Wishing you all a happy and healthy 2010!! Please post uplifting, inspirational videos if you have any!


This is a wonderful story of a service dog named "Ricochet" and a quadriplegic surfer! Taylor Hicks sings "Do I Make You Proud".


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGODurRfVv4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42E2fAWM6rA

The cow thinks he's a dog because the dogs nursed him to health when he was a sickly calf :)

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/34634061#34608808

^^^^^
So sweet!! :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Bmhjf0rKe8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yE6PNps5N9I

Amazing son AND father!! Great story!!




http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=9xwCG0Ey2Mg

Thanx for the link - my cousin actually just sent me this vid and it about did me in - I've been reading the book "Messenger" about Mattie Stepanek (google him and you'll recognize who he is) - and was already feeling emotional when I watched this video. Such inspiring stories.

awwww, don't have to google Mattie. I remember him well,all the times he was on the Jerry Lewis MD telethon, What an incredibly gifted child.He was a spokesperson for Muscular Dystrophy.

Yes and I highly recommend the book, even though I dread getting to the end of it.

http://video.aol.com/video-detail/the-oran...ound/1234581161

Not a video, but a beautiful story!



BECAUSE OF LOVE, ONLY BECAUSE OF LOVE

A brother and sister had made their usual hurried, obligatory
pre- Christmas visit to the little farm where dwelt their elderly
parents with their small herd of horses. The farm was where
they had grown up and had been named Lone Pine Farm because
of the huge pine, which topped the hill behind the farm. Through
the years the tree had become a talisman to the old man and his
wife, and a landmark in the countryside... The young siblings had
fond memories of their childhood here, but the city hustle and
bustle added more excitement to their lives, and called them
away to a different life.

The old folks no longer showed their horses, for the years
had taken their toll, and getting out to the barn on those frosty
mornings was getting harder, but it gave them a reason to get
up in the mornings and a reason to live. They sold a few foals
each year, and the horses were their reason for joy in the
morning and contentment at day's end.

Angry, as they prepared to leave, the young couple confronted
the old folks. Why do you not at least dispose of The Old One."
She is no longer of use to you. It's been years since you've had
foals from her. You should cut corners and save so you can have
more for yourselves. How an this old worn out horse bring you
anything but expense and work? Why do you keep her anyway?"

The old man looked down at his worn boots, holes in the toes,
scuffed at the barn floor and replied, " Yes, I could use a pair of
new boots. His arm slid defensively about the Old One's neck as
he drew her near with gentle caressing he rubbed her softly
behind her ears. He replied softly, "We keep her because of
love. Nothing else, just love."

Baffled and irritated, the young folks wished the old man and his
wife a Merry Christmas and headed back toward the city as
darkness stole through the valley. The ld couple shook their
heads in sorrow that it had not been a happy visit. A tear fell
upon their cheeks.. How is it that these young folks do not
understand the peace of the love that filled their hearts?

So it was, that because of the unhappy leave-taking, no one
noticed the insulation smoldering on the frayed wires in the old
barn. None saw the first spark fall. None but the "Old One".

In a matter of minutes, the whole barn was ablaze and the
hungry flames were licking at the loft full of hay. With a cry of
horror and despair, the old man shouted to his wife to call for
help as he raced to the barn to save their beloved horses. But
the flames were roaring now, and the blazing heat drove him back.
He sank sobbing to the ground, helpless before the fire's fury. His
wife back from calling for help cradled him in her arms, clinging to
each other, they wept at their loss.

By the time the fire department arrived, only smoking, glowing
ruins were left, and the old man and his wife, exhausted from their
grief, huddled together before the barn. They were speechless as
they rose from the cold snow covered ground. They nodded thanks
to the firemen as there was nothing anyone could do now.
The old man turned to his wife, resting her white head upon his
shoulders as his shaking old hands clumsily dried her tears with a
frayed red bandana. Brokenly he whispered, "We have lost much,
but God has spared our home on this eve of Christmas. Let us
gather strength and climb the hill to the old pine where we have
sought comfort in times of despair. We will look down upon our
home and give thanks to God that it has been spared and pray
for our beloved most precious gifts that have been taken from us.

And so, he took her by the hand and slowly helped her up the
snowy hill as he brushed aside his own tears with the back of his
old and withered hand.

The journey up the hill was hard for their old bodies in the steep
snow. As they stepped over the little knoll at the crest of the hill,
they paused to rest, looking up to the top of the hill the old couple
gasped and fell to their knees in amazement at the incredible
beauty before them.

Seemingly, every glorious, brilliant star in the heavens was caught
up in the glittering, snow-frosted branches of their beloved pine,
and it was aglow with heavenly candles. And poised on its top most
bough, a crystal crescent moon glistened like spun glass. Never had
a mere mortal created a Christmas tree such as this. They were
breathless as the old man held his wife tighter in his arms.

Suddenly, the old man gave a cry of wonder and incredible joy.
Amazed and mystified, he took his wife by the hand and pulled her
forward. There, beneath the tree, in resplendent glory, a mist
hovering over and glowing in the darkness was their Christmas gift.
Shadows glistening in the night light. Bedded down about the
"Old One" close to the trunk of the tree, was the entire herd, safe.

At the first hint of smoke, she had pushed the door ajar with her
muzzle and had led the horses through it. Slowly and with great
dignity, never looking back, she had led them up the hill, stepping
cautiously through the snow. The foals were frightened and
dashed about.
The skittish yearlings looked back at the crackling, hungry flames,
and tucked their tails under them as they licked their lips and
hopped like rabbits. The mares that were in foal with a new years
crop of babies, pressed uneasily against the "Old One" as she
moved calmly up the hill and to safety beneath the pine.
And now, she lay among them and gazed at the faces of the old
man and his wife. Those she loved she had not disappointed. Her
body was brittle with years, tired from the climb, but the golden
eyes were filled with devotion as she offered her gift---

Because of love.

Only Because of love...

Tears flowed as the old couple shouted their praise and joy...and
again the peace of love filled their hearts.

This is a true story.

Willy Eagle

"Get service"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LfeXxkbgCVE

wow, i just read this and it brought tears to my eyes. touching story.

Hugs!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hN8CKwdosjE...player_embedded

Soooooooooooooo cute!!!!

http://www.dogwork.com/feeling/

http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=KTb6qdPu8JE

"Stay calm, Dad."

http://www.maniacworld.com/stay-calm-dad.html

The Porcelain Unicorn

http://www.porcelainunicorn.com

Lioness Trust - amazing!

http://www.wimp.com/lionesstrust/

The Cab Ride

I arrived at the address and honked the horn.
After waiting a few minutes I walked to the
door and knocked.. 'Just a minute', answered a
frail, elderly voice. I could hear something
being dragged across the floor.

After a long pause, the door opened. A small woman in
her 90's stood before me. She was wearing a
print dress and a pillbox hat with a veil pinned
on it, like somebody out of a 1940's movie.

By her side was a small nylon suitcase. The apartment looked as if no one had lived in it for years. All the furniture was covered with sheets.

There were no clocks on the walls, no knickknacks or utensils on the counters. In the corner was a cardboard
box filled with photos and glassware.

'Would you carry my bag out to the car?' she said. I took the suitcase to the cab, then returned to assist the
woman.

She took my arm and we walked slowly toward the curb.

She kept thanking me for my kindness. 'It's nothing', I
told her.. 'I just try to treat my passengers the way I would want my mother to be treated.'

'Oh, you're such a good boy, she said. When we got in the cab, she gave me an address and then asked, 'Could you drive through downtown?'

'It's not the shortest way,' I answered quickly..

'Oh, I don't mind,' she said. 'I'm in no hurry. I'm on my way to a hospice.

I looked in the rear-view mirror. Her eyes were glistening. 'I don't have any family left,' she continued in a soft
voice.. 'The doctor says I don't have very long.' I quietly reached over and shut off the meter.

'What route would you like me to take?' I asked.

For the next two hours, we drove through the city. She showed me the building where she had once worked as an elevator operator.

We drove through the neighborhood where she and her husband had lived when they were newlyweds. She had me pull up in front of a furniture warehouse that had once
been a ballroom where she had gone dancing as a girl.

Sometimes she'd ask me to slow in front of a particular building or corner and would sit staring into the darkness, saying nothing.

As the first hint of sun was creasing the horizon, she suddenly said, 'I'm tired. Let's go now'.

We drove in silence to the address she had given me. It was a low building, like a small convalescent home,
with a driveway that passed under a portico.

Two orderlies came out to the cab as soon as we pulled up. They were solicitous and intent, watching her every move. They must have been expecting her.

I opened the trunk and took the small suitcase to
the door. The woman was already seated in a
wheelchair.

'How much do I owe you?' She asked, reaching into her
purse.

'Nothing,' I said.

'You have to make a living,' she answered.

'There are other passengers,' I responded.

Almost without thinking, I bent and gave her a hug. She
held onto me tightly.

'You gave an old woman a little moment of joy,' she
said. 'Thank you.'

I squeezed her hand, and then walked into the dim morning light. Behind me, a door shut. It was the sound
of the closing of a life.....

I didn't pick up any more passengers that shift. I drove
aimlessly lost in thought. For the rest of that day, I could hardly talk. What if that woman had gotten an angry driver, or one who was impatient to end his shift?
What if I had refused to take the run, or had honked
once, then driven away?

On a quick review, I don't think that I have done anything
more important in my life.

We're conditioned to think that our lives revolve
around great moments.

But great moments often catch us unaware-beautifully
wrapped in what others may consider a small one.


PEOPLE MAY NOT REMEMBER EXACTLY WHAT YOU DID, OR WHAT YOU SAID ~BUT~THEY WILL ALWAYS REMEMBER HOW YOU MADE THEM FEEL.