Hi Mairiuna! Hi Jean-Claude!
I sincerely hope the weather is fine while you are roaming the roads during this festive season to visit family members and relatives in different parts of your lovely French country.
Upon your return, you will have added more than 2,000 kilometers to your car’s km counter and that is quite some mileage!
Let us take together a moment to wish all Scotiana’s loyal readers, a very Safe & Happy Holiday season, and all the very best for the New Year!
The Christmas Holiday season being one of sharing, I would like to share a very inspirational story about someone who has benefited by the “Habit of Going the Extra Mile”.
It starts like this…
“Many years ago, an elderly lady was strolling through a Pittsburgh Department Store, obviously killing time. She passed counter after counter without anyone paying any attention to her. All the clerks had spotted her as an idle “looker” who had no intention of buying. They made it a point of looking in another direction when she stopped at their counters.
Finally the lady came to a counter that was attended by a young clerk who politely asked if he might serve her. “No,” she replied. “I am just killing time, waiting for the rain to stop so I can go home.”
“Very well, madam,” the young man said with a smile. “May I bring out a chair for you?” And he brought it without waiting for her answer.
After the rain slacked, the young man took the old lady by the arm, escorted her to the street, and bade her goodbye. As she left, she asked him for his card.
Several months later the owner of the store received a letter, asking that this young man be sent to Scotland to take an order for the furnishings of a home.
Andrew Carnegie -USA 1960 Scott# 1171
The owner of the store wrote back that he was sorry, the young man did not work in the house furnishings department. But he explained that he would be glad to send an “experienced man” to do the job.
Back came a reply that no one would do except this particular young man. The letters were signed by Andrew Carnegie, and the “house” he wanted furnished was Skibo Castle in Scotland.
The elderly lady was Mr Carnegie’s mother. The young man was sent to Scotland.
He received an order for several thousand dollars worth of household furnishings, and with it a partnership in the store. He later became the owner of a half interest in the store.”
Skibo Castle in Scotland | Source: www.libraryhistorybuff.org
Isn’t this a great story! It’s taken from Napoleon Hill’s book The Master-Key To Riches, a timeless and such useful work for all motivational thinkers.
We should always make a greater effort to get the task done correctly, or to please someone. Going the extra mile also means “to do more than one is required to do” to reach a goal. Very inspiring…
Andrew Carnegie - Scottish Immigrant
Andrew Carnegie was born on November 25, 1835 in Dunfermline, Scotland. In 1848, the family moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where Carnegie eventually made his fortune in the steel industry.
In 1900, he sold his steel company, to become the “richest man in the world” and dedicated his time to philanthropy. Carnegie created many funds, charities, and foundations to distribute his wealth, but the bulk of it would go towards education, mainly libraries.
Carnegie was strongly opposed to war and used his finances for publications and conferences to promote peace. Through his efforts, he established eleven national hero funds, three temples of peace and an endowment for international peace. Andrew Carnegie died on August 11, 1919.
Great Britain Aerogram - Andrew Carnegie | Source: libraryhistorybuff.com
Larry T. Nix from the libraryhistorybuff.com wrote a great philatelic tribute “Carnegie Librairies on Stamps” and the stamp images below are sourced from his site.
Andrew Carnegie donated more than $56,000,000 for construction of 2,509 english-speaking library buildings
.
Canada - Victoria Public Library in Victoria, BC (1904) - Funding came from Andrew Carnegie
Other Related Webpages:
– Andrew Carnegie: A 175th Anniversary Tribute
I’m gonna treat myself tomorrow and go to the bookstore to buy more Napoleon Hill & Andrew Carnegie related books. I suggest you do too 😉
Bye for now,
Janice
[…] This article on the blog, Scotiana, recounts a fun story. The jist of it is that a young man helped an older woman at a department store in Philadelphia. She got his card before leaving and months later the owner of the department store received a letter asking for the young man’s assistance furnishing a home in Scotland. Indeed, the older woman was Andrew Carnegie’s mother and the house was Skibo Castle! […]
of course she would do such a thing because she and her son andrew carnegie had the sterling qualities of great respect for everyone, whether monarch or tramp, as I do. To me a monarch is of equal value as a tramp, and no more value. A great society is one where we all value each other equally, and there are no divisive, nay, evil, hereditary titles. Such national values as these, symbolised by a flag which would represent equality goodness and kindness, would make a great society.