It is late in the evening and as usual, Sunny drives to his garage. As he gets out of the car, his little girl runs towards the driveway to meet him. Eva is her dad’s little princess thus she receives the warm embrace and daddy’s little girl begins to chat. At the staircase to the main house, Eva seems to have a struggle climbing up the stairs but with her dad’s support, she manages to slowly walk up the stairs, then stops and after a short pause, turns to her father…
Eva: Daddy, I really wish I had your long legs.
Sunny: (A little surprised) My long legs? Why would you wish for longer legs?
Eva 🙁 Looking up the stairs) See that distance, all the remaining staircases, I could just take two or three long strides and I am up there.
Sunny: You could? What if you slide and break one or both of your legs?
Eva: ( a little challenged) It is impossible; my legs will be longer so I can manage. See these small legs of mine, I can barely get up one stair case… (With a sad face)
Sunny: ( Lifting her up and walking up the stairs) You shouldn’t be sad princess. I have the longer legs but still go up each stair case one at a time.
(He gets to the top of the stairs and puts her down to stand on her feet. He gets down on one knee and holding her closer, points down the stairs)
Sunny: One day your legs will be longer than mine and you will still climb each step, one at a time. That is how staircases are and that is how they work. If you stretch to climb two, chances of sliding and breaking the pretty legs are high.
Eva: (Looking at the stairs closely) Well, they look like trouble from here. I guess I was wrong. All I thought of was getting up there quicker. Thank you daddy. She hugged him and they both went in to the house.
Every one of us just like Eva, has at one point, thought about an easy way to maneuver to get to the desired end. We have thought about a shortcut that will enable us get there quicker. Unfortunately, just like Eva’s staircase to get to her house, our life is a staircase. We have to tackle each step, one at a time, to get to that desired destination. Shortcuts can be options but the consequences can be worrying. What if the damage is permanent? What if it will be far costlier than taking the right path?
It is ok to take a risk because everything in life needs that step of faith. But it is of essence to be wise as well. We should weigh if the risk is worth taking and then go ahead. We don’t need to do anything blindly in the name of risk taking and being daring.
Patience is a virtue that we ought to embrace. Think of water, it is slow and follows its path to the desired destination. Dripping water takes time but with one drip after another, it gets to crack the stone. The same water does not force its way through if it is impossible, it goes around but at the end, gets to its destination. In our lives, we will sometimes feel the need to break the wall, we need to create a shorter way through because we believe we need to get there quickly. We fail to think about the price that we will need to pay for the same. Instead, we ought to look closely and think deeply. Short cuts may be costly and often times, all we need is the path of water. Click HERE to read more posts by Gertrude.
