He met her at a party. She was so outstanding, many guys chasing after her, while he was so normal, nobody paid attention to him.
At the end of the party, he invited her to have coffee with him, she was surprised but due to being polite, she promised. They sat in a nice coffee shop, he was too nervous to say anything, she felt uncomfortable, and she thought to herself, "Please, let me go home..."
Suddenly he asked the waiter, "Would you please give me some salt? I'd like to put it in my coffee." Everybody stared at him, so strange! His face turned red but still, he put the salt in his coffee and drank it. She asked him curiously, "Why you have this hobby?" He replied, "When I was a little boy, I lived near the sea, I liked playing in the sea, I could feel the taste of the sea, just like the taste of the salty coffee. Now every time I have the salty coffee, I always think of my childhood, think of my hometown, I miss my hometown so much, I miss my parents who are still living there." While saying that tears filled his eyes. She was deeply touched. That's his true feeling, from the bottom of his heart. A man who can tell out his homesickness, he must be a man who loves home, cares about home, has responsibility of home... Then she also started to speak, spoke about her faraway hometown, her childhood, her family.
That was a really nice talk, also a beautiful beginning of their story. They continued to date. She found that actually he was a man who meets all her demands; he had tolerance, was kind hearted, warm, careful. He was such a good person but she almost missed him! Thanks to his salty coffee! Then the story was just like every beautiful love story, the princess married to the prince, and then they were living the happy life... And, every time she made coffee for him, she put some salt in the coffee, as she knew that's the way he liked it.
After 40 years, he passed away, left her a letter which said, "My dearest, please forgive me, forgive my whole life's lie. This was the only lie I said to you---the salty coffee. Remember the first time we dated? I was so nervous at that time, actually I wanted some sugar, but I said salt. It was hard for me to change so I just went ahead. I never thought that could be the start of our communication! I tried to tell you the truth many times in my life, but I was too afraid to do that, as I have promised not to lie to you for anything... Now I'm dying, I afraid of nothing so I tell you the truth, I don't like the salty coffee, what a strange bad taste... But I have had the salty coffee for my whole life! Since I knew you, I never feel sorry for anything I do for you. Having you with me is my biggest happiness for my whole life. If I can live for the second time, still want to know you and have you for my whole life, even though I have to drink the salty coffee again."
Her tears made the letter totally wet. Someday, someone asked her, "What's the taste of salty coffee?" She replied, "It's sweet."
Pass this to everyone because love is not to forget but to forgive, not to see but understand, not to hear but to listen, not to let go but HOLD ON!! ♥♥♥
Sunday, January 1, 2012
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Learn From the Donkey!
A village potter used to make pots and planters. He would go to a near by town to sell his wares. He had a donkey on whose back he would load the pots etc.
Diwali was fast approaching, so the potter decided to make some statues of Lord Ganesha and Goddess Lakshmi, to sell in town. He made some beautiful statues and painted them in bright colours. He then loaded them on to the back of his donkey and set off towards the city.
On the way, he crossed many people. They would invariably fold their hands and bow to the statues of Ganesha and Lakshmi. By the time they reached the city, many people had bowed their heads before the deities.
They reached the exhibition ground where the artisans could exhibit their things. Soon the potter was able to sell his statues for a good sum. He was pleased indeed!
The potter took his donkey by the muzzle and set off on the road leading back to the village. Every time they would cross anyone, the donkey would stop and preen himself prettily as if he were a model. But what was the matter! No one seemed to as much as glance at him! Why were people not bowing their heads before him anymore? Desperate to catch their attention, the donkey started to bray louder & louder...
He-haw, he-haw...... He went on. The passers-by started pelting stones at him in annoyance. The potter was bewildered too.
The poor donkey had thought that everyone was bowing to him, little realizing that their reverence was directed to the idols of God tied to his back and not to him!
Many of us make this mistake. A person occupying a seat of power, often finds people saluting him. If he thinks that the salutations are in his honour, he is living in a fool's paradise, like the donkey in the story!
The respect is given to the chair and not to the person occupying it. As soon as he steps down from the position, the people around him vanish.
Diwali was fast approaching, so the potter decided to make some statues of Lord Ganesha and Goddess Lakshmi, to sell in town. He made some beautiful statues and painted them in bright colours. He then loaded them on to the back of his donkey and set off towards the city.
On the way, he crossed many people. They would invariably fold their hands and bow to the statues of Ganesha and Lakshmi. By the time they reached the city, many people had bowed their heads before the deities.
They reached the exhibition ground where the artisans could exhibit their things. Soon the potter was able to sell his statues for a good sum. He was pleased indeed!
The potter took his donkey by the muzzle and set off on the road leading back to the village. Every time they would cross anyone, the donkey would stop and preen himself prettily as if he were a model. But what was the matter! No one seemed to as much as glance at him! Why were people not bowing their heads before him anymore? Desperate to catch their attention, the donkey started to bray louder & louder...
He-haw, he-haw...... He went on. The passers-by started pelting stones at him in annoyance. The potter was bewildered too.
The poor donkey had thought that everyone was bowing to him, little realizing that their reverence was directed to the idols of God tied to his back and not to him!
Many of us make this mistake. A person occupying a seat of power, often finds people saluting him. If he thinks that the salutations are in his honour, he is living in a fool's paradise, like the donkey in the story!
The respect is given to the chair and not to the person occupying it. As soon as he steps down from the position, the people around him vanish.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Thinking about future too anxiously!
Once two villagers were sitting under a tree and watching the sunset. They were very close friends. After sitting quietly for some time, one asked the other, "What are you thinking?"
"I am planning to buy five acres of land, a garden." The other friend immediately said, "Don't buy the garden!"
The first one was surprised. He asked "why"? The second one replied, "I am planning to buy a buffalo. Then, my buffalo will enter your garden and we will fight, have misunderstandings and lose our friendship. I do not want to lose our friendship."
The first one said, "Then, you cancel your plan of buying a buffalo. I am going to buy my garden." The second one said, "No, no, no. I have already decided to buy a buffalo." Thefirst one said, "How will your buffalo enter my garden? I will fence it thoroughly."
The second one said, "No, you see it can just enter; a buffalo is a buffalo. Who can stop it? It can do anything."
They started fighting. The fight went to such an extent that they broke their limbs! Neither has bought buffalo nor any land.
Nothing has happened. Just the mind’s race and both of them broke their limbs over it!
Our fears are also like that. The future has not yet come. But you just sit there and think, "Oh! What will happen? This will happen. That will happen."
Many times our minds are filled with anxiety about the future! In this run, the mind gets into such a mess.
Don’t be over anxious about the future.
"I am planning to buy five acres of land, a garden." The other friend immediately said, "Don't buy the garden!"
The first one was surprised. He asked "why"? The second one replied, "I am planning to buy a buffalo. Then, my buffalo will enter your garden and we will fight, have misunderstandings and lose our friendship. I do not want to lose our friendship."
The first one said, "Then, you cancel your plan of buying a buffalo. I am going to buy my garden." The second one said, "No, no, no. I have already decided to buy a buffalo." Thefirst one said, "How will your buffalo enter my garden? I will fence it thoroughly."
The second one said, "No, you see it can just enter; a buffalo is a buffalo. Who can stop it? It can do anything."
They started fighting. The fight went to such an extent that they broke their limbs! Neither has bought buffalo nor any land.
Nothing has happened. Just the mind’s race and both of them broke their limbs over it!
Our fears are also like that. The future has not yet come. But you just sit there and think, "Oh! What will happen? This will happen. That will happen."
Many times our minds are filled with anxiety about the future! In this run, the mind gets into such a mess.
Don’t be over anxious about the future.
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Difference Between Belief And Faith
There was a tightrope walker, who was so good that he could walk between two twenty stories building on a tight rope with a balancing pole.
Thousands of people would watch him perform his breathtaking feat. After he walked across the building he would have his assistant sit on his shoulder and he would proceed to walk across the building.
Everybody were amazed and gave him a thunderous applause. He asked them whether they believed that he could do it again. The crowd said, Yes, we believe that you can!
After a while he asked the crowd again, Now, who wants to volunteer to get on my shoulder? With that the crowd became silent.
There is a difference between Belief and Faith. We can believe what we see. In the above story, the crowd believed in the tightrope walker because they saw him perform the feat.
But when he asked them “Who wants to get on my shoulder?everyone was silent. You see, the crowd had Belief but they did not have Faith. This story clearly illustrates the difference between belief and having faith.
Thousands of people would watch him perform his breathtaking feat. After he walked across the building he would have his assistant sit on his shoulder and he would proceed to walk across the building.
Everybody were amazed and gave him a thunderous applause. He asked them whether they believed that he could do it again. The crowd said, Yes, we believe that you can!
After a while he asked the crowd again, Now, who wants to volunteer to get on my shoulder? With that the crowd became silent.
There is a difference between Belief and Faith. We can believe what we see. In the above story, the crowd believed in the tightrope walker because they saw him perform the feat.
But when he asked them “Who wants to get on my shoulder?everyone was silent. You see, the crowd had Belief but they did not have Faith. This story clearly illustrates the difference between belief and having faith.
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Why Go to Temple ?
A 'devotee' goer wrote a letter to the editor of a newspaper and complained that it made no sense to go to the Temple.
'I've gone for 30 years now, he wrote, and in that time I have heard something like 3,000 mantras.
But for the life of me, I can't remember a single one of them. So, I think I'm wasting my time and the Gurus are wasting theirs by giving services at all.
This started a real controversy in the 'Letters to the Editor' column, much to the delight of the editor. It went on for weeks until someone wrote this clincher:
I've been married for 30 years now. In that time my
wife has cooked some 32,000 meals. But, for the life of me, I cannot recall the entire menu for a single one of those meals. But I do know this... They all nourished me and gave me the strength I needed to do my work.
If my wife had not given me these meals, I would be physically dead today.
Likewise, if I had not gone to the Temple for nourishment, I would be spiritually dead today!
When you are DOWN to nothing.... God is UP to something! Faith sees the invisible, believes the incredible and receives the impossible!
Thank God for our physical AND our spiritual nourishment!
Friday, November 19, 2010
Humiliate or not to humiliate
According to the account, Queen Victoria was once at a diplomatic reception in London . The guest of honor was an African chieftain. All went well during the meal until, at the end, finger bowls were served. The guest of honor had never seen a British finger bowl, and no one had thought to brief him beforehand about its purpose. So he took the bowl in his two hands, lifted it to his mouth, and drank its contents down!
For an instant there was breathless silence among the British privilege guests, and then they began to whisper to one another. All that stopped; however, when Queen Victoria silently took her finger bowl in her two hands, lifted it, and drank its contents! A moment later, 500 surprised British ladies and gentlemen simultaneously drank the contents of their own finger bowls.
It was the queen’s uncommon courtesy that guarded her guest from certain embarrassment.
This is a very rare but very effective human trait which only true leaders can demonstrate!
Moral of the story
While the most common human trait is to look for chances to humiliate someone else or be neutral when they make a mistake, it takes presence of mind, uncommon courtesy to follow someone else’s mistake in order to guard them from embarrassment!
For an instant there was breathless silence among the British privilege guests, and then they began to whisper to one another. All that stopped; however, when Queen Victoria silently took her finger bowl in her two hands, lifted it, and drank its contents! A moment later, 500 surprised British ladies and gentlemen simultaneously drank the contents of their own finger bowls.
It was the queen’s uncommon courtesy that guarded her guest from certain embarrassment.
This is a very rare but very effective human trait which only true leaders can demonstrate!
Moral of the story
While the most common human trait is to look for chances to humiliate someone else or be neutral when they make a mistake, it takes presence of mind, uncommon courtesy to follow someone else’s mistake in order to guard them from embarrassment!
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
The Bird & The White Rose
Once upon a time a bird fell in love with a white rose. One day she, the bird, proposed to him, the white rose, but the white rose refused. White rose said "I don't love you". The bird came daily and proposed to the white rose. Finally, the white rose said "When I will turn red, I will love you". One day the bird came and cut her wings and spread her blood on the white rose and the rose turned red. Then the rose realized how much the bird loved him but it was too late because the bird was dead. So respect the love and feelings of the person who loves you.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
