An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. He told his employer-contractor of his plans to leave the house-building business to live a more leisurely life with his wife and enjoy his extended family. He would miss the paycheck each week, but he wanted to retire. They could get by.

The contractor was sorry to see his good worker go & asked if he could build just one more house as a personal favor. The carpenter said yes, but over time it was easy to see that his heart was not in his work. He resorted to shoddy workmanship and used inferior materials. It was an unfortunate way to end a dedicated career.

When the carpenter finished his work, his employer came to inspect the house. Then he handed the front-door key to the carpenter and said, "This is your house... my gift to you."

The carpenter was shocked!

What a shame! If he had only known he was building his own house, he would have done it all so differently.

So it is with us. We build our lives, a day at a time, often putting less than our best into the building. Then, with a shock, we realize we have to live in the house we have built. If we could do it over, we would do it much differently.

But, you cannot go back. You are the carpenter, and every day you hammer a nail, place a board, or erect a wall. Someone once said, "Life is a do-it-yourself project." Your attitude, and the choices you make today, help build the "house" you will live in tomorrow. Therefore, Build wisely!

A group of frogs were traveling through the woods, and two of them
fell into a deep pit. When the other frogs saw how deep the pit
was, they told the two frogs that they were as good as dead. The
two frogs ignored the comments and tried to jump up out of the pit
with all their might. The other frogs kept telling them to stop,
that they were as good as dead. Finally, one of the frogs took
heed to what the other frogs were saying and gave up. He fell down
and died.

The other frog continued to jump as hard as he could. Once again,
the crowd of frogs yelled at him to stop the pain and just die. He
jumped even harder and finally made it out. When he got out, the
other frogs said, "Did you not hear us?" The frog explained to
them that he was deaf. He thought they were encouraging him the
entire time.

This story teaches two lessons:

1. There is power of life and death in the tongue. An encouraging
word to someone who is down can lift them up and help them make it
through the day.

2. A destructive word to someone who is down can be what it takes
to kill them.

Be careful of what you say. Speak life to those who cross your
path. The power of words... it is sometimes hard to understand
that an encouraging word can go such a long way. Anyone can speak
words that tend to rob another of the spirit to continue in
difficult times. Special is the individual who will take the time
to encourage another.

Author Unknown

This half-term, my son’s class was given the task of learning the spelling of some words relating to their topic for the last 6 weeks of his school year. My son’s spelling is atrocious, and I was not looking forward to getting him to learn them. The List was not long – 12, but when I initially tested him, he did not get even one right. I had my work cut out for me.

He started out by copying out all the words he had to learn on the computer, typing letter by letter. He then got to choose what colour he wanted each word to be, and when he was happy with it all, we printed them. Then we cut out the words to display them around his bedroom, so I could spot check every now and then.

Today he got to choose which three words he wanted to learn and we sat down to learn them. I had a much more cooperative boy who was able to memorise the spellings in half the time he usually had!
It reminded me of a valuable lesson I’ve learned in managing my children – give them choices. To avoid temper tantrums from your toddler at dressing time, choose 2 or 3 outfits you think she’d like, and let her choose what she wants to wear.

Let your four year old choose between reading the elephant book, or the caterpillar book, if you want some quiet for a little. If your child wants a snack, let him choose between an apple and a banana, depending on what he likes.

Teach your children that if they choose to behave in an unacceptable way, they will have to live with unpleasant consequences, perhaps a loss of treats, or for older children, privileges. If they choose to behave in an acceptable manner, the consequences will be more favourable to them.

Children live under strictures about what they can do and what they canÂ’t, when, how where and why, it is understandable that they could feel frustrated and resentful , and slowly but surely the cooperation dwindles. Giving children choices, albeit under controlled conditions gives your children the message that you do care about their wishes and what they feel, taking their needs into consideration. Children should be allowed the freedom to express themselves in matters of dress or hair style as long as the result of their choice is not unsafe or immoral.

Children get the freedom under your guidance to make their own choices, and you can use these opportunities to teach your children the consequences of their actions, such as spending all their money on the latest handbag or playstation game.

Most importantly though is to remember that once you have given your child the choice, you have to accept their choice. If you have given your child the choice between tidying up their bedroom or the playroom and they choose the playroom, you cannot stop him from tidying the playroom if thatÂ’s not your choice!

Learning to make good choices is a vital skill for growing up. Life involves decision-making. Many children struggle to make choices because they have not had enough experience. Parents and teachers told them what to do and when to do it. Certainly there will be times when your child will not be able to choose, when your judgment as a parent will have to suffice, but these times should be balanced with choices the child can make.

Try giving your children choices instead of orders. You wonÂ’t regret it.

Hot on the heels of the new forum, GlobalBuzz SA is proud to annouce a new feature called Articles.

These articles will be mainly provided by The Team of Contributors and we also welcome those with an article of interest to submit their article for publication.

More to follow

enjoy

ForumAdmin

GlobalBuzz SA are proud to launch a new forum to cover Southern Africa

this forum will focus on those who are interested in Southern Africa and will also faeture articles from the area.

South Africa will carry a strong representation.

enjoy

What future U.S. president negotiated the 1803 Louisiana Purchase for President Thomas Jefferson?

The New York Yankees adopted a pinstripe uniform to help Babe Ruth appear slimmer.

THE BRAND NEW YOU ----
by Max Lucado

Have you ever noticed the way a groom looks at his bride during the
wedding? I have. Perhaps it's my vantage point. As the minister of the
wedding, I'm positioned next to the groom. By the time we reach the
altar, I've been with him for some time backstage as he tugged his
collar and mopped his brow. But all that changes when she appears. And
the look on his face is my favorite scene in the wedding.

Most miss it. Most miss it because they are looking at her. But when
other eyes are on the bride, I sneak a peek at the groom. If the light
is just so and the angle just right, I can see a tiny reflection in his
eyes. Her reflection. And the sight of her reminds him why he is here.

And such are precisely the feelings of Jesus. Look long enough into the
eyes of our Savior and, there, too, you will see a bride. Dressed in
fine linen. Clothed in pure grace. From the wreath in her hair to the
clouds at her feet, she is royal; she is the princess. She is the
bride. His bride. Walking toward him, she is not yet with him. But he
sees her, he awaits her, he longs for her.

“Who could bear to live without her?” you hear him whisper.

And who is that bride? Who is this beauty who occupies the heart of
Jesus?

You are. You have captured the heart of God. “As a man rejoices over
his new wife, so your God will rejoice over you” (Isa. 62:5).

The challenge is to remember that. To meditate on it. To focus on it.
To allow his love to change the way you look at you.

My son is going to participate in this mararthon for a very worthy cause.

He finished the London Marathon in not too bad a time...


Hopefully the NY one will prove not to be to hard!

Will keep you informed, as he will probably too, being a member of GB himself. :thumbs:

I didn't know if this would go down well in the joke forum so decided to post it here.

A Jewish businessman in Chicago sent his son to Israel for a year to absorb the culture. When the son returned, he said - "Papa, I had a great time in Israel. By the way, I converted to Christianity."

"Oi vey," said the father, "what have I done!" He took his problem to his best friend. "Ike," he said, "I sent my son to Israel, and he came home a Christian. What can I do?"

"Funny you should ask," said Ike. "I, too, sent my son to Israel, and he also came home a Christian. Perhaps we should go see the Rabbi."

They explained their problem to the rabbi. "Funny you should ask," said the Rabbi. "I, too sent my son to Israel, and he also came home a Christian. What is happening to our young people?" Perhaps we should pray.

Then they prayed, telling God about their sons, and asked Him what they should do. As they finished their prayers, a voice came booming from the heavens:
"Funny you should ask," spoke a powerful voice. "I, too, sent my son to Israel.......