Things to think about

Someone sent the following to me which I want to share with you because it says a lot in a few words. Life teaches us many great lessons if we only will listen. Here are “Two Great Lessons.”

First Important Lesson: Recognize All People.
A nursing student was given a pop quiz by her professor. The student was a conscientious one and breezed through the questions until she read the last one:” What is the first name of the woman who cleans the school?” Surely this was some kind of joke.

The student had seen the cleaning woman several times. She was tall, dark-haired and in her 50’s, but how would the student know her name? She handed in the paper, leaving the last question blank. Just before the class ended, a student asked if the last question would count towards 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 student never forgot the lesson.
She also learned the cleaning lady’s name-Dorothy.

Second Important Lesson: Remember Those Who Serve You

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?” 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 inquired. By now more people were waiting for a table and the waitress was growing impatient. “Thirty-five cents,” she brusquely replied.”

The little boy again counted his 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 without a word. 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 placed 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.

On a different subject: Try to identify this organization of over 500 employees with following statistics:

29 have been accused of spousal abuse

7 have been arrested for fraud

19 have been accused of writing bad check

117 have bankrupted at least two businesses

3 have been arrested for assault

71 cannot get a credit card due to bad credit

14 have been arrested on drug-related charges

8 have been arrested for shoplifting

21 are current defendants in lawsuits

84 were stopped for drunk driving in 1998 alone

Yup — it’s the 535 members of the United States Congress. The same group that perpetually cranks out hundreds upon hundreds of new laws designed to keep the rest of us in line.

I hope you enjoy some of the above vignettes. If you have any that you would like to share with our readers, please send them to me at tonypell@saipan.com or fax to 233-9297 and I will try to include them in this column. Or if you have comments on any subject, I would also welcome them. Have a pleasant day!