rockyptjoe
Guest
Got this from a buddy...thought I'd share it....
THE GINGHAM DRESS . . .
A lady in a faded gingham dress and her husband, dressed in a
homespun threadbare suit, stepped off the train in Boston, and walked
timidly, without an appointment, into the Harvard University president's
outer office. The secretary could tell in a moment that such backwoods,
country hicks had no business at Harvard and probably didn't even deserve to
be in Cambridge.
We'd like to see the president,' the man said softly. 'He'll
be busy all day,' the secretary snapped. 'We'll wait,' the lady replied.
For hours the secretary ignored them, hoping that the couple would finally
become discouraged and go a way. They didn't, and the secretary grew
frustrated and finally decided to disturb the president, even though it was
a chore she always regretted.
Maybe if you see them for a few minutes, they'll leave,' she
said to him. He sighed in exasperation and nodded. Someone of his
importance obviously didn't have the time to spend with them, and he
detested gingham dresses and homespun suits cluttering up his outer office.
The president, stern faced and with dignity, strutted toward the couple.
The lady told him, 'We had a son who attended Harvard for one year.
He loved Harvard. He was happy here. But about a year ago, he was
accidentally killed. My husband and I would like to erect a memorial to him,
somewhere on campus.'
The president wasn't touched. He was shocked. Madam,' he said,
gruffly, 'we can't put up a statue for every person who attended Harvard and
died. If we did, this place would look like a cemetery.'
Oh, no,' the lady explained quickly. 'We don't want to erect a
statue. We thought we would like to give a building to Harvard.' The
president rolled his eyes. He glanced at the gingham dress and homespun
suit, then exclaimed, 'A building! Do you have any earthly idea how much a
building costs? We have over seven and a half million dollars in the
physical buildings here at Harvard.'
For a moment the lady was silent. The president was pleased. Maybe
he could get rid of them now. The lady turned to her husband and said
quietly, 'Is that all it costs to start a university? Why don't we just
start our own?'
Her husband nodded. The president's face wilted in confusion and
bewilderment. Mr. and Mrs. Leland Stanford got up and walked away, traveling
to Palo Alto, California where they established the university that bears
their name, STANFORD UNIVERSITY, a memorial to a son that Harvard no longer
cared about.
You can easily judge the character of others.....by how they treat
those who they think can do nothing for them.
A TRUE STORY By Malcolm Forbes
People will forget what you said,
People will forget what you did.
But people will never forget how you made them feel....
THE GINGHAM DRESS . . .
A lady in a faded gingham dress and her husband, dressed in a
homespun threadbare suit, stepped off the train in Boston, and walked
timidly, without an appointment, into the Harvard University president's
outer office. The secretary could tell in a moment that such backwoods,
country hicks had no business at Harvard and probably didn't even deserve to
be in Cambridge.
We'd like to see the president,' the man said softly. 'He'll
be busy all day,' the secretary snapped. 'We'll wait,' the lady replied.
For hours the secretary ignored them, hoping that the couple would finally
become discouraged and go a way. They didn't, and the secretary grew
frustrated and finally decided to disturb the president, even though it was
a chore she always regretted.
Maybe if you see them for a few minutes, they'll leave,' she
said to him. He sighed in exasperation and nodded. Someone of his
importance obviously didn't have the time to spend with them, and he
detested gingham dresses and homespun suits cluttering up his outer office.
The president, stern faced and with dignity, strutted toward the couple.
The lady told him, 'We had a son who attended Harvard for one year.
He loved Harvard. He was happy here. But about a year ago, he was
accidentally killed. My husband and I would like to erect a memorial to him,
somewhere on campus.'
The president wasn't touched. He was shocked. Madam,' he said,
gruffly, 'we can't put up a statue for every person who attended Harvard and
died. If we did, this place would look like a cemetery.'
Oh, no,' the lady explained quickly. 'We don't want to erect a
statue. We thought we would like to give a building to Harvard.' The
president rolled his eyes. He glanced at the gingham dress and homespun
suit, then exclaimed, 'A building! Do you have any earthly idea how much a
building costs? We have over seven and a half million dollars in the
physical buildings here at Harvard.'
For a moment the lady was silent. The president was pleased. Maybe
he could get rid of them now. The lady turned to her husband and said
quietly, 'Is that all it costs to start a university? Why don't we just
start our own?'
Her husband nodded. The president's face wilted in confusion and
bewilderment. Mr. and Mrs. Leland Stanford got up and walked away, traveling
to Palo Alto, California where they established the university that bears
their name, STANFORD UNIVERSITY, a memorial to a son that Harvard no longer
cared about.
You can easily judge the character of others.....by how they treat
those who they think can do nothing for them.
A TRUE STORY By Malcolm Forbes
People will forget what you said,
People will forget what you did.
But people will never forget how you made them feel....
