A man who was feeling very disheartened went down to the beach. He found a shiny pearl sitting amongst the sand and pebbles. It gleamed brightly in the morning sun and his heart was lifted.
I will keep this forever, he said to himself as he rubbed it gently with his finger and thumb.
The next day when he woke up, the pearl…
I love dogs and cats. During my lifetime I have had many dogs and cats as pets. Yet there are two things I never understood about dogs and cats.
First, why do dogs greet people warmly with joyful jumping and tail wagging, while cats greet people like they are doing you a favor; coolly with regal restraint? Second, why are dogs and cats usually not good friends? Why do they fight like dogs and cats?
Once there lived a metalworker, a locksmith, who was unjustly accused of crimes and was sentenced to a deep, dark prison. After he had been there awhile, his wife who loved him very much went to the King and beseeched him that she might at least give him a prayer rug so he could observe his five prostrations every day.
The King considered that a lawful request, so he…
A couple that had been married for 15 years began having more than usual disagreements…
They wanted to make their marriage work and agreed on an idea the wife had. For one month they planned to drop a slip in a Fault box. The boxes would provide a place to let the other know about daily irritations…
Adam was all alone. He didn’t have parents and he didn’t have children. He did not even have a brother or a sister to talk to. Adam was all alone. He didn’t even have a friend to play games with. Adam was lonely, and he was unhappy.
God said to Adam, “It is not good for you to be alone….
My mother used to ask me what is the most important part of the body? Through the years I would take a guess at what I thought was the correct answer.
When I was younger, I thought sound was very important to us as humans, so I said, My ears, Mommy.
She said, No. Many people are deaf. But you…
I was strolling in the gardens of an insane asylum when I met a young man who was reading a philosophy book. His behavior and his evident good health made him stand out from the other inmates.
I sat down beside him and asked:
What are you doing here?
He looked at me, surprised. But seeing that I was not one of the doctors, he replied…
When I was an adolescent I envied the great ballerinos among the kids on the block, and pretended I had other things to do at parties — like having a conversation. But in fact I was terrified of looking ridiculous, and because of that I would not risk a single step.
Until one day a girl called Marcia called out to me in front of everybody: Come on!
I said I did not like to dance, but she insisted.
Everyone in the group was looking…
I assume that you have heard of the story the Velveteen Rabbit. If you have not, it is the story of a little stuffed bunny rabbit who dreams of being Real. To his owner, a small boy, the rabbit is perceived to be Real, because the Boy loves him so much. He gets older and shabbier but is content with knowing the Boy believes he is a Real rabbit.
When the boy falls ill with scarlet fever…
The cheerful girl with bouncy golden curls was almost five. Waiting with her mother at the checkout stand, she saw them: a circle of glistening white pearls in a pink foil box.
Oh please, Mommy. Can I have them? Please, Mommy, please!
Quickly the mother checked the back of the little foil box and then looked back into the pleading blue eyes of her little girl’s upturned face…
