Quote from Forum Archives on September 9, 2005, 8:25 am

Posted by: bigguyhereagain <bigguyhereagain@...>

      

Hurricane Katrina
State of Emergency

 

America has faced another devastating hurricane
Louisiana and Mississippi were hardest hit
Please keep all of Katrina’s victims in your prayers,
And most of all donate any amount to the American
Red Cross.

 

 "Brownie and Spotty"

 

    

 

  Brownie and Spotty were neighbor dogs who met every day to play together.

 

  Like pairs of dogs you can find in most any neighborhood, these two loved
  each other and played together so often that they had worn a path through
  the grass of the field between their respective houses. One evening,
  Brownie's family noticed that Brownie hadn't returned home. They went
  looking for him with no success. Brownie didn't show up the next day, and,
  despite their efforts to find him, by the next week he was still missing.

 

  Curiously, Spotty showed up at Brownie's house alone, barking, whining,
  and generally pestering Brownie's human family. Busy with their own lives,
  they just ignored the nervous little neighbor dog. Finally, one morning
  Spotty refused to take "no" for an answer. Ted, Brownie's owner, was
  steadily harassed by the furious, adamant little dog. Spotty followed Ted
  about, barking insistently, then darting back and forth to a nearby empty
  lot, as if to say, "Follow me! It's urgent!" Eventually, Ted followed the
  frantic Spotty across the empty lot, as Spotty paused to race back and
  bark encouragingly. The little dog led the man under a fence, past clumps
  of trees, to a desolate spot a half mile from the house.

 

  There Ted found his beloved Brownie alive -- one of his hind legs crushed
  in a steel leg-hold trap. Horrified, Ted wished he'd taken Spotty's
  earlier appeals seriously.

 

  Then Ted noticed something quite remarkable... Spotty had done more than
  simply lead Brownie's human to his trapped friend. In a circle around the
  injured dog, Ted found an array of dog food and table scraps, which were
  identified as the remains of every meal Spotty had been fed that week!

 

  Spotty had been visiting Brownie regularly, in a single minded quest to
  keep his friend alive by sacrificing his own comfort! Spotty had stayed
  with Brownie to protect him from predators, snuggling with him at night
  to keep him warm and nuzzling him to keep his spirits up. Brownie's leg
  was treated by a veterinarian and he recovered. For many years there-
  after, the two families watched the faithful friends frolicking and
  chasing each other down that well-worn path between their houses.

 

 

"Brownies"

 

Many parents are hard pressed to explain to their youth why some music, movies, books, and magazines are not acceptable material for them to bring into the home or to listen to or see.

 

One parent came up with an original idea that is hard to refute. The father listened to all the reasons his children gave for wanting to see a particular "R" Rated movie. It had their favorite actors. Everyone else was seeing it. Even church members said it was great. It was only rated "R" because of the suggestion of sex...they never really showed it. The language was pretty good...the Lord's name was only used in vain three times in the whole movie. The teens did admit there was a scene where a building and a bunch of people were blown up, but the violence was just the normal stuff. It wasn't too bad.

 

Even if there were a few minor things, the special effects were fabulous and the plot was action packed. However, even with all the justifications the teens made for the "R" rating, the father still wouldn't give in. He didn't even give his children a satisfactory explanation for saying, "No." He just said, "No!"

 

A little later on that evening the father asked his teens if they would like some brownies he had baked. He explained that he'd taken the family's favorite recipe and added a little something new. The children asked what it was. The father calmly replied that he had added dog poop.

 

However, he quickly assured them, it was only a little bit. All other ingredients were gourmet quality and he had taken great care to bake the brownies at the precise temperature for the exact time. He was sure the brownies would be superb.

 

Even with their father's promise that the brownies were of almost perfect quality, the teens would not take any. The father acted surprised. After all, it was only one small part that was causing them to be so stubborn. He was certain they would hardly notice it. Still the teens held firm and would not try the brownies.

 

The father then told his children how the movie they wanted to see was just like the brownies. Our minds are tricking us into believing that just a little bit of evil won't matter. But, the truth is even a little bit of poop makes the difference between a great treat and something disgusting and totally unacceptable. The father went on to explain that even though the movie industry would have us believe that most of today's movies are acceptable fare for adults and youth, they are not.

 

Now when this father's children want to do something or see something they should not, the father merely asks them if they would like some of his special brownies . . . and they never ask about that activity again.

 

Have a Blessed Weekend

Dave and Barbara

 

 

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