Things are not always as it seems

As a child I searched for an understanding to every incident I witnessed. I never understood how such horrible things happened to honest and good people. In particular, I didn’t understand how some of the worst things happened to me when I watched people with not even half my integrity prosper and get all the breaks. As I started rebelling and reverting to deviance, this story was passed on to me:
Two angels were sent to Earth disguised as homeless men. Their mission was to view the hearts of men. The first angel was young, just earning his wings not to long ago and still clueless to a lot. The other was elderly, and his job was to mentor to the younger angel. As nightfall hit, a storm came down and they headed towards the city to find shelter.
They first came to a great mansion with plenty of rooms not in use. When they knocked on the door and asked for shelter, the owner frowned upon them and informed them that they could only stay in the basement, and could only eat whatever scraps were left at the table. The elder angel happily obliged, and both angels went to sleep on the hard, cold floor.
In the middle of the night the younger angel awoke to see the elder angel fixing a hole in the wall. Apparently there was a repair done on the house, and the workers never finished closing that hole. The younger angel thought nothing of it and went back to sleep.
The next night the two angels sought refuge in a poor couple’s shack. The man, who looked older than what he was because of the hardships he suffered was more than happy to open his home to the two strangers. He offered them a seat at the dinner table with him and his wife where he shared the last of his food with them.
“All my wife and I have is our cow in the backyard, and that’s the only way we make a living, but we truly are blessed to have each other,” said the man. He offered the two strangers his bed, and he and his wife slept on the couch.
During the middle of the night the young angel awoke again over a loud noise. He ran outside to see the elder angel had killed the cow, and Death was taking it away. This was more than he could stand. “How can you help the household that showed no mercy to us and take away the only source of income this poor family has? Where is your heart?” said the young angel. The elder angel merely smiled and revealed this truth.
In the first house, inside the hole in the wall was a pot of gold worth more than that entire mansion. For the owner’s selfish act the elder angel sealed the hole so he could never find the gold. At the second house, in the middle of the night Death came to take away the man’s wife, but the elder angel convinced him instead to take the cow instead of the man’s soul mate. The younger angel now understood the meaning of why people say the Lord works in mysterious ways.
Whether you are religious or not, this story has to affect you. We have all come to points in our life when the outcome was not justified by our actions. We all have felt that we deserve better than what we received, and we have all looked at the next man’s gain as a mockery to our good will. But as this story proves, you do not know the underlying meaning, nor what is actually happening. What appears to be a blessing may be a punishment. What appears to be a curse may actually be reward for your generosity.
Do not judge your character and worth by what your neighbor has. You are two different people with different trials and tribulations. Look to yourself for all the power you need and be content with who you are and the actions you do. After hearing this story I realized I wasn’t comfortable being like others because that wasn’t who I was. I am me, and I can’t be anything else but me. I am satisfied with myself and I know in the end I will get the rewards I deserve for the things I have given to the world.
Trying to Uplift My Folks.