Mr. Jones wanted to build his son a swing set. He slaved away each evening and grew tired and irritable causing concern for his wife.
You’re working so hard, she said. Wasn’t our neighbor, Mr. Williams, a carpenter when he was young? Couldn’t you ask him for help?
But Mr. Williams has done enough work in his life. I wouldn’t want to bother him.
So Mr. Jones kept working, until finally the swing set…
Many years ago the sultan of the Ottoman Empire visited one of the great sheikhs of Istanbul. He was deeply impressed with the wisdom and sincerity of the sheikh and began coming regularly to the sheikh’s gatherings.
After some time the sultan said, I have come to love you and your teachings. If there is ever anything you want or need, please ask me and I will provide it for you if it is in my power…
Abbie held the leaf in one hand and rubbed it gently; her thumb skating over the smooth glossy surface, whilst her other fingers became nestled in the softer, fluffy underside. Just like me, she thought to herself. As she lent back against the trunk she steadied herself by pressing her palms on the bark. Furrowed with the wisdom of timeless maturity, just like him; she smiled.
Tipping her head skywards, her eyes scanned the…
Years ago, a fishing fleet went out from a small harbor on the east coast of Newfoundland. In the afternoon there came a great storm. When night settled down, not a single vessel of all the fleet had found its way into the port.
All night long, wives, mothers, children and sweethearts paced up and down the beach, wringing their hands and…
My story took place more than a couple years ago, and the long term effects of the greeting was pivotal to my development. At the time, I was getting easily burnt out from work and I was at the mercy of the cycle of falling from grace on Monday and beginning my climb towards grace on Friday night.
One Saturday, I was trying to calm down from…
I met Kumkum at a children’s home in Delhi. It is a home where children who are sick are provided treatment and care before being sent to some other orphanage. Kumkum was 7 years old, and a very brave soul. Despite suffering from tuberculosis, I never saw her crying. She had lost her parents to this terrible disease and was herself struggling through it.
Upon meeting, we had taken instant liking for each other. Every Saturday I would…
I am willing to give up everything, said the prince to the master. Please accept me as your disciple.
How does a man choose his path? asked the master.
Through sacrifice, answered the prince…
He could hardly walk. He was carrying an unseen burden.
His feet were heavy, as if there were a million passages clung to his tired shoes. His heart was heavy, as if a million sinful…
A monk was meditating in the desert when a beggar came up to him and said:
I need to eat.
The monk — who was almost reaching the point of perfect harmony with the spiritual world — did not answer.
I need to eat, insisted the beggar.
Go to the town and ask someone else. Can’t you see that you are bothering me? I am trying to…
There once were two brothers in a place staying in the joint family. Among them elder was married, having his one son and a daughter. However the younger brother was a bachelor not having any family with him. Both of them used to work hard in farming to earn their livelihood. They used to divide…
