Dear Ananda,
I
could not be blessed more than what I have been. Over the past twenty-three years you have
given me two amazing daughters and a warm home filled with laughter and
love. You may not understand why I have
chosen to leave you, but I feel that I must serve a greater purpose. I could not bear hearing neither you nor our
daughters crying during the night because there was no food in our cupboards;
and I hated the sight of looking at you knowing that all hope was lost in your
eyes. I hate that the king had dismissed
me of my job duties. I was his most
faithful worker. I must tell you that I was given a grand opportunity from a
lady who I came across in the woods on my way home. She is an elderly woman and she hurt herself
while she in search of her runaway mule.
There, near the tree where we crave our initials she lay crying out for
help. I rushed to her aiding her to
stand tall. She told me she had watched
the sunrise a total of three times, and two men passed her not wanting to help.
They took her staff and bag of fruit,
and told her that she would not live long. When she saw me, I gave her
hope. I walked her three miles away from
our home and sat with her as she instructed me to bundle some herbs for
her. She placed those herbs around her
ankle and immediately I saw her ankle become normal. She walked to her kitchen window and saw her
mule and began to curse. I never heard
such words come from an old woman’s mouth! She wandered around and started to
look at me aimlessly. As I started for
the door, she told me that she knew I was in trouble.
“What do you mean?” I asked.
She handed me a vial of liquid and told me that it would be
of help to us.
She said “Those who are work hard and help others
should be blessed, and this was a blessing in disguise.”
She dismissed me
from her home and never gave me her name. I was given clear instructions to
take the liquid by nightfall away from our home, and I would find my way back
home. I hope I find myself back into
your arms Ananda.
Sincerely,
Madesh
Author’s Note: This
story is based off of the Jataka tale “Golden Goose”. The story is about a family whose luck begins
to change. One day the father leaves
home and turns into a golden goose to help change his family's wealth. When he
finds his way back home, and his wife becomes excited when she finds out the
gooses feathers are made of gold. She
plucks the feathers frugally until she becomes greedy.
Bibliography: Twenty Jataka Tales retold by Noor Inayat
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