>THE CARPENTER
>
>An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. He told his employer contractor
>of his plans to leave the house building business and live a more leisurely
>life with his wife enjoying his extended family. He would miss the
>paycheck, but he needed to retire. They could get by.
>
>The contractor was sorry to see his good worker go and asked if he could
>build just one more house as a personal favor. The carpenter said yes, but
>in time it was easy to see that his heart was not in his work. He resorted
>to shoddy workmanship and used inferior materials. It was an unfortunate
>way to end his career.
>
>When the carpenter finished his work and the builder came to inspect the
>house, the contractor handed the front door key to the carpenter. This is
>your house, he said, my gift to you. What a shock. What a shame. If he
>had only known he was building his own house, he would have done it all so
>differently. Now he had to live in the home he had built none too well.
>
>So it is with us. We build our lives in a distracted way, reacting rather
>than acting, willing to put up less than the best. At important points we
>do not give the job our best effort. Then with a shock we look at the
>situation we have created and find that we are now living in the house we
>have built.
>
>If we had realized that we would have done it differently.
>
>Think of yourself as the carpenter. Think about your house. Each day you
>hammer a nail, place a board, or erect a wall. Build wisely. It is the
>only life you will ever build. Even if you live it for only one day more,
>that day deserves to be lived graciously and with dignity.
>
>The plaque on the wall says, "life is a do-it-yourself project". Who could
>say it more clearly? Your life today is the result of your attitudes and
>choices in the past. Your life tomorrow will be the result of your
>attitudes, and the choices you make today.
*******************************************************************
Opinions, suggestions, and other controversial matter VOID where prohibited.
******************************************************************
Elaine T. Hunt, Director
Clemson University Laboratory to Advance Industrial Prototyping
206 Fluor Daniel Bldg. Clemson, SC 29643-0925
864-656-0321 (voice) 864-656-4435 (fax)
elaine.hunt@ces.clemson.edu
http://rafiki.vr.clemson.edu/credo/persall/persall.html
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