Member-only story
There was a little girl
Who had a little curl
Right in the middle of her forehead;
And when she was good
She was very, very good,
And when she was bad she was horrid.
~ H. W. Longfellow
We all have our quirks, things that make us tick or kick. Out of nowhere, our mood changes and negative thoughts run amok in our mind like raucous monkeys in a banana farm (try the visual, it’s fun). When we are good, we are so good that at times even we can’t believe our goodness, our large heartedness. And when we are bad, we can be so bad that the Satan might run for cover at our sight. We don’t want to think those things or feel that way, but we still do.
Ramakrishna Paramahansa often used to narrate a short story. There was a man running to board a crowded train that had already started chugging along. Yet, panting and puffing, carrying a heavy bag on his shoulders, he managed to get in even though all the seats were taken. A few minutes passed, the train was well on its way and he kept standing with his bag on his shoulders.
“You can put the bag down,” one of the co-passengers said. “Why?” he scorned. “What’s it to you? This is my bag!”
“But you are on a train!” another said. “You can put it down rather than carrying the load!”
The man, however, wouldn’t let go of it and travelled the entire journey standing with his bag…
