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*The Boss of Me* 1/11/02 __________________________ If you enjoy this free daily email service, I encourage you to spread the word to family and friends that we may bring inspiration into the lives of many! If you are not on the list and this has been passed along to you, join the thousands of HeartTouchers.com readers around the world by sending an e-mail with the word "Subscribe" in the subject line to: HeartTouchers@aol.com Visit our inspirational web site and read all the past stories in our archives at: http://www.HeartTouchers.com ____________________________________________ Happy New Year from HeartTouchers.com From now on 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! 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 To preview the book by reading some of the stories visit: http://www.HeartTouchers.com/michael_t__powers/ AOL Users Click below: Straight From the Heart: A Celebration of Life _________________________________________ Special Happy Birthday wishes to Megan Stevens who turns 18 tomorrow! We love ya Megan! Next e-mail heading your way on Monday! From my family to yours, Michael _________________________________________ The Boss of Me by Pamela Jenkins "Well, ma'am, we don't have the part in stock. We'll have to order it. Take about a week..." I couldn't believe what the mechanic was telling me. I would have to give up my pickup for a week? But I need that pickup. I drive myself to work. I load the back with groceries, feed sacks and bales of hay. I pull a livestock trailer behind. I pick up the kids from school and take the dog to the vet. How could I live without my means of transportation for a week? The mechanic listened to my wails and seemed to understand. "I can give you the use of a loaner till we get your truck fixed. We don't have many right now, but I think there's one that will hold your family." That's how I came to be standing in the dealer's parking lot, keys in hand, looking over a little gold car. Not bad looking, I thought to myself. It resembled one that my grandmother used to drive. I could almost imagine her short frame sitting in the driver's seat. My children opened doors and started getting into the little car. As I put the key in the ignition, I warned them, "We have to keep this car clean, kids. It isn't ours, we're only borrowing it for a little while. Make sure your feet aren't muddy and..." It was then that a rich, baritone voice said, "Please fasten your seat belts." Instantly, the car filled with silence. The back seat looked like a tree full of young hoot owls as my children sat wide-eyed with surprise. "Hey, did this car just talk to us?" "It sounds like James Bond!" "Does it say anything else?" We found out that, indeed, the velvety deep voice that sounded like Sean Connery had quite a bit to say. Much to the kids' amusement, it also reminded me when I'd forgotten my key in the ignition, left the windows rolled down or failed to turn off the lights. On the drive home we realized that the car didn't have much speed. About 45 mph was its limit. Anything faster than that caused it to shudder violently. This didn't make much difference in town, but on the highway driving home we were passed by faster vehicles. The occasional honk from other motorists was a bit embarrassing. Still, it got me where I wanted to go. By midweek, our family was beginning to wear tight-lipped grimaces instead of smiles when car talked to us. Whispers of "blabbermouth!" could be heard from the back seat when the car tattled on someone who opened a door before the engine died. That weekend, I decided that I couldn't take much more of that irritating, fishwife nagging. Over supper that evening, I complained to my spouse about my troubles during the week. "All he does is criticize! On and on and on! I forget to buckle up, or leave a turn signal blinking an instant too long! And forget about driving very fast..." Spouse looked at me with a puzzled expression. "Who complains about your driving?" "Sean Connery! Who else?" Near the end of the second week my nerves were frazzled. I dreaded the drive to work. As I putt-putted down the highway, cars passed and honked. I slumped lower in the seat and pulled my head down into my coat collar in embarrassment. As I peered over the dashboard, I felt like my own Grandma. When I could take no more of the harping, I called the mechanic. I was going to return the loaner because, Agent 007 or not, there's only so much a person can stand. "Good news, ma'am. Your part came in this morning. We should have your truck ready about three o'clock today." Feeling much better, I told myself that I could stand driving the little car for a few more hours. This time I made it all the way to work before that deep soothing voice told me that I had unbuckled too quickly before turning off the engine. I pointed a finger at the dashboard and admonished, "Hey, you're not the boss of me!" Finally, three o'clock arrived. I parked the car in the dealer's lot and walked to the office. There I handed over the key and wrote a check for the amount on the bill. It was a bit more than I had expected. Driving past the little gold car on my way out of the parking lot, I turned and gave it one last look. Maybe it was a trick of the sun shining on a headlight, but it almost looked like it winked. Then and there, I decided that I would have paid twice that much to have my pickup repaired. You can't put a price on peace and quiet. Pamela Jenkins ramblinrabbit@juno.com E-mail Pamela and let her know your thoughts on her story! _________________________ Pamela Jenkins lives on a small farm in Oklahoma with Stanley, her veterinarian husband of twenty-one years, and their four children. She is the office manager for her husband's veterinary clinic. Pamela enjoys reading, crocheting and raising Satin rabbits. _________________________________________ Reader Feedback! Dear Michael, I have just completed reading Straight From The Heart. Marilyn McDermett gave me the book. Wonderfully, it was signed, with comments, by the author. Marilyn lived with our family in Korea in the 60s. She endeared herself to us during the two years she worked with the school we had started. During that time I had developed the habit of gathering with the family on Friday nights and reading stories to the children. Some of the material was borrowed. Most of it, however, was written by me about the farm where I grew up. The children and other family members were characters in this fiction. Each year I would bind two copies, an original and a carbon copy. All told there are eight volumes of Tanyard Hollow Tales. I gave Marilyn a set. The other I have in my office. This is why Marilyn referred to me as a storyteller. I am really impressed with what you have written. You have chosen to write about the most important things in life. My desire has been for God to use me in whatever way He sees fit and then take me to be with Him eternally. He seems to be using you for His purpose in a capacity that is well suited and very fitting to meet the needs of others. I pray that you will be richly blessed in this service. Thanks, Bill Richardson _________________________________________ Thought For The Day: "Those who try to do something and fail are infinitely better than those who try nothing and succeed." Verse for the Day: "Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do, and does not do it, to him it is sin." --James 4:17 Kid's Thought For The Day: "Never trust a dog to watch your food." Parent's Thought For The Day: ABRAHAM LINCOLN'S MOTHER : "Again with the stovepipe hat? Can't you just wear a baseball cap like the other kids?" Coach's Thought For The Day: "If you lose self-control everything will fall. You cannot function physically or mentally or in any other way unless your emotions are under control." Writer's Thought For The Day: "A good novel tells us the truth about its hero, but a bad novel tells us the truth about its author." --Groucho Marx Deep Thought For The Day: "Tonight's forecast: dark. Continuing dark throughout the night and turning to widely scattered light in the morning." ___________________________________________ _ /_/\/\ 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 ___________________________________________ The copyrights to the stories that appear in HeartTouchers.com are owned by the authors and are used with their permission. We refuse to run stories without the author's permission and contact info listed after the story. We also refuse to publish stories listed as "author unknown." (All of which violates Copyright Law and the rights of the authors.) This e-mail may be forwarded in its entirety, but please do not cut and paste the stories to be used elsewhere unless you have contacted and been given permission by the individual writer. Thank you so much for honoring the rights of those writers who 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! Visit: http://www.hearttouchers.com/video_imagery/ AOL Users click here: Video Imagery ___________________________________________ Would you like to see your story in HeartTouchers.com? Writer's guidelines can be found on our Web site here: http://www.HeartTouchers.com/guidelines/ AOL Users click here: Writer's Guidelines ___________________________________________ SUBSCRIBE: "I need a daily source of inspiration and encouragement in my life!" To become a HeartTouchers.com Member send an e-mail with "Subscribe" in the subject line to: HeartTouchers@AOL.COM Then get ready to laugh, cry, and be deeply touched by some of the best stories on the Internet! __________________________________________ UNSUBSCRIBE: All you have to do is send an e-mail with the word "Unsubscribe" in the subject line to: HeartTouchers@aol.com Give it a day or two to be processed... __________________________________________ 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 __________________________________________ |
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Touching Lives - One E-mail at a Time! Author Michael T. Powers - HeartTouchers @ aol.com
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