Don't Change the World

Thanks to Janakiraman S

Don't Change the World

Once upon a time, there lived a king who ruled over a prosperous country.

One day, he had to visit a distant part of his country. When he returned to his palace, he complained that his feet hurt very badly, as it was the first time that he had gone on such a long trip, and the path that he went through was very rough and stony.

He then ordered his people to cover every road in the entire country with leather. Definitely, this would need thousands of cows' skin, and would cost a huge amount of money.

Then one of his wiser servants dared to tell the king, "Why do you have to spend such a large sum to cover the roads ? Why don't you just cut a little piece of leather to cover your feet?"

The king was surprised, but he agreed - to make a "shoe" for himself.

There is actually a valuable lesson for life in this story: To make this world a happy place to live in, you better change yourself - your heart; and not the world.

Thanks for your time...

Thanks to Indubala Sobhana

Thanks for your time...

 

It had been some time since Jack had seen the old man. College, girls, career, and life itself got in the way. In fact, Jack moved clear across the country in pursuit of his dreams. There, in the rush of his busy life, Jack had little time to think about the past and often no time to spend with his wife and son. He was working on his future, and nothing could stop him.

 

Over the phone, his mother told him, "Mr. Belser died last night. The funeral is Wednesday." Memories flashed through his mind like an old newsreel as he sat quietly remembering his childhood days.

 

"Jack, did you hear me?"

 

"Oh, sorry, Mom. Yes, I heard you. It's been so long since I thought of him. I'm sorry, but I honestly thought he died years ago," Jack said..

 

"Well, he didn't forget you. Every time I saw him he'd ask how you were doing. He'd reminisce about the many days you spent over 'his side of the fence' as he put it," Mom told him.

 

"I loved that old house he lived in," Jack said.

 

"You know, Jack, after your father died, Mr. Belser stepped in to make sure you had a man's influence in your life," she said.

 

"He's the one who taught me carpentry," he said.

 

"I wouldn't be in this business if it weren't for him. He spent a lot of time teaching me things he thought were important... Mom, I'll be there for the funeral," Jack said.

 

As busy as he was, he kept his word. Jack caught the next flight to his hometown.

 

Mr. Belser's funeral was small and uneventful. He had no children of his own, and most of his relatives had passed away.

 

The night before he had to return home, Jack and his Mom stopped by to see the old house next door one more time.

 

Standing in the doorway, Jack paused for a moment. It was like crossing over into another dimension, a leap through space and time.

 

The house was exactly as he remembered. Every step held memories. Every picture, every piece of furniture....Jack stopped suddenly.

 

"What's wrong, Jack?" his Mom asked.

 

"The box is gone," he said.

 

"What box? " Mom asked.

 

"There was a small gold box that he kept locked on top of his desk. I must have asked him a thousand times what was inside. All he'd ever tell me was 'the thing I value most,'" Jack said.

 

It was gone. Everything about the house was exactly how Jack remembered it, except for the box. He figured someone from the Belser family had taken it.

 

"Now I'll never know what was so valuable to him," Jack said. "I better get some sleep. I have an early flight home, Mom."

 

It had been about two weeks since Mr. Belser died. Returning home from work one day Jack discovered a note in his mailbox.

 

"Signature required on a package. No one at home. Please stop by the main post office within the next three days," the note read.

 

Early the next day Jack retrieved the package.  The small box was old and looked like it had been mailed a hundred years ago. The handwriting was difficult to read, but the return address caught his attention.

 

"Mr. Harold Belser" it read.

 

Jack took the box out to his car and ripped open the package. There inside was the gold box and an envelope.

 

Jack's hands shook as he read the note inside.

 

"Upon my death, please forward this box and its contents to Jack Bennett. It's the thing I valued most in my life." A small key was taped to the letter.

 

His heart racing, as tears filling his eyes, Jack carefully unlocked the box. There inside he found a beautiful gold pocket watch. Running his fingers slowly over the finely etched casing, he unlatched the cover.

 

Inside he found these words engraved: "Jack, Thanks for your time..! Harold Belser."

 

"The thing he valued most.. was.. my time . . ."

 

Jack held the watch for a few minutes, then called his office and cleared his appointments for the next two days.

 

"Why?" Janet, his assistant asked.

 

"I need some time to spend with my son..," he said.

 

"Oh, by the way, Janet.. Thanks for your time..!"

 

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take but by the moments that take our breath away . . . It is not the years that we put in to our life, but the life that we put into the years that really matters.

Diamond Message

Thanks to Rathnakar Raghunath

Diamond Message

 

Once a king called upon all his wise men and asked them "Is there a mantra or suggestion which works in every situation, in every circumstance, in every place and in every time? Something which can help me when none of you is available to advise me. Tell me is there any mantra?" All the wise men were puzzled by the king’s question. One answer for all questions?  Something that works everywhere in every situation?  In every joy, every sorrow, every defeat and every victory? They thought and thought.

 

After a lengthy discussion, an old man suggested something which appealed to all of them. They went to the king and gave him a piece of paper. But the condition was that the king should not look at it out of curiosity. Only in extreme danger, when the King finds himself alone and there seems to be no way out, should he see it. The King put the paper under his diamond ring.

 

After a few days, its neighbours attacked the kingdom. The King and his army fought bravely but lost the battle. The King had to flee on his horse. His enemies followed him. The horse was taking him deeper into the jungle and the sound of hooves was getting closer. Suddenly the king found himself standing at the end of the path. Below him was a rocky valley a thousand feet deep. If he jumped, he would be finished .But returning through the narrow path was impossible. The sound of enemy horses was getting louder . The King became restless. There seemed to be no way.

Then he saw the Diamond in his ring shining in the sun, and he remembered the message hidden in the ring. He opened the diamond and read the message. The message was small but great. It said, "This too will pass."

 

The King read it. Again and again .Suddenly something struck him- Yes! This too will pass.

 

A few days ago I was the ruler of a mighty kingdom. Yet today, I have lost everything. However, as those days of luxury have passed, this danger will pass. His face regained its calm.

 

He looked around him. He had never known that such a beautiful place was a part of his kingdom. The message had a great effect on him. He forgot about those following him.

 

After a few minutes he realized that the noise of the horses was receding. They had moved to some other part of the mountains .The brave king  reorganized his army and fought back. He defeated the enemy and regained his lost empire. When he returned to his empire , he was received with much fan fare at the door. The whole capital was rejoicing in the victory. His subjects sang and danced on the streets. Everyone was in a festive mood. Flowers were being showered on the  King from every house, from every corner.  For a moment the King said to himself," I am one of the bravest and greatest Kings. It is not easy to defeat me..:

 

In the glory of the moment , he felt  ego emerging in him. Suddenly the Diamond of his ring flashed in the sunlight and reminded him of the message. He opened it and read it again: "This too will pass" . He became silent. So did the egotist in him.

 

If this too is going to pass, it is not yours. The defeat was not yours, the victory is not yours. You are just a spectator . Everything passes by. We are a witness to all of this. We are the perceiver. Life comes and goes. Happiness comes and goes. Sorrow comes and goes.

 

Now as you have read this story, just sit silently and evaluate your own life.. Think of the moments of joy and victory in your life. Think of the moment of Sorrow and defeat. Are they permanent? They all come and pass . Life just passes away. There were friends in the past.
They have gone. There are friends today. They too will go. There will be new friends tomorrow. They too will go. There were enemies in the past. They have gone. There may be enemies in the present. They too will go. There will be new enemies tomorrow and they too will go.

 

nothing is permanent in this world. Everything changes except the law of change. Think it over  from your own perspective. You have seen all the changes. You have survived all setbacks, all defeats and all sorrows. All have passed away. If there are problems in the present, they too will pass away. Because nothing remains forever. Joy and sorrow are the two faces of the same coin. They too will pass .

 

Who are you in reality? Know your real face. The face in your mirror will not be the same tomorrow . It will change with time. However, there is something in you, which will not change. It will remain unchanged. What is that unchangeable? It is nothing but your true self. You are just a witness of change.

Life Together

Thanks to Aakriti Rana

Life Together

 

One fine day, an old couple around the age of 70, walks into a lawyer's office. Apparently, they are there to file a divorce.

 

Lawyer was very puzzled, after having a chat with them, he got their story....This couple had been quarreling all their 40 over yrs of marriage nothing ever seems to go right.

 

They hang on because of their children, afraid that it might affect their up-bringing. Now, all their children have already grown up, have their own family, there's nothing else the old couple have to worry about, all they wanted is to lead their own life free from all these years of unhappiness from their marriage, so both agree on a divorce....

 

Lawyer was having a hard time trying to get the papers done, because he felt that after 40 yrs of marriage at the age of 70, he couldn't understand why the old couple would still want a divorce..

 

While they were signing the papers, the wife told the husband..

"I really love u, but i really cant carry on anymore, I'm sorry.."

"Its o.k, i understand.." said the husband. Looking at this, the lawyer suggested a dinner together, just 3 of them,wife thought, why not, since they are still gonna be friends..

 

At the dining table, there was a silence of awkwardness.

The first dish was roasted chicken, immediately, the old man took the drumstick for the old lady.."take this, its your favorite.."

 

Looking at this, the lawyer thought maybe there is still a chance, but the wife was frowning when she answer.."

This is always the problem, you always think so highly of yourself, never thought about how I feel, don't you know that i hate drumsticks?"

 

Little did she know that, over the years, the husband have been trying all ways to please her, little did she know that drumsticks was the husband's favorite. Little did he know that she never thought he understand her at all, little did he know that she hates drumsticks even though all he wants is the best for her.

 

That night, both of them couldn't sleep, toss and turn, toss and turn...after hours, the old man couldn't take it anymore, he knows that he still loves her, and he cant carry on life without her, he wants her back, he wants to tell her, he is sorry, he wanted to tell her "i love you"...

 

He picks up the phone, starting dialing her number....ringing never stops..he never stop dialing....

 

On the other side, she was sad, she couldn't understand how come after all these years, he still doesn't understand her at all, she loves him a lot, but she just cant take it anymore....phone's ringing, she refuses to answer knowing that its him..."whats the point of talking now that its over...i have ask for it and now i wanna keep it this way, if not i will lose face.."she thought...still ringing...she have decided to pull out the cord...

 

Little did she remember, he have heart problems...

 

The next day, she received news that he had passed away...she rushed down to his apartment, saw his body, lying on the couch still holding on to the phone...he had a heart attack when he was still trying to get through her phone line....

 

As sad as she could be...she will have to clear his belongings...when she was looking thru the drawers, she saw this insurance policy, dated from the day they got married, with the beneficiary being her... And together in those file, there was this note...

 

"To my dearest wife, by the time you're reading this, I'm sure I'm no longer around, I bought this policy for you, though the amount is only $100k, I hope it will be able to help me continue my promise that i have made when we got married, I might not be around anymore, I want this amount of money to continue taking care of you, just like the way I will if I could have live longer. I want you to know I will always be around, by your side... " I LOVE YOU SWEET HEART"

 

Tears flowed like river......

 

"When you love someone, let them know... You never know what will happen the next minute.... Learn to build a life together.. Learn to love each other. For who they are... not what they are..."

Butterfly

Thanks to Rohit S

Butterfly

A man found a cocoon of a butterfly. One day a small opening appeared. He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole. Then it seemed to stop making any progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could, and it could go no further. So the man decided to help the butterfly. He took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon. The butterfly then emerged easily. But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings. The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract in time. Neither happened! In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings. It never was able to fly.

What the man, in his kindness and haste, did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening were God's way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon. Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our lives. If God allowed us to go through our lives without any obstacles, it would cripple us. We would not be as strong as what we could have been. We could never fly!

Money has no memory. Experience has it..

Thanks to Gayatri Hosangadi

Money has no memory. Experience has it.

 

You will never know what was the total cost of your education, but for a lifetime you will recall and relive the memories of schools and colleges. Few years from now, you will forget the amount you paid to settle the hospitalization bill, but will ever cherish having saved your mother's life or the life you get to live with the just born. You won't remember the cost of your honeymoon, but to the last breath remember the experiences of the bliss of togetherness. Money has no memory. Experience has.

 

Good times and bad times, times of prosperity and times of poverty, times when the future looked so secure and times when you didn't know from where the tomorrow will come… life has been in one way or the other a roller-coaster ride for everyone. Beyond all that abundance and beyond all that deprivation, what remains is the memory of experiences. Sometimes the wallet was full… sometimes even the pocket was empty. There was enough and you still had reasons to frown. There wasn't enough and you still had reasons to smile. Today, you can look back with tears of gratitude for all the times you had laughed together, and also look back with a smile at all the times you cried alone. All in all, life filled you with experiences to create a history of your own self, and you alone can remember them all.

 

·         The first time you balanced yourself on your cycle without support…

·         The first cry… the first steps… the first word… all of your child…

·         The first gift you bought for your parents and the first gift your daughter gave you…

·         The first award… the first public appreciation… the first stage performance…

·         And the list is endless… Experiences, with timeless memory…

 

No denying that anything that's material cost money, but the fact remains the cost of the experience will be forgotten, but the experience never.

 

So, what if it's economic recession? Let it be, but let there not be a recession to the quality of your life. You can still take your parents, if not on a pilgrimage, at least to the local temple. You can still play with your children, if not on an international holiday, at least in the local park. It doesn't cost money to lie down or to take a loved one onto your lap. Nice time to train the employees, create leadership availability and be ready for the wonderful times when they arrive. Hey! Aspects like your health, knowledge development and spiritual growth are not economy dependent.

 

Time will pass… economy will revive… currency will soon be in current… and in all this, I don't want you to look back and realize you did nothing but stayed in gloom. Recession can make you lose out on money. Let it not make you lose out on experiences… If you are not happy with what you have, no matter how much more you have, you will still not be happy.

 

Make a statement with the way you live your life: How I feel has nothing to do with how much I have.

The Legend of the Cherokee Indian!

Thanks to Jasmin Shah

The Legend of the Cherokee Indian!

Do you know the legend of the Cherokee Indian youth's rite of passage?

His father takes him into the forest, blindfolds him and leaves him alone. He is required to sit on a stump the whole night and not remove the blindfold until the rays of the morning sun shine through it. He cannot cry out for help to anyone. Once he survives the night, he is a MAN. He cannot tell the other boys of this experience because each lad must come into manhood on his own.

The boy is naturally terrified. He can hear all kinds of noises. Wild beasts must surely be all around him. Maybe even some human might do him harm. The wind blew the grass and earth, and shook his stump,

but he sat stoically, never removing the blindfold. It would be the only way he could become a man!

Finally, after a horrific night, the sun appeared and he removed his blindfold.  It was then that he discovered his father sitting on the stump next to him. He had been at watch the entire night, protecting his son from harm.

We, too, are never alone. Even when we don't know it, our Heavenly Father is watching over us, sitting on the stump beside us. When trouble comes, all we have to do is reach out to Him.

Moral of the Story: Just because you can't see God, doesn't mean He is not there. For we walk by faith, not by sight.