I was witness to two heart warming incidents yesterday which gave me some fine pointers on how to go about with my life. The first incident involved a painfully thin, old auto rickshaw walla who looked like he did not have a proper meal for a while, nor even good business. He appeared to have slept off the afternoon heat in his auto and just got off when he saw us, Anjali, Chimu and I, walking towards the park near our house. Hearing Anjali talking nineteen to dozen loudly, he started bobbing his head at her in tune with her talk, a huge smile on his face that appeared to light up the entire street. Anjali stopped talking and smiled back at him. And at that moment I wondered how few of us smile, laugh at the world. The higher we go in life's ladder the lesser we smile, from our heart. We smile fake smiles, laugh fake laughter. That man's smile is clearly etched in my mind and I think I do not need much if I have a smile in my heart like that. I am sure he must be having a lot more hardships than many of us who sport a grumpy face and behave like we have the world on our shoulders. He reminded me to smile at small things and stop taking myself so seriously.
The other incident was that of a small boy, perhaps nine years old. He was walking barefoot on the road, hands in his pocket. He was obviously working somewhere as manual labour from the looks of it and I'd guess he would not have had more than ten rupees in his pocket max. As he was walking he suddenly stopped and turned. I wondered why he stopped. He walked back a few steps and stopped near a crippled beggar who sat on his board with wheels. And to my amazement, the young kid dipped into his pocket and puled out some money and gave it to him without even counting it. He looked a trifle embarrassed, perhaps at the small amount he gave the man, or even at the thought that he considered himself on the giving side. And then he walked away, having given away half or even the full amount of what he owned in the world. I don't know if I can ever be as large hearted as that boy but he will always remind me to share with those who need. If he can give and be confident that he can earn it back, I am sure I can.
Thank you both my friends for teaching me valuable life lessons and may the good God give you all you desire.
The other incident was that of a small boy, perhaps nine years old. He was walking barefoot on the road, hands in his pocket. He was obviously working somewhere as manual labour from the looks of it and I'd guess he would not have had more than ten rupees in his pocket max. As he was walking he suddenly stopped and turned. I wondered why he stopped. He walked back a few steps and stopped near a crippled beggar who sat on his board with wheels. And to my amazement, the young kid dipped into his pocket and puled out some money and gave it to him without even counting it. He looked a trifle embarrassed, perhaps at the small amount he gave the man, or even at the thought that he considered himself on the giving side. And then he walked away, having given away half or even the full amount of what he owned in the world. I don't know if I can ever be as large hearted as that boy but he will always remind me to share with those who need. If he can give and be confident that he can earn it back, I am sure I can.
Thank you both my friends for teaching me valuable life lessons and may the good God give you all you desire.
2 comments:
Good one.
Its inspiring and sad at the same time. The Kid exhibited extreme maturity and empathy towards a stranger that you'd not even expect from adults these days.
And I'm one of those selfish adult!
Naveen,
The smile on his face was priceless. An innocence that everyone must remain in touch with.
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