I've learned that the best business in the line of business is to mind your own business & if you don't have any business, then make it your business to leave other people's business alone!


**Stolen from Mae**

KARMA:

It's as simple as this-

whatever you do comes back

to you !!

 

Subject: FW: The Stallings: A Special Father - A Special Son - a memorial

Gregg Thompson, Contributor Published August 4, 2008

All I ever really needed to know, I learned from Johnny Stallings.

You can go to the finest schools and get any advanced degree they offer.
Or you can read all of the business and self-improvement books you want.
But for a Ph.D in true wisdom, take a look at the life of Johnny
Stallings.

You may have never heard of Johnny. He had Down Syndrome. When he was
born, 46 years ago in Alabama, the doctors said he wouldn't live even a
year or two because of a severe heart defect. Other well-meaning doctors
advised his parents to put him in an institution. "In a year," they
said, "you'll forget you ever had him."

But fortunately for all of us, Gene and Ruth Ann Stallings didn't take
their advice. They chose to treat Johnny as a vital part of their
family.

And we are all the better for it.

As his father advanced his football coaching career - first at Alabama,
then to Texas A&M, the Dallas Cowboys, Arizona Cardinals and finally to
a national championship in 1992 at Alabama - Johnny was an integral part
of the team. To Johnny, the most important person was the trainer.

Trainers take care of the players," he once said. "You can't win without
trainers."

To the day he died, Johnny Stallings wore a massive, diamond-encrusted
National Championship ring on his frail fingers, which were tinged a
grayish blue from the lack of oxygen caused by his heart condition.

Johnny was front and center in that National Championship team photo. In
fact, he was a part of every team his father coached, including the
storied Dallas Cowboys. The players drew inspiration from him. When
Johnny turned 40 years old, for example, his birthday party was attended
by a Who's Who of former NFL stars.

Johnny had some accomplishments of his own. He was featured with his
father on a popular national United Way TV commercial, has a playground
named for him at the RISE center in Tuscaloosa, had the athletic
training facility at Alabama named for him, and won a "Change the World"
award from Abilene Christian University.

But perhaps the most important thing that Johnny Stallings accomplished
is this: he taught us that it doesn't matter what awards you win, or
what worldly accomplishments you achieve, it is how you live your life
that matters most.

So what can we learn from Johnny Stallings?

. Every life matters.

The life of Johnny Stallings teaches us that God can use anyone, no
matter how insignificant in society's eyes, to make an impact on others.
Johnny had none of the things that you and I take for granted, but
Johnny touched countless lives in ways none of us can even begin to
imagine. Our materialistic, success-driven culture doesn't really know
what to do with people like Johnny. Society certainly didn't know what
to do with Johnny when he was born 46 years ago. But God did.

. See the good in everyone. "Be my friend."

When Johnny got to know you, you became his "friend." And he never
forgot you. Despite being mentally disabled, Johnny never forgot a name
or a face. Johnny literally saw no evil in people. Johnny had more
friends in his short lifetime than any of us will ever enjoy.

. Walk openly, simply and humbly with God.

The Bible tells us, "And what does the LORD require of you? To act
justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." That
describes the way Johnny lived. He could barely read or write, but
Johnny Stallings prayed the sweetest prayers you ever heard. He didn't
necessarily know the fine points of theology, but you could tell that he
knew God. He walked with God, openly, simply and humbly. And everybody
knew it, whether they acknowledged that God or not.

. Love unconditionally.

In Johnny's world, you didn't keep score or attach strings to love. He
loved unconditionally, all of the time.

. Smile. Laugh. Hug.
The last time I saw Johnny, we brought him a T-shirt from Dreamland
Barbecue in Tuscaloosa, one of his favorite places to eat. Johnny hugged
us. He patted us. He smiled all of the time. Johnny was one of these
people who always made everyone feel better just for having been around
him. Who among us can say that about ourselves?

. Treasure every moment.

Johnny, of course, was supposed to be put away in an institution.
Doctors told them Johnny wouldn't make it to age 4, and when he did,
they then said he wouldn't live past 11 because of heart and lung issues
common to people with Down Syndrome. Then we always heard that Johnny
wouldn't live past 16. And on and on. So with Johnny, you treasured
every moment.

. Little victories are the ones that matter the most.

Everyone focuses on the championships, but with Johnny, you celebrated
all of the little victories. Then, after a while, you realized that
those are the ones that really matter the most.

.Trust God because He really does know best.

Despite being frail and disabled, Johnny Stallings wore a National
Championship ring. Every member of that 1992 Alabama team will tell you
of Johnny's impact on that team. Johnny Stallings literally changed the
world and made everybody he met a better person - if only for that
moment.

Gene Stallings, a star football player, champion ship coach and tough
enough to be one of Bear Bryant's legendary Junction Boys, probably used
to dream of a son who would be an impact player, who would change the
world, make a difference and someday maybe - just maybe - wear a
National Championship ring.

"I prayed to God that He would change Johnny, but He changed me," Coach
Stallings once said in a speech. He added that if God offered him the
choice of going back and having a "perfect" son without a disability or
having Johnny, "I'd take Johnny every time."

Gregg Thompson is a 1972 graduate of Paris High School, former sports
writer for The Paris News and currently director of corporate
communications for Chick-Fil-A in Atlanta, Ga

 

The Paradox of our Time in History

We have taller buildings but shorter tempers,
wider freeways, but narrower viewpoints.

We spend more, but have less.
We buy more, but enjoy less.
We have bigger houses and smaller families,
moreconveniences, but less time.

We have more degrees but less sense,
more knowledge, but less judgment,
more experts, yet more problems,
moremedicine, but less wellness.

We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly,
laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too
late, get up too tired, read too little, watch TV too much,
and pray too seldom.

We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values.
We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.
We've learned how to make a living, but not a life.

We've added years to life not life to years.
We've been all the way to the moon and back,
but havetrouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor.

We conquered outer space but not inner space.
We've done larger things, but not better things.
We've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul.
We've conquered the atom, but not our prejudice.

We write more, but learn less.
We plan more, but accomplish less.
We've learned to rush, but not to wait.

We build more computers to hold more information,
to produce more copies than ever,
but we communicate less and less.

These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion,
bigmen and small character,
steep profits and shallow relationships.

These are the days of two incomes but more divorce,
fancierhouses, but broken homes.

These are days of quick trips,
disposable diapers,
throwaway
morality, one night stands,
overweight bodies,
and pills that do everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill.

It is a time when there is much in the showroom window
and nothing in the stockroom.

A time when technology can bring this letter to you,
and a time when you can choose either to share this insight, or to just hit delete.

Remember, spend some time with your loved ones,
because they are not going to be around forever.

Remember, say a kind word to someone who looks up to you in awe,
because that little person soon will grow up and leave your side.

Remember, to give a warm hug to the one next to you,
because that is the only treasure you can give with your heart and it doesn't cost a cent.

Remember, to say, "I love you" to your partner and your
loved ones, but most of all mean it.

A kiss and an embrace will mend hurt
when it comes from deep inside of you.

Remember to hold hands and cherish the moment
for someday that person will not be there again.

Give time to love, give time to speak and give time to share
the precious thoughts in your mind.

~George Carlin

                           ATTITUDE

The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than success, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness, or skill. It will make or break a company...a church...a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past...we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one thing we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it. And so it is with you...we are in charge of our attitudes. - Charles Swindoll