's motd Sunday Dec. 28, 2008

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THE MOOD RING

Sunday, 28 December 2008

"Hey, Dicky! Come inside, I have something to show you!"Mr. Landrieu, who owned the magic store in New Orleans' French Quarter, would always let me know when something new came into the store that he thought suited me.

"You've just got to see this, Dicky. I've only gotten a couple in and I wanted you to be one of the first to see it."Oh, that Mr. Landrieu, he was such a great salesman. So I went into the store and let him show me the most amazing little item. It was a ring and it was called a "Mood Ring." It was a fairly simple ring made of nickel or some other metal. But the amazing thing was the unusually colored stone set in the ring. And I couldn't believe it, Mr. Landrieu told me that the stone would actually change color, depending on your mood. I had to buy it...immediately!When I put it on, the stone turned yellow which Mr. Landrieu told me meant I was happy. Well, I sure was happy, just to have that ring for starters! I was so happy in fact that as I was walking home with my new ring on, I was so mesmerized by it that I wasn't paying attention. As I walked happily along, I tripped on a curve on the sidewalk and ended up on my tailbone. Ouch!

I took another look at the ring after my fall and lo-and-behold, it had turned a dark orange. I'm sure that must have meant that I was angry. Still, I was so excited with my new mood ring that I wore it everywhere, including to school.Problem was, I'd be so enthralled staring at my ring all day that I wasn't paying attention like I should in class. Mother Porter decided enough was enough, came over to my desk, lifted my hand and removed the ring from my finger! She put it in her desk drawer and before giving it back at the end of the schoolday, told me I was not to wear it to class again.Now you don't need a mood ring to know your moods, do you? When you get into a mood, you can feel it from head-to-toe. For instance, when you're in a happy mood, you know it because you've got a smile on your face for the whole human race. Your eyes sparkle, you're full of energy and you have a tendency to talk really fast when you're so happy.

When your mood turns to anger, you talk fast then, too but what you're saying isn't necessarily so nice. And your face gets all flushed and sometimes your hair stands on end. Of course you know when you're blue because just look at you. No smile, no light in your eyes, no razzle-dazzle...why, you're just as blue as a block of ice!And the moods continue, don't they? Loneliness, depression and sorrow are other moods that can really pull you down. So, let me ask you, if you had a mood ring on right now, what color would the stone be? Many people, just before the end of the year, get really depressed as they see the glass as only half-empty. They constantly replay in their heads the mistakes they have made this year, over and over again, making themselves feel so bad.And listen, I just won't let you enter 2009 in that state of mind. Hey, we can't do anything about what's happened in the past but we can do a lot of things about what's going to happen in our futures. Remember, you're in the driver's seat, my friends and I want you to plot out your journeys as you sail into the new year.So come on now! Enjoy this beautiful Sunday and start thinking ahead today. And here's an idea, start getting some of your resolutions for the new year swimming in your mind. Hey, that should put you in the right mood!Love,