Heart Touchers

_______________________

*Father to Son* 1/22/02

_______________________

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

_________________________________________

FATHER TO SON

By Joseph Walker

There are easier knots to tie than the classic
Double Windsor -- especially for 9-year-old fingers
still struggling with the intricacies of the
shoelace double knot.

But when Jon got his first non-clip-on tie recently,
I was determined that he would learn to tie it properly.
And as far as I was concerned, that meant a Double
Windsor. None of this silly Half-Windsor stuff for my
son. No, sir. And no Four-in-Hand beginning knot,
either. Walker men are Double Windsor men -- or they
are nothing at all.

"It's not that hard, Jon," I assured him as I quickly
whipped fabric around my neck in a pattern and
sequence so familiar I could do it in my sleep. "See?
Around this side, then back behind, then around this
side, then around the front and back behind and down
and through. Pull it tight -- and there it is!"

I admired the perfectly straight, perfectly shaped knot
that almost seemed to smile back at me from the mirror
with that cute little dimple that is so fashionable in ties
these days. Then I looked at Jon's tie, hanging around
his neck, over his shoulder, under his armpit, through
his belt loop and out his fly. As knots go, it was
extraordinary -- enough to bring tears to the eyes of
the Great Houdini. But as a knot for tying a tie ...
well, it was no Double Windsor.

Jon smiled at me sheepishly. "I think I need a little
help," he said. That was a little like the captain of the
Titanic saying he had a little ice problem. But I didn't
tell Jon that. I just stepped in behind him, took the
fabric of his tie into my hands and demonstrated the
knot from his perspective.

"Watch," I said. "Around this side, then back behind,
then around this side, then around the front and ... "

Suddenly, I was enveloped by an overwhelming feeling
of deja vu. I had experienced this simple moment of
father-to-son sharing before -- twice in fact. Once 10 or
12 years ago with Jon's older brother, Joe. And once
many years ago, when my father stood behind me
and tried to teach my clumsy hands how to tie the
Double Windsor. It wasn't pretty.

"But Dad," I remember saying, "wouldn't it be easier
to just do this?" I tied a knot that was part Bowline,
part Half-Hitch and mostly Granny.

"Well, that's a fine knot, son," Dad said as he
struggled to loosen my tie from my neck, where it hung
like a lopsided hangman's noose. "But... well, this other
knot is the knot my father taught me, and I think he
learned it from his father. All my brothers use it, and
I've taught it to all your brothers. It's sort of the family
knot -- the tie that binds. So humor me, OK? Learn this
knot. And then, if you want to use your fancy knot
instead, I'll understand."

Then Dad stood behind me and taught me how to tie
the Double Windsor -- just as I was standing behind
Jon and teaching him. Jon picked it up much more
quickly than I did -- just a few weeks later, he's
tying it all by himself (I think I was asking for help
until my wedding day). He may experiment with
other knots through the years. I know I did (and I'm
pretty sure I've seen a Half-Windsor around his big
brother Joe's neck).

But eventually I came back to the family knot, even
though I'm not exactly sure why. It isn't because it's
easier, because it isn't. And the truth be told, it doesn't
even look that much better. It's just something about
that father-to-son thing.

The tie that binds.

Joseph Walker
valuescom@juno.com

Write Joseph and let him know your thoughts on 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:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1573453005/qid=972961681/sr=1-6/straighfromthe0a

AOL Users click here: How To Mend A Broken Spleen

_________________________________________

Reader Feedback!

I love the daily e-mail stories. They have become part of my routine and reading them is now shaping into a habit. I from Mombasa, Kenya in East Africa.
CALEB INDIATSI
cindiatsi@kengen.co.ke

Thank you so much for running the story called "A Buried Treasure." My mom had 2 heart attacks this last week back to back then open heart surgery to replace 3 blocked arteries, thank God no one will be rummaging in her home for a very long time to come, and I know that now I will be visiting her a lot more often because I want to learn her knowledge and goodness while she is here not hear about it after she is gone. Thank you from my heart.
Margaret
Angelplace08@aol.com
_________________________________________

Thought For The Day:

"Home, sweet home -- where each lives for the other, and all live for God."
T. J. Bach

Verse for the Day:

"For none of us lives to himself along and none us dies to himself
alone. If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord.
So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord." Romans 14:7,8

Kid's Thought For The Day:

"Never ask for anything that costs more than five dollars when your
parents are doing taxes."

Parent's Thought For The Day:

"Every word and deed of a parent is a fiber woven into the
character of a child that ultimately determines how that child fits
into the fabric of society." -- David Wilkerson

Coach's Thought For The Day:

"The daily degree of recovery from injury depends a lot on the
fierce desire of the individual to fight to get well."

Writer's Thought For The Day:

"At night, when the objective world has slunk back into its cavern and left dreamers to their own, there come inspirations and capabilities impossible at any less magical and quiet hour. No one knows whether or not he is a writer unless he has tried writing at night."

Deep Thought For The Day:

"Most books now say our sun is a star. Whew, am I glad it still knows how
to change back into a sun in the daytime."

___________________________________________

REQUESTS:

Hi Michael,

I was wondering if you could do me a favor, could you please pray for a
friend of mine? Her name is Renee. A lot of things have been happening in
her life and she is having a hard time dealing with it. She just found out
that her dad might lose his job, her brother might get expelled from school,
and a few other things that God knows about, but her and her family really
need some prayers. I would really appreciate it! Thanks so much!
Love, Brittnia
___________________________________________

_
/_/\/\    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
__________________________________________