Two Friends

A story tells that two friends were walking
through the desert. During some
point of the journey they had an argument, and one friend slapped the other one in the face.
The one who got slapped was hurt,
but without saying anything, wrote in the sand:
TODAY MY BEST FRIEND
SLAPPED ME IN THE FACE.

They kept on walking until they found an oasis,
where they decided to take a bath. The one who
had been slapped got stuck in the mire and
started drowning, but the friend saved him.
After he recovered from the near
drowning, he wrote on a stone:

TODAY MY BEST FRIEND SAVED MY LIFE.

The friend who had slapped and
saved his best friend asked him,
"After I hurt you, you wrote in the
sand and now, you write on a stone,
why?" The other friend replied "When someone
hurts us we should write it down in sand where winds
of forgiveness can erase it away. But, when someone
does something good for us, we must engrave
it in stone where no wind can ever erase it."

" LEARN TO WRITE YOUR HURTS IN THE SAND
AND TO CARVE YOUR BENEFITS IN STONE."

"They say it takes a minute to find a special person,
an hour to appreciate them,
a day to love them,
but then an entire life to forget them."

The Crack In the Wall

A young princess and village boy meet through a crack in the wall and experience a lasting friendship until death parts them.

STORYLINE:
Leanna and Simon are young children from different backgrounds. They meet through a crack in the palace's stone wall. As years pass the two friends remain close until Leanna is caught trying to sneak off to the village to meet Simon. Unfortunately, while Leanna is grounded to her room, Simon is taken ill. Leanna only gets to meet him at his deathbed. Although Simon dies, the story has a happy ending when Timothy (Simon's younger brother) and Leanna's future daughter (Chantelle) continue the friendship Leanna and Simon started.
STORY:
Once upon a time there lived a little princess named Leanna. She lived in the palace with her parents and three sisters. Leanna had straight brown hair, but all her sisters had curly blond hair and blue eyes. Leanna was often called the “plain princess”, but she did not mind because she did not care much about being a princess. Leanna liked to go outside and play in the palace gardens with the animals. She especially loved Milly, the baby fawn her grandfather gave her for her eighth birthday.
But as time passed, Leanna began to care about being plain. She often felt left out of parties because she was not outgoing and beautiful like her sisters.
One day Leanna was exploring the palace gardens. Behind some ivy she found a very large, old gate. It was very rusty and full of cobwebs. Curious, Leanna pushed the gate open. She was surprised there was no lock. “Maybe it fell off," she thought.
Leanna cautiously entered the gate and saw a thick, green forest. “Am I still in the palace gardens?” she wondered. There was a tall stone wall on her right, so Leanna knew she still was behind the palace walls. Leanna decided to explore. She went into the woods, while Milly followed and sniffed the flowers.
Because she was so excited, Leanna was not afraid at all. She kept walking and singing. Suddenly she heard laughter. It sounded like little children. For a moment, Leanna felt afraid because she did not think anyone could be living in that secret forest she had just found.
“Who’s there?” she called. The laughter stopped. Leanna listened carefully.
She heard a little girl say quietly, “Someone’s here! Let’s hide!”
A little boy said, “I don’t see anyone.”
“Well I’m leaving!” cried the little girl. “I don’t want to play here anymore. Maybe it’s a ghost!”
Leanna could not hear the voices very well, but she wanted to find out where they were. “Please don’t go!” Leanna shouted. “I’m friendly!”
But no one answered.
“Hello?!” Leanna shouted again. “I’m only a little girl!”
“I’m here!” said the little boy’s voice faintly. “I can’t see you at all but I can sort of hear you!”
Leanna stared at the wall. It seemed as if the voice was coming from there!
“Say something again!” she called.
“What shall I say?” the little boy asked.
Leanna pushed away some ivy, and saw a large crack in the wall! Peeking though, she saw a little boy with brown hair looking around.
“Hello!” Leanna cried happily. “I can see you through this crack in the wall!”
“Really?” The boy rushed over to the wall. “Wow! I can see your eye!”
Leanna laughed.
“Why are you on the other side of the wall? Do you live in the palace?” the boy asked.
“I am a princess,” Leanna said.
“Wow! A real princess?” The boy clapped his hands in delight. “Wait till I tell my friends.”
Leanna frowned. “You can’t tell. I might get in trouble for talking to strangers. Let’s keep it secret.”
“Ok,” the boy agreed. “Do you have a crown?”
Leanna nodded. “But I don’t wear it outside because it gets caught in the branches when I climb trees.”
The boy laughed. “That’s funny. I wish I had a crown! I’d wear it all the time.”
“What’s your name?” Leanna asked.
“My name is Simon. What’s yours?”
“Leanna.”
And from that day on Leanna and Simon became secret friends. Nobody but them knew about their secret wall. Leanna and Simon sometimes left fun letters for each other in the crack in the wall. Once, Simon brought his little brother Timothy for Leanna to meet. “Don’t worry, Timmy’s only a baby,” Simon said laughing, holding the baby up to the crack for Leanna to see. “He won’t tell our secret.”
Although Leanna could see Simon and Timothy, she made sure her side of the wall was always covered with ivy so Simon could not see her. She did not want them to see that she was a plain princess.
The years passed by and the two friends grew up. One day Simon asked Leanna to visit his village.
Leanna answered, “You already know I’m not allowed to leave the palace grounds.”
Simon was very sad. “Oh well. You are still my best friend.”
“You are my best friend too,” Leanna said.
But there came a time when Leanna decided to sneak out of the palace to pay Simon a surprise visit.
Leanna was a little nervous because she was not beautiful like her sisters. She wondered if Simon would laugh at her because she was a plain princess.
Nevertheless, Leanna asked her friend Johnny, the stable boy, to help her hide under some hay on a cart so she could visit the village.
“Ok, but just this once,” Johnny said reluctantly.
Johhny rode the cart to the village. Leanna was very excited to see this new world. When the cart stopped, Leanna got out and dusted off the hay.
“You wait here,” she told Johnny. “I’m going to find my friend Simon."
Leanna asked everyone where Simon lived. They pointed her to a small house. Leanna met a nice old man.
“Are you Simon’s father?” she asked.
“No, I am his grandfather,” said the old man, smiling.
“I have a grandfather too,” Leanna said. “Do you know where Simon is?”
Simon’s grandfather nodded. “He is out in the fields, working.”
Leanna thanked the old man and headed towards the fields and where she saw many men working.
She tapped one young boy on the shoulder. “Do you know who Simon is?”
The boy looked at her in surprise. “Yes, I do.”
Leanna was happy. “Oh good! I want to surprise him. I’m his friend Leanna.”
The boy looked very stunned.
“What is wrong?” Leanna asked.
“Maybe you will find him later,” the boy said quickly. “He is working.”
“I will find him,” Leanna said, smiling. “I will just follow the palace wall and find our meeting place.”
The boy watched Leanna leave. Leanna did not know that the boy she had spoken to was Simon, for his face had been covered with sweat and dirt.
“I can’t meet a princess looking like this!” he thought, looking at his dirty hands and clothes. “If only I was cleaner...”
Meanwhile, Leanna could not find the crack in the wall in Simon’s forest. Frustrated, she returned to Johnny’s cart and went back home.
The next day, Leanna told Simon through the crack that she had visited him.
Simon acted surprised. “You were in my village?”
“Yes I was,” Leanna said grumpily. “But I couldn’t find you or this crack.”
“Don’t be mad,” Simon said laughing. “You must come again. For dinner!”
“When?” Leanna asked excitedly.
“Tomorrow!”
“Ok,” Leanna said. “I’ll have to tell Johnny to drive me out again.”
When Leanna told Johnny her plans, he was afraid. “If we get caught, I will lose my job,” he told her.
“Don’t worry, it will be our secret,” Leanna said. “I will hide under the hay again.”
But a stable man overheard Leanna and Johnny talking. He told the King and Queen about Leanna’s secret. The King and Queen were not happy with what Leanna was doing. “Leanna should not talk to the village people,” they said.
Leanna’s sisters were shocked at the secret. “I wonder how long she has been talking to the village boy,” one sister said.
The sisters went to Johnny and asked him about the village boy. Johnny was scared. “Will I lose my job because I helped Leanna visit the village?” he asked.
“If you tell us the boy’s name and where Leanna goes to meet him, we will tell the King and Queen not to fire you,” the sisters promised.
Meanwhile, Simon, Timothy, and their grandfather prepared a nice big meal for Leanna. They swept the house clean and wore their very best clothes. But Leanna did not come.Simon was very upset. “I wonder if she forgot,” he thought.
Back at the palace, the King and Queen were talking to Leanna. They said: “You cannot go back to the village. You will stay in your room for a week because you have been doing things without our permission.”
Leanna cried all night in her room. She knew Simon, Timothy and their grandfather were expecting her but she was not allowed to leave her room.
The next day, Leanna’s sisters visited Leanna’s secret forest and found the crack in the wall. They could see Simon on the other side, reading a book.
“Simon, you can’t see our sister anymore,” the sisters said. “You are only a commoner, not a prince. Leanna can only be friends with royalty.”
Simon was very hurt. He left and did not come back again. After a week passed, Leanna visited the crack in the wall. Simon was not there, but she found a letter from his grandfather. It read:
Dear Lea, Simon is very ill and he is dying. I know he would want to see you before he goes home to God.
Leanna was very worried. She ran to Johnny and told him Simon was dying.
“It’s important that I see him now!” Leanna cried.
Johnny agreed to take her to the village one last time. Once there, Leanna ran to Simon’s house. Simon’s grandfather took her to a room where Simon lay in bed. Leanna could see how pale Simon looked. His eyes were closed.
“Hello Simon,” Leanna said very softly. She was sad he was dying, but also very happy to see him at last.
Simon’s eyes slowly opened. “Hello Lea,” he said very weakly. But he smiled. “I’m glad you’re here.”
“Me too,” Leanna said.
“I was the boy you met the first time you came to the village,” Simon confessed. “I was ashamed to tell you because I was so dirty.”
“I was ashamed because I’m just a plain princess!” Leanna exclaimed. “But you should've told me it was you. I don’t mind dirt. I get dirty all the time.”
“I don’t think you are plain,” Simon said. “You are my best friend.”
“You are my best friend too,” Leanna said tearfully.
Later that night, Simon died. Leanna was very very sad.
Simon’s grandfather gave Leanna a box. “This is from Simon,” he said.
Leanna opened the box and found a crown made of leaves and a note that read:
Thank you for being my very best friend.
Leanna held the box close to her. “This will be my treasure.” She would never forget her best friend.
Many many years went by, and Leanna became a woman. She married a prince and had a beautiful daughter whom she named Chantelle. Chantelle grew up into a lovely young girl.
As for Simon’s family, Queen Leanna made sure they were taken care of. She gave them a new house, and lots of cattle. Queen Leanna let Chantelle visit Simon’s grandfather and Timothy whenever she wanted. Although Timothy was a little older than Chantelle, they too became best friends.
Timothy and Chantelle never got tired of hearing Johnny and grandfather tell stories. Their favorite of course was about the crack in the wall... how a long time ago, a little princess and a little village boy became the best of friends.
All because of one, simple crack.
THE END

Choices

Once upon a time there was a very mean king who ruled his kingdom with an iron fist.
One day he received some very distressing news--a commoner was in love with his daughter, the princess. The next day he received even more distressing news--the princess was also in love with the commoner.
Well the king had to put a stop to this. He knew that the only way he could permanently end this relationship was to execute the commoner. So the king charged the commoner with a crime that he did not commit.
The commoner pled innocent.
As was the custom in this kingdom, fates would determine guilt or innocence.
The next day the king and the commoner were in the town's square as hundreds of townspeople looked on.
The king held out two envelopes. Inside one was a card that read "innocent." Inside the other was a card with the word "guilty."
The commoner had to choose one.
The commoner was a very wise young man and he knew that the king wanted to execute him no matter what. He knew that the king had the word "guilty" written on both cards.
The commoner carefully chose one of the envelopes. He slowly opened it. Read the card. And then he suddenly started jumping up and down with joy while he was shouting "I'm innocent. I'm innocent. I'm innocent."
As he was excitedly jumping up and down, the young man ripped the card into very small pieces and swallowed it.
One of the king's magistrates screamed to him, "How do we know you are innocent? You swallowed the card."
The young man said "Oh, that's easy--just read what's on the king's card."

Love Takes Time

Once upon a time, there was an island where all the feelings lived: Happiness, Sadness, Knowledge, and all of the others including Love.
One day it was announced to the feelings that the island would sink, so all repaired their boats and left.
Love was the only one who stayed. Love wanted to persevere until the last possible moment. When the island was almost sinking, Love decided to ask for help.
Richness was passing by Love in a grand boat. Love said, "Richness, can you take me with you?" Richness answered, "No, I can't. There is a lot of gold and silver in my boat. There is no place here for you."
Love decided to ask Vanity who was also passing by in a beautiful vessel, "Vanity, please help me!" "I can't help you Love. You are all wet and might damage my boat," Vanity answered.
Sadness was close by so Love asked for help, "Sadness, let me go with you." "Oh...Love, I am so sad that I need to be by myself!"
Happiness passed by Love too, but she was so happy that she did not even hear when Love called her!
Suddenly, there was a voice, "Come Love, I will take you."
It was an elder. Love felt so blessed and overjoyed that Love even forgot to ask the elder her name.
When they arrived at dry land, the elder went her own way. Love, realizing how much Love owed the elder, asked Knowledge, another elder, " Who helped me?"
"It was Time," Knowledge answered.
"Time?" asked Love. "But why did Time help me?"
Knowledge smiled with great Wisdom and answered, "Because only Time is capable of understanding how great Love is."

The Obstacle in Our Path

In ancient times, a king had a boulder placed on a roadway. Then he hid himself and watched to see if anyone would remove the huge rock. Some of the king's wealthiest merchants and courtiers came by and simply walked around it. Many loudly blamed the king for not keeping the roads clear, but none did anything about getting the big stone out of the way. Then a peasant came along carrying a load of vegetables. On approaching the boulder, the peasant laid down his burden and tried to move the stone to the side of the road. After much pushing and straining, he finally succeeded. As the peasant picked up his load of vegetables, he noticed a purse lying in the road where the boulder had been. The purse contained many gold coins and a note from the king indicating that the gold was for the person who removed the boulder from the roadway. The peasant learned what many others never understand. Every obstacle presents an opportunity to improve one's condition.

Flower In The Desert

This happened many many summers ago.
There was a young flower in the desert where all was dry and sad looking...It was growing by itself...enjoying every day...and saying to the sun "When shall I be grown up"? And the sun would say "Be patient"---Each time I touch you,you grow a little"...And she was so pleased.Because she would have a chance to bring beauty to this corner of sand...And this is all she wanted to do---bring a little bit of beauty to this world.
One day the hunter came by---and stepped on her.---She was going to die---and she felt so sad.Not because she was dying ---but because she would not have a chance to bring a little bit of beauty to this corner of the desert.
The great spirit saw her, and was listening.---Indeed,he said ...She should be living...And he reached down and touched her---and gave her life.
And she grew up to be a beautiful flower...and this corner of the desert became so beautiful because of her.

The Small Tree !!!

I hired a plumber to help me restore an old farmhouse, and after he had just finished a rough first day on the job: a flat tire made him lose an hour of work, his electric drill quit and his ancient one ton truck refused to start. While I drove him home, he sat in stony silence. On arriving, he invited me in to meet his family. As we walked toward the front door, he paused briefly at a small tree, touching the tips of the branches with both hands. When opening the door he underwent an amazing transformation. His tanned face was wreathed in smiles and he hugged his two small children and gave his wife a kiss. Afterward he walked me to the car. We passed the tree and my curiosity got the better of me. I asked him about what I had seen him do earlier. Oh, that's my trouble tree," he replied. "I know I can't help having troubles on the job, but one thing's for sure, those troubles don't belong in the house with my wife and the children. So I just hang them up on the tree every night when I come home and ask God to take care of them. Then in the morning I pick them up again.Funny thing is," he smiled, "when I come out in the morning to pick 'em up, there aren't nearly as many as I remember hanging up the night before."

The Rich Man

A rich man loved to ride his horse through his vast estate to congratulate himself on his wealth. One day on such a ride, he came upon Hans, an old tenant farmer, who had sat down to eat his lunch in the shade of a great oak tree. Hans' head was bowed as he prayed. When he looked up he said, "Oh, excuse me, sir. I didn't see you. I was giving thanks for my food."
"Humph!" snorted the landowner, noticing the coarse dark bread and cheese constituting the old man's lunch. "If that were all I had to eat, I don't think I would feel like giving thanks." "Oh," replied Hans, "it is quite sufficient. But it is remarkable that you should come by today, sir. I...I feel I should tell you, I had a strange dream just before awakening this morning." "And what did you dream?" the man asked with an amused smile. "It seemed there was beauty and peace all around, and yet I could hear a voice saying, 'the richest man in the valley will die tonight.'" "Dreams!" yelled the landowner. "Nonsense!" And he turned and galloped away.
"Lord, have mercy on his soul if he really is to die so soon," Hans prayed as he watched horse and rider disappear. The rich man could not somehow put the conversation from his mind and that evening he called his doctor. When the doctor arrived, he told him the whole story. "Sounds like a lot of nonsense to me," the doctor said, "but for your peace of mind, let's examine you." A little later, his examination complete, the doctor assured the man that he was strong and healthy. "There's no way you're going to die tonight." The man thanked his doctor and told him how foolish he felt for being upset by an old man's dream.
It was about 7 a.m. the following morning when a messenger arrived at the landowner's door. "It's about old Hans," the messenger said. "He died last night in his sleep."
Who really was the richest man? Jesus said, "What will it profit a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose his soul?"

Time... A Fable

Once upon a time, there was an island where all the feelings lived:Happiness, Sadness, Knowledge, and all of the others including Love.However, one day it was announced to everybodythat the island would sink, so all prepared their boats and left.Love was the only one who stayed. Love wanted to stay until it started sinking.When Love was almost sinking,he decided to ask for help.Richness was passing by Love in a beautiful boat.Love said, "Richness, can you take me with you?"Richness answered,"No, I can't. There is a lot of gold and silver in my boat. There is no place here for you."Love decided to ask Vanity who was also passing by,"Vanity, please help me!""I can't help you Love. You are all wet and can probablydamage my boat," Vanity answered.Sadness was close by so Love asked for help,"Sadness, let me go with you.""Oh... Love, I am so sad that I prefer to go alone!"Happiness passed by Love too, but she was so happythat she did not listen when Love called her!Suddenly, there was a voice,"Come Love, I will take you." It was an elderly person.Love became very happy that he even forgotto ask the name of the elderly person. When they arrived to the other side, love asked Knowledge who the elderly person was."It was Time.""Time? But why did Time help me?""Because only Time is capable of understanding such a great Love." Time is capable of solving anything. Things today may not have a solution but tomorrow you will find one!The time has come for usto stop tuning separate instruments and, together, to create a symphonye