Still Too Soon

 It is still too soon for Zig Ziglar to be gone.

As most will have heard by now, the famous motivational speaker died very early Wednesday morning.

One reason i say it is too soon, even though he was 86, is that he once joked that at 60, he was only middle-aged, since he planned to live to 120.

Of course, even he admitted he wasn't assured 120 years, but it highlighted his attitude, one that pushed through problems until he could find solutions, that emphasized positivity and creativity and vibrancy and life.

A quick search online will produce a multitude of his more famous quotes and sayings, so i won't be posting a ton of those here.

Instead i'd like to quote my favorite of his books, called Courtship After Marriage.

Yes, he even wrote about marriage.  And be warned, if you want to read it, he was a devout Christian, so his advice does come with his religious conviction.

(He was once asked what he would be if he weren't a Baptist, and he laughingly responded, "Ashamed!")

At the beginning of his book on marriage, he tells the story of a man who called him and asked for help, as his wife of 21 years had asked him for a divorce.  Since Mr. Ziglar had been teaching the marriage seminar that eventually turned into this book for a while, he agreed to send the man a copy of the cassette tape so the man and his wife could listen.

Later, the husband and wife called and told Mr. Ziglar how the materials had helped their marriage.  The part that struck me was when the wife said this, and i quote from the book:

"Zig, let me tell you why it worked.  You would have no way of knowing, but about a year ago we were at the Fairmont Hotel in Dallas to attend a convention.  On Sunday night, after church, you and your Redhead* came over to the hotel and were enjoying a bowl of their famous French onion soup.

"There were a number of other people, including us, in the restaurant, but as far as you two were concerned, there was no one else there.  You were seated at a table for four, but instead of sitting across from each other, you sat side by sidem, and your eyes were only for each other.  You were holding hands; you put your arms around her; you laughed and in short, conducted yourselves like two lovebirds who were oblivious to the rest of the world.

"Zig, then I knew you two were practicing what you had been teaching and were obviously in love and having a wonderful time courting each other...your credibility as you talked about courting your mate was very high with us."

*He lovingly called his wife, Jean, "The Redhead."  They were married 64 years.

Mr. Ziglar didn't just talk.  He did what he talked about, lived out what he said.

That's one reason i'm very sad he is gone.  We get lots of talk in this day, but what we need is more people who live out what they talk about.

Rest in Peace, Mr. Ziglar.


Today is:

Bizarre Bazaar -- Richmond, VA, US (Christmas shop until you drop; through Sunday)

Christmas Festival at St. Olaf -- St. Olaf College, Northfield, MN, US (600 student musicians perform sacred and folk songs from around the world; through Sunday)

Dita e Clirimit -- Albania (Liberation Day)

Electronic Greetings Day -- sponsored by Wellcat Holidays

Fairy Flute Fantasy -- Fairy Calendar

Festival of Saturnia -- Ancient Roman Calendar (for the Sons of Saturn; Jupiter, Neptune, and Pluto)

International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People -- UN

National Chocolates Day -- yes, another one

National Lemon Creme Pie Day

National Unity Day -- Vanuatu

St. Andrew's Eve -- in many traditions, a night to foretell the future, especially whom you will marry

St. Saturnius of Toulouse's Day (Patron of Toulouse, France)

Square Dance Day -- internet generated, and fun to do

Throw Out Your Leftovers Day -- if you've had it since Thanksgiving, and haven't frozen it or eaten it yet, get rid of it

William Tubman's Birthday -- Liberia (it's longest serving President)



Anniversaries Today:

Erwin Rommel marries Lucie "Lu" Mollin, 1916


Birthdays Today:

Jon Knight, 1968
Kim Delaney, 1961
Cathy Moriarty, 1960
Jeff Fahey, 1956
Howie Mandel, 1955
Garry Shandling, 1949
Petra Kelly, 1947
Chuck Mangione, 1940
Peter Bergman, 1939
John Mayall, 1933
Diane Ladd, 1932
Vin Scully, 1927
Madeline L'Engle, 1918
Adam Clayton Powell, Jr., 1908
C.S. Lewis, 1898
Busby Berkeley, 1895
Louisa May Alcott, 1832
Christian Doppler, 1803


Today in History:

Jews of Augsburg, Germany, are massacred, 1349 (Sometimes, it seems, the more things change...)
King Philip II devalues Spanish currency, 1596 (See above...)
Sir James Jay invents invisible ink, 1775
San Jose, California, is founded as el Pueblo de San José de Guadalupe, 1777
Dessalines & Christophe declare St Domingue (Haiti) independent, 1803
First Italian opera in US, "Barber of Seville" premieres (NYC), 1825
Thomas Edison demonstrates hand-cranked phonograph, 1877
The first motorcycle race ever is held in Surrey, England; the distance was one mile and the winner was Charles Jarrot in a time of 2 minutes, 8 seconds, 1897
The first US patent for inventing the traffic lights system is issued to Ernest Sirrine. 1910
Fire destroys most of the buildings on Santa Catalina Island, California, 1915
Howard Carter opens the tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun to the public, 1922
Richard Byrd becomes the first person to fly over the South Pole, 1929
The first surgery (on a human) to correct blue baby syndrome is performed by Alfred Blalock and Vivien Thomas, 1944
The United Nations General Assembly votes to partition Palestine, 1947
Mercury-Atlas 5 Mission – Enos, a chimpanzee, is launched into space, orbits earth twice, and is successfully recovered after splashdown, 1961
Canadian Space Agency launches the satellite Alouette 2, 1965
Nolan Bushnell (co-founder of Atari) releases Pong (the first commercially successful video game) in Andy Capp’s Tavern in Sunnyvale, California, 1972
The United Nations General Assembly passes a resolution stating that Soviet Union forces should withdraw from Afghanistan, 1983
The United Nations Security Council passes two resolutions to restore international peace and security if Iraq did not withdraw its forces from Kuwait and free all foreign hostages by the following January 15, 1990
A 7.4 magnitude earthquake occurs off the northern coast of Martinique, 2007