Heart Touchers

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*Their Love Shined Through* 11/28/01

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Before we get to today's inspiring story,
we wanted to let everyone know that for Christmas
we will be offering our book, Straight From the Heart
"A Celebration of Life" for only $13 (instead of the
regular price of $14.95), and best of all, we will
pay the shipping! So if you have any interest in
purchasing an autographed copy of the book for
yourself, or as a gift for your loved ones, now is
the time to get it! But if you want them in time for
Christmas, you need to act fast!
IMPORTANT! This is only for those orders that come
directly to us and not the publisher and we can only
accept checks and money orders.
For those who still want to order the book by credit
card, you can still do so through the publisher at:

http://www.booklocker.com/bookpages/michaeltpowers01.html

but you will be paying full price and shipping.

To order your autographed copy send a check or
money order for $13 (We pay the shipping!) for each
book made out to Michael T. Powers, and then send it to:

Michael T. Powers
1918 Liberty Lane
Janesville, WI 53545

Hurry! Time is running out!

To preview the book by reading some of the stories visit:

http://www.HeartTouchers.com/michael_t__powers/

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Straight From the Heart: A Celebration of Life

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Today we have another heart touching story
from Tom Lagana. Be sure to write to him
and let him know your thoughts and then
check out his web site!

From my family to yours,
Michael
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Their Love Shined Through

By Tom Lagana

Even though my parents were married for well over
fifty years, I still felt that they stayed together "for
the sake of the children." In this case, I was the
only child and fifty-ish at that! My parents were both
active and healthy, well into their eighties. At eighty-five
years old, Dad suffered a stroke. While he was
recovering in the hospital, I saw my parents' love
shine through like never before. I watched Dad
reach his hand out for Mom to hold. I noticed as
he firmly pulled her toward him for a kiss on the
lips. In my lifetime I had never witnessed these
outward signs of love by my parents.

Mom, a registered nurse from yesteryear, still had the
magic touch of an "angel of mercy." Within six months,
she had Dad walking with a cane and back to taking
the bus to the Senior Center to play cards and dance!
Of course, Dad didn't play cards or dance quite the
same as before, but he still gave it all he had.

Gradually, Dad's health failed and soon after his
eighty-eighth birthday he was hospitalized. During
the next four months, he spent only a few days at
home, in between visits to the hospital and nursing
homes. The doctors never found out exactly what
the problem was, but we knew. His time here with
us was running out.

Mom would visit Dad faithfully every day, and
sometimes even twice a day. Of course, being
from the old school, she made sure he had the
cleanest laundry and the tastiest treats. While
I was at work, Mom took the bus to the hospital
to see him in the afternoon. She made certain the
doctors, nurses and staff gave him the finest care.
Each day he would reach out to hold Mom's hand
and kiss her lips.

Dad was again admitted to the hospital one month
before their sixtieth wedding anniversary. His health
continued to fail, and we all knew his time with us
would soon be over, even before the doctors told us.
Two days before their wedding anniversary, I took
the rare opportunity to have a private visit with Dad,
on my way home from work. He wasn't conscious,
but he held my hand firmly. We had the best talk
of our lives, although I did all the talking. I reminded
him that his sixtieth wedding anniversary was the
next day, and assured him that it was okay with us
if he wanted to miss this one. I thanked him for
everything he had done for me as my dad. I also
asked him to forgive me for my short comings, as
I forgave him his. The salty tears rolled freely down
my face as I spoke. Finally I said, "I know that we
both did our best, Dad." Then I just sat quietly in
the chair for a few moments, watching him "sleep."
As I prepared to leave, I took his thin, frail hand in
mine and whispered, "I love you, Dad." His
trembling hand responded in acknowledgment.

The next day, Mom and I brought anniversary cards
and flowers to share with Dad. That evening Mom and
I went out for a simple, but special anniversary dinner
with my wife. The three of us sat at a table for four --
the fourth place symbolizing Dad's loving presence.
When Mom and I arrived at the hospital the following
afternoon, Dad's nurse stopped us in the hallway. He
stood quietly in front of the door and reached out his
hand, placing it on my shoulder. There was no need
for words. We knew Dad was gone. Mom held Dad's
hand and gave him one last kiss, as their love shined through.

Tom Lagana
Success@TomLagana.com

Write Tom and let him know what you thought of his story!
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[This story appears on page 45 in the new book, Touched by Angels of Mercy: Small Doses of Genuine Life by Nurses, Patients and Caregivers, Laura Lagana, RN, Xlibris Corporation, 436 Walnut St, 11th Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19106; www.Xlibris.com; 1-888-795-4274; Copyright ©2001.]

Tom Lagana is a professional speaker, author and engineer. With more than thirty years' experience, Tom has worked with corporate clients throughout the world. He is co-author of Chicken Soup for the Prisoner's Soul and Chicken Soup for the Volunteer's Soul, a member of the National Speakers Association and 1994 Delaware recipient of the Jefferson Award for Outstanding Public Service. He can be reached at Success Solutions, P.O. Box 7816, Wilmington, DE 19803; e-mail: Success@TomLagana.com; Web site: http://www.TomLagana.com.

Reprinted by permission of Tom Lagana. Copyright ©1998 Tom Lagana.

"Touched by Angels of Mercy: small doses of genuine life from nurses,
patients and caregivers" Laura Lagana, RN, Author/Editor -- To obtain a
personally autographed copy of this inspirational new book, send a check
for $23, which includes shipping and handling by Media Mail (payable to
Laura Lagana) to P.O. Box 7816, Wilmington, DE 19803. Please include the
recipient's name and shipping address. See Web site: www.LauraLagana.com

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Reader Feedback!

Note from Michael:
I received this email last week and wanted
to share it with all of you. Be sure to read the special
prayer request for Jenny (From the story: "A Different
Kind of Athlete" by Jaye Lewis) after the thoughts for the day...

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Dear Michael,
I have heard so many wonderful things about you and your web site from my Mom Jaye Lewis. I have always loved her writings and I'm glad that she now has opportunities to share her talents and warm heart to so many people. I was honored that she would write about my early years, and I was overwhelmed by the emails that I have received over the last week. They were all filled with love, hope, and the light of the Lord. I want to deeply thank all of the people who wrote and shared their heart and prayers with me and my husband, Tom. We turn to the Lord for strength, peace, and the light of His Love, so no matter how difficult things may seem, we are NEVER alone when we focus on Jesus' devotion and love.
I am trying to answer every letter, and I'm barely halfway through, but I will continue replying one by one. May God continue to bless your life and work...he's sure blessed mine.

Sincerely,
Jenny Lewis-Hamblin
jennyrlh@hotmail.com
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Thought For The Day:

"Our faith should be our steering wheel not our
spare tire." --C.L. Wheeler

Verse for the Day:

"...but the righteous will live by his faith." --Habakkuk 2:4

Parent's Thought For The Day:

"You are worried about seeing him spend his early
years in doing nothing. What! Is it nothing to be
happy? Nothing to skip, play, and run around
all day long? Never in his life will he be so
busy again." --Emile Rousseau

Coach's Thought For The Day:

"Just take the ball and throw it where you want to.
Throw strikes. Home plate don't move." --Satchel Paige."

Deep Thought For The Day:

Sign seen in a veterinarian's office: "All children left
unattended will be given a free kitten."

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REQUESTS:

Dear Michael,

When I wrote "A Different Kind Of Athlete," I had no idea that I would be requesting specific prayers for Jenny, so soon. In fact, I am certain that the prayers that have been said for her, since that article was published, is responsible for the uncovering of a new and life threatening condition.

As I said in my article, Jenny has had many surgeries on her ear, and now she is looking forward to a new one. Jenny has a condition that has been battled for years. It is called cholesteotoma. It is a condition where the reconstructed eardrum begins to grow inward, around the delicate bones of the ear, and can grow rapidly into the brain. Jenny is in desperate need for prayer, as her cholesteotoma has dissolved some of the membrane that separates the ear from the brain; so that her brain is exposed. It sounds horrible, and quite frankly, it is horrible. On Wednesday, November 28, Jenny will be seeing a specialist at the University of Virginia, who will be evaluating her, and surgery is inevitable. The hardest thing for me to face, of course, is that this is a life threatening condition. Our faith is in the Lord, and we all trust in the miracle power of prayer. So, I am requesting prayer from all the prayer warriors at HeartTouchers, for Jenny Lewis-Hamblin; for her doctors, that they may have wisdom and discernment; for Tommy, her husband, for his spiritual and physical strength; and for all of us here, her father, Stephen, her sister, Helen, and for me, her Mommy, who has known for thirty years, just how precious and fleeting her life has been.

The link below will give you more information about cholesteotoma. http://www.earsurgery.org/cholest.html

Thanks again for everyone's prayers.
Thank you in advance, Michael, and thanks to all of HeartTouchers.

In His Name,
Jaye Lewis
jlewis@smyth.net

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For those of you who missed Jaye's wonderful story about her daughter Jenny, you can read the story in our archives at:
http://www.HeartTouchers.com/111201/
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_
/_/\/\    MICHAEL T. POWERS
\_\ /    HeartTouchers@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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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! Visit:

http://www.hearttouchers.com/video_imagery/

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