"Have You Ever Enjoyed The Forbidden Fruit?"

Cookies
By: Author Unknown

A small boy at summer camp received a large package of
cookies in the mail from his mother. He ate a few, then
placed the remainder under his bed. The next day, after
lunch, he went to his tent to get a cookie. The box was
gone.

That afternoon a camp counselor, who had been told of the
theft, saw another boy sitting behind a tree eating the
stolen cookies. "That young man," he said to himself, "must
be taught not to steal."

He returned to the group and sought out the boy whose
cookies had been stolen. "Billy," he said, "I know who
stole your cookies. Will you help me teach him a lesson?"

"Well, yes--but aren't you going to punish him?" asked the
puzzled boy.

"No, that would only make him resent and hate you," the
counselor explained. "I want you to call your mother and
ask her to send you another box of cookies."

The boy did as the counselor asked and a few days later
received another box of cookies in the mail.

"Now," said the counselor, "the boy who stole your cookies
is down by the lake. Go down there and share your cookies
with him."

"But," protested the boy, "he's the thief."

"I know. But try it--see what happens."

Half an hour later, the camp counselor saw the two come up
the hill, arm in arm. The boy who had stolen the cookies
was earnestly trying to get the other to accept his
jackknife in payment for the stolen cookies, and the victim
was just as earnestly refusing the gift from his new
friend, saying that a few old cookies weren't that
important anyway.

"This Is Your Life"

Life's Journey

Do not undermine your worth by comparing yourself with
others. It is because we are different that each of us is
special.

Do not set your goals by what other people deem important.
Only you know what is best for you.

Do not take for granted the things closest to your heart.
Cling to them as you would your life, for without them life
is meaningless.

Do not let your life slip through your fingers by living
in the past nor for the future. By living your life one day
at a time, you live all of the days of your life.

Do not give up when you still have something to give.
Nothing is really over until the moment you stop trying. It
is a fragile thread that binds us to each other.

Do not be afraid to encounter risks. It is by taking
chances that we learn how to be brave.

Do not shut love out of your life by saying it is
impossible to find. The quickest way to receive love is to
give love. The fastest way to lose love is too hold it too
tightly. In addition, the best way to keep love is to give
it wings.

Do not dismiss your dreams. To be without dreams is to be
without hope. To be without hope is to be without purpose.

Do not run through life so fast that you forget not only
where you have been, but also where you are going. Life is
not a race, but a journey to be savored each step of the way.