There is no better panacea for sorrow, no better reviving tonic, and no greater beauty than a genuine smile. Paramhansa Yogananda.
The Bowl of Porridge
(From Nayaswami Anandi)
Saint Francis had a brother monk, Brother Juniper, who was a rather simple brother and at times a frustration to his superiors. He once made a mistake and his superior chastised him for it at great lengths.
Brother Juniper woke up in the middle of that same night and reflected on his superior’s recent chastisement. And he thought, “You know, I think my superior strained his voice when he was yelling at me. I feel very, very bad about that, so I think I should do something to remedy it.”
So he went down to the kitchen and cooked up some porridge with lots of butter in it. He said to himself, “This will be very helpful.”
With a candle in one hand and the porridge in the other, he went upstairs and knocked on the door of his superior’s room. His superior was sound asleep and awoke with a start thinking something horrible had happened. He opened the door and said, “What is it? What is it?”
Brother Juniper said, “Well, I thought about your voice today when you were scolding me, and it sounded like it was getting a little bit weak. I thought this porridge would moisten your throat and prevent you from getting ill.”
His superior was irate. He said, “You woke me up for this! I can’t believe it! I don’t want your porridge!”
And Brother Juniper said, “Oh well, if you don’t want the porridge, could you hold the candle while I eat it?”
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School Lunch
The children were lined up in the cafeteria of a parochial elementary school for lunch. At the head of the table was a large pile of apples. The teacher had posted a note on the apple tray: “Take only ONE. God is watching.” Further along the lunch line, at the other end of the table, was a large pile of chocolate chip cookies. A child had written a note: “Take all you want. God is watching the apples.”
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A Million To One
A man, trying to understand the nature of God, asked Him: “God, how long is a million years to you?” God answered, “A million years is like a minute.” Then the man asked, “God, how much is a million dollars to you?” And God replied, “A million dollars is like a penny.” Finally the man asked, “ God, could you give me a penny?” And God said, “In a minute!”
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A Prayer for the Day
Dear God, so far today, I’ve done all right. I haven’t gossiped, and I haven’t lost my temper. I haven’t been grumpy, nasty, or selfish, and I’m really glad of that! But in a few minutes, God, I’m going to get out of bed, and from then on, I’m probably going to need a lot of help. Thank you! Amen.
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The Tooth Fairy
(From Nayaswami Jyotish)
A dear friend has two daughters, one age 6 and the other age 9. The younger daughter lost a tooth and put it under her pillow when she went to bed that same night. In the morning she woke up and found a quarter where the tooth had been, and she was very happy that the tooth fairy had come.
Later, she and her older sister were in the room with their mother. After a moment, the younger sister asked her mother very tentatively, “Mommy, are you really the tooth fairy?”
The mother looked at the older daughter rather sternly and said, “Did you tell her?”
“Yeah, Mommy,” she replied somewhat sheepishly.
Without waiting for her mother’s reply, the younger daughter said, “But Mommy, how do you get to all those houses every night?”
