MORNING COFFEE

[Guest guest]

Is it better to give than receive?

We have heard this cliche` a million times. You

probably spend most of your day loving and nurturing

those around you. Day in and day out you're probably giving

all you have and taking good care of those that rely on

you.

The trouble begins when you don't receive love and

nurturing in return from the ones who receive your

care. As time passes, it's only natural for you to feel

resentful.

Does this mean you should stop giving because you

are not receiving? Of course not! Instead, you

need to make it known that you need the same love and

compassion that you give to others everyday.

You too, need to be taken care of. Why? It's only

when you receive this love that all your giving

becomes effortless.

Perhaps you have never heard of Lawes. was thewife of Lawes, warden at Sing Sing Prison from 1920-1941.

Sing Sing had the reputation of destroying wardens. The averagewarden's tenure before Lawes was two years. "The easiest way toget out of Sing Sing," he once quipped, "is to go in as warden." Inhis 21 years he instituted numerous reforms - and an important part ofhis success was due to his wife .

took seriously the idea that the prisoners are human beings,worthy of attention and respect. She regularly visited inside thewalls of Sing Sing. She encouraged the prisoners, ran errands for themand spent time listening to them. Most importantly, she cared aboutthem. And as a result, they cared deeply about her.

Then one night in October of 1937, news was "telegraphed" between theprison cells that was killed in an accident. The prisonerspetitioned the warden to allow them to attend her funeral bier. Hegranted their strange request and a few days later the south gate ofSing Sing swung slowly open. Hundreds of men - felons, lifers,murderers, thieves - men convicted of almost every crime conceivable,marched slowly from the prison gate to the bier, reassembled at thehouse and returned to their cells. There were so many that theyproceeded unguarded. But not one tried to escape. If he had, theothers may have killed him on the spot, so devoted were they to Lawes, the woman who daily walked into Hell to show the mena piece of Heaven.

's strength was to see the men less as prisoners and more asindividuals. has said, "We can only treat badly thosethings or people whose souls we disregard."

To treat people well is to honor their souls. To honor their souls isto understand what it means to love your neighbor.

Steve Goodier

Make a point to delight in every little thing. The more things you consider to be a reason for joy, the more joyful you will be. A few things are so overwhelmingly positive or so completely negative as to not need any judgment on your part. All the other things, though, depend largely on how you see them. If you see something as a curse it will be a curse. If you see it as a blessing it will indeed be a blessing for you. Don't allow others to poison your attitude with their complaints and their gloomy pessimism. Be aggressively and proactively positive. Find delight in the little things. And you'll be pleasantly surprised at how delightful the big things turn out to be, too. Ralph Marston

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