Happy New Year Wishes

New year is the time to forget every bad memory of the past year and start your life afresh. So, get up and hug a friend with whom you had a fight lately, get up and hug you parents and promise them you will not hurt them anymore, give a self hug and promise to yourself that come what may you would remain truthful to yourself, hug a poor kid and tell her that she is not alone, Help the needy and abolish the greedy from your life. 

So, just forget all your grudges and send these wonderful new year wishes to your loved ones. Cheers to 2012!! 

What he valued most

A young man learns what's most important in life from the guy next door.
 It had been some time since Jack had seen the old man. College, girls,
 career, and life itself got in the way. In fact, Jack moved clear across
 the country in pursuit of his dreams. There, in the rush of his busy
 life, Jack had little time to think about the past and often no time to
 spend with his wife and son. He was working on his future, and nothing
 could stop him.

 Over the phone, his mother told him, "Mr. Belser died last night. The
 funeral is Wednesday." Memories flashed through his mind like an old
 newsreel as he sat quietly remembering his childhood days.


 "Jack, did you hear me?"
 "Oh, sorry, Mom. Yes, I heard you. It's been so long since I thought of
 him. I'm sorry, but I honestly thought he died years ago," Jack said.


 "Well, he didn't forget you. Every time I saw him he'd ask how you were
 doing. He'd reminisce about the many days you spent over 'his side of
 the fence' as he put it," Mom told him.


 "I loved that old house he lived in," Jack said.


 "You know, Jack, after your father died, Mr. Belser stepped in to make
 sure you had a man's influence in your life," she said.


 "He's the one who taught me carpentry," he said. "I wouldn't be in this
 business if it weren't for him. He spent a lot of time teaching me
 things he thought were important...Mom, I'll be there for the funeral,"
 Jack said.


 As busy as he was, he kept his word. Jack caught the next flight to his
 hometown. Mr. Belser's funeral was small and uneventful. He had no
 children of his own, and most of his relatives had passed away.


 The night before he had to return home, Jack and his Mom stopped by to
 see the old house next door one more time.
Standing in the doorway, Jack paused for a moment. It was like crossing
 over into another dimension, a leap through space and time. The house
 was exactly as he remembered. Every step held memories. Every picture,
 every piece of furniture....Jack stopped suddenly.


 "What's wrong, Jack?" his Mom asked.


 "The box is gone," he said.


 "What box? " Mom asked.


 "There was a small gold box that he kept locked on top of his desk. I
 must have asked him a thousand times what was inside. All he'd ever tell
 me was 'the thing I value most,'" Jack said.


 It was gone. Everything about the house was exactly how Jack remembered
 it, except for the box. He figured someone from the Belser family had
 taken it.


 "Now I'll never know what was so valuable to him," Jack said. "I better
 get some sleep. I have an early flight home, Mom."


 It had been about two weeks since Mr. Belser died. Returning home from
 work one day Jack discovered a note in his mailbox. "Signature required
 on a package. No one at home. Please stop by the main post office within
 the next three days," the note read.


 Early the next day Jack retrieved the package. The small box was old and
 looked like it had been mailed a hundred years ago. The handwriting was
 difficult to read, but the return address caught his attention.


 "Mr. Harold Belser" it read.


 Jack took the box out to his car and ripped open the package. There 
 inside was the gold box and an envelope. Jack's hands shook as he read
 the note inside.


 "Upon my death, please forward this box and its contents to Jack
 Bennett. It's the thing I valued most in my life." A small key was taped
 to the letter. His heart racing, as tears filling his eyes, Jack
 carefully unlocked the box. There inside he found a beautiful gold
 pocket watch. Running his fingers slowly over the finely etched casing,
 he unlatched the cover.


 Inside he found these words engraved: "Jack, Thanks for your time!
 Harold Belser."


 "The thing he valued most...was...my time."


 Jack held the watch for a few minutes, then called his office and
 cleared his appointments for the next two days. "Why?" Janet, his
 assistant asked.

 "I need some time to spend with my son," he said.


 "Oh, by the way, Janet...thanks for your time!"

Child's Definition of Love

A group of professional people posed this question to a group of 4 to 8 year-olds, "What does love mean?" The answers they got were broader and deeper than anyone could have imagined.  See what you think:

"When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore.  So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too.  That's love." Rebecca - age 8

When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different.  You know that your name is safe in their mouth." Billy - age 4

"Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other." Karl - age 5

"Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs." Chrissy - age 6

"Love is what makes you smile when you're tired." Terri - age 4

Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK." Danny - age 7

"Love is when you kiss all the time.  Then when you get tired of kissing, you still want to be together and you talk more.  My Mommy and Daddy are like that. They look gross when they kiss" Emily - age 8

"Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen," Bobby - age 7 (Wow!)

"If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate," Nikka - age 6

"There are two kinds of love.  Our love.  God's love. But God makes both kinds of them." Jenny - age 8

"Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it everyday." Noelle - age 7

"Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well." Tommy - age 6

"During my piano recital, I was on a stage and I was scared.  I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling.  He was the only one doing that.  I wasn't scared anymore," Cindy - age 8

"My mommy loves me more than anybody.  You don't see anyone else kissing me to sleep at night." Clare - age 6

"Love is when Mommy gives Daddy the best piece of chicken." Elaine -age 5

"Love is when Mommy sees Daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford." Chris - age 7

"Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day." Mary Ann - age 4
                                                                                                                                                    

"I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new ones." Lauren - age 4

"When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you." Karen - age 7

"Love is when Mommy sees Daddy on the toilet and she doesn't think it's gross." Mark - age 6

"You really shouldn't say 'I love you' unless you mean it.  But if you mean it, you should say it a lot.  People forget," Jessica - age 8

Author and lecturer Leo Buscaglia once talked about a contest he was asked to judge.  The purpose of the contest was to find the most caring child.  The winner was a four year old child whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife.  Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old gentleman's yard, climbed onto his lap, and just sat there. When his Mother asked him what he had said to the neighbor, the little boy said, "Nothing, I just helped him cry."