Are you now or have you ever been in a situation which was so difficult you felt there was no way out, or at least no easy way out?
Bob May was in that kind of situation many years ago. He was depressed and brokenhearted. His wife was dying of cancer, and his 4-year-old daughter was crying and asking why her Mommy couldn’t come home.
As a young boy, Bob had been smaller than most children his age and consequently had been bullied and called names; however, he went on to complete college, married a loving wife, got a job as a copywriter for Montgomery Ward during the Great Depression and was blessed with a beautiful little girl.
But it was short-lived. His wife Evelyn’s bout with cancer took all their savings, and she died just days before Christmas in 1938. He and his daughter moved to a small two-room apartment in Chicago. He struggled to give hope to his child, but he couldn’t even afford to buy her a Christmas gift.
However, he made one — a storybook in which he had created an animal character in his mind and had told it to his daughter many times, embellishing it more with each telling.
Who was this character, and what was the story about? It was Bob’s own autobiography in fable form, a misfit outcast, a little reindeer named Rudolph, with a shiny nose. Bob finished the book just in time to give it to his daughter on Christmas day. A Montgomery Ward general manager saw the book and was so impressed with it that he purchased rights to print and distribute it to all the children visiting their many stores.
By 1946, 6 million copies of the book had been distributed. A major publisher purchased rights to the book and it became an instant best-seller. Johnny Marks made a song out of it, which was released in 1949 and sung by Gene Autry. It immediately rose to the top of the charts.
And so, the gift of love that Bob May created for his daughter so long ago kept on returning to bless him again and again. Bob May learned the lesson, just like his dear friend Rudolph, that being different isn’t so bad. In fact, being different can be a blessing.
Let me share some thoughts with you about “Today I Can.” Today, I can complain about my health, OR I can celebrate being alive; today, I can moan that it’s raining, OR I can be joyful at all that grows from the rain; today, I can regret all that I don’t have, OR I can rejoice in what I do have; today, I can complain about all that needs to be done around the house, OR I can celebrate having a home; today, I can worry about the people who don’t care for me, OR I can be happy loving and being loved by those who do.
And finally, some things to remember:
We cannot make anyone love us, but we can allow ourselves to be loved
In order to be forgiven, we must be forgiving
It only takes a few seconds to open profound wounds in those we love, but it may take years to heal them
The happiest person is not the one who has the most, it is the one who needs the least
God bless you!
Reece Gardner is the host of “The Reece Gardner Hour,” which airs on TACC-9 on Mondays at 9 p.m., Tuesdays at 8 p.m., Thursdays at 11 p.m., Sundays at 10:30 p.m. and on-demand anytime at TACC9.com. You can reach Reece at rbgej@aol.com.