A story is told about a
soldier who was finally
coming home after having
fought in Vietnam.
He called his parents from
San Francisco.
"Mom and Dad, I'm
coming home, but I've got
a favor to ask. I
have a friend I'd like to
bring home with
me."
"Sure, they replied,
We'd love to meet
him."
"There's something
you should know" the
son continued. "He
was hurt pretty badly in
the fighting. He
stepped on a land mine and
lost an arm and a
log. He has nowhere
else to go and I want him
to come and live with
us."
"I'm
sorry to hear that
son. Maybe we can
help him find somewhere to
live."
"No, Mom and Dad, I
want him to live with
us."
"Son,"
said the father, "you
don't know what you're
asking. Someone with
such a handicap would be a
terrible burden on
us. We have our own
lives to live, and we
can't let something like
this interfere with our
lives. I think you
should just come home and
forget about this
guy. He'll find a
way to live on his
own."
AT
that point the son hung up
the phone. The
parents heard nothing more
from him. A few days
later, however, they
received a call from the
San Francisco
police. Their son
had died after falling
from a building, they were
told. The police
believed it was suicide.
The
grief stricken parents
flew to San Francisco and
were taken to the city
morgue to identify the
body of their son.
They recognized him, but
to their horror they also
discovered something they
didn't know, their son had
only one arm and leg.
The
parents in this story are
like many of us. We
find it easy to love those
who are good looking or
fun to have around, but we
don't like people who
inconvenience us or make
us feel uncomfortable. We
would rather stay away
from people who aren't as
healthy, beautiful, or
smart as we are.
Thankfully, there's
someone who won't treat us
that way. Someone
who loves us with an
unconditional love that
welcomes us into the
forever family, regardless
of how messed up we are.
Tonight
before you tuck yourself
in for the night, say a
little prayer that God
will give you the strength
you need to accept people
as they are, and to help
us all be more
understanding of those who
are different from
us. There's a
miracle called Friendship
that dwells in the
heart. You don't
know how it happens or
when it gets started but
you know the special lift
it always brings and you
realize that Friendship is
God's most precious
gift. Friends are a
very rare jewel
indeed. They make
you smile and encourage
you to succeed. They
lend an ear, they share a
word of praise, and they
always want to open their
hearts to us.
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