A young man learns what's most important in life  from the guy next door..........

Over the phone, his mother told him, "Mr.  Belser died last night. The funeral is Wednesday." Memories flashed  through his mind like an old newsreel as he sat quietly remembering his  childhood days.

"Jack, did you hear me?"

"Oh, sorry, Mom.  Yes, I heard you. It's been so long since I thought of him. I'm sorry, but  I honestly thought he died years ago," Jack said.

"Well, he didn't  forget you. Every time I saw him he'd ask how you were doing. He'd  reminisce about the many days you spent over 'his side of the fence' as he  put it," Mom told him.

"I loved that old house he lived in," Jack  said.

"You know, Jack, after your father died, Mr. Belser stepped  in to make sure you had a man's influence in your life," she said. 

"He's the one who taught me carpentry," he said. "I wouldn't be in  this business if it weren't for him. He spent a lot of time teaching me  things he thought were important. Mom, I'll be there for the funeral,"  Jack said.

As busy as he was, he kept his word. Jack caught the  next flight to his hometown. Mr. Belser's funeral was small and  uneventful. He had no children of his own, and most of his relatives had  passed away.

The night before he had to return home, Jack and his  Mom stopped by to see the old house next door one more time. 

Standing in the doorway, Jack paused for a moment. It was like  crossing over into another dimension, a leap through space and time. The  house was exactly as he remembered. Every step held memories. Every  picture, every piece of furniture. Jack stopped suddenly... 

"What's wrong, Jack?" his Mom asked.

"The box is gone," he  said

"What box?" Mom asked.

"There was a small gold box  that he kept locked on top of his desk. I must have asked him a thousand  times what was inside. All he'd ever tell me was 'the thing I value most,'  Jack said.

It was gone. Everything about the house was exactly how  Jack remembered it, except for the box. He figured someone from the Belser  family had taken it.

"Now I'll never know what was so valuable to  him," Jack said. "I better get some sleep. I have an early flight home,  Mom."

It had been about two weeks since Mr. Belser died. Returning  home from work one day, Jack discovered a note in his mailbox. "Signature  required on a package. No one at home. Please stop by the main post office  within the next three days," the note read. Early the next day Jack  retrieved the package. The small box was old and looked like it had been  mailed a hundred years ago. The handwriting was difficult to read, but the  return address caught his attention. "Mr. Harold Belser" it read. Jack  took the box out to his car and ripped open the package. There inside was  the gold box and an envelope. Jack's hands shook as he read the note  inside......

"Upon my death, please forward this box and its  contents to Jack Bennett. It's the thing I valued most in my life." A  small key was taped to the letter. His heart raced as tears filled his  eyes.  Jack carefully unlocked the box There inside he found a  beautiful gold pocket watch.

Running his fingers slowly over the  finely etched casing, he unlatched the cover. Inside he found these words  engraved:

"Jack, Thanks for your time! -Harold Belser." 

"The thing he valued most was.....my time."

Jack held the  watch for a few minutes, then called his office and cleared his  appointments for the next two days. "Why?" Janet, his assistant, asked. 

"I need some time to spend with my son," he said.

"Oh, by  the way, Janet, thanks for your time!"

Think about this. You may not realize it, but it's  100% true.

1. At least 15 people in this world love you in some  way.

2. A smile from you can bring happiness to anyone, even if  they don't like you.

3. Every night, SOMEONE thinks about you  before they go to sleep.

4. You mean the world to someone. 

5. If not for you, someone may not be living.

6. You are  special and unique.

7. When you think you have no chance of  getting what you want, you probably won't get it, but if you trust God to  do what's best, and wait for 'His time', sooner or later, you will get it  or something better.

8. When you make the biggest mistake ever,  something good can still come from it.

9. When you think the world  has turned its back on you, take a look: you most likely turned your back  on the world.

10.. Someone that you don't even know exists loves  you.

11. Always remember the compliments you received. Forget  about the rude remarks

12 .. Always tell someone how you feel  about them; you will feel much better when they know, and you'll both be  happy .

13. If you have a great friend, take the time to let them  know that you think they are great.

To those I  sent this to,

FEMALEWITHIN [at] yahoogroups [dot] com

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