Reece Gardner: Being 18 again

I have two questions today:  (1) Have you ever known anyone who was perfect, and (2) Do you wish you were 18 again?

I doubt you have ever known anyone who was perfect, but you probably have known some people who acted as though they were. I have long been convinced that no one on this earth is perfect, and that to expect perfection from ourselves or from others is an invitation to frustrated living. That doesn't mean that there aren't a lot of people who are really very special. Two people in my life who have come closest to being angels on this earth are my mother and my wife. 

Growing up, I watched my mother endure hardships and disappointments but I never heard her complain.  Her Christian faith and her unconditional love and care for her family was always her main emphasis on life. And then I met and married My Emma, and all those blessings continued, and continue to this day. The truth is, folks, all God's children are special and possess traits which are admirable and worthy of praise. 

Now to my second question:  Many of you probably remember hearing George Burns' rendition of "I Wish I was 18 again." I watched him when, at age 95, he sang that song to a huge concert crowd, and his performance was moving and excellent in every way. But I wonder, upon reflection, how many of us would actually want to be 18 again. It does seem, at times, to be a natural tendency to look back on "the good old days," but when we do that we risk losing the wondrousness of TODAY. 

The true joy of life is not in yesterday or tomorrow. The true joy of life is in the journey, one day at a time. For me, to suddenly be 18 again would be to suddenly be alone and to have missed the wonderful years I shared with My Emma. I would suddenly be without my children, or my grandchildren, or my extended family and friends. These are treasures that I have been blessed with over the years and am blessed with today, and I WOULDN'T TRADE THEM FOR THE WORLD! We are all so greatly blessed, as in the words of that beautiful old song, "When I'm worried and I can't sleep, I count my blessings instead of sheep, and I fall asleep counting my blessings." 

Now for a little humor:  Jose and Carlos are panhandlers in different areas of town. Carlos panhandles just as long as Jose, but only collects $2-3 dollars a day. Jose brings home a suitcase full of $10 bills every day, drives a fancy car, lives in a mortgage-free home, and has a lot of money to spend.

One day Carlos says to Jose, "I work just as long and hard as you do, so how is it that you bring home a suitcase full of $10 bills every day, while I bring home only a fraction of that amount?" Jose replies, "Look at your sign. What does it say?" Carlos' sign reads, "I have no work, a wife and six kids to support." 

Jose says, "No wonder you get only $2-3 dollars a day." Carlos says, "Then what does your sign say?" Jose shows Carlos his sign, which reads, "I only need another $10 to move back to Mexico."

Have a truly WONDERFUL day!