SHORT STORIES

May 7, 2020

1
 SHORT STORIES

Contents
17 Camels and 3 Sons __________________________________________________________ 3
Change Yourself and not The World _______________________________________________ 4
A Merchant and his Donkey______________________________________________________ 6
Unhelpful Friends _____________________________________________________________ 7
Greedy Boy __________________________________________________________________ 8
Strong or Weak _______________________________________________________________ 9
The Crystal Ball ______________________________________________________________ 10
The Devoted Mother __________________________________________________________ 12
The Greedy Mouse ___________________________________________________________ 13
The Ant and the Grasshopper ___________________________________________________ 14
Proud Red Rose ______________________________________________________________ 15
The Rope ___________________________________________________________________ 16
The Tree and the Travellers _____________________________________________________ 18
The Three Cows ______________________________________________________________ 19
Health is Wealth _____________________________________________________________ 21
The Hidden Treasure __________________________________________________________ 23
Don't desire to walk when you have wings to fly ____________________________________ 24
Real Vs Fake _________________________________________________________________ 26
When Adversity Knocks ________________________________________________________ 27
Powerful Prayers _____________________________________________________________ 29
A Unique Experience __________________________________________________________ 31
The Strange Bird with Two Heads ________________________________________________ 32
A Glass of Milk _______________________________________________________________ 33

May 7, 2020

2
 SHORT STORIES

17 Camels and 3 Sons

Long ago, there lived an old man with his three sons in a deserted village,
located in the vicinity of a desert. He had 17 camels, and they were the main

source of his income. He used to rent out camels as a means of shipping in the
desert. One day, he passed away. He had left a will, leaving his assets for his

three sons.

After the funeral and the other obligations were over, the three sons read the
will. While their father had divided all the property he had into three equal parts,

he had divided the 17 camels in a different way. They were not shared equally
among the three as 17 is an odd number and a prime number, which cannot be

divided.The old man had stated that the eldest son will own half of the 17
camels, the middle one will get one third of the 17 camels, and the youngest one

will get his share of camels as one ninth!

All of them were stunned to read the will and questioned each other how to
divide the 17 camels as mentioned in the will. It is not possible to divide 17

camels and give half of the 17 camels to the eldest one. It is not possible also to
divide the camels for the other two sons.

They spent several days thinking of ways to divide the camels as mentioned in

the will, but none could find the answer. They finally took the issue to the wise
man in their village. The wise man heard the problem and instantly found a

solution. He asked them to bring all the 17 camels to him. The sons brought the
camels to the wise man's place. The wise man added a camel owned by him and

made the total number of camels 18.

Now, he asked the first son to read the will. As per the will, the eldest son got

half the camels, which now counted to 18 / 2 = 9 camels! The eldest one got 9
camels as his share.
May 7, 2020

3
 SHORT STORIES

The remaining camels were 9.

The wise man asked the second son to read the will. He was assigned 1 / 3 of the
total camels.

It came to 18 / 3 = 6 camels. The second son got 6 camels as his share.

Total number of camels shared by the elder sons - 9 + 6 = 15 camels.

The third son read out his share of camels: 1 / 9th of the total number of camels
- 18 / 9 = 2 camels.

The youngest one got 2 camels as his share.

Totally there were 9 + 6 + 2 camels shared by the brothers, which counted to 17

camels.

Now, the one camel added by the wise man was taken back.

The wise man solved this problem smartly with his intelligence.

Intelligence is nothing but finding a common ground to solve an issue. In short,

every problem has a solution.

Change Yourself and not The World

Long ago, people lived happily under the rule of a king. The people of the

kingdom were very happy as they led a very prosperous life with an abundance
of wealth and no misfortunes.

Once, the king decided to go visiting places of historical importance and pilgrim

centres at distant places. He decided to travel by foot to interact with his people.
People of distant places were very happy to have a conversation with their king.

They were proud that their king had a kind heart.

After several weeks of travel, the king returned to the palace. He was quite happy

that he had visited many pilgrim centres and witnessed his people leading a
prosperous life. However, he had one regret.

May 7, 2020

4
 SHORT STORIES

He had intolerable pain in his feet as it was his first trip by foot covering a long
distance. He complained to his ministers that the roads weren't comfortable and

that they were very stony. He could not tolerate the pain. He said that he was
very much worried about the people who had to walk along those roads as it

would be painful for them too!

Considering all this, he ordered his servants to cover the roads in the whole
country with leather so that the people of his kingdom can walk comfortably.

The king's ministers were stunned to hear his order as it would mean that
thousands of cows would have to be slaughtered in order to get sufficient

quantity of leather. And it would cost a huge amount of money also.

Finally, a wise man from the ministry came to the king and said that he had
another idea. The king asked what the alternative was. The minister said, "Instead

of covering the roads with leather, why don't you just have a piece of leather cut
in appropriate shape to cover your feet?"

The king was very much surprised by his suggestion and applauded the wisdom

of the minister. He ordered a pair of leather shoes for himself and requested all
his countrymen also to wear shoes.

Moral: Instead of trying to change the world, we should try to change ourselves.

May 7, 2020

5
 SHORT STORIES

A Merchant and his Donkey

One beautiful spring morning, a merchant loaded his donkey with bags of salt to
go to the market, in order to sell the salt. The merchant and his donkey were

walking along together. They had not walked far when they reached a river on

the way.

Unfortunately, the donkey slipped and fell into the river. As it scrambled up the

bank of the river, it noticed that the bags of salt loaded on his back had become
lighter.

There was nothing the merchant could do except return home, where he loaded

his donkey with more bags of salt. As they reached the slippery riverbank again,
the donkey fell into the river, this time deliberately. Thus the salt was wasted

again.

By now the merchant knew the donkey's trick. He wanted to teach the animal a
lesson. As he returned home the second time with the donkey, the merchant

loaded bags of sponges on its back.

The duo set out on their trip to the market a third time. On reaching the river,

the donkey very cleverly fell into the water again. But now, instead of the load
becoming lighter, it became heavier.

The merchant laughed at the donkey and said, "You foolish donkey, your trick

has been discovered. You should know that you cannot fool anyone too many
times."

May 7, 2020

6
 SHORT STORIES

Unhelpful Friends
Bunny rabbit lived in the forest. He had many friends. He was proud of his

friends. One day Bunny rabbit heard the loud barking of wild dogs. He was very
scared. He decided to ask for help. He quickly went to his friend deer. He said,

"Dear friend, some wild dogs are chasing me. Can you chase them away with
your sharp antlers?"The deer said, "That is right, I can. But now I am busy. Why

don't you ask bear for help?"

Bunny rabbit ran to the bear. "My dear friend, you are very strong. Please help
me. Some wild dogs are after me. Please chase them away," he requested to the

bear.The bear replied, "I am sorry. I am hungry and tired. I need to find some
food. Please ask the monkey for help."

Poor Bunny went to the monkey, the elephant, the goat and all his other friends.
Bunny felt sad that nobody was ready to help him.He understood that he had to

think of a way out by himself. He hid under a bush. He lay very still. The wild
dogs did not find the bunny. They went chasing other animals.Bunny rabbit

learnt that he had to learn to survive by himself, not depending on his unhelpful
friends.

Moral: It is better to rely on yourself than depend on others.

May 7, 2020

7
 SHORT STORIES

Greedy Boy
Sam and Tom were identical twins. They were so identical that even their mother

found it difficult to distinguish one from the other, at least during their initial
days on earth.

However, they were very different from each other when it came to everything

other than their appearance. Sam had no friends, while Tom was a great
friendship maker. Sam loved sweets, but Tom loved spicy food and detested

sweets. Sam was mommy's pet and Tom was daddy's pet. While Sam was
generous and selfless, Tom was greedy and selfish!

As Sam and Tom grew up, their father wanted to share his fortune equally
amongst them. However, Tom did not agree and he argued that whoever proved

to be more intelligent and strong would have to get a bigger share of the wealth.

Sam agreed. Their father decided to organize a competition between the two. He
asked the two sons to walk as long as they could, and return home before

sunset. The wealth would be divided in proportion to the distance covered. As a

rule of the competition, they were not permitted to carry a watch to keep track

of the time.

The following day, Sam and Tom set out to walk. It was a rather sunny day. Sam
walked slowly and steadily, while Tom broke into a sprint as he was bent on

winning the race and also winning a greater portion of his father's wealth.

Sam knew that it would be ideal to walk as far as possible till noon and start for
home at noon as it would take the same amount of time to walk back home.

Knowing this, Sam decided to turn back for home at noon so as reach home on
time.

However, Tom, with his greed to earn more wealth, did not attempt to return
home even after mid-noon. He walked twice as long as Sam, and thought he
May 7, 2020

8
 SHORT STORIES

would still be able to return home before sunset. He hurried back when he saw
the sun turn orange. Unfortunately, he could not even make it half way home as

the sun started to set. Slowly darkness engulfed his path and he had to drag his
tired feet back home.

He had lost the race. Only because of his greed. Greed leads to loss.

Strong or Weak
There was a proud teak tree in the forest. He was tall and strong. There was a

small herb next to the tree.The teak tree said, "I am very handsome and strong.
No one can defeat me." Hearing this, the herb replied, "Dear friend, too much

pride is harmful. Even the strong will fall one day."The teak ignored the herb's
words. He continued to praise himself.

A strong wind blew. The teak stood firmly. Even when it rained, the teak stood

strong by spreading its leaves.During these times, the herb bowed low. The teak
made fun of the herb.One day, there was a storm in the forest. The herb bowed

low. As usual, the teak did not want to bow.

The storm kept growing stronger. The teak could no longer bear it. He felt his

strength giving way.He tried his best to stand upright, but in the end, he fell
down. That was the end of the proud tree.When everything was calm again, the

herb stood straight. He looked around. He saw that the proud teak had fallen.

Moral: Pride goes before a fall.

May 7, 2020

9
 SHORT STORIES

The Crystal Ball

In the south of Spain, there was a small village whose people were very joyful.

The children played under the shades of trees in the gardens of their homes.

A shepherd boy named Nasir stayed near the village with his father, mother and

grandmother. Each morning, he took his herd of goats up the hills to find a

suitable place for them to graze. In the afternoon he would return with them to
the village. Each night his grandmother would tell him a story - the story of stars.

This story really interested Nasir.

On one of those days, as Nasir was watching his herd and playing his flute, he

suddenly saw a wonderful light behind a flower bush. When he approached the
bush, he saw a transparent and very beautiful crystal ball.

The crystal ball was glittering like a colorful rainbow. Nasir carefully took it in his

hand and turned it around. With surprise, suddenly, he heard a weak voice
coming from the crystal ball. It said, "You can make a wish that your heart desires

and I will fulfill it."

Nasir could not believe that he had actually heard a voice. When he made sure
that he had indeed heard that voice from the crystal ball, he was very confused.

He had so many wishes that he could not decide upon one particular wish. He
said to himself, 'if I wait till tomorrow I will remember many things. Then I will

make my wish.'He put the crystal ball in a bag and, gathering the herd, happily
returned to the village. He decided that he would not tell anyone about the

crystal ball.

On the following day also, Nasir could not decide what to wish for, because he
really had everything he needed. The days passed as usual, but Nasir was still

unable to make his wish. But he appeared to be very cheerful. The people around
him were amazed to see the change in his disposition.

May 7, 2020

10
 SHORT STORIES

One day, a boy followed Nasir and his herd and hid behind a tree. Nasir, as usual,
sat in one corner, took out the crystal ball and for a few moments looked at it.

The boy waited for the moment when Nasir would go to sleep. When Nasir did
fall asleep after a while, the boy took the crystal ball and ran away.

When he arrived at the village, he called all the people and showed them the
crystal ball. The citizens of that village took the crystal ball in their hands and

turned it around with surprise. Suddenly they heard a voice from inside the
crystal ball, which said, "I can fulfill your wish." One person took the ball and

screamed, "I want one bag full of gold." Another took the ball and said loudly, "I
want two chests full of jewelry." Some of them wished that they would have their

own palace with a grand door made from pure gold, instead of their old houses.
Some others wished for bags full of jewelry.

All their wishes were fulfilled, but still the citizens of the village were not happy.

They were jealous because the person that had a palace had no gold and the
person that had the gold had no palace. For this reason, the citizens of the

village were angry with each other and stopped speaking to each other. The
gardens in the village where children used to play were no more. There were

palaces and gold everywhere. The children became terribly unhappy. Only Nasir
and his family were happy and contented. Every morning and afternoon he

would play the flute.

One day the children of the village took the crystal ball to Nasir. The children
said to Nasir, "When we had a small village, we all were happy and joyful." The

parents also spoke. They said, "In one way or another, all of us are unhappy. The
luxurious palaces and jewelry only bring us pain."

When Nasir saw that the people were really regretful, he said, "Even though the
crystal ball asked me to wish for something, I have not done it so far. But if you
really want everything to return to its own place, then I will wish for it."
May 7, 2020

11
 SHORT STORIES

Everyone happily agreed. Nasir took the crystal ball in his hand, turned it around
and wished that the village would become the same as it was before. In a

moment, the palaces disappeared, the green gardens appeared, and the same
old village full of trees was there.

Once again the people started to live happily and the children played under the

shade of trees. Nasir continued his contented life every day, playing his flute at
sunset. Its sweet sound was heard throughout the beautiful green village.

Moral: We should be happy with whatever we have and not be greedy.

The Devoted Mother

A mother duck and her little ducklings were on their way to a lake one day. The

ducklings were very happy following their mother and quack-quacking along the
way.

All of a sudden, the mother duck saw a fox at a distance. She was frightened, and
shouted, "Children, hurry to the lake. There's a fox!" The ducklings hurried

towards the lake. The mother duck wondered what to do. Then she began to
walk back and forth dragging one wing on the ground.

When the fox saw her, he became happy. He said to himself, "It seems she's hurt

and can't fly! I can easily catch and eat her!" He ran towards her.The mother duck
ran, leading the fox away from the lake. The fox followed her. Now he wouldn't

be able to harm her ducklings. The mother duck looked towards her ducklings
and saw that they had reached the lake. She was relieved, so she stopped and

took a deep breath.

The fox thought that she was tired and he came closer, but the mother duck
quickly spread her wings and rose up in the air. She landed in the middle of the

lake and her ducklings swam to her.

May 7, 2020

12
 SHORT STORIES

The fox stared in disbelief at the mother duck and her ducklings. The mother
duck had tricked him cleverly. Now he could not reach them because they were

in the middle of the lake.

The Greedy Mouse

A greedy mouse saw a basket full of corn. He wanted to eat it. So he made a
small hole in the basket. He squeezed in through the hole. He ate a lot of corn.

He felt full and was very happy.Now he wanted to come out. He tried to come
out through the small hole. He could not. His belly was full. He tried again. But it

was of no use.The mouse started crying. A rabbit was passing by. It heard the
mouse's cry and asked, "Why are you crying, my friend?"

The mouse explained, "I made a small hole and came into the basket to eat the

corn. Now I am not able to get out through that hole."The rabbit said, "It is
because you ate too much. Wait till your belly shrinks." The rabbit laughed and

went away.

The mouse fell asleep in the basket. The next morning his belly had shrunk. But
he wanted to eat some more corn. He forgot all about getting out of the basket.

So he ate the corn and his belly was really big again.After eating, the mouse
remembered that he had to escape. But obviously, he could not. So he thought,

"Oh! Now I will go out tomorrow."

The cat was the next passerby. He smelt the mouse in the basket. He lifted its lid
and ate the mouse.

May 7, 2020

13
 SHORT STORIES

The Ant and the Grasshopper

One summer's day, in a field, a Grasshopper was hopping about, chirping and

singing to its heart's content. An Ant passed by, bearing along with great effort
an ear of corn he was taking to his nest.

"Why don't you come and chat with me," asked the Grasshopper, "instead of

toiling your life away? "I am helping to store up food for the winter," said the
Ant, "and I recommend you to do the same.

"Why bother about winter?" said the Grasshopper. "We have got plenty of food
at present."But the Ant went on its way and continued its toil.

When winter came, the Grasshopper found itself dying of hunger, while it saw

the ants distributing, every day, corn and grain from the stores they had
collected in summer.

Then the Grasshopper knew...

MORAL: WORK TODAY AND YOU CAN REAP THE BENEFITS TOMORROW!

May 7, 2020

14
 SHORT STORIES

Proud Red Rose

One beautiful spring day a red rose blossomed in a forest. As the rose looked
around, a pine tree nearby said, "What a beautiful flower! I wish I was that

lovely." Another tree said, "Dear pine, do not be sad. We cannot have

everything."The rose turned and remarked, "It seems that I am the most beautiful
flower in this forest."

A sunflower raised its yellow head and asked, "Why do you say that? In this
forest there are many beautiful flowers. You are just one of them."

The red rose replied, "I see everyone looking at me and admiring me." Then the

rose looked at a cactus and said, "Look at that ugly plant full of thorns!"

The pine tree said, "Red rose, what kind of talk is this? Who can say what beauty
is? You have thorns too." The proud red rose looked angrily at the pine and said,

"I thought you had good taste! You do not know what beauty is at all. You
cannot compare my thorns to that of the cactus."

"What a proud flower," thought the trees.

The rose tried to move its roots away from the cactus, but it could not move. As
the days passed, the red rose would look at the cactus and say insulting things,

like 'this plant is useless. How sorry I am to be his neighbor.'

The cactus never got upset and even tried to advise the rose, saying, "God did
not create any form of life without a purpose."

Spring passed, and the weather became very warm. Life became difficult in the

forest, as there was no rain. The red rose began to wilt.

May 7, 2020

15
 SHORT STORIES

One day the rose saw sparrows stick their beaks into the cactus and then fly
away, refreshed. This was puzzling, and the red rose asked the pine tree what the

birds were doing. The pine tree explained that the birds were getting water from
the cactus.

"Does it not hurt when they make holes?" asked the rose.

Sparrow"Yes, but the cactus does not like to see the birds suffer," replied the
pine. The rose opened its eyes in wonder and exclaimed, "The cactus has water?"

"Yes, you can also drink from it. The sparrow can bring water to you if you ask

the cactus for help."

The red rose felt too ashamed to ask for water from the cactus, but finally it did
ask for help. The cactus kindly agreed. The birds filled their beaks with water and

watered the rose's roots.

Thus the rose learned a lesson and never judged anyone by their appearance

again.

The Rope

The night fell heavy on the heights of the mountains and the man could not see
anything. There was zero visibility; the moon and the stars were covered by the

clouds.

When he was just a few feet below the top of the mountain, he slipped and fell
into the air, falling at great speed. He could see only black spots as he went

down, and feel the terrible sensation of being sucked in by gravity.

May 7, 2020

16
 SHORT STORIES

He kept falling, and in those moments of great fear, all the good and bad
episodes of his life came to his mind. He was thinking now about how close

death was getting, when all of a sudden he felt the rope tied to his waist pull him
very hard. His body was hanging in the air. Only the rope was holding him. In

that moment of stillness he had no choice other than to scream, "Help me God."

All of a sudden, a deep voice coming from the sky answered, "What do you want
me to do?"

"Save me God."

"Do you really think I can save you?"

"Of course, I believe you can."

"Then cut the rope tied to your waist."

There was a moment of silence. The moment passed, and the man decided to

hold on to the rope with all his strength.

The rescue team says that the next day, the climber was found dead and frozen,
his body hanging from a rope, and his hands holding it tight. He was only one

foot away from the ground.

How attached are we to our ropes? Will we let them go?

Don't ever doubt God.

We should have enough faith to cut the rope, if that is what God tells us to do,

even when it seems to be the most foolish thing to do.

May 7, 2020

17
 SHORT STORIES

The Tree and the Travellers

Once, there was a huge tree with a broad trunk and innumerable branches right

in the middle of a dry land. The tree gave rest and shelter to hundreds and
thousands of travelers. Being located near four towns, and many villages, the tree

was an ideal meeting point for travelers.

One day, two travelers reached the tree after a long time of walking. Their
destination was one of the towns nearby. It was a hot and sunny day, and the

travelers were very happy to take a rest under the tree. Exhausted, they slumped
under the tree. They slept for a while, enjoying the cool shade and the soft

breeze.

After a while, one of the travelers got hungry. They had no food with them. The

hungry traveler looked up at the tree, to see if there was any fruit. Finding none,
he began to curse the tree. "Oh, this is just a useless tree and it has nothing to

feed us, not even a fruit or even nuts! It is of no use!"

The other traveler comforted him and asked him to stay cool. However, the
hungry man continuing cursing the tree.

The tree, which could not tolerate the cursing words of the traveler, said in a sad

yet strong voice, "You can't be so ungrateful to me. Just think of your condition
when you reached here in the hot and dry sun! I offered you a cool and

comfortable place to rest and sleep with a soothing breeze. If I was not here, you
would have died now! I saved your life from the hot sun, but you humiliate me!"

The traveler realized his mistake and apologized to the tree.

Be grateful for your blessings.

May 7, 2020

18
 SHORT STORIES

The Three Cows

Once, three cows lived in a green and fresh pasture near a forest: a white cow, a
black cow and a reddish-brown cow. The cows were kind to each other. They

used to graze in the meadow together and sleep near each other.

One day, a reddish-brown lion happened to take a stroll out of the forest onto
the meadow. It was hungry and looking for a prey. On catching sight of the cows

it became glad, but couldn't attack them, because they were together. So, the
lion sat behind a boulder and patiently waited till the cows would separate from

each other.

However, the cows were too clever to separate from each other. They knew that
if they were together, no predator could attack them. The lion lay in ambush

nearby for two or three days. But the cows continued to remain together, and
wouldn't separate from each other. The lion became impatient. It thought of a

plan. It went towards the cows, greeted them and said, "How are you my friends?
Are you fine? I have been busy lately, so could not come and visit you. Today I

made up my mind to pay you a visit."

The reddish-brown cow said, "Sir, your coming has really pleased us and
brightened our pasture."

Both the white and the black cows were troubled by what their friend, the

reddish-brown cow said, and were grieved at its thoughtlessness. They said to
each other, "Why does the reddish-brown cow believe what the lion says?

Doesn't it know that lions seek other animals only to prey on them?"

May 7, 2020

19
 SHORT STORIES

As the days passed by, the reddish-brown cow became more and more attached
to the lion. The black cow and the white cow advised it against a friendship with

the lion, but their efforts were in vain.

One day, the lion said to the reddish-brown cow, "You know that the color of our
bodies is dark and that the color of the body of the white cow is light. You also

know that light color is the opposite of the dark color. It will be very good if I eat
the white cow, so that there will be no difference among us any longer and we

will be able to live together well."

The reddish-brown cow accepted the lion's argument and started talking to the

black cow to keep it busy, so that the lion could eat the white cow. The white
cow was left alone and was killed, while the black and the reddish-brown cows

were busy in idle talk.

Two or three days passed since the lion devoured the white cow. It became
hungry again. It called the reddish-brown cow. The cow answered: "Yes sir!"

The lion said, "The color of my body and the color of your body are both

reddish-brown, and black does not go with our color. It will be very good if I eat
the black cow, so that in this forest we all will be of the same color." The reddish-

brown cow accepted this argument and moved away from the black cow.

The lion attacked and devoured the black cow soon. And as for the reddish-
brown cow, it was so filled with joy that it didn't know what to do. It roamed and

grazed and said to itself, "It is only me who has the color of the lion."

A few days passed later, the lion was hungry again. It roared and said, "O the

reddish-brown cow! Where are you?" The reddish-brown cow, shaking with fear,
went forward and said, "Yes sir!"

The lion said: "Today it is your turn. Get yourself ready, I am going to eat you."

May 7, 2020

20
 SHORT STORIES

The reddish-brown cow, with great fear and horror, said, "Why sir, I am your

friend. I did whatever you asked me to do. Still why do you want to eat me?"

The lion roared and said, "I have no friends. How is it possible that a lion makes
friendship with a cow?"

No matter how much the reddish-brown cow begged and entreated, the lion

didn't accept its words. Finally the cow said, "Mr. Lion, please allow me to cry out
three times before you eat me."

The lion said, "Ok. Quickly, quickly!"

The reddish-brown cow cried out, "I was eaten the very day the white cow was
eaten. I was eaten the very day the black cow was eaten. I was eaten the very day

I made friends with the lion."

The lion devoured the reddish-brown cow very quickly. Then it said to itself: "I
have finished my job in this forest. Now I had better go to other forests."

Any group without unity will easily be destroyed.

Health is Wealth
Once upon a time, there lived a generous and kind-hearted king. But the people

weren't happy with their king because the king was very lazy and would not do
anything other than eating and sleeping.

He spent days and weeks and months in his bed either eating something or

sleeping. The king became a potato couch and the people started to worry about
the king.

May 7, 2020

21
 SHORT STORIES

One day, the king realized that he couldn't even move his body, not even his
foot. He became very fat and his enemies made fun of him, calling him 'fatty

king', 'bulky king' etc.

The king invited expert doctors from various parts of his country and offered
them generous rewards to make him fit. Unfortunately, none could help the king

gain his health and fitness. The king spent enormous amounts of money but
everything went in vain.

One fine morning, a holy man visited the country. He heard about the ill-health
of the king, and informed the minister at the palace that he could easily cure the

king. Hearing these promising words, the minister became very happy. He
requested the king to meet the holy man to get rid of his problem.

The holy man resided at a distant place. Since the king could not move his body,

he asked the minister to bring the holy man to the palace, but the holy man
refused. He said that the king had to go to him, in order to get cured.

After strenuous efforts, the king met the holy man at the latter's residence. The

holy man complimented the king saying that he was a good ruler, and said that
he would soon regain his health. He asked the king to come for treatment the

next day. He told the king also that the king would be treated only if he came on
foot to the holy man's residence.

The King was unable to walk even a few steps on the road, but aided by his

followers, he reached the holy man's place. Unfortunately, the holy man was not
available there and his devotee requested the king to come and meet him the

next day for treatment.

This was repeated for two weeks and the king never met the holy man, and never

had any treatment.

May 7, 2020

22
 SHORT STORIES

Gradually, the king realized that he felt a lot lighter, lost a considerable amount
of weight and felt more active than before. He realized the reason why the holy

man asked him to reach his place by walking. Very soon, the king regained his
health, and the people were very happy in his kingdom.

The Hidden Treasure

Once, there was an old man who had four sons. All four of them were very lazy.

One day, the old man fell sick and was counting his last days in bed. He worried
a lot about his sons' future as the young men hesitated a lot to work. The sons

believed that luck would favour them.

The old man's health deteriorated every day and he decided to talk to his sons
about their future. However, his sons did not listen to him.

Finally, the old man decided to play a trick to let his sons realize the importance

of work. He called all his sons and let them sit near him on his bed. He said that
he had a treasure box with gold coins and expensive gems for them and wanted

to share the treasure equally among the four of them.

The young men were very happy and asked where his father had placed the

treasure. The old man replied, "I cannot exactly remember the place where I have
hidden the treasure. However, the treasure box is buried in our land. I'm really

not sure about the place where I have hidden the treasure box."

Even though the lazy young sons were happy, they were sad that the old man
had forgotten the place where the treasure was hidden. After a few days, the old

man died. The sons decided to dig the land to find the treasure box.

They worked very hard and dug their land. They could not find any treasure box
in the land. Finally, they decided to dig a spot in their land that was a bit

May 7, 2020

23
 SHORT STORIES

different from the rest of the area. The sons believed that the treasure was
buried in that spot. They dug the specific spot deeply, but got nothing but water.

A passerby who noticed the land and the water flowing from the spot talked to
the sons about farming. Upon his advice, the four sons sowed vegetable seeds,

and planted greens and flowering plants in their land. Since the land was very
fertile with abundant water, within a few weeks, it became a fertile garden with

nutritious vegetables and greens. The four sons sold the vegetables at a good
price and earned a good amount of money.

Then they realized that it was hard work that was referred to as 'Treasure Box' by

their father. Gradually, the four sons overcame their laziness, worked hard,
earned more money and lived happily.

Hard Work Always Pays.

Don't desire to walk when you have wings to fly

Once upon a time, there lived a generous and kind-hearted king. He was fond of

birds and animals, and had a huge bird sanctuary in his kingdom. He disliked
harming the animals and birds. He did not kill them even for meat.

In appreciation of his generosity and kindness towards birds, the king was gifted

two beautiful falcons by a businessman. Those two falcons were used to different
climatic conditions. The king thanked the businessman and ordered the Head

bird trainer to provide all the facilities to those beautiful falcons and make them
feel comfortable in their country. The Head trainer took care of the birds.
Gradually, the birds got adapted to the country's climate.
May 7, 2020

24
 SHORT STORIES

One day, the king wanted to see the falcons fly as he had heard that one of
those falcons could fly to great heights at very high speed. The bird trainer let

the falcon out of the enclosure. It flew very high, very quickly, and came down to
the enclosure within minutes.

The king was quite surprised, and rewarded the bird trainer with a handful of

gold coins. He enquired about the other falcon. The bird trainer stated with
regret that the other falcon had not moved even a step from day one and had

just sat on the branch. The trainer also added that he had tried everything he
could but still failed to make the bird move.

The king consoled him and told him that he would bring someone more
experienced than him to try to train the other falcon.

Soon, the king announced that he needed someone to make the falcon move

and fly. Hearing this announcement, an old man reached the King's palace and
assured him that he would make the bird fly like the other one.

The king asked the head trainer to take the old man to the sanctuary to train the

falcon. He said that he would visit them the next day to see if there was any
change.

The next day, the king was very surprised to see the other falcon fly like the first

one to great heights in rapid speed. The king was very happy and gifted the old
man a handful of gold coins.

Then the king asked the old man what he had done to make the bird fly in a day.
The old man simply replied, "I just cut down the branch of the tree where the

falcon used to sit."

Many of us are like this. We have wings to fly; we know how to fly, and where to
fly. Still we sit doing nothing or doing something that makes us inferior to

others.
May 7, 2020

25
 SHORT STORIES

Don't sit still when you have wings to fly!

Real Vs Fake
Minnu was a sweet, lovable and beautiful girl, aged six years. She was an
adorable kid as she always obeyed her elders. Minnu's parents loved her for her

amazing behaviour. One day, Minnu's mother took her for grocery shopping. As
they passed the shops, Minnu noted a cute plastic pearl necklace in dazzling

pink! She asked her mother to buy her the necklace. Her mother told her that it
cost quite a few pennies. She asked her to do some chores, so that for every

completed piece of work Minnu would get some money and she could buy the
pink necklace.

Minnu prepared a to-do list and assisted her mom with all the chores. Her mom

was very happy, and she paid enough money to buy the pink necklace. Minnu
happily purchased the necklace and wore it just everywhere, every time, except

while taking bath. Her mother said that her neck would turn pink and the pearls
would lose their sheen if she wore it while bathing. But all other times, Minnu

wore it, even while sleeping.

Minnu's father used to tell her bed time stories frequently. One night, after

completing a story, her dad asked how much she loved him. Minnu replied, "You

know how much I love you."

Dad asked, "Then give me your pearl necklace please!"

Minnu replied, "Please daddy, I love you so much but please don't ask for these

pearls. I will give you the pink Barbie which you bought me a month ago."

Dad replied, "Fine, sweetheart."

May 7, 2020

26
 SHORT STORIES

After a few days, the conversation was repeated between Minnu and her dad.
Again, Minnu refused to give her pearl necklace and instead asked her dad to

take her pet. Dad kissed her and left with smile.

This was repeated several times.

pink-pearl-necklaceOne day, Minnu slept while her dad was reading her a story.
She was holding the necklace in her hands. Her dad took the pearl necklace from
her hand. The next moment, she woke up and asked, "Dad, what are you doing?"

Dad quickly opened a jewel box placed near her bed and handed her a real

precious pink pearl necklace. He said, "Sweetheart, this is your real necklace. I
wanted to take away the fake one all this while to give you this real one."

She replied, 'Thank you dad!'

Minnu immediately gave up her fake necklace for the real one.

God wants us to give up all the fake and cheap things we consider very precious
in our life. It can be habits, hatreds, harming relationships, activities, negative

thoughts, etc. He will provide us with genuine things if we give up the fake!

When Adversity Knocks

Mary was a young girl. She used to get annoyed with everything. She had a
negative attitude towards life.

Once, when she felt that life was unbearable, she asked her father what to do.

She told him that if she was able to manage and solve one problem, another one
followed quickly.

May 7, 2020

27
 SHORT STORIES

Her father consoled her and took her to the kitchen. He asked Mary to take a
potato, an egg and two spoons of tea leaves. Mary was surprised, and asked her

father, "Do you want me to cook?"

"No," her father said.

He then took three vessels and poured one cup of water in each vessel. The
vessels were placed on the stove. Once the water started to boil, he dropped the
potato in a vessel, egg in the second one and the tea leaves in the third one.

"Why are you doing all these things?" Mary asked, really annoyed with her father.

"Just wait fifteen minutes," said her father.

The impatient daughter managed to wait for around 15 minutes.

Father removed the potato from the pot and placed in a plate. He did the same
with the eggs. He filtered the tea decoction using a cup.

Now, he placed the two plates, one with the potato and the other with the egg,

and the cup of tea in front of Mary.

He asked Mary, "What do you see?" "Potato, egg and a cup of tea," said

Mary."No, you are wrong," said her father. "Look at it closely and answer

me."Mary replied the same."Now touch it and answer me."The potato was
cooked and was soft, the egg was boiled hard, and the tea carried a nice

aroma.Mary couldn't find the correct answer.

Her father said, "The potato was so hard and strong before it was boiled; now it

has turned soft and smooth. Also, the egg was delicate but after boiling it
became hard. Sip the tea. It is delicious!"Mary asked, "What does it mean father?

I don't understand!"

"Each object responded differently to water. Each object was put under the same
kind of circumstances, faced similar adversities, but reacted differently. The
May 7, 2020

28
 SHORT STORIES

potato, when put in boiling water, became very weak. The soft egg became very
hard when we put it in boiling water. And the tea leaves are unique. It changed

the water itself, giving it a unique flavour and aroma! It gave something new."

Mary understood that we can create something new and unique even when we
experience adversities.

So, what are you? A potato, an egg, or a tea leaf?

Powerful Prayers
Kim and Ray were very close companions. They were neighbours, classmates at

school, and later, colleagues at work.One day, they decided to go on a sea

voyage to explore strange lands. They began their voyage in a cruise ship, and

travelled far and wide. However, in the course of their trip, the weather turned
very destructive. The ship was wrecked in the middle of the ocean. Most of the

passengers were killed, but Kim and Ray could swim to a nearby island.

The island was deserted; not even a tree was there. Kim and Ray realized that

they could not survive on the island without divine intervention. They decided to
pray to God. They wanted to see whose prayer would be more powerful. Kim

moved to the eastern tip of the island, knelt down and began to pray there. Ray
went to the western tip of the island and prayed there.

Kim prayed to God to give him food to survive. Surprisingly, he got a pile of

food, fruits and vegetables on the sea shore.After two days, he requested for a
beautiful girl as his wife, as he was feeling very lonely on the island. In a few

hours, there was a ship wreck near the island and a lone survivor; a beautiful girl.
Kim married the girl.Whatever Kim prayed for, was granted to him.

Almost a month after the ship wreck, Kim decided to move back to his

hometown. He prayed to God to send him a ship to take him home. Sure
May 7, 2020

29
 SHORT STORIES

enough, there came a ship to take Kim and his wife home.As the couple was
about to enter the ship, Kim heard someone speak to him. It was just a voice.

"Are you going alone, leaving your companion of life here?"Kim was surprised,
"May I know who is this and whom you are referring to? I have my wife with me!"

The voice said, "I'm the one to whom you offered your prayers, whom you

requested to save your life, and whom you requested food and shelter and of
course, a wife!"Kim knelt down in awe and said, "Thank you God

Then Kim remembered about Ray, whom he had forgotten all this time. He was
overcome with guilt. God said to him, "I was not answering your prayers. I was

only fulfilling Ray's prayers. He prayed for only one thing! He said 'Please fulfill all
of Kim's prayers'. That was his only prayer."

Kim was in tears and rushed to the other side of the island. He realized that he

had not even thought about his best friend Ray, and was happily enjoying his
own life. He could not find Ray there. He asked God, "Where is Ray?"

God replied, "I took him with me. The man with the golden heart should be with

me! But I will fulfill all your prayers as I promised him to do so!"

Kim was completely broken. He realized why his friend's prayers were more
powerful. It was because Ray's prayers were totally selfless.

Moral: Selflessness is the highest form of prayer.

May 7, 2020

30
 SHORT STORIES

A Unique Experience
It was a cold and windy night. My friend and I had met after a long time, and

were chatting for hours. We did not notice the time passing by, and soon it was
close to ten in the night. We decided to take an auto rickshaw to go to our

house.It started raining, and we hurried to get into an auto rickshaw and reach
our place. None of the auto rickshaws stopped for us, except one.

The driver asked us where we wanted to go and we told the place. Without

saying anything about the fare, he said, "Please get in!" We thanked him and got
in.Since it was very cold, I asked the driver to stop at any small restaurant or a tea

shop. We wanted to have a cup of hot tea. The driver stopped near a small
restaurant.

We ordered tea, and asked the driver to join us and have a cup of tea. The driver
refused. I insisted, but he refused again politely.My friend asked, "Will you not

take tea from this shop or what?"The driver replied, "No Sir, I don't feel like
having tea now."I asked again, "But, why? A cup of tea will do no harm."Smiling,

the driver replied, "Thank you sir, but I'm sorry."My friend asked, "Are you
against eating or drinking outside?"

The driver said, "No! I was really surprised at his behavior and asked my friend

not to compel him.In 15 minutes, we reached our house. We paid the fare and
the driver thanked us.On an impulse, I stopped him, as I really wanted to ask him

why he refused to drink tea with us at the restaurant.

He thought for a moment and replied, "Sir, my son passed away this noon in an
accident. I don't have enough money for his funeral. So I took a vow not to drink

even water, until I earn enough money for my son's funeral. That's why I didn't
drink tea when you offered. Please don't misunderstand. "We both were

shattered and offered him more money for his son's funeral.

May 7, 2020

31
 SHORT STORIES

He politely refused, "Thank you for your generosity sir. In one or two hours, if I
get one or two more customers, I will earn the money I need." And he left the

place. We were amazed at his strength of character and integrity.

The Strange Bird with Two Heads

Once upon a time, there lived a strange bird with two heads; one facing the left
and the other facing the right. The two heads used to fight and argue with each

other, even for very simple reasons. Though they shared the same body, the two
heads behaved like rivals! The strange bird lived in a big banyan tree, along the

bank of a river. One day, while flying over the river, the left head of the bird saw
a beautiful tree that had a bright red fruit. The left head of the bird wanted to eat

the fruit and the bird flew down to pick the fruit from the tree.

The bird plucked the sweet smelling fruit, and sat by the banks of the river and
started eating it. The fruit was eaten by the left head. While it was eating, the

right head asked, "Can you give me a piece to taste?"The left head said, "See, we
have only one stomach. So even if I eat in my mouth, it will go only into our

stomach."

"But I want to taste the fruit, so you should give me." The left head replied in
anger, "I saw the fruit and hence, I have the right to eat it without sharing with

anyone."The right head felt sad and became silent.

A few days later, while the bird was flying over the river again, the right head saw
a beautiful pink fruit in a tree. The bird flew down near the tree and tried to pick

the fruit and eat it. The other birds living in the tree said, "Don't eat it. It is a
poisonous fruit. It will kill you. " The left head shouted, "Don't eat it. Don't eat it."

However the right head did not listen to the left head. The right head said, "I will
eat it, because I saw it. You have no right to stop me."
May 7, 2020

32
 SHORT STORIES

The left head shouted, "Please don't eat it. We will all die."

The right head said, "Since I saw it, I have the right to eat it." Clearly, the right

head was trying to take revenge on the left head for not sharing the red fruit

with it earlier.

Finally, the pink fruit was eaten by the right head, and in a few minutes, the

strange bird with the two heads dropped down dead!

Moral: A quarrel by the individuals in a family will affect the whole family badly.

A Glass of Milk
Once, there was a poor boy who made a living by selling various objects from

door to door. This was the way he earned money to pay for his school.One day,
as he was walking from house to house as usual, he felt very hungry and weak.

He felt that he couldn't walk even a few steps. He decided to ask for food at a

house. He knocked on the door and was stunned to see a beautiful young girl
open the door. With much hesitation, he asked the girl for a glass of water.

The young girl understood his condition and offered him a huge glass of milk.
With an astonished look, the boy drank the milk very slowly."How much do I owe

you for this milk?" he asked her.The girl replied, "I do not want any money for
this."The boy thanked the girl from the bottom of his heart and left the place.

Years passed by. The young girl grew up. In her youth, unfortunately, she fell ill

and was diagnosed with the rarest kind of nervous disorder. Many experienced
doctors were baffled at her condition, and she was admitted in the city hospital

with the most advanced facilities.Dr. Kevin, a renowned neuro specialist was
called in by the hospital to examine her. Even with his extraordinary expertise, Dr.

May 7, 2020

33
 SHORT STORIES

Kevin found the girl's illness very hard to cure. However, with perseverance and
hard work that lasted months, he was finally able to get the disease under

control. With careful medication and monitoring, the girl was completely cured in
the end.Everyone praised the doctor, but the girl was quite worried about how

much the hospital bill would come to. Her family had just a little money kept
away in the bank, which was by no means enough to pay for such a long

treatment in that reputed hospital.

The girl was given the hospital bill finally. With trembling hands, she opened it.
She was stunned to see that the bill had been crossed out and cancelled, and

there was a note underneath signed by Dr. Kevin."Bill paid years ago with a glass
of milk!"

Moral: One good turn begets another.

1
Most of the stories have been collected from different sites
May 7, 2020

34