Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Be careful how you treat others

There was once a frail elderly woman whose loving husband died and because there was nobody else to keep her company, except the young girl who was hired to take care of her needs, a decision was made that she has to go and live with her son, his wife and their little daughter. With time the old woman’s vision became bad and her hearing grew worse. Her hands started to tremble so badly that the peas on her plate fell onto the floor and the soup spilled from her cup. Her son and his wife couldn’t help but be annoyed at the mess she was making while eating. So, one day they just stood up and said enough is enough, they couldn’t take it anymore. A little table was set for the old woman in a corner next to the broom closet. The old woman was now forced to eat all her meals there alone. This became a daily routine; the old woman spent her mealtimes alone without anybody speaking to her. The only time the couple uttered a word was when they scolded her for spilling her food or dropping her spoon.
One day before dinner, the little girl was sitting on the floor playing with her building blocks. The father out of curiosity inquired what she was doing. The little girl responded by saying, “I am building a little table for you and mom, so you can eat alone like granny in the corner someday when I get big.” The parents were stunned by the little girl’s response. This opened their eyes to the bad treatment they were giving to the old woman. With tears rolling down their cheeks, they repented for treating the old woman harshly. The couple immediately brought back the old woman to the table and began talking and enjoying meals with her. They no longer paid attention to the mess of a spoon falling down or milk spilling on the table. The lesson they learned from their daughter is that whatever you sow in this world you will definitely reap, whether good or bad. The couple learned that life is like a big farm where different farmers sow their seeds. What we reap comes from what we have earlier planted. So, in order to have an enjoyable great future, learn to sow seeds of goodness, love, humanity, honesty, diligence and faithfulness.

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