Jack’s Winning Words 6/28/18
“I do not want the peace that passeth understanding, I want the understanding that bringeth peace.”  (Helen Keller)  I once visited Ivy Green in Alabama, where Helen Keller was born and spent her early childhood.  It was special to stand at the spot where Helen and Annie Sullivan first communicated.  Hers is a story that truly passes understanding.  Mark Twain called Annie, The Miracle Worker.  While there, I got a Helen Keller quarter as a memento.    ;-)  Jack

FROM OUTHOUSE JUDY:  The Miracle Worker is one movie I never miss if I see it show up on tv.  It’s a true story of strength, persistence and love!===JACK:  It's almost like Jesus restoring sight to the blind man.===JUDY:  Absolutely!  He gave Annie the gift of faith so she kept on until she was successful!===JACK:  I don't know that Annie was a particularly religious person, but she did seen to have a basic feeling that each success in life brings us closer to God.

FROM TAMPA SHIRL:  That was one of Les’ favorites too! When we moved to Tampa in 1963 and he taught 6th grade and had 48 students in his class, his students loved it too!===JACK:  Annie certainly knew what it was to be a teacher.

FROM ESF:  I like this, we should never ignore bullying ===JACK:  I recall "bullying" from the past, but there was a passive toleration "back then."  Things weren't always better in the old days.

FROM LBP:  Yes. Yes. Yes. This is very selfish. I’m sure you were thinking loftier issues as you penned the ww. But I’m waiting to hear the result of a decision at work and it is driving me insane! I get hints to one way then the other and I’m starting to obsess. The decision was made Monday but I have to wait for the formal announcement to come “soon”. I just want the peace that comes from knowing the yes or no!===JACK:  Your response reminds me of the person who prayed, "O Lord, give me patience, and give it to me, RIGHT NOW!!!"===LBP:  Yeah. I know. ..This proposal went in for review last November. I feel like I’ve been pretty patient. But I’m really stuck ruminating on the potential outcome these last few days knowing that it’s decided but I cannot know that decision. It’s silly and useless to fret on it I know. Now to convince my brain to cut it out.===JACK:  It's sort of like the promise of Heaven, isn't it?  Well, maybe not something that we're anxious for RIGHT NOW, but a "perfect world" would be a relief.===LBP:  Well, as you probably figured, no answer translated to a “no” answer. Ah... the NIH .... some day I will figure out how to win their favor ===JACK:  Someday, when you're in charge, things will be different.  Life is a learning experience.  The "church" experiences, good and bad, in my growing years, helped shape my ministry.

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  Love this quote from one of the most amazing women ever!. She was
a deep thinker, and found a way to communicate what she thought.  Yes, we all need more understanding, and we all want peace. I am currently enjoying Maria Shriver's new book, I'VE BEEN THINKING, in which her essay on Intestinal Fortitude says exactly how most thinking Americans are feeling today!! She nailed it!===JACK:  There must be an eleemosynary gene in the Kennedy pool, probably coming from Rose's side.  It shows up in so many of her offspring.===OAKS:  Really?! I'll have to look that gene up in Websters. Always learning something new!===JACK:  I learned that "e" word in college/seminary.

FROM RI IN BOSTON:  Helen Keller certainly was an outstanding achiever, and a proponent of humanitarian causes throughout her life.  She overcame her disabilities and was a powerful influence in society with her writing and lecturing.  It's a credit to her parents that they used what wealth they had to engage Annie Sullivan as Helen's teacher and companion.  By her efforts she broke through the darkness and silence Helen suffered from being blind and deaf.  Reading Helen's biography in my youth, and seeing the film, "The Miracle Worker", really impressed me about overcoming adversity ===JACK:  Annie's life story is almost as interesting as Helen's.  It is God, as a miracle worker, that brought Annie and Helen together.===RI:  Your insight about God being the miracle worker is a revelation for me.  I had never perceived it that way.  I live about three miles from The Perkins School for the Blind, where both Helen Keller and Annie Sullivan were schooled.===JACK:  ===RI:  Your insight about God being the miracle worker is a revelation for me.  I had never perceived it that way.
I live about three miles from The Perkins School for the Blind, where both Helen Keller and Annie Sullivan were schooled.