|  JAMES'
CHICKEN SOUP STORIES
Contributing
Author to, and Associate Editor for, Chicken Soup for the Soul®
Dear Friend,
It’s
wonderful to strive for success in business. However, we must never
lose sight of the importance of family relationships.
I
learned the significance of this when my sister, Vicki, unexpectedly
developed a brain tumor and passed away. Don’t take your family
for granted and cherish everyday you spend together.
Whether
you win or lose in business endeavors, you will always win in life
by keeping your loved ones your number one priority!
To
Your Success,
 |
“Thank
You Family”
by James Malinchak
published in ...
Chicken Soup for
the Kid’s Soul |
Thank
You Family
For teaching
me wrong from right
And encouraging me to keep my dreams in sight
For showing me not to let obstacles keep me down
And for creating a smile from my frown
For saying that you care about me
And for showing just how special love should be
For wiping my tears away when I’m feeling sad
And for calming me down when I tend to get mad
For helping others with the good that you do
And for teaching me that I should help others, too
For hugging me when I’m feeling blue
And whispering into my ear “I love you”
Thank you, family, for all that you do
I don’t know where I would be if it weren’t for you
©
1998 Copyright James Malinchak International, Inc.
A
Brother’s Voice
| |
"A
Brother's Voice"
by James Malinchak
published in ...
Chicken Soup for
the Teenage Soul |
Most people have
an inspiration in their life. Maybe it’s a talk with someone
you respect or an experience.
Whatever the inspiration, it tends to make you look at life from
a different perspective. My inspiration came from my sister Vicki,
a kind and caring person. She didn’t care about accolades or
being written about in newspapers. All she wanted was to share her
love with the people she cared about, her family and friends.
The summer before my junior year of college, I received a phone
call from my father saying that Vicki was rushed to the hospital.
She had collapsed and the right side of her body was paralyzed.
The preliminary indications were that she suffered a stroke. However,
test results confirmed it was much more serious. There was a malignant
brain tumor causing her paralysis. Her doctors didn’t give
her more than three months to live. I remember wondering how this
could happen? The day before Vicki was perfectly fine. Now, her
life was coming to an end at such a young age.
After overcoming the initial shock and feeling of emptiness, I decided
that Vicki needed hope and encouragement. She needed someone to
make her believe that she would overcome this obstacle. I became
Vicki’s coach. Everyday we would visualize the tumor shrinking
and everything that we talked about was positive. I even posted
a sign on her hospital room door that read, “If you have any
negative thoughts, leave them at the door.” I was determined
to help Vicki beat the tumor. She and I made a deal that we called
50-50. I would do 50% of the fighting and Vicki would do the other
50%.
The month of August arrived and it was time to begin my junior year
of college 3,000 miles away. I was unsure whether I should leave
or stay with Vicki. I made the mistake of telling her that I might
not leave for school. She became angry and said not to worry because
she would be fine. There was Vicki lying ill in a hospital bed telling
me not to worry. I realized that if I stayed it might send a message
that she was dying and I didn’t want her believing that. Vicki
needed to believe that she could win against the tumor.
Leaving that night feeling it might be the last time I would ever
see Vicki alive was the most difficult
thing I have ever done. While at school, I never stopped fighting
my 50% for her. Every night before falling asleep I would talk to
Vicki, hoping that there was some way she could hear me. I would
say, “Vicki, I’m fighting for you and I will never quit.
As long as you never quit fighting we will beat this.”
A few months had passed and she was still holding on. I was talking
with an elderly friend and she asked about Vicki’s situation.
I told her that she was getting worse but that she wasn’t quitting.
My friend asked a question that really made me think. She said,
“Do you think the reason she hasn’t let go is because
she doesn’t want to let you down?”
Maybe she was right? Maybe I was selfish for encouraging Vicki to
keep fighting? That night before falling asleep, I said to her,
“Vicki, I understand that you’re in a lot of pain and
that you might like to let go. If you do, then I want you to. We
didn’t lose because you never quit fighting. If you want to
go on to a better place then I understand. We will be together again.
I love you and I’ll always be with you wherever you are.”
Early the next morning, my mother called to tell me that Vicki had
passed away.
©
1997 Copyright James Malinchak International, Inc.
You
Never Know Who’s Listening
| |
"You
Never Know
Who's Listening"
by James Malinchak Published in Chicken Soup
for the Prisoner's Soul |
A
friend of mine named Cynthia asked me if I would be interested in
talking to a group of teenagers about the skills necessary for succeeding
in “the real world.” I love helping teenagers achieve
success, so naturally I accepted. As we were driving to the talk,
Cynthia said there was something that she didn’t tell me about
this group of teenagers. My first thought was that there would be
hundreds of them, and she was worried that I may be a little nervous,
but that wasn’t it at all. Cynthia was taking me to speak to
teenagers in prison. That’s right, prison! She began preparing
me for what I was about to face. She said that I would be speaking
to some of the most dangerous, messed-up kids in Southern California.
Some were in for theft, arson, battery, and even murder. She said
that I could tell who the murderers were, because they would be
dressed in orange work clothes.
Cynthia was also kind enough to mention that these teenagers were
only permitted one hour of recreation per week, and that I would
be “stealing” their hour of free time. Didn’t this
just make me feel wonderful? As the inmates came into the room,
you could see that they really didn’t want to be there, but
I went there to do a job, and I wasn’t going to be discouraged.
Midway through my talk, some began heckling me while others simply
weren’t paying attention. I thought to myself, "What a
waste of time." My talk was only twenty minutes, so they had
forty minutes of free time to do what they wanted. Thank God! The
only problem was that I wasn’t permitted to leave until their
full hour was up. So Cynthia and I remained in the room with the
prisoners, anxiously watching the clock. All of a sudden I noticed
that one of the biggest, baddest-looking teenagers I have ever seen
in my life was walking toward us. He was dressed in orange, about
six-feet-five, weighing around 225. I became more and more nervous
the closer he came.
Finally, he was no more than two feet away, and I thought to myself,
"This guy was going to take a swing at me." To my surprise
he extended his hand to me and said, “Your talk was great.
At first, I wasn’t really paying attention because I was thinking
of killing a prisoner named Joe tonight. But when you said, 'Wouldn’t
the world be a better place if we all simply just loved and cared
for each other?' It really hit me. All of a sudden, I began feeling
love toward Joe, and I feel like I can do something with my life.
I just wanted to say thank you, and I want you to know that I listened
and appreciate that you came here tonight. No one cares about us.
It means a lot to me that you took the time to come here. Do you
think you could come back again?” It was difficult for me to
speak as I was choked with emotion. At that moment, I realized that
I had done the right thing by speaking to the inmates. I was able
to help at least one person, and that’s all that mattered.
I reached out and hugged him with one of the tightest grips I’ve
ever applied. As we hugged, I whispered to him, “God bless
you.” Surprisingly, he replied, “No, sir, God bless you
for coming here. You saved two lives tonight - Joe’s and mine!”
©
1999 Copyright James Malinchak International, Inc.
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