A jobless man wanted very much to have the position of “office boy” at Microsoft. The HR manager interviewed him and then watched him cleaning the floor as a test. “You have passed the test,” he said. “Give me your e-mail address and I’ll send you the form to fill in and the date when you may start.” The man replied, “But I don’t have a computer, neither an e-mail.” “I’m sorry,” said the HR manager. “If you don’t have an e-mail, that means you are not living. And anyone who isn’t living cannot have the job.”

The man left with no hope at all. He didn’t know what to do with only $10 in his pocket. He thought and thought. Then he went to the supermarket and bought 10 kilos of tomatoes. He sold the tomatoes from door to door. In less than two hours, he had 20 dollars. He repeated the operation three times, and started to go early every day, and returned home late. Shortly, he bought a cart , then a truck, then he had his own fleet of delivery vehicles(运货车队). Five years later, the man was one of the biggest food retailers (零售商)   in the US.

One day, one of his friends asked him for his e-mail. He said, “I haven’t got one.” His friend couldn’t believe his ears. “Can you imagine what you could have been if you had an e-mail?” The man thought for a while and replied, “Yes, I’d be an office boy at Microsoft!”

Island of Feelings

Once upon a time there was an island where all the feelings lived: Happiness, Sadness, Knowledge, and all the others, including Love.

One day it was announced to all of the feelings that the island was going to sink to the bottom of the ocean. So all the feelings prepared their boats to leave.

Love was the only one that stayed. She wanted to preserve the island paradise until the last possible moment.

When the island was almost totally under, Love decided it was time to leave.

She began looking for someone to ask for help. Just then Richness was passing by in a grand boat. Love asked, “Richness, can I come with you on your boat?”

Richness answered, “I’m sorry, but there is a lot of silver and gold on my boat and there would be no room for you anywhere.”

Then Love decided to ask Vanity for help who was passing by in a beautiful vessel. Love cried out, “Vanity, help me please!” “I can’t help you,” Vanity said, “You are all wet and will damage my beautiful boat.”

Next, Love saw Sadness passing by. Love said, “Sadness, please let me go with you.”

Sadness answered, “Love, I’m sorry, but, I just need to be alone now.”

Then, Love saw Happiness. Love cried out, “Happiness, please take me with you.” But Happiness was so overjoyed that he didn’t hear Love calling to him.

Love began to cry. Then, she heard a voice say, “Come Love, I will take you with me.” It was an elder. Love felt so blessed and overjoyed that she forgot to ask the elder his name. When they arrived on land the elder went on his way. Love realized how much she owed the elder.

Love then found Knowledge and asked, “Who was it that helped me?” “It was Time,” Knowledge answered. “But why did Time help me when no one else would?” Love asked.

Knowledge smiled and with deep wisdom and sincerity, answered, “Because only Time is capable of understanding how great Love is.”

A young man went to a farm and asked for a job. When the old farmer asked what the young man could do to help the farm, he just said, “I can sleep when the wind blows.”

This short answer puzzled(迷惑)the farmer. But he liked the young man and said OK anyway. Everything went well until one night when there was a heavy storm. The old farmer and his wife quickly woke up and started checking to see if everything was safe.

The farmer and his wife checked their things. They found that the farm tools had been put away safely in the house. The truck was parked in the garage. They found that the doors of the farmhouse were closed. The barn(谷仓)was properly locked. Even the animals were calm. All was well.

After checking everything, they went to the young man’s room and found that he was sleeping. The farmer and his wife then understood the meaning of the young man’s words—“I can sleep when the wind blows. ”

Because the young man finished all of his work while the skies were clear, he was prepared for the storm before it came.

So when the wind blew, he was not afraid. He could sleep in peace.