Steve, The Three-Legged Cat

I just realized that I told you a half-truth the other day! I
want to come clean, and set the record straight.

Maggie is not our only "alarm clock."

There's also Steve, our 3-legged cat. Maggie is USUALLY the alarm
clock, but sometimes it's Steve. Thank goodness neither one of them
is "set to go off" earlier than about 8:30.

Steve was born with 4 legs, but as an adult stray, one of his back
legs was somehow mangled so badly that it had to be amputated. Our
daughter works as a vet-tech at the animal hospital whose vet
rescued him and performed the surgery that saved his life. He is
such a loving cat, and the staff there all became so attached
during his convalescence, that they kept him as an "office cat" as
long as they possibly could.

Unfortunately, his ravenous appetite finally caused him to lose that
position. Not that he ate so much that they couldn't afford to
feed him (although he would have if they had let him!), but that he
was continually ripping into the inventory of large bags of pet
food whenever their backs were turned, rendering those bags
"unsellable." At a cost of $30+ a pop, they simply had no choice
but to either find him another home, "or else."

Do you know how hard it is to find a home for a 3-legged cat?
Well . . . "It ain't easy!"

They tried for weeks . . . and no telling HOW many bags of pet food
later!

No takers.

Yep, you guessed it.

Our daughter was so attached she couldn't bear the "or else"
scenario.

Everyone else at the animal hospital had better-sounding excuses not
to take him in than we did. (Family members allergic to cats, etc.)
When she first approached us about Steve, it was all I could do to
agree to take him in on a trial basis.

For one thing, we already had what I thought was OVER our quota of
pets! (You already know about Maggie; there are even more!) I
ALREADY felt like we were operating an animal rescue out of our
house! (The line "Mamas don't let your babies grow up to be
vet-techs!" often runs through my head, to the tune of that
well-known song about cowboys.)

But the worst thing about taking Steve in was that at first it was
just down-right painful for me to look at him! He looked so pitiful
it broke my heart to watch him limping along. At first I just
couldn't bear the thought of keeping him, knowing I'd have to see
him in that condition on a daily basis.

But we love our daughter. We couldn't say no to at least giving him
a chance.

You know what? Once he'd been here a couple of weeks, we came
to realize that his "disablility" is only in OUR minds, not his!
As the vet so aptly put it, "it's a good thing that dogs and
cats are 3-legged animals with a spare." He actually seems
happier, more active, and more loving, than any cat we've ever
owned!(And we've owned a LOT of cats!)

Maybe he realizes how close he came to losing that 9th life, and
is grateful to still be in the land of the living!

He actually doesn't seem as disabled when he runs . . . although he
DOES look more like a rabbit with a long tail hopping along than a
cat!

I think there's a lesson in here somewhere.

And that is to not pre-judge PEOPLE either based on appearances, or
perceived disabilities. Sometimes those who seem the least likely
to succeed actually turn out to be the most productive business
associates! Sometimes those with the toughest disadvantages are the
ones who are the most grateful to find a "home" (network marketing
company) and a "family" (you and your team) and have the most
desire and determination to fuel their success.

You know something else? To me, probably the
greatest joy of being in the network marketing industry is watching
all the lives that are changed! When you help someone go from
struggling, and being broke, overworked, and stressed out, to
independently wealthy with time freedom, it gives you such a good
feeling to have been able to somehow help that transformation take
place.


Bankruptcies are being prevented, moms are now able to stay home
with their pre-schoolers, Dads can quit those jobs that required them
to spend weeks at a time on the road . . . the list goes on and on.

If you have a soft spot in your heart for those who need a hand,
network marketing is for you!

If you are the one who needs a hand, network marketing is for you!

Network marketing is the TRUE "equal opportunity employer!"