1-The Free Lunch

1-THE FREE LUNCH

A Greek Emperor desired to have for himself all the knowledge of the world so he could be truly the greatest emperor of all time. He called his council of scholars together and told them he wanted them to assemble all the knowledge of the world and put it into a form that he could grasp quickly. It took them ten hard working years to accomplish that task but at last they reported it finished and called the Emperor with great ceremony into a large room in which they had assembled 500 volumes of knowledge, the greatest collection of wisdom ever assembled into one place. "Very impressive," said the Emperor, "But I will not live long enough to read all of these. Condense it, and hurry." Five years passed and the scholars reported again with 10 concise volumes. By this time the Emperor was so busy he scarcely had time to look at the outside covers. "Still too much," he shouted impatiently, "Condense!" A year passed and the spokesman for the group came forward with a single volume but was only given an audience of three minutes to explain because the Emperor's time was now so precious. "My patience is about exhausted," he said, "and I am getting old. You must give it to me in a from I can grasp quickly." Thirty days later the spokesman came forth with all the world's knowledge summarized into one sentence. The sentence was. . . "NON ES PRAEDIUM LIBERUM" which translated rather loosely means:

THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A FREE LUNCH. 2-MOWING THE LAWN

There was once a young man who walked home everyday from school past a house most kids tried to avoid. In this house live a lady from a foreign country and was known to be very mean. She lived on a corner lot and she would often scold children for cutting through here lawn to get home quicker. One day this young man was especially late in coming home from school. When he came to this lady's house he decided he would chance cutting across her lawn. Looking around he could see no one. So off he ran across her lawn. As he rounded the corner of her house he ran right into this lady. Scared to death he awaited the scolding of this lady. She said, "I know who you are. I'll tell you what I want you to do. I want you to come here next Tuesday and mow my lawn. I will pay you what you think it is worth. Don't tell me you won't. I see you in town just fooling around on Tuesday's so I know that you don't have anything else better to do. So, will I see you on Tuesday?" The frightened young man, willing to say or do anything to escape, agreed. Next Tuesday rolled around and the young man had thought several times about the lady's unusual request. He began to realize that just maybe he had not been scolded at all. Maybe this could be a good opportunity for him. He never had enough money for candy and the other necessities of life. The more he thought about it the more he wanted to do what the lady requested. He finally made up his mind to go over and mow the lady's lawn and he would ask for a quarter. That would take care of his needs for a whole week at least. He went over to the lady's house and rang the bell. The lady answered the door as if she was expecting him and reaffirmed her offer to pay him what he thought his efforts were worth with, of course, her approval of his work. He got out the lawn mower, mowed the lawn, and then returned and rang the bell. He asked for his quarter. She came out, looked around, and agreed to his price. She then went on to say that it was an adequate job, but few people could do a $5 job and no one could do a $10 job. She asked him to return the next Tuesday to do the job again to which he agreed. Satisfied the young man skipped off to the candy store. The next Tuesday rolled around with a repeat of the previous performance and the previous reward. The lady repeated her offer and that few could do a $5 job and no one could do a $10 job. As the young man became accustom to his work and reward he began to grow dissatisfied. He wanted more and realized that if he did a better job for the lady he may earn more money. He decided to try trimming her lawn and perhaps do some sweeping. Then he could ask for 75¢. One Tuesday he tried it and found that the lady was willing to pay him the 75¢. He continued with this wealthy arrangement for some time. He was quite proud of his business arrangement and other kids began to envy him. But as he continued in his endeavors, the statement made every time by the lady about few could do a $5 job and no one could do a $10 job began to haunt him. What does she mean by that? What is a $5 job or a $10 job? Why does she keep saying that? He found himself obsessed with the statement. Is it possible that he could do the $5 job? What could he do to do a $5 job. As he thought, he slowly, bit by bit, began to get ideas of other things he could do to make his work even more excellent. He, in his bare feet, could feel worm mounds in the lawn that were unsightly and uncomfortable to his feed. She could not feel them wearing her shoes. He remembered that here hedges, well, they weren't perfect, and he could trim them to utter perfection. He began looking for work and things that could be improved around her yard. The flower beds could be weeded and raked, the lawn could be mowed in a more excellent way, and the lawn trimming, in the past, was sloppily done at best. He decided that he was going to do the $5 job. But it would take more time so he told the lady that he would be by Saturday instead of Tuesday so that he could devote the entire day to it. As he made his plans the $5 job began to eat at him and eat at him. In his quest for excellence there was something wrong, very wrong. It was just not enough! There was only one thing that was good enough for him--the $10 job! Nothing else would satisfy him now. He had to be the best and do the best. Excellence had become an obsession with him. It was all or nothing. Any effort except that to be the best was a waste of time. He could not tolerate substandard work or thought any longer. He began to make elaborate plans for Saturday. The next Saturday he got up early, earlier than he did for school or anything else. He was driven. He gathered his tools and went to the lady's house and was underway by the time the sun rose. He began by mowing the lawn this way 3 times and then mowing the lawn that way three times. He put together this old drum and filled it with rocks to give it weight and began the laborious task of rolling out the worm mounds in the lawn. He found that as he got tired, he could lie down and take a short 2-3 minute nap. These periodic naps allowed him to continue working indefinitely throughout the day. After the worm mounds were completely gone, he remowed the lawn in a multiple fashion as before. He then embarked on lawn trimming, first with the crude clippers and then with his mother's scissors. He continued until not a blade of grass was out of place. He launched into the hedges carefully clipping a little at a time until not a single leaf was out of place. He would stand back and look at the hedges until not a single line irritated his perfection lust. He dug out every single weed in the flower beds and yard not satisfied until the roots and all were entirely gone. He raked the surfaces smooth not stopping until every particle of soil was in military formation. He had to carefully walk around the yard three times with a piercing scrutinizing eye, correcting every single possible flaw. Finally, everything seemed in perfect shape. Not a single item was out of place. So he strode up to the door, rang the bell and the lady came to the door. She asked, "How much do you think your work is worth." This was the same question she always asked. Boldly he said with piercing confidence, "I want $10!" The lady appeared greatly surprised and immediately walked out into the yard a began an intense inspection. All this time the young man was grinning confidently not willing to accept a dime less than the $10. When the lady returned the young man was prepared to argue for his $10. He knew what his work was worth, yet he had given no thought to the value of the $10. He had thought only of the job. The job was more important than the reward. Then the lady said something a bit strange. "It must have been a wonderful feeling when you knew that you could do a $10 job!" Excellence is the only endeavor worth your time! Don't waste your time with just enough to get by.

3-THE BOAT

There was once a small 2-story ferry boat that was traveling down a river in the middle of a big city in full view of cars and people on the shores and crossing a nearby bridge. In the midst of this activity a small girl fell off the upper story of the boat into the river. People on the shore and bridge began to sound the alarm. “Someone help the poor little girl!” was the cry heard from the crowds beginning to gather. A man on the boat immediately went over the side and began to swim toward the little girl struggling in the cold water. As the man grabbed the girl and began to swim to shore, cheers came from the crowd as sirens converged on the shore. News reporters gathered as the man came out of the water with the cold scared little girl. The paramedics immediately grabbed the girl and took her off to care for her. The man was surrounded by newspaper, radio and TV reporters clamoring for comments. “You are a hero, Mr.! Do you have anything you would like to say to our audiences throughout the city?” The man paused, cleared his throat and said, “As a matter of fact, I do have something I would like to say. I want to know who it was who pushed me off that boat!” Sometimes we have to be pushed to do something great. Consider yourself pushed! Do something great! It all starts here and now, in school! 4-THE MOUNTAIN LION

There was once a young man who loved to hunt deer in Idaho. One Christmas, he was given a new deer hunting rifle. He loved his rifle but he had to wait until deer hunting season before he could really put it to the test. In the mean time he thought he would take the opportunity to practice with his new rifle. He set out targets at 200 feet. He wanted to be able to hit a deer dead on at 200 feet so that is where he placed his targets. He became so good that he could hit a 2-inch bull's eye at 200 feet. Summer and deer season came and he gathered his gear and set out to try out his new rifle. He took all the necessary safety precautions. As he was hiking towards the top of a nearby mountain he came to a meadow. On the other side of the meadow he saw some bushes move. He raised his rifle but refrained from firing until he was sure of his target. He did not want to shoot another hunter. When he saw what jumped out of the bushes, he was sorry he waited. Out of the bushes leaped the largest mountain lion he had ever seen. The mountain lion was about 150 feet away and immediately spotted the young hunter. He began running towards the hunter. The young hunter was not too alarmed seeing how he had practiced shooting at distances much farther than that and was sure he could shoot and kill the mountain lion easily. He raised his rifle casually and slowly fired. . . and missed! What? How could this be? It must have been a fluke, a chance in a million that he missed. The mountain lion continued to run towards the hunter and was 100 feet away. The hunter fired and missed again. . . 75 feet. . . fired and missed again. . . 50 feet. . .fired and missed. . . 25 feet. . .fired and missed! The mountain lion then took a mighty leap right over the hunter and the hunter covered up as the lion disappeared into the forest. The bewildered young man slowly walked back to camp and sat in his tent perplexed as to why he had missed. Then it dawned on him why. He had practiced only at long range, at 200 feet. He needed to practice at shorter distances as well, 100 feet, 50 feet, and 25 feet. He grabbed a bunch of targets and set out to practice some short range shooting. As he walked down the mountain path he came to a bend in the trail that curved around a large rock. When he walked around to the other side of the rock there was this big mountain lion. You know what he was doing? He was practicing his short leaps. We need both long range and short-range goals. Long-range goals give us vision and direction. Short-range goals keep us moving.

5-THE WALK HOME

There was once a young man who sometimes came home late from school. His mother had made it a point that he would be in grave trouble if he arrived home late one more time. One day he found himself fooling around and would not be able to return home from school on time. He remembered his mother's words and began devising a way to avoid his mother's wrath. On the way home from school he walked around this large pasture where this large mean bull lived. He figured that the only way he was going to make it home on time was to cut through this pasture. He looked all around and saw no bull, so he hopped over the fence and began walking through the pasture. After a few minutes he heard a sound behind him. He turned around and there was this bull staring at him. He took a few steps and the bull took a few steps. He took a few more steps and the bull took a few more steps. He then took off running as fast as he could with the bull closing in fast. Few people would understand the exhilarating feeling that comes from bull's breath on your heels. He looked up and saw a tree up ahead with a branch sticking out way up high. There was no way he could ever jump up and reach that branch but it didn't take him long to realize that it was his only chance. With the bull almost upon him, he closed his eyes and took the mightiest leap he could, but he missed the branch entirely. It was okay, though, because he hit it on the way down. When you are motivated, you will be surprised at what you can accomplish.

6-THE FROG POND

There was once a pond of frogs located right next to another pond where a hungry alligator lived. Every once in a while, a frog would mistakenly jump into the wrong pond and be gobbled up by the alligator. In order to guard against this the frogs organized an army and had periodic war games. One day the general frog told the sergeant frog that there was going to be a new recruit. This new recruit needed training, special training. "Give this new recruit a little extra help during the war games," barked the general. The war games consisted of all the soldier frogs lining up between the two ponds in single file facing the sergeant frog. As they stepped forward, the sergeant frog would yell, "Jump!" The soldier frog would then practice jumping into the correct pond which was on the sergeant's right and the soldier's left. As the war games commenced the sergeant frog was trying to figure out a way to give the new recruit, at the end of the line, the special training he needed. He barked out, "Jump!" to each veteran frog as he approached the sergeant. As the last soldier, the new recruit, approached the sergeant, he got a brilliant idea of what to do. As the new recruit approached him he yelled, "Jump right!" The new soldier jumped to his own right, right into the pond with the alligator and was promptly eaten. It isn't enough just to do what you are told. You need to know what is going on so that you don't make critical mistakes.

7-THE CRUISE There was once a lady who was very poor. She lived a meager existence with her humble family. One day she received word that she had won an all expense paid vacation aboard a luxury liner. She could not believe her good fortune. She knew that she would not have any money for the food and other luxuries that would probably cost extra. But that was okay. Just going on the cruise would be an experience of a lifetime. She carefully prepared all the meals she would need and stored them in small brown paper bags and packed them, along with her other needs, in her humble luggage. The great day came and she boarded the most magnificent boat she had ever seen. As the boat pulled out she unpacked her things in her beautiful little cabin. She wandered the deck soaking up all the wonderful things that were on board. She peered into the dining hall and saw all the wonderful food. It took her breath away to see table after table laden with the most delicious looking food she could ever imagine. But she would return to her cabin and pull out her brown paper bags and eat her meager meals. When the wonderful vacation ended, she went to disembark. As she did so, she found the captain of the ship shaking hands and saying farewell to each of the guests before they walked down the gang plank. When she came to the captain, the captain gave her a strange look. "I don't believe I recognize you. Were you on our cruise the entire time?" The woman answered that she was to which the captain replied, "But I did not see you at any of our meals." The lady went on to explain that she was poor and had no money for such extravagant meals. To this the captain sadly said, "But there was no extra charge. The meals were included with your ticket!" Education is a feast not to be missed. Eat it. . . eat all of it. If you don't, you will be sorry! 9-ABRAHAM LINCOLN

This is a summary of the life of Abraham Lincoln, one of the greatest presidents we've had.

Lost job 1832 Defeated for legislature 1832 Failed in business 1833. Elected to legislature 1834. Sweetheart died 1835. Had nervous breakdown 1836. Defeated for Speaker 1838. Defeated for nomination for Congress 1843. Elected to Congress 1846. Lost renomination 1848. Rejected for land officer 1849. Defeated for Senate 1854. Defeated for nomination for Vice-President 1856. Again defeated for Senate 1858. Elected President 1860.

If you fail a few times, so what! Welcome to the club. The successful person doesn't let a little thing like failure stop him or her. 10-THE CARAVAN

There was once a caravan crossing a dry dessert. The caravan was loaded with rich treasures and goods to be traded in the eastern markets. However, on this particular trip, there was a problem. It seems that they were either lost or the oasis they had hoped to find to obtain water was gone. They became desperate for water. As they were contemplating their fate they saw a dark speck in the distance. The speck grew larger and larger until they recognized it as an old man with a shabby donkey. They politely asked the old man if he knew where they might find water. The old man replied that he did. The caravan leader said that if he would help his caravan obtain water that he could have any two things he could find in the caravan. The old man agreed and led them to a small but adequate spring that was quite hidden from view to passersby. As the caravan drank and refreshed themselves, the old man was allowed to go through the caravan's cargo in search of the items that would strike his fancy. Soon a shriek of "Eureka!" was heard indicating that the old man had come to the end of his search. The caravan leader approached being curious of what the old man might have selected. He was willing and grateful to give the old man any two things that he wanted. As he approached, the old man was standing near a camel with a large load. He asked the old man what it was that he wanted. The old man carefully raised the corner of the blanket that covered the camel upon which the load rested. Under the corner of the blanket were two small seeds that had inadvertently attached themselves to the camel's blanket. The old man said, "I want these two seeds." The bewildered caravan leader asked if that was all he wanted. Surely he could have more. But the old man was more than content with just the seeds. The puzzled caravan leader gathered his caravan together and continued their journey successfully. Many years later, the caravan leader was in the same area and heard of an old man living on a large plantation nearby. He wondered if this was the same old man that had saved his caravan many years earlier. He located the plantation that was watered by the same spring that had saved his men. To his surprise the same old man came out of his large mansion on his expansive plantation to greet him. The caravan leader was invited to stay as a guest and was shown the wealth of the man's possessions. He asked the old man how he had gained so much wealth. The old man replied that when he saw the seeds on the camel's blanket, he recognized them as seeds of a rare and valuable fruit. He took the seeds and began planting them near the spring. His venture flourished until he became one of the wealthiest men in the area. The caravan leader was truly amazed. Could such wealth come from something deemed so worthless at one time by his caravan? Truly he had chosen the most valuable two items in the whole caravan. Don't make the mistake of treating valuable things as worthless or worthless things as valuable. The two most valuable things to you now are the twins, school and hard work!

12-Magic Mountain

Someone recently said that taking drugs is 100 times more exciting than sex. There's a place not too far from Lindsay called Yokol Valley. My family and I sometimes drive through this valley on the way to the Sierras. On this road are some small but steep hills. Some people slow down for these hills. Not us, we speed up. It gives my kids, and myself, a thrill to go fast over these hills. A couple of years ago I took a couple of my kids and their friends to Magic Mountain. I had never been there before. As soon as we got there my kids split with their friends and left me standing there alone. I thought I would wander around and see the sights. I stumbled across Batman the Ride. I had heard about it and thought I would give it a try. The line was long and as I waited in line I heard the kids talk about how the best seat was in front. I thought that I would probably make it a point not to sit in the front seats. Let the kids have these "best seats". As I finally approached the ride the lady employee there was trying to fill up the seats. There was a seat in front available. She yelled, "Seat in front!" I stood back waiting for a stampede from the kids behind me. Nothing happened. The lady looked at me and said, "You! up front!" I was about to explain to her my philosophy that I thought that the kids should ride in front because they liked it and I was too old and. . . . She just yelled at me, "YOU! UP FRONT!" So I took the seat in the front. All I remember, besides seeing my life flash before my eyes, was looking down at my feet and seeing the sky. When I disembarked, my legs were literally wobbling back and forth. I don't think I was walking a straight line down the ramp. I had to lean on the railing for a few minutes to try to regain strength in my knees. Even so, I had a happy thought because I knew that I would never need to go on that stupid ride again the rest of my life. And I would not need to go on any other stupid ride the rest of my life. I could tell my kids I tried it and it was over! I could die a happy man. I finally regained strength in my legs and went and found my son and his friend. I decided to hang out with them. My son wanted to go on Cyclone, the roller coaster. This was a unique opportunity for him because, since it was Halloween, it was the only day of the year that Cyclone was running BACKWARDS! As I waited in line with my son, his friend decided that he was not going to go on the ride. This was an exhibition of wisdom beyond his years. My son didn't want to go on it alone so he talked me into going on it with him. The last ride must have affected my sanity because I agreed. As we got on the ride and road to the top of the first hill, we went up so high that in the distance I think I could see people planting rice. As we reached the top, my sanity returned and realized that we were in trouble. I looked at my son as we were about to go of the cliff BACKWARDS and I said, "I think we made a mistake!" All my son could do was nod as we fell backwards into oblivion. I must admit that along with scaring the daylights out of me, it was quite a thrill. We went from one ride to another as I found myself adjusting to excitement. At the end of the day we had only one more experience left. . . Viper, the grand daddy of them all. My son's friend declined the ride as my son and I got on and climbed to the top. Again, I thought I could see people planting rice in the distance. Even after a day of it, I looked at my son again and said, "I think we made a mistake!" As he nodded we went through the series of loops and cork screws and ended up back on the planet. We were jazzed. All the way home we couldn't stop talking about the great fun we had. I guess we could have gotten 100 times that thrill if we had jumped off of Half Dome in Yosemite without a parachute. The air rushing by and the scenery zipping past would give us 100 times the excitement of Bat Man the Ride or Cyclone backwards or Viper. But it would be a one time deal. Even if we survived it would cause us great damage. Even a single mistake can effect the rest of your life (what's left of it). The moderate thrills of Yokol Valley or Magic Mountain may not be as thrilling as jumping off of Half Dome but we will not be damaged and can go back 100 times. I thought about turning around in Yokol Valley and going over the hills a couple of times. We can go to Magic Mountain 100 times and still have the opportunity to go back another 100 times. So the idea that drugs are 100 times more exciting than sex doesn't mean anything. Stay with the moderate thrills. They are much, much better and won't kill you or cause you damage. Doing well on a test may not be as exciting, but it will last longer and do you a world of good.

13-SOARING LIKE EAGLES

There was once two rather lazy chickens that just laid around all day talking about doing great and wonderful things. One day they grew weary of this and decided to do something instead of just talking about it. They read about this kit that would enable them to fly like eagles. How wonderful this would be to sail across the sky high above the ground. Finally, they decided to send away for this kit. When the kit arrived, they took it to the top of a high cliff. They carefully read the instructions and strapped the artificial wings onto theirs and made preparations for a test flight off the cliff. When the time came, they mustered all the courage they could and took a bold leap off of the cliff. Down they fell as they struggled to remember the instructions in the kit. As they began to move the wings as instructed something magic began to happen. THEY BEGAN TO SOAR LIKE EAGLES! What a marvelous experience it was. All day long they soared high above the clouds. They felt like angels looking down on a more lowly existence on the surface. The views were spectacular, beyond their wildest dreams. Never had they experienced such greatness. When evening came they landed and then walked home. Once you have experienced greatness through an education and soared like eagles, how can you just walk home. . . . how can you just walk ever again. Don't go back to flipping hamburgers for a living again and don't be like dumb chickens!

14-THE IMPENETRABLE PRISON

Karl G. Maeser was, at one time, president of Brigham Young University and was very much concerned about the future of his students. He knew that one of the most important aspects of the success of his students' careers was the principle of integrity. He wanted to instill within them this vital principle and how important integrity was to him. He gave this analogy. "If you place me in a room with walls ever so thick and every so high and ever so deep into the ground, I would find a way to escape. But if I am standing on flat ground and you draw a circle around my feet with chalk and have me give my word that I will not step outside of the circle, I can never escape." All success is based on integrity. No business, industry, or institution can operate efficiently for very long without it. No student will be prepared for any successful career without it. It is much more helpful than any grade that you will get. 15-DEFINITION OF GENIUS

Said Paderewski: "Before I was a genius, I was a drudge." Said Flaubert: "Genius, in the phrase of Buffon, is only long patience. Work." Said Michelangelo: "If people knew how hard I work to get my mastery it wouldn't seem so wonderful after all." Said Carlyle: "Genius is the capacity for taking infinite pains." Said Alexander Hamilton: "All of the genius I have is merely the fruit of labor." Said Anonymous: "Some people said they would give half their life to play the violin like I do. I did." Perhaps you can be a genius, too. It's your decision.

16-Albert Einstein

There was once a young man attending an American university that was trying to get his doctorate in science. This was a prestigious university with supposedly high standards. Part of receiving a doctorate degree, besides 4 years of class room study, required that the doctoral candidate perform original research and write a dissertation on that research. The student would then have to present his dissertation to a dissertation board followed by questions from the board. This grueling oral ordeal would be the final hurdle in obtaining a doctorate degree. This particular young man had spent 4 years of classroom study as well as research for his dissertation. He had written his dissertation and had assembled his dissertation board. After his presentation he was asked to leave the room while the board conversed on whether or not the student had performed to the level of the high standards of the university. When the young man was asked to return to the room he was told that he had not passed. His work was insufficient for the high standards of the university. He would have to start over again from scratch. Four years of work was down the drain. Fortunately for the young man Albert Einstein was on campus at the time. He heard about the rejection of the young man's dissertation and went to the dissertation board and asked if he could take a look at the dissertation. Shortly after, he asked if he could reconvene the dissertation board. Albert Einstein had attained sufficient fame and respect that no one was going to deny his request. Einstein the proceeded to present the young man's dissertation pointing out the significance of what the young man had achieved. This was always Einstein's greatest talent, recognizing the significance of things. After Einstein's presentation, the board called the young man to come back in and granted him his doctoral degree. The student went on to a very successful career. Even educated people can make great mistakes if they fail to develop the ability to see the real significance of things. Knowledge without wisdom is like a glass of water without the glass. Wisdom is what gives knowledge its shape and form.

17-The Master Swordsman There was once a young prince that lived on the island kingdom of Shigoto in Japan. One day a feudal shogun warlord marched into the palace and killed his queen mother on her throne right in front of him. He escaped and he swore in his wrath that someday he would avenge his mother's death. He sought out the greatest master swordsman instructor or sensei and went to his house. He knocked on the door and the sensei came to the door. He said that he wanted to become a master swordsman. The sensei just slammed the door. He knocked again and repeated his request and the sensei slammed the door again. The third time the sensei said that he had just lost a student and he was in no mood to lose another and then slammed the door. The prince sat on the doorstep and waited for the sensei to come out. When the sensei came out to do his usual business in town, the prince followed him and at every turn he repeated his determined request that he wanted to be a master swordsman. By the time evening came, the sensei found the prince still on his doorstep and he finally said, "If you want to be a master swordsman then be here tomorrow morning at 4 am ready to go into the forest and live." The prince gathered his meager belongings in a cloth, tied the bundle to the end of a stick, put the stick over his shoulder and was on the doorstep of the sensei at 4am. At the appointed time, the sensei appeared and without even looking at the prince began walking toward the forest. The prince followed. All day they walked through the forest. Just before dark they came to a small cottage on a steep slope with a small stream at the bottom of the slope. The sensei entered the cottage, unpacked his belongings, rolled out his bed and went to sleep. The tired prince followed the actions of the sensei. The next morning the prince was excited. He asked the sensei when they could get started in learning to become a master swordsman. He could hardly wait to get his hands on a sword and learn how to wield it. Instead the sensei said that there was a pile of wood out in back that needed to be chopped and the prince was to do it. The prince was slightly irritated at this delay but kept thinking of his mother and avenging her death. He went out in back and began chopping wood. It was harder than he thought. It took all day to chop the wood and at the end of the day his hands were worn raw, had blisters and ached. His numb mind led him to roll out his bed and soon he was asleep next to the sensei. The next day he awoke fully expecting to begin his training as master swordsman. Instead, the sensei said that there was wood to cut behind the cottage. The prince was more than irritated this time. A strong dislike for the sensei was developing and his patience was wearing thin. His muscles were sore but he went out began to chop wood to work out is anger and irritation. Day after day the sensei sent him to the same routine of chopping wood. The anger of the prince grew and grew but he noticed something else. He found himself getting stronger. His blisters grew into calluses. He became less sore and less tired every day. Even though he liked these changes, his displeasure with the sensei grew and grew. "When would he begin his training as a master swordsman?" he thought. He found that each day the sensei had increased the amount of wood he was to chop. One day the sensei spoke and said that his duties were about to change. At first, the prince was elated. Finally he would be learning how to be a master swordsman. But he was disappointed. The sensei said that in addition to chopping his wood, which would be doubled, he was to go down to the stream 3 times a day to fetch water. He was to carry two large urns, each hanging from the end of stick or yoke that he was to carry across his shoulders. The prince realized that going down the hill with empty urns would be easy. Coming up the hill with full urns would be harder. His first few attempts at carrying the water up the hill ended in him falling backward down toward the stream. Soon, however, he was able to successfully carry the water up the hill in addition to chopping twice as much wood as before. He was somewhat astounded at what he could accomplish. Even so, he was beginning to lose all patience with the sensei. One day, as he was struggling to carry the water up the hill, he felt a sharp blow across his back which sent him rolling down the hill and water flying everywhere. When he was able to regain his balance, he looked up the hill. There was the sensei with a large stick in his hand. It was the final blow. The prince lost all patience and plotted his course of action. That night while the sensei lay asleep, the prince gathered his belongings into the cloth, tied the cloth to a stick and set out in the moonlight back to town. As he started out, all he could think about was his anger and disappointment with the sensei. But as he proceeded, thoughts of his mother crept in and grew. Soon, all he could think about was his mother and avenging her death. He finally decided that even though he hated the sensei, he hated the warlord more. His trot slowed, he turned around, and returned to the cottage. He unpacked his things, laid down next to the sensei, who didn't stir, and went to sleep. Weeks passed and the surprise attacks from the sensei grew more frequent. He began to avoid walking by possible hiding places. His ears became sensitive to sounds of the sensei creeping through the forest. He became more agile on his feet. One day, the sensei unleashed a surprise attack and the prince completely dodged the blow. The stick struck empty earth. The prince was surprised and the sensei looked at him in dismay and quickly disappeared into the forest. Weeks passed by. The prince now was carrying water up the hill 6 times a day and chopping what seemed a forest of wood. He could chop from any angle. Sometimes he would use one hand letting the other rest and then switching hands. The heavy axe was light in his hands and the water and the hill were less of a burden. But the sensei got worse. One day the sensei jumped out in front of him and he had two sticks. At first the prince thought he was to get twice the beating. But the sensei gave the prince one of the sticks and then proceeded to beat the young prince. The prince carried this stick with him all the time. Whenever he suspect the presence of the sensei he drew his stick. When attacked he tried unsuccessfully to defend himself and strike the sensei with it. At first his blows were wild and full of hate. He soon learned that wild blows were useless. One day, as he approached the cottage, he could sense that the sensei was just inside waiting to attack him. He heard nothing. He saw nothing. But somehow he knew. He finally dismissed the feeling wondering how he could possibly know of something he could not see or could not hear. As he entered, the sensei began to beat him soundly saying, "You knew that I was in here. Why did you come in!?" The angered prince began to trust his judgment more. He began to hear things that made no sound and see things that were not visible. He could feel the presence of everything around him. Even though he could often predict the attacks of the sensei, he was a failure at countering them. He began to notice that every time the sensei was about to lunge at him, he made a small twisting gesture of his hand. This enabled him to predict his attacks and from time to time he was able to completely dodge the blows of the sensei. He had the sensei's technique down. Just when he thought he could avoid nearly every blow, the twisting gestures stopped. It seemed that all the progress he had made went down the drain. It was like starting over again. Months passed and the prince seemed to make little progress in his own eyes. But, in reality, he was becoming light on his feet, keenly awake and aware, and gaining skill at stickmanship. One day while engaging the sensei in stick to stick combat, the prince landed a hard and decisive blow to the shoulder of the sensei. The blow shocked him and the sensei. He had never landed a blow before. It felt kind of good. The sensei looked at him in shock and declared, "I knew you could do it! I knew you could do it!" He ran up to the prince and put his arms around him and hugged him. Meanwhile, the prince, in the heat of the moment, dropped his stick. The sensei then proceeded to soundly beat the prince saying, "You never drop your stick!" Months passed and finally one morning the sensei stood before the prince in the cottage with a long beautiful Japanese sword in his hands. He held it out to the prince and said, "Now you are ready to become a master swordsman!" And the prince went on to become one of the greatest master swordsmen of Japan. In your academic quests perhaps you can identify with the thoughts and feelings of the young prince. Perhaps you can become a master swordsman some day.

18-The Flying Wallenda's

The year is 1962. I remember seeing something on a TV news bulletin that I will never forget. Since 1928 Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus had billed the Wallenda Family as the greatest high wire act in the world. And indeed they were. It was in 1947 when they first performed the greatest feat in the history of high wire walking. It was called the seven-man pyramid. Let me explain what the seven-man pyramid involved. The bottom layer consisted of 4 people, the middle layer 2 people, and the top layer 1 person. Each pair on the bottom layer were connected with a pole hooked onto their shoulders. Each of the two middle layer people would climb up onto the pole connecting the bottom layer pair. The two middle layer people would then connect themselves with a similar pole hooked over their shoulders. The top layer person would then climb over the others and balance himself on this upper pole. It was extremely dangerous. Not only must you balance yourself on the high wire, but you must balance yourself in synchronization with the balance of every other person in the pyramid. If one person is slightly off, it could destroy the balance of everyone else. It was an extremely unstable situation. In order to enhance the greatness of the feat, the Wallendas dared the feat without the benefit of a net. On this night in 1962, the crowds gathered to witness a repeat of the greatest high wire feat in history. As the top person was struggling to reach the top of the pyramid and gain balance, there was a wobble that echoed through the whole pyramid and the seven-man pyramid collapsed. Two of the Great Wallendas fell to their death and a third was paralyzed for life. The next year another Wallenda fell to his death and in 1972 another fell to his death. Later, one of the greatest Wallenda's, Karl Wallenda, was attempting to walk a high wire stretched between two hotels in San Juan when the wind caused the wire to sway. He fell 123 feet to the pavement below to his death. You would think that the Wallenda's would learn from their mistakes. I guess that if I would have been there in 1962 I would have paid the same amount of money and been just as awestruck if they had attempted their feat with the benefit of a net. In fact, I think I would have enjoyed it more. Perhaps some were there that night that were secretly hoping for a disaster, a spectacular memory. Such people were greatly rewarded. Dare devil stunts may have some validation in a circus but are very risking in real life. Your life is like a high wire 7-man pyramid. It is best performed with safety nets. The best safety net you can have is an education, especially an understanding of math and science. Even if you fall, your education will catch you and provide you with another opportunity another day. Without any safety nets, your career may end up on a news bulletin, notorious as a disaster.

19-Pointillism In 1884 the famous artist Seraut painted using an unusual technique. He would paint small perfectly round dots on the canvas. If you got close you could see the perfectly round dots all lined up in perfect rows and columns with various shades of color. When looking at these paintings close, all you can see are a bunch of dots of slightly different color all lined up in perfect rows and columns. It doesn't seem to make much sense. But if you stand back and look at the painting as a whole, a beautiful picture of people relaxing in a park in a small town composed of the combination of all this small dots of color appears. The technique became known as "pointillism". Many other artists, such as the French impressionist Monet, used similar techniques where up close the paintings look like random strokes of color but when viewed standing back reveal a beautiful work of art. When studying on a daily and weekly basis, sometimes all you can see are the small dots or random strokes of color of learning. It is sometimes tedious and doesn't seem to make any sense. It doesn't seem to have any value in your career plans or future. But if you will take a few minutes to stand back, enlarge your vision, and see how knowledge and education all fit together, you will see a beautiful picture of your future that will make a lot of sense and have great value to you. 20-Diogenous

There was once a Greek philosopher named Diogenous. He was very popular and many people sought to be his students. Due to his popularity he could be selective in who he would accept as students. He would take any academic candidates down to the sea, or river or pond and promptly hold their head under the water. At the appropriate time he would release his hold only to have his potential student arise gasping for air. He would then say that when he or she wanted to gain knowledge as badly as they wanted air when he held them under the water, then come and see him. Your thirst for knowledge must be as great as your craving for air and food. If it isn't, some one whose craving is that great will eat your lunch!

21-THE GRADE

There was once a teacher that boasted that he had the best student in the school. Other faculty members became sick and tired of hearing the teacher`s bragging. They decided to ask the teacher, since he thought he was so good, what he did to have such a great student. The teacher replied, "Maybe you can have a great student, too." "How?" they asked. "Bring me the grades and records of your worst student," he asked. So they brought him the grades of a student that was getting a "D" in one of their classes. "Give the student an `A` and see what happens," he suggested. They did as he suggested and watched carefully from a distance what the reaction of the student was. The student shrieked with delight and ran out of the class room. "Watch what this student does in the next few weeks," the haughty professor suggested again, which they did. This student came to class late, failed to hand in homework on time if at all. She had thought that she had the world by the tail. And finally failed the next test evident of little to no time spent in studying. The other teachers were not impressed. "Why did you tell us to do a stupid thing like that?", they asked. "I will show you," he replied. He then told them to watch what happened when he gave his star student an "F". They all huddled around in the corner watching the reaction of the great student who got the "F". To their surprise. The student had almost no reaction. She gave it such a quick glance that they thought she did not even notice the grade. The haughty teacher sensed something wrong and asked the other teachers what was amiss. They replied that the student probably didn't even see the grade. "Go and ask her," he suggested. So they went and asked her if she had seen the grade she had been given. "Of course," she replied nonchalantly. And she went back to her studies. "We don't understand!" said the other teachers. "She doesn't seem to care at all about her grade!" "Exactly!" said the haughty teacher. "She doesn't care about her grade. She cares only about learning! When your "D" student cares more about learning than she does her grade, then her grade will begin to improve dramatically!"

22-The Disease

An elderly man went to his doctor to get a checkup. When the results of the checkup were in the doctor grimmly called the man back into his office. "I have two bad news' for you," said the doctor. "Oh no!" said the man. "First, you have diabetes." "Oh no! I've got diabetes? This is terrible," said the man. "What is the other bad news?" "Well, you have Alzheimer's disease," admitted the doctor. "Oh no! This is terrible. I've got Alzheimer's disease?" reacted the man. "Well, at least I don't have diabetes!"

Sometimes we have to forget about what ails us and just go on!

23-The Flag

Gorbachov, the communist Russian leader before the fall of communism, was visiting President Reagan and was his guest in the White House. Gorbachov got up one morning feeling on top of the world. "I feel so great this morning," said Gorbachov to President Reagan. "Why is that?" asked the President. "I had such a wonderful dream last night." "What was your dream?" asked Reagan. "I dreamt that I saw the White House," related Gorbachov. "And out in front of the White House was a tall flag pole." "Go on," said the president. "And on top of the flag pole was this big red flag with a hammer and sickle on it. It made me feel so good!" beamed Gorbachov. "Well, that's funny," said President Reagan. "I also had a dream last night." "Oh, what was your dream about, president?" "In my dream I saw the Kremlin," said President Reagan. "Really?" said Gorbachov. "I also saw a tall flag pole out in front with a large flag at the top," explained Reagan. "What was on the flag? What was on the Flag?" asked Gorbachov. Reagan replied, "I don't really know. It was all in Chinese!"

Sometimes it is hard to tell who your enemies really are. Even though it seems otherwise school is not one of them!

24-THOMAS EDISON

Thomas Edison was a great inventor and invented many of the things we use every day. One of the things that Thomas Edison invented was the electric light bulb. This invention, however, caused him a lot of grief. He knew that when electricity went through some materials with high resistance, the energy of the electrons would be transformed into heat energy that would cause the material to glow. It was necessary for this to take place in a vacuum. Therefore, Thomas Edison made a glass bulb and evacuated the air out of it and placed the high resistance material, coiled up, inside the bulb connected by two wires. However, nearly every material he used gave off magnificent light but only for a few seconds. The material would melt or burn up and the light producing capabilities would disappear. He was determined to keep trying. He knew of the value of such an invention and he would not give up until he was successful. He tried thousands of materials until he stumbled across a substance the germans called wolfram which turned out to be element 74 in the periodic table. We call it tungsten. This material would glow and give off light for a long period of time without burning up or melting. He had invented the modern day light bulb. The secret to success isn't how many times you try or how hard you work. The secret is that you never give up until you succeed. The difference between a successful person and a failure is that a successful people get up one more time than they fall. 25-Publishing

Many years ago I thought that I would try my hand at publishing a scientific paper. I had done some research and thought I would see what I could do. I had no colleagues to assist me so I did the best I could alone. As I sent my paper in to the Journal of Food Science I felt proud of my work and my research results and expected the journal to spread my new found wisdom to others in the industry. A few weeks later, the paper was returned with scathing critiques from others in the industry and told me that my paper was rejected for publication. I felt sick as I read the negative comments and suggestions. I figured that it was over. I could not publish and I was a failure as a researcher. Fortunately, my job did not depend on me being a successful researcher or published scientist. Shortly thereafter I received a large brown envelope from this same publisher. I don't know if they did it on purpose or by accident, but they sent me a paper written by someone else for me to critique. I was angry. If I wasn't good enough to have a paper published by them, then what made them think I was good enough to critique someone else's paper? I even thought about writing a scathing critique just to get even. But I knew that this author was not to blame for the rejection I received and I decided to just go ahead and do the critique honestly and the best I could do. As I read the paper and began detecting flaws, I began to realize that the flaws I was seeing were the same flaws I had in my own paper. As this publisher sent me more papers to review I realized that the errors I was seeing in others were the same as my own. I could not see the flaws in my own work but I could see them clearly in others'. I began to see the error of my ways and began making adjustments and corrections to my own work and began again to send papers in for publishing. I began to see a dramatic increase in my success. At this time I have a dozen publications in a variety of scientific journals, periodicals, and books as well as a book that is used widely in the citrus processing industry. Albert Einstein worked for many years in the Swiss patent office reviewing patents which sharpened his thinking skills tremendously. Two heads are better than one. That is why accountants and lawyers work in pairs or groups. Working with others in the class can help sharpen your skills and give you clearer vision as to what you need to improve on. 26-Permanent Mistakes

A very good job was offered recently with about 500 applicants responding. The screening committee had quite a task in trying to whittle this number down to something that was manageable. They began by eliminating about 100 people right off the bat. They then went through an extensive screening of qualifications and brought the number down to about 50 of the most qualified applicants. They still could not interview this many so they eliminated about a third who did not have the proper driver's license that would be needed in the job. They then did a drug screen on the rest and eliminated another third. They interviewed the rest and made their selection. Some students think that a little drug use now will not hurt them. Think again. One third of the 50 most qualified from an applicant pool of 500 lost a great opportunity because they had taken drugs. I had a lab supervisor that worked for me once. I have known a lot of scientists and lab technicians and students. But no one I have ever seen, met, or heard of was a better lab technician than this lab supervisor of mine. He could do things in the laboratory that I have never seen before or since. He was the best there was. But he was an alcoholic and heroin addict. The company had put him through rehabilitation twice with no permanent success. I even went to court once, at the request of his lawyer, to testify on his behalf concerning one of several DUI arrests. I said that I would tell the truth. In court his lawyer did not call me to the witness stand, fearing what I might say. Instead he pointed me out to the judge and said that the defendant's employer is in court and prepared to testify to his great worth at the company. I didn't get a chance to clarify that opinion. We eventually fired him. Years passed and this old employee of mine came back for a visit. I think he wanted his job back. Even though he was working at odd jobs, he was not in his element. He was not doing what he did best. He claimed he had joined alcoholic's anonymous and was a presenter for several drug programs in assisting others to get off of alcohol and drugs. His whole life seemed to have changed. If what he said was true, then we did the right thing in firing him because it was the only thing that could wake him up. Even so, trust was lost and we would never again be able to rehire him. Some mistakes are permanent. Don't make permanent mistakes!

27-Fried Chicken

There was once two friends that were walking down the street in casual conversation. The one friend said to the other, "I heard that you got drunk last night and got into a fight. Why did you do that?" The other answered, "Fried Chicken!" Perplexed the friend said, "I also heard that you divorced your wife. Why did you do that?" The wayward friend replied, "Fried Chicken!" The persistent friend further asked, "I heard that you got a ticket for speeding, running a stop sign, reckless driving, and that you tried to outrun a police car. Why did you do all of these things?" The delinquent friend repeated, "Fried Chicken!" The confused friend finally asked, "Why do you keep answering 'Fried Chicken' whenever I ask you why you do the things that you do?" The former answered, "Because when it comes to excuses, one excuse is as good as another!" What are your 'Fried Chicken' excuses for not doing what you need to do to be successful in class?

28-The Big Lie A number of years ago lived, in England, a man named Donald Crowhurst. He enjoyed sailing and decided to organize a boat race around the world. He planned to enter the race himself and win it. The rules of the race were very simple. All boats in the race had to be powered by wind with no engines. Boats had to sail around the world without landing on any land. Boats would maintain constant radio contact with the headquarters of the race in England. Donald had a trimaran, a boat with 3 pontoons covered by a deck. He was lazy and his preparations were less than adequate. His boat had defects and his provisions were not complete. He basked in the glory of the race without putting forth the proper effort to carry the race out. The great day of the race came and all set out in this adventurous undertaking. Soon all the boats were separated from each other and skimming south across the ocean headed for the Cape of Good Hope on the southern tip of Africa. Donald Crowhurst, however, almost immediately encountered problems. His poorly constructed sails were not giving him the speed he had hoped for. Parts of his boat began to fall apart. While others in the race were radioing in there position going around the cape and entering the Indian Ocean, Donald was forced to land off the coast of South America for extensive repairs, a clear violation of the rules. He realized that he could not compete with the others so he conjured up a big lie. He radioed his position as entering the Indian Ocean ahead of the others. He began keeping two logs; one indicating where he was, one indicating where he wanted to be. He decided he would just hang out until some of the others would come around South America and then he would sprint back up to England and claim victory. The problem with lying is that lies tend to grow. One lie leads to another and the people most affected are the liars themselves. He faked distant transmissions that gave the appearance that he was literally sailing around the world. Donald set off from South America and got caught in the doldrums, a latitude known for little wind. As the leaders began rounding the tip of South America, Donald found himself in trouble. Trapped in thought about how to handle his big lie he began to delve into other philosophical exercises. His rationalization lead to contemplating such things as Einstein's theory of relativity. He would disrobe and stand naked on his deck peering in the distance in a trance about the meaning of life and the origin of the universe. Weeks of solitude and deceptions lead to a crazed mental state becoming more oblivious to the fact that even in his deception his progress was too slow to beat the leading contender. He may have made it. He may have won the race and accomplished his nefarious designs had his mind remained intact. Instead, he took his chronometer and compass, and walked off the deck of his small craft. His trimaran was found floating alone on the sea with both sets of log books and full evidence of his deception. When you plot your career, make it a winning plan. You should prepare well and not merely bask in the glory of the final victory. Shortcuts will only land you in the doldrums of life and will rob you of final victory. Your plan should be based on honesty, integrity, and hard work. There is nothing as sad as a lie that is believed only by the liar. 29-Radium Pierre and Marie Curie were a husband-wife research team that, at one time, embarked on a venturous project. They obtained about 2,000 lbs of uranium ore and began to remove uranium from it. As they did so, they found that what was left was more radioactive than the original ore. This could only mean one thing. There was another substance in the ore that was more radioactive than the uranium. As they remove the uranium and nonradioactive material, they found several pounds of a new element that they called Polonium after Poland, the home country of Marie Curie. As they removed the Polonium, however, they found that the radioactivity increased even more. This meant that there was yet another substance even more radioactive than the Polonium in the ore. After a lot of hard work and sifting through the ore, the couple obtained a small sample that fit in the palm of their hand of another new element. This material was so radioactive that it glowed in the dark. They called it radium because it radiated in the dark. In order to find the value of education, you must sift through a ton of classes and sometimes tedious and mundane activities and work. You can't just go straight to your goal. As you weed out this and that, and if you stick with it until the end, you will find the handful of rich treasure that education brings, a treasure of such value that it will glow in the dark. Even during your darkest days that may follow, your education will still glow. Education is something that no one can take from you, not even the IRS. 30-The Advice The president of Bethlehem Steel, the largest steel producer in the world, was once talking with a consultant. He complained of how he just did not have time to do the things that needed to get done. The consultant said that he had a method that would help him. The president asked how much this advice would cost and how long would it take to describe and implement it. The consultant said that it would just take a few minutes and that it he could try it out and pay him whatever he thought it was worth. The president could not turn down such an offer and agreed. This is what the consultant told the president to do. Make a "TO DO" list every day listing the most important tasks each day in order of importance. Begin at the top and do each task in order. Never skip to the bottom. You may find that you can do just the first few items on your list. If you do not get to the rest, ignore them. Start over again the next day. The president tried out the advice. The consultant soon received a check for $25,000. The consultant used what is called the Parotti principle. This principle states that if we perform the top 20% of our "TO DO" list, we can accomplish 80% of what we need to get done. Most people will spend a considerable amount of time doing the unimportant things just because they are easy to do. This is a waste of time. Spend your time on the important things. The unimportant things aren't worth doing, anyway. Don't waste your time and energy worrying about the unimportant things. Concentrate on the important things in life.

31-The Farmer There was once a farmer and his wife who bought a large and beautiful farm to live on. The farmer got up his first morning and looked out over his unplowed fields and was overwhelmed at the task at hand. He returned to his house and told his wife that he was overwhelmed at the task that laid before him and that he would get to it tomorrow, as he sat down to a large and scrumptious breakfast. The next day the farmer went out and looked over his unplowed fields and, again, was overwhelmed with the task at hand. Again, he returned to his small farmhouse and told his wife that he was overwhelmed at the task at hand and would get to it tomorrow, as he sat down to another glorious breakfast. The third day the farmer went out and looked over his unplowed fields and, again for the third time, was overwhelmed at the task at hand and returned to his house to tell he wife how overwhelming the task was and that he would get to it tomorrow. As he sat down to breakfast he found the table empty with no breakfast in sight. He asked his wife where his breakfast was. She said, "I'll get to it tomorrow!" Procrastination is the grand daddy of all time wasters. It is much much much easier and faster to do a job once than to not do it 100 times. Likewise, completing a class once is much easier and less time consuming than not finishing the class several times.

32-The Jar There was once a college professor who brought a large jar to class. He placed it on a desk in front of his students. He asked the students if the empty jar was full. They replied that obviously the jar was not full. The professor then filled the jar with rocks to the top. He then asked if the jar was full. The clever students saw that perhaps more could be placed between the rocks and answered that the jar was no yet full. The professor then poured small-sized gravel into the jar filling the spaces between the rocks. "Is the jar full now?" asked the teacher. "Well. . . perhaps not?" replied the class. The professor poured sand into the jar filling all the crevices. "How about now?" asked the instructor. "We think so...." replied the class. The professor then poured water into the jar clear to the top and finally asked, "Is the jar full now?" "No, it is not!" replied the enlightened class because the class finally realized that you could dissolve more material in the water; you still had spaces between the molecules; you still had spaces between the electrons and nuclei of the atoms. There are two things you can learn from the jar. No matter how much activity you have in your life you can still fit more in. However, you can't just cram it in any old way. The professor could not have placed so much in the jar if he had started with the water, then the sand, then the gravel, and then the rocks. He had to place them in the jar in the correct order. So must you do in your life. You must place things in your life in the correct order, in their proper place, in their proper time. Young people just out of high school have a much easier time going to college than parents who have to take care of a career and/or family. Place things in your life in the proper order and you will be surprised at how much you can accomplish!

33-Wisdom There was once a politician who took great pride in his accomplishments and influence. Unfortunately, as is often the case, his wife, who knew the man better than most, was less favorable about his achievements. They entered into a discussion on the subject that became quite heated. Finally, in an effort to convince his wife of his great potential and worthiness for the office he held he said, "I have wisdom coming out of my ears!" To this his wife simply replied, "I wish some wisdom would come out of your mouth!" It is not enough to possess wisdom. If it isn't coming out of your mouth and used to help other people, it isn't doing anyone any good. Use what you learn!

34-The Piranhas There was once a missionary in Brazil who lived in a camp near the Parana River. On days when the temperature reached 120 degrees, he was tempted to swim in the waters, but was leery because of the man-eating fish. His neighbors assured him, though that only while swimming in schools do piranhas bite people, which they never did in that part of the river. So each afternoon for the rest of the summer, he enjoyed cooling off in the river. Months later, he heard reports that a local fisherman had fallen out of his boat and had not been found. Alarmed, the missionary asked his neighbors if perhaps the man had been eaten by piranhas. "On, no," came the reply. "Only while swimming in schools do piranhas bite people, and they never swim in schools around here." "But why not around here?" the missionary asked. "Oh," his neighbor casually replied, "they never swim in schools where there are alligators." (Readers Digest July 1996 p. 48) Students sometimes worry about the wrong things. They worry about the piranhas that nip at them every day when they should worry about the alligators that will devour them out in the real world. Remember, real piranhas don't swim in schools or in college classes. The little problems you have now are really little. The real problems are the alligators. They will gorge on the uneducated and the unprepared which will be you if you give up now!

35-The Barracuda There was once a barracuda that was captured and placed in a large tank. Whenever a mackerel was tossed into the tank the barracuda would snatch it and gobble it up. Then the tank keeper placed a clear plexiglass barrier in the tank that divided the tank in two. He then tossed a mackerel in the other side of the tank where the barracuda was not. The hungry barracuda dashed toward the mackerel only to smash into the clear plexiglass barrier. After shaking his dazed head, the barracuda tried again with a similar smashing resulting. After a while the barracuda wisely decided that getting that mackerel was too painful and he ceased in his attempts to gobble it up. Then the tank keeper removed the plexiglass barrier and threw another mackerel into the tank and left the fish all night alone in the tank. In the morning he found that the barracuda had not attacked the mackerel. He had bashed his head one too many times. Some people, when they get hurt enough, give up trying. Even though this is understandable, it is silly when you think about it. Just because you fail a few times does not mean that you will always fail. Sometimes we just have to keep trying until the tank keeper removes those things that stand in our way. Don't end up like a silly hungry barracuda swimming around in a tank full of food being too big of a sore-head to eat success!

36-The Wish

There was once man who found a strange looking bottle. It looked like a bottle that might contain a genie. He rubbed it to see what would happen. Whoossshhh! Out came a large genie. The genie said, "I've been trapped in that bottle for 10,000 years. It feels so good to get out. Because you freed me I will grant you one wish, anything you want, but only one wish." The man thought for a moment and then said, "Well. . . I've never been to Hawaii. Could you make a road from California to Hawaii so that I can drive there?" The genie shrieked, "Are you crazy. Do you know how deep the ocean is and how far it is from California to Hawaii!!! I can't do it. I won't do it. Wish for something else!" The man thought, "Okay. . . I've been having trouble in school. Could you help me understand chemistry?" The genie replied, "Do you want 2 lanes or 4?" It takes more than a wish to get through chemistry. You need to study. Even a genie can't help you. You got to help yourself!

37-The Laser

When I attended San Diego State University I was required to perform original research as part the requirements to obtain a master's degree in chemistry. I would have to write what is called a Master's Thesis about my research including having successful and meaningful results. I would also have to present my thesis to a board of 3 members of the faculty and have them approve my oral and written presentation. My research advisor was in the process of moving his laser laboratory from the top floor of the chemistry building to the top floor of the physics building. I had the dubious opportunity to assist him in the effort. We dismantled his complex laser set up piece by piece, along with the large amount of materials and supplies that he had amassed over the years. I was to reorganize his new lab, clean everything and begin reconstructing his laser setup so that we could begin research where he left off before the move. It took us about a year and a half to do this. With each new piece of his laser set up he would take time to explain to me the principle involved. Things were going too slow. I had learned a lot but I still hadn't begun any experiments. Time was running out. I was living off of the GI Bill which I had earned by serving in the military and it was running out. Soon I would have no more money. I had a wife and 2 children to support. I had taken all the required courses and had written my thesis all except the results of my experiment. It seemed that 6 years of education depended on completing this last and final step and I had to do on time. It was now or never. The day finally came when the entire set up was together and we could begin the experiment. We tried for several days to get it to work but it would not. Every time we fired the laser we could not see what we were looking for. We were attempting to use a special technique that would enable us to photograph a light pulse, going the speed of light, in mid flight and use this pulse to probe the energy levels of certain molecules. My advisor had published papers on this pulse and had pictures of successful attempts from previous attempts in the old lab. After several days of frustration, he just threw up his hands and told me it was my master's thesis and research project and for me just find out what is wrong and fix it! I was devastated. How could I, who have never seen the experiment work find that which experienced researchers could not find? I spend several days taking apart the whole setup. We had spent days aligning the optics to be just right. It took it all apart and redid it all myself again piece by piece. I tried everything I could think of. Nothing worked. In desperation I just left the lab and began walking around campus thoroughly discouraged and wondering how I was going to salvage my entire education and find employment, without a master's degree, to support my family. There seemed to be no way out. I was doomed to failure. Then I realized something. Nothing is achieved in life without a positive attitude. I knew that the only way I was going to make it was to have a positive attitude and not give up. I decided to go back to the lab and try one more time, and keep trying until I was successful. I went back to the lab and I began looking around, thinking, wondering. I noticed a small square piece of Polaroid HN-22 polarizer film. My advisor had told me that this was very expensive and not to waste it. We could use it but not to waste it. I decided that now was the time to use it, wasting it or not. I cut out two small circles and inserted into a crucial part of our experiment. I charged up the laser and fired it. THERE WAS THE PULSE! It was plain as day. Then it hit me. The experiment hadn't worked because the old polarizer film we had used had had so many laser pulsed fired through it that it was literally fried. The new film allowed the experiment to work. It was late afternoon. I was so excited that I decided that I would not leave that lab until my experiment was done. I began setting up and spent all night running my experiment. I ran into a few problems but I eventually solved them all. When the sun came up the next morning I turned off the laser. I had my data. My advisor came in and I showed him my florescent traces generated by the laser pulse and all of my data. He was amazed. He said these were better results than he had ever gotten before. "Of course, the polarizers!" he would say. I quickly finished my thesis and went before the 3 professors for the presentation of my work. They asked questions and I answered. I should some of the new things I was able to prove from my results. They asked me to step outside for a few minutes while they discussed my presentation. It was only a few minutes until they invited me back in. "Congratulations," they said. "You have earned your master's degree!" It seems to me that nothing great happens until great failure is imminent. Great things always require a positive attitude and perseverance. There is a saying, "Many there are, bleached bones on the sands of great battle fields of those who on the dawn of a great victory leaned on their sword to rest." Don't rest on your swords when you are just about to have a great victory. If you do, you may end up a mass of bleached bones. The difference between success and failure is often just a walk across campus and a decision to stay with it to the end. A U.S. Navy Admiral was attending a Naval conference that included admirals from the U.S., English, Canadian, Australian and French Navies.

At a cocktail reception, he found himself standing with a group of half dozen or so officers that included personnel from most of the countries.

Everyone was chatting away in English as they sipped their drinks but a French admiral suddenly complained that, whereas Europeans learn many languages, Americans learn only English. He then asked: "Why is it that we always have to speak English in these conferences rather than speaking French?"

Without hesitating, the American Admiral replied: "Maybe it's because the Brits, Canadians, Aussies and Americans arranged it so you wouldn't have to speak German."

Suddenly the group became very quiet.

Be careful who you point your finger to. Four more are pointing back towards you.

39 A U.S. Navy Admiral was attending a Naval conference that included admirals from the U.S., English, Canadian, Australian and French Navies.

There was once a man who had two sons. They were alike to him and he loved them very much. When they grew older, they both got jobs at this one particular company that sold fur coats. However, one son was given a mediocre job and the other son was made vice president. The father could not understand why he two essentially identical sons would get such different positions. One day, in anger, he stomped into the CEO’s office and demanded to know why his two sons were not placed in similar positions. The CEO said, “I will show you why.” He first called in the son with the mediocre job. He told him to go down to the docks. There is a new shipment of furs coming in and he wanted to know how many furs there were and what the prices were. The son left on his errand. The CEO and the father had to wait just 20 minutes for the son to return to the office. He had telephoned the dock office and presented the CEO with a list of the furs and their prices. The father was proud of his son’s prompt response. Then the CEO called in the second son. He told him the exact same thing. When the son left the CEO invited the father to lunch. He said, “This will take a while.” They took a long lunch. A couple of hours later the second son came back into the office of the CEO. The CEO asked what he had for him. This is what the second son said: “Before going down to the dock I contacted our marketing department and reviewed the sales projections for the next 6 months. I found that Mink and Sabels were selling better than other furs. With a projected upturn in the economy I figured sales would be even better. Applying data from the past 5 years I was able to predict about how many of the furs we could sell. Then I went down to our warehouse and found out home many we had on hand and how many of the other furs we had on hand. I then went down to the dock and found out what furs they had on board. They did not have many Minks or Sabels so I contacted the salesman for the company oversees and asked him what he could supply us in the future. Having studied our projected costs and profit margins we spent some time talking about price and availability. After much discussion, he agreed to a substantial second shipment consigned to us specifically at a price competitive with other suppliers. I quickly asked to put the Minks and Sabels on the ship at the dock on reserve for us and told the shipping clerk that we probably would not be interested in the other furs. I have drawn up an order for those furs on the ship and the agreement with the supplier along with costs and projected profits and all you have to do is sign these two documents to make it all happen.” The father saw why his two sons were not placed in similar positions. The first son did not even do what he was told to do. He did not go down to the docks but just phoned. Which type of person do you want to be? The one that makes things happen or the one that always tries to cut corners?

38-The Donkey

A Man and his son were once going with their Donkey to market. As they were walking along by its side a countryman passed them and said: "You fools, what is a Donkey for but to ride upon?"

So the Man put the Boy on the Donkey and they went on their way. But soon they passed a group of men, one of whom said: "See that lazy youngster, he lets his father walk while he rides."

So the Man ordered his Boy to get off, and got on himself. But they hadn't gone far when they passed two women, one of whom said to the other: "Shame on that lazy lout to let his poor little son trudge along."

Well, the Man didn't know what to do, but at last he took his Boy up before him on the Donkey. By this time they had come to the town, and the passers-by began to jeer and point at them. The Man stopped and asked what they were scoffing at. The men said: "Aren't you ashamed of yourself for overloading that poor donkey of yours and your hulking son?" The Man and Boy got off and tried to think what to do. They thought and they thought, till at last they cut down a pole, tied the donkey's feet to it, and raised the pole and the donkey to their shoulders. They went along amid the laughter of all who met them till they came to Market Bridge, when the Donkey, getting one of his feet loose, kicked out and caused the Boy to drop his end of the pole. In the struggle the Donkey fell over the bridge, and his fore-feet being tied together he was drowned.

“That will teach you, “ said an old man who had followed them:

“Please all, and you will please none.”

39- The Pointing Finger

A U.S. Navy Admiral was attending a Naval conference that included admirals from the U.S., English, Canadian, Australian and French Navies.

40-The Two Sons

There was once a man who had two sons. They were alike to him and he loved them very much. When they grew older, they both got jobs at this one particular company that sold fur coats. However, one son was given a mediocre job and the other son was made vice president. The father could not understand why he two essentially identical sons would get such different positions. One day, in anger, he stomped into the CEO’s office and demanded to know why his two sons were not placed in similar positions. The CEO said, “I will show you why.” He first called in the son with the mediocre job. He told him to go down to the docks. There is a new shipment of furs coming in and he wanted to know how many furs there were and what the prices were. The son left on his errand. The CEO and the father had to wait just 20 minutes for the son to return to the office. He had telephoned the dock office and presented the CEO with a list of the furs and their prices. The father was proud of his son’s prompt response. Then the CEO called in the second son. He told him the exact same thing. When the son left the CEO invited the father to lunch. He said, “This will take a while.” They took a long lunch. A couple of hours later the second son came back into the office of the CEO. The CEO asked what he had for him. This is what the second son said: “Before going down to the dock I contacted our marketing department and reviewed the sales projections for the next 6 months. I found that Mink and Sabels were selling better than other furs. With a projected upturn in the economy I figured sales would be even better. Applying data from the past 5 years I was able to predict about how many of the furs we could sell. Then I went down to our warehouse and found out home many we had on hand and how many of the other furs we had on hand. I then went down to the dock and found out what furs they had on board. They did not have many Minks or Sabels so I contacted the salesman for the company oversees and asked him what he could supply us in the future. Having studied our projected costs and profit margins we spent some time talking about price and availability. After much discussion, he agreed to a substantial second shipment consigned to us specifically at a price competitive with other suppliers. I quickly asked to put the Minks and Sabels on the ship at the dock on reserve for us and told the shipping clerk that we probably would not be interested in the other furs. I have drawn up an order for those furs on the ship and the agreement with the supplier along with costs and projected profits and all you have to do is sign these two documents to make it all happen.” The father saw why his two sons were not placed in similar positions. The first son did not even do what he was told to do. He did not go down to the docks but just phoned. Which type of person do you want to be? The one that makes things happen or the one that always tries to cut corners? 41-Football and Talent

When I was in high school I played football for Granger High School. What I lacked in talent I made up for in courage and determination. By my senior year I was starting as the strong side linebacker for the defense. One of the schools we played was Granite High School. They had playing for them their star running back, Golden Richards. He could get the ball on the far side of the backfield and run across the field and around my end before I could take three steps and cut him off. He was fast. He made me look like a fool. In track he would not even take off his bottom sweats to run the 100-yard dash, he was so cocky. I remember once as the race began, our sprinter, a small Mexican kid named Bill Mammales, began to catch him. I remember seeing Golden Richards turn and see Mammales catching him and he began running for all he was worth. He still won but it was hilarious to see Golden Richards looking down and suddenly regretting not taking off his bottom sweats. In high school he set meet records in the 180-yard low hurdles (18.9) and 100-yard dash (9.7). He went on to play for Brigham Young University but left after his freshman year. I n 1971 he broke the NCAA record for punt-return yardage in a single game. Some say he was kicked out for stealing from lockers. He played one year for the University of Hawaii and then was a second round pick as wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys in 1873. Richards was a starter for the Cowboys in Super Bowl X against the Pittsburgh Steelers. In the Cowboys' Super Bowl XII win over the Denver Broncos, he caught a touchdown pass from running back Robert Newhouse. I remember during a Monday Night Football halftime they showed three video clips of what was described as the 3 greatest plays in NFL history. The viewers were asked to call in and vote as which they thought was the best. The clip that won was this spectacular catch by Golden Richards in Super Bowl XII. Golden's best season in Dallas was his 2nd (1974) when he grabbed 26 passes for 467 yards and 5 touchdowns. Golden was traded to the Chicago Bears after just 1 game into the 1978 seasons. He had a career high 27 catches with the Bears in 1978. Golden retired after just 5 games with the Bears in 1979. Golden played 8 seasons in the NFL and caught 122 passes for 2,136 yards and 17 touchdowns. Golden Richards had the talent to be one of the greatest wide receivers of all time. However, he lacked character and desire. "Golden Richards," Bob Avellini, the former Chicago quarterback, once said, "is the worst wide receiver I have ever seen." Indeed, Richards couldn't run, and his routes were sloppy, and his hands were merely OK. The former Cowboys wide receiver Golden Richards was arrested in Salt Lake City for trying to buy pills with checks he stole from his dad. He has no money, no job, and has been in and out of rehab several times. Apparently he became addicted to pain killers.

Bill Baird was a scrawny young man going to Lindsay High School just north of Porterville. He is dep on the front row below as number 2. He was so small that the football coach would not let him play because he did not meet the weight requirement. He put rocks in his pockets in order to

weigh enough to play. He had both character and desire. He went on to play for San Francisco State University. A member of the 1959 undefeated Gators; Baird was inducted into the SF State Athletics Hall of Fame as shown to the right. "I have great memories of my time here," Baird said. "I am grateful for my diploma that says San Francisco State University." Bill was a seven- year defensive starter for the New York Jets and contributed to the legendary upset over the Baltimore Colts in the 1969 Super Bowl, billed by some as the greatest Super Bowl ever. When he retired after 7 seasons, Baird held several team career records including most interceptions and longest punt return at 93 yards. In 2003, when Jets fans chose their dream team of Jets greats, Baird was selected for the Four Decade Team. Baird shares or holds six New York club records: His club mark for a punt return of 93 yards is the second longest in American Football League history, he is tied for first in career interceptions and holds the mark for most interception yards returned, and he has the high mark for punts returned in both a season and a career and for most yards returning punts in a career. "It's amazing," he said. "We go back to New York and sign footballs, cards and helmets, especially as the Super Bowl approaches. I get letters asking for signed autographs, even 40 years later." Baird taught or coached in high schools and colleges including Fresno State and University of the Pacific. He currently resides in Fresno. Not bad for a guy too scrawny to be on the Lindsay High Football team without rocks in his pockets. What he lacked in natural talent he made up for in character and desire.

In education, as with all things, natural talent is less important. It is courage, determination and desire that determine if you will succeed or not. Following the learning skills is more important than how smart you are or how many problems or challenges you may face in the course of this class. Don’t let your challenges stop you. Be like Bill Baird and become a record setter anyway.

42-Musashi Miyamoto

Miyamoto Musashi (宮本武蔵?) (c. 1584-1645) was a Japanese swordsman and samurai famed for his duels and distinctive style. He became renowned through stories of his excellent swordsmanship in numerous duels, even from a very young age and is considered the greatest samurai in history. He was the founder of the Niten-ryū style of swordsmanship and the author of The Book of Five Rings (五輪書 Go Rin No Sho?), a book on strategy, tactics, and philosophy that is still studied today. He was the first to use two swords. He believed that when you put two hands on one sword you were weak. He believed in becoming master of all weapons and using all of your resources. He once went up against a samurai that claimed to have the longest sword ever. Musashi carved a wooden sword out of a boat oar and confronted his opponent. His opponent was insulted. However, Musashi killed him with the wooden sword, which was carved 3 inches longer. He was part of the last great samurai battle against the castle of Osaka. After the victory samurais were no longer needed and became more like artisans. Musashi began to turn inward and write his philosophy in his book, The Book of the Five Rings. It was a resurgence of this book just before World War II that shaped the training and behavior of the Japanese Military. After the war his book became the foundation of the corporate structure of the Japanese Economy. When studying chemistry or science, you would be wise to follow Musashi’s advice and use all of your resources and not put your hands on just one sword. You need to find ways to win the battle of mastering this class. However, you do not need to invent a whole new strategy but use those that have been developed by others who have gone before. That is where the learning skills come in. Master them and you can be a great master nurse, teacher or scientist.