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?”

“50 cents,” replied the waitress.

The little boy pulled his hand out of his pocket and studied a number of coins in it.

“How much is a dish of plain ice cream?” he inquired. Some people were now waiting for a table and the waitress was a bit impatient.

“35 cents,” she said brusquely.

The little boy again counted the 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 departed.

When the waitress came back, she began wiping down the table…

Repost from USA Today

Host countries should promote tolerance. IOC failed on this principle in picking Russia.

On Friday, the world will come together to open the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Sochi, Russia — a celebration of hard work and fair play, social responsibility, and international friendship. Every two years, the Olympic Games bring the world together, regardless of political ideology, to compete in feats of endurance, strength and sportsmanship. The issues that often divide our world seem to be suspended or even temporarily disappear during the Olympics. And instead of focusing on our differences, we come together as a global community to focus on what we have in common and our shared appreciation for our athletes and the games.

Although some individuals or groups have threatened to use the Games as an opportunity to wreak violence, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) continues to organize the Games to promote…

Everyone has memories

Like the ones that make us smile

Or those that make us frown

They’re simply memories

They catch us unawares

Then we feel other people stare

Smiling like a fool

That we’ve broke every rule

Of…propriety

Not linked at all to sobriety

Just a fool with crazy memories

Making smiles appear like anemones

Who cares if we’re ridiculous

It’s the memory

The one that’s in front of us

Making us smile

Or frown

A simple backwards smile

As though we forgot how to smile

Which way our mouth should go

For our heart is broken like the rest of us

We have no way of moving forward

Held back by the desire

To recapture the bliss that enraptured us

Before we became what we once were

And could no longer see the person

Who we had once been

Beautiful, in love,

Our hearts open wide

Dreaming of…