Lessons on Life

There was a man who had four sons. He wanted his sons to learn not to judge things too quickly. So he sent them each on a quest, in turn, to go and look at a pear tree that was a great distance away. The first son went in the winter, the second in the spring, the third in summer, and the youngest son in the fall.

When they had all gone and come back, he called them together to describe what they had seen.

The first son said that the tree was ugly, bent, and twisted.
The second son said no it was covered with green buds and full of promise.
The third son disagreed; he said it was laden with blossoms that smelled so sweet and looked so beautiful, it was the most graceful thing he had ever seen.
The last son disagreed with all of them; he said it was ripe and drooping with fruit, full of life and fulfillment.

The man then explained to his sons that they were all right, because they had each seen but only one season in the tree's life. He told them that you cannot judge a tree, or a person, by only one season, and that the essence of who they are and the pleasure, joy, and love that come from that life can only be measured at the end, when all the seasons are up.

If you give up when it's winter, you will miss the promise of your spring, the beauty of your summer, fulfillment of your fall.

Moral:

Don't let the pain of one season destroy the joy of all the rest. Don't judge life by one difficult season. Persevere through the difficult patches and better times are sure to come some time or later.


forwarded by Lanie of Philippines

Salty Coffee: An amazing Love Story

He met her at a party. She was so beautiful, many guys were chasing after her, while he was so plain and simple, nobody paid attention to him.

At the end of the party, he invited her to have coffee with him, she was surprised, but to be polite, she consented. They went to a nice coffee shop, he was too nervous to say anything, she felt uncomfortable, she thought, please, let me go home.... suddenly he asked the waiter, "would you please give me some salt? I'd like to put it in my coffee."

Everybody stared at him, How strange! His face turned red, but still, he put the salt in his coffee and drank it.

She asked him curiously; why you have salt in your coffee? He replied: "when I was a little boy, I lived near the sea, I like playing in the sea, I could feel the taste of the sea, just like the taste of the salty coffee. Now every time I have the salty coffee, I always think of my childhood, think of my hometown, I miss my hometown so much, I miss my parents who still live there." While saying that tears filled his eyes. She was deeply touched.

That's his true feelings, from the bottom of his heart. A man who can share his homesickness, he must be a man who loves home, cares about home, has ties to his home.

Then she also started to speak, spoke about her faraway hometown, her childhood, her family. That was a really nice talk, also a beautiful beginning of their story.

They continued to date. She found that he was actually a man who meets all her demands; he had tolerance, was kind hearted, warm, careful. He was such a good person but she almost missed knowing him! Thanks to his salty coffee!

The story ended just like every beautiful love story, the princess married the prince, then they lived happily ever after... And, every time she made coffee for him, she put some salt in it, as she knew that's the way he liked it.

After 40 years, he passed away, left her a letter which said: "My dearest, please forgive me, I have been lying my whole life. This was the only lie I told you---the salty coffee.

Remember the first time we dated? I was so nervous at that time, actually I wanted some sugar, but I said salt. It was hard for me to change it, so I just went ahead. I never thought that could be the start of our conversation! I tried to tell you the truth many times in my life, but I was too afraid to do that, as I have promised not to lie to you about anything. Now I'm dying, I'm afraid of nothing so I can tell you the truth: I don't like the salty coffee, what a strange bad taste.. But I have had the salty coffee for my whole life!

Since I met you, I don't ever feel sorry for everything I did for you. "Having you with me is the biggest thrill of my whole life. If I can live a second time around, I would still want to know you and have you for the rest of my life,even though I have to drink the salty coffee again".

Her tears made the letter totally wet. One day, someone asked her: how did the salty coffee taste? It was very sweet, she replied.


forwarded by Nerissa of the Philippines