Another Great "Fix All"

I have decided that duct tape does not stand alone when it comes to fixing everything. Coffee has been over looked as a "fix all" for far too long. At least when it comes to fixing the soul, coffee has to be recognized for it's healing powers. When someone comes to visit one of the first things to be offered for your visitor's pleasure is a place to sit and seconds later, a cup of coffee. It is an eye opener early in the morning, as well as when you are on a long trip and need to stay awake just a little while longer. Nothing goes better with dessert or breakfast than a piping hot cup of coffee. When upset, nothing is more soothing than your favorite mug filled with coffee. In some cases the praises of coffee has been sung as a laxative. Coffee has the ability to warm you inside and out when you come in from the cold winter weather. From time to time I have heard news reports that one study or another has condemned coffee as being bad for your health. Yet on the heels of that report comes another saying that coffee is great for your health. It is my opinion that coffee like anything else can be bad for you if you tend to over indulge. So drink up, the day is young and the coffee is hot.

We are playing out a drama this morning that started yesterday. There is a small refrigerator that sits in our kitchen, that came with the house. It is the right size if there are just two people (like us). How ever when you take into consideration that we live 30 minutes from town and there just isn't any running to the store to pick up a few things. There are little country convenience stores around, but they are way too expensive to buy from on a regular basis. The smart way to shop would be buy larger containers of the perishable foods. That isn't going to happen with a refrigerator this small though. For a small apartment it is the perfect size. It has been making some very strange sounds lately. I have been trying to ignore them and secretly hoping that the little thing doesn't die on us just yet. J.D. has talked about putting a new floor in the kitchen and my thoughts were that when a new floor is put in we can start looking around for a new refrigerator and stove (way too small, as well). The freezer seems to be working fine, but the refrigerator part not so much. J.D. emptied the contents from it last night and put it all on the screened in porch (Great emergency refrigerator in the winter time). After it was emptied we poked and prodded the refrigerator and ended up turning the dial to the highest number. I checked it this morning and it does feel cooler, but not quite what it should be. So it looks as if this is going to be the day when we make the big decision or at least discuss if it is time to replace this 'gurgling, grinding, roaring, sometimes clunking' appliance when J.D. wakes up.

I've got a great idea..... We can talk about it over a couple of cups of coffee!

Meaningful Monday

A group of alumni, all highly established in their respective careers, got together for a visit with their old university professor. The conversation soon turned to complaints about the endless stress of work and life in general.

Offering his guests coffee, the professor went into the kitchen and soon returned with a large pot of coffee and an eclectic assortment of cups: porcelain, plastic, glass, crystal - some plain, some expensive, some quite exquisite. Quietly he told them to help themselves to some fresh coffee.

When each of his former students had a cup of coffee in hand, the old professor quietly cleared his throat and began to patiently address the small gathering... ''You may have noticed that all of the nicer looking cups were taken up first, leaving behind the plainer and cheaper ones. While it is only natural for you to want only the best for yourselves, that is actually the source of much of your stress-related problems."

He continued...''Be assured that the cup itself adds no quality to the coffee. In fact, the cup merely disguises or dresses up what we drink. What each of you really wanted was coffee, not a cup, but you instinctively went for the best cups... Then you began eyeing each other's cups.''

''Now consider this: Life is coffee. Jobs, money, and position in society are merely cups. They are just tools to shape and contain Life, and the type of cup we have does not truly define nor change the quality of the Life we live. Often, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to enjoy the coffee that God has provided us... God brews the coffee, but he does not supply the cups. Enjoy your coffee!''The happiest people don't have the best of everything, they just make the best of everything they have."

So please remember: Live simply. Love generously. Care Deeply. Speak Kindly. Leave The Rest To God.

Never Judge another person or compare them to someone else.

And remember - the richest person is not the one who has the most, but the one who needs the least.