The little girl and the old man.

Sunday, April 13, 2008

The little girl sat at the table. Waiting for the food to arrive. Surrounded by family and love, she really couldn't ask for more.

But she did, you see. Always complaining about not getting enough of almost everything. Silently, she complained. Not getting enough pocket money. She was never satisfied with the way she looked. The good food and soft bed she came home to everyday. Her education, she sometimes took for granted by lazing around and never really taking the time to be serious. Yes. So every now and then she had a complain. Albeit small, but still a complain nonetheless.

The food came.

Way too much food for such a small family. But it has always been that way. The family never lacked food. It almost always came to a point when they had to pack the food.

She started to eat the good food laid out before her. Oh how she enjoyed it. Maybe not as much as she should have enjoyed it because she was so accustomed to good food.

"Here, eat this", said daddy.

"Here, have some of this", said mummy.

"Enough daddy! I'm so full, I'm forcing myself to eat this", said the little girl.

"Enough mummy, you eat it", said the little girl.

"We always order too much food", the little girl thought silently. Indeed they always did.

After the whole family was full with the good food, they sat at the table making small talk. Laughing at each other.

An old man walked in the restaurant at that moment. He was not very old. But old enough to be considered old. Wearing an old worn out shirt, a sarong and a pair of slippers, he obviously did not look very well off.

The little girl saw the old man walk around the restaurant. Nobody paid attention to him. A poor old man never receives much these days. The girl saw the old man search his wallet and pull out a few dollar notes. He counted them. Then looked at the prices of the food items on display.

Finally, he went to the counter to place his order. The girl was curious as to what he ordered knowing that the food in the restaurant was not cheap at all.

The old man sat at the next table. Alone.

The little girl and her family got up to leave the place. As she was leaving, she saw what the old man ordered.

What she saw, she will never forget.

The old man, probably not being able to afford most of the food on the menu, only ordered a plate of white rice and some curry on it. No side orders. No vegetables or even a piece of chicken or an egg.

And only moments ago she was complaining about the excess food she was always given.

It took an old man with his plate of white rice to show this small girl how fortunate she was. To be able to order the food she desired and get almost everything she wanted.

A lessoned learned through the life of another. Priceless.