becoming a better person

Long time back, a King commanded a boulder to be placed on a roadway. Once it was done, he hid himself and secretly watched to see if anyone would make an effort to move the boulder out of the path. Some of the wealthiest merchants and members of the King’s court came across the boulder but they simply walked around it. As the hours passed, many people complained about this unexpected obstruction and loudly blamed the King for not keeping the roads clear, but they did nothing to resolve the situation and get the large rock out of the way.  

Later, a peasant carrying a load of vegetables came along. As he came closer to the boulder, he put down his vegetables and attempted to push the rock on the side of the roadway. After much trying and constant pushing and straining, he finally accomplished his mission. Beaming with his success, as the peasant went back to pick up his load of vegetables, he noticed a purse sitting on the road where the boulder had been. He opened the purse and found several gold coins inside. The King appeared in front of him and congratulated him for his accomplishment. He explained that the gold coins were a reward for the person who took the initiative and removed the boulder from the roadway, and they belonged to him now.  

So, what do we learn from this story?

Firstly, with every obstacle that comes our way, we have three choices — either we quietly go around it doing nothing about it, we complain and blame another person or a particular event for it without taking any relevant action, or we roll up our sleeves and try our best to get rid of the obstacle for ourselves and others. As we choose the third choice of becoming solution-oriented, who knows we may end up converting that obstacle into a golden opportunity which skyrockets our success and our lifestyle, like the peasant in the story.

The second lesson is that it pays off to be a better person. What if as we go through our day to day life, we start to believe that we are being watched by a Higher Power, by a King upstairs? May be the obstacles that we encounter on the road that we’re walking on are placed deliberately, and if we get them out of the way, we may get rewarded down the road. The Universe has mysterious ways of bringing us rewards and treasures when we become kind, generous and more willing to create a positive change that might benefit not only us but others as well. 

We can all strive to be a little better every day. How about picking just one piece of trash that we see on our way and putting in a trash can or recycle bin every single day? Or how about clearing the plates — of ourselves and others — once we finish our meals in a food court or a local eating joint and throwing them away? A simple kind and generous act can inspire others and even start a revolution transforming countless lives. And it all starts with someone choosing to become a better human being. That person can be you, you just need to be selfless and do the right thing.