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<P align=center>F A M I L Y </P>
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<P align=center>I ran into a stranger as he passed by, </P>
<P align=center>"Oh excuse me please" was my reply. </P>
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<P align=center></P>
<P align=center>He said, "Please excuse me too; </P>
<P align=center>I wasn't watching for you." </P>
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<P align=center>We were very polite, this stranger and I. </P>
<P align=center>We went on our way and we said good-bye. </P>
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<P align=center>But at home a different story is told, </P>
<P align=center>How we treat our loved ones, young and old. </P>
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<P align=center>Later that day, cooking the evening meal, </P>
<P align=center>My son stood beside me very still. </P>
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<P align=center>When I turned, I nearly knocked him down. </P>
<P align=center>"Move out of the way," I said with a frown. </P>
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<P align=center>He walked away, his little heart broken. </P>
<P align=center>I didn't realize how harshly I'd spoken. </P>
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<P align=center>While I lay awake in bed, </P>
<P align=center>God's still small voice came to me and said, </P>
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<P align=center>"While dealing with a stranger, </P>
<P align=center>common courtesy you use, </P>
<P align=center>but the family you love, you seem to abuse. </P>
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<P align=center>Go and look on the kitchen floor, </P>
<P align=center>You'll find some flowers there by the door. </P>
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<P align=center>Those are the flowers he brought for you. </P>
<P align=center>He picked them himself: pink, yellow and blue. </P>
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<P align=center>He stood very quietly not to spoil the surprise, </P>
<P align=center>you never saw the tears that filled his little eyes." </P>
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<P align=center>By this time, I felt very small, </P>
<P align=center>And now my tears began to fall. </P>
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<P align=center>I quietly went and knelt by his bed; </P>
<P align=center>"Wake up, little one, wake up," I said. </P>
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<P align=center>"Are these the flowers you picked for me?" </P>
<P align=center>He smiled, "I found 'em, out by the tree. </P>
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<P align=center>I picked 'em because they're pretty like you. </P>
<P align=center>I knew you'd like 'em, especially the blue." </P>
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<P align=center>I said, "Son, I'm very sorry for the way I acted today; </P>
<P align=center>I shouldn't have yelled at you that way." </P>
<P align=center>He said, "Oh, Mom, that's okay. </P>
<P align=center>I love you anyway." </P>
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<P align=center></P>
<P align=center>I said, "Son, I love you too, </P>
<P align=center>and I do like the flowers, especially the blue." </P>
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<P align=center>FAMILY </P>
<P align=center>Are you aware that if we died tomorrow, the company </P>
<P align=center>that we are working for could easily replace us in </P>
<P align=center>a matter of days. </P>
<P align=center>But the family we left behind will feel the loss </P>
<P align=center>for the rest of their lives. </P>
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<P align=center>And come to think of it, we pour ourselves more </P>
<P align=center>into work than into our own family, </P>
<P align=center>an unwise investment indeed, </P>
<P align=center>don't you think? </P>
<P align=center>So what is behind the story? </P>
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<P align=center></P>
<P align=center>Do you know what the word FAMILY means? </P>
<P align=center>FAMILY = (F)ATHER (A)ND (M)OTHER (I) (L)OVE (Y)OU </P></FONT> |
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