Stars Align (A Touching & Inspirational Story) - Editor's Note 05-15-2011 :: AmericanWay

Courtesy: American Way Magazine.

Nine years have passed since Grandma Sally went to heaven, and whenever I think about her, I can’t help but be sad. I’m sad that she never met my wife; she never met her great-grandchildren; she never got to see the world, as we’ve been so fortunate to do. Mostly, I become sad because Grandma Sally had such a sad life. The lone bright spot for her was her family. With four children and 10 grandchildren, Grandma Sally always had a smile on her face. It didn’t matter that she sold purses at the May Company for 30 years without any career advancement; that she watched my grandfather work himself to the bone in the lumberyards of Forrest City before succumbing to leukemia in 1981; that her parents, brothers, aunts, uncles — everyone — had left this world when she was only 19; Grandma Sally always smiled. So when I think back on how sad her life appeared to be, yet how she always derived joy from her family, I become sad — nay, ashamed — that anything in this life can keep me from smiling. She was the strongest person I’ve ever known — all 4 feet 9 inches of her. She had so much more to teach; we had so much more to learn.

After her passing, and from time to time, I’d drive as far away from the city as I could in the middle of the night, find a back road on which to park and stare at the stars. I’d go to places akin to the dark-sky parks (page 48) and try to find stars that would seemingly speak to me, hoping it was her. I remember a time when I was outside the tiny town of Poetry, Texas, and I could have sworn I saw a constellation appear that formed a series of numbers across the sky: 27307 — a number all too familiar to me.

Grandma Sally was from Plonsk, Poland. Shortly after the German invasion of Poland began on Sept. 1, 1939, she was imprisoned in the Warsaw ghetto. When the Nazis started liquidating the ghettos in 1941, Grandma Sally, along with her parents, her two brothers and extended family members, was hustled onto the train bound for Auschwitz. She was 19 years old. At the gate, under the sign that read Arbeit Macht Frei (“Work Makes You Free”), Josef Mengele, the Angel of Death, sent Grandma Sally to the right line — the work line. The rest of her family was sent to the left — to be stripped, shaved and finally corralled into a warehouse-shower to receive a lethal dose of Zyklon B gas. That was her entire family. Parents, brothers, aunts, uncles, grandparents. Everyone.

She survived the Holocaust — the slave ­labor, a transfer to the “infirmary” at the Birkenau death camp (an order made by camp commandant Rudolf Höss himself), the death march and the firebombing of Dresden, which she escaped in a particularly lucky cattle car. When she came to the United States after the war, she met my grandfather, a Polish Jew who had survived the war by hiding in a righteous gentile’s home.

Once, when I was just old enough to ask questions, I was sitting with Grandma Sally, waiting for the bus outside the Cleveland Museum of Natural History. It was summer, and she was wearing a short-sleeved T-shirt. I stared at the tattoo, 27307, inked into her arm.

“What’s that on your arm, Grandma?” I asked.

“It’s my address,” she replied, the hint of a smile on her face.

“But why do you have it written on your arm?”

Grandma Sally closed her eyes and tilted her head back, as if straining to retrieve a faded memory. Then she straightened, opened her eyes, turned her head and regarded me firmly. The smile faded. Her eyes looked sad as she said to me in her heavily accented English: “So I never forget, Adam.”

Nine years have passed since Grandma Sally went to heaven. When I think about her, I still look to the stars for guidance, and watch for a sign.

Adam Pitluk
Editor

Thanks for your Time..

A young man learns what's most important in life from the guy next door.

It had been some time since Jack had seen the old man. College, girls, career, and life itself got in the way. In fact, Jack moved clear across the country in pursuit of his dreams.

There, in the rush of his busy life, Jack had little time to think about the past and often no time to spend with his wife and son. He was working on his future, and nothing could stop him.

Over the phone, his mother told him, "Mr. Belser died last night. The funeral is Wednesday." Memories flashed through his mind like an old newsreel as he sat quietly remembering his childhood days.

"Jack, did you hear me?"

"Oh, sorry, Mom. Yes, I heard you. It's been so long since I thought of him. I'm sorry, but I honestly thought he died years ago," Jack said.

"Well, he didn't forget you. Every time I saw him he'd ask how you were doing. He'd reminisce about the many days you spent over 'his side of the fence' as he put it," Mom told him.

"I loved that old house he lived in," Jack said.

"You know, Jack, after your father died, Mr. Belser stepped in to make sure you had a man's influence in your life," she said

"He's the one who taught me carpentry," he said. "I wouldn't be in this business if it weren't for him. He spent a lot of time teaching me things he thought were important... Mom, I'll be there for the funeral," Jack said.

As busy as he was, he kept his word. Jack caught the next flight to his hometown. Mr. Belser's funeral was small and uneventful. He had no children of his own, and most of his relatives had passed away.

The night before he had to return home, Jack and his Mom stopped by to see the old house next door one more time.

Standing in the doorway, Jack paused for a moment. It was like crossing over into another dimension, a leap through space and time The house was exactly as he remembered. Every step held memories. Every picture, every piece of furniture... .Jack stopped suddenly.

"What's wrong, Jack?" his Mom asked.

"The box is gone," he said

"What box?" Mom asked.

"There was a small gold box that he kept locked on top of his desk. I must have asked him a thousand times what was inside. All he'd ever tell me was 'the thing I value most,'" Jack said.

It was gone. Everything about the house was exactly how Jack remembered it, except for the box. He figured someone from the Belser family had taken it.

"Now I'll never know what was so valuable to him," Jack said. "I better get some sleep. I have an early flight home, Mom."

It had been about two weeks since Mr. Belser died Returning home from work one day Jack discovered a note in his mailbox. "Signature required on a package. No one at home. Please stop by the main post office within the next three days," the note read.

Early the next day Jack retrieved the package. The small box was old and looked like it had been mailed a hundred years ago. The handwriting was difficult to read, but the return address caught his attention. "Mr. Harold Belser" it read. Jack took the box out to his car and ripped open the package. There inside was the gold box and an envelope. Jack's hands shook as he read the note inside.

"Upon my death, please forward this box and its contents to Jack Bennett. It's the thing I valued most in my life." A small key was taped to the letter. His heart racing, as tears filling his eyes, Jack carefully unlocked the box. There inside he found a beautiful gold pocket watch.

Running his fingers slowly over the finely etched casing, he unlatched the cover. Inside he found these words engraved:

"Jack, Thanks for your time! -Harold Belser."

"The thing he valued most was...my time"

Jack held the watch for a few minutes, then called his office and cleared his appointments for the next two days. "Why?" Janet, his assistant asked.

"I need some time to spend with my son," he said.

"Oh, by the way, Janet, thanks for your time!"

A Thought for the Day!

Remember not only to say the right thing in the right place,

But Far more difficult still, to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment.

Health Message..

1. If walking/cycling is good for your health, the postman would be immortal.
2. A whale swims all day, only eats fish, drinks water and is fat.
3. A rabbit runs and hops and only lives 15 years.
4. A tortoise doesn't run, does nothing ..yet lives for 450 years.

AND

 

YOU TELL ME TO EXERCISE!

A carrot, an egg, and a cup of coffee...

You will never look at a cup of coffee the same way again.

A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up; She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved, a new one arose.

Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to boil. In the first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil; without saying a word.

In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to her daughter, she asked, 'Tell me what you see.'

'Carrots, eggs, and coffee,' she replied.

Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. The mother then asked the daughter to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard boiled egg.

Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma. The daughter then asked, 'What does it mean, mother?'

Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity: boiling water. Each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened. The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water, they had changed the water.

'Which are you?' she asked her daughter. 'When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?

Think of this: Which am I? Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength?

Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat? Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and hardened heart?

Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water, the very circumstance that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it releases the fragrance and flavor. If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst,you get better and change the situation around you. When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest do you elevate yourself to another level? How do you handle adversity? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?

May you have enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trials to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human and enough hope to make you happy..

The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything that comes along their way. The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past; you can't go forward in life until you let go of your past failures and heartaches.

When you were born, you were crying and everyone around you was smiling.

Live your life so at the end, you're the one who is smiling and everyone around you is crying.
 
May we all be COFFEE!!!!!!!

પેટ્રોલના ભાવ વધારા સામે ઝઝુમવાના અધીર અમદાવાદી બ્રાંડ ઉપાયો..

1. ઓફિસથી ઘરે આવતાં રોજ ઓછામાં ઓછુ એક કિલોમીટર બાઈક ખેંચીને ચાલો. સુગર પણ કંટ્રોલમાં રહેશે. કેમ એવું કરતાં શરમ આવે ? અરે કોઈ ઓળખીતું રસ્તામાં સામે મળી જાય તો એને ભોળા થઈને પૂછવાનું ‘બોસ, અહીં નજીકમાં પેટ્રોલ પંપ ક્યાં હશે?’
2. નવી નોકરી માટે પગારનું નેગોશિયેશન કરતા હોવ તો કન્વેયન્સ પેટ્રોલના ભાવ કરતાં પચ્ચીસ ગણું માંગી લેવું. એ પણ પાછુ વેરીએબલ.
3. અઠવાડિયામાં બે વાર ગર્લફ્રેન્ડની સ્કુટી પર ફરવાનું રાખો. એને કહેવાનું: “ડીયર, ઈટ્સ સો એક્સાઈટીંગ ટુ સીટ ઓન યોર સ્કુટી ! તું કરિના હોય અને હું આમિર હોઉં, એવું લાગે છે. તારા સમ !” (સમ તો એના જ ખાવાના!)
4. બાઈક છોડો, લીફ્ટ માંગો. ટાઈમ પાસ પણ થશે અને હાથના મસલ પણ મજબુત થશે ! (છોકરીઓને મસલ વાળા છોકરા ગમે છે, એવું સલમાન, હ્રીતિકની સફળતા જોઈને લાગે છે
5. પોતાના ફ્લેટમાં જ છોકરી શોધો. રોજ એની પાછળ દુર સુધી લાંબા નહિ થવું પડે. પેટ્રોલ બચશે. અને છોકરી માટે ‘ફ્લેટમાં પિયરીયું અને ફ્લેટમાં સાસરિયું’ થશે એ નફામાં!
6. ફ્લેટમાં છોકરી ના મળે તો પેટ્રોલપંપ વાળાની છોકરી શોધો.
7. કે પછી દહેજમાં પેટ્રોલનો ક્વોટા પહેલેથી નક્કી કરો. સાળો દર અઠવાડિયે બે કારબા પેટ્રોલના મૂકી જાય એવું ગોઠવવાનું!
8. ઢાળવાળા રસ્તા પર સ્કુટર બંધ કરી ચલાવો, અરે શહેરમાં બહુ ટેકરા છે જોધપુર ટેકરા, ગુલબાઈ ટેકરા, શ્રેયસ ટેકરા, ગોરધનવાડી ટેકરા ! ઉપર ચઢી જાવ અને પછી નીચે ઉતરતા મશીન બંધ!
9. અને છેવટે સાઈકલ તો છે જ, અને એમાં ડબલ સવારી જવાનું ગર્લ ફ્રેન્ડ સાથે. અફકોર્સ જો ગર્લ ફ્રેન્ડ સાઉથ ઇન્ડિયન હિરોઈન જેવી મજબુત ન હોય તો! પછી પેલું જુનું હિન્દી ફિલ્મી ગીત ગાવા નું.... “સોને કી સાઈકલ, ચાંદી કી સીટ, આઓ ચાલે ડાર્લિંગ ચાલે ડબલ સીટ’. પરસેવો લૂછતાં લૂછતાં પછી ડાર્લિંગને કહેવાનું ‘સો, રોમેન્ટિક નહિ?’