Have Courage and Be Kind

There was once a dew drop that was so pure and pretty, it sparkled every time the sunlight brushed it gently. And because the sunlight was always in abundance powering all the living beings, the pretty dew drop shone brightly, sparkling and dancing wherever it landed. When the fauna around the dew drop saw this new member had come down from the sky, they were curious of course but charmed as well. So beautiful was this dew drop and so much happiness did it exuberate that the joy was almost contagious. Well, just almost.

The leaves, flowers, grass and trees were surprised that something so tiny that looked worthless in the role that it could play in the forest was exceedingly pretty and shone as bright as the stars in the sky! And as they continued to think further, the dew drop then after dancing to its heart content, realized it was surrounded by a lovely variety of species very different from itself. Its eyes stared in amazement to see so much beauty, so much color and so many stunning creatures around it who were all bigger and beautiful than it was.

So, the dew drop even though intimidated by the newness of the place, went ahead and introduced itself to the gorgeous red flower. The beautiful red bloom with its petals all springing in glory saw the dew drop coming its way and made eye contact immediately. The dew drop approached the flower and at once said, “My goodness! Never have I seen something as pretty as you. You are breathtaking!” To that, the flower immediately swayed with joy and happiness and thanked the dew drop. “Such coloring and such beautiful strokes,” the dew drop continued praising the flower, “I wish I was as pretty as you.” The red flower beamed with so much joy and confidence now that it was practically dancing.

But there was also something else that the bloom understood. The dew drop had never seen itself and thus did not know its own beauty and purity that was visible to everybody around it. Everyone was charmed at first yes, but soon that took the form of jealousy. How can something be so pretty, so pure and so happy? How can it have everything?! The dew drop, completely unaware of these feelings  saw only the beauty  of these creatures , not for once realising that they all felt threatened by it.

The dew drop continued to admire the pretty red flower while it spoke back. “You want to be as pretty as I am? Well that is not possible. I am the prettiest like you just said. But you can be a little pretty, not a lot.” The dew drop stared in surprise. “How?!” It asked back.

“You can have an ounce of my beauty dew drop if you give me an ounce of your purity and an ounce of your sparkle.”

The flower had seen the goodness in the dew drop and knew it was more of a giver as the dew drop had seen the good in it but not the bad. Rare are those who give without expecting anything in return and the dew drop was one of them.

The dew drop considered itself ordinary and certainly nothing close to the standards of beauty it saw around it and at once agreed to go ahead with the trade. “You can have an ounce of my purity and an ounce of my sparkle in return for an ounce of your beauty,” it said. The flower smiled, and the dew drop danced around the red petals of the flower leaving traces of it behind and absorbing the red of the flower. After the trade was complete, the flower now shone bright and sparkled like it had never before, while the dew drop turned a slight hue of redness.

Happy and content the dew drop thanked the flower and continued downward to the leaves. The green in them attracted the dew drop instantly and the dew drop went ahead and introduced itself to them as well, just as it did with the flower. The leaves by now had seen the entire episode that had played out and were themselves enamored by the dew drop. They had also seen how the red flower now shone bright and looked prettier than ever. So, they also offered the beautiful dew drop the same deal.

The dew drop was ecstatic and obliged immediately. Thrilled that it was being accepted for who it was in return for the beauty it saw around, for it to feel and keep as well. So, the dew drop danced around the leaves leaving traces of itself on them while absorbing a little of their stunning green. By the end of it, the leaves too now sparkled just like the flower and as much as the dew drop. The dew drop on the other hand, had turned to a something yellow. Not red or green, but a yellow. Surprised at this coloring the dew drop didn’t make too much of it and was happy to be bright yellow as well. Though it had now started to miss its ‘crystal clear’ form.

However, the joyful and happy being it was, it cheered itself up and moved ahead. As it was trickling further down it got a shout out by the big brown tree trunk. “Hey Dewey, over here! How would you like to be strong and dark like me? You can have some of my color, in exchange for an ounce of your purity and one ounce of your sparkle.” The dew drop was now a little cautious. Even though it craved to be as pretty as the creatures around it, it was starting to feel low and tired, something it had not felt before.

“No, I want to go back to how I was earlier. I feel different and that feels weird. It feels heavy, this color and its making me uncomfortable and I feel less like myself.”

The tree trunk was not happy about this. It wanted what the flower and leaves got. So, it cajoled the dew drop. “Ok, you want to go back to what you were like. We can make that happen. See that water puddle down there, it’s close to your original coloring. You can trade your present coloring for your previous one. But to reach there, you must go through me. So, I will give you an ounce of my color for an ounce of your purity and an ounce of your sparkle.”

The dew drop saw the puddle of water down below. And even though it was not as clear as the dew drop remembered itself to be, it was close. Desperate to feel like its old self, the dew drop agreed. It walked around the tree trunk this time sharing with  it,  its purity and sparkle, while absorbing its dark brown color and feeling exhausted by the end of it.

The tree trunk too now glistened like the flower and leaves and the forest had never looked this beautiful as it did today only because of the dew drop. The dew drop was however, too tired and felt heavy with all the color it had absorbed in return for so much it had gladly given. It was not that the dew drop was naïve, but that it was unaware that beauty came in different forms. As the dew drop sat there to catch its breath, a sparkling thing came and plopped right next to it. It was another dew drop. Blinded by the sparkle it radiated the dew drop was taken aback.

“Wow!” said Dewey “Look at you so absolutely stunning! You shine so bright and are crystal clear, but you are shaped like me!” gesturing surprise at the last bit. “Yes, I’m just like you” replied the other dew drop, “beautiful, pure and I sparkle every time the light touches me. Just like you did, when you first came down here.”

The dew drop was shocked. It did not know how to respond. It was taking time for the dew drop to fathom the fact that it was pretty from the beginning. Maybe even prettier than the beings around it, but it just did not see it and thus was completely unaware of its own beauty.

“You were so engrossed in fitting to the standards of the beauty around you,” continued the other dew drop, “that you did not see how extraordinary you, yourself were. These creatures of course saw that. They saw the purity, the sparkle and the joy you beamed with and wanted some for themselves, giving you one ounce of themselves for every two ounces of you.”

“You are a giver Dewey, you are made of so much love and light yourself that you see the good in spite of the bad. But it’s important that you protect your own beauty and uniqueness as well. Otherwise you will lose yourself in others and have so much weight to carry around that it will drain you out. You loved and gave with all your heart and see how wonderful they look flaunting your love and care to the world. But they don’t acknowledge or flaunt you, just like you did with them.”

“You are your own kind of beautiful Dewey and you have what most of them don’t. The courage to give and care. Know that that will be both your strength as well as weakness. So, impart that wisely.”

As Dewey listened intently, the other dew drop continued. “You already have the courage to care but you must also be brave enough to care for yourself. Because nobody will take care of you, like you would, and you have to remember that. Well, now we will try and fix this. It’s never late.”

Eyes filled with tears of dark coloring, the Dewey asked, “How? How can I fix this?” The other dew drop replied, “by letting go of this heaviness and the colors that do not agree with you. You might not go back to your old self completely and that is okay, but you will be stronger and wiser than before.”

“And how do I decide which colors to keep and which to let go?” asked Dewey.

“It will take time Dewey, but you will slowly feel like your old self as the colors fade and you will start to feel lighter, like your old self. Just have faith and let a few monsoons drench you, and I promise it’ll get better. Have courage and be kind, something that you already possess. They are your crowning glory Dewey so never let the world decolor what makes you, you.”

Dewey picked itself up, shook off a little bit of color and thanked the pretty dew drop. It had learnt that change is never desirable but is inevitable as well. The best you can do is to learn, live and laugh through it while you morph into something better than what you were yesterday. And with that thought, Dewey dived into the puddle, to continue its journey after this little break that it desired and was also the need of the hour.

Find your colors, appreciate your beauty, visit the puddle when you need to, to rejuvenate and just pause for a while. Know that nothing is permanent, and that pain and sadness will steer your life more than happiness ever will. Take it in your stride and choose to grow from it. Love with all your heart because that’s the only way you know how to do it, not because you expect the same in return. If returned to you, you have been blessed. If not, you gave it your all, and that’s something you must never regret. Learn to let go, though it will be the hardest thing you will ever have to do, every time you do it. But the memories of happier times and moments when you felt bouts of overwhelming joy will be your guiding lights. Cherish them as they will always make their way in your life, sooner or later.