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Our Weekly
Letter
Previous Weekly
Letters
Hello there
We are in a whirlwind of contest season and finished our two State Championships
in Texas this past weekend......Lone Star Sr State in Austin and Jr State in
McKinney along with the North Texas Sr Regionals as well. Wow!! Did
we see some great teams!! Check out the winners at our web site: Contest
Results
We are off today to Florida for the Big Red Boat Cruise as well as our
competition in Cocoa Beach. I will also be able to judge at the Contest of
Champions in Orlando and I am elated to get to see teams from around the country
.
Part of our staff will be presenting the Midwest Dance and Pom Championship in
Ponca City, Oklahoma this weekend. There will be teams from Oklahoma
and Kansas there.
The Line Online is only a week away from it's debut.....we will keep you posted.
A long time friend that is an Iowa transplant and
former drill team director sent me the Five
Lessons below. We can all learn from them today. Have a great
week and as always....please stay in touch!
Joyce E. Pennington, Pres. CEO
American Dance/Drill Team
and the ADTS office staff
FIVE GREAT LESSONS:
Some Important Lessons Life Teaches You. (As told
by another person.)
Most Important Lesson: Everyone Counts
During my second month of nursing school, our professor gave us a pop quiz.
I was a conscientious student and had breezed through the questions, until I
read the last one: "What is the first name of the woman who
cleans the school?"
Surely this was some kind of joke. I had seen the cleaning woman several times.
She was tall, dark-haired and in her 50s, but how would I know her name? I
handed in my paper, leaving the last question blank. Just before class ended,
one student asked if the last question would count toward our quiz grade.
"Absolutely," said the professor. "In your careers, you
will meet many people. All are significant.
They deserve your attention and care, even if all you do is smile and say
'hello'. I've never forgotten that lesson. I also learned her name was
Dorothy.
Second Important Lesson: Pickup in the Rain
One night, at 11:30 PM, an older African American woman was standing on the side
of an Alabama highway trying to endure a lashing rain storm. Her car had
broken down and she desperately needed a ride. Soaking wet, she decided to
flag down the next car. A young white man stopped to help her, generally
unheard of in those conflict-filled 1960s. The man took her to safety,
helped her get assistance and put her into a taxicab. She seemed to be in
a big hurry, but wrote down his address and thanked him. Seven days went
by and a knock came on the man's door. To his surprise, a giant console
color TV was delivered to his home. A special note was attached. It
read: "Thank you so much for assisting me on the highway the other night.
The rain drenched not only my clothes, but also my spirits. Then you came along.
Because of you, I was able to make it to my dying husband's bedside just before
he passed away. God bless you for helping me and unselfishly serving
others."
Sincerely,
Mrs. Nat King Cole
Third Important Lesson: Always remember
those who serve you.
In the days when an ice cream sundae cost much less, a
10 year- old boy entered a hotel coffee shop and sat at a table. A
waitress put a glass of water in front of him. "How much is an ice
cream sundae?" he asked. "Fifty cents," replied the waitress. The
little boy pulled his hand out of his pocket and studied the coins in it.
"Well, how much is a plain dish of ice cream?" he inquired. By
now more people were waiting for a table and the waitress was growing impatient.
"Thirty-five cents," she brusquely replied." The little boy again
counted his coins. "I'll have the plain ice cream," he said. The
waitress brought the ice cream, put the bill on the table and walked away.
The boy finished the ice cream, paid the cashier and left. When the waitress
came back, she began to cry as she wiped down the table. There, placed neatly
beside the empty dish, were two nickels and five pennies. You see, he couldn't
have the sundae, because he had to have enough left to leave her a tip.
Fourth Important Lesson: The Obstacle in Our
Path
In ancient times, a king had a boulder placed on a roadway. Then he
hid himself and watched to see if anyone would remove the huge rock. Some of the
king's wealthiest merchants and courtiers came by and simply walked around it.
Many loudly blamed the king for not keeping the roads clear, but none did
anything about getting the stone out of the way. Then a peasant came
along carrying a load of vegetables. Upon approaching the boulder, the peasant
laid down his burden and tried to move the stone to the side of the road.
After much pushing and straining, he finally succeeded. After the peasant picked
up his load of vegetables, he noticed a purse lying in the road where the
boulder had been. The purse contained many gold coins and a note from the
king indicating that the gold was for the person who removed the boulder from
the roadway. The peasant learned what many of us never understand. Every
obstacle presents an opportunity to improve our condition.
Fifth Important Lesson: Giving When It Counts (this
one really got tome)
Many years ago, when I worked as a volunteer at a hospital, I got to know a
little girl named Liz who was suffering from a rare and serious disease. Her
only chance of recovery appeared to be a blood transfusion from her 5-year old
brother, who had miraculously survived the same disease and had developed the
antibodies needed to combat the illness. The doctor explained the situation to
her little brother, and asked the little boy if he would be willing to give his
blood to his sister. I saw him hesitate for only a moment before taking a
deep breath and saying, "Yes, I'll do it if it will save her."
As the transfusion progressed, he lay in bed next to his sister and smiled, as
we all did, seeing the color returning to her cheeks. Then his face grew
pale and his smile faded. He looked up at the doctor and asked with a
trembling voice, "Will I start to die right away?" Being young, the little boy had misunderstood the doctor; he thought he was going to have to give
his sister all of his blood in order to save her. You see understanding
and attitude, after all, is everything.
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