the story of the pencil

a boy was watching his grandmother write a letter. at one point, he asked:

'are u writing a story about what we've done? is it a story about me?'

his grandmother stopped writing her letter and said to her grandson:

'i am writing about u, actually, but more important than the words is the pencil i'm using. i hope u will be like this pencil when u grow up'

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intrigued, the boy looked at the pencil. it didn't seem very special.

'but it's just like any other pencil i've ever seen!'

'that depends on how u look at things. it has five qualities, which, if u manage to hang on to them, will make u a person who is always at peace with the world'

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'first quality: u are capable of great things, but u must never forget that there is a hand guiding your steps. we call that hand God, and He always guides us according to His will'

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'second quality: now and then, i have to stop writing and use a sharpener. that makes the pencil suffer a little, but afterwards, he's much sharper. so u, too, must learn to bear certain pains and sorrows, because they will make u a better person'

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'third quality: the pencil always allows us to use an eraser to rub out any mistakes. this means that correcting something we did is not necessarily a bad thing, it helps to keep us on the road to justice'

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'fourth quality: what really matters in a pencil is not its wooden exterior, but the graphite inside. so always pay attention to what is happening inside u'

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'finally, the pencil's fifth quality: it always leaves a mark. in just the same way, u should know that everything u do in life will leave a mark, so try to be conscious of that into your every action'

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excerpt fr LIKE THE FLOWING RIVER by PAOLO COELHO

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nice huh? sje highlight some lines just in case certain ppl rabun n cant read between the lines. heeehe. see why u should buy this book now wahida? ;p