Just Stuff - and Some Stuff - and Alittle More Stuff

[Guest guest]

Hugs Can Cheer You Up PoemIt's wondrous what a hug can do,

A hug can cheer you when you're blue.

A hug can say, "I love you so.",

Or, "Gee! I hate to see you go."

A hug is, "Welcome back again."

This Hug Is Meant For You

A hug can soothe a small child's pain,

And bring a rainbow after rain.

The hug! There's just no doubt about it,

We scarcely could survive without it.

A hug delights and warms and charms,

It must be why God gave us arms.

Hugs are great for fathers and mothers,

Sweet for sisters, swell for brothers,

And chances are some uncles and aunts

Love them more than potted plants.

Kittens crave them. Puppies love them.

Heads of state are not above them.

A hug can break the language barrier,

And make the dullest day seem merrier.

No need to fret about the store of them,

The more you give, the more there are of them.

So stretch those arms without delay

And give someone a hug today.

Hugs Can Cheer You Up Poem - by Unknown

================

A man and his son were walking in the forest. Suddenly the boy trips and feeling a sharp pain he screams, "Ahhhhh." Surprised, he hears a voice coming from the mountain, "Ahhhhh!"Filled with curiosity, he screams: "Who are you?", but the only answer he receives is: "Who are you?" This makes him angry, so he screams: "You are a coward!",and the voice answers: "You are a coward!" He looks at his father, asking, "Dad, what is going on?" "Son," the man replies, "pay attention!" Then he screams, "I admire you!" The voice answers: "I admire you!" The father shouts, "You are wonderful!", and the voice answers: "You are wonderful!"The boy is surprised, but still can't understand what is going on.Then the father explains, "People call this 'ECHO', but truly it is 'LIFE!' Life always gives you back what you give out! Life is a mirror of your actions. If you want more love, give more love! If you want more kindness, give more kindness! If you want understanding and respect, give understanding and respect! If you want people to be patient and respectful to you, give patience and respect! This rule of nature applies to every aspect of our lives."Life always gives you back what you give out.Your life is not a coincidence, but a mirror of your own doings.

=================

Like most elementary schools, it was typical to have a parade of students in and out of the health clinic throughout the day. We dispensed ice for bumps and bruises, Band-Aids for cuts, and liberal doses of sympathy and hugs. As principal, my office was right next door to the clinic, so I often dropped in to lend a hand and help out with the hugs. I knew that for some kids, mine might be the only one they got all day. One morning I was putting a Band-Aid on a little girl's scraped knee Her blonde hair was matted, and I noticed that she was shivering in her thin little sleeveless blouse. I found her a warm sweatshirt and helped her pull it on. "Thanks for taking care of me," she whispered as she climbed into my lap and snuggled up against me. It wasn't long after that when I ran across an unfamiliar lump under my arm. Cancer, an aggressively spreading kind, had already invaded thirteen of my lymph nodes. I pondered whether or not to tell the students about my diagnosis. The word breast seemed so hard to say out loud to them, and the word cancer seemed so frightening. When it became evident that the children were going to find out one way or another, either the straight scoop from me or possibly a garbled version from someone else, I decided to tell them myself. It wasn't easy to get the words out, but the empathy and concern I saw in their faces as I explained it to them told me I had made the right decision. When I gave them a chance to ask questions, they mostly wanted to know how they could help. I told them that what I would like best would be their letters, pictures and prayers. I stood by the gym door as the children solemnly filed out. My little blonde friend darted out of line and threw herself into my arms. Then she stepped back to look up into my face. "Don't be afraid, Dr. ," she said earnestly, "I know you'll be back because now it's our turn to take care of you." No one could have ever done a better job. The kids sent me off to my first chemotherapy session with a hilarious book of nausea remedies that they had written. A video of every class in the school singing get-well songs accompanied me to the next chemotherapy appointment. By the third visit, the nurses were waiting at the door to find out what I would bring next. It was a delicate music box that played "I Will Always Love You." Even when I went into isolation at the hospital for a bone marrow transplant, the letters and pictures kept coming until they covered every wall of my room. Then the kids traced their hands onto colored paper, cut them out and glued them together to make a freestanding rainbow of helping hands. "I feel like I've stepped into Disneyland every time I walk into this room," my doctor laughed. That was even before the six-foot apple blossom tree arrived adorned with messages written on paper apples from the students and teachers. What healing comfort I found in being surrounded by these tokens of their caring.

At long last I was well enough to return to work. As I headed up the road to the school, I was suddenly overcome by doubts. What if the kids have forgotten all about me? I wondered, What if they don't want a skinny bald principal? What if. . I caught sight of the school marquee as I rounded the bend. "Welcome Back, Dr. ," it read. As I drew closer, everywhere I looked were pink ribbons - ribbons in the windows, tied on the doorknobs, even up in the trees. The children and staff wore pink ribbons, too. My blonde buddy was first in line to greet me. "You're back, Dr. , you're back!" she called. "See, I told you we'd take care of you!" As I hugged her tight, in the back of my mind I faintly heard my music box playing. "I will always love you."

author:

===============

Some time ago, a friend of mine punished his 3-year-old daughter for wasting a roll of gold wrapping paper. Money was tight and he became infuriated when the small child tried to decorate a box to put under the tree. Nevertheless the little girl brought the gift to her father the next morning and said "This is for you Daddy." He was embarrassed by his earlier over reaction. But his anger flared again when he found that the box was empty. Then he yelled at her, "Don't you know that when you give someone a present there's supposed to be something inside of it?" The little girl looked up at him with tears in her eyes and said, "Oh Daddy it's not empty. I blew kisses into the box. All for you Daddy." The father was crushed. He put his arms around his little girl and he begged her forgiveness. My friend told me that he kept that gold box near his bed for years. Whenever he was discouraged he would take out an imaginary kiss and remember the love of the child who had put it there. In a very real sense each of us has been given a gold container filled with unconditional love and kisses. There is no more precious possession anyone could hold. We hope you have enjoyed this touching story:

author unknown

================================

There's nothing the matter with me, I'm just as healthy as can be, I have arthritis in both knees, And when I talk, I talk with a wheeze. My pulse is weak, my blood is thin, But I'm awfully well for the shape I'm in. >

My teeth have had to all come out, And my diet I hate to think about. I'm overweight and I can't get thin, But I'm awfully well for the shape I'm in.

The arch supports I need for my feet. Enable me to get off my seat. My memory's failing, my head's in a spin. But I'm awfully well for the shape I'm in.

Old age is golden I've heard it said, But sometimes I wonder, as I go to bed. With my ears in a drawer, my teeth in a cup,And my glasses on a shelf, until I get up.

And when sleep dims my eyes, I say to myself, Is there anything else I should lay on the shelf ? I get up each morning and dust off my wits,Pick up the paper and read the obits.

If my name is missing, I'm therefore not dead, So I eat a good breakfast and jump back into bed. The reason I know my Youth has been spent, Is my get-up-and-go has got-up-and-went!

But really I don't mind, when I think with a grin, Of all the places my get-up has been. The moral of this as the tale unfolds, Is that for you and me, who are growing old. It is better to say "I'm fine" with a grin, Than to let people know the shape we are in.© Diamond C Aloes