Mr. Fribble's Plan for World Peace

Husband took up baking when he retired. He specializes in chocolate chip cookies and apple-pecan bread. There is a reason why we are not each bigger than a house -- he gives a lot of what he bakes away. I sometimes get a bit peeved, but I'll get over it -- if I try real hard.

Of course, he gives cookies to the girl who runs the "used bread store" and some others. But now he is giving cookies and bread to the girls at the bank branches we frequent. He's gone so far as to shove some cookies at Son to take on his infrequent runs to the bank.

The payoff has been that when our birthdays come up, we get birthday cards from the banks -- not the run-of-the-mill ones, either -- the gals all sign them.

Well, one day he came home from running an errand without his gloves. He explained to me that he had gone by a place where a water crew was putting in a new pipe, and the man holding the traffic sign was barehanded. So he gave him a pair of gloves. He looked high and low for another pair, and insisted that I go out with him -- to give that pair to the fellow controlling the traffic in the other direction. Believe me, I didn't have to talk the other young man into taking them.

Now when we have passed that way, we hardly ever have to wait! They smile. They wave. They've moved on now, but I'll bet if Husband sees them out on the highway again any time soon, he'll start baking cookies!

I guess it's little enough to sacrifice -- a few cookies there, some bread, a couple of pairs of gloves -- in the interest of brightening up someone else's life.