| |
| |
|
Attraction Information |
|
|
|
The Magic of Mike
The woman stood over the stove stirring a pot of hot soup. She prepared it to ward off the bitter Minnesota cold, a cover-every-inch-of-your-skin cold, the kind that bites you and never lets go, the kind that makes auto engines demand heaters or they refuse to start. Icicles hung from her window ledge and blocked the top part of her view. Out of the corner of her eye she glimpsed movement. She leaned forward to spot a man shuffling behind a shopping cart on the other side of the frozen road. "What's he doing out there?" she asked herself, baffled. "Perhaps he has no home to hide in," she cringed. In an instant she leapt into action, pulled a plastic bag from the drawer next to the sink and began sweeping groceries into it, including the loaf of banana bread she baked that afternoon, still warm from the oven. She grabbed her overcoat. Armed with provisions, she headed out the front door. "Excuse me," she called. He turned. She waved. "Can you come over here?" she continued. The man wheeled his cart and stepped off the sidewalk. As he approached her house, the man dragged away a scarf that blocked his nose and chin. He revealed a clean face with a slight smile and gentle eyes. "Can I?" she stammered. "Can I give you this food?" She paused. "I thought you might be hungry," she added. The man's smile widened. "Why," he replied, with surprising eloquence, "that's very kind of you. I hadn't eaten today." He placed the gift in his cart and moved on. She watched for a moment before retreating out of the cold. The next evening after work, the woman discovered a neatly folded note under her doormat. She stepped inside, opened it and began to read. Thank you so much for your kindness. I often miss meals on colder nights and the shelters are not safe for me. I appreciate everything and the banana bread was delicious-the best I ever tasted. Many blessings, Mike Throughout the year, the woman ran across Mike in different parts of the city. He greeted her warmly and embraced her kindness with dignity, an almost noble quality that made her happy to give. She often thought about him-where did he come from, how did he end up on the street. Mostly she cared for his heart. In the fall, as they always did, she and her husband went to Florida on business, then returned on Christmas Eve for the holiday season. As they drove home from the airport, she threw a question into the air. "I wonder what happened to Mike?" she asked. "Probably went South for the winter," her husband joked, with no meanness intended. "Shut up," she half-laughed as she smacked him on the arm. A few moments later, they turned the corner and across the way, at a bus stop, stood a man with a shopping cart. "That's Mike," she exclaimed. "Stop the car." "Don't be silly," her husband retorted. "It's just some other homeless guy." "Stop this instant," she barked. "Pull the car over." She jumped out and took a stride forward. "Mike," she cried in a loud voice. "Is that you?" The man looked up, pulled down a familiar scarf and grinned. She walked to him. He stepped around his cart. "Merry Christmas," he said simply with a special twinkle in his eye. "It's warm here at the bus stop." "Stay right here, Mike," the woman ordered. "I'll be right back. Don't you move." She slammed the car door shut and told her husband to drive. "We're getting warm garments," she stated in a tone that allowed no debate. At the house she went straight to her husband's closet, found sweaters and wool socks and a down jacket. She added the blanket from the end of their bed. Mike waited patiently at the bus stop. She approached him with her arms loaded as her husband kept the car idling. At the last instant a feeling flooded through her. She couldn't give him the clothes. She stood in inner turmoil, paralyzed and unsure, conflicted inside-then she declared: "Mike, it's Christmas. I'm taking you home. Park your cart over there and let's go." Overwhelmed, Mike followed. That night, they shared dinner, told stories and laughed and laughed. They learned of Mike's background, his broken childhood, a horrid tale he expressed with sorrow and acceptance, of his choice to reject society in favor of a life he understood no matter how hard. She struggled with all of it. Over breakfast, she issued a bold pronouncement. "Mike, I've decided you can stay with us?as long as you want." She beamed with delight. "We can help you." With as much kindness as he could muster, Mike refused. He insisted that they drop him at the airport. He made no excuses, offered no explanation other than his need to be where he belonged. She couldn't go with them. She couldn't bear to say goodbye. She stayed home alone. When her husband returned, she met him in the entry hall. "Well?" she demanded. "I dropped him off at his Gulf Stream IV and he took off," he joked again without malice, only a desire to make her feel better in a moment when he didn't quite know how he felt himself. She tried to smile, smacked his arm and turned away. A lone tear strayed down her cheek?a tear she shed for Mike? That's A View From The Ridge... About The Author Author Ridgely Goldsborough invites you to subscribe to The Daily Column, a heart-felt collection of stories that inspire hope and courage. Please do so at www.aviewfromtheridge.com.
MORE RESOURCES:
Attraction - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Abundance or Scarcity: What Belief Do You Choose to Engage? For the last several years, I have included on my email signature the following salutation "Peace and Abundance." This is a daily reminder that my success begins with how I engage my beliefs. Releasing Your Potential In life, few people ever step up to live their lives at a higher level. They spend their lives wallowing in the circumstances that surround them. Self Improvement and Self Growth Nowadays the terms self-improvement, self-growth and self-help have become popular. We find many books about these subjects and many websites too. Your Mind is a Battlefield Every person should enjoy life in abundance and prosperity, but unfortunately, too many of God's people are living way below their potential. So many have health issues, broken relationships, and/or no money in their bank account. Whats Your Plan? Designing Your Future So you have set your goals for the year. Congratulations!I have come to believe most of us set our goals for incorrect reasons. Change How You Say It, Change Your Attractiveness Language, whether it's emerging from our mind, our heart, or our lips, says a lot about ourselves. It tells others what state we're in at the time, actually where we are in our life, as well as how we dress our self, our body and our soul. Wise Hericlitus "You cannot step into the same river twice"Hericlitus spoke those words around 500BC. A very wise man, Hericlitus. Principles for Total Prosperity In Business And Beyond Are you looking for that "something" to give you the winning edge in your business? Is success still elusive even after burning both ends of the candle? Well, you may be looking for success in al the wrong places or you may not have an accurate picture of what true success is.In a fast-paced society that's driven by a mentality of "more is better," extreme stress and lack of fulfillment are inevitable in every facet of our lives, including work. Great Things Cannot Happen Without Change If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always got.It's critical that we realize our lives can change at any moment. What Will It Cost You? What will it cost you if you don't do it?Everyone has a secret dream that they nourish in their hearts.Yet many of these dreams never emerge beyond mere wishful thinking. How to Better Improve Your Life Through the Power of Change I am a physicist by education, and a practical business entrepreneur by profession - two quite different fields. At times we have all tried to unify our understanding of different areas that we have been exposed to, and so I have attempted to do the same here on a broad common theme that seemingly touches both of these two rather diverse subjects. October: A Month of Personal Harvest October is hands down my favorite month. Every year l look forward to a visit to Lynd's Fruit Farm in Pataskala, Ohio. Beads-A Sign of the Times? When you hear the word "beads," do you immediately think of jewelry? Or do you think of Rosary beads or some other non-jewelry use of beads-beaded dresses, headbands, belts? Perhaps you think of a country and western outfit, a studded, head-to-toe piece of jewelry.The first thought that enters your mind when you hear the word "beads" may date you and give away your age faster than physical attributes. What Is Your Legacy? During a recent speech, I told the audience that my mission was to empower the self-employed to succeed. Instantly a hand shot up in the audience. What are You Creating? Before you left school, did any of your teachers sit you down, and ask: 'How will you use your unique gifts in the world? Did they even explore the term 'unique gift' with you?And what about your relationships?The term 'soul-mate' sounds like a wonderful concept, doesn't it?But did anyone point out to you that it would be impossible for your soul mate to discover your soul, before you discovered your own soul for yourself?And what about our own children? What are we teaching them?We'd love them to thrive, be prosperous and go out into the world with confidence. Yet if we lacked an inspirational teacher or important advice from a parent, how can we expect our children to achieve greater richness and abundance than we manage?Clearly there is a need for us all to seek greater wisdom, be that for ourselves or for a youngster. How To Bypass Your Conscious Mind and Program Yourself For Success Emile Coué, the French psychotherapist once said: "When the imagination and will power are in conflict, are antagonistic, it is always the imagination which wins, without any exception." Then you can program yourself for success by understanding the power of imagination. How To Step Into The Flow Of Abundance Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again. The Mechanic (Channelled)Roy? What value comes of a mechanic that fills his tool box with all the latest tools and never uses them?What value comes from a mechanic that fills his tool box with tools and does not know how to use them?If one has a box full of tools and has never used them, can he/she be called a mechanic and if one has the knowledge of a mechanic but has never used his tools to repair anything is he a mechanic?He is a mechanic in name only! A mechanic uses tools to create a desired result, the repair of a machine. By using his tools he goes through the motions of being a mechanic, he defines himself physically through the use of his tools and his skills, to aspire to what he already knows himself to be. Triggering Intention: How To Remember To Remember You've got a lot to store in that brain of yours. Sometimes you need to remind yourself to remember something. The Centre of Creative Powers! Evolution is nothing but seeking with clarity, demanding clarity at every moment. Every moment clarify to yourself the greater purpose of everything you do.
|
| home | index |site map |
| © 2006 |
