[Rose]

This is somewhat interesting in the trivia department:


Many years ago, Al Capone virtually owned Chicago. Capone wasn't
famous for anything heroic. He was notorious for enmeshing the windy
city in everything from bootlegged booze and prostitution to murder.

Capone had a lawyer nicknamed "Easy Eddie." He was his lawyer for a
good reason. Eddie was good, very good! In fact, Eddie's skill at
legal maneuvering kept Big Al out of jail for a long time. To show
his appreciation, Capone paid him very well. Not only was the money
big, but also Eddie got special dividends. For instance, he and his
family occupied a fenced-in mansion with live-in help and all of the
conveniences of the day. The estate was so large that it filled an
entire Chicago City block. Eddie lived the high life of the Chicago
mob and gave little consideration to the atrocities that went on
around him.

Eddie did have one soft spot, however. He had a son that he loved
dearly. Eddie saw to it that his young son had the best of
everything; clothes, cars and a good education. Nothing was
withheld. Price was no object. And, despite his involvement with
organized crime, Eddie even tried to teach him right from wrong.
Eddie wanted his son to be a better man than he was. Yet, with all
his wealth and influence, there were two things he couldn't give his
son; he couldn't pass on a good name nor could he set a good example.

One day, Easy Eddie reached a difficult decision. Easy Eddie wanted
to rectify the wrongs he had done. He decided he would go to the
authorities and tell the truth about Al "Scarface" Capone, clean up
his tarnished name and offer his son some semblance of integrity. To
do this, he would have to testify against The Mob, and he knew that
the cost would be great.

So, he testified. Within the year, Easy Eddie's life ended in a
blaze of gunfire on a lonely Chicago Street. But in his eyes, he had
given his son the greatest gift he had to offer, at the greatest
price he would ever pay. Police removed from his pockets a rosary, a
crucifix, a religious medallion, and a poem clipped from a magazine.

The poem read:
The clock of life is wound but once
And no man has the power
To tell just when the hands will stop,
At late or early hour.

Now is the only time you own.
Live, love, toil with a will.
Place no faith in time.
For the clock may soon be still.

STORY NUMBER TWO

World War II produced many heroes. One such man was Lieutenant
Commander Butch O'Hare. He was a fighter pilot assigned to the
aircraft carrier Lexington in the South Pacific. One day his entire
squadron was sent on a mission. After he was airborne, he looked at
his fuel gauge and realized that someone had forgotten to top off his
fuel tank. He would not have enough fuel to complete his mission and
get back to his ship.

His flight leader told him to return to the carrier. Reluctantly, he
dropped out of formation and headed back to the fleet. As he was
returning to the mother ship he saw something that turned his blood
cold. A squadron of Japanese aircraft were speeding their way toward
the American fleet.

The American fighters were gone on a sortie, and the fleet was all
but defenseless. He couldn't reach his squadron and bring them back
in time to save the fleet. Nor could he warn the fleet of the
approaching danger. There was only one thing to do. He must somehow
divert them from the fleet. Laying aside all thoughts of personal
safety, he dove into the formation of Japanese planes.
Wing-mounted 50 caliber's blazed as he charged in, attacking one
surprised enemy plane and then another. Butch wove in and out of the
now broken formation and fired at as many planes as possible until
all his ammunition was finally spent. Undaunted, he continued the
assault. He dove at the planes, trying to clip a wing or tail in
hopes of damaging as many enemy planes as possible and rendering them
unfit to fly.

Finally, the exasperated Japanese squadron took off in another
direction. Deeply relieved, Butch O'Hare and his tattered fighter
limped back to the carrier. Upon arrival he reported in and related
the event surrounding his return. The film from the gun-camera
mounted on his plane told the tale. It showed the extent of Butch's
daring attempt to protect his fleet. He had, in fact, destroyed five
enemy aircraft.

This took place on February 20, 1942, and for that action Butch
became the Navy's first Ace of W.W.II, and the first Naval Aviator to
win the Congressional Medal of Honor. A year later Butch was killed
in aerial combat at the age of 29. His home town would not allow the
memory of this WW II hero to fade and today, O'Hare Airport in
Chicago is named in tribute to the courage of this great man. So the
next time you find yourself at O'Hare International, give some
thought to visiting Butch's memorial displaying his statue and his
Medal of Honor. It's located between Terminals 1 and 2.

SO, WHAT DO THESE TWO STORIES HAVE TO DO WITH EACH OTHER?

Butch O'Hare was Easy Eddie's son.

[PastorC]

Rose and Friends:
My mother, though a smoker and ignorant of much of God's Word, showed great compassion to all men. Even animals, little to big. Mom couldn't stand anyone getting hurt or mistreated, and would instantly befriend outcasts in the neighborhood, people who others looked down upon, the odd, the strange, the poor. A great example she was.
Wolfe Lake
"Mother is aghast,
Brashly twitching in a wince,
Then she turns away.
Across the Lake,
The Indiana Shore,
A man is beating a woman.
'I cannot watch,'
Mother admits aloud, To the small crowd,
Of people.
I wonder what has happened,
To Mother yes I do,
But it is not for us,
To discuss,
On Wolfe Lake, on the Indiana Shore."

[Rose]

This was emailed to me today and I thought it was worth sharing. Probably all of you fans out there already knew this stoy but I didn't and I think it is beautiful and timely:

KURTIS THE STOCK BOY AND
BRENDA THE CHECKOUT GIRL

In a supermarket, Kurtis the stock boy, was busily working when a new
voice came over the loud speaker asking for a carry out at register 4.
Kurtis was almost finished, and wanted to get some fresh air, and decided to
answer the call. As he approached the checkout stand a distant smile caught
his eye, the new checkout girl was beautiful. She was an older woman
(maybe 26, and he was only 22) and he fell in love.

Later that day, after his shift was over, he waited by the punch clock
to find out her name. She came into the break room, smiled softly at him,
took her card and punched out, then left. He looked at her card, BRENDA.
He walked out only to see her start walking up the road. Next day, he
waited outside as she left the supermarket, and offered her a ride home. He
looked harmless enough, and she accepted. When he dropped her off, he asked
if maybe he could see her again, outside of work. She simply said it wasn't
possible.

He pressed and she explained she had two children and she couldn't
afford a baby-sitter, so he offered to pay for the baby-sitter. Reluctantly
she accepted his offer for a date for the following Saturday. That Saturday
night he arrived at her door only to have her tell him that she was unable
to go with him. The baby-sitter had called and canceled. To which Kurtis
simply said, "Well, let's take the kids with us."

She tried to explain that taking the children was not an option, but
again not taking no for an answer, he pressed. Finally Brenda brought him
inside to meet her children. She had an older daughter who was just as cute
as a bug, Kurtis thought, and then Brenda brought out her son, in a wheelchair.
He was born a paraplegic with Down syndrome.

Kurtis asked Brenda, "I still don't understand why the kids can't come
with us?" Brenda was amazed. Most men would run away from a woman with two
kids, especially if one had disabilities - just like her first husband and
father of her children had done. Kurtis was not ordinary - - - he had a
different mindset.

That evening Kurtis and Brenda loaded up the kids went to dinner and
the movies. When her son needed anything Kurtis would take care of him.
When he needed to use the restroom, he picked him up out of his wheelchair,
took him and brought him back. The kids loved Kurtis. At the end of the
evening, Brenda knew this was the man she was going to marry and spend the
rest of her life with.

A year later, they were married and Kurtis adopted both of her children.
Since then they have added two more kids.

So what happened to Kurtis the stock boy at a grocery store in Cedar
Falls/Waterloo, IA and Brenda the checkout girl? Well, Mr. & Mrs. Kurt
Warner now live in Arizona, where he is currently employed as the
quarterback of the National Football League Arizona Cardinals and has his
Cardinals in the hunt for a possible appearance in the Super Bowl. Is this
a surprise ending or could you have guessed that he was not an ordinary
person.

It should be noted that he also quarterbacked the Rams in Super Bowl
XXXVI. He has also been the NFL's Most Valuable Player twice and the Super
Bowl's Most Valuable Player.

Warner will be leading the Arizona Cardinals in Sunday's NFC
Championship game.



Most of America now knows that Kurt and the Cardinals won that game and will be playing the Steelers in the Super Bowl. The Cardinals won mostly due to Warner's passing ability, even though at 37 he is the third oldest quarterback to play in a championship game. In his post game interview he downplayed his participation and gave all the credit to Jesus, without which he would never have been there. That's certainly refreshing to hear when there are so many scandals involving professional sports. I believe Tim Tebow said the same thing when he won the Heisman Trophy and the National Championship for Florida. There may be some hope for America yet.

[journey]

The poem read:
The clock of life is wound but once
And no man has the power
To tell just when the hands will stop,
At late or early hour.

Now is the only time you own.
Live, love, toil with a will.
Place no faith in time.
For the clock may soon be still.

This poem is so interesting to me....
My husbands grandmother has this poem in her personal things...

The clock of Life is wound but once
and no man has the power to tell just when the hands will stop.
On what day or what hour
now is the only time you have
so live it with a will
Don't wait until tomorrow
The hands may then be still.

They are so simular...We always wondered where it came from. Now I can tell the family this story.

Wow! This is neat!