DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SCHOOL AND LIFE

By Diane Forrest

I remember once getting an email about a speech given by Bill Gates at a High School graduation ceremony.  It went like this:

Rule 1: Life is not fair -- get used to it!

Rule 2: The world won't care about your self-esteem. The world will expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself.

Rule 3: You will NOT make $60,000 a year right out of high school. You won't be a vice-president with a car phone until you earn both.

Rule 4: If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss.

Rule 5: Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your Grandparents had a different word for burger flipping -- they called it opportunity.

Rule 6: If you mess up, it's not your parents' fault, so don't whine about your mistakes, learn from them.

Rule 7: Before you were born, your parents weren't as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you thought you are. So before you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parent's generation, try delousing the closet in your own room.

Rule 8: Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life HAS NOT. In some schools they have abolished failing grades and they'll give you as MANY TIMES as you want to get the right answer. This doesn't bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.

Rule 9: Life is not divided into semesters. You don't get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you FIND YOURSELF. Do that on your own time.

Rule 10: Television is NOT real life. In real life people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.

Rule 11: Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one.

Later I learned that Bill Gates is not responsible for this, however the context is still beneficial no matter who said it.  When I was in school one of my favorite things was grading on the curve.  That meant that my grades would be higher and my parents would be happier with me.  It took me a while to realize that my teacher wasn’t doing me any favors.  Making my grades higher didn't make me any smarter, and didn't teach me any more.

These days I try to learn something new every day.  When I was younger I thought I had all the answers, now I realize I don’t even know all the questions!!  Never stop learning, there is always something new and improved out there.  What are some of the things you have learned, as you have gotten older and wiser?

Pitch In

By Diane Forrest,

I live in a small town, so our newspaper isn't very big, not a lot of news going on here...but like some folks say, no news is good news.  That's why I love waking up on Sunday morning to get the newspaper.  I know it is gonna be thick and full of all kinds on good information.  My favorite sections are the Lifestye, which has all the wedding and engagement stories, the Funnies, and the USA Weekend magazine.

In 1992 the magazine created the Make a Difference day.  I remember being so impressed with the people in these stories going out into their communities and doing thing for their neighbors.  Now it is an annual event that takes place every 4th Saturday in October.  Millions of people are involved by helping millions more people.

It takes the form of cleanup, fix up, painting, and repair in poorer neighborhoods, parks and municipal facilities. It doesn't matter what project you take on. It doesn't matter whether you help a non-profit organization, the community, your town, nursing home, a church, a food kitchen, or any other group in need. What matters is that you participate.

Today is Make a Difference Day, and while it is a specific day for helping your fellow man, you can make a difference any day, every day.

Here in the south we have had our fair share of natural disasters, from hurricanes, to tornados, Ice storms, and most recently flooding.   We have been so blessed with the outpouring of love and kindness and help from our fellow man.  People and groups from all over have come to our assistance on more than one occasion.  They have helped by cleaning and rebuilding, to provide shelter, food and clothing.

There is a time in everyone's life when they need a helping hand, so today, why don’t you put out your hands to help your fellow man.

For more information about how you can make a difference go to these sites:

http://www.usaweekend.com/article/99999999/MDDAY/90917001/Make-Difference-Day-Getting-started

http://www.handsonnetwork.org/