Week 13 Story... Heart of Gold
In the small town of Rahda there lived an old man who roamed the streets without no where to live. he hunched over his wooden cane and with much struggle took light steps as he headed in his direction. His dog always followed along. The man never begged for food or money but the townspeople knew that he had no food or shelter so they would often feed him. Every morning he would walk to the schoolhouse and wave to all the kids as his dog sat next to him. He would then walk around town picking up any trash that littered the streets.
Old man walking down the street. [source]
At the end of a long neighborhood street there lived a little boy named Leo. He was only five but he was very smart. Every morning, his mother would give him a piece of bread and coffee to give to the old man as he passed by the house. This was Leo's favorite part of his morning. He would go outside and greet the man, pet his dog, and wish him a blessed day. Although, he felt content after giving the man something to eat and drink, Leo still felt saddened that the old man had no home and no family.
The years went by and one day Leo decided that he wanted to talk to the old man and see how he could help him. He went outside and handed the man his bread and coffee. He then asked him if he could talk to him for a bit and the old man agreed.
Leo said, "mister every morning I watch you and your dog come by and head out for the rest of your day. I can't help but wonder how it is that make it through cold months or hot weather."
The old man replied, "Sometimes you realize that others have it worse, than you just feeling too cold or too hot."
This caught Leo off guard because he did not understand how a man who had no home could have it any less worse than someone else. He then said, "you know for years now I have been saving up my allowance and I wanted you to have it. I am blessed with a home and family and I want to do something to help you sir."
The old man then said, "for years now your family has been feeding me in the morning and you have never been anything other than kind to my dog and I. I do not live my life unhappy because of my living conditions but I am more so grateful that I am alive. Some people live rich lives but are still miserable and for those I pray everyday. Little boy your heart is so big and your kindness radiates. Please save your money for a future emergency. Never change and always be kind to all."
The little boy who once was only five years old was now 25 and he always thought back to that day and never forgot to always be kind.
Author's Note: I derived this story from two Jataka tales. One was, "The Fairy and the Hare", and the other was "The Master's Test." In one tale the hare refused to steal from others so in the end he only had himself to offer. I used that to incorporate selflessness into my story. The hare in that story was giving himself to the fairy to eat. That was also kindness in a way because he wanted the fairy to have food even if it was himself. In the other story, one of the pupil's does not want to steal and he tells the teacher that he rather beg for money than to steal from anyone. This is someone with a pure heart and honest intentions. I incorporated that into the old man character and into the little boy as well. the characters from my story were original and they only exemplified traits displayed by the characters in the original tales.
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This is such a nice story. Its message resonates very strongly with me. So many spend their whole lives chasing money. While I understand chasing financial security, money truly cannot make anyone happy. People need to chase their dreams instead and be grateful for what they have along the way. Loved your story!
ReplyDeleteHey Catalina! I wonder if the little boy in your story carried the lesson that he learned from the old man throughout his life. For some reason, I thought that the story would end with him growing up and then dedicating his life to alleviating poverty or other conditions that the old man had to endure. I love this story because it showcases the purity of the decisions that children make and how we used to think before we started to pick up different beliefs that have formed into biases with which we assess other with.
ReplyDeleteHi Catalina! This is a pretty cute story. I enjoyed the moral message behind it. I think you could expand it just a little, and the last paragraph is a little confusing word-wise, but I liked the story a lot. I was curious on how the story might change with some background on the old man. Did he once have money and a nice home? Was he a big CEO who gave it all up one day? Or has he always lived this life? And if so, how does he know that those who have luxury lead miserable lives?
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