This story would really be better if you could hear it in the delightful accent of the eighty-year old Amish gentleman who told it in our office last week. Try to imagine. He told me this:
Last Saturday after our song service, we were standing around, visiting, and we got to talking about the economy. And I said, “Ya. It is bad. Gold has dropped below $1000.00.”
And everyone said, ‘Ach! Has it got that bad then?'”

The gentleman leaned a little farther across my desk at this point and told me he remembered when gold was only $32, but nobody could even buy it then. So, this is worse. Then, he went on:

I began to see mental distress come on all their faces. They were thinking about the price of gold and the state of things and they were suffering real, mental distress.

So, I said, “Ahhhhhh, but, boys! I’ve read of a place where the streets are paved with gold!”

Our Amish patient told me a collective sigh of relief went up at that moment. The same thing happened to me right in the middle of my busy morning. The phone was ringing, people were waiting, and the price of gold was still dropping. But, I, too, had read of a place…

If you are suffering any mental distress today, just think of those streets. And breathe a sigh of relief.