Weekend Reading

  Thanks to Sudharshan Reddy Balakrishna   Learn From Mistakes   Thomas Edison tried two thousand different materials in search of a filament for the light bulb. When none worked satisfactorily, his assistant complained, “All our work is in vain. We have learned nothing.”   Edison replied very confidently, “Oh, we have come a long way and we have learned a lot. We now know that there are two thousand elements which we cannot use to make a good light bulb.”    

  Thanks to Venkata Meesaala Giving and Receiving   A woman approached Sister DaVilla. It could be seen from the clothes she wore that she was very poor. She walked without shoes, and her feet were very dirty. On her head she carried a bowl of warm, perfumed water. Slowly, without saying anything, she removed the Sister's sandals and very carefully began wrapping the Sister's feet with perfumed cloth. She continued working for about half an hour, as a crowd gathered in the courtyard of the slum where she lived.   Indignant voices could be heard. "Why is she doing that? ""What a waste! The poorest among us caring for someone who should care for her instead!"" Is she crazy? What does she hope to accomplish?"" Sister DaVilla, don't you have anything to say?"   The Sister raised her hand to hush the crowd. She was known and respected in the slum, and had dedicated her life to the poor who lived there. "Let he...

  Thanks to Ranjan Jain No One Is Dealt A Perfect Hand   A young man was playing poker with six of his friends. Now this young man did not have a vast amount of money but wanted to play anyway so he threw a quarter of his money in the pot. When the dealer dealt his cards he noticed he had the worst possible hand - a high card. Since he had put a quarter of his money in the pot already, he reasoned that he would do what he could to come out victorious. This young man knew what he was doing and did not even glance at any of the other six players. When the opportunity arose to swap all of his cards he tactfully refused and kept his seemingly worthless hand. Now, when the time came to throw in more bets, this young man put in another quarter of his earnings. Because three of the other six observed that he never changed his cards, they assumed he had a great hand so they immediately folded and withdrew whilst the remaining three called and threw in some of their mon...

  Thanks to Kiran Shanmugam Chocolate Sings   One day I had a date for lunch with friends. Mae, a little old 'blue hair' about 80 years old, came along with them---All in all, a pleasant bunch. When the menus were presented, we ordered salads, sandwiches, and soups, except for Mae who said, 'Ice Cream, please. Two scoops, of chocolate.'   I wasn't sure my ears heard right, and the others were aghast. 'Along with heated apple pie,' Mae added; completely unabashed. We tried to act quite nonchalant, as if people did this all the time. But when our orders were brought out, I didn't enjoy mine.. I couldn't take my eyes off Mae as her pie a-la-mode went down. The other ladies showed dismay. They ate their lunches silently and frowned.   The next time I went out to eat, I called and invited Mae. I lunched on white meat tuna. She ordered a parfait! I smiled. She asked if she amused me. I answered, 'Yes, you do, but also you confuse me. ...