Around the corner I have a friend,
In this great city that has no end,
Yet the days go by and weeks rush on,
And before I know it, a year is gone.
And I never see my old friends face,
For life is a swift and terrible race,
He knows I like him just as well,
As in the days when I rang his bell.
And he rang mine but we were younger then,
And now we are busy, tired men.
Tired of playing a foolish game,
Tired of trying to make a name.
'Tomorrow' I say! 'I will call on Jim
Just to show that I'm thinking of him.'
But tomorrow comes and tomorrow goes,
And distance between us grows and grows.
Around the corner, yet miles away,
'Here's a telegram sir,' ' Jim died today.'
And that's what we get and deserve in the end.
Around the corner, a vanished friend.

Remember to always say what you mean.
If you love someone, tell them.
Don't be afraid to express yourself.

動人心弦的小男孩 (Little Boy Touches Hearts)

On the last day before Christmas, I hurried to the mall to buy the remaining of the gifts I didn't manage to buy earlier.

When I saw all the people there, I started to complain to myself, "It is going to take forever here and I still have so many other places to go. Christmas really is getting more and more annoying every year. How I wish I could just lie down, go to sleep and only wake up after it's over.

Nonetheless, I made my way to the toy section, and there I started to curse the prices, wondering if kids really played with such expensive toys.

I was walking around in a Target store, when I saw a Cashier hand this little boy some money back.
我在「塔杰」商店閒逛時，看到收銀員將一些錢退還給小男孩。

The boy couldn't have been more than 5 or 6 years old.
這男孩不過5、6歲。

The Cashier said, ''I'm sorry, but you don't have enough money to buy this doll.''
收銀員說：「抱歉！你買這娃娃的錢不夠。」

Then the little boy turned to the old woman next to him: ''Granny, are you sure I don't have enough money?''
小男孩轉向他旁邊的老婦人：「奶奶！妳也認為我的錢不 嗎？」

The old lady replied: ''You know that you don't have enough money to buy this doll, my dear.''
老婦人回道：「親愛的！你知道買這個娃娃的錢是不夠的。」

Then she asked him to stay there for just 5 minutes while she went to look around. She left quickly.
她要小男孩呆在那裡5分鐘，她一下就回來。 她迅速離開了。

The little boy was still holding the doll in his hand.
小男孩的手仍然握著娃娃。

Finally, I walked toward him and I asked him who he wished to give this doll to.
最後我向他走去，問他這個娃娃你想給誰。

'It's the doll that my sister loved most and wanted so much for Christmas.
「這是我妹妹的最愛，非常想要的聖誕節娃娃。

She was sure that Santa Claus would bring it to her.'
她一直認為聖誕老人會帶娃娃來給她的。」

I replied to him that maybe Santa Claus would bring it to her after all, and not to worry.
我告訴他不用擔心，聖誕老人最後可能會帶給她的。

But he replied to me sadly. ''No, Santa Claus can't bring it to her where she is now. I have to give the doll to my mommy so that she can give it to my sister when she goes there.''
但他哀傷地回答我「不！聖誕老人不可能將它帶到她現在的地方給她。我必須將娃娃交給我媽，當她去那裡的時候可以給我妹妹。」

His eyes were so sad while saying this. ''My Sister has gone to be with God. Daddy says that Mommy is going to see God very soon too, so I thought that she could take the doll with her to give it to my sister.''
他說話時的眼睛是哀傷的。「我妹妹已經和上帝在一起。爸爸說 媽媽很快也將要去見上帝，因此我認為她可以將娃娃帶給我妹妹。」

My heart nearly stopped.
我的心臟幾乎要停止了。

The little boy looked up at me and said: ''I told daddy to tell mommy not to go yet. I need her to wait until I come back from the mall.''
小男孩看我說：「我叫爸爸告訴媽媽現在不要走，讓她等我從購物中心回來。」

Then he showed me a very nice photo of himself. He was laughing. He then told me ''I want mommy to take my picture with her so she won't forget me.''
然後他拿出一張他自己非常漂亮的相片給我看。他笑著告訴我「我要媽媽帶著我的相片，這樣她就不會忘記我了。」

''I love my mommy and I wish she didn't have to leave me, but daddy says that she has to go to be with my little sister.''
「我愛我的媽媽，我希望她不要離開我，但是爸爸說她必須去找我妹妹。」

Then he looked again at the doll with sad eyes, very quietly.
然後他安靜地用哀傷的眼睛再看著娃娃。

I quickly reached for my wallet and said to the boy. ''Suppose we check again, just in case you do have enough money for the doll!''
我趕緊摸著錢包對小男孩說「我們再檢查一下，說不定您有足夠的錢買玩偶! 」

''OK'' he said, ''I hope I do have enough.'' I added some of my money to his without him seeing and we started to count it. There was enough for the doll and even some spare money.
「好呀！」他說「我希望有足夠的錢」。沒讓他看見，我塞了一些錢到他的錢包中，我們開始數錢。買娃娃的錢足 了，甚之還有剩餘呢。

The little boy said: ''Thank you God for giving me enough money!''
小男孩說：「謝謝上帝給了我足 的錢!」

Then he looked at me and added, ''I asked last night before I went to sleep for God to make sure I had enough money to buy this doll, so that mommy could give it to my sister. He heard me!''
然而他看著我補充說「昨晚睡前，我要求上帝讓我的錢能足夠買這個娃娃，因此媽媽能將它帶給我妹妹。祂聽見我了! 」

''I also wanted to have enough money to buy a white rose for my mommy, but I didn't dare to ask God for too much. But He gave me enough to buy the doll and a white rose.''
「我也想有足夠的錢買一朵白玫瑰給我媽媽，但我不敢要求上帝太多。但祂給的錢足 買娃娃和一朵白玫瑰了。」

''My mommy loves white roses...''
「我媽媽喜歡白玫瑰。」

A few minutes later, the old lady returned and I left with my basket.
幾分鐘後，老婦人回來了。我也就提了購物籃離開了。

I finished my shopping in a totally different state of mind from when I started.
我從一開始就在完全不同的心境下購物。

I couldn't get the little boy out of my mind.
小男孩一直無法離開我的心境。

Then I remembered a local news paper article two days ago, which mentioned a drunk man in a truck, who hit a car occupied by a young woman and a little girl.
我想起兩天前當地報紙的一篇文章，提及一位醉酒卡車司機，撞上了一輛載著年輕少婦和一個小女孩的汽車。

The little girl died right away, and the mother was left in a critical state. The family had to decide whether to pull the plug on the life-sustaining machine, because the young woman would not be able to recover from the coma.
小女孩當場死亡，母親呈現彌留狀態。 這個家庭必須決定是否要拔出維持生命機器的插管，因為年輕少婦不可能從昏迷中恢復。

Was this the family of the little boy?
他就是這家庭的小男孩？

Two days after this encounter with the little boy, I read in the news paper that the young woman had passed away.
碰到小男孩的二天之後，我看了報紙年輕少婦過世了。

I couldn't stop myself as I bought a bunch of white roses and I went to the funeral home where the body of the young woman was for people to see and make last wishes before her burial.
我不自主的買了一束白玫瑰，來到喪家，年輕少婦的遺體在她埋葬前讓人瞻仰與最後許願。

She was there, in her coffin, holding a beautiful white rose in her hand with the photo of the little boy and the doll placed over her chest.
她在那裡，裝在棺木中，在她的手中握著一朵白玫瑰和小男孩的相片，娃娃則放置在她的胸口。

I left the place, teary-eyed, feeling that my life had been changed for ever.. The love that the little boy had for his mother and his sister is still, to this day, hard to imagine.
我離開了這裡，眼淚奪眶而出，覺得我的人生已經永遠改變了。至今，小男孩對他母親和妹妹的愛，仍然難以想像。

And in a fraction of a second, a drunk driver had taken all this away from him.
就在一轉眼工夫，一位醉酒司機奪去了他的所有。

Keep your dream

I have a friend named Monty Roberts who owns a horse ranch in San Ysidro. He has let me use his house to put on fund-raising events to raise money for youth at risk programs.
The last time I was there he introduced me by saying, "I want to tell you why I let Jack use my horse. It all goes back to a story about a young man who was the son of an itinerant horse trainer who would go from stable to stable, race track to race track, farm to farm and ranch to ranch, training horses. As a result, the boy's high school career was continually interrupted. When he was a senior, he was asked to write a paper about what he wanted to be and do when he grew up.

"That night he wrote a seven-page paper describing his goal of someday owning a horse ranch. He wrote about his dream in great detail and he even drew a diagram of a 200-acre ranch, showing the location of all the buildings, the stables and the track. Then he drew a detailed floor plan for a 4,000-square-foot house that would sit on a 200-acre dream ranch.

"He put a great deal of his heart into the project and the next day he handed it in to his teacher. Two days later he received his paper back. On the front page was a large red F with a note that read, `See me after class.'

"The boy with the dream went to see the teacher after class and asked, `Why did I receive an F?'

"The teacher said, `This is an unrealistic dream for a young boy like you. You have no money. You come from an itinerant family. You have no resources. Owning a horse ranch requires a lot of money. You have to buy the land. You have to pay for the original breeding stock and later you'll have to pay large stud fees. There's no way you could ever do it.' Then the teacher added, `If you will rewrite this paper with a more realistic goal, I will reconsider your grade.'

"The boy went home and thought about it long and hard. He asked his father what he should do. His father said, `Look, son, you have to make up your own mind on this. However, I think it is a very important decision for you.' "Finally, after sitting with it for a week, the boy turned in the same paper, making no changes at all.

He stated, "You can keep the F and I'll keep my dream."

Monty then turned to the assembled group and said, "I tell you this story because you are sitting in my 4,000-square-foot house in the middle of my 200-acre horse ranch. I still have that school paper framed over the fireplace. He added, "The best part of the story is that two summers ago that same schoolteacher brought 30 kids to camp out on my ranch for a week." When the teacher was leaving, he said, "Look, Monty, I can tell you this now. When I was your teacher, I was something of a dream stealer. During those years I stole a lot of kids' dreams. Fortunately you had enough gumption not to give up on yours."

"Don't let anyone steal your dreams. Follow your heart, no matter what." 


Hardy Sunarcia

5 Minutes Management Course

Lesson 1:
A man is getting into the shower just as his wife is finishing up her shower,
when the doorbell rings.
The wife quickly wraps herself in a towel and runs downstairs.
When she opens the door, there stands Bob, the next-door neighbour.
Before she says a word, Bob says, 'I'll give you $800 to drop that towel.'
After thinking for a moment,
the woman drops her towel and stands naked in front of Bob,
after a few seconds, Bob hands her $800 and leaves.
The woman wraps back up in the towel and goes back upstairs.
When she gets to the bathroom, her husband asks, 'Who was that?'
'It was Bob the next door neighbour,' she replies.
'Great,' the husband says, 'did he say anything about the $800 he owes me?'

Moral of the story:?
If you share critical information
pertaining to credit and risk with your shareholders in time,
you may be in a position to prevent avoidable exposure.

Lesson 2:
A priest offered a Nun a lift.
She got in and crossed her legs, forcing her gown to reveal a leg.
The priest nearly had an accident.
After controlling the car, he stealthily slid his hand up her leg...?
The nun said, 'Father, remember Psalm 129?'
The priest removed his hand.
But, changing gears, he let his hand slide up her leg again.
The nun once again said, 'Father, remember Psalm 129?'
The priest apologized 'Sorry sister but the flesh is weak.'
Arriving at the convent, the nun sighed heavily
and went on her way.

On his arrival at the church,
the priest rushed to look up Psalm 129.
It said, 'Go forth and seek, further up, you will find glory.'

Moral of the story:
If you are not well informed in your job,
you might miss a great opportunity

Lesson 3:
A sales rep, an administration clerk,
and the manager are walking to lunch when they find an antique oil lamp.
They rub it and a Genie comes out.
The Genie says, 'I'll give each of you just one wish.'
'Me first! Me first!' says the admin clerk.
'I want to be in the Bahamas ,
driving a speedboat, without a care in the world.'
Puff! She's gone.

'Me next! Me next!' says the sales rep.
'I want to be in Hawaii , relaxing on the beach with my personal masseuse,
an endless supply of Pina Coladas and the love of my life.'
Puff! He's gone.

'OK, you're up,' the Genie says to the manager.
The manager says,
'I want those two back in the office after lunch.'

Moral of the story:
Always let your boss have the first say.

Lesson 4
An eagle was sitting on a tree resting, doing nothing.
A small rabbit saw the eagle and asked him,
'Can I also sit like you and do nothing?'
The eagle answered: 'Sure, why not.'

So, the rabbit sat on the ground below the eagle and rested.
All of a sudden, a fox appeared, jumped on the rabbit and ate it..

Moral of the story:
To be sitting and doing nothing,
you must be sitting very, very high up.

Lesson 5
A turkey was chatting with a bull.
'I would love to be able to get to the top of that tree' sighed the turkey,
'but I haven't got the energy.'
'Well, why don't you nibble on some of my droppings?' replied the bull.
They're packed with nutrients.'
The turkey pecked at a lump of dung,
and found it actually gave him enough strength
to reach the lowest branch of the tree.
The next day, after eating some more dung,
he reached the second branch.
Finally after a fourth night,
the turkey was proudly perched at the top of the tree.
He was promptly spotted by a farmer,
who shot him out of the tree.

Moral of the story:
Bull Shit might get you to the top, but it won't keep you there...

Lesson 6
A little bird was flying south for the winter.
It was so cold the bird froze and fell to the ground into a large field.
While he was lying there,
a cow came by and dropped some dung on him.
As the frozen bird lay there in the pile of cow dung,
he began to realize how warm he was.
The dung was actually thawing him out!
He lay there all warm and happy, and soon began to sing for joy.
A passing cat heard the bird singing and came to investigate.

Following the sound,
the cat discovered the bird under the pile of cow dung,
and promptly dug him out and ate him.

Morals of the story:
(1) Not everyone who shits on you is your enemy.
(2) Not everyone who gets you out of shit is your friend.
(3) And when you're in deep shit, it's best to keep your mouth shut!

THUS ENDS THE FIVE MINUTE MANAGEMENT COURSE

Happiness is a Voyage

We convince ourselves that life will be better once we are married, have a baby, then another.

Then we get frustrated because our children are not old enough, and that all will be well when they are older.

Then we are frustrated because they reach adolescence and we must deal with them. Surely we'll be happier when they grow out of the teen years.

We tell ourselves our life will be better when our spouse gets his/her act together, when we have a nicer car, when we can take a vacation, when we finally retire.

The truth is that there is no better time to be happy than right now.

If not, then when?

Your life will always be full of challenges. It is better to admit as much and to decide to be happy in spite of it all.

For the longest time, it seemed that life was about to start. 
Real life.

But there was always some obstacle along the way, an ordeal to get through, some work to be finished, some time to be given, a bill to be paid. Then life would start.

I finally came to understand that those obstacles were life.

That point of view helped me see that there isn't any road to happiness.

Happiness IS the road.

So, enjoy every moment.

Stop waiting for school to end, for a return to school, to lose ten pounds, to gain ten ounds, for work to begin, to get married, for Friday evening, for Sunday morning, waiting for a new car, for your mortgage to be paid off, for spring, for summer, for fall, for winter, for the first or the fifteenth of the month, for your song to be played on the radio, to die, to be reborn… before deciding to be happy.

Happiness is a voyage, not a destination.

There is no better time to be happy than… NOW!
Live and enjoy the moment.

Mohit Rajvanshi

Quotable Quotes

http://www.creativegrowth.com/qquotes.htm