Showing posts with label Son. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Son. Show all posts

Saturday, December 12, 2020

Evening Dinner with a Father - Inspiring Touching Story





A son took his old father to a restaurant for an evening dinner.  Father being very old and weak, while eating, dropped food on his shirt and trousers.  Other diners watched him in disgust while his son was calm.


After he finished eating, his son who was not at all embarrassed, quietly took him to the washroom, wiped the food particles, removed the stains, combed his hair and fitted his spectacles firmly.  When they came out, the entire restaurant was watching them in dead silence, not able to grasp how someone could embarrass themselves publicly like that.  The son settled the bill and started walking out with his father.

 
At that time, an old man amongst the diners called out to the son and asked him, “Don’t you think you have left something behind?”.
The son replied, “No sir, I haven’t”.
The old man retorted,

 “Yes, you have!  You left a lesson for every son and hope for every father”.
The restaurant went silent.

Monday, March 24, 2014

Keep your dream - Inspiring Touching Story

I have a friend named Monty Roberts who owns a horse ranch in San Ysidro. He has let me use his house to put on fund-raising events to raise money for youth at risk programs.
running-horse

The last time I was there he introduced me by saying, “I want to tell you why I let Jack use my horse. It all goes back to a story about a young man who was the son of an itinerant horse trainer who would go from stable to stable, race track to race track, farm to farm and ranch to ranch, training horses. 

horse-trainers

As a result, the boy’s high school career was continually interrupted. When he was a senior, he was asked to write a paper about what he wanted to be and do when he grew up.
“That night he wrote a seven-page paper describing his goal of someday owning a horse ranch. He wrote about his dream in great detail and he even drew a diagram of a 200-acre ranch, showing the location of all the buildings, the stables and the track. Then he drew a detailed floor plan for a 4,000-square-foot house that would sit on a 200-acre dream ranch.
“He put a great deal of his heart into the project and the next day he handed it in to his teacher. Two days later he received his paper back. On the front page was a large red F with a note that read, `See me after class.’
“The boy with the dream went to see the teacher after class and asked, `Why did I receive an F?’
“The teacher said, `This is an unrealistic dream for a young boy like you. You have no money. You come from an itinerant family. You have no resources. Owning a horse ranch requires a lot of money. You have to buy the land. You have to pay for the original breeding stock and later you’ll have to pay large stud fees. There’s no way you could ever do it.’ Then the teacher added, `If you will rewrite this paper with a more realistic goal, I will reconsider your grade.’
“The boy went home and thought about it long and hard. He asked his father what he should do. His father said, `Look, son, you have to make up your own mind on this. However, I think it is a very important decision for you.’ “Finally, after sitting with it for a week, the boy turned in the same paper, making no changes at all.
He stated, “You can keep the F and I’ll keep my dream.”
Monty then turned to the assembled group and said, “I tell you this story because you are sitting in my 4,000-square-foot house in the middle of my 200-acre horse ranch. I still have that school paper framed over the fireplace.” He added, “The best part of the story is that two summers ago that same schoolteacher brought 30 kids to camp out on my ranch for a week.” When the teacher was leaving, he said, “Look, Monty, I can tell you this now. When I was your teacher, I was something of a dream stealer. During those years I stole a lot of kids’ dreams. Fortunately you had enough gumption not to give up on yours.”

“Don’t let anyone steal your dreams. Follow your heart, no matter what.”

Friday, March 7, 2014

My Mom Only Had One Eye

My mom only had one eye. I hated her… She was such an embarrassment. She cooked for students and teachers to support the family.

one-eye-woman




There was this one day during elementary school where my mom came to say hello to me. I was so embarrassed.

How  could she do this to me? I ignored her, threw her a hateful look and  ran out. The next day at school one of my classmates said, “EEEE, your  mom only has one eye!”




I wanted to bury myself. I also wanted my  mom to just disappear. I confronted her that day and said, “If you’re  only gonna make me a laughing stock, why don’t you just die?”

boy-shouting-at-mother




My  mom did not respond… I didn’t even stop to think for a second about what  I had said, because I was full of anger. I was oblivious to her  feelings.

I wanted out of that house, and have nothing to do with her. So I studied real hard, got a chance to go abroad to study.

Then,  I got married. I bought a house of my own. I had kids of my own. I was  happy with my life, my kids and the comforts. Then one day, my Mother  came to visit me. She hadn’t seen me in years and she didn’t even meet  her grandchildren.


woman-by-the-door


When she stood by the door, my children laughed  at her, and I yelled at her for coming over uninvited. I screamed at  her, “How dare you come to my house and scare my children! GET OUT OF  HERE! NOW!!!”

And to this, my mother quietly answered, “Oh, I’m so  sorry. I may have gotten the wrong address.” – and she disappeared out  of sight.
One day, a letter regarding a school reunion came to my  house. So I lied to my wife that I was going on a business trip. After  the reunion, I went to the old shack just out of curiosity.

My neighbors said that she died. I did not shed a single tear. They handed me a letter that she had wanted me to have.





“My dearest son,
I think of you all the time. I’m sorry that I came to your house and scared your children.
I  was so glad when I heard you were coming for the reunion. But I may not  be able to even get out of bed to see you. I’m sorry that I was a  constant embarrassment to you when you were growing up.
You  see……..when you were very little, you got into an accident, and lost  your eye. As a mother, I couldn’t stand watching you having to grow up  with one eye. So I gave you mine.
I was so proud of my son who was seeing a whole new world for me, in my place, with that eye.


man-crying

Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Marriage For One Month more

When I got home that night as my wife served dinner, I held her hand  and said, I’ve got something to tell you. She sat down and ate quietly.  Again I observed the hurt in her eyes.
Man-woman-at-table-with-meal


Suddenly I didn’t know how  to open my mouth. But I had to let her know what I was thinking. I want a  divorce. I raised the topic calmly.
She didn’t seem to be annoyed by my words, instead she asked me softly, why?

I  avoided her question. This made her angry. She threw away the  chopsticks and shouted at me, you are not a man! That night, we didn’t  talk to each other. She was weeping. I knew she wanted to find out what  had happened to our marriage. But I could hardly give her a satisfactory  answer; she had lost my heart to Jane. I didn’t love her anymore. I  just pitied her!

With a deep sense of guilt, I drafted a divorce  agreement which stated that she could own our house, our car, and 30%  stake of my company.

Woman-tear-paper


She glanced at it and then tore it into  pieces. The woman who had spent ten years of her life with me had become  a stranger. I felt sorry for her wasted time, resources and energy but I  could not take back what I had said for I loved Jane so dearly. Finally  she cried loudly in front of me, which was what I had expected to see.  To me her cry was actually a kind of release. The idea of divorce which  had obsessed me for several weeks seemed to be firmer and clearer now.

Woman-writing-letter


The  next day, I came back home very late and found her writing something at  the table. I didn’t have supper but went straight to sleep and fell  asleep very fast because I was tired after an eventful day with Jane.
When I woke up, she was still there at the table writing. I just did not care so I turned over and was asleep again.

In  the morning she presented her divorce conditions: she didn’t want  anything from me, but needed a month’s notice before the divorce. She  requested that in that one month we both struggle to live as normal a  life as possible. Her reasons were simple: our son had his exams in a  month’s time and she didn’t want to disrupt him with our broken  marriage.
This was agreeable to me. But she had something more,  she asked me to recall how I had carried her into out bridal room on our  wedding day.
She requested that every day for the month’s  duration I carry her out of our bedroom to the front door every morning.  I thought she was going crazy. Just to make our last days together  bearable I accepted her odd request.



man-woman-talking


I told Jane about my wife’s  divorce conditions. She laughed loudly and thought it was absurd. No  matter what tricks she applies, she has to face the divorce, she said  scornfully.

My wife and I hadn’t had any body contact since my  divorce intention was explicitly expressed. So when I carried her out on  the first day, we both appeared clumsy. Our son clapped behind us,  daddy is holding mommy in his arms. His words brought me a sense of  pain. From the bedroom to the sitting room, then to the door, I walked  over ten meters with her in my arms. She closed her eyes and said  softly; don’t tell our son about the divorce. I nodded, feeling somewhat  upset. I put her down outside the door. She went to wait for the bus to  work. I drove alone to the office.


man-carrying-wife


On the second day, both of us  acted much more easily. She leaned on my chest. I could smell the  fragrance of her blouse. I realized that I hadn’t looked at this woman  carefully for a long time. I realized she was not young any more. There  were fine wrinkles on her face, her hair was graying! Our marriage had  taken its toll on her. For a minute I wondered what I had done to her.

On  the fourth day, when I lifted her up, I felt a sense of intimacy  returning. This was the woman who had given ten years of her life to me.
On  the fifth and sixth day, I realized that our sense of intimacy was  growing again. I didn’t tell Jane about this. It became easier to carry  her as the month slipped by. Perhaps the everyday workout made me  stronger.
She was choosing what to wear one morning. She tried on  quite a few dresses but could not find a suitable one. Then she sighed,  all my dresses have grown bigger. I suddenly realized that she had grown  so thin, that was the reason why I could carry her more easily.

Suddenly it hit me… she had buried so much pain and bitterness in her heart. Subconsciously I reached out and touched her head.

Our  son came in at the moment and said, Dad, it’s time to carry mom out. To  him, seeing his father carrying his mother out had become an essential  part of his life. My wife gestured to our son to come closer and hugged  him tightly. I turned my face away because I was afraid I might change  my mind at this last minute. I then held her in my arms, walking from  the bedroom, through the sitting room, to the hallway. Her hand  surrounded my neck softly and naturally. I held her body tightly; it was  just like our wedding day.

But her much lighter weight made me  sad. On the last day, when I held her in my arms I could hardly move a  step. Our son had gone to school. I held her tightly and said, I hadn’t  noticed that our life lacked intimacy.
I drove to office… jumped  out of the car swiftly without locking the door. I was afraid any delay  would make me change my mind… I walked upstairs. Jane opened the door  and I said to her, Sorry, Jane, I do not want the divorce anymore.

She  looked at me, astonished, and then touched my forehead. Do you have a  fever? She said. I moved her hand off my head. Sorry, Jane, I said, I  won’t divorce. My marriage life was boring probably because she and I  didn’t value the details of our lives, not because we didn’t love each  other anymore. Now I realize that since I carried her into my home on  our wedding day I am supposed to hold her until death do us apart.


woman-slaps-man


Jane  seemed to suddenly wake up. She gave me a loud slap and then slammed  the door and burst into tears. I walked downstairs and drove away.

At  the floral shop on the way, I ordered a bouquet of flowers for my wife.  The salesgirl asked me what to write on the card. I smiled and wrote,  I’ll carry you out every morning until death do us apart.

That evening I arrived home, flowers in my hands, a smile on my face, I run up stairs, only to find my wife in the bed – dead.

My  wife had been fighting CANCER for months and I was so busy with Jane to  even notice. She knew that she would die soon and she wanted to save me  from the whatever negative reaction from our son, in case we push thru  with the divorce –At least, in the eyes of our son— I’m a loving  husband…

The small details of  your lives are what really matter in a relationship. It is not the  mansion, the car, property, the money in the bank. These create an  environment conducive for happiness but cannot give happiness in  themselves. So find time to be your spouse’s friend and do those little  things for each other that build intimacy. Do have a real happy  marriage!

A Doctor in Hurry

A doctor entered the hospital in hurry after being called in for an  urgent surgery. He answered the call asap, changed his clothes &  went directly to the surgery block.

Doctor-in-hurry


He found the boy’s father pacing in the hall waiting for the doctor.
On seeing him, the dad yelled: “Why did you take all this time to  come? Don’t you know that my son’s life is in danger? Don’t you have  any sense of responsibility?”

The doctor smiled & said: “I am sorry, I wasn’t in the  hospital & I came as fast as I could after receiving the call…… And  now, I wish you’d calm down so that I can do my work”

“Calm down?! What if your son was in this room right now, would you calm down? If your own son dies now what will you do??” said the father angrily
The doctor smiled again & replied: “I  will say what Job said in the Holy Book
“From dust we came & to  dust we return, blessed be the name of God”. Doctors cannot prolong  lives. 

Go & intercede for your son, we will do our best by God’s  grace”
“Giving advises when we’re not concerned is so easy” Murmured the father.



The surgery took some hours after which the doctor went out happy, “Thank goodness!, your son is saved!” And without waiting for the father’s reply he carried on his way running. “If you have any questions, ask the nurse!!”

doctor-in-hurry


“Why is he so arrogant? He couldn’t wait some minutes so  that I ask about my son’s state” Commented the father when seeing the  nurse minutes after the doctor left.

nurses says his son is dead


The nurse answered, tears coming down her face: “His son died  yesterday in a road accident, he was at the burial when we called him  for your son’s surgery. And now that he saved your son’s life, he left  running to finish his son’s burial.”


 "Never judge anyone….. because you never know how their life is & what they’re going through.