Spirit Fodder
Saturday, December 13, 2003
Hurt or Comfort
Sometimes we spend time asking who is responsible or whom to blame, whether in a relationship, in a job or with the people we know. We miss out some warmth in human relationship to give each other support. Treasure what you have. Just a little story for you. This little story moved me, touched my heart. My feeling is that there is nothing in life but one must refrain from hurting others, and comfort those who are sad. We must either find a way or make one.
Here it goes:
A boy was born to a couple after eleven years of marriage. They were a loving couple and the boy was the apple of their eyes. When the boy was around two years old, one morning the husband saw a medicine bottle open. He was late for work so he asked the wife to cap the bottle and keep it in the cupboard. The mother, preoccupied in the kitchen totally forgot the matter. The boy playfully went to the medicine bottle and, fascinated with its colour, drank it all. It happened to be a poisonous medicine meant for adults in small dosages.
When the child showed signs of poisoning the mother took him to the hospital, where he died. The mother was stunned. She was terrified how to face her husband. When the distraught father came to the hospital and saw the dead child, he looked at his wife and uttered just four words.
QUESTIONS:
1. What were the four words?
2. What is the implication of this story?
ANSWER:
The husband just said "I Love You Darling".
The husband's totally unexpected reaction is proactive behaviour. He is indeed a genius in human relationships. The child is dead. He can never be brought back to life. There is no point in finding fault with the mother. She had also lost her only child. What she needed at that moment was consolation and sympathy from the husband. That is what he gave her.
If everyone can look at life with this kind of perspective, there would be much fewer problems in the world. To be happy with a man you must understand him a lot and love him a little. To be happy with a woman you must understand her a lot and love her with all your heart.
A journey of a thousand miles, begins with but with a single step.
Take off all your envies, jealousies, un-forgiveness, selfishness, and fears AND you will find things are actually not as difficult as you think.
There are many beautiful, charming and wonderful men and women here on earth; it's just a matter of who you get to meet along the way and who you choose to end up with for the rest of your life.
Love has its own time, season and reason. You can't ask for it to stay. You can only embrace it when it comes and be glad that for a moment in your life, it was yours.
(Thanks to Pauline for this lovely story.)
