Inspiration

Recently launched into the "real world" and shocked by the expenses that came with it, my brother was complaining about the high cost of auto insurance.

"If you got married," teased my dad, "the premium would be lower."

My brother smiled and said, "That would be like buying an airline just to get free peanuts."

Positions are temporary.
Ranks and titles are limited.
But the way you treat people will always be remembered.

- Unknown

Five years after my wife, Brigid, and I were married, we received our final wedding gift -- an ice-cream maker.

In an attempt to cover procrastination with humor, the friend who sent it included a note: "I wanted to make sure the marriage would last."

Brigid wasn't amused, but she thought the present deserved a thank-you note anyway, which she dutifully sent five years later.

Her note read: "I wanted to be sure the ice-cream maker would last."

It's easy to judge. It's more difficult to understand. Understanding requires compassion, patience, and a willingness to believe that good hearts sometimes choose poor methods. Through judging we separate. Through understanding we grow.

- Doe Zantamata