Home  >> Stories  >> The Tale Spinner #2018-30

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IN THIS ISSUE

• In this Heroic Story, a dying man is given a choice
• Jean Sterling comments on two items in last week´s Spinner
• A grandmother makes an indelible impression on the court
• You may have gathered that I am having computer problems!
• Catherine Nesbitt forwards the story of two pilots
• Betty Audet sends the best T-shirt slogans for 2017
• Tom Telfer´s story illustrates the value of perspective
• Sites are suggested by Carol Shoemaker, Catherine Nesbitt, and Kate Brookfield

Amy Racina of Healdsburg, California, writes about choices

ASK FOR WHAT YOU WANT

Paul´s 84-year-old father was tired of living. He was down from 155 pounds to 103. The doctors were worried. They´d run every test. His lungs started filling with fluid. His heart was not well. They labeled it congestive heart disease and rushed him to the new hospital across town. "Nothing we can do," said the medical staff. They declared him terminal and sent him back to die at the nursing home.

Paul flew to New England to say goodbye to his father. He pushed through his own pain and memories of a less-than-perfect childhood. He went to be with his dad. He talked to the nursing home staff, the doctors, his sisters, all the relatives and friends. He talked to his dad. "What is it that you need?" he asked. And he found out what his dad wanted.

He wanted to feel that he had choice, that someone would care enough to listen to him, to do what he wanted - not what they thought would be right for him. He had spent 84 years being told what he wanted, being denied his own experience, being told what would be right for him.

"Ask for what you want," Paul coached him, and brought pens and magic markers and index cards and paper and made signs for his dad. He put aside his own judgements and opinions. He stopped thinking he knew what was right for this man. He let his father decide for himself if he wanted his pillow straightened. He let him decide for himself whether he wanted to live or to die. He gave him back his right to choose.

"Come smiling," the signs said. "Breathe. If you love someone, let them be who they are, not who you think they should be. Stop and listen. Ask for what you want. Accept it when it arrives. Don´t ask for what you don´t want. Be here. Be clear." These signs meant life to a man who had given up.

Paul´s dad wasn´t eating. "That´s OK," Paul said. He brought in bags of groceries - bowls of fruit and chunks of cheese and barbecued chickens and gallons of juice - and picnicked enthusiastically in his dad´s room, handing chunks of pineapple over his to his dad on the other side of the bed. His dad was inspired and began to eat too.

Paul´s dad began to look forward to the rest of his life, and two weeks later they took him off the critical list. "Resurrection," the nursing home staff said. "It´s a miracle." They didn´t acknowledge the power of Paul´s presence, his willingness to listen, his love for his dad. They didn´t know why a tired old man would decide to live a bit longer. "Touched by an angel," they told each other.

But I was there, and I watched the miracle happen. I saw the bright flame that lit up the cold grey darkness of that New England nursing home. And I know who the "angel" was. It was Paul.

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CORRESPONDENCE

Jean Sterling writes about two articles in last week´s Spinner:

The story about the lady who was concerned enough about her on-line friend to call the French police and struggle with speaking French and their struggle to understand her was a lovely story with a happy outcome. Kudus to the lady and the French police for saving a life! Also, I forwarded the section about bananas to my husband, who eats a LOT of bananas!

From the Sunday Family Humour comes this story:

WHEN GRANDMA GOES TO COURT

In a trial, a Southern small-town prosecuting attorney called his first witness, a grandmotherly elderly woman, to the stand. He approached her and asked, "Mrs. Jones, do you know me?"

She responded, "Why, yes, I do know you, Mr. Williams. I´ve known you since you were a boy, and frankly, you´ve been a big disappointment to me. You lie, you cheat on your wife, and you manipulate people and talk about them behind their backs. You think you´re a big shot when you haven´t the brains to realize you´ll never amount to anything more than a two-bit paper pusher. Yes, I know you."

The lawyer was stunned. Not knowing what else to do, he pointed across the room and asked, "Mrs. Jones, do you know the defense attorney?"

She again replied, "Why yes, I do. I´ve known Mr. Bradley since he was a youngster too. He´s lazy, bigoted, and he has a drinking problem. He can´t build normal relations with anyone, and his law practice is one of the worst in the entire state. Not to mention he cheated on his wife with three different women. One of them was your wife. Yes, I know him."

The defense attorney nearly died.

The judge asked both counselors to approach the bench, and in a very quiet voice, said, "If either of you idiots asks if she knows me, I´ll send you both to the electric chair."

Catherine Nesbitt forwards this story:

S.O.S

A Boeing 777 wide body jetliner was lumbering along at 800 km/hour at 33,000 feet when a cocky F-16 fighter jet flashed by at Mach 1.5. The F16 pilot decided to show off. On his state-of-the-art radio that was part of his state-of-the art 3D and million-dollar headset the F16 youngster told the 777 pilot, "Hey, Captain! Watch this!"

He promptly went into a barrel roll, followed by a steep unimaginable vertical climb. He finished with a sonic boom as he broke the sound barrier and the F16 screamed down at impossible G´s before levelling at almost sea level.

The F-16 pilot asked the 777 pilot, "What did you think of that?"

The 777-pilot said, "That was truly impressive, but watch this!"

The 777 chugged along for about five minutes at the steady 800 km/hour and then the 777 pilot came back on and said, "What did you think of that?"

Puzzled, the cocky F-16 pilot asked, "What the heck did you do?"

The 777-pilot chuckled and said, "I stood up, stretched my legs, walked to the back, used the toilet; then got a cup of coffee and a cinnamon roll, and secured a date for the next three nights in a five-star hotel paid for by the company."

Lesson of life: When you are young and foolish, speed and flash may seem like a good thing. When you get older and smarter, comfort and dullness is not such a bad thing!

It´s called S.O.S. - Slower, Older, and Smarter!

Dedicated to all my friends at or approaching the S.O.S. category.

Betty Audet sends

THE BEST T-SHIRT SLOGANS of 2017

"Filthy Stinking Rich - Well, Two Out of Three Ain´t Bad"

"Real Men Don´t Waste Their Hormones Growing Hair"

"I Used Up All My Sick Days So I Called In Dead"

"Be Nice to Your Children - They´ll Pick Your Nursing Home"

"Husbands Should Come With Instructions"

"Upon the Advice of My Attorney, My Shirt Bears No Message at This Time"

"I Want It All and I Want It Delivered"

"Life Is Hard; Then You Nap"

"Bigamy Is Having One Wife Too Many. Monogamy Is the Same"

"Happiness Is Seeing Your Mother-in-law on a Milk Carton"

"Just Hand Over the Chocolate and Nobody Gets Hurt"

"60-Year-Old, One Owner, Needs Parts. Make Offer"

"I Was Once a Millionaire But My Mom Gave Away My Baseball Cards"

"That´s It! I´m Calling Grandma!" - (seen on an eight-year-old)

"Wrinkled Was Not One of the Things I Wanted to Be When I Grew Up"

"My Designated Driver Drove Me to Drink"

"If You Remember the ´60s, You Weren´t Really There"

"Procrastinate Now"

"Rehab Is for Quitters"

"Re-Elect Nobody"

"Waiting for the Perfect Man" (Printed across a drawing of a skeleton).

"My Dog Can Lick Anyone"

"I Have a Degree in Liberal Arts - Do You Want Fries With That?"

"When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Use Duct Tape"

"Young at Heart - Slightly Older in Other Places"

"The Boat Sank. Get Over It" (Over a sketch of the Titanic)

"Party - My Crib - Two A.M." (On a baby-size shirt)

"Finally 21, and Legally Able to Do Everything I´ve Been Doing Since I Was 15"

Tom Telfer shares this story about

PERSPECTIVE

Whenever I´m disappointed with my spot in life, I stop and think about little Jamie Scott.

Jamie was trying out for a part in the school play. His mother told me that he´d set his heart on being in it, though she feared he would not be chosen.

On the day the parts were awarded, I went with her to collect him after school.

Jamie rushed up to her, eyes shining with pride and excitement. "Guess what, Mom," he shouted, and then said those words that will remain a lesson to me....

"I´ve been chosen to clap and cheer."

SUGGESTED SITES

Carol Shoemaker added some new photos to her Facebook page. Click on the arrow to watch them all:

Catherine Nesbitt sends this link to a video of what happened when Belgians pushed a red button:

Kate Brookfield posted this Facebook page which shows kids reading to shelter dogs, which helps the dogs socialize and eventually get adopted:

In this TED talk, Julia Rucklidge discusses the dramatic role of nutrition in mental health. Judging from the comments, many people agree with her theory:

The purpose behind the Beacon Hill Village in Boston is to offer a new kind of community for aging people, where they help each other while still staying in their own homes. It´s an idea that´s spreading:

These young sisters took their interests in science and technology and launched a space program with weather balloons to gather data about the climate:

Iceland has tapped into the most inventive, progressive, and eco-friendly energy system in the world - geothermal energy from its numerous volcanos:

Italy started a program for training dogs as lifeguards, and they make ideal partners for regular lifeguards. They remain calm under pressure and instinctively choose the safest path back to shore. They can even stay afloat while paddling multiple swimmers to safety.