Tuesday night we spent a delightful evening at the home of Steve's brother Mike and his wife Trish in Connecticut. We stayed up ridiculously late (for our age, that is!) and so it was well after midnight before I started to contemplate what the next day's post would be. YIKES! In the morning I related to Mike that one of the benefits of basing a blog on what I'm reading is the option to just find a good quote when I'm too busy to write something more substantial. I'm guessing that most of you have caught on to my pattern already? :-)At that point, Mike left the room and came back with a book that he authored in 2002 entitled: The Book of Choices: A Treasury of Insights for Personal and Professional Growth. Mike organized this book into 77 'life choices,' which serve as general categories for 780 corresponding quotes. It is a marvelous collection of insights into the decisions that we face every day. For example: will we choose to be balanced or frenzied, will we opt to be superficial or deep, will we decide to serve self or others? Here is a sampling from the section on Useful-Useless:
Find a need and fill it. Ruth Stafford Peale
Not only must we be good, but we must also be good for something. Henry David Thoreau
There's no labor a man can do that's undignified, if he does it right. Bill Cosby
If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well. Martin Luther King Jr.
On the day of his death, in his eightieth year, Elliot, the 'Apostle of the Indians,' was found teaching an Indian child at his bedside. "Why not rest from your labors now?" asked a friend. "Because," replied the venerable man, "I have prayed God to render me useful in my sphere, and he has heard my prayers; for now that I can no longer preach, he leaves me strength enough to teach this poor child the alphabet." S. Chaplin
My verdict on Mike's book? He definitely was useful by finding my need for good quotes and filling it!
The Martin Luther King quote "He should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted etc." brought to my mind a wonderful reference book I keep on hand that was written about a humble munk named Brother Lawrence a pot scrubber in the monistary, I believe he lived in the 16th century. He was pleased as punch to scrub pots all day long because he did his work always as though working for the Lord. It's a read I would highly recommend called "Practicing the Presence of God." Great job Candy!
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