Flower In A Broken Pot........

Pain Pills
1
I got this in an email, thought i would share it, I thought it was very moving...
have a great day everyone!!!!
God bless
gina :)

A Flower in a Broken Pot

Our house was directly across the street from the clinic entrance of
Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. We lived downstairs and rented the
upstairs rooms to out patients at the clinic.

One summer evening as I was fixing supper, there was a knock at the
door. I opened it to see a truly awful looking man. "Why, he's hardly
taller than my eight-year-old," I thought as I stared at the stooped,
shriveled body. But the appalling thing was his face, lopsided from
swelling, red and raw.

Yet his voice was pleasant as he said, "Good evening. I've come to see
if you've a room for just one night. I came for a treatment this
morning from the eastern shore, and there's no bus 'til morning."

He told me he'd been hunting for a room since noon but with no
success, no one seemed to have a room. "I guess it's my face.. I know
it looks terrible, but my doctor says with a few more treatments..."
For a moment I hesitated, but his next words convinced me: "I could
sleep in this rocking chair on the porch. My bus leaves early in the
morning."

I told him we would find him a bed, but to rest on the porch. I went
inside and finished getting supper. When we were ready, I asked the old
man if he would join us. "No thank you, I have plenty." And he held up
a brown paper bag.

When I had finished the dishes, I went out on the porch to talk with
him a few minutes. It didn't take a long time to see that this old man
had an oversized heart crowded into that tiny body. He told me he
fished for a living to support his daughter, her five children, and her
husband, who was hopelessly crippled from a back injury. He didn't tell
it by way of complaint; in fact, every other sentence was preface with
a thanks to God for a blessing. He was grateful that no pain
accompanied his disease, which was apparently a form of skin cancer. He
thanked God for giving him the strength to keep going.

At bedtime, we put a camp cot in the children's room for him. When I
got up in the morning, the bed linens were neatly folded and the little
man was out on the porch. He refused breakfast, but just before he left
for his bus, haltingly, as if asking a great favor, he said, Could I
please come back and stay the next time I have a treatment? I won't put
you out a bit. I can sleep fine in a chair." He paused a moment and
then added, "Your children made me feel at home. Grownups are bothered
by my face, but children don't seem to mind." I told him he was welcome
to come again.

And on his next trip he arrived a little after seven in the morning.
As a gift, he brought a big fish and a quart of the largest oysters I
had ever seen. He said he had shucked them that morning before he left
so that they'd be nice and fresh. I knew his bus left at 4:00 a.m. and
I wondered what time he had to get up in order to do this for us.

In the years he came to stay overnight with us there was never a time
that he did not bring us fish or oysters or vegetables from his garden.
Other times we received packages in the mail, always by special
delivery; fish and oysters packed in a box of fresh young spinach or
kale, every leaf carefully washed. Knowing that he must walk three
miles to mail these, and knowing how little money he had made the gifts
doubly precious.

When I received these little remembrances, I often thought of a
comment our next-door neighbor made after he left that first morning.
"Did you keep that awful looking man last night? I turned him away! You
can lose roomers by putting up such people!" Maybe we did lose roomers
once or twice. But oh! If only they could have known him, perhaps their
illnesses would have been easier to bear. I know our family always will
be grateful to have known him; from him we learned what it was to
accept the bad without complaint and the good with gratitude to God.

Recently I was visiting a friend, who has a greenhouse, as she showed
me her flowers, we came to the most beautiful one of all, a golden
chrysanthemum, bursting with blooms. But to my great surprise, it was
growing in an old dented, rusty bucket. I thought to myself, "If this
were my plant, I'd put it in the loveliest container I had!"

My friend changed my mind. "I ran short of pots," she explained, and
knowing how beautiful this one would be, I thought it wouldn't mind
starting out in this old pail. It's just for a little while, till I can
put it out in the garden."

She must have wondered why I laughed so delightedly, but I was
imagining just such a scene in heaven. "Here's an especially beautiful
one," God might have said when he came to the soul of the sweet old
fisherman. "He won't mind starting in this small body."

All this happened long ago -- and now, in God's garden, how tall this
lovely soul must stand.

The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the
outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart." (1 Samuel 16:7)

Friends are very special. They make you smile and encourage you to
succeed. They lend an ear and they share a word of praise. Show your
friends how much you care.... Pass this on, and brighten someone's day.
Nothing will happen if you do not decide to pass it along. The only
thing that will happen if you DO pass it on is that someone might smile
(because of you).

Make someone smile today!


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Gina,
Nice post hon. lol feel sorta silly posting to ya' sometimes! lol
Anyway, I love you, have a nice day, and ummmm, I'm a little hungry! lol *wink*

Take care......................................God bless.........................................Bob
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Bob & gina I don't mean to be miss nosey aren't you 2 married?If so that must make it nice to recover together....My Bf doesn't have a drug habit.But he did take his last drink 3+years ago and never looked back.He never went to AA or therapy it just is amazing to me that he just quit that way.....mj
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Hi mj,
You are right, yes we are married. Yes it is nice to recover together as long as we stay out of each others program!!!! lol That is great that your boyfriend quit 3 yrs ago...congrats to him!!! How are you feeling these days? Things going alright for you? I hope so...take care

God bless
gina :)
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Well, my long lost friend M.J. Please read your e-mail!!1
I wrote you back this morning. I got on the board to try and find you.
Sorry Gina, for jummping in on your post.
I loved the story!!!
But Mj, your the one im looking for.
Love ya lots.....

Your sis, friend, and Niblet, Christina
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thank you for asking.Yes I am feeling better.I feel GREAT knowing I haven't had ultram in 72 hours,.I guess you & bob get alot of support from each other.I always think it would be easier? if you can relate ya know..mj ps sorry gina & bob I've been trying to get ahold of niblet too.Kristin I have been writing did you get my one from yesterday the very long one,.Maybe we should jump back to my good morning post it feels funny jumping into someone elses post.Once again sorry gina....mj
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Christina,
Don't worry ...jump right on it!!! I'm glad you liked the story!!!

Mj,
72 hrs...congrats....that is awesome!!!! Yes Bob and I can support each other, but for the most part...we keep our recovery seperate..like if i am thinking about using, it isnt Bob that I go to...I go to someone else...because he could be having a bad day at the same time.....and thats not good...been there done that got the tshirt....and dont feel bad jumping in on this post....well Im glad your doing better....keep up the good work...you are worth it!! take care

God bless
gina :)





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gina..
darn you ....!!!!!! you know I cant read stuff like that... you should put a warning lable on that.. I am sitting here with tears streaming... (yes folks I really do have a very soft heart.. surprise.. ) but seriously gina.. thanks.. and that is sooo true... That is just like us addicts ... God wont look at our outward faults or past sins He will look at what is in our hearts and at our wounds... We have responsiblities to be the most beautiful soul we can be and fix what we can but let the wounds heal and let Him take care of the rest...

Thanks Gi .. that was beautiful.... ( now I have to lock the office door and reapply my makeup....lol... )

Teresa
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Teresa,
Told ya you weren't cold hearted so there!! lol Sorry I didn't get a chance to get back to you today, went out shopping with the kids after school...catch ya tomorrow....take care ...God bless
love ya
gina :)