LESSONS_OF_THE_HEART.HTML

Lessons of the heart ... the wisdom of children


       "The most caring child"

Author and lecturer Leo Buscaglia once talked about a
contest he was asked to judge. The purpose of the contest was to
find the most caring child. The winner was a four year old child whose
next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost
his wife. Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old
gentleman’s yard, climbed onto his lap, and just sat there. When his
mother asked him what he had said to the neighbor, the little boy said,
“Nothing, I just helped him cry.
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"Two Nickels and Five Pennies"

When an ice cream sundae cost much less, a boy entered a coffee
shop and sat at a table. A waitress put a glass of water in front of him..
“How much is an ice cream sundae?”
“Fifty cents,” replied the waitress.
The little boy pulled his hand out of his pocket and studied
a number of coins in it.
“How much is a dish of plain ice cream?” he inquired.
Some people were now waiting for a table, and the waitress
was impatient.
“Thirty-five cents,” she said angrily.
The little boy again counted the coins. “I’ll have the plain ice
cream.”
The waitress brought the ice cream and walked away. The
boy finished, paid the cashier, and departed. When the waitress came
back, she swallowed hard at what she saw. There, placed neatly beside
the empty dish, were two nickels and five pennies -- her tip.
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"What It Means to Be Adopted"

Teacher Debbie Moon’s first graders were discussing a picture
of a family. One little boy in the picture had a different color hair than
the other family members.
One child suggested that he was adopted and a
ptions because I was adopted,”
“What does it mean to be adopted?” asked another child.
“It means,” said Jocelynn, “that you grew in your mommy’s
heart instead of her tummy.”
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"Paco Come Home"

In a small town in Spain, a man named Jorge had a bitter
argument with his young son, Paco. The next day Jorge discovered
that Paco’s bed was empty - he had run away from home.
Overcome with remorse, Jorge searched his soul and realized
that his son was the most important to him than anything else. He
wanted to start over. Jorge went to a well-known store in the center
of town and posted a large sign that read, “Paco, come home. I love
you. Meet me here tomorrow morning.”
The next morning Jorge went to the store, where he found no
less than seven young boys named Paco who had also run away from
home. They were all answering the call for love, hoping it was their
father inviting them home with open arms.
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"Rescued"

A little girl whose parents had died lived with her grandmother
and slept in an upstairs bedroom.
One night there was a fire in the house and the grandmother
perished while trying to rescue the child. The fires spread quickly,
and the first floor was engulfed in flames.
Neighbors called the fire department, then stood helplessly
by, unable to enter the house because flames blocked all the entrances.
The little girl appeared at an upstairs window, crying for help, just as
word spread among the crowd that firefighters would be delayed a few
minutes because they were all at another fire.
Suddenly, a man appeared with a ladder, put it up against the
side of the house and disappeared inside. When he appeared, he had
the little girl in his arms. He delivered the child to the waiting arms
below
nto the night.
An investigation revealed that the child had no living relatives,
and weeks later a meeting was held in the town hall to determine who
would take the child into their home and bring her up.
A teacher said she would raise the child. She pointed out she
could ensure her a good education. A farmer offered her an upbringing
on his farm. He pointed out that living on a farm was healthy and
satisfying. Others spoke, giving their reasons why it was to the child’s
advantage to live with them.
Finally, the town’s richest resident arose and said, “I can give
this child all the advantages that you have mentioned here, plus money
and everything money can buy.”
Throughout all this, the child remained silent, her eyes on
the floor.
“Does anyone else want to speak?” asked the meeting
chairman. A man came forward from the back of the hall. His gait was
slow and he seemed in pain. When he got to the front of the room, he
stood directly before the little girl and held out his arms. The crowd
gasped. His hand and arms were terribly scarred.
The child cried out, “This is the man who rescued me!” With
a leap, she threw her arms around the man’s neck, holding on for dear
life, just as she had that fateful night. She buried her face on his
shoulder and sobbed for a few moments. Then she looked up and
smiled at him.
“This meeting is adjourned,” said the chairman.
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As I was driving home from work one day, I stopped to watch
a local Little League baseball game that was being played in a park near
my home. As I sat down behind the bench on the first-baseline, I
asked one of the boys what the score was.
“We’re behind 14 to nothing,” he answered with a smile.
“Really,” I said. “I have to say you don’t look very discouraged.”
“Discouraged?” the boy asked w ith a puzzled look on his face.
“Why should we be discouraged?We haven’t been up to bat yet.”
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"Roles And How We Play Them"

Whenever I’m disappointed with my spot in my life, I stop and
think about little Jamie Scott. Jamie was trying out for a part in a school
play. His mother told me that he’d set his heart on being in it, though
she feared he would not be chosen. On the day the parts were awarded,
I went with her to collect him after school. Jamie rushed up to her, eyes
shining with pride and excitement. “Guess what Mum,” he shouted, and
then said those words that will remain a lesson to me: “I’ve been
chosen to clap and cheer.”
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"A Lesson In Heart"

A lesson in “heart” is my little, 10 year old daughter, Sarah,
who was born with a muscle missing in her foot and wears a brace all
the time. She came home one beautiful spring day to tell me she had
competed in “field day”- that’s where they have lots of races and other
competitive events.
Because of her leg support, my mind raced as I tried to think
of encouragement for my Sarah, things I could say to her about not
letting this get her down-but before I could get a word out, she said,
“Daddy, I won two of the races!”
I couldn’t believe it! And then Sarah said, “I had an advantage.”
Ahh. I knew it. I thought she must have been given a head
start... some kind of physical advantage. But again, before I could say
anything, she said,
“Daddy, I didn’t get a head start... My advantage was I had
to try harder!”