Casting in stone...

The continuation of the story that I heard the other day...

The two friends continues their journey through the desert. And after a while they chanced upon an oasis, palm trees and springs and all.

Obviously, after travelling through a dry thirsty desert for days, they headed straight for the huge refreshing pool of water.

After a bit of swimming and performing weird acrobatics in the water, the friend got into some difficulties and went underwater. (Although I can't for the life of me figure how he managed to get into any spot of trouble in a calm pool of water, that's how the story goes, and that's how I'm telling it.)

The man, of which this story is supposedly centred around, went underwater and managed to pull his friend out of his almost watery grave. The friend gasped his thanks gratefully, and they both had a group hug.

OK, and this is where I want you to pay attention. This is a story that teaches an important moral, despite of how it's being flippantly told by its very irreverent author.

Anyway, the friend gasped his thanks, took a rock, and carved on a huge boulder on the side of the pool, "My friend saved my life today."

End of story. Beginning of my ramblings...

It's often been said that one wrong mistake can undo a whole lifetime of good things done. Isn't it ironic how ungrateful a bunch of people we human beings seem to be?

Save a dog from being stoned to death by a bunch of young heartless punks, and chances are, the dog will jump on you and lick you wet for saving its life, and follow you around until the day it breathes its last.

Even ferocious animals in captivity know not to bite the hands that feeds it. Even though its natural instinct might be to taste blood and human flesh.

But what is it with human beings? Do one thing wrong accidentally, and your whole lifetime of acts of kindness and love, is forgotten.

Let us not be ingrates. Let us not forget the deeds born out of love that the people around us have performed for us.

And make sure that you choose a nice sturdy rock to carve those memories on, so that it can withstand the weathering of the element. The winds of change and time will beat against it, but not break it. The heat of misunderstandings and politicking may shine on it, but will not melt it. And the rain and snow of quarrels and hurts and words of anger uttered may fall on it, but will melt and disappear against its hard flint surface.

Let's cast something in stone today. And even if the sand of hurts and anger blows against it, that which is cast in stone, will remain cast in stone, until the end of time...