pray and release
Author and speaker Mary Lou Quinlan claims that her mother “inhaled a worry and exhaled a prayer.” She says this because her mother had a habit of writing down prayer requests and keeping them in a special place—her “God Box.” There was one rule related to these petitions. According to Mary, “If [anyone] ever worried about the request, Mom would say, ‘If you think you can handle it better than God, it’s coming out [of the box].’ ” This helped Mary and her family to let go of their concerns.
stay awake
A German bank employee was in the middle of transferring 62.40 euros from a customer’s bank account when he suddenly nodded off. His “power-nap” took place while his finger was still on the “2” key, resulting in a 222-million euro (300 million dollars US) transfer into the customer’s account. The sleepy state of the worker nearly became a nightmare for the bank, all because he wasn’t being alert.
burned
Pepperoni, fresh garlic, black olives. When I agreed to try my friend’s favorite pizza toppings, I had no idea they would smell so divine. The aroma prompted me to take two pieces. “It’s gonna be hot,” my friend said. Stupidly, I bypassed her warning and sunk my teeth into a steaming slice. You know what happened next. Lavalike cheese burned the top of my mouth, and the rest of the meal was spoiled because of my impatience.
Jesus, help!
My friend’s baby suffered brain damage during delivery. The doctors aren’t too optimistic. They think that even if the child survives, she won’t lead a normal life.
shameless persistence
It was supposed to be one of those in-and-out trips to the store—all I needed was laundry detergent. But then my daughter spotted some playthings for sale. She begged, “Can we look at the toys?” I responded with, “Maybe.” Then, she used a negotiation tactic popular with children—shameless persistence. “Mom, pleeeeease?” She kept up the requests until we finally ended up knee-deep in baby dolls and books.
cover-up
Historians weren’t sure if Reformer Huldrych Zwingli had been sexually promiscuous with the daughter of a prominent citizen. Misbehaving priests weren’t uncommon in the 16th century, yet such gossip seemed like something his Roman Catholic enemies might spread to discredit Zwingli.
