, but you'll never get it if you wait for someone to bring it to you. You have to get up and get it yourself."

Need I say more????


Authored by Brian Cavanaugh.  Reprinted from Grace Drops, Volume II (2004).



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The Cushion of the Sea

2/9/2013

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© Patty Fitts. All Rights Reserved.
Several years ago a submarine was being tested and had to remain submerged for many hours. When it returned to the harbor, the captain was asked, "How did the terrible storm last night affect you?" The officer looked at him in surprise and exclaimed, "Storm? We didn't even know there was one!"

The sub had been so far beneath the surface that it had reached the area known to sailors as "the cushion of the sea." Although the ocean may be whipped unto huge waves by high winds, the waters below are never stirred.

We encounter our own storms almost every day. Hectic pressures of a busy schedule seem to bounce us around like angry waves. The winds of family, job, and unmet expectations force us off course as we attempt to find the harbor of fulfillment. Unable to calm the storms, we become frantic for a safe refuge.

Those storms on the surface will be with us always, just taking new forms and coming from a variety of directions. The "cushion" that will protect us is found under the surface of our lives, deep within. We must cultivate a sense of tranquility and a place of peace.


© 2004, John C. Fitts, III.  All Rights Reserved.  Reprinted from Grace Drops, Volume II (2004).

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Positively Negative

2/6/2013

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© Patty Fitts. All Rights Reserved.
Have you ever met someone who just can't be positive? The world is full of such negative people. Here is a good example:

"A woman was at her hairdresser's getting her hair styled for a trip to Rome with her boyfriend. She mentioned the trip to the hairdresser, who responded, "Rome? Why would anyone want to go there? It's crowded and dirty and full of Italians. You're crazy to go to Rome.

So, how are you getting there?"

"We're taking Continental," was the reply. "We got a great rate!"

"Continental?" exclaimed the hairdresser. "That's a terrible airline. Their planes are old, their flight attendants are ugly, and they're always late. So, where are you staying in Rome?"

"We'll be at this exclusive little place over on Rome's Tiber River called Teste."

"Don't go any further. I know that place. Everybody thinks its gonna be something special and exclusive, but it's really a dump, the worst hotel in the city! The rooms are small, the service is surly and they're overpriced. So, whatcha doing when you get there?"

"We're going to go to see the Vatican and we hope to see the Pope."

"That's rich," laughed the hairdresser. "You and a million other people trying to see him. He'll look the size of an ant. Boy, good luck on this lousy trip of yours. You're going to need it."

A month later, the woman again came in for a hairdo. The hairdresser asked her about her trip to Rome. "It was wonderful," explained the woman, "not only were we on time in one of Continental's brand new planes, but it was overbooked and they bumped us up to first class. The food and wine were wonderful, and I had a handsome 28-year-old steward who waited on me hand and foot. And the hotel was great! They'd just finished a $5 million remodeling job and now it's a jewel, the finest hotel in the city. They, too, were overbooked, so they apologized and gave us their owner's suite at no extra charge!"

"Well," muttered the hairdresser, "That's all well and good, but I know you didn't get to see the Pope."

"Actually, we were quite lucky, because as we toured the Vatican, a Swiss Guard tapped me on the shoulder and explained that the Pope likes to meet some of the visitors and if I'd be so kind as to step into his private room and wait, the Pope would personally greet me. Sure enough, five minutes later, the Pope walked through the door and shook my hand! I knelt down and he spoke a few words to me."

"Oh, really! What'd he say?"

He said, "Where'd you get the awful hairdo?" 



Reprinted from Grace Drops, Volume II (2004).

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The Perils of Tradition

2/4/2013

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© Patty Fitts. All Rights Reserved.
One day through the primeval wood a calf walked home as good calves should, but made a trail all bent askew, a crooked trail as all calves do. Since then three hundred years have fled, and I infer the calf is dead. But still he left behind his trail – and thereby hangs my moral tale.

 The trail was taken up next day by a lone dog that passed that way. And then a wise bellwether sheep pursued the trail o'er vale and steep, and drew the flock behind him, too, as good bellwethers always do.

And from that day, o'er hill and glade, through those old woods a path was made. And many men wound in and out, and dodged and turned and bent about, and uttered words of righteous wrath because 'twas such a crooked path. But still they followed (do not laugh) the first migrations of that calf, who through this winding woodway stalked – because he wobbled when he walked.

This forest path became a lane that bent and turned and turned again. This crooked lane became a road, where many a poor horse with his load toiled on beneath the burning sun, and traveled some three miles in one. And thus a century and a half they trod the footsteps of that calf.

The years passed on in swiftness fleet. The road became a street; and this, before men were aware, a city's crowded thoroughfare. And soon the central street was this of a renowned metropolis. And men two centuries and a half trod in the footsteps of that calf. Each day a hundred thousand rout followed this zigzag calf about, and over his crooked journey went the traffic of a continent.

A hundred thousand men were led by one calf, near three centuries dead. They followed still his crooked way, and lost one hundred years a day. For thus such reverence is lent to well-established precedent.

A moral lesson this might teach were I given to preach, for we are prone to go it blind along the calf-paths of the mind, and work away from sun to sun to do what others have done. We follow in the beaten track, and out and in, forth and back, and still our dubious course pursue, to keep the path that others do.

We keep the path a sacred groove, along which all their lives they move. But how the wise old woods to laugh, who saw the first primeval calf. Ah, many things this tale might teach – but I am not given to preach!


Reprinted from Grace Drops, Volume II (2004).

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Rush to Judgment

2/1/2013

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© Patty Fitts. All Rights Reserved.
Years ago when I was the pastor of a small church, I attended the district conference of the denomination. Along with other pastors, I attended to district business and got acquainted with those whom I only saw at yearly meetings. The highlight of the conference was the sessions where a well-known speaker would bring a message of encouragement and instruction. This particular year the featured speaker was an author of a popular book on "worship."

I was interested in the message and trying to pay close attention. Gradually I became aware of a tapping noise. Assuming that it was the nervous habit of a fellow listener, I tried to ignore it. But as the speaker plodded on, the noise became an irritant and distracted me, and I thought, a few others. Finally the speaker concluded and the tapping as well. Surely the rudeness was over, I thought.

To my surprise, and rising anger, the tapping resumed with the next session. This time I was determined to find out who the culprit was and make sure that this stopped. I listened carefully to ascertain the direction of the noise. Leaning back and craning my neck, I suddenly saw the scoundrel, the one responsible for my attitude. Just as quickly, I slumped back down in the pew. There was a fellow minister who wore dark glasses and was taking notes in braille, tapping out the words on a board in front of him.

My anger suddenly turned to shame. How quickly I had assumed the worst. I learned a lesson about rushing to judgment.


© 2004, John C. Fitts, III.  All Rights Reserved.  Reprinted from Grace Drops, Volume II (2004).


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    Author

    John Fitts is a retired hospital chaplain and a contributor & publisher of Grace Drops. John lives in Palm Harbor, Florida with his artist wife, Patty. 
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