Archives at Zinester: "For what they are". "I Believe in You!".

Subject: "For what they are" - April10, 2007

"I Believe in you!"

A message of Hope...stories from the road.

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You look wonderful today! I hope it is a reflection of how you see your life.

Today is Keith's 30th birthday. We took 22 family members to the circus last night

and revisited silly, childish dreams, cotton candy, hotdogs, ice cream, peanuts and toys that will

now gather dust in my top drawer of a lifetime of memories.

My best to you always,

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Perks Pearl of Wisdom

"May you rise to meet the sun each day and kneel humbly in gratefulness to God at its end." Bob Perks

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Appreciate what I do?

Here's how you can help me:

This link will take you to my web page for more information,

shopping, and ways you can help.

I humbly thank you in advance...

Love always and all ways,

Bob and Marianne Perks

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"For what they are."

"The world seems so dark," she said.

"Perhaps you have chosen to close your eyes to it all," he replied.

She turned her head slowly and looking up at him said, "Maybe I just don't

Two old friends who have seen so much together for so very long, often

times come to a split in the road on their journey. You wouldn't think that

this would happen after all these years. They endured so much.

"We are two friends. Not copies of each other but a reflection of what we see

the same. It is in the way we choose to react to life that makes us different,"

"He has always been much too forgiving," she adds. "I see the facts, he

It is at this very point in life that the differences begin to show.

He chose to see the best in people, life and circumstances. He lived life fully.

She spent her life dying slowly each day, judging suspiciously anyone who

He, although not outwardly religious, was, as he liked to say, a "Man of little

understanding, but great faith."

"He believes in God but can't explain why bad things happen," she says.

"I just don't need to understand the things I don't need to worry about. I believe

that God takes care of those things bigger than I am. Why would I need to

understand it? Thus they call it, "faith," he says smiling.

So, after all this time they find each other alone in their separate lives, but together as friends.

Both having lost their spouses, find no romantic attraction for each other and never have.

"I'd kill him if I was married to him," she says sarcastically.

"You wouldn't have to. I would have jumped out the window a long time ago," he chuckles.

So, why do they stay friends?

"I'm still trying to see what he sees in people. He likes everyone," she says.

Then, with the simplest explanation, he captures my attention with his own reasoning.

Raising his soft, thin hands up in the air, he smiles and says, "It's easy."

He leans toward me gesturing to come closer.

"I don't want her to discover my secret," he whispers.

I, on the other hand, feel incredibly fortunate that he has chosen to tell me. So,

I move in closer and sit right next to him.

He pauses, thinks for a moment and then says, "I see people for what they really

are, not what they are not."

I sit up, lean back and ponder for a moment the more than eight decades of wisdom laid before me.

Repeating what he said, I searched even deeper for some great hidden meaning in his words.

He looked at me and sensed I needed further clarification.

"We are all more alike than we are different. But we ignore that. We judge people

for the things they lack rather than all they have to offer," he said.

This small, brilliant flicker of genius ignited within my mind.

He was right. Upon meeting someone we look not for what they have to offer us

that is different, but what we want to see in them.

"We are trying to see ourselves!" I said.

Since God made each of us as a one of a kind unique creation, we could never be

exactly the same. We may see traces, or similarities, but we all too often focus on

what's not the same.

"I see people for what they really are, not what they are not," he repeated.

"What I understand I can handle. What I cannot understand, I give to God," I said.

"Who said that?" he asked.

"Actually, I did. It's one of my own works. Now, because of you, I see it more clearly," I said.

"Ah, he's crazy," his friend grumbles.

"And you? You'd be lost without him, " I said.

Two very unlikely people who call themselves friends. They remain so, "for who they really are."

Just like you and I.

"Friends I've never met."

I encourage you to share my stories but I do ask that you keep my name and

contact information with my work.

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Have a comment about today's story?

please write to "2 believe @ comcast .net"

(spaces were placed between words in email address for security)

Beautiful Bob, beautiful...Blessings to you, Marianne and the boys...

Lorraine

Dear Bob,

I savored your wonderful true story about Jimmy, the injured bird and how

you tied in the incident with Jesus Christ on the Cross. What a blessed

reminder of the real meaning of why we celebrate Easter!

A sincere thank you for being so in-tune to everyday life and what might

seem insignificant to many people. I read each of your stories slowly and

with great interest and sense your tenderhearted side, which, to me, is a

sign of someone who notices all the little details of everyday occurrences

and elevates them to importance by teaching valuable lessons to the reader.

Blessings,

Sandi in Florida.

(Note from Bob...The following was a VERY humbling message and difficult for me to accept.

Still I was grateful for her feelings and immediately thanked God that He permits me to share His hope

for the world through my writing.)

Dear Bob, Thanks again for a wonderful story, but mostly, thanks for a wonderful

friendship. I cannot begin to tell you the times you have so truly touched my heart.

I quote you, I pass on your writings, I hold them deep in my heart and ponder them,

when I am sad, when I am glad, when I am comforting someone else, when I need to

comfort myself. You are truly God's vessel, and your star shines brightly. You have

helped me to reach out beyond myself, and let God shine through me, also. So, don't

get a big head, because we both know that what I'm really talking about is serving our

higher purpose, the purpose of God's glory, being part of this marvelous creation called

humanity. Thank you for sharing of yourself, again and again, your highs, your lows,

your observations, your viewpoint. It is a pleasure and an honor to know you, through

your writings! May God continue to bless you and yours, and keep His love flowing through you!

Happy Easter!

Karen

"I Wish You enough!"
� 2001 Bob Perks

I wish you enough sun to keep your attitude bright.
I wish you enough rain to appreciate the sun more.
I wish you enough happiness to keep your spirit alive.
I wish you enough pain so that the smallest joys in life appear much bigger.
I wish you enough gain to satisfy your wanting.
I wish you enough loss to appreciate all that you possess.
I wish you enough "Hello's" to get you through the final "Goodbye."