Giving to other people
My friend told me this story in Africa and thought to share it.
A farmer had a tree which grew beautiful mangoes. Everyone in the village knew about the tree, and the mangoes. One day the farmer was inspecting his trees, and saw the loveliest mango he had ever seen. He picked it, and showed to his family. they were amazed by the beautiful mango. So were all his friends, who heard about the mango, and came to look. 
.He!He!He! .
He wrapped the mango in a special cloth, and walked all the way to the palace. At first the guards laughed at him, but he unwrapped the mango and showed it to them. They were so amazed they called their commander, and the commander took the farmer to see the king.
The farmer unwrapped the mango once more. The king was amazed by the mango, but pleased by the generosity of the farmer. He asked the farmer what he would like in return but the farmer refused. He wanted no reward, and no gift. “All I wanted was to see the joy on your face when you saw the perfect mango,” he said. Then he quietly slipped away, and went home.
The king was sad when he discovered that the farmer had gone. He ordered one of the guards to take his finest horse to the farmer to show his gratitude.
Soon everyone knew the king had given his finest horse in return for a mango. A rich merchant in a nearby town heard of this. He saddled his fastest horse and rode quickly to the palace. There he offered the king his horse to replace the one which had been given to the merchant. The king thanked him graciously, and waited for the merchant to leave. But he did not.
“Ah,” said the king, “You want something in return,” and he went into the palace. The merchant could hardly wait. It might be jewels, fine clothes, perhaps even a big house. The king returned with a small casket. He opened it, and inside lay a mango. “This is my greatest treasure. It was given to me by a generous man who wanted nothing in return.”
The merchant was angry. Outside the palace he took the mango and threw it away. The king saw this and called his guards. “Take the merchant, and make sure he never comes back to my palace.” He does not understand that to give freely without expecting anything in return is the most precious thing anyone can do.”
Why does it seem so complex or hard to comprehend when it comes to giving to other people, but it a lot of times seems so easy to accept?Giving will help you to get more blessed not only that but you’ll be blessing someone else. That’s a great feeling. It will also make you feel better inside.
Thanks for sharing that story. It does feel good to give without expecting anything in return.
Comment by Tanit — July 12, 2009 @ 3:26 pm
That’s a scary picture. The vulture is just waiting for that malnourished child to die…
Sad.
Comment by Tani — July 12, 2009 @ 3:27 pm
Im the opposite..I would rather give than recieve! I have to learn to take what ppl want to give.
Comment by butterflies — July 13, 2009 @ 10:38 pm
It always make me sad to see photos like that. I’d rather give as well than to receive and if people tend to insist to repay me then I’ll accept it kindly. But helping someone and making them happy is a reward on its own
Comment by Charles Ravndal — July 13, 2009 @ 11:21 pm
What a powerful story! Being able to give is such a blessing and a lot of people don’t understand that. All they know is they have to get something back when they give, which is really a sad thing.
Comment by Liza — July 14, 2009 @ 3:14 am
heart-breaking.
ps: i read somewhere that the last pic was disqualified for an award bec the photographer put the child near the vulture.
still, it’s a powerful image, no?
Comment by acey — July 20, 2009 @ 8:06 am