人生处世的金石良言

(Courtesy of forwarded mail from Yong Yew Khoon)

Are You Jesus?

(Author Unknown)

A few years ago, a group of salesmen went to a regional sales convention in Chicago. They had assured their wives that they would be home in plenty of time for Friday night's dinner.

In their rush, with tickets and briefcases, one of these salesmen inadvertently kicked over a table which held a display of baskets of apples. Apples flew everywhere.

Without stopping or looking back, they all managed to reach the plane in time for their nearly missed boarding. All but one.

He paused, took a deep breath, got in touch with his feelings, and experienced a twinge of compassion for the girl whose apple stand had been overturned. He told his buddies to go on without him, waved goodbye, told one of them to call his wife when they arrived at their home destination, and explain his taking a later flight. Then he returned to the terminal where the apples were all over the terminal floor.

He was glad he did. The 16-year-old girl was totally blind! She was softly crying, tears running down her cheeks in frustration and, at the same time, helplessly groping for her spilled produce as the crowd swirled about her, no one stopping, and no one to care for her plight.

The salesman knelt on the floor with her, gathered up the apples, put them into the baskets, and helped set the display up once more. As he did this, he noted that many of them had become battered and bruised; these he set aside in another basket. When he had finished, he pulled out his wallet and said to the girl, "Here, please take this $20 for the damage we did. Are you okay?"

She nodded through her tears. He continued with, "I hope we didn't spoil your day too badly."

As the salesman started to walk away, the bewildered blind girl called out to him, "Mister...." He paused and turned to look back into those blind eyes. She continued, "Are you Jesus?"

He stopped in mid stride, and he wondered. Then slowly he made his way to catch the later flight with that question burning and bouncing about in his soul: "Are you Jesus?"

Do people mistake you for Jesus? That's our destiny, is it not? To be so much like Jesus that people cannot tell the difference as we live and interact with a world that is blind to His love, life, and grace.

If we claim to know Him, we should live, walk, and act as He would. Knowing Him is more than simply quoting Scripture and going to church. It's actually living the Word as life unfolds day to day.

You are the apple of His eye even though we, too, have been bruised by a fall. He stopped what He was doing and picked you and me up on a hill called Calvary and paid in full for our damaged fruit. Let us live like we are worth the price He paid.

Makes you think, doesn't it?

(Courtesy of forwarded mail from Alan Leo)

苏轼佚事十则

1、反唇相讥
.

相传，苏东坡一次与王安石同行，偶见一房子根基已动，一面墙向东倾斜。王安石出上句以戏东坡：“此墙东坡斜矣！”

苏东坡仰头大笑，即吟下联反讥王安石：“是置安石过也！”

嵌名为巧，双关尤妙。

(注:二人政见不同,关系不是很好)

2、针锋相对

苏东坡被贬黄州后，一居数年。一天傍晚，他和好友佛印和尚泛舟长江。正举杯畅饮间，苏东坡忽然用手往江岸一指，笑而不语。

佛印顺势望去，只见一条黄狗正在啃骨头，顿有所悟，随将自己手中题有苏东坡诗句的扇子抛入水中。两人面面相觑，不禁大笑起来。

原来，这是一副哑联。苏东坡的上联是：狗啃河上（和尚）骨。佛印的下联是：水流东坡尸（东坡诗）。

3、投石引诗

秦少游娶苏小妹时，被一难再难，及至新房门口，苏小妹再出一联：闭门推出窗前月。

秦观思索良久不得下联，苏东坡有心相帮，在远处拾一石子远远丢进湖中，秦少游受到启发，冲口而出：投石冲开水底天。

4、年少轻狂

苏轼年少时，天资聪颖，他广泛阅读诗书，博通经史，又长于作文，因而受到人们的赞赏，自矜之情亦随之而萌。一日，苏轼于门前手书一联：“识遍天下字；读尽人间书。”“尽”与“遍”对，活画出苏轼当时的自傲之心。

没料到，几天之后，一鹤发童颜老者专程来苏宅向苏轼“求教”，他请苏轼认一认他带来的书。苏轼满不在乎，接过一看，心中顿时发怔，书上的字一个也不认识；心高气傲的苏轼亦不免为之汗颜，只好连连向老者道不是，老者含笑飘然而去。

苏轼羞愧难当，跑到门前，在那副对联上各添上两字，境界为之一新，乡邻皆刮目：“发愤识遍天下字；立志读尽人间书。”

5、寺态炎凉

苏东坡游莫干山时到一寺中小坐。寺中主持和尚见来了个陌生人，就淡谈地说：“坐。”又对小和尚喊：“茶。”

两人落坐交谈后，主持和尚发现对方脱口珠玑，料想此人不凡，就请客人进厢房叙谈。入室后，主持和尚客气地说；“请坐!”又叫小和尚：“敬茶!”

再一打听，方知来者是赫赫有名的苏东坡，主持和尚连忙作揖打恭地引他进客厅，连声地说：“请上坐!”并吩咐小和尚：“敬香茶!”

苏东坡临走时，主持和尚请他题副对联。苏东坡胸有成竹，含笑挥毫，顷刻书就： 坐，请坐，请上坐; 茶，敬茶，敬香茶。

6、少游犯难

一天，苏东坡和妹夫秦少游出城到郊外游玩，见小路上有个用三块石头垒起的“磊桥”。苏东坡用脚踢了一下石桥，同声吟出一句上联：踢破磊桥三块石。

他回头看看秦少游，要他对出下联。秦少游想了很久也没对出下联，回到家里闷闷不乐。苏小妹看丈夫一脸不悦之色，只道是出了什么事，一问才知是为了一句对联。她二话没说，就在一张纸上写了个“出”字，同时用剪刀剪成两段。

秦少游眼睛一亮，道出下联：剪断出字两重山。

7、巧退豪门

据说，苏小妹为了找到如意郎君，曾以文选婿。当时消息一传出，呈文求婚者不计其数。其中有一豪门公子叫方若虚，他对小妹倾慕已久，闻讯后连忙应选。他呈上得意诗文若干篇，谁知小妹一看，淡如白水，便提笔在上面批了一联：笔底才华少，胸中韬略无。

苏东坡看到小妹的对联，可急坏了。方府豪门是得罪不起的，为了避免是非，便悄悄在小妹的联语后面各添一个字，把对联改成：笔底才华少有，胸中韬略无穷。

方若虚读后真是欣喜若狂，他急于要见苏小妹以表衷肠。

苏东坡知道小妹根本看不上他，生怕玩笑开大了不好收场，急忙托故阻止，说：“我妹妹文才是有些，但其貌不扬，脸长，额突，不信我给你念首诗便知：去年一滴相思泪，至今流不到腮边。未出房门三五步，额头先到画堂前。"

方若虚怎知是苏东坡在骗自己，还真以为苏小妹很丑，于是怏怏地走了。

8、月下花前

一日，苏洵来到后花园内，只见山石间流过一泓淙淙碧水，微风中送来阵阵花香。红日西下，绿树掩映，一弯新月挂在半天之上。

这位老先生顿时诗兴大发，忙唤来苏轼和小妹，三人拂石而坐，苏洵说道：“如此佳境，不可无诗。如今老夫拈出‘冷’、‘香’二字，我们各自吟出两句诗来，且要将此二字依次作为上下句的末字，吾儿以为如何？”

兄妹一起应道：“父亲说得好。”

苏洵见儿女一起应允，十分高兴，首先吟出两句诗来：水向石边流出冷，风从花间过来香。
苏轼一向以诗词著称，听了父亲的诗句，以为过平过俗，不以为佳。谁知正当他沉吟之际，调皮的小妹却开口道：“兄长平日作诗，思路何等敏捷，想当初嘲弄小妹额角长得高，那‘未出庭前三五步，额头先到画堂前’的诗句，得来何等迅速，今日缘何思路闭塞？”

苏东坡一听，知道小妹又在调皮了，只是微微一笑，便吟出两句诗来：拂石坐来衣带冷，踏花归去马蹄香。

这苏小妹诗词歌赋、琴棋书画无不精妙，听了父兄的诗句，两相比较，觉得还是哥哥的略高一筹。心中寻思道：“长兄的诗句好则好，但嫌欠雅。”小妹略加沉思，恰好远处传来杜鹃的啼鸣，她闻声生情，也信口因此两句诗来：叫月杜鹃喉舌冷，宿花蝴蝶梦魂香。

小妹诗句刚吟出，父兄不禁齐声赞好。

9、绝妙字谜

苏东坡被贬岭南为官，一日无事游山，只见一个小和尚跪在庙门口眼泪汪汪，十分奇怪，忙问小和尚因何如此？

小和尚哭诉道，因为他在点灯时不小心将灯盏碰翻在地，打碎了。老和尚不但打了他，还罚跪庙门口三日。

苏东坡一听很气愤，便走入庙内去见方丈。庙中的方丈一听说是当朝才子苏学士来访，喜出望外。

苏东坡一进庙门，那老和尚就百般奉承，死乞白赖地央求苏东坡留个手迹。苏东坡对这个方丈十分憎恶，但为了使庙门口那个小和尚不再受苦，他答应了老和尚的请求，说：“写字可以，但必须请庙门口那个跪着的小和尚前来为我磨墨展纸。”

老和尚一听，立刻满脸堆笑，连声答应说：“阿弥陀佛，老纳遵从吩咐。”

小和尚磨好墨，展开纸，苏东坡奋笔疾书，一幅对联一挥而就：一夕化身人归去，八千凡夫一点无。

时隔不久，佛印云游来到此山，见了对联捧腹大笑，问老和尚：“这幅对联原是两个字谜，你没猜出来吗？”

老和尚连忙追问是什么意思，佛印要过纸笔，挥毫写了两个字，拂袖而去。（一夕匕=死，八千几=秃。）

10、苏妹妙对

一天，苏东坡对苏小妹说：“都说你才智不凡，你要是能在一夜对好我出的对子，我就佩服你。”

苏小妹笑答：“何须一个晚上。”

苏东坡看她满有把握，就说出他的上联：水仙子持碧玉簪，风前吹出声声慢。

苏小妹听罢，暗称难度大，竟一时对不起。过了一会，她见月光下一个丫环端来茶水，触景生对： 虞美人穿红绣鞋，月下引来步步娇。

东坡听了妹妹对的下联，连声赞妙。这副对联恰到好处地嵌入“水仙子”、“虞美人”、“碧玉簪”、“红绣鞋”、“声声慢”、“步步娇”六个曲牌名，而且用拟人手法赋予具体形象，出对巧，应对更妙。

.

(Courtesy of forwarded mail from Josephine Wong)

Tagore's Poem

A beautiful poem of Rabindranath Tagore - A Nobel laureate Poet

The Window

(Courtesy of forwarded mail from Josephine Wong)

5 Rules to Happiness 快乐五大常规

(Courtesy of forwarded mail from Chan Chun Mun)