FReeper Canteen~HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!~15 June 08

The Canteen Crew ^ | June 14, 2008 | Serving the Best Troops in the WORLD!

[Brad’s Gramma]

 

 

 

 

 

THE LOSER WHO NEVER GAVE UP

For "Sparky", school was all but impossible. He failed every subject in the eighth grade. He flunked physics in high school, getting a grade of zero. He also flunked Latin, algebra and English. And his record in sports wasn't any better. Though he did manage to make the school's golf team, he promptly lost the only important match of the season. Oh, there was a consolation match; he lost that too.

Throughout his youth, Sparky was awkward socially. It wasn't that the other students disliked him; it's just that no one really cared all that much. In fact, Sparky was astonished if a classmate ever said hello to him outside of school hours. There's no way to tell how he might have done at dating. He never once asked a girl out in high school. He was too afraid of being turned down... or perhaps laughed at. Sparky was a loser. He, his classmates... everyone knew it. So he learned to live with it. He made up his mind early that if things were meant to work out, they would. Otherwise he would content himself with what appeared to be his inevitable mediocrity.

One thing WAS important to Sparky, however -- drawing. He was proud of his artwork. No one else appreciated it. But that didn't seem to matter to him. In his senior year of high school, he submitted some cartoons to the the yearbook. The editors rejected the concept. Despite this brush-off, Sparky was convinced of his ability. He even decided to become an artist.

So, after completing high school, Sparky wrote Walt Disney Studios. They asked for samples of his artwork. Despite careful preparation, it too was rejected. One more confirmation that he was a loser.

But Sparky still didn't give up. Instead, he decided to tell his own life's story in cartoons. The main character would be a little boy who symbolized the perpetual loser and chronic underachiever. You know him well. Because Sparky's cartoon character went on to become a cultural phenomenon of sorts. People readily identified with this "lovable loser." He reminded people of the painful and embarrassing moments from their own past, of their pain and their shared humanity. The character soon became famous worldwide: "Charlie Brown." And Sparky, the boy whose many failures never kept him from trying, whose work was rejected again and again,... is the highly successful cartoonist Charles Schultz. His cartoon strip, "Peanuts," continues to inspire books, T-shirts and Christmas specials, reminding us, as someone once commented, that life somehow finds a way for all of us, even the losers.

If you follow the comic strip for a while, you will begin to notice one other thing as well. It isn't anger, resentment or in-your-face sarcasm which fuels Schultz's creativity and resilience. It's his faith. In fact, one study of the comic strip, published several years ago, made precisely that point. It eventually became a popular book entitled, "The Gospel According To Peanuts."

Sparky's story reminds us of a very important principle in life. We all face difficulty and discouragement from time to time. We also have a choice in how we handle it. If we're persistent, if we hold fast to our faith, if we continue to develop the unique talents God has given us, who knows what can happen? We may end up with an insight and an ability to inspire that comes only through hardship. (Read Jeremiah 29:11 and Romans 8:28.) In the end, there are no "losers" with God. Some winners just take longer to develop!

CAPT J. David Atwater, CHC, USN

 

[Eaker]

Thanks!

[TheMom]

Thank you so much for the wishes.

I am thinking this marriage thing just might work out. ;-)

[Kathy in Alaska]

Welcome Troops, Veterans, Families, and Allies!
God Bless You and Keep You Safe.

Jesus Loves Me

Beautiful Savior

[Arrowhead1952]

Thanks LJ. I still have a few things to do before dinner, and I have been away from all news and FR for three days.

[Kathy in Alaska]

Welcome Troops, Veterans, Families, and Allies!
God Bless You and Keep You Safe.

We Come Rejoicing

Calvary Answers For Me

[Professional Engineer]

Mornin' folks. Project Teardrop resumed visible progress this weekend with a supply run for $400 of plywood (ouch). The sides are each cut from a single sheet of 4X10X3/4 red oak ply.

Pattern for side profile is unfurled.

Bittygirl (aka the Princess Helper) ensures stray sawdust is banished.

Spiderboy shows his prowess with a belt sander to make both sides match.

Checking the results against the pattern.

[StarCMC]

Thank you all for the birthday wishes!! So far it’s been a GREAT one!! :-)

[StarCMC]

[Lakeshark]

Thanks LJ.

Btw......are you a mum?

[Lady Jag]

What is that teardrop-shaped plywood going to be?

[Professional Engineer]

It's the side walls for something like this guy. Spiderboy and I are building our own.

[Lady Jag]

Nope, just a serial aunt.

[Lakeshark]

Arrrrgghhhh, mate, you opened yourself up on that one......

*Looking for pics of ants, realizing his own HTML ineptitude*

I am proud papa of 4. And a serial Uncle.

[Lady Jag]

Ants:

You got one for nieces & nephews?

[Lady Jag]

That’s all I could think of. Those are wicked cool. I’ve never seen one myself, just on camper history specials on cable TV. Saw one for sale on someone’s front lawn, went home and looked up new prices. New they’re $3,000 to 6,000! This one was only $700. I went back and it was gone.

[Lakeshark]

*Ponders*

Reese's nieces? Huey, Dewey & Louie?

[fatima]

Happy Birthday Beautiful.((((Hugs))))

[fatima]

Wow,The kids are doing great and cute:)Thanks for the pics Professional Engineer:)

[fatima]

Happy Father’s Day Lakeshark:)

[MS.BEHAVIN]

*HUG*
Happy Birthday, Sweetheart!
Sure do miss you!