The Girl Who Cried

Tears filled her eyes as she hung up the phone. Yet she made her way through the crowd and moved forward to work. Life hadn’t given her that option to relax or unwind and be who she wanted to be.

She had a plan. And, she was committed to making it happen. As she found a train and cleared her face of the big beads of tears it adorned… she noticed a boy. He was not more than 12. He was trying to make a sale.

His hands were full of cheap stationery products and too huge for him to hold. It was almost as if he was drowning into his own baggage, yet, he seemed to exude the determination to walk steadily enough and make a sale.

He’d made up slogans, and was singing them out loud. His eyes showed the pain of his struggle, yet somehow his face was lit up with a smile.

At that moment, she wondered, what misery this boy must face. She wanted to go there and give him some money, but it seemed too impersonal for the connection she had with him – any money would just belittle his troubles. She knew that no material gains would make her tears go away.

 She wanted to go and buy something from him, but she couldn’t find the courage to look directly into his eyes.  It was a matter of shame for her. She wondered deeply and closed her eyes to let the tears flow away, as she broke into a hint of a smile.

Often we pray to our Gods, asking for wealth, courage, happiness… May be what we don’t realise, is that, we already have it all. It’s very easy to ask for more. Greed is such an ordinary feeling. The feeling of satisfaction is rare. That is what saints are made of.

The girl-who-cried, realised how little her heart was, how shallow her thoughts were. True happiness lies inside us, but it glorifies, when we see the light in other’s faces. Most people are so busy with their lives that they fail to acknowledge their loved ones, or thank God for the roof on their head and the food in their plate.

We are so busy in looking into our own troubles and magnifying them that we turn into selfish beings just hollowed by our very existence.

The girl in tears forgot her misery when she looked at the pre-teen boy trying to make a sale. He didn’t lose hope. May be he was robbed of his day’s work by some sick drug-dealer, or he earnings of the day were taken away by his drunk father, or he had to pay for a relatives hospital bills.

The little boy did not even find a chance to enjoy his earnings, and yet she cried over a petty fight for a stupid movie or a dinner party. Isn’t there more to life than our own worries?

The little boy never gave up his grit and determination to make the sale. He moved on with his life, notwithstanding the circumstances.

The same stands true for us. The best thing about Time is that it’s never the same. If you feel the Good days pass by too quickly, so do the bad ones.

All I’m trying to say is, joy or sadness is momentary. What lasts is the deed you’ve done for another. For, any efforts that you make for the happiness of others will truly lift you above yourself.

Sadness is an inevitable feeling. Without it’s existence, we wouldn’t know what happiness would mean. So, it’s okay to be the girl-who-cried. But, don’t forget to thank God for all that he has given you. There will be a day, when it won’t be there, and however little you thought it was, you would realise it meant a lot.

Rise above yourself. Like the little boy was thankful, so you must be.

You must think that somewhere on the way in this write-up, there’ll be a moment, when the girl gets out of her own troubles and helps the boy. But that’s not what happens. When you have to give or share a feeling, it’s not about how rich or poor you are. It’s about how sensitive your heart is to a stranger’s life.

It’s ironic how a small boy with far less means than the girl, could help her forget her sorrows and grow. He gave her a gift… A gift of a moment that she would never forget, and a lesson for life which she would always cherish, no matter how good or bad the times are – he gave her A lesson of Gratitude and Togetherness.

Give it a thought – “How far that little candle throws his beams! So shines a good deed in a weary world.”

Let’s make an effort to look beyond ourselves and be humans, in the true sense.