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I want to share a poem I've been fond of for years, and until recently didn't know who had written it. Well, imagine my surprise when I discovered that the author was Mother Teresa! I especially love the last line... Enjoy.
Steph
~~~~~~~~
ANYWAY
People are often unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered;
Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives;
Be kind anyway.
If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies;
Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;
Be honest and frank anyway.
What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight;
Build anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous;
Be happy anyway.
The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow;
Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough;
Give the world the best you’ve got anyway.
You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and God;
It was never between you and them anyway.
~ Blessed Mother Teresa of the Poor ~ 1912 - 1997
Sunday 8 July 2007
Tuesday 3 July 2007
Passing the time en route to Calcutta
While on the train from Cochin in the south of India to Calcutta in the north, we had to find ways to pass the 48 straight hours. There we were, Miriam and I, cooped up in our little berth, almost knee to knee. Fortunately we were close friends and really enjoyed each other's company!
We took turns brushing and braiding each other's hair, playing I Spy out the window, trying to guess how many hours were left til we arrived, trying to avoid using the (ugh) hole in the floor washroom, listening to the Indigo Girls on a walkman CD player (each using one earphone) and reading passages of Mother Teresa's A Simple Path to each other. Picture it: here we were, two young and naive women who are blown away by MT's writing on an ordinary day back home. On this day, as we were en route to the City of Joy itself, we were reading aloud to each other the rich and powerful words of a little woman who somehow manages to move and inspire people of all faiths and races. And we were on our way to her home! It was surreal, this knowing that with each passing hour, we were that much closer to seeing her face to face, if indeed she happened to be home when we visited. At this point we still didn't know whether she was even in the country, let alone at the Motherhouse. In the book A Simple Path, we came across one particular piece of writing which is printed on what is referred to as Mother Teresa's business card. It reads as follows:
The fruit of SILENCE is Prayer
The fruit of PRAYER is Faith
The fruit of FAITH is Love
The fruit of LOVE is Service
The fruit of SERVICE is Peace
Mother Teresa
After reading it aloud, Miriam and I sat quietly for a while, looking out the window deep in our own silence. Little did we know that in a few short weeks, we would each be given our own copy of the little yellow card by Mother herself. I (of course) still have mine; it's tucked away inside a little clear sleeve of my Bible cover. I think I'll include a copy of it in my book. Actually, I think my printer may have a scanner in there somewhere! LOL. I'll see if I can scan the card and post it here for you to see one of these days. Now you have to come back and visit again! :)
Peace,
Steph
We took turns brushing and braiding each other's hair, playing I Spy out the window, trying to guess how many hours were left til we arrived, trying to avoid using the (ugh) hole in the floor washroom, listening to the Indigo Girls on a walkman CD player (each using one earphone) and reading passages of Mother Teresa's A Simple Path to each other. Picture it: here we were, two young and naive women who are blown away by MT's writing on an ordinary day back home. On this day, as we were en route to the City of Joy itself, we were reading aloud to each other the rich and powerful words of a little woman who somehow manages to move and inspire people of all faiths and races. And we were on our way to her home! It was surreal, this knowing that with each passing hour, we were that much closer to seeing her face to face, if indeed she happened to be home when we visited. At this point we still didn't know whether she was even in the country, let alone at the Motherhouse. In the book A Simple Path, we came across one particular piece of writing which is printed on what is referred to as Mother Teresa's business card. It reads as follows:
The fruit of SILENCE is Prayer
The fruit of PRAYER is Faith
The fruit of FAITH is Love
The fruit of LOVE is Service
The fruit of SERVICE is Peace
Mother Teresa
After reading it aloud, Miriam and I sat quietly for a while, looking out the window deep in our own silence. Little did we know that in a few short weeks, we would each be given our own copy of the little yellow card by Mother herself. I (of course) still have mine; it's tucked away inside a little clear sleeve of my Bible cover. I think I'll include a copy of it in my book. Actually, I think my printer may have a scanner in there somewhere! LOL. I'll see if I can scan the card and post it here for you to see one of these days. Now you have to come back and visit again! :)
Peace,
Steph
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