Keep Your Dream

I have a friend named Monty Roberts who owns a horse ranch in San Ysidro. He has let me use his house to put on fund-raising events to raise money for youth at risk programs.

The last time I was there he introduced me by saying:

“I want to tell you why I let Jack use my horse. It all goes back to a story about a young man who was the son of an itinerant horse trainer who would go from stable to stable, race track to race track, farm to farm and ranch to ranch, training horses. As a result, the boy’s high school career was continually interrupted. When he was a senior, he was asked to write a paper about what he wanted to be and do when he grew up.”

“That night he wrote a seven-page paper describing his goal of someday owning a horse ranch. He wrote about his dream in great detail and he even drew a diagram of a 200-acre ranch, showing the location of all the buildings, the stables and the track. Then he drew a detailed floor plan for a 4,000-square-foot house that would sit on a 200-acre dream ranch.”

“He put a great deal of his heart into the project and the next day he handed it in to his teacher. Two days later he received his paper back. On the front page was a large red F with a note that read, `See me after class.'”

“The boy with the dream went to see the teacher after class and asked, `Why did I receive an F?'”

“The teacher said, `This is an unrealistic dream for a young boy like you. You have no money. You come from an itinerant family. You have no resources. Owning a horse ranch requires a lot of money. You have to buy the land. You have to pay for the original breeding stock and later you’ll have to pay large stud fees. There’s no way you could ever do it.’ Then the teacher added, `If you will rewrite this paper with a more realistic goal, I will reconsider your grade.'”

“The boy went home and thought about it long and hard. He asked his father what he should do. His father said, `Look, son, you have to make up your own mind on this. However, I think it is a very important decision for you.’ Finally, after sitting with it for a week, the boy turned in the same paper, making no changes at all.

He stated, ‘You can keep the F and I’ll keep my dream.'”

Monty then turned to the assembled group and said, “I tell you this story because you are sitting in my 4,000-square-foot house in the middle of my 200-acre horse ranch. I still have that school paper framed over the fireplace.”

He added, “The best part of the story is that two summers ago that same schoolteacher brought 30 kids to camp out on my ranch for a week. When the teacher was leaving, the teacher said, ‘Look, Monty, I can tell you this now. When I was your teacher, I was something of a dream stealer. During those years I stole a lot of kids’ dreams. Fortunately you had enough gumption not to give up on yours.'”

“Don’t let anyone steal your dreams. Follow your heart, no matter what.”

The Angry Monster

The Angry Monster In Me

Sometimes I do not get to do what I want.

Mommy, Daddy, my teacher or another adult often tell me what I should do.

Sometimes I can get really mad when I am told to do something I don’t want to do.

I may want to play 5 more minutes.

I may want something else to eat.

I may want to do something I am told I can not do.

When I am told I can’t do what I want I can get mad.

When I get mad I may start to growl.

When I get mad I may try to kick, hit or bite the person who is making me mad.

The feelings I have inside my body are really strong.

When I get really mad it is like I am an Angry Monster.

It is okay to be mad. Everybody gets mad sometimes.

But it is not okay to hurt anyone when I am mad.

Mommy, daddy, my teachers and other adults don’t hit each other when they get mad.

When I get mad there are several things I can try to do.

I can tell the adult I am with that I am mad.

I can jump up and down.

I can turn my arms into spaghetti.

If I am home I can go to my room and listen to my music.

I can go lay down in my sleeping bag and hide.

I can hit or kick or wrestle with my soft pillow.

I can ask for a really tight hug or to be rocked.

Finally, I can take a big breath, hold it, count to 10 and let it out slowly.

There are many people in my life who love me and want to help me control my anger.

I need to try really hard to notice when I am getting mad and chase the Angry Monster away.

Growing Up

Come with me to a third grade classroom..... There is a nine-year-old kid sitting at his desk and all of a sudden, there is a puddle between his feet and the front of his pants are wet. He thinks his heart is going to stop because he cannot possibly imagine how this has happened. It's never happened before, and he knows that when the boys find out he will never hear the end of it. When the girls find out, they'll never speak to him again as long as he lives. The boy believes his heart is going to stop; he puts his head down and prays this prayer, "Dear God, this is an emergency! I need help now! Five minutes from now I'm dead meat."
He looks up from his prayer and here comes the teacher with a look in her eyes that says he has been discovered. As the teacher is walking toward him, a classmate named Susie is carrying a goldfish bowl that is filled with water. Susie trips in front of the teacher and inexplicably dumps the bowl of water in the boy' s lap. The boy pretends to be angry, but all the while is saying to himself, "Thank you, Lord! Thank you, Lord!"
Now all of a sudden, instead of being the object of ridicule, the boy is the object of sympathy. The teacher rushes him downstairs and gives him gym shorts to put on while his pants dry out. All the other children are on their hands and knees cleaning up around his desk. The sympathy is wonderful. But as life would have it, the ridicule that should have been his has been transferred to someone else - Susie. She tries to help, but they tell her to get out. You've done enough, you  Clumsy girl!"
Finally, at the end of the day, as they are waiting for the bus, the boy walks over to Susie and whispers, "You did that on purpose, didn't you?" Susie whispers back, "I wet my pants once too."
May God help us see the opportunities that are always around us to do good..

Remember.....Just going to a place of worship doesn't make you a good person  any more than standing in your garage makes you a car.
Each and everyone of us is going through tough times right now, but God is getting ready to bless you in a way that only He can. Keep the faith.

REMEMBER,
GROWING OLDER IS MANDATORY.
GROWING UP IS OPTIONAL.
We make a Living by what  we get;
We make a Life by what we give...