MARRIAGE

When I got home that night as my wife served dinner, I held her hand and said, I've got something to tell you. She sat down and ate quietly. Again I observed the hurt in her eyes.

Suddenly I didn't know how to open my mouth. But I had to let her know what I was thinking. I want a divorce. I raised the topic calmly.

She didn't seem to be annoyed by my words, instead she asked me softly, why?

I avoided her question. This made her angry. She threw away the chopsticks and shouted at me, you are not a man! That night, we didn't talk to each other. She was weeping. I knew she wanted to find out what had happened to our marriage. But I could hardly give her a satisfactory answer; she had lost my heart to Jane. I didn't love her anymore. I just pitied her!

With a deep sense of guilt, I drafted a divorce agreement which stated that she could own our house, our car, and 30% stake of my company.

She glanced at it and then tore it into pieces. The woman who had spent ten years of her life with me had become a stranger. I felt sorry for her wasted time, resources and energy but I could not take back what I had said for I loved Jane so dearly. Finally she cried loudly in front of me, which was what I had expected to see. To me her cry was actually a kind of release. The idea of divorce which had obsessed me for several weeks seemed to be firmer and clearer now.

The next day, I came back home very late and found her writing something at the table. I didn't have supper but went straight to sleep and fell asleep very fast because I was tired after an eventful day with Jane.

When I woke up, she was still there at the table writing. I just did not care so I turned over and was asleep again.

In the morning she presented her divorce conditions: she didn't want anything from me, but needed a month's notice before the divorce. She requested that in that one month we both struggle to live as normal a life as possible. Her reasons were simple: our son had his exams in a month's time and she didn't want to disrupt him with our broken marriage.

This was agreeable to me. But she had something more, she asked me to recall how I had carried her into out bridal room on our wedding day.

She requested that every day for the month's duration I carry her out of our bedroom to the front door ever morning. I thought she was going crazy. Just to make our last days together bearable I accepted her odd request.

I told Jane about my wife's divorce conditions. . She laughed loudly and thought it was absurd. No matter what tricks she applies, she has to face the divorce, she said scornfully.

My wife and I hadn't had any body contact since my divorce intention was explicitly expressed. So when I carried her out on the first day, we both appeared clumsy. Our son clapped behind us, daddy is holding mommy in his arms. His words brought me a sense of pain. From the bedroom to the sitting room, then to the door, I walked over ten meters with her in my arms. She closed her eyes and said softly; don't tell our son about the divorce. I nodded, feeling somewhat upset. I put her down outside
the door. She went to wait for the bus to work. I drove alone to the office.

On the second day, both of us acted much more easily. She leaned on my chest. I could smell the fragrance of her blouse. I realized that I hadn't looked at this woman carefully for a long time. I realized she was not young any more. There were fine wrinkles on her face, her hair was graying! Our marriage had taken its toll on her. For a minute I wondered what I had done to her.

On the fourth day, when I lifted her up, I felt a sense of intimacy returning. This was the woman who had given ten years of her life to me.

On the fifth and sixth day, I realized that our sense of intimacy was growing again. I didn't tell Jane about this. It became easier to carry her as the month slipped by. Perhaps the everyday workout made me stronger.

She was choosing what to wear one morning. She tried on quite a few dresses but could not find a suitable one. Then she sighed, all my dresses have grown bigger. I suddenly realized that she had grown so thin, that was the reason why I could carry her more easily.

Suddenly it hit me... she had buried so much pain and bitterness in her heart. Subconsciously I reached out and touched her head.

Our son came in at the moment and said, Dad, it's time to carry mom out. To him, seeing his father carrying his mother out had become an essential part of his life. My wife gestured to our son to come closer and hugged him tightly. I turned my face away because I was afraid I might change my mind at this last minute. I then held her in my arms, walking from the bedroom, through the sitting room, to the hallway. Her hand surrounded my neck softly and naturally. I held her body tightly; it was just like our wedding day.

But her much lighter weight made me sad. On the last day, when I held her in my arms I could hardly move a step. Our son had gone to school. I held her tightly and said, I hadn't noticed that our life lacked intimacy.

I drove to office.... jumped out of the car swiftly without locking the door. I was afraid any delay would make me change my mind...I walked upstairs. Jane opened the door and I said to her, Sorry, Jane, I do not want the divorce anymore.

She looked at me, astonished, and then touched my forehead. Do you have a fever? She said. I moved her hand off my head. Sorry, Jane, I said, I won't divorce. My marriage life was boring probably because she and I didn't value the details of our lives, not because we didn't love each other anymore. Now I realize that since I carried her into my home on our wedding day I am supposed to hold her until death do us apart.

Jane seemed to suddenly wake up. She gave me a loud slap and then slammed the door and burst into tears. I walked downstairs and drove away.

At the floral shop on the way, I ordered a bouquet of flowers for my wife. The salesgirl asked me what to write on the card. I smiled and wrote, I'll carry you out every morning until death do us apart.

That evening I arrived home, flowers in my hands, a smile on my face, I run up stairs, only to find my wife in the bed - dead.

My wife had been fighting CANCER for months and I was so busy with Jane to even notice. She knew that she would die soon and she wanted to save me from the whatever negative reaction from our son, in case we push thru with the divorce.-- At least, in the eyes of our son--- I'm a loving husband....

The small details of your lives are what really matter in a relationship. It is not the mansion, the car, property, the money in the bank. These create an environment conducive for happiness but cannot give happiness in themselves. So find time to be your spouse's friend and do those little things for each other that build intimacy. Do have a real happy marriage!

Filial Piety: Father and Son (Eng subtitles)

Follow the journey of a young boy, as he sees first hand the importance of respecting, honouring, and loving his parents, through the best and the worst of times. The latest installment of National Family Council's Family campaign, Filial Piety: Father & Son revolves around the ups and downs of a three-generation household, with the heart and soul of the campaign captured by the line, "How one generation loves, the next generation learns."

Family

F A M I L Y

I ran into a stranger as he passed by,

'Oh excuse me please' was my reply.


He said, 'Please excuse me too;

I wasn't watching for you.'


We were very polite, this stranger and I.

We went on our way and we said goodbye.


But at home a different story is told,

How we treat our loved ones, young and old..


Later that day, cooking the evening meal,

My son stood beside me very still.


When I turned, I nearly knocked him down..

'Move out of the way,' I said with a frown...


He walked away, his little heart broken.

I didn't realize how harshly I'd spoken.


While I lay awake in bed, God's still small voice came to me and said,


'While dealing with a stranger,

common courtesy you use,

but the family you love, you seem to abuse.


Go and look on the kitchen floor,

You'll find some flowers there by the door.


Those are the flowers he brought for you.

He picked them himself: pink, yellow and blue.


He stood very quietly not to spoil the surprise,

you never saw the tears that filled his little eyes.'


By this time, I felt very small,

And now my tears began to fall.


I quietly went and knelt by his bed;

'Wake up, little one, wake up,' I said...


'Are these the flowers you picked for me?'

He smiled, 'I found 'em, out by the tree.


I picked 'em because they're pretty like you.

I knew you'd like 'em, especially the blue.'


I said, 'Son, I'm very sorry for the way I acted today;

I shouldn't have yelled at you that way.'

He said, 'Oh, Mom, that's okay.

I love you anyway.'


I said, 'Son, I love you too,

and I do like the flowers, especially the blue....'





FAMILY

Are you aware that if we died tomorrow, the company that we are working for could easily replace us in a matter of days.

But the family we left behind will feel the loss for the rest of their lives.

And come to think of it, we pour ourselves more into work than into our own family, an unwise investment indeed, don't you think?

So what is behind the story?


Do you know what the word FAMILY means?

FAMILY = (F)ATHER (A)ND (M)OTHER (I) (L)OVE (Y)OU

Eight Lies of a Mother

This story begins when I was a child: I was born poor. Often we hadn't enough to eat. Whenever we had some food, Mother often gave me her portion of rice. While she was transferring her rice into my bowl, she would say "Eat this rice, son! I'm not hungry."

This was Mother's First Lie.

As I grew, Mother gave up her spare time to fish in a river near our house; she hoped that from the fish she caught, she could give me a little bit more nutritious food for my growth. Once she had caught just two fish, she would make fish soup. While I was eating the soup, mother would sit beside me and eat the what was still left on the bone of the fish I had eaten, My heart was touched when I saw it. Once I gave the other fish to her on my chopstick but she immediately refused it and said, "Eat this fish, son! I don't really like fish."

This was Mother's Second Lie.

Then, in order to fund my education, Mother went to a Match Factory to bring home some used matchboxes, which she filled with fresh matchsticks. This helped her get some money to cover our needs. One wintry night I awoke to find Mother filling the matchboxes by candlelight. So I said, "Mother, go to sleep; it's late: you can continue working tomorrow morning." Mother smiled and said "Go to sleep, son! I'm not tired."

This was Mother's Third Lie.

When I had to sit my Final Examination, Mother accompanied me. After dawn, Mother waited for me for hours in the heat of the sun. When the bell rang, I ran to meet her.. Mother embraced me and poured me a glass of tea that she had prepared in a thermos. The tea was not as strong as my Mother's love, Seeing Mother covered with perspiration, I at once gave her my glass and asked her to drink too. Mother said "Drink, son! I'm not thirsty!".

This was Mother's Fourth Lie..

After Father's death, Mother had to play the role of a single parent. She held on to her former job; she had to fund our needs alone. Our family's life was more complicated. We suffered from starvation. Seeing our family's condition worsening, my kind Uncle who lived near my house came to help us solve our problems big and small. Our other neighbors saw that we were poverty stricken so they often advised my mother to marry again. But Mother refused to remarry saying "I don't need love."

This was Mother's Fifth Lie.

After I had finished my studies and gotten a job, it was time for my old Mother to retire but she carried on going to the market every morning just to sell a few vegetables. I kept sending her money but she was steadfast and even sent the money back to me. She said, "I have enough money."

That was Mother's Sixth Lie.

I continued my part-time studies for my Master's Degree. Funded by the American Corporation for which I worked, I succeeded in my studies. With a big jump in my salary, I decided to bring Mother to enjoy life in America but Mother didn't want to bother her son; she said to me "I'm not used to high living."

That was Mother's Seventh Lie.

In her dotage, Mother was attacked by cancer and had to be hospitalized. Now living far across the ocean, I went home to visit Mother who was bedridden after an operation. Mother tried to smile but I was heartbroken because she was so thin and feeble but Mother said, "Don't cry, son! I'm not in pain.."

That was Mother's Eighth Lie.

Telling me this, her eighth lie, she died. YES, MOTHER WAS AN ANGEL! M - O - T - H - E - R

"M" is for the Million things she gave me,
"O" means Only that she's growing old,
"T" is for the Tears she shed to save me,
"H" is for her Heart of gold,
"E" is for her Eyes with love-light shining in them,
"R" means Right, and right she'll always be,

Put them all together, they spell "MOTHER" a word that means the world to me.

My Wife Wants me to Date another Woman - in Chinese

當我們窮於應付生活所需之時是否也忽略了些什麼?!

很感人的一篇文章,分享給你!



我妻子要我和另一女人約會！

結婚了廿一年後，我發現了一種別出心裁的方法，可以讓愛的火花永保新鮮。

不久以前，我和另一位女士約會，其實那還是我妻子的主意，有一天她說：「我知道妳很愛她。」我很驚訝，立刻爭辯說：「但我愛的是妳呀！」「我知道，但你也愛她呀！」

我妻子要我去看的女士是我的母親。

她已經寡居了十九年，然而我忙碌的工作和身為二個孩子父親的責任，令我分身乏術，以致很少有時間和她相聚。

那晚，我打電話給她，邀約她第二天和我一起吃晚餐和看電影。

「怎麼了，你還好嗎？」她問道。

母親是那種會認為晚上那麼晚打電話，又突然邀約她，一定不會有什麼好事的人。

「我想如果有機會和妳單獨約會，一定很有意思。」我回答。

她想了一會兒，然後說：「我非常樂意。」

那個星期五下班以後，我開車去接她時，心裡有一點緊張，因為從未嚐試過這樣的約會。

當我到達她家時，我看她對這樣的約會，似乎也有一點緊張。

她在門內等著，身上穿著大衣，裡面那件禮服還是最後一次慶祝結婚紀念日所穿的呢！


她的頭髮還特意捲了一下，臉上的微笑像天使一般。

上了車後，她得意洋洋地說：「我告訴我的朋友，我要和我的兒子外出約會，他們都好羨慕，迫不及待要聽聽我們約會的情形。」

我們去一家雖不豪華，但十分雅致，溫暖舒適的餐廳。

我母親挽住我的臂彎，好像第一 夫人一般。

入座以後，我必須幫她看菜單點菜，因為她的眼睛現在只有大的字才看得見。

用餐一半時，我抬起頭來，看到母親正在凝視我，嘴角帶著懷舊的笑容說：「記得當你小時候，總是我為你看菜單的。」

「那現在妳正好可以休息，輪到我來為妳服務了。」我回答。

一面享用晚餐，我們一面聊天，聊得很愉快，談了許多最近幾年來，各自生命中的一些事。

我們聊得太久了，所以趕不上電影。當我送她回到家門口，她說「我要再和你一起外出 ，但下次讓我作東好嗎？」我答應了。

回家後，妻子問我：「你的晚餐約會如何？」

「非常有意思，比我想像的好多了！」 ~我回答。

幾天以後，母親因心臟病猝發而去世。這事發生得太突然了，讓我完全措手不及。

不久以後，我收到一封信，裡面是上次我和母親約會的那家餐館的一張收據，上面有一張字條寫著：「我已先付了賬，因為我確定自己不可能再有機會去了，但我還是付了兩人份的賬──你和你的妻子。你絕對想不到那一晚的約會對我有多大的意義，我愛你。」

從那一刻起，我深深體會，一定要及時說：「我愛你」，並且要常常撥出時間給我們所愛的人。

世上沒有任何事比自然如來因緣和你的家庭更重要，多花時間和他們在一起，因為這些事絕不能拖延到「以後有時間時間的時候」。

「樹欲靜而風不止，子欲養而親不待 」是人生一大憾事。

聖經&佛經不是也告訴我們嗎？

「凡事都不可虧欠人，惟有 懂得愛，要常以為虧欠，因為愛人的，就完全了律法或解脫了。」

Pork Chop

In a zoo in California, a mother tiger gave birth to a rare set of triplet tiger cubs. Unfortunately, due to complications in the pregnancy, the cubs were born prematurely and due to their tiny size, they died shortly after birth.

The mother tiger after recovering from the delivery, suddenly started to decline in health, although physically she was fine. The veterinarians felt that the loss of her litter had caused the tigress to fall into a depression. The doctors decided that if the tigress could surrogate another mother's cubs, perhaps she would improve.

After checking with many other zoos across the country, the depressing news was that there were no tiger cubs of the right age to introduce to the mourning mother. The veterinarians decided to try something that had never been tried in a zoo environment. Sometimes a mother of one species will take on the care of a different species. The only orphans' that could be found quickly, were a litter of weanling pigs.

The zoo keepers and vets wrapped the piglets in tiger skin and placed the babies around the mother tiger. Would they become cubs or pork chops?

Take a look...you won't believe your eyes!!





Now, please tell me one more time...
Why can't the rest of the world get along?

I'll love my mother till the day I die

My mom only had one eye. I hated her... she was such an embarrassment.
She cooked for students & teachers to support the family.

There was this one day during elementary school where my mom came to say
hello to me.

I was so embarrassed.

How could she do this to me?
I ignored her, threw her a hateful look and ran out.
The next day at school one of my classmates said, 'EEEE, your mom only has
one eye!'

I wanted to bury myself.
I also wanted my mom to just disappear.
I confronted her that day and said, ' If you're only goanna make me a
laughing stock, why don't you just die?'

My mom did not respond...
I didn't even stop to think for a second about what I had said, because I
was full of anger.
I was oblivious to her feelings.

I walked out of that house, and have nothing to do with her.
So I studied real hard, got a chance to go abroad to study.
Then, I got married.
I bought a house of my own.
I had kids of my own.
I was happy with my life, my kids and the comforts, Then one day, my
mother came to visit me.
She hadn't seen me in years and she didn't even meet her grandchildren.

When she stood by the door, my children laughed at her, and I yelled at
her for coming over uninvited.
I screamed at her, 'How dare you come to my house and scare my children!'
GET OUT OF HERE! NOW!!!'

And to this, my mother quietly answered, 'Oh, I'm so sorry. I may have
gotten the wrong address,' and she disappeared out of sight.
One day, a letter regarding a school reunion came to my house.

So I lied to my wife that I was going on a business trip.
After the reunion, I went to the old shack just out of curiosity.
My neighbours said that she died.
I did not shed a single tear.
They handed me a letter that she had wanted me to have.

'My dearest son,
I think of you all the time. I'm sorry that I came to your house and
scared your children.
I was so glad when I heard you were coming for the reunion.
But I may not be able to even get out of bed to see you.
I'm sorry that I was a constant embarrassment to you when you were
growing up.

You see........when you were very little, you got into an accident, and
lost your eye.
As a mother, I couldn't stand watching you
having to grow up with one eye.
So I gave you mine.
I was so proud of my son who was seeing a whole new world for me, in my
place, with that eye.

With all my love to you,
Your mother