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Interesting Stories

   Written by on April 3, 2015 at 1:09 pm

During a second month of college, students were given a pop quiz by their professor.  A conscientious student had breezed through the questions until he read the last one. The question was: “What is the first name of the woman who cleans the school?”

logo- community news & viewsSurely this was some kind of joke. This student had seen the cleaning woman several times.  She was tall, dark-haired and in her 50’s but how would he know her name!  He handed in his paper, leaving the last question blank.

Just before class ended, another student asked if the last question would count toward the quiz grade.

“Absolutely,” said the professor. “In your careers you will meet many people. All are significant. They deserve your attention and care even if all you do is smile and say ‘Hello.’

The conscientious student never forgot that lesson and he also learned her name. It was Dorothy. Doesn’t this story make you stop and think?  We should take time to care!

This second story is quite amazing. One night at 11:30 p.m., an older African American woman was standing on the side of an Alabama highway trying to endure a terrible rainstorm. Her car had broken down and she desperately needed a ride.  Soaking wet, she decided to flag down the next car. A young white man stopped to help her, generally unheard of in those conflict-filled days of the 1960’s. He took her to get assistance and put her into a taxi.

She seemed to be in a big hurry but wrote down his address and thanked him.  A week went by and a knock came on the man’s door.  To his surprise, a giant console color TV was delivered to his home with a special note attached.

It read, “Thank you so much for helping me on the road the other night. The rain drenched not only my clothes but also my spirits. Then you came along! Because of you, I was able to make it to my dying husband’s bedside just before he passed away. God bless you for helping me and unselfishly serving others.  Sincerely, Mrs. Nat King Cole.”  I don’t know about you, my readers, but this story brought tears to my eyes.  It’s wonderful to know that there are always good people in our world!

Now, picture this next story: In the days when an ice cream sundae cost much less, a 10-year-old boy entered a hotel coffee shop and sat down at a table.  A waitress put a glass of water in front of him. “How much is an ice cream sundae?” he asked. “Fifty cents,” replied the waitress.

The little boy pulled his hand out of his pocket and studied the coins in it.  “Well, how much is a plain dish of ice cream?” he asked. By now, more people were waiting for a table and the waitress was really growing impatient.  “Thirty-five cents,” she brusquely replied.  The little boy counted his change again.

“I’ll have the plain ice cream,” he said. The waitress brought the ice cream, put the bill on the table and walked away.  The boy finished the ice cream, paid the cashier and left.  When the waitress came back, she began to cry as she wiped down the table.

There, neatly beside the empty dish were two nickels and five pennies. You see, he couldn’t have the sundae because he had to have enough left to leave her a tip!

These three stories are food for thought as we enter this Holy Week.  Have a wonderful Easter!

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