A SOLDIER'S SOLITUDE
A major war was in
progress. A soldier informed her mother, "Mommy, my military service is
over. I am planning to return home. When I come home, I wish to bring along
with me, a close friend of mine who was wounded seriously during the war. He
lost one eye, one hand and one leg and needs our support." The mother
stated casually, without any interest or enthusiasm, "OK, dear son, you
may bring him. Let him stay with us for a few days."
Her words clearly
conveyed that she did not appreciate a prolonged stay of the disabled soldier
in their family. Two days later, she received a message from the military that
her son had committed suicide and that his body would be brought to her home.
When
the soldier's body arrived, she was surprised to see that her son lacked an
eye, a hand and a leg. Now it was very clear to her that her son had asked
about her attitude to the 'disabled friend' just to assess her attitude to her
own handicapped son. She was overcome with remorse for not having welcomed him
wholeheartedly. She realized that if she had shown more love, care and kindness
in her words, she would not have lost her dear son. she cried in agony for
rejecting her own son. Words are like swords. Harsh words may act as sharp
swords and inflict irreparable wounds in the minds of those who hear them. Such
words may cause despair, dejection and discouragement. Careful use of the
tongue is a prerequisite for peaceful life. Care, concern, compassion and
kindness are essential for promoting a healthy, happy, harmonious and heavenly
life.
The English poet, William Cowper (1731-1800) narrates in his poem, "The Solitude of
Alexander Selkirk", the lamentations of the sailor who landed on a
solitary, desolate island, far away from his family and friends:
"O Solitude! Where are the charms
That sages have seen in thy face?
................Society, Friendship and Love
Divinely bestowed upon man,
Oh! had I the wings of a dove,
How soon would I taste you again!"
Mother Teresa said, "Kind words can be
short and easy to speak; but their echoes are truly endless." There is a
famous Jewish proverb, "God could not be everywhere. So He created
mothers."
The loving Lord
answers our lamentations when we feel helpless and hopeless, "Can a woman
forget her own baby and not love the child she bore? Even if a mother should
forget her child, I will never forget you! {Isaiah 49: 15}.
................................................................................................................................
© By:
Dr. Babu Philip, Professor, Cochin University of Science &
Technology, Fine Arts Avenue, Kochi-682016, Kerala, India, Prof.
Mrs. Rajamma Babu, Former Professor, St. Dominic's
College, Kanjirappally and Leo. S.
John, Maniparambil, Ooriyakunnath, Kunnumbhagom, Kanjirappally,
Kottayam-686507, Kerala, India.
For more moral
stories, parables and anecdotes for students, catechists, teachers and
preachers, kindly visit the web-sites:
This is Story
No. 215 in the second site. Please click ‘Older Posts’ at the
bottom of a page to read previous stories and click 'Newer Posts'
at the bottom of a page to read newer stories in these sites. Please click on a
word in the 'Story Themes' to read stories on that theme.
No comments:
Post a Comment