I was listening to a speaker on Saturday talk about the difference a few minutes makes.  He had met some people who were there the day the Federal building in Oklahoma was destroyed by a bomb many years ago.

He said he heard stories about how people risked their lives going into a burning, crumbling building looking for survivors.  Isn’t it amazing how brave some folks become in the face of disaster?

And yet, a few minutes earlier, these same people wouldn’t give others a second glance.  Or the time of day.

Interesting, huh?

I heard the same comparison about the disaster in Japan.  Not that many years ago, Americans and Japanese were at war and trying to kill each other.  Some of those same Americans are still alive today and making donations to help the Japanese people in this terrible disaster they are experiencing.

It’s emotional fruitbasket turnover.

What would it be like if we could find a more happy medium to live in all the time?  Then instead of either totally ignoring people or risking our own lives to save them, we could live every day in a state of love for our fellow man.  How would that change things?  Would we stop complaining about the guy who cut us off in traffic this morning?  Would we stop griping about our co-worker and their annoying habits?  Would we find a totally different space to be in with our teenager whose room is a train wreck?

What do you think?  Leave a comment and share your thoughts.

Thanks to my sweet friend Hugh for sharing this.

A young lady confidently walked around the room while leading and explaining stress management to an audience; with a raised glass of water, and everyone knew she was going to ask the ultimate question, ‘half empty or half full?’….. she fooled them all… “How heavy is this glass of water?”, she inquired with a smile.

Answers called out ranged from 8 oz. to 20 oz.

She replied, “The absolute weight doesn’t matter. It depends on how long I hold it. If I hold it for a minute, that’s not a problem.  If I hold it for an hour, I’ll have an ache in my right arm. If I hold it for a day, you’ll have to call an ambulance.In each case it’s the same weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes.” She continued, “and that’s the way it is with stress. If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later, as the burden becomes increasingly heavy, we won’t be able to carry on.”

“As with the glass of water, you have to put it down for a while and rest before holding it again.  When we’re refreshed, we can carry on with the burden – holding stress longer and better each time practiced. So, as early in the evening as you can, put all your burdens down. Don’t carry them through the evening and into the night… pick them up tomorrow.Whatever burdens you’re carrying now, let them down for a moment. Relax, pick them up later after you’ve rested. Life is short. Enjoy it and the now ‘supposed’ stress that you’ve conquered!”