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    The Kindness of Strangers: Treasures of the Heart
    The Kindness of Strangers: Treasures of the Heart
    The Kindness of Strangers: Treasures of the Heart
    Ebook137 pages1 hour

    The Kindness of Strangers: Treasures of the Heart

    By Paul W. Sybert

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    About this ebook

    If theres one thing author Paul Sybert knows well, its the act of living life in the face of adversity. In The Kindness of Strangers, Sybert shares his life story and shows how he has confronted his fears and troubles and placed his trust in Jesus Christ.

    This memoir shares some of the most important moments in his life, as well as the tribulations that have tested him. The Kindness of Strangers recalls some of the most important events of Syberts lifebeing baptized at age twelve, earning a bachelors degree in engineering, experiencing divorce and the loss of love, struggling with an alcohol addiction, appreciating the gift of a spiritual mother, and surviving a stroke.

    But most of all, Sybert shares how God has worked in his life. Through anecdotes and illustrations, he communicates the importance of maintaining a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. The Kindness of Strangers offers insight into the life of a man who faced his fear and persevered.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisheriUniverse
    Release dateApr 9, 2012
    ISBN9781475903546
    The Kindness of Strangers: Treasures of the Heart
    Author

    Paul W. Sybert

    Paul Sybert earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering and worked for more than thirty years as a business software programmer. Retired, he lives in Endicott, New York. Sybert suffered a stroke in 2005 and now writes and enjoys challenging himself in his stroke recovery. Visit him online at www.paulsybert.com.

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      Book preview

      The Kindness of Strangers - Paul W. Sybert

      Treasures of the Heart

      Copyright © 2012

      All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

      iUniverse books may be ordered through booksellers or by contacting:

      iUniverse

      1663 Liberty Drive

      Bloomington, IN 47403

      www.iuniverse.com

      1-800-Authors (1-800-288-4677)

      Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any Web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

      Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

      Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

      ISBN: 978-1-4759-0352-2 (sc)

      ISBN: 978-1-4759-0355-3 (hc)

      ISBN: 978-1-4759-0354-6 (e)

      iUniverse rev. date: 4/2/2012

      website: www.paulsybert.com

      Contents

      Section I

      At Birth Everyone is a Stranger

      Kindness of a Job You Love

      Behind the Scenes

      Kindness of Being Saved

      Behind the Scenes

      Kindness of Loving Yourself

      Behind the Scenes

      Kindness of My Spiritual Mother

      Behind the Scenes

      Kindness of the Best Strangers of All

      Behind the Scenes

      The Stroke 2005

      Section II

      The Trip

      Behind the Scenes

      The Man I was

      The New Job

      Behind the Scenes

      My Thinking Process

      Behind the Scenes

      My First Day

      Behind the Scenes

      Loading My Car

      Behind the Scenes

      The Great Orange Juice Explosion

      Behind the Scenes

      The Kindness of Neighbors The Flood

      Behind the Scenes

      The Kindness of Looking for a Wife

      Behind the Scenes

      The Kindness of God and my Angels

      Behind the Scenes

      Behind the Scenes

      The Man I Became

      Section III

      The future is you, I Still Want a Wife

      Poetry Corner

      Contributors Page

      Introduction

      This book was written about my pushing myself to recover from a stroke I had in 2005. The word I hated was plateau; I did not want to recover to a plateau, a place of partial recovery. Prior to the stroke, I took the limits off of me. God did not limit me; why should I limit me. So, as I began to recover from the stroke I heard the bad word, plateau. As I got better and recovered, I would not even think about a plateau. The truth is I did reach a plateau as I got better; I found I had many plateaus in my recovery.

      Although it was hard to admit I lived my life at the level of a plateau; my recovery drove me in an almost unnatural way. It was over-compensation. This book begins with a trip to Oklahoma for a job I received. I never know what I can do until I try. Many times as I push myself, I heal and recover more. This was true in the early days just after the stroke; healing was easier then somehow. Now it seems like I am just overcompensating, or maybe the healing is slower.

      I write this book for me but also the other people who are recovering from a stroke. They are struggling with their limits and accepting their plateaus. It is not a pretty word limit or plateau. This book is for them also.

      There is a quote that I affectionately refer to as Kenny’s Quote.

      It is the difference between religion and spirituality: Religion is what one does to get to go to Heaven. Spirituality is what one experiences or becomes on their way back from Hell. This book is about the people or strangers I met that helped me on my way back from Hell.

      This book is also about those people that are on their way back from one kind of Hell or another. I skip around in this book. I wrote it in the now time frame and then reflected back to others who helped me earlier.

      My hope is that as you read this book, you will count the strangers that you meet as very special treasures that they are.

      Editor

      Sue Allen edited this work

      Sue taught high school English and Social Studies in Fairfax County, Virginia before she was married. Sue did a good job editing this book.

      Section I

      THE PAST

      Chapter 1

      At Birth Everyone is a Stranger

      I think before we are born we sit down with God and talk about the parents we will have and the life we are signing up for.

      At birth we know God but everyone else is a stranger. So everyone I talk about in this book is someone who begins as a stranger and then becomes a treasure in my heart.

      Family Background

      I come from a family of teachers: Father, Mother, both sisters, and even I taught at one point in time. I asked my sister Sue to edit this manuscript. She was kind enough to do it and I am grateful she did.

      I tell this story to illustrate a point. I was hitchhiking back from college one weekend. A car stopped to pick me up, asked me where I was going and I told him Winchester, Virginia. He

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