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{SFTH} *What's in a Name* 7/19/01
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inspiration into the lives of many! If you are not on the list
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___________________________________________________________
Michael's long awaited book Straight From the Heart: "A Celebration
of Life," is finally here! Close to 200 pages of true short stories filled
with love and laughter await you! Visit our web site to order the
EBook, or to order by credit card! You can also read some sample
stories from the book here!
http://storiesfrommyheart.com/michael_t__powers/
To order your autographed copy at no extra charge, send a check
or money order for $18 ($14.95 for the book and $3.05 for shipping
and handling) made out to Michael T. Powers, to:
Michael T. Powers
1918 Liberty Lane
Janesville, WI 53545
For two books add $4 for shipping and handling and for three books
add $5 for shipping and handling. If you want four or more
autographed copies of our book you only pay $5 for shipping
and handling. We'll pay the extra shipping costs!
Be sure to let us know who you would like it autographed for and
then allow about two weeks for us to sign it and send it on its
way to you.
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WHAT'S IN A NAME?
By Joseph Walker
I wouldn't go so far as to call it an argument. Let's just say that
Anita and I disagreed on the subject -- good-naturedly, of course. And
both of us would have rather eaten road kill than admit that the other
was right.
It had to do with our last-born. Don't get me wrong -- we were both
excited for our fifth child to arrive nearly 10 years ago. We were
thrilled that the baby would be our second son (thanks to the wonders of
modern technology we knew that he was a he before he was born -- although
it felt like unwrapping a Christmas present the day after Thanksgiving).
And we both felt good about the name we had chosen for him.
Except for one letter.
That's where the controversy started. One of us (I won't say who)
seemed to be suffering from the delusion that his name should be spelled
"Jonathon" even though there wasn't one shred of supporting evidence to
make the claim. The other proudly (and yet somehow humbly) cited the
Holy Bible, Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary and "Highway to
Heaven" as examples of why the name should correctly be spelled
"Jonathan."
So what do you think? Who was right? (I know -- easy call. But pretend
it isn't so Anita won't have to feel completely humiliated.)
OK, so maybe we made too big of a deal out of this. Our Jon would have
been our Jon whether his name was Matthew, Mark, Luke or Jonathan -- or
even (shudder!) Jonathon. As Shakespeare's Juliet said, "That which we
call a rose by any other word would smell as sweet."
Still, there's something special for each of us about our name, no
matter what it is or how it happens to be spelled. Take my name, for
example. Since both of my grandfathers were named Joseph, it's no
surprise that my parents named a son Joseph. But it is somewhat
surprising that it took them four sons to finally get around to doing it.
When I finally asked Dad about that, the best explanation he could come
up with was, "We were saving the name for you."
Which is fine except for one thing: none of my three older brothers had
to live with the gnawing suspicion that someday, somewhere, they were
going to have to face our ancestral Josephs and justify what they did
with their name.
Of course, Anita and I inflicted the same curse upon our first son. At
this point, Joe doesn't seem to mind sharing his name with the Old Man.
But he does seem intent upon establishing his own definition of the word,
and making my name his.
Which is just as it should be. Our names are labels that don't mean
anything in and of themselves. They may reflect tradition and heritage,
and they may give us a leg up on life -- or a leg down, as the case may
be. But ultimately they are empty words until we fill them with meaning
by the way we choose to live our lives. Well used, a name can open
doors, establish credibility and become an instant testimonial to an
honorable reputation -- "the immortal part of myself," according, once
again, to Shakespeare.
Poorly used, however, a name can live forever in infamy. How many
Adolphs do you know? Or Judases? Any little Saddams running around your
cul-de-sac? Probably not.
"Who steals my purse steals trash," wrote (who else?) Shakespeare.
"Tis something, nothing; 'twas mine, tis his . . . But he that filches
from me my good name robs me of that which not enriches him, and makes me
poor indeed."
No matter how it's spelled.
Joseph Walker
valuescom@juno.com
Send Joseph an email and let him know what you thought of his story!
*******
Joseph Walker has been writing professionally since 1980, when he left
college to join the staff of a daily metropolitan newspaper. For 10
years -- including six as the paper's TV columnist and critic -- he was
part of the mainstream media, and was painfully aware of the
overwhelming negativity of contemporary journalism. Joe says, "Nobody
was looking for real solutions to the problems society was facing; they
were just looking for someone or something to blame the problems on." So
in 1990 Joe began writing ValueSpeak, a weekly syndicated column that
attempts to look at contemporary issues from the perspective of
traditional values. Joe and his wife, Anita, are parents of five
children, and one grandchild.
You'll love his new book, "How Can you Mend a Broken Spleen!"
Ordering is simple and fast at the following Amazon address:
How To Mend A Broken Spleen
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1573453005/qid=972961681/sr=1-6/straighfromthe0a
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From the Guestbook!
I just wanted to let you know that the quotes you have on this site (Writer's quotes) are great. As I was reading them, it made me decide to continue to strive to be a writer. Thank you for having this site-it is amazing!
Sincerely,
Elaine
shimmerystrz@yahoo.com
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Hello Michael, Kristi & family!
Thank you so much for your inspirational e-mail list! I don't check my e-mail every day, so when I do there's often a mass of great stories waiting for me. Before I even finished the one about the Batman suit, I was doubled over laughing! Keep spreading the message of Christian love and humor!
PS: I know the sights and sounds of northern Wisconsin very well! My family used to vacation at a resort on the shores of the Chippewa Flowage, near Hayward. Man, how I miss those trips! Your photos brought back some great memories of the area I refer to as "God's Country!" Not to mention, I miss the summertime weather up there.
I am a native of St. Louis, but now I live in Cape Girardeau, MO, which is about 100 miles southeast of St. Louis along the Mississippi, near the state's Bootheel region
Mark
po5dude@hotmail.com
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Thank you for your story called "The Diploma." I came across it on a bulletin board at the university I attend. It really touched me, especially because I am a college student, wife, mother, and am employed outside the home. I understand those challenges that sometimes make us ready to give up on school. Thanks again. You made my day!
Sherry Preston
spreston2000@ivillage.com
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Thought For The Day:
"You never saw a fish on the wall with its mouth shut."-- Sally Berger
Verse for the Day:
"The wise in heart accepteth commands, but a chattering fool comes to ruin."
Proverbs 10:8
Kid's Thought For The Day:
"To make a see-saw work, you have to take turns being down."
Parent's Thought For The Day
"The highlight of my childhood was making my brother laugh so hard
that food came out of his nose." --Garrison Keillor
Coach's Thought For The Day
"An advantage to volleyball is that you have a scoreboard to tell how you
have done as a team. The thing is, in life there is no scoreboard, at
least not one that you can see." --John Kessel
Deep Thought For The Day:
"I went to the bookstore and bought a thesaurus for my writer friend.
I thought it was very nice, pleasurable, agreeable, copasetic, and
decent thing to do."
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REQUESTS:
Dear Michael ~~
I need to ask for all the help you can give us. I am now without a job and we
are literally down to our last pennies.
Last night I spent what little money we had left on food for our four children,
(ages 7, 6, 4 and 10 1/2 months). For the last two days all I've eaten is what t they cannot finish on their plates.
Today it was the phone that was disconnected and the power companies are threatening to turn off our lights and gas. It won't be long before the bank
comes and takes our van and then I really don't know what we'll do as my wife
won't even be able to get to work!!
As you can imagine it is creating tremendous stress and tearing our family
apart!! Neither my wife nor I are perfect but we haven't always treated each
other with the love and support we should during these times of trial and stress!
Our family needs help!!
We need healing that will allow us to forgive and move forward, treating each
other with love and respect like Jesus taught us!! The tension in our house is
nearly unbearable and that is no way for our children (or the two grown ups) to
live.
We also need to find a way for the family to move forward from our financial
nightmare that we are buried in!!
Could you post this on SFTH so you and the other readers could please pray
for our family? These are desperate times for our family and I am running out of ideas!!
Thank You Michael, and keep up the good work!! SFTH is one of the few
bright spots in my day!!
Sincerely Yours,
John P. Campbell, Laramie, WY
JPCDiver@aol.com
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_
/_/\/\ MICHAEL T. POWERS
\_\ / THUNDER27@aol.com
/_/ \ "For I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but
\_\/\ \ Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body I live for the Son
\_\/ of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." Galatians 2:20
_________________________________________________________
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graciously share their stories with us!
_________________________________________________________
Video Imagery (Michael's Video Production Business.)
"I thought of you first after my family sat down to watch the video
we gave them. They loved it, to say the least! Within thirty seconds
my mom was crying and my dad did too. They said it was the best
Christmas gift we could have given them!! You did such a beautiful
job! They were so surprised and so touched---they really, really,
really loved it. Thanks for helping to make it so special to us all.
My mom mentioned how the songs were perfect for the video too!
Thanks again!"
Kelli-- College Station, TX
Let me make you a video from your pictures or home movies!
Check out the web page for Michael's video production business!
http://members.aol.com/Videoimg/index.html
AOL Users click here: Video Imagery
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Would you like to see your story in Straight From the Heart?
Writer's guidelines can be found on our Web site here:
http://storiesfrommyheart.com/writer_s_guidelines/
AOL Users click here: Writer's Guidelines
_________________________________________________________
Purchase your copy of Michael T. Powers' new book! For a sneak
preview, visit:
http://www.storiesfrommyheart.com/order_our_book_
AOL Users Click Here: Straight From the Heart: A Celebration of Life
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Do you feel as if life has no meaning for you?
http://www.greatcom.org/english/four.htm
AOL Users click here: The Four Spiritual Laws
_________________________________________________________
Michael's long awaited book Straight From the Heart: "A Celebration of
Life," is finally here! Close to 200 pages of true short stories filled
with love and laughter await you! Visit our web site to order your copy!
You can also read some sample stories from the book here!
http://storiesfrommyheart.com/michael_t__powers/
AOL Users Click Here: Straight From the Heart: A Celebration of Life
To order your autographed copy at no extra charge, send a check or
money order for $18 ($14.95 for the book and $3.05 for shipping and
handling) made out to Michael T. Powers.
To:
Michael T. Powers
1918 Liberty Lane
Janesville, WI 53545
For two books add $4 for shipping and handling and for three books add
$5 for shipping and handling. If you want four or more autographed
copies of our book you only pay $5 for shipping and handling. We'll
pay the extra shipping costs!
Be sure to let us know who you would like it autographed for and
then allow about two weeks for us to sign it and send it on its way
to you.
