Direct Answers - Column for the week of March 31, 2003
I don't drive and have health problems. I have a friend who runs an under-the-table errand service. She is one of my closest friends so I rely on her. I always give her sufficient money for her time, and she has helped me out in many situations.
There have been two times in a row where she has blown me off. Both times she was to take me to a doctor appointment. The first time she did not call me in advance as she always did, so I called her. She said, "I can't talk, I'm running out the door." She hung up before I got to say a word. She called me back at midnight and said she was really sorry, she forgot.
I thought she probably did and went on with my business, though she ruined my plans and I ended up in a jam because of it. Last week I had a very important doctor's appointment. I called her well in advance, and she confirmed it twice during the week. But the time came when she was supposed to call and pick me up, and she never called.
So I called her. There was no answer. Today she basically blamed the whole thing on me, saying, "I was home sitting around waiting for your call. I don't understand why you didn't get through."
The long and the short of it is I don't know if I am being naïve, or is this just two strange coincidences. I don't want to accuse her of anything, but assessing the situation, I wonder if she doesn't want to do it and won't tell me directly. That would not offend me. I would make other arrangements. What do you think?
Zeta
Zeta, some years ago two basketball teams from the state of Ohio were contending for the national championship. The fans from Ohio State thought their team was better than the University of Cincinnati, and they were shocked when the other school won the national basketball title.
For a year the Ohio State fans claimed it was a fluke that Cincinnati won. But guess what? The next year the University of Cincinnati won again. That inspired some Cincinnati fans to rent a billboard near the Ohio State campus. The message on the billboard read, "Well, what do you know? Two flukes in a row!"
Why would you expect up-front behavior from someone working under the table? It's time to make other arrangements. Two flukes in a row are a message.
Wayne
Conviction
If a woman has not found her soul mate by age 30, she might as well give up! It is all very nice to talk about "not giving up early" as you do, when you are in a strong, loving, and respectful marriage.
Men have it easier. Men's idea of marriage is to have someone to abuse. They find a sweet, nice, gentle girl like I once was and expect her to just take it. Women are supposed to be so grateful some man, any man, would have them.
God does not in reality care about those of us who are heartsick.
Yvette
Yvette, for most people the good things in life don't happen until later. Our local newspaper publishes the age of people applying for marriage licenses. In today's paper, more than 60 percent of both the men and the women are over 30.
Tennyson wrote, "How dull it is to pause, to make an end, to rust unburnished, not to shine in use!" The aim of life, he said, is "to strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield."
Most of our problems come from the six inches between our ears. Once you believe something is true, it is true. For you. Paradoxically, we cannot change until we believe we can, and once we've changed, we won't need belief. We know it is true.
Tamara
About The Author
Authors and columnists Wayne and Tamara Mitchell can be reached at www.WayneAndTamara.com.
Send letters to: Direct Answers, PO Box 964, Springfield, MO 65801 or email: DirectAnswers@WayneAndTamara.com.
This is a true story about a woman I worked... Read More
Continued...After that I stayed with him still and when he... Read More
Direct Answers - Column for the week of November 25,... Read More
All of us recall special teachers - people who not... Read More
Direct Answers - Column for the week of April 26,... Read More
You have just completed a major work project before the... Read More
Direct Answers - Column for the week of December 1,... Read More
It's all in the mind- your mind.It's not brought about... Read More
The human brain is very much like a hard drive.... Read More
Some people dismiss dreams as nonsense, thought patterns running amuck... Read More
I am an Angel artist on a passionate spiritual journey... Read More
"The power of discovery enables us to achieve excellence without... Read More
I. ExpositionIn the movie "Shattered" (1991), Dan Merrick survives an... Read More
Have you ever been encountered with a trauma in life... Read More
I will persist until I succeed. Always will I take... Read More
I live in a beautiful place.This is the village of... Read More
We all assume that making choices is a simple process.... Read More
Experience has made a lot of folks to consider dreams... Read More
You've lost your job, that's all you know, and you... Read More
Here's the great challenge of life - You can have... Read More
1 Samuel 16:7"...The Lord does not look at the things... Read More
As small children, we were all wild. Not unlike the... Read More
In 1982, I found myself in Eden. What I found... Read More
I have an unexpected relationship problem. It's hard to believe... Read More
No, this isn't going to be a sermon or anything... Read More
1. We all have a purpose in this life time.The... Read More
Continued...About a year later I met my husband. I met... Read More
Direct Answers - Column for the week of September 8,... Read More
Here's a simple parable with an important moral.Each mirror, you... Read More
I have a question for you.Who are you?This may be... Read More
What could be nearer to us than our own selves.... Read More
Direct Answers - Column for the week of September 16,... Read More
Direct Answers - Column for the week of December 13,... Read More
"If you are pained by external things, it is not... Read More
The boogeyman lurking in the closet scares the bejesus out... Read More
Direct Answers - Column for the week of August 25,... Read More
Direct Answers - Column for the week of June 23,... Read More
Don't you just hate clichés like the one illustrated in... Read More
To every life, there is a purpose; a purpose of... Read More
Water is the source of life, yet so few of... Read More
At a recent seminar we were asked to imagine if... Read More
All of us recall special teachers - people who not... Read More
Great inspiring people have influenced people in every area of... Read More
Buddhists study nothing because they have found that you must... Read More
(excerpted from The Challenge to Succeed series)Two thousand years ago... Read More
Direct Answers - Column for the week of September 30,... Read More
I've spoken with many people who, over time, have felt... Read More
It is hard to capture the synchronicity of this next... Read More
You, my friend, are going to die.What? What kind of... Read More
Our community consists of powerful caretakers. We do a great... Read More
Direct Answers - Column for the week of February 17,... Read More
Last summer, I had an acute case of bronchitis. I... Read More
Boy, do I feel old. Or at least older.No, I... Read More
The other day I found myself frustrated with the slow... Read More
In the streets of Bogotá, a child - named Simon*... Read More
I find of particular interest in the Eastern Religions many... Read More
After more than thirty years of studying the Bible I... Read More
When all that you have done has not brought you... Read More
Life is perfect. If you have read these articles long... Read More
If you have read my articles or heard me speak,... Read More
Are you prepared to make your heart matter? Are you... Read More
Recently I approached a traffic light where a man stood... Read More
About fifteen years ago I was rummaging through some old... Read More
Direct Answers - Column for the week of September 23,... Read More
A LOST WORLD OF SOULWhen you hear the word 'divination',... Read More
At seventeen years old, I was a brat. A mixture... Read More
Inspirational |