Saturday, May 10, 2014

MAKES ME THINK.....Concluded......

Makes Me Think (MMT) has truly evolved into a remarkable online community. Every day, users share their thought-provoking life stories and vote on stories that other users have shared. Some are happy, some are sad, and others twist your emotions, pulling them in several directions at once. Sometimes the most random everyday encounters force us to stop and rethink the truths and perceptions we have ingrained in our minds. These encounters are educationally priceless. They spawn moments of deep thought and self-reflection that challenge the status quo and help us evolve as sensible individuals.

Some of the stories listed below perfectly fulfill that description. What do you think?

51. Today, exactly twenty years ago to the hour, I risked my life to save a woman who was drowning in the rapids of the Colorado River. And that’s how I met my wife - the love of my life. MMT

52. Today, my wife checked herself into an alcohol rehab clinic after she glanced up at me while she was eating her breakfast and asked how I got a black eye and fingernail scratches all over my face. MMT

53. Today, I asked my mentor – a very successful business man in his 70’s – what his top 3 tips are for success. He smiled and said, “Read something no one else is reading, think something no one else is thinking, and do something no one else is doing.” MMT

54. Today, as my grandfather (a military doctor, war hero, and successful business owner) rested in his hospice bed, I asked him what his greatest life accomplishment was. He turned around, grabbed my grandmother’s hand, looked her in the eyes, and said, “Growing old with you.” MMT

55. Today, it’s just the six of us. One was raped when she was fourteen. Three come from abusive households. Two were orphans. Like me, one spent almost two straight years in a psychiatric facility as a kid. But I wouldn’t trade a single one of them for all the perfect friends in the universe. MMT

56. Today, I was walking home from work in the pouring rain without an umbrella. I was walking just behind an elderly man who had an umbrella. As we both passed under the overhang to an apartment building, he stopped, turned around and handed me the umbrella. He said, “This is my stop and you look like you need an umbrella. Pass it along someday when the opportunity arises.” MMT

57. Today, the teenager I scream at almost every day for driving too fast in the neighborhood because it worries me that he’s going to run over my kids, ran across the street from his driveway to ours and grabbed my son off of his tricycle in the middle of the street just before a swerving drunk driver ran over my son’s tricycle and kept going. MMT

58. Today, I was in an accident that left me with a gash on my forehead. The doctors wrapped a bandage around my head and said I have to keep it on all week. I hate wearing it. Two minutes ago my little brother walked into my room wearing a bandage on his head. My mom said he insisted that he didn’t want me to feel alone. MMT

59. Today, when I tapped the side of my wheelchair and told my husband, “You’re the only reason I want to be free from this contraption,” he kissed me on my forehead and said, “Honey, I don’t even see that thing.” MMT

60. Today, I was jogging in Central Park when this lady started screaming for help. Her husband was having a heart attack. I ran over and checked his pulse. He didn’t have one. I gave him CPR and got his heart beating before the paramedics arrived. I’ve done some bad things in my life, but today I saved a life. MMT

61. Today, I met a powerful businessman who is worth 100 million dollars. In conversation he told me he regretted never making it to his son’s hockey games or his daughter’s dance recitals. It made me smile because my dad is probably only worth as much as this man’s last paycheck, but he made it to everything. MMT

62. Today, my fiancĂ© was in a head-on collision car accident. He is currently in a coma. And all I can think about is the argument we had this morning. I screamed at him for screaming at me. It was a petty argument. But if he could scream now, I wouldn’t say a word. I’d just listen to the sound of his voice. MMT

63. Today, I have two twin boys in my kindergarten class. I have heard from other parents that they come from a very broken home in which their mother is in and out of rehab and their father is always away on business. But their 16 year old sister never fails to get them to school on time or pack them a healthy bagged lunch with a smiley face on it. MMT

64. Today, I interviewed my grandmother for part of a research paper I’m working on for my Psychology class. When I asked her to define success in her own words, she said, “Success is when you look back at your life and the memories make you smile.” MMT

Friday, May 9, 2014

CHANGE OF HEART

When someone boasted of the economic and cultural achievements of his country, the Master was quite unimpressed. “Have all those achievements made the slightest change in the hearts of your countrymen?” he asked.

And he told of a white man who was captured by cannibals and brought to the chief prior to being roasted alive. Imagine his astonishment when he heard the chieftain speak with a perfect Harvard accent.

“Did your years in Harvard do nothing to change you?” asked the white man.

“Of course they did. They civilized me. After you’re roasted I shall dress for dinner and eat you with knife and fork.”

Thursday, May 8, 2014

MAKES ME THINK...Continued.....

Makes Me Think (MMT) has truly evolved into a remarkable online community. Every day, users share their thought-provoking life stories and vote on stories that other users have shared. Some are happy, some are sad, and others twist your emotions, pulling them in several directions at once. Sometimes the most random everyday encounters force us to stop and rethink the truths and perceptions we have ingrained in our minds. These encounters are educationally priceless. They spawn moments of deep thought and self-reflection that challenge the status quo and help us evolve as sensible individuals.

Some of the stories listed below perfectly fulfill that description. What do you think?

41. Today at the Atlanta airport, as I walked off a plane dressed in my Army uniform, a little girl grabbed my hand and asked me if I would be going back overseas soon. I told her I would be in 6 weeks. She smiled and said, “Can you please tell my daddy that I love him. My mommy told me he’s never coming home from over there.” MMT

42. Today, I waited on an elderly woman at the local restaurant where I work. She left me a $90 tip on a $10 tab with a handwritten note that said, “I’m 86 and I can’t take this money with me. So please spoil yourself with it.” MMT

43. Today, I met an elderly man at a bar in Miami. When I asked him if he was vacationing, he handed me a photo from his wallet and said, “Today would be our 50th anniversary. And although she’s been gone 10 years now, this bar still reminds me of her smile - when we shared our first laugh here so many moons ago.” MMT

44. Today, my father told me, “Just go for it and give it a try! You don’t have to be a professional to build a successful product. Amateurs started Google and Apple. Professionals built the Titanic.” MMT

45. Today, as soon as my 5-year-old baby brother came into my room, I yelled at him to get out without even looking up at him. When he didn’t listen and I turned around to yell again, I noticed he had a bowl of cherries (my favorite) in his hands. He said, “Sorry, I just wanted to share these with you.” MMT

46. Today, after spending the last 3 years viciously bickering with the college kid who lives next door, I found myself crying in his arms and thanking him repeatedly for saving my son’s life. MMT

47. Today at the diner where I work, an elderly couple came in for the 4th time this week and requested my table. I asked them what kept them coming back. They told me that I reminded them of their granddaughter who passed away 6 years ago. Then they told me her name. She was my best friend at the time. MMT
48. Today, my dad told me and my little sister that we might lose our house. I was sad, angry, worried and stressed. My 14 yr old sister asked me what’s wrong. When I told her, she said, “It’s just a house. I don’t care where we live, as long as we’re together.” MMT

49. Today, I was walking past a group of homeless men who live near my complex. A cab pulled up next to the men and the driver opened up the rear door and pulled out two huge grocery bags full of food. He set them down next to the group of men, got in his cab and drove off without saying a word. MMT

50. Today, I stopped to chat with the office janitor like I do every Monday morning on my way into work. And at the end of our conversation he grinned and said, “You know, you’re the only one who ever stops to talk to me around here, and you’re the President and CEO.” MMT
PHILOSOPHICAL COBBLER

A philosopher who had only one pair of shoes asked the cobbler to repair them for him while he waited.

“Its closing time,” said the cobbler, “so it won’t be possible for me to repair them just now. Why don’t you come for them tomorrow?”

I have only one pair of shoes and it won’t be possible for me to walk without shoes.”

“Very well, I shall lend you a used pair for the day.”

“What! Wear someone else’s shoes? What do you take me for?”

“Why should you object to having someone else’s shoes on your feet when you don’t mind carrying other people’s ideas in your head?”
A man sees his wife is busy in the kitchen and says: "Can I help?"

She says, "Sure, take this bag of potatoes, peel half of them and put them in a pot to boil."

No matter what men do, somehow, we still get yelled at..

.

Tuesday, May 6, 2014

HOLY MAN

Word spread across the countryside about the wise Holy Man who lived in a small house atop the mountain. A man from the village decided to make the long and difficult journey to visit him. When he arrived at the house, he saw an old servant inside who greeted him at the door. "I would like to see the wise Holy Man," he said to the servant. The servant smiled and led him inside. As they walked through the house, the man from the village looked eagerly around the house, anticipating his encounter with the Holy Man. Before he knew it, he had been led to the back door and escorted outside. He stopped and turned to the servant, "But I want to see the Holy Man!"

"You already have," said the old man. "Everyone you may meet in life, even if they appear plain and insignificant... see each of them as a wise Holy Man. If you do this, then whatever problem you brought here today will be solved."
----------------------------
Many people also go searching for things (love, happiness) and don't recognize them when they see them.

Monday, May 5, 2014

MAKES ME THINK....Continued.....

Makes Me Think (MMT) has truly evolved into a remarkable online community. Every day, users share their thought-provoking life stories and vote on stories that other users have shared. Some are happy, some are sad, and others twist your emotions, pulling them in several directions at once. Sometimes the most random everyday encounters force us to stop and rethink the truths and perceptions we have ingrained in our minds. These encounters are educationally priceless. They spawn moments of deep thought and self-reflection that challenge the status quo and help us evolve as sensible individuals.

Some of the stories listed below perfectly fulfill that description. What do you think?

11. Today, a lady walked up to me in the gym and asked me to give her some workout pointers. She said, “You look incredible! Watching you gradually tone-up and progress in here has become my primary inspiration to get in shape.” It made me smile because I’ve struggled with my weight since I was 15. MMT

12. Today, my grandpa died. As I was crying and telling my grandma how sorry I was, she said, “Let’s stop being so sad and instead celebrate the 80 wonderful years he was alive… 60 of which he spent with me.” MMT

13. Today, as my father, three brothers, and two sisters stood around my mother’s hospital bed, my mother uttered her last coherent words before she died. She simply said, “I feel so loved right now. We should have gotten together like this more often.” MMT

14. Today, I pulled into a small gas station in the middle of the desert in New Mexico and realized I had left my wallet at my girlfriends house 5 hours away. I had no money and barely enough gas to make it another mile down the road. The only other person that stopped for gas was a burly looking trucker. I was a bit reluctant, but I asked him for some spare change for gas. Instead he filled my tank and said, “Someone did this for me a few years ago.” MMT

15. Today, I was all dressed up and waiting on my blind date to arrive. He never showed up. It made me feel ugly. I thought he may have seen me from a distance and bailed. Then as I left the restaurant alone, I heard a little girl ask her mom if I was a princess. It made me smile and it MMT.

16. Today, while I was driving my grandfather to his doctor’s appointment, I complained about hitting 2 red lights in a row. My grandfather chuckled and said, “You always complain about the red lights, but you never celebrate the green ones.” MMT

17. Today, I was the maid of honor in her wedding. Four years ago she was declared cancer free. Eight years ago, during our senior year of college, she was diagnosed with breast cancer and told she had eighteen months to live. MMT

18. Today, I received a gigantic gift bag from one of my friends. She said she appreciated me being there for her, and that I am one of her best friends. She is mentally and physically handicapped, and I merely see her for half an hour once per week. MMT

19. Today, my close friend died unexpectedly in a car accident. A cab driver saw me crying outside the hospital all alone at 3AM. He stopped, helped me into the cab, drove me to my house 30 miles away and refused to let me pay him. MMT

20. Today, I kissed my dad on the forehead as he passed away in a small hospital bed. About 5 seconds after he passed, I realized it was the first time I had given him a kiss since I was a little boy. MMT