A small boy named Andrew lost his parents in a ghast|y motor acc!dent at the age of 8. From that day onwards, his next meal became his nightmare.
He roamed the streets for five days, begging for something to eat. On the fifth day, he met an old lady by the roadside who gave him an apple.
He was so excited, thanked the old lady, and turned back to go home immediately because he had only gone out to beg for that day’s meal; he never really cared about tomorrow.
He was never bothered about what he would eat the next day. Moreover, he would have to roam the entire street before finding someone compassionate enough to spare him something to eat.
And by the time he found someone, it would already be late, and he would go home straight to eat the fruit of that day’s labor.
In light of this, he held the apple like a dear companion, leaping for joy in his beggarly attire as he went home.
On his way home, he saw a small girl who was crying under an old tree. The girl appeared to be younger than him, around 5 or 6 years old.
He felt for the girl, and since he was wearing shoes of the fatherless, motherless, and abandoned, much like the poor girl under the tree, he knew exactly what she wanted and, in fact, had in his possession the only handkerchief that could wipe away the tears on her face: the apple in his hands.
There he stood, hungry, tired, and confused. He thought to himself:
“I’m an orphan, and so is she. I’m in no way better than her. She’s all alone in this world, and so am I. No one cares about her, and no one cares about me either. I roamed the streets, withstood the scorching and painful slaps of the sun, endured the pain and toiled day and night only to get just one apple. This is all I’ve got; if I give it away, what will I eat tonight?”
“My Mom is gone, and my Dad has abandoned me forever. We’re both orphans, and I worked so hard to get just this one apple. She has legs and can walk; she should go hustle for something to eat herself. This is all I’ve got, and if I give it to her, I may d!e of hunger tonight.”
The boy was eager to help, but his condition would fail him. He looked at her one last time, turned back, and headed home, feeling so emotional as he recalled the good old times when his parents were still alive. He cried as he went home.
Upon reaching home, he couldn’t stop thinking about the poor girl he had met, crying under the old tree. He retired to his usual position, sitting right in front of an abandoned and desolate house.
He rested his teary and frustrated head on his weary knees as thick drops of tears mixed with fears, walked down his flushed cheek, wetting the apple as he stared at his only meal, pondering whether to satisfy his angry and hungry stomach or that of the poor girl he met under the tree.
He sat right there and kept crying for 1 hour, trying so hard to choose between survival and charity.
After many thoughts, he decided he was going to choose charity. As tired and hungry as he was, he ran with the last drop of his strength and went back to the poor girl under the tree.
He gave her the apple; she collected it and thanked him. She started eating the apple immediately because she was so hungry and had not eaten for 7 days.
Having achieved his aim, he decided to go back home and fight his hunger until the next day. As he walked a few steps away, he looked back to be sure she was still eating the apple, only to see the poor girl crawling away.
He had thought the whole time that she was completely whole like him. Little did he know that the girl was completely paralyzed from her waist down to her toes. He had only met her leaning against an old tree and crying, not knowing that it was because she had no legs to roam the streets and beg for food like he did.
This sudden discovery sent shivers of shock down his spine, and though fainting, frail, and feeble, he found strength from discovering that his condition was far better than that of the poor girl.
From that day onwards, he applied twice the energy, strength, and dedication he used in begging and roaming the streets, making sure that at the end of each day, he had two meals: one for himself and one for the poor girl under the old tree.
MORAL:
I don’t know what you’re going through, but no matter how bad your condition is, there’s someone out there who, like the poor girl, does not have the means, strength, wherewithal, and tools needed to afford even one apple.
Maybe you feel so bad because you can barely afford just one meal a day, but have you thought of those who do not have the gift of wholeness, health, and wellness, and who wish they had legs and the strength to afford even one meal a day?
The gift of health is the gift of wealth. If you have that, be grateful because you can’t become wealthy if you’re not healthy.