by Jim Stovall
After everyone found a seat, I asked Jason to introduce the evening’s festivities.
Before Jason could utter a word, David said, “I was hoping for dancing girls.”
As the laughter subsided, Jason said, “Well, you’re stuck with me.
“One of the strangest gifts my grandfather prepared for me was the gift of laughter. I really had a hard time finding anything funny about all of the things he was making me do as a part of my inheritance, but as I look back on them now—as is the case with most things in life—I can find the humor if I just look for it.”
Jason clicked a small remote control, and a slide appeared on a screen at the front of the theater. Several chuckles could be heard in anticipation of Jason’s remarks.
“Here we see our beloved friend Gus Caldwell with his infamous cattle prod.”
Jason paused as more laughter erupted.
Stephanie looked at the image on the screen and asked, “What’s a cattle prod?”
Miss Hastings answered, “Honey, it’s something you use to make cattle go in the right direction, but Gus used to use it to wake up Jason.”
“Was Jason going in the wrong direction?” Stephanie asked.
More laughter could be heard, and one of the tuxedoed gentlemen said, through his own laughter, to the other, “This kid’s funny.”
The other responded, “Yeah, I know. I’m writing this stuff down.”
Jason shared other slides of himself at Gus’s ranch.
“Here’s a picture of my first effort at building a fence.”
“That’s pathetic,” David added. “A blind guy could build a fence better than that.”
One of the tuxedoed gentlemen spoke loud enough for all to hear over the laughter. “Three million comedians out of work, and the blind guy is trying to horn in on our gig.”
Jason waited for the laughter to settle and said, “Mr. Hamilton arranged for a few comedy classics before we get on with the rest of our plans for the evening.”
As the theater darkened and jerky black-and-white images appeared on the screen, David slipped a small earpiece into his ear so he could hear the description provided by the Narrative Television Network. I have always been amazed that a totally blind man, with the help of a bit of narration from Susan Crane and the other award-winning narrators, could capture the drama, emotion, or—in this case—humor of what everyone else was watching.
We enjoyed my favorite Marx Brothers film, an Abbott and Costello classic, and several other great comedic routines from the early days of movies and television.
Miss Hastings spotted it first, pointing at the screen and crying, “That’s them!”
It was, indeed, our two elderly guests, sixty years earlier, engaged in an outrageous comedy sketch.
In the theater, one of them said to the other, “I think you’re wearing the same tuxedo.”
The other responded, “No, I gave that tux away. I think you’re wearing it now.”
After the film ended, the two gentlemen stood, accepted the applause of the small but enthusiastic audience, turned toward one another, and bowed, bumping their heads together, as they had done a million times before for generations of adoring fans.
Jason moved to the front of the auditorium again and said, “It’s good to laugh, and it’s good to be here with friends, but before we go any further, I want to share with you what my grandfather told me about laughter.”
Jason took his seat, and Red Stevens appeared on the theater’s screen.
“This month, you are going to learn about the gift of laughter. The gift of laughter I want you to learn about is not a comedian in a nightclub or a funny joke. It is the ability to look at yourself, your problems, and life in general, and just laugh. Many people live unhappy lives because they take things too seriously. I hope you have learned in the last six months that there are things in life to be serious about and to treasure, but life without laughter is not worth living.
“This month, I want you to go out and find one example of a person who is experiencing difficulties or challenges in his or her life but who maintains the ability to laugh. If a person can laugh in the face of adversity, that individual will be happy throughout life.”
As the screen faded to black, Jason stood and said, “During that month, I found someone experiencing challenges who laughed about it as much then as he does now. He makes me laugh, and I know he always will, because he’ll always be my friend. Thank you, David, for honoring me by being here.”
“You promised dancing girls!” David shouted.
We all laughed and felt better about ourselves and our world.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
The Legacy of Dreams
The wonders of the modern world around us are the legacy that dreamers who have gone before bequeathed to us.
It was only a few days after we’d had our experience with the oasis of laughter in the theater at Anderson House that we gathered at the breakfast table.
I glanced around to make sure everyone was in their places and then began.
“Good morning. Today, as a part of Miss Sally’s bequest for Joey, we are going to deal with one of the most significant topics my friend Red Stevens presented to Jason as a part of the Ultimate Gift.
“Dreams, and the fulfillment of them, are the exclusive territory of great people. When we learn about work, money, family, or friends, we are talking about things that everyone has in greater or lesser amounts. When we talk about dreams and becoming a dreamer, we are talking about being elevated to a place that few people ever really experience. For this reason, I am going to ask Jason to share the video his grandfather left for him so that Red can speak for himself as someone who was truly one of the greatest dreamers of all time.”
Jason started the DVD.
Red spoke. “Jason, this month you’re going to learn about a gift that belongs to all great men and women—the gift of dreams. Dreams are the essence of life—not as it is, but as it can be. Dreams are born in the hearts and minds of very special people, but the fruit of those dreams becomes reality and is enjoyed by the whole world.
“You may not know it, but Theodore Hamilton is known far and wide as the best lawyer in the country. I know that performing at that level was a dream of his when I met him, and he has been living that dream for over fifty years. The dream came true in his heart and mind before it came true in reality.
“I can remember wandering through the swamps of Louisiana, dreaming about becoming the greatest oil and cattle baron in Texas. That dream became such a part of me that when I achieved my goals, it was like going home to a place I had never been before.
“I have been trying to decide, as I have been formulating this ultimate gift for you, which of the gifts is the greatest. If I had to pick one, I think I would pick the gift of dreams because dreams allow us to see life as it can be, not as it is. In that way, the gift of dreams allows us to go out and get any other gift we want out of this life.
“Jason, the best way to introduce you to dreams is to acquaint you with some dreamers. I knew many throughout my life. I always considered my friendship with the dreamers to be a treasure.
“One of the first truly great dreamers I ever met in my life had a passion to create places and things that would touch the imagination of people. This passion was with him all the days of his life. He had his share of setbacks and failures as well as many detractors. I never saw him or talked to him at a time when he didn’t want to share his latest project with me. He was in the habit of creating huge dream boards that he would hang on the wall and draw out the plans for each of his projects on.
“I remember that when he was on his deathbed, he had arranged to tack the plans for his newest project onto the ceiling of his hospital room. That way, he could continue to look at his dream as he constructed it in his mind.
“A reporter came to vis
it him while he was in the hospital, and my friend was so weak he could barely talk. So, he actually moved over and asked the reporter to lie on his bed with him so the two of them could look at the plans on the ceiling while my friend shared his dream.
“The reporter was so moved that a person would have that much passion while dealing with a serious illness in the hospital. The reporter concluded his interview, said good-bye to my friend, and left the hospital.
“My friend died later that day.
“Please do not miss the point. A person who can live his entire life with a burning passion for his dream to the extent that he shares it on his deathbed—that is a fortunate person. My friend had his dream with him all the days of his life. It continued to grow and expand. When he would reach one milestone of his dream, another greater and grander one would appear.
“In a real way, my friend taught a lot of people how to dream and imagine a better world. His name was Walt Disney.
“But let me warn you. Your dreams for your life must be yours. They cannot belong to someone else, and they must continue to grow and expand.
“I had another friend whose name you would not know. He said it was his dream to work hard and retire at age fifty. He did, indeed, work hard and achieve a degree of success in his business. He held on to that dream of retiring, but he had no passion beyond that.
“On his fiftieth birthday, a number of us gathered to celebrate both his birthday and his retirement. This should have been one of the happiest days of his life—if his dream had been properly aligned. Unfortunately, his entire adult life had been spent in his profession. That is where he had gained a lot of his pride and self-esteem. When he found himself as a relatively young man without his profession to guide him, he faced the uncertainty of retirement. It was something he thought he had always wanted, but he discovered quickly it created no life-sustaining passion for him.
“A month later, my second friend committed suicide.
“The difference between one dreamer who was still energized by his lifelong passion while on his deathbed and another dreamer whose goal was so ill-fitting for his personality that he committed suicide should be apparent to you.
“Jason, it is important that your dream belong to you. It is not a one-size-fits-all proposition. Your dream should be a custom-fit for your personality, one that grows and develops as you do. The only person who needs to be passionate about your dream is you.”
I could tell that everyone was deeply touched by Red’s words and challenged to pursue their own dreams.
I explained, “I was there when Red made that video, and he introduced me to Walt Disney many years ago at this very table. As familiar as his thoughts and words are to me, Red’s concept of living the dream still moves me deeply. I have found over the years that when we keep our dreams to ourselves, they are sort of a mythical fantasy that we don’t really take too seriously, but when we share them with others whom we respect and can trust, our dreams begin to take shape and become a part of our reality.”
I took a moment to make eye contact with each person around the table and continued. “I think it would be fitting if each of us shared a dream we have for our own life and future with the group.
“Since this lesson has been a part of your life and the legacy you received, Jason, I’ll ask you to go first.”
Jason nodded confidently and began. “When my grandfather gave me the Ultimate Gift and all the lessons included in it, I had never thought about dreams other than thinking about more things I wanted to do or have for myself that someone should give me or provide for me. After I realized the magnitude of the Ultimate Gift, the dreams I have for my life all involve sharing the lessons I have learned with others.”
Jason looked across the table to Joey, nodded, and continued. “Only when I give away the legacy my grandfather gave me can I keep his memory and his dreams alive.”
I thanked Jason, turned to Miss Hastings, and nodded.
She said, “Well, sir, I have always seen my dreams in the context of performing duties that help people like you, Red Stevens, and Miss Sally make their dreams come true. I have always been proud of the fact that while I don’t often dream the big dream, I make it possible for others to achieve it, and then it becomes reality for us all.”
I nodded and responded, “Yes, you do, and you do it as well as anybody ever did it. Many dreams have come to life because of your diligence and persistence.”
Miss Hastings blushed and responded with a bit of emotion in her voice, “Thank you, sir.”
I nodded toward Oscar, who had joined us for the session. He announced, “My dreams involve learning more from all the books I keep here in the library, but I also want to learn from experiences around the world that can bring those theories to life.”
Oscar and Joey nodded at each other in agreement.
Hawthorne was standing next to the doorway, and I motioned to him to speak.
He cleared his throat and began. “My dreams have always been connected to Anderson House and Miss Sally. I believe I would like to dedicate the rest of my life to making sure that future generations will be able to come here and experience all that this place has to offer.”
I nodded and thanked him for sharing his dream and for his longtime service to Anderson House and Miss Sally.
I had been debating whether or not to call on young Miss Stephanie, as I didn’t want to embarrass her by having her try to share concepts that might be far beyond her years, but when I asked if she wanted to say anything, she leaped in without hesitation.
“My dreams would only be two things right now. First, I would like to go to Disney World like the man was talking about.” She pointed toward the blank video screen on the wall, then turned back to me and continued, “And the other thing is, I want to be able to walk again.”
I was absolutely speechless, without a clue of what to say next.
Stephanie explained, “My parents say because of all the medical bills, we don’t have any money to go to Disney World. And I heard the doctors tell my mom that I wouldn’t be able to walk any more. So that’s why I want to walk through Disney World.”
We all smiled and nodded encouragingly toward Stephanie, but the tears rolling down our cheeks revealed the true emotion everyone was feeling.
Finally, I turned to Joey and encouraged him to share.
He said, “While I listened to Red Stevens talking on the video, I thought about dreams, and I realized that I didn’t really have any. Then, when the others were sharing, I knew that I had never felt anything like that before. But when Stephanie shared her dreams, I realized my dream is to help her go to Disney World and be able to walk again until I can find some dreams of my own.”
I nodded with satisfaction, realizing that Red Stevens had presented the concept of becoming a dreamer to us all, but young Stephanie had made it a part of each of our lives, especially Joey’s.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
The Legacy of Giving
Giving a gift is an act involving one person giving to another.
Giving a legacy can touch the whole world.
I had been out of state working on a difficult trial for several weeks. The matter was resolved the day before the next scheduled breakfast meeting with Joey and everyone at Anderson House. I had made arrangements with Miss Hastings for her to collect all of my critical correspondence and bring it with her to the bed-and-breakfast so I could catch up on the issues that had piled up at the office during my absence.
I flew most of the night, sleeping fitfully on the plane. It is questionable whether airline seats are suitable for sitting, but I would testify under oath that they are definitely not suitable for sleeping.
I arrived at Anderson House early in the morning just a few moments before the breakfast meeting was scheduled. I dropped off my luggage in my suite, picked up an envelope that had been slid under my door,
rushed downstairs, and was greeted by Miss Hastings as I hurried down the hallway.
We exchanged greetings, and then she asked, “How did the verdict go in the trial?”
I possess a great ego but never want to appear boastful, so I gave Miss Hastings my standard answer for court cases in which I had been victorious: “I’m pleased to say that justice was served.”
She nodded as if she had expected nothing less and smiled broadly, and then we took our places at the breakfast table.
Claudia was just topping off my coffee in a mug that appeared to be larger than normal. She explained, “Good morning, sir. I felt a stout cup of coffee today might go beyond pleasant and approach medicinal.”
I just nodded and began drinking the coffee.
When the other participants of the breakfast meeting were all at their places and had received their food, I decided it was time to get started. Maybe it was because I had been battling in the courtroom every day for several weeks, or maybe it was because I hadn’t received my required minimum of seven hours of sleep the night before, but I spoke with a very curt, legalistic, and almost confrontational tone.
“Joey, I know that things have been going fairly well as a result of each of the lessons we have been experiencing through your great-grandmother’s directives and the invaluable contributions from Red and Jason Stevens; however, there are some things I feel we must review. Sally May Anderson’s last will and testament is very clear and rigid with respect to the fact that you must complete each lesson satisfactorily, demonstrating both an academic understanding and a practical application of the principles set forth.”
Joey seemed bored and just nodded dismissively.
I felt challenged by his attitude and continued. “Let us make no mistake. If you fail, in any way, with respect to one of these lessons, I will be duty bound to stop the proceedings and dispense of your great-grandmother’s estate in the alternative fashion she set forth in a confidential document.”