YOU ARE NO DIFFERENT

by Bob Perks

Earlier this evening I was inspired by this thought as I 
listened to a minister speak at the annual Red Cross 
dinner my wife and I attended. As usual I made a few quick notes to keep the thought alive and help me to remember exactly what I wanted to share with you. 
I tucked it away in my suit jacket with plans to write this "tomorrow sometime."

I was driven out of bed. It's 12:23 a.m.

Picture in your mind the most incredible thing designed 
by mankind that you have ever seen. Perhaps the Empire 
State Building, the Shuttle built by the technicians at NASA, 
The Golden Gate Bridge or even the intricate detailing in a 
painting you've seen.

What name comes to mind when I say the words "creative genius?"

Who do you think of when I mention God-like compassion, 
caring and loving?

What author's name do you think of when I mention "poetry,"
"drama," "mystery," "fiction," and "comedy?"

What do you see when I say "strength," and "stamina?"

Finally "winner," "successful," or "role model?"

I'll bet you a Kids Meal at McDonald's you never saw yourself 
in any of those images. And yet...

Look at your hands. 
Are they not the same as the hands of the skillful 
artist, architect, mason, or technician?

If you were to x-ray your skull, would you not find the same 
brain matter that takes up the space between the ears of 
Einstein, Plato, and Disney?

Hold your hand to your chest. Can you feel the beat of a 
heart capable of paining for the homeless and starving? 
Have you not the same heart that beat in the chest of Jesus, 
Gandhi, Mohamed or the thousands of missionaries around 
the world?

Look at your fingers. Are they not like the fingers of Frost, Churchill, Stevens, Wilder and King that held tightly the pens 
that wrote the words that shaped the world?

Look at your feet. Show me the difference between yours and 
gold medalists of the Olympics or the rescuers who carried the 
people out of the rubble in Taiwan's tragic earthquake.

Finally. Close your eyes as you stand in front of a mirror and 
picture in your mind that man or woman who you think of as a 
success, a winner and role model. Open your eyes and explain 
to me the difference between you and that person.

There is no difference...except in how you perceive yourself.

You have the mind, the hands, the feet, the fingers, the heart to be exactly what you want to be. The only thing that is stopping you is the person you see in the mirror.

You have all that it takes.

It's 1:18 A.M. I can sleep now. The rest is up to you.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Bob's signature story, "I Wish You Enough," has circled the globe via the internet. His inspiring true stories are based on the people he meets in his travels. In the mall, the airport, the park, or sitting in a restaurant, a simple word or phrase will often catch his attention, hook onto his heart-and from it a story blooms. Bob's unique perspective on life makes him "the philosopher of everyday moments."  http://www.IWishYouEnough.com  or via email perksblog@hotmail.com