My grandfather was a Heating and Ventilation Engineer who worked on building projects in the first half of the 1900's. He was a prominent member of the ASHVE Society, the predecessor to today's ASHRAE, the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers. With the advent of "air-conditioning", he was asked by friend, Willis Carrier (the founder of Carrier Engineering Corporation), to join Carrier's growing business in Syracuse, NY. I never met my grandfather but you can bet he has been an important part of my life from the stories my family has shared and the collection of his papers that we have archived.

When I was a teenager, I rummaged through an old photo album and found a newspaper clipping he saved. I carried that clipping in my wallet for years and now have it stored in a safe place. Here is what it contained:

Ideals by James Allen

As you think, you travel
And as you love, you attract.
You are today where your thoughts have brought you
You will be tomorrow where you thoughts take you.
You cannot escape the result of your thoughts
But you can endure and learn, can accept and be glad.
You will realize the vision (not the idle wish), of your heart
Be it base or beautiful, or a mixture of both.
For you will always gravitate towards that which you, secretly, most love.
Into your hand will be placed the exact result of your thought.
You will receive that which you earn; no more, no less.
Whatever your present environment may be,
You will fall, remain, or rise with your thoughts, your vision, your ideal.
You will become as small as your controlling desire;
As great as your dominant aspiration.

I may never know why he saved this prose, but it speaks volumes to me and it is part of the legacy he shared. May you, my readers, be as inspired by what he has shared as I.