MountainWings - The Daily Inspirational E-Mail #1120
Helping You Over The Mountains of Life

"You won't get your money back," she said.

If I had to paint a picture of stately elegance, it would have been as if she 
jumped from the canvas of my mind into real life. 

She was the teacher.

You won't get your money back. 

The words pierced me as though she were talking to me. 
She wasn't. 
She was talking to another student. 
It was like one of those high powered bullets that can go through several people 
and a car without even slowing down.

You won't get your money back, 
kept echoing off the walls of my head like a BB in an empty corn flakes box.

To most of the students in the class it was just a statement. 
It was more than that to me. 
I saw a whole attitude of life in that simple statement.

Maybe it was her. Often it's not what you say, but who says it. 
She was the teacher. 

She spoke softly yet underneath you could feel she had a depth of knowledge 
and wisdom that didn't come from her Yale degree. 
It was polished by Yale, but didn't originate there.

You won't get your money back.

A student had asked the teacher, "What if I don't produce anything in this class?
What if I freeze up? What if I come away from this series of workshops and 
have nothing? What if I draw a blank?"

They were honest questions. 
The class was about creativity and that's something that no one can force. 
It was possible that you could draw a blank. What if you did?

The teacher said, "If you do draw that blank, you won't get your money back."

I always choose my teachers carefully, for you become a part of what they are. 
I felt very comfortable with this choice. She reminded me so much of life. 
She was full. She was a grandmotherly type with sparkling hair like spun silk. 
She was someone's grandmother I was sure. Though she had a degree from 
Yale, she spoke with wisdom more like a grandmother than a college professor.

I could hear the grandmother wisdom dodge and duck its way around the fine 
parchment of the Yale degree and silently shout to ears that hear more than 
sound, "If you miss out on what you've paid for, life won't give you your money 
back."

We've all paid for the class of life. The minute the doctor eased our heads out of 
our mother's womb, we got a full scholarship.

Your joy is all paid for. Your adventure is all paid for. Your tingles, thrills, and 
exciting moments of discovering every wonder imaginable are all paid for.

We are all students in the class of life. 
Some of us will get more out of it than others. 
Some will nod off and miss most of what life has to offer. 
Some will cut class and leave early, never to return. 
Some will get distracted and miss the main points. 
Others will soak it in, learn, grow, and glow.

There are those that will get more than their money's worth, every minute in 
every class in an ever-unfolding adventure. 

Another group spend their time watching a clock that freezes motionless like a 
shy freckled faced girl when eyes fall upon her and stare.

You are in class, get all that you can.

If you miss out, 

You won't get your money back.

A MountainWings Original
Thank you for inviting MountainWings in your mailbox.
See you tomorrow.
_____________________________________________
Help friends with their mountains in life. 
Refer them to MountainWings.com or simply 
click the "Forward" button to send this email to a friend.

To Rate an issue, Subscribe, stop your free subscription,
Ask Advice, Submit a Quote, Joke, or Inspirational Story, 
simply click http://www.mountainwings.com