Fishing for more

A father and his son went fishing on a small boat, hungry.

The father helped his son reel in his first fish, and it was a beauty.

“Great catch, son,” the father said.

“Yes, but I’m worried I’m missing out on better fish,” the son said. “What if I could catch a bigger, tastier fish?”

“Maybe you should try,” the father said.

And the son did, catching an even bigger fish an hour later. “A real beaut,” the father said.

“But what if there are better fish out there?” the son asked.

“Maybe you should try,” the father said.

And the son did, catching a bigger fish, then wondering if there were better fish, catching another, and so on.

At the end of the day, the son was exhausted. The father asked, “How did the fish taste?”

The son hesitated. “I’m not sure. I was so busy looking for better fish that I didn’t taste any of them.”

The father smiled contentedly, patted his belly. “Don’t worry. They were delicious.”

We are all of us like the son. We all worry, at some time or other, that we’re missing out on things.

It’s why we’re so busy — we take on so much because we don’t want to miss out. We take on dozens of goals and aspirations, because we don’t want to miss out.

But here’s the bare truth: we will miss out, no matter what. It’s inevitable. We cannot do or try everything in the world, even with lives twice as long. We cannot see every town and city, read every interesting book, watch every important film. We will always, always miss out.

What you’re doing right now is all that matters. Let the rest go, and enjoy the fish you’ve already caught.

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Zero attendance

Once a student's HOD caught him and took him to Principal's office. The complaint was that this kid was not attending any lectures on any subject.

Zero Attendance.

The Principal asked, "What have you joined the University for? To appear in the exam, you will need atleast 75% attendance and this way you are not going to make it to exams. I in any case would not support you to get that 75% attendance."

The student thought for a while and replied, " Sir do you want to know  where do I spend my time? If I satisfy you and you have no arguments then you will see to it that I get 100% attendance, will you?"

The Principal nodded, almost taken aback at his confidence. The principal followed as the student took him to the university library. He asked the librarian to tell the Principal how often he visited the library.

"Sir, this boy comes daily to library, right from the time it opened and keeps on reading till it closes. There were many instances when we even had to tell this boy to go since it was time to close. Even on holidays he came and if the library was closed would sit in the garden and read!"

The kid looked at the Principal, "Sir, your professors don't teach anything new. They teach from these same books. So I thought it better to directly refer to the books rather then having a second-hand knowledge. Ask any professor if he has anything new to offer which is not mentioned in these books and I will be the first one to attend their session."

The Principal stood speechless at the stark truth, finally gave in, and did mark 100% attendance for his brilliant performer.

So many times, our false beliefs push us towards the self-fulfilling prophecy that we are more knowledgeable since the day we got those degrees. The truth is that people who are practically on the job, who've learned their lessons through life's hardships, can shake our mis-beliefs any day of our life.

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Design of new temple

The story goes like this:

In Burma, one Buddhist monk was ordered to make a design for the new temple,  particularly for the gate. So he was making many designs. He had one very talented disciple, so he told that disciple to be near him. While he made the design the disciple was simply to watch, and if he liked it he had to say that it was okay, it was right. If he didn’t like it then he had to say no. And the master said, ‘When you say yes, only then will I send the design. If you go on saying no, I will discard the design and will create a new one.’

Hundreds of designs were discarded in this way. Three months passed. Even the  master became afraid, but he had given his word so he had to keep it. The disciple was there, the master would make the design, and then the disciple would say no. The master would start another one.

One day the ink was just about to be finished, so the master said, ‘Go out and find more ink.’ The disciple went out. The master forgot him, his presence, and became effortless. His presence was the problem. The idea was constantly in his mind that the disciple was there, judging. He was constantly wondering whether he was going to like it or not, whether he would discard it again. This created an inner anxiety and the master could not be spontaneous.

The disciple went out. The design was completed. The disciple came in and he said ‘Wonderful! But why couldn’t you do it before?’

The master said, ‘Now I understand why – because you were here. Because of you – I was making an effort to get your approval. The effort destroyed the whole thing. I couldn’t be natural, I couldn’t flow, I couldn’t forget myself because of you.’

The whole thing hinges on one thing – when your effort drops and you become spontaneous, your act becomes your being.

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When I grow up

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The real Miss India World 2009

Meera Chopra, mother of Pooja Chopra, lived through abuse, poverty and some tough choices to make her once-unwanted girl child, Pooja Chopra, the Pantaloons Femina Miss Pooja Chopra. And when I read her narration, I couldn't afford to miss showcasing here this magnificant example of strength, determination and character of a woman. You'll not be left untouched I promise. Here's her dramatic story:

I don't know where to begin... they were terrible times. My husband was well-placed, but the marriage had begun to sink almost as soon as it began. Like most women do, I tried to work against all the odds.

My in-laws insisted everything would be alright if I had a son. My first child was a daughter, and that didn't do me any good... but I couldn't walk out. I had lost my father, my brother was in a not-so-senior position in Bata. I didn't want to be a burden on my family and continued to live in my marital home in Kolkata.

I looked after my mother-inlaw, who was suffering from cancer, and while bathing her, I would tell myself she would bless me and put things right.

I don't know how I tolerated it all. The least a man can do, if he must philander, is to not flaunt his women in his wife's face. Then began the manhandling. I still wanted my marriage to survive. I was a pure vegetarian and learnt to cook non-vegetarian delicacies thinking it would please him.

Then, I was pregnant again. When Pooja was eight months in my womb, my husband brought a girl to the house and announced he would marry her. I thought of killing myself. I hung on the slight hope that if the baby was a boy, my marriage could be saved.

When Pooja was born a girl, for three days, nobody came to the hospital. There was a squadron leader's wife on the opposite bed, who was kind enough to give me baby clothes for Pooja to wear. When she was 20 days old, I had to make a choice. I left the house with my girls ' Pooja and Shubra, who was seven then. I haven't seen my husband since. I promised myself, even if we had just one roti, we would share it, but together.

I began life in Mumbai with the support of my mother, brother, who was by then married. It wasn't th e ideal situation, especially when he had children ' space, money, everything was short. I began work at the Taj Colaba and got my own place. How did I manage' Truth be told, I would put a chatai on the floor, leave two glasses of milk and some food, and bolt the door from outside before going to work. I would leave the key with the neighbours and tell the kids to shout out to them when it was time to leave for school.

Their tiny hands would do homework on their own, feed themselves on days that I worked late. My elder daughter Shubhra would make Pooja do her corrections... This is how they grew up. At a birthday party, Pooja would not eat her piece of cake, but pack it and bring it home to share with her sister. When Shubhra started working, she would skip lunch and pack a chicken sandwich that she would slip in her sister's lunchbox the next day.

I used to pray, 'God, punish me for my karma, but not my innocent little kids. Please let me provide them the basi cs.' I used to struggle for shoes, socks, uniforms. I was living in Bangur Nagar, Goregaon. Pooja would walk four bus stops down to the St Thomas Academy. Then, too little to cross the road, she would ask a passerby to help her. I had to save the bus money to be able to put some milk in their bodies.

Life began to change when I got a job for Rs 6,000 at the then Goa Penta. Mr Chhabra, the owner, and his wife, were kind enough to provide a loan for me. I sent my daughters to my sister's house in Pune, with my mother as support. I spent four years working in Goa while I saved to buy a small one-bedroom house in Pune (where the family still lives). I would work 16-18 hours a day, not even taking weekly offs to accumulate leave and visit my daughters three or four times a year.

Once I bought my house and found a j ob in Pune, life began to settle. I worked in Hotel Blue Diamond for a year and then finally joined Mainland China ' which changed my life. The consideration of the team and management brought me the stability to bring them up, despite late hours and the travelling a hotelier must do.

Shubhra got a job in Hotel Blue Diamond, being the youngest employee there while still in college, and managed to finish her Masters in commerce and her BBM. Today, she is married to a sweet Catholic boy who is in the Merchant Navy and has a sweet daughter. I continue to finish my day job and come home and take tuitions, as I have done for all these years. I also do all my household chores myself.

Through the years, Shubhra has been my anchor and Pooja, the rock.. Pooja's tiny hands have wiped away my tears when I broke down. She has stood up for me, when I couldn't speak for myself. Academically brilliant, she participated in all extra-curricular activities.. When she needed high heels to model in, she did odd shows and bought them for herself.

When I saw Pooja give her speech on TV, I knew it came from her heart. I could see the twinkle in her eye. And I thought to myself as she won 'My God, this is my little girl.' God was trying to tell me something.

Today, I've no regrets. I believe every cloud has a silver lining. As a mother, I've done nothing great.

Pantaloons Femina Miss India Pooja Chopra's mother promised 'One day, this girl will make me proud'. Pooja speaks on fulfilling that promise:

'I won due to my mother's karma. When I was 20 days old, my mother was asked to make a choice. It was either me 'a girl child, or her husband. She chose me. As she walked out she turned around and told her husband, 'One day, this girl will make me proud'. That day has come. Her husband went on to marry a woman who gave him two sons. Today, as I stand here a Miss India, I don't even know if my father knows that it is me, his daughter, who has set out to conquer the world, a crown on my head. Our lives have not been easy, least so for my mother. Financially, emotionally, she struggled to stay afloat, to keep her job and yet allow us to be the best that we could be. I was given only one condition when I started modelling ' my grades wouldn't drop.

All the girls in the pageant worked hard, but my edge was my mother's sacrifice, her karma. Today, when people call to congratulate me, it's not me they pay tribute to, but to her life and her struggle. She's the true Woman of Substance. She is my light, my mentor, my driving force. My win was merely God's way of compensating her.'

Simply amazing.

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The cleaning lady

During my second month of college, our professor gave us a pop quiz. I was a conscientious student and had breezed through the questions until I read the last one:

"What is the first name of the woman who cleans the school?"

Surely this was some kind of joke. I had seen the cleaning woman several times. She was tall, dark-haired and in her 40s, but how would I know her name?

I handed in my paper, leaving the last question blank. Just before class ended, one student asked if the last question would count toward our quiz grade.

"Absolutely, " said the professor. "In your careers, you will meet many people. All are significant. They deserve your attention and care, even if all you do is smile and say "Hello."

I've never forgotten that lesson. I also learned her name was Dorothy.

What about you? Do you know the name of that security guard or that housekeeper who doesn't fail to wish you 'Goodmorning Sir' every single day?

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Divorce after 35 years

An elderly man in Mumbai calls his son in New York and says, 'I hate to ruin your day son, but I have to tell you that your mother and I are getting a divorce; 35 years of marriage... and that much misery is enough!'

'Dad, what are you talking about?!' the son almost jumps on his feet.

'We can't stand the sight of each other any longer,' the old man says. 'We're sick of each other, and I'm sick of talking about this, so you call your sister in Hong Kong and tell her.'

Frantic, the son calls his sister, who explodes on the phone. 'Like heck they're getting divorced,' she shouts, 'I'll take care of this.'

She calls Mumbai immediately, and screams at her Dad, 'You are not getting divorced. Don't do a single thing until I get there. I'm calling my brother back, and we'll both be there tomorrow. Until then , don't do a thing, do you HEAR?' and she hangs up frantically.

The old man puts his phone down and turns to his wife 'Okay, it's all set. They're both coming for our anniversary and paying their own airfare!'

You are not busy in this world all 365 days.. the sky is not going to fall down if you take time out to meet your dear ones... 'coz money making is certainly not EVERYthing in life.

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Nothing left to live

A depressed man once told a holy man that he had nothing left to live for.

"Everything is gone, life is hopeless," the man went on saying, "I'm living in the depths of darkness. In fact, I've lost heart in life altogether." The holy man said sympathetically, "I understand son, but let's take a look at your situation, shall we.." On a sheet of paper he drew a vertical line down the middle, and instructed "list on the left side the things you have lost, and on the right, the things you still have left with you".
Have you?

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Sweets and the marble

In a small farmland, once upon a time, a boy and a girl were playing together. The boy had a collection of marbles and the girl had some sweets with her. After looking at them for a while, the boy couldn't resist the temptation of sweets, and had to ask the girl if she will give him all her sweets in exchange for his marbles.

Well, to his surprise, the girl readily agreed!

Smart -- that's what he thought he was -- so he hid the biggest and the most beautiful marble aside and gave the rest to the girl.

On the other side, the girl gave kept his promise and gave him all her sweets as promised. That night, the girl slept peacefully as always, but the boy couldn't close his eyes. He kept wondering if the girl had hidden some sweets from him the way he had hidden his best marble!

If you don't give your hundred percent in a relationship, you'll always keep doubting if the other person has given his/her hundred percent. This is applicable for any relationship be it at home or work -- give your hundred percent to everything you do and sleep peacefully.

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Painting on the wall

There was a king who was a great admirer of art. He encouraged artists from all over his country and gave them valuable gifts.

One day an artist came and said to the king, "Oh King! Give me a blank wall in your palace and let me paint a picture on it. It will be more beautiful than anything you have ever seen before. I promise you shall not be disappointed. "

Now, the king happened to be constructing a big hall at the rear end of the palace. So he said, "All right you may work on one of the walls in the new hall." So the artist was given the job and he was very pleased indeed.

Just then, another young man said, "Oh King! Please allow me to work on the opposite wall. I too am an artist." The king said, "What would you like to make?"

The man said, "My Lord, I shall make exactly what that man will make on the opposite wall. Moreover, I shall do so, without looking at his work. I would even request you to have a thick curtain put up between the two walls so that either of us cannot see the other."

Now, that was a tall statement. Everyone in the king's court, including the king and the first artist were intrigued. But the King loved surprises and he decided to give the young fellow a chance.

The following day a thick curtain was put into place and both the artists got to work.

The first artist brought in a regular supply of paint, oil, water etc. The second one would come with a cloth and a bucket of water every day.

After a month the first artist told the king that his work was complete and he would like to show it to the king. The king sent for the second artist and asked him, "Young man, when would your work be ready? I am coming to see the first wall this evening." The man said, "My Lord, my wall is ready too!"

The king went to see the first artist's wall. He was very, very impressed with the painting and gave a hefty sum as a reward to the artist. He then asked for the curtain to be opened up. The same painting was to be seen on the opposite wall too! Amazing! But true! Each line, each minor detail was exactly as it was on the first wall. But this man had not been seeing what was going on, on the other side of the curtain. So how had he done it?

The king wanted to know the secret. He gave a double reward to the fellow. Then he said, "Young man, I am indeed very happy with your work. But you must tell me; how did you do it?"

The man said simply, "It's very easy! I just polished the wall every day! It was a wall made of white marble! The fellow polished it till it shone like a mirror. The reflection of the painting across the room, showed up in it! "

That is what it means to polish yourself, for when we polish our hearts and souls, we see God's reflection within. Whatever you are, the world will seem to be that too. If you are sad, jealous, dejected, angry, restless... that is what the world will seem to be! If you are happy, the world will seem to be paradise -- it is you who decide how you want your world to look.

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King's 3 wishes

A mighty king, after conquering many kingdoms, was returning home. On the way, he fell ill and it took him to his death bed. With death staring him in his face, he realized how his conquests, his great army, his sharp sword and all his wealth were of no consequence.

He now longed to reach home to see his mother's face and bid her his last adieu. But, he had to accept the fact that his sinking health would not permit Him to reach his distant homeland. So, the mighty conqueror lay prostrate and pale, helplessly waiting to breathe his last. He called his generals and said, "I will depart from this world soon, I have three wishes, please carry them out without fail." With tears flowing down their cheeks, the generals agreed to abide by their king's last wishes.

"My first desire is that," said Alexander, "my physicians alone must carry my coffin." After a pause, he continued, "Secondly, I desire that when my coffin is being carried to the grave, the path leading to the graveyard be strewn with gold, silver and precious stones which I have collected in my treasury"

The king felt exhausted after saying this. He took a minute's rest and continued. "My third and last wish is that both my hands be kept dangling out of my coffin." The people who had gathered there wondered at the king's strange wishes. But no one dare bring the question to their lips. The king's favorite general kissed his hand and pressed them to his heart. "O king, we assure you that your wishes will all be fulfilled. But tell us why do you make such strange wishes?"

At this, he took a deep breath and said: "I would like the world to know of the three lessons I have just learnt..."

"First, I want my physicians to carry my coffin because people should realize that no doctor can really cure any body. They are powerless and cannot save a person from the clutches of death. So let not people take life for granted.."

"The second wish of strewing gold, silver and other riches on the way to the graveyard is to tell People that not even a fraction of gold will come with me. I spent all my life earning riches but cannot take anything with me. Let people realize that it is a sheer waste of time to chase wealth."

"And about my third wish of having my hands dangling out of the coffin, I wish people to know that I came empty handed into this world and empty handed I go out of this world."

With these words, the king closed his eyes. Soon he let death conquer him and breathed his last.

Never take some one for granted. Hold every person close to your heart because you might wake up one day and realise that you have lost a diamond while you were too busy collecting stones.

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Actions are important

A Priest dies & is awaiting his turn in line at the Heaven's Gates. Ahead of him is a guy, fashionably dressed, in dark sun glasses, a loud shirt, leather jacket & jeans.

God asks him: Please tell me who are you, so that I may know whether to admit you into the kingdom of Heaven or not?

The guy replies: I am Pandi, Auto driver from Chennai, India!

God consults his ledger, smiles & says to Pandi: Please take this silken robe & gold scarf & enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Now it is the priest's turn. He stands erect and speaks out in a booming voice: I am Pope's Assistant so & so, Head Priest of the so & so Church for the last 40 years.

God consults his ledger & says to the Priest: Please take this cotton robe & enter the Kingdom of Heaven.

'Just a minute,' says the agonized Priest. 'How is it that a foul mouthed, rash driving Auto Driver is given a Silken robe & a Golden scarf and me, a Priest, who's spent his whole life preaching your Name & goodness has to make do with a Cotton robe?'

'Results my friend, results,' shrugs God. 'While you preached, people SLEPT; but when he drove his Auto, people PRAYED'

Well, its a hilarious way to strike this message, but the bottom line is: It's 'performance' & not 'position' that ultimately counts.

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Definition of life

What is Life? Well, to most of us, ironically it is this:

Leaving the house in the morning, dressed in clothes that you bought on credit card, for work, driving through the traffic in a car that you are still paying for, putting in petrol that you cannot afford, in order to get to the job that you hate but need so badly so that you can pay for the clothes, car, petrol and the house that you leave empty the whole day, in order to live in it.

Living your dream is difficult, yes, but it is much less stressful than living someone else's dream.

Change your definition of life.

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Why do people shout?

A saint asked his disciples, ? Why do people shout at each other when they are upset?'

Disciples thought for a while, one of them said, 'Because we lose our calm, we shout for that.'

'But, why to shout when the other person is just next to you?' asked the saint. 'Isn't it possible to speak to him or her with a soft voice? Why do you shout at a person when you're angry?'

Disciples gave some other answers but none satisfied the saint.

Finally he explained, 'When two people are angry at each other, their hearts distance a lot. To cover that distance they must shout to be able to hear each other. The angrier they are, the stronger they will have to shout to hear each other through that great distance.'

Then the saint asked, 'What happens when two people fall in love? They don't shout at each other but talk softly, why? Because their hearts are very close. The distance between them is very small...'

The saint continued, 'When they love each other even more, what happens? They do not speak, only whisper and they get even closer to each other in their love. Finally they even need not whisper, they only look at each other and that's all. That is how close two people are when they love each other.'

When you argue do not let your hearts get distant, do not say words that distance each other.

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Subway Violinist

A man sat at a metro station in Washington DC and started to play the violin; it was a cold January morning. He played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, it was calculated that thousand of people went through the station, most of them on their way to work.

Three minutes went by and a middle aged man noticed there was musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried up to meet his schedule. A minute later, the violinist received his first dollar tip: a woman threw the money in the till and without stopping continued to walk. A few minutes later, someone leaned against the wall to listen to him, but the man looked at his watch and started to walk again. Clearly he was late for work.

The one who paid the most attention was a 3 year old boy. His mother tagged him along, hurried but the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. All the parents, without exception, forced them to move on.

In the 45 minutes the musician played, only 6 people stopped and stayed for a while. About 20 gave him money but continued to walk their normal pace. He collected $32. When he finished playing and silence took over, no one noticed it. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition.

No one knew this but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the best musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written with a violin worth 3.5 million dollars.

Two days before his playing in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out at a theater in Boston and the seats averaged $100.

This is a real story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of an social experiment about perception, taste and priorities of people.

The outlines were: in a commonplace environment at an inappropriate hour: Do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize the talent in an unexpected context?

Just ponder for a second: If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing the best music ever written, how many other things are we missing?

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The man without email

An unemployed worker applies at a large corporation the position of a janitor. The HR chief invites him to an interview and subjects him to some tests. After a while, finally the manager declares to him "Congratulations, you got the job. Now, just give me your e-mail address so that I can send you the employment contract as well as the day and time when to start."

The man is distraught and answers that he has no computer and therefore also no email.

"What?!", the manager almost says in dis-belief. He tells him that if he has no email address he virtually does not exist and therefore cannot hold a job! The man leaves in a desperate mood without knowing what to do with his last $10 in his pocket.

Finally he decides to go into a supermarket and to buy a $10 box of strawberries. He starts out with door to door calls in order to sell those strawberries by the pound. He manages to double his capital in 2 hours. He repeats the deal 3 times more and goes home with $60 in his pocket.

He realizes that he can actually survive this way! So he starts every day early and comes home every day late selling strawberries with total faith that his hard work would pay one day. Sure enough, he triples or quadruples his money every day.

A short while later he buys a wheel barrow, then exchanges it later into a truck and sooner or later is the owner of a complete fleet of delivery trucks! Five years go by… and luck and hard work combined to make the man a proud owner of one of the largest food chains in the country.

Now he starts thinking about the future for him and his family and decides to buy a life insurance. He calls an agent and selects a good policy. At the end of the negotiations the agents asks him for his e-mail address to send him a confirmation of the policy. The man tells him that he doesn’t have an e-mail address.

"That is strange!" says the agent, "you have no e-mail and nevertheless you built this large empire. Can you imagine where you would be if you you had an e-mail address?"

The man smiles to reply "I would have been a toilet cleaner in a large corporation."

Technology does not solve all the problems in our lives. Don't let it rule you - make it your slave, not your master.

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The Window

A young couple moved into a new neighborhood.

The next morning, while they were eating breakfast, the young woman saw her neighbor hang the wash outside.

"That laundry is not very clean", she said, "she doesn’t know how to wash correctly. Perhaps she needs better laundry soap".

Her husband looked on, but remained silent.

Every time her neighbour would hang her wash to dry, the young woman would make the same comments. About one month later, the woman was surprised to see a nice clean wash on the line and said to her husband,

"Look! She has learned how to wash correctly. I wonder who taught her this!"

The husband gave a polite answer "I got up early this morning and cleaned our windows."

And so it is with life. What we see when watching others, depends on the purity of the window through which we look. Before we give any criticism, it might be a good idea to check our state of mind and ask ourselves if we are ready to see the good rather than to be looking for something in the person we are about to judge.

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The Inspiring Race

Successful people help others who are slow in learning so that they are not felt far behind.

It was a sports stadium. Eight Children were standing on the track to participate in the running event.

* Ready! * Steady! * Bang!

With the sound of Toy pistol, all eight girls started running. Hardly have they covered ten to fifteen steps, one of the smaller girls slipped and fell down, due to bruises and pain she started crying.

When other seven girls heard this sound, stopped running, stood for a while and turned back, they all ran back to the place where the girl fell down. One among them bent, picked and kissed the girl gently and enquired 'Now pain must have reduced'.

All seven girls lifted the fallen girl, pacified her, two of them held the girl firmly and they all seven joined hands together and walked together and reached the winning post. Officials were shocked. Clapping of thousands of spectators filled the stadium. Many eyes were filled with tears!

Yes this is a true story. This happened in Hyderabad, India at a sport event conducted by National Institute of Mental Health. All these special girls had come to participate in this event and they are spastic children. Yes, they were mentally retarded, but only in the eyes of world.

And do you know what they taught to this very same world? Teamwork? Humanity? Equality?

I guess, all of it.

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Richest man

What makes you the richest man in town? What makes people follow the path you take? You need power, money, education, or fame to do that, right?

Well, lets see:

• The richest man in town
  

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The 4 Wives

Here's another wonderful read that narrates the importance of having right priroties in life..

There was a rich merchant who had 4 wives. He loved the 4th wife the most and adorned her with rich robes and treated her to delicacies. He took great care of her and gave her nothing but the best.

He also loved the 3rd wife very much. He's very proud of her and always wanted to show off her to his friends. However, the merchant is always in great fear that she might run away with some other men.

He too, loved his 2nd wife. She is a very considerate person, always patient and in fact is the merchant's confidante. Whenever the merchant faced some problems, he always turned to his 2nd wife and she would always help him out and tide him through difficult times.

Now, the merchant's 1st wife is a very loyal partner and has made great contributions in maintaining his wealth and business as well as taking care of the household. However, the merchant did not love the first wife and although she loved him deeply, he hardly took notice of her.

One day, the merchant fell ill. Before long, he knew that he was going to die soon. He thought of his luxurious life and told himself, "Now I have 4 wives with me. But when I die, I'll be alone. How lonely I'll be!"

Thus, he asked the 4th wife, "I loved you most, endowed you with the finest clothing and showered great care over you. Now that I'm dying, will you follow me and keep me company?" "No way!" replied the 4th wife and she walked away without another word.

The answer cut like a sharp knife right into the merchant's heart. The sad merchant then asked the 3rd wife, "I have loved you so much for all my life. Now that I'm dying, will you follow me and keep me company?" "No!" replied the 3rd wife. "Life is so good over here! I'm going to remarry when you die!" The merchant's heart sank and turned cold.

He then asked the 2nd wife, "I always turned to you for help and you've always helped me out. Now I need your help again. When I die, will you follow me and keep me company?" "I'm sorry, I can't help you out this time!" replied the 2nd wife. "At the very most, I can only send you to your grave." The answer came like a bolt of thunder and the merchant was devastated.

Then a voice called out: "I'll leave with you. I'll follow you no matter where you go." The merchant looked up and there was his first wife. She was so skinny, almost like she suffered from malnutrition. Greatly grieved, the merchant said, "I should have taken much better care of you while I could have!"

Actually, we all have 4 wives in our lives.

+ The 4th wife is our body. No matter how much time and effort we lavish in making it look good, it'll leave us when we die.

+ Our 3rd wife is our possessions, status and wealth. When we die, they all go to others.

+ The 2nd wife is our family and friends. No matter how close they had been there for us when we're alive, the furthest they can stay by us is up to the grave.

+ The 1st wife is in fact our soul, often neglected in our pursuit of material, wealth and sensual pleasure.

Guess what, it is actually the only thing that follows us wherever we go. Perhaps it's a good idea to cultivate and strengthen it now rather than to wait until we're on our deathbed to lament!

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