Jack’s Winning Words 6/27/08
“The world ages us too fast. We grow up too quickly; we stop dreaming too early, and we develop the ability to worry at far too young an age.” (Doug Wecker) I don’t know who Doug is, but I think he’s hit the nail on the head. If we would just dream more and worry less, we’d be in better shape. Sigmund Romberg wrote the song, When I Grow Too Old To Dream. Too old to dream? How sad. Dream on and stay young. ;-) Jack

FROM PR J.S. IN MI: "And your old men shall dream dreams..."

FROM E.D. IN AZ: Along that line, i like the quote from my favorite movie "Shawshank Redemption" It is when Red gets out of prison and is re-entering the world after being locked up for 50 years. After crossing the street and almost getting hit by a car (of which he had never personally seen) he said, "The world went and got itself in a big damn hurry"So my 2 cents for the day?: slow down .

FROM K.B. IN MI: I think of you everyday both when I read the book of daily writings you gave me and when I open my email to read your WW's. I loved today's best--somehow you manage to read my brain and know my anxieties and write about them on an uncanny basis. Thank You

FROM J.L. IN MI: Sadly, I think the kids do grow up way too soon. I see some of Josh's friends (9 years old) who are so worried about everything. There is so much pressure on the kids now-a-days. Thankfully, my family had a wonderful childhood and we make sure our grandkids and kids do too. We do miss my parent's place on the AuSable River in Grayling. We spent many weeks up there playing in the river while growing up. We will miss it and remember the memories. Thankfully, my little grandson does remember "Up North".

FROM J.T. IN MI: Unfortunately I agree with you (and Doug Wecker.) It sounds as thought he's known me for years.

FROM N.C. IN IL: I remember when "When I grow too old to dream..." was a popular song, and Bernie's mom(can't think of their last name, but they lived in that brick house on 7th Street) used to go around singing it. I didn't understand the words, and thought she was singing, "When I go to 'Ovaltine'."

FROM CJL IN OH: One of the singers always sang : Dream along with me.... That keeps us going. I agree.

PERRY COMO SANG THE SONG: Dream along with me, I'm on my way to a starCome along, come along, leave your worries where they areUp and beyond the sky, watchin' the world roll bySharin' a kiss, a sigh, just use your imagination!On a cloud of love, we'll hear the music of nightWe can wink at the moon as we hold each other tightAnd if we go in the right direction, heaven can't be very farDream along with me, I'm on my way to a star!(We can wink at the moon as we hold each other tight . . . )And if we go in the right direction, heaven can't be very farDream along with me, I'm on my way to a star!

THIS IS WORTH YOUR TIME TO READ: Too many people put off something that brings them joy just because they haven't thought about it, don't have it on their schedule, didn't know it was coming or are too rigid to depart from their routine. I got to thinking one day about all those women on the Titanic who passed up dessert at dinner that fateful night in an effort to cut back. From then on, I've tried to be a little more flexible. How many women out there will eat at home because their husband didn't suggest going out to dinner until after something had been thawed? Does the word 'refrigeration' mean nothing to you? How often have your kids dropped in to talk and sat in silence while you watched 'Jeopardy' on television? I cannot count the times I called my sister and said, 'How about going to lunch in a half hour?' She would gas up and stammer, 'I can't. I ha ve clothes on the line. My hair is dirty. I wish I had known yesterday, I had a late breakfast, It looks like rain.' And my personal favorite: 'It's Monday.' She died a few years ago. We never did have lunch together. Because we cram so much into our lives, we tend to schedule our headaches. We live on a sparse diet of promises we make to ourselves when all the conditions are perfect! We'll go back and visit the grandparents when we get the baby toilet-trained. We'll entertain when we replace the living-room carpet. We'll go on a second honeymoon when we get two more kids out of college... Life has a way of accelerating as we get older. The days get shorter, and the list of promises to ourselves gets longer. One morning, we awaken, and all we have to show for our lives is a litany of 'I'm going to,' 'I plan on,' and 'Someday, when things are settled down a bit.' When anyone calls my 'seize the moment' friend, she is open to adventure and available fo r trips. She keeps an open mind on new ideas. Her enthusiasm for life is contagious. You talk with her for five minutes, and you're ready to trade your bad feet for a pair of rollerblades and skip an elevator for a bungee cord. My lips have not touched ice cream in 10 years. I love ice cream. It's just that I might as well apply it directly to my stomach with a spatula and eliminate the digestive process. The other day , I stopped the car and bought a triple-decker. If my car had hit an iceberg on the way home, I would have died happy. Now ...go on and have a nice day. Do something you WANT to......not something on your SHOULD DO list . If you were going to die soon and had only one phone call you could make, who would you call and what would you say? And why are you waiting? Have you ever watched kids playing on a merry go round or listened to the rain lapping on the ground? Ever followed a butterfly's erratic flight or gazed at the sun into the fading night? Do you run through each day on the fly? When you ask 'How are you?' Do you hear the reply? When the day is done, do you lie in your bed with the next hundred chores running through your head? Ever told your child, 'We'll do it tomorrow.' And in your haste, not see his sorrow? Ever lost touch? Let a good friendship die? Just call to say 'Hi?'When you worry and hurry through your day, it is like an unopened gift...Thrown away. . Life is not a race.. Take it slower. Hear the music before the song is over.

HERE'S AN INTERESTING FOLLOW UP: I live not in dreams but in contemplation of a reality that is perhaps the future. Rainer Maria Rilke

FROM B.S. NEAR ORLANDO: You don't want my dreams.I don't know where they come from or where they go to. FROM THE PIED PIPERS: Dream when you're feelin' blue,Dream that's the thing to do.Just watch the smoke rinks rise in the air;You'll find your share of memories there.So dream when the day is through;Dream and they might come true.Things never are as bad as they seem,So dream, dream, dream.