A 5th Portion of Chicken Soup for the Soul: More Stories to Open the Heart and Rekindle the Spirit

by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen

Overview

This treasury is a tribute to life and humanity, with topics ranging the entire emotional and experiential gamut. The nature of the stories invites you to enjoy Chicken Soup in whatever way you find most comforting - by the spoonful, by the bowl, or the whole pot in one sitting.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781453280089
Publisher:	Chicken Soup for the Soul
Publication date:	09/04/2012
Series:	Chicken Soup for the Soul Series
Sold by:	SIMON & SCHUSTER
Format:	eBook
Pages:	352
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Jack Canfield is cocreator of the Chicken Soup for the Soul® series, which includes forty New York Times bestsellers, and coauthor of The Success Principles: How to Get from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be. He is a leader in the field of personal transformation and peak performance and is currently CEO of the Canfield Training Group and Founder and Chairman of the Board of The Foundation for Self-Esteem. An internationally renowned corporate trainer and keynote speaker, he lives in Santa Barbara, California.
Jack Canfield is co-creator of the Chicken Soup for the Soul® series, which includes forty New York Times bestsellers, and coauthor of The Success Principles: How to Get from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be. He is a leader in the field of personal transformation and peak performance and is currently CEO of the Canfield Training Group and Founder and Chairman of the Board of The Foundation for Self-Esteem. An internationally renowned corporate trainer and keynote speaker, he lives in Santa Barbara, California.
 Mark Victor Hansen is a co-founder of Chicken Soup for the Soul.

Hometown:

Santa Barbara, California

Date of Birth:

August 19, 1944

Place of Birth:

Fort Worth, Texas

Education:

B.A. in History, Harvard University, 1966; M.A.T. Program, University of Chicago, 1968; M.Ed., U. of Massachusetts, 1973

Website:

http://www.jackcanfield.com

Read an Excerpt

Love That Lasts

Annette Paxman Bowen

Submitted by Sandra Dow Mapula

I have a friend who is falling in love. She honestly claims that the sky is bluer; she's noticed the delicate fragrance of the lilacs beside her garage, though she previously walked past them without stopping; and Mozart moves her to tears. In short, life has never been so exciting.

ôI'm young again!ö she shouts exuberantly. I have to admit, the guy must be better than Weight Watchers. She has lost fifteen pounds and looks like a cover girl. She's taken a new interest in the shape of her thighs.

As my friend raves on about her new love, I've taken a good look at my old one. My hubby, Scott, hasn't yet had his mid-life crisis, but he's entitled to one. His hairline is receding. He's gained fifteen pounds. Once a marathon runner, all muscles and sinew, he now only runs down hospital halls. His body shows the signs of long work hours and too many candy bars. Yet, he can still give me a certain look across a restaurant table, and I want to ask for the check immediately and head for home.

My natural glow has dimmed a bit after twenty-five years. I can look pretty good when I have to, but I don't think twice about hanging around the house in my baggy sweat pants, old softball jersey and my husband's gray wool socks.

My friend asked me, ôWhat will make this love last?ö I told her the truth: ôI don't know.ö Then she asked, ôWhy does your love last?ö I told her I'd think about it.

I've run through all the obvious reasons: commitment, shared interests, unselfishness, physical attraction, the ability to communicate. Yet, there'smore.

We still have fun. Spontaneous good times. Yesterday, after slipping the rubber band off the rolled-up newspaper, he flipped it playfully at me: this led to all-out war. Last Saturday, while at the grocery store, we split the list and then raced each other to see who could gather the required items and make it to the check-out stand first. We've made an art form out of our prepared gourmet dinners. Even washing dishes together can be a blast. We enjoy simply being together. And there are surprises: surprises in daily living.

One time I came home from work to find a note on the front door. This note led me to another note, then to another, until--many notes later--I was directed to the walk-in closet. I opened the door to find Scott holding a "pot of gold" (my cooking kettle) and the "treasure" of a gift package. He had been jumping back in the closet for an hour, every time he heard footsteps on the stairs. Ever since then, I often leave him notes on the mirror or slip little presents under his pillow.

There is understanding. I understand why he must play basketball with the guys regularly. And he understands why, about once a year, I must get away from the house, the phone, the kids--and even him--to meet my sisters somewhere for a few days of nonstop talking and laughing.
There is a lot of sharing. Not only do we share the bills, the household worries, the parental burdens and the cooking, we also share ideas.

Scott came home from a medical convention last month and presented me with a copy of a thick historical novel. Then he touched my heart by telling me he had read the book on the plane. This confession comes from a man who loves science fiction and Tom Clancy thrillers. He read it because he wanted to be able to share ideas about the book after I'd read it.

There is comfort. It's the comfort in knowing that I can tell the waitress waiting for our dessert order, "Just bring me a fork. I'll have a bit of his." I know that one bit is allowed. If Scott really wants every single bit of his dessert to himself, I know he will say, "Sorry, order your own!" And if he's not up to sharing, I'm not offended.

There is blessed forgiveness. When I'm too loud and crazy at parties and have embarrassed us both by not knowing when to shut up, Scott forgives me. He knows I can't resist a good one-liner. I forgave him when he came home and confessed he'd lost some of our investment savings in the stock market. I gave him a hug and bravely said, "It's okay. It's only money."

There is "synergism." That is, we can produce something that is greater than the two of us. (Take, for instance, our kids.) When we put our heads together to identify a problem and all the possible solutions, sometimes we're absolutely, as a team, nothing short of brilliant.

There is sensitivity. I know not to jump all over him for being late when he comes home from the hospital with a certain look in his eyes; I can see that it's been a tough day. Last week, he walked through the door with that look. After he'd spent some time with the kids and had eaten his warmed-up dinner, I asked, "What happened?" He told me about a sixty-year-old woman who had a stroke.
He'd worked with her for hours, but she was still in a coma. When he'd returned to her hospital room to check on her, he had been moved to tears by the sight of the woman's husband standing beside her bed, stroking her hand. Scott wept again as he told me he didn't think the woman would survive. And how was he going to tell this husband of forty years that his wife would probably never recover?

I shed a few tears myself. Because of the medical crisis. Because there are still people who have been married for forty years. Because my husband is still moved and concerned, even after twenty-five years of hospital rooms and dying patients.

There is faith. We both know that God loves us; and that, though life is difficult, He will strengthen and help us. Last week, Scott was on call and already overloaded by the necessary extra hours he spent at the hospital. On Tuesday night, a good friend from church came over and tearfully confessed her fears that her husband, who has cancer, is losing his courageous battle. We did our best to comfort and advise her.

On Wednesday, I went to lunch with a friend who is struggling to reshape her life after her husband left her. Together, we talked, laughed, got angry and figured out the blessings she could still count. On Thursday, a neighbor called who needed to talk about the frightening effects of Alzheimer's disease, because it was changing her father-in-law's personality.

On Friday, my dearest childhood friend called long-distance to break the sad news that her father had died. After a minute, I hung up the phone and thought, "This is too much pain and heartache for one week." After saying a prayer, I descended the stairs to run some necessary errands. Through my tears, I noticed the boisterous orange blossoms of the gladiolus outside my window, I heard the delighted laughter of my son and his friend as they created Lego spaceships in our basement. After backing my van out of my driveway, I caught sight of three brilliantly colored hot air balloons floating in the distant turquoise sky. Moments later, I looked left just in time to see a wedding party emerge from a neighbor's house. The bride, dressed in satin and lace, tossed her bouquet to her cheering friends.

That night, as I told my husband about these events, we acknowledged the cycles of life and the joys that counter the sorrows. We also recognized the satisfaction we felt when we assisted people with the weight of their burdens. It was enough to keep us going.

Finally, there is knowing. I know Scott will throw his laundry just shy of the hamper every night; he'll be perennially late to most appointments; he'll leave the newspaper scattered across the floor three out of five times; and he'll eat the last chocolate in the box. He knows I sleep with a pillow over my head; I'll lock us out of the house or the car on a regular basis; I'll have a pre-trip fit before we leave on vacation; and I will also eat the last chocolate in the box.

I guess our love lasts because it's comfortable. No, the sky is not bluer--it's just a familiar hue. We're not noticing many new things about life nor each other, but we like what we've noticed and benefit from relearning. Music is still meaningful because we know the harmonies. We don't feel particularly young. We've experienced too much that's contributed to growth and wisdom, taken its toll on our bodies, and created our mixed bag of treasured memories.

I hope we've got what it takes to make our love last. As a naive bride, I had Scott's wedding band engraved with this Robert Browning line: Grow old along with me!" We're following those instructions.

___________________________

¬ 1998 Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen

All rights reserved. Reprinted with permission of Health Communications, Inc. from A 5th Portion of Chicken Soup for the Soul.

Table of Contents

Introduction xi

From a Previous Reader xiii

1 On Love

The Seed Jar Dee Berry 2

Mr. Gillespie Angela Sturgill 6

Night Watch Roy Popkin 8

Turn Back Tom Clancy 10

The Little Red Wagon Bonita L. Anticola 22

John Terry O'Neal 24

Does God Care About Lost Dogs? Marion Bond West 28

Rufus Carmen Rutlen 33

One Wing and a Prayer Penny Porter 35

Nonny Eva Unga 42

The Light Was On James C. Brown 46

Scarecrow Penny Porter 49

Best Friends Forever Louise Ladd 54

The Giving Trees Kathleen Dixon 58

An Elf's Tale Tyree Dillingham 60

The Beloved James C. Brown 65

Ben and Virginia Gwyn Williams 68

Don't Hope, Friend … Decide! Michael Hargrove 72

Love That Lasts Annette Paxman Bowen 75

The Beauty of Love Anonymous 81

The Decade Diary: A Love Story Henry Matthew Ward 82

A Gift-Wrapped Memory Dorothy DuNard 87

A Tribute to Gramps Dana O'Connor Melissa Levin 91

The Canarsie Rose Mike Lipstock 94

2 On Parents and Parenting

The Pitcher Beth Mullally 100

Hall of Fame Dad Ben Fanton 104

The Puzzle Jerry Gale 113

My Dad's Hands David Kettler 117

One Small Stone, Unforgotten Marsha Arons 119

Sending Kids Off to School Susan Union 124

Let's Go Bug Hunting More Often Barbara Chesser 129

A Mother's Day Review Paula (Bachleda) Koskey 131

What I Want Edgar Guest 135

My Dad Brenda Gallardo 136

Father's Day Sherry Miller 140

A Lesson from My Son Kathleen Beaulieu 142

Blessed Are the Pure in Heart Gwen Belson Taylor 145

Slender Thread Karen Cogan 147

Neither Have I Rochelle M. Pennington 151

The Thing About Goldfish Marsha Arons 156

3 On Teaching and Learning

Drop Earrings Nancy Sullivan Geng 160

Thank You for Changing My Life Randy Loyd Mills 166

When Children Learn David L. Weatherford 169

Academic Excellence Begins with a '51 Studebaker Terry A. Savoie 172

The Second Mile John F. Flanagan Jr. 180

Do You Disciple? Christine Pisera Naman 185

It's a House … It's a Cow … It's Ms. Burk! April Burk 187

What Color Are You? Melissa D. Strong Eastham 191

4 On Death and Dying

To Those I Love Anonymous 196

Tommy's Shoes Samuel P. Clark 197

Broken Days Mary Beth Danielson 201

Every Loss Is a Mini-Death Carol O'Connor 205

The Funeral Marsha Arons 207

Karen, Do You Know Him? James C. Brown 211

The Horizon Anonymous 216

Keeping the Connection Patricia Chasse 218

Love Letters Kevin Luinsdon 220

Crying's Okay Kirk Hill 222

A Blanket for a Friend Colleen Keefe Shauna Dickey 227

When No Words Seem Appropriate Written by a pediatric nurse, submitted to Ann Landers 229

The Rose with No Thorns Eva Harding 231

The Butterfly Gift Wayne Cotton 236

5 A Matter of Perspective

Action Hero Rulon Openshaw 240

Who Was That Masked Man? Robert R Thomas 243

In a Cathedral of Fence Posts and Harleys Reverend Neil Parker 246

Department Store Angel Priscilla Stenger 249

"Hey Nurse … Thanks" Jacqueline Zabresky, R.N. 254

The Little Black Box Deborah Roberto McDonald 258

Dinner Out Duke Raymond 261

Home vs. Visitors S. Turkaly 263

The Power of a Promise Dianne Demarcke 266

The Crooked Smile James C. Brown 270

The Most Beautiful Flower Cheryl L. Costello-Forshey 272

6 Overcoming Obstacles

Rodeo Joe James C. Brown 276

No Excuses Good Enough Sharon Whitley 281

Consider This Jack Canfield Mark Victor Hansen 285

The Miracle of Love Tim Jordan 290

Medically Impossible John M. Briley 293

One Step at a Time Jerry Sullivan 297

A Mother's Search Sharon Whitley 300

The Purpose Diana Chapman 304

Soccer Balls and Violins James C. Brown 308

A Father's Calling Sharon Whitley 311

A Turning Point Adeline Perkins 314

A Match Made in Heaven James C. Brown 316

Puppy Love Mark Malott as told to Diana Chapman 320

Giant in the Crowd Jack Schlatter 323

7 Eclectic Wisdom

The Best Time of My Life Joe Kemp 328

Josh and His Jag Josh 330

Grass John Doll 332

A Good Heart to Lean On Augustus J. Bullock 336

The Golden Rule Various Authors 339

The Train Ride David Murcott 341

True Forgiveness Jerry Harpt 345

Spelling Bee God's Little Devotional Book for Students 347

Grandpa's Little Girl Darlene Harrison 349

Lessons You Learned Marlene Gerba 351

Who Is Jack Canfield? 352

Who Is Mark Victor Hansen? 353

Contributors 354

Permissions 364