> > One day a father of a very wealthy family took his son > on a trip to the country with the firm purpose of > showing his son how poor people live. They spent a > couple of days and nights on the farm of what would be > considered a very poor family. On their return from > their trip, the father asked his son, "How was the > trip?" > > "It was great, Dad" > > "Did you see how poor people live?" the father asked > > "Oh yeah," said the son. > > "So, tell me, what did you learn from the trip?" asked > the father. > > The son answered: "I saw that we have one dog and they > had four. We have a pool that reaches to the middle > of the garden and they have a creek that has no end. > We have imported lanterns in our garden and they have > the stars at night. Our patio reaches to the front > yard and they have the whole horizon. We have a small > piece of land to live on and they have fields that go > beyond our sight. We have servants who serve us, but > they serve others. We buy our food, but they grow > theirs. We have walls around our property to protect > us, they have friends to protect them." > > The boy's father was speechless. > > Then his son added, "Thanks dad for showing me how > poor we are." > > Isn't perspective a wonderful thing? Makes you wonder > what would happen if we all gave thanks for everything > we have, instead of worrying about what we don't have. > > Appreciate every single thing you have, especially > your friends. > > "Life is too short and friends are too few."