An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. He told his
employer-contractor of his plans to leave the
house-building business and live a more leisurely life
with his wife enjoying his extended family.  He would miss
the paycheck, but he needed to retire.  They could get by.

The contractor was sorry to see his good worker go and
asked if he could build just one more house as a personal
favor. The carpenter said yes, but in time it was easy to
see that his heart was not in his work.  He resorted to
shoddy workmanship and used inferior materials.

It was an unfortunate way to end his career.
When the carpenter finished his work and the builder came
to inspect the house, the contractor handed the front-door
key to the carpenter.

"This  is your house," he said, "my gift to you."
What a shock!  What a shame!  If he had only known he was
building his own house, he would have done it all so
differently.  Now he had to live in the home he had built
none too well.

So it is with us.  We build our lives in a distracted way,
reacting rather than acting, willing to put up less than
the best. At important points we do not give the job our
best effort. Then with a shock we look at the situation we
have created and find that we are now living in the house
we have built.  If we had  realized that we would have
done it differently.

Think of yourself as the carpenter.  Think about your
house.  Each day you hammer a nail, place a board, or
erect a wall.  Build wisely.

It is the only life you will ever build.  Even if you live
it for only one day more, that day deserves to be lived
graciously and with dignity.

The plaque on the wall says, "Life is a do-it-yourself
project."

Who could say it more clearly?  Your life today is the
result of your attitudes and choices in the past.  Your
life tomorrow will be the result of your attitudes and the
choices you make today.