There will be
lots of people around us when times are easy, but let us take note those
who remain with us when times get tough; in our time of need, like the
rich merchant in the following narrative inspired by the writings of an
unknown writer.
There
was a rich merchant
who had four wives. He loved the 4th wife the most and adorned her with
rich robes and treated her to delicacies. He took great care of her and
gave her nothing but the best.
He also loved the 3rd wife very much. He's very proud of her and always
wanted to show off her
to his friends. However, the merchant is always in great fear that she
might run away with some other men.
He too, loved his 2nd wife. She
is a very considerate person, always patient and in fact is
the merchant's confidante. Whenever the merchant faced some problems, he
always turned to his 2nd wife and she would always help him out and tide
him through difficult times.
Now,
the merchant's 1st wife is a very loyal partner and has made great
contributions in maintaining his wealth and business as well as taking
care of the household. However, the merchant did not love the first wife
and although she loved him deeply, he hardly took notice of her.
One day, the merchant fell ill.
Before long, he knew that he was going to die soon. He thought of his
luxurious life and told himself, "Now I have four wives with me. But
when I die, I'll be alone. How lonely I'll be!"
The
measure of love is to love without measure. Do not forget that true love
sets no conditions; it does not calculate nor complain, but simply
love.-Blessed John Paul II |
Thus, he asked the 4th wife, "I
loved you most, endowed you with the finest clothing and showered
great care over you. Now that I'm
dying, will you follow me and keep me company?" "No way," replied the
4th wife and she walked away without another word.
The answer cut like a sharp knife
right into the merchant's heart. The sad merchant then asked the 3rd
wife, "I have loved you so much for all my life. Now that I'm dying,
will you follow me and keep me company?" "No," replied the 3rd wife.
"Life is so good over here! I'm going to remarry when you die!" The
merchant's heart sank and turned cold.
He then asked the 2nd wife, "I
always turned to you for help and you've always helped me out. Now I
need your help again. When I die, will you follow me and keep me
company?" "I'm sorry, I can't help you out this time," replied the 2nd
wife. "At the very most, I can only send you to your grave." The answer
came like a bolt of thunder and the merchant was devastated.
Love
is willing to lose in order to win; or even to die in order that beloved
lives. |
Then a voice
called out: "I'll leave with you. I'll follow you no matter where you
go." The
merchant
looked up and there
was his first wife. She was so skinny, almost like she suffered from
malnutrition. Greatly grieved, the merchant said, "I should have taken
much better care of you while I could have!"
Moral: Actually, we all have four
wives in our lives.
1. The 4th wife is our body. No
matter how much time and effort we lavish in making it look good, it'll
leave us when we die.
2. Our 3rd wife? Our possessions,
status and wealth, when we die, they all go to others.
3. The 2nd wife is our family and
friends. No matter how close they had been there for us when we're
alive, the furthest they can stay by us is up to the grave.
4. The 1st wife is in fact our
soul, often neglected in our pursuit of material, wealth and sensual
pleasure. Guess what? It is actually the only thing that follows us
wherever we go.
Perhaps it's a good
idea to cultivate and strengthen it now rather than to wait until we're
on our deathbed to
lament.
By Tim Pedrosa
Don't
be afraid that your life will end, be afraid that it will never begin..
Live
today to the fullest because tomorrow is not promised. If you don't
like something, change it. If you can't change it, change the way you
think about it!
|
Tim
|