Catastrophe




	WRITE 2 THE HEART Stories that are aimed "Write 2 the Heart" January 8, 2004 Cheryl Speir, Editor, moderator@write2theheart.com ----------------------------------------------------------- Welcome to your latest issue of "Write 2 the Heart." You are receiving this newsletter because you requested a subscription or a friend generously forwarded their copy to you. All new subscribers will receive a free downloadable copy of the e-cookbook, “Write 2 the Heart of the Chocolate Lover.” To subscribe send a blank e-mail to: subscribe@write2theheart.com. ------------------------------------------------------------ Ken’s five-year-old dignity was innocently crushed by his sister. He carried that weight for forty years before he learned to laugh at himself. ------------------------------------------------------------ Catastrophe in the Bathroom By Kenneth L. Pierpont ------------------------------------------------------------ When I was a boy I got into a lot of mischief. I like that word, mischief. It has an innocent sound to it. Sometimes I got in trouble for the mischief I did. Sometimes I didn’t get caught. Other times I got in trouble for things I didn’t do. Sometimes I was blamed for things over which I had no control. Some days my life just took an ugly turn and one bad thing led to another like falling dominoes. One afternoon I was sitting on the toilet after school in the privacy of our own bathroom. I finished my business and rose to leave. I looked up and there conveniently in front of me were two handles for the metal wardrobe that my mother used to store cleaning supplies and clean linens and towels. When I pulled myself up the door came open and the cabinet started to tip over. I didn’t have time to pull my pants up. With my pants around my ankles I pushed the cabinet back into an upright position. Then I bent to pull my pants up. What I didn’t know is that the cabinet was resting on the base molding and when I let go to pull up my pants the cabinet door opened and the wardrobe started down again. This time things began to spill out and crash into the toilet. My sister, Melony, heard the commotion and took it upon herself to whip open the door, whereupon she began to scream loudly. She didn’t come in and help. She didn’t go out and shut the door. She just stood there and screamed while I struggled with my pants around my ankles to get the cabinet back into an upright position and dodge the cans and jars and linens that were falling into the toilet. This was forty years ago. What stayed fresh in my mind and bothered me the most, was not the mayhem in the bathroom, but my irritation with my sister for standing there screaming while my pants were down. I try not to be bitter, but when I think of that, to this day it troubles me. How could she do that to me knowing that if I bent to pull up my pants the cabinet would fall over, and if I didn’t I would be exposed and publicly shamed? That’s a heavy burden to carry for four decades. My mom was talking on the phone. I could have told her that once the kids are home trying to talk on the phone is probably not a good idea, but since I was only five she wouldn’t have listened. Mom came in and saw the toilet full of towels, linens, broken furniture polish and other things. The first thing she said was “Kenny, pull your pants up!” I tried to tell her that for the last five minutes pulling my pants up was my one goal in life, but she didn’t want to listen. She just turned and said, “Get out of my sight.” I did. I have been trying to stay out of sight as much as possible since. The other day my mom and I were having a laugh about this incident. It’s good to remember that when everything is coming unraveled in your life and no matter how hard you try you can’t get your life together, and when all the bad things you have ever done are catching up to you at once, that one day you will be able to laugh about it. Trust me, you will. You will laugh some day. In the mean time it might be a good idea to get in the habit of locking the bathroom door when you use it. ---------------------- Ken Pierpont is a speaker and writer and director of the Riverfront Character Inn and International Conference Center in Flint Michigan.He had his wife Lois have been married for almost twenty-five years and have eight children. You can read more of Ken's work and subscribe to his weekly e-mail newsletter at www.kenpierpont.com Kenneth L. Pierpont kpierpont @ characterinns.org You are encouraged to write to the authors to let them know what you think of their story, just remember to remove the space before and after the @ symbol. The space is placed in the address to protect our writers from viruses and email harvesting programs. Have a comment on today's story? Send it to: moderator@write2theheart.com ---------------------------------------------------------------- bio -------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------- Letters From Our Readers -------------------------------------------------------------- Hi Cheryl, You aren't the only one who is curious about Sorels -- I got several e-mails as well from inquiring minds. Sorels are waterproof, cold weather boots, sometimes with a fur lining, sometimes with a felt lining (removable). You can get them to withstand extremely sub- zero temperatures, to about a hundred below (well, maybe not a hundred, but close!). They are definitely not a fashion statement by any means, but they sure do keep your feet warm -- a necessity in the north. Here's a link in case you want to see some for yourself. http://www.northlandmarine.com/SorelRefWomen.html Maria Sorry Cheryl about your Dog! Glad you have been blessed with another one. I enjoyed Maria's tale of the cold; it is pretty cold here in Illinois today, too! Happy New Year! Betty King www.BettyKing.net Maria Harden, I enjoyed your story "The Freezin' Season". I'm sure not a warm person and I have never been one. I like my sweatshirts, sweaters, and long sleeve things during the colder months and sometimes those don't seem to keep me as warm as I want to be. I live about 60 miles south of Cleveland, Ohio and I've always considered my area off residence to be a cold place in winter. I had plans to move to a warmer climate after my children were grown but the circumstances in my life changed so that isn't in the immediate forecast of my life right now. After reading your story, I will think twice about whether this is really a cold place. Oh, I still consider it to colder here in winter than I want it to be but it's definitely not as cold as the Winnipeg, Canada that you wrote about. Barbara bdoll7@earthlink.net --------------------------------------------------------------- Military Prayer Reminder --------------------------------------------------------------- As you read over this list of names, please take that moment to pray for these young people and their families: Chris Speir Tim Speir Alan Thaddeaus Howard Todd Holland Graham William Julie Sagel Jessie Marshal Thompson Jason Eric Hernandez Kristin Danielson Ken Prieur Ryan Jonathan P. Wells Please continue to pray for our country, our leaders, and our troops at this time. If you have loved ones in the military, or who are being called to go overseas, send their names (first and last or first only) to be included in our prayer reminder. --------------------------------------------------------------- Cheryl's Corner My sister gave me a plaque for Christmas. It says, “The crisis of today is the joke of tomorrow.” What a wonderful reminder. I keep it near my computer. It has to be true; after all it’s etched in stone! God Bless, Cheryl ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- © 2004 Write 2 the Heart Nothing may be reproduced or published without the written permission of the individual author or copyright owner. All rights belong to the authors. ---------------------------------------------------------------