"Pearls of Wisdom"

My mother used to ask me what is the most important part of the body. Through the years I would take a guess at what I thought was the correct answer.

When I was younger, I thought sound was very important to us as a human, so I said, 'My ears, amma.' She said, 'No. Many people are deaf. But you keep thinking about it and I will ask you again soon.'

Several years passed before she asked me again. Since making my first attempt, I had contemplated the correct answer. So this time I told her, 'Amma, sight is very important to everybody, so it must be our eyes'. She looked at me and told me, 'You are learning fast, but the answer is not correct because there are many people who are blind.

Stumped again, I continued my quest for knowledge and over the years, my Mother asked me a couple more times and always her answer was, 'No. But you are getting smarter every year, my child.'

In 1997, my grandpa died. Everybody was hurt. Everybody was crying. Even my father cried. I remember that especially because it was only the second time I saw him cry. My Mom looked at me when it was our turn to say our final good-bye to Grandpa. She asked me, 'Do you know the most important body part yet, my dear?' I was shocked when she asked me this now. I always thought this was a game between her and me. She saw the confusion on my face and told me, 'This question is very important. It shows that you have really lived in your life. For every body part you gave me in the past, I have told you was wrong and I have given you the reason why. But today is the day you need to learn this important lesson. She looked down at me as only a mother can. I saw her eyes swell up with tears. She said, 'My dear, the most important body part is your shoulder.' I asked, 'Is it because it holds up your head?' She replied, 'No, it is because it can hold the head of a friend or a loved one when they cry. Everybody needs a shoulder to cry on sometime in life, my dear. I only hope that you have enough love and friends that you will always have a shoulder to cry on when you need it.'

Two years later, when my Father was called to grace the heavens, it was the shoulder of my Mother which me and my sister got to cry on. And till date, my Mother has been the pillar of support & the beacon of light, guiding us through every moment of our wonderful life.

I learned my lesson, that the most important body part is not a selfish one. It is sympathetic to the pain of others.

People will forget what you said.......
People will forget what you did........
But people will NEVER forget how you made them feel...

PS: My mom got this from Natanya Ruth, a pen pal of hers who is based in UK when she was a young. I got to meet Natanya and her lovely family, when she had come down to India a couple of years back. My Mother did tell her about this particular story. Natanya hugged her, with tears of joy rolling down her cheeks. MY MOTHER gradually expounded the doctrine of love, compasssion and humaneness.