For those we love.

[Guest guest]

WOW!

I NEED SOME MARBLES.....................................

The older I get, the more I enjoy Saturday mornings. Perhaps it's the

quiet solitude that comes with being the first to rise, or maybe it's

the unbounded joy of not having to be at work. Either way, the first few

hours of a Saturday morning are most enjoyable.

A few weeks ago, I was shuffling toward the kitchen with a steaming cup

of coffee in one hand and the morning paper in the other. What began as

a typical Saturday morning turned into one of those lessons that life

seems to hand you from time to time. Let me tell you about it. I turned

the volume up on my radio in order to listen to a Saturday morning talk

show.

<>I heard an older sounding chap with a golden voice. You know the kind,

he sounded like he should be in the broadcasting business himself.

He was talking about " a thousand marbles " to someone named " Tom. " I was

intrigued and sat down to listen to what he had to say.

”Well, Tom, it sure sounds like you're busy with your job. I'm sure they

pay you well but it's a shame you have to be away from home and your

Family so much. Hard to believe a young fellow should have to work sixty

or seventy hours a week to make ends meet. Too bad you missed your

daughter's dance recital. "

He continued, " Let me tell you something Tom, something that has helped

me keep a good perspective on my own priorities. "

And that's when he began to explain his theory of " a thousand marbles "

" You see, I sat down one day and did a little arithmetic. The average

person lives about seventy-five years. I know, some live more and some

live less, but on average, folks live about seventy-five years. "

" Now then, I multiplied 75 times 52 and I came up with 3900 which is the

number of Saturdays that the average person has in their entire

lifetime. Now stick with me Tom, I'm getting to the important part. "

" It took me until I was fifty-five years old to think about all this in

any detail, " he went on, " and by that time I had lived through over

twenty-eight hundred Saturdays. I got to thinking that if I lived to be

seventy-five, I only had about a thousand of them left to enjoy. "

" So I went to a toy store and bought every single marble they had. I

ended up having to visit three toy stores to roundup 1000 marbles. I

took them home and put them inside of a large, clear plastic container

right here in my workshop next to the radio. Every Saturday since then,

I have taken one marble out and have thrown it away "

" I found that by watching the marbles diminish, I focused more on the

really important things in life. There is nothing like watching your

time here on this earth run out to help get your priorities straight. "

" Now let me tell you one last thing before I sign-off with you and take

my lovely wife out for breakfast. This morning, I took the very last

marble out of the container. I figure if I make it until next Saturday

then God has blessed me with a little extra time to be with my loved

ones...... " It was nice to talk to you Tom, I hope you spend more time

with your loved ones, and I hope to meet you again someday. Have a good

morning! "

You could have heard a pin drop when he finished. Even the show's

moderator didn't have anything to say for a few moments. I guess he gave

us all a lot to think about. I had planned to do some work that morning

then go to the gym.

Instead, I went upstairs and woke my wife up with a kiss. " C'mon honey,

I'm taking you and the kids to breakfast. " " What brought this on? " she

asked with a smile. " Oh, nothing special, " I said. " It has just been a

long time since we spent a Saturday together with the kids. Hey, can we

stop at a toy store while we're out? I need to buy some marbles. "

HAVE A GREAT LIFE AND MAY ALL SATURDAYS BE SPECIAL AND MAY YOU HAVE MANY

HAPPY YEARS AFTER YOU LOSE ALL YOUR MARBLES.

--

Peace, love and light,

Don Quai

" Spirit sleeps in the mineral, breathes in the vegetable, dreams in the animal

and wakes in man. "