Two Traveling AngelsTwo traveling angels stopped to spend the night in the home of a wealthy family.
The family was rude and refused to let the angels stay in the mansion's guest room.
Instead the angels were given a small space in the cold basement.
As they made their bed on the hard floor, the older angel saw a hole in the wall and repaired it.
When the younger angel asked why, the older angel replied,
'Things aren't always what they seem.'
The next night the pair came to rest at the house of a very poor, but very hospitable farmer and his wife.
After sharing what little food they had the couple let the angels sleep in their bed where they could have a good night's rest.
When the sun came up the next morning the angels found the farmer and his wife in tears
Their only cow, whose milk had been their sole income, lay dead in the field.
The younger angel was infuriated and asked the older angel how could you have let this happen?
The first man had everything, yet you helped him, she accused.
The second family had little but was willing to share everything, and you let the cow die.
Things aren't always what they seem,' the older angel replied.
When we stayed in the basement of the mansion, I noticed there was gold stored in that hole in the wall.
Since the owner was so obsessed with greed and unwilling to share his good fortune, I sealed the
wall so he wouldn't find it.'
'Then last night as we slept in the farmers bed, the angel of death came for his wife. I gave him the cow instead.
'Things aren't always what they seem.'
Sometimes that is exactly what happens when things don't turn out the way they should. If you have faith, you just need to trust that every outcome is always to your advantage. You just might not know it until some time later..
Yesterday is history. Tomorrow a mystery. Today is a gift. That's why it's called the present!
I think this is special....live and savor every moment... This is not a dress rehearsal!
Never take away anyone's hope.
That may be all they have.
Some people
come into our lives
and quickly go..
Some people
become friends
and stay awhile...
leaving beautiful
footprints on our
hearts...
and we are
never
quite the same
because we have
made a good
friend!!
Yesterday is history. Tomorrow a mystery. Today is a gift. That's why it's called the present!
I think this is special....live and savor every moment... This is not a dress rehearsal!
(\ /)
( \ / )
( \()/ )
( /\ ) TAKE THIS LITTLE ANGEL
( / \/\ ) AND KEEP HER CLOSE TO YOU
/ \ SHE IS YOUR GUARDIAN ANGEL
( ) SENT TO WATCH OVER YOU
--------
Live at 8:15 AM: I haven't fully set up Twitter yet, but here is my latest Twitter update: "I'm on the radio right now while I"m typing. We have our resident political strategists on the show: Dave Schwartz and Peggy Maze Johnson. I just mentioned the woman who Googled her husband and found his car parked outside his mistress' house! We just had a caller who is in the military set to go to Afghanistan. He voted his Republican his entire life until this last election. He believes even Condi Rice voted for Obama!New York Times
WORLD LEADERS PLEDGE 1.1 TRILLION FOR CRISIS: GIVES MORE THAN ASKED FOR! Among other steps Mr. Brown detailed were new regulations on hedge funds and rating agencies, as well as a crackdown on tax havens, which will be publicly identified and subjected to sanctions if they do not agree to share tax information with the authorities of other countries. A senior Obama administration official cautioned that the sanctions were “future oriented.” LONDON — Struggling to bridge deep divides over how to revive a paralyzed global economy, the leaders of the world’s largest economies agreed Thursday to bail out developing countries, stimulate world trade and regulate financial firms more stringently.
Stock markets around the world, especially in emerging nations, rose in the hours leading up to the announcement.
*********************
FROM WINDOW OF CHINA
Ottawa, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The meeting between Chinese President Hu Jintao and U.S. President Barack Obama ahead of the London G20 summit had substantially strengthened relations between the two largest economies in the world, a Canadian scholar said Thursday. http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-04/03/content_11126101.htm
OBAMA'S DIPLOMACY AND FINESSE - The operative word here is HUMILITY, Obama diffused any antagonism among world leaders and was a gracious diplomat using a rare quality called humility. "He's a good listener." The operative word here is "humility, which means a lack of arrogance. Being thoughtful enough to really hear the person and not jump in like a know-it-all, with only self-serving interests. It's the idea that "it's better first to understand others than to be understood." - Lydia
U.S. News and World Report
Media reports last night and this morning offer glowing reviews of President Obama's early diplomatic moves in Europe and in the process, implicitly or explicitly, are drawing contrasts between Obama and his predecessor, George W. Bush. The ranks of those openly comparing Obama's performance to Bush's include an unnamed "senior White House official." In a story about Obama's meeting with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, the CBS Evening News noted "a senior White House official said the US and Russia will now focus on mutual interests not 'a buddy/buddy relationship,' a reference to former President Bush's claim that he'd looked into Russian leader Vladimir Putin's eyes and got a sense of his soul." The Financial Times also notes that "Obama officials made it clear that the US president would 'not be looking into souls.'" Reuters draws a contrast between Obama and Bush, while The Politico says that yesterday, "in strokes of symbolism and on issues of substance," Obama "made one thing clear: The Bush era of foreign policy is over." Adds The Politico, "Gone was diplomacy by towel-snapping."
ABC World News Obama "is forging personal relationships with heads of state some of whom have not recently had warm things to say about the US." On MSNBC's Hardball, Chris Matthews said, "Barack rocks in Britain, bustling through history." The AP refers to "a stunning reversal from policies of the Bush administration," and under the headline "In Britain, Obama Vows To Listen, Not Lecture," the Washington Times reports Obama's "style was a stark change from that of his predecessor."
Obama Says ‘Historic’ G-20 Summit Put World on Path to Recovery
April 3 (Bloomberg) -- President Barack Obama wrapped up his first international summit by declaring the event “historic” and a “turning point” toward recovery from a worldwide recession.
Obama, who used personal diplomacy to help push through an agreement on regulations and emergency aid, said he and his counterparts at the Group of 20 summit are taking “unprecedented steps” to prevent another financial crisis.
Economic risks remain and there are “no guarantees,” he said at a news conference in London yesterday. “I have no doubt, though, that the steps that have been taken are critical to preventing us sliding into a depression.”
The leaders agreed on principles for financial market regulation, including expanded controls on hedge funds and derivatives trading, and tax havens, as well as rules on compensation and bonuses. They also pledged additional financing for the International Monetary Fund and other institutions.
The summit ended amid signs the world economy is stabilizing after months of sliding. Confidence among U.S. consumers climbed in March after reaching the lowest level on record a month earlier, according to the Conference Board. U.K. house prices unexpectedly rose in March for the first time since October 2007, while Chinese manufacturing increased, reports today showed.
Obama Wins More Praise In London
U.S. News and World Report
Media reports last night and this morning offer glowing reviews of President Obama's early diplomatic moves in Europe and in the process, implicitly or explicitly, are drawing contrasts between Obama and his predecessor, George W. Bush. The ranks of those openly comparing Obama's performance to Bush's include an unnamed "senior White House official." In a story about Obama's meeting with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, the CBS Evening News noted "a senior White House official said the US and Russia will now focus on mutual interests not 'a buddy/buddy relationship,' a reference to former President Bush's claim that he'd looked into Russian leader Vladimir Putin's eyes and got a sense of his soul." The Financial Times also notes that "Obama officials made it clear that the US president would 'not be looking into souls.'" Reuters draws a contrast between Obama and Bush, while The Politico says that yesterday, "in strokes of symbolism and on issues of substance," Obama "made one thing clear: The Bush era of foreign policy is over." Adds The Politico, "Gone was diplomacy by towel-snapping."
ABC World News Obama "is forging personal relationships with heads of state some of whom have not recently had warm things to say about the US." On MSNBC's Hardball, Chris Matthews said, "Barack rocks in Britain, bustling through history." The AP refers to "a stunning reversal from policies of the Bush administration," and under the headline "In Britain, Obama Vows To Listen, Not Lecture," the Washington Times reports Obama's "style was a stark change from that of his predecessor."
Obama Says ‘Historic’ G-20 Summit Put World on Path to Recovery
April 3 (Bloomberg) -- President Barack Obama wrapped up his first international summit by declaring the event “historic” and a “turning point” toward recovery from a worldwide recession.
Obama, who used personal diplomacy to help push through an agreement on regulations and emergency aid, said he and his counterparts at the Group of 20 summit are taking “unprecedented steps” to prevent another financial crisis.
Economic risks remain and there are “no guarantees,” he said at a news conference in London yesterday. “I have no doubt, though, that the steps that have been taken are critical to preventing us sliding into a depression.”
The leaders agreed on principles for financial market regulation, including expanded controls on hedge funds and derivatives trading, and tax havens, as well as rules on compensation and bonuses. They also pledged additional financing for the International Monetary Fund and other institutions.
The summit ended amid signs the world economy is stabilizing after months of sliding. Confidence among U.S. consumers climbed in March after reaching the lowest level on record a month earlier, according to the Conference Board. U.K. house prices unexpectedly rose in March for the first time since October 2007, while Chinese manufacturing increased, reports today showed.
