Inspirational Junk from Mrs. Murphy's English Class

"Everyone must leave something behind when he dies, my grandfather once said. A child or a book or a painting or a house or a pair of shoes made. Or a garden planted. Something your hand touched some way so your soul has somewhere to go when you die, planted, you're there. It doens't mater what you do, he said, so long as you change something from the way it was before you touched it into something that's like you after you take your hands away. The difference between the man who just cuts lawns and a real gardener is in the touching, he said. The lawn cutter might just as well not have been there at all; the gardener will be there a lifetime." (Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury, pg. 156-157)

I read this today and had to read it again... WOW! That's all I could say. Wow. Is that insightful or what?

I connected this quote to a scripture mastery and found that they were very strangely similar. It was a definate AHA moment!

Matthew 5:14-17 "Ye are te light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."

When I connected these together, I thought... gee. Do I hide my talents under a bushel? Have I touched something and left it better than it was before I touched it? Or do I need to step out of my bubble more and put the gifts that God has given me to better use? So..... here's my challenge. Read these, ponder them in your hearts, and make a commitment today to NOT hide your talents under a bushel. Touch something today, and leave it better, so that whomever sees it next will remember you for the good you did. Don't be afraid, make it your own. Don't conform to what others leave when they touch. You are your own, you are an individual, you are not anybody else but you, so make sure that you let the world know that you know that. Leave a mark on this world, for that is why we are here. I'll do it, will you?

~Jadyn Maree