Humour or a way of dealing with life's problems.

I hired a plumber to help me restore an old farmhouse, and after he

had just finished a rough first day on the job: a flat tyre made him

lose an hour of work, his electric drill quit and his ancient one ton

truck refused to start.

While I drove him home, he sat in stony silence. On arriving, he

invited me in to meet his family. As we walked toward the front door, he

paused briefly at a small tree, touching the tips of the branches with

both hands.

When opening the door he underwent an amazing transformation.. His

face was wreathed in smiles and he hugged his two small children and

gave his wife a kiss.

Afterward he walked me to the car. We passed the tree and my

curiosity got the better of me. I asked him about what I had seen him

do earlier.

'Oh, that's my trouble tree,' he replied 'I know I can't help

having troubles on the job, but one thing's for sure, those troubles

don't belong in the house with my wife and the children.. So I just hang

them up on the tree every night when I come home and ask God to take

care of them. Then in the morning I pick them up again.' 'Funny thing

is,' he smiled,' when I come out in the morning to pick 'em up, there

aren't nearly as many as I remember hanging up the night before.