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Most Important Question:
During my second month of nursing school, our
professor gave us a pop quiz. I was a conscientious
student and had breezed through the questions, until
I read the last one: "What is the first name of the
woman who cleans the school?" Surely this was some
kind of joke. I had seen the cleaning woman several
times. She was tall, dark-haired and in her 50s, but
how would I know her name? I handed in my paper,
leaving the last question blank. Before class ended,
one student asked if the last question would count
toward our 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'." I've never forgotten that lesson. I
also learned her name was Dorothy.
Pickup in the Rain:
One night, at 11:30 PM, an older African American
woman was standing on the side of an Alabama highway
trying to endure a lashing 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 1960s. The man
took her to safety, helped her get assistance and
put her into a taxicab. She seemed to be in a big
hurry! She wrote down his address, thanked him and
drove away. Seven days went by and a knock came on
the man's door. To his surprise, a giant console
color TV was delivered to his home. A special note
was attached. It read: "Thank you so much for
assisting me on the highway 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
Always remember those who
serve:
In the days when an ice cream sundae cost much less,
a 10 year old boy entered a hotel coffee shop and
sat at a table. A waitress put a glass of water in
front of him. "How much is an ice cream sundae?"
"Fifty cents," replied the waitress. The little boy
pulled his hand out of his pocket and studied a
number of coins in it. "How much is a dish of plain
ice cream?" he inquired. Some people were now
waiting for a table and the waitress was a bit
impatient. "Thirty-five cents," she said brusquely.
The little boy again counted the coins. "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 departed. When the waitress came back,
she began wiping down the table and then swallowed
hard at what she saw. There, placed neatly beside
the empty dish, were two nickels and five pennies -
her tip.
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.
Giving Blood:
Many years ago, when I worked as a volunteer at
Stanford Hospital, I got to know a little girl named
Liz who was suffering from a rare and serious
disease. Her only chance of recovery appeared to be
a blood transfusion from her 5-year old brother, who
had miraculously survived the same disease and had
developed the antibodies, needed to combat the
illness. The doctor explained the situation to her
little brother, and asked the boy if he would be
willing to give his blood to his sister. I saw him
hesitate for only a moment before taking a deep
breath and saying, "Yes, I'll do it if it will save
Liz." As the transfusion progressed, he lay in bed
next to his sister and smiled, as we all did, seeing
the color returning to her cheeks. Then his face
grew pale and his smile faded. He looked up at the
doctor and asked with a trembling voice, "Will I
start to die right away?" Being young, the boy had
misunderstood the doctor; he thought he was going to
have to give his sister all of his blood..
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