Too Nice to Share

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A young lady, Carie, was waiting for her flight in the boarding hall of a large international airport. She was feeling tired and a little lonely.

As she would need to wait for a few hours, she decided to buy a book to while away the time. She also bought a packet of the best cookies she could find.

She sat down in an armchair in the VIP room of the airport, to rest and read in comfort.

Beside the armchair where the packet of cookies lay, was another seat and a man soon settled down there. The next minute, he opened his magazine and began to read.

When Carie took out the first cookie, the man took one too. She looked at him with irritation, but he did not seem to realise how she felt; he appeared engrossed in his business magazine. She thought: “What a nerve! If I was in the mood I would have said something to him!”

After a while, Carie picked another cookie and the man did the same again! For each cookie she ate, the man took one too. It was too annoying for her. She just wanted to get up and give the man a good piece of her mind but could not do it; she had never been able to speak up for herself, always preferring to avoid conflicts.

When only one cookie remained, she thought: “What will this awful man do now?” Then the man, taking the last cookie, divided it in half and offered her the other half!

Ah! That was too much! She was in a rage now! In a huff, she took her book and bags and stormed to the boarding gate. Giving one glance behind her, she saw the man looking at her with a puzzled look on his face. “Well, some people live on a different planet,” she reflected.

She settled down on her seat in the plane with a quieter mind; quite relieved to be away from that ill-mannered human being. She now wanted to read the good book that she had carried and could not do so all along. She looked through her purse to find her glasses, and to her consternation saw her packet of cookies - untouched and unopened!

“Oh my God!” she exclaimed and felt so ashamed. She had actually forgotten to take her cookies out of her purse.

The man had shared his cookies with her, without the least hesitation...while she had been upset, grumbling within and cursing him. And now there was no chance to explain herself... or to apologize.

Carie had learnt her lesson too late; she had now not only the full pack of cookies but also plenty of food for thought.

If we examine closely, there are always many such dramas playing out daily in our lives. We only have to be alert and aware, and not forget our heart as we think with our minds. Can we be like the man in the story and live beyond the small world of ‘me’ and ‘mine’?

Swami says:

“It is unfortunate that people even harm those who help them…. We should help even those who harm us.”

Let us never lose an opportunity to lighten other lives because that is the only way we can make our life bright.

Illustrations: Ms. Lyn Kriegler Elliott

~ Heart2Heart Team

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