Short Story with Moral Lesson – An Act of Kindness
Photo credit: anitapeppers from morguefile.com
In this arena of technology and space wars, the humans have lost the touch of humanity .The very touch that brings in life to the battered soul. One such story that dwells upon every aspect of humanity is the story of Shomu who lived in a dilapidated and shattered dwelling in the slums of Dharavi.
He was completely in bad condition and lived a life of beggar. He never had enough food to eat and his clothes were never new. He did not know what talking meant, for he spoke very little and whatever he spoke was not at all intelligible to others. His only language was that of a longing desire to get those things that others possessed.
Time passed by and Shomu began to grow. He would be in shabby mental state and people took pity at him and they donated something to him, Shomu felt utter shame in accepting things from others. But he had no choice. He had to take those things from others because he had to lead a weathered life. Food had to get into his belly and he had survived in this mean world. He had to live the life which God had thrusted upon him. He thought that he had to go on living like this and so he prayed to God that he must take his life away.
He detested to the life he lived and he sometimes had secret wish that even if his life should be exchanged with someone then also his life should not be given to anyone for he considered his life to be the worst. One day among such despondent thoughts he devised of a plan to rob house. He had this flash of light after seeing news on television and he thought that his life would improve from there onwards. So with lots of inward thinking he darted upon a house that would be robbed.
He simply tried to gather them from neighborhood whatever he needed for that plan. He mentally revised what he would do for the plan . He even chose the house which he had to rob. He talked to his best friend and he also agreed to go with the plan. But in his plan there was a missing point. He did not know how to operate lock and key so he asked his friend to help him out. His friend readily agreed upon and the one fine day they decided to fructify the robbery plan.
As they were they doing the rounds of the houses that were built in a row that night they suddenly hit upon house from where a strange noise was coming. They decided to stop at the house and look what at the modulus operandi. So suddenly they stopped at the house and they began to hear the noise of the crying little girl. She was crying and someone was mercilessly thrashing the girl. They peeped at the hole and they saw a scene that was going to change their lives forever.
Both parents of the child was thrashing that girl and the girl was lying on the floor. Blood was oozing out and the parents were muttering that the girl could not bring bough money that night. Upon probing further they gathered that girls were the step child and the parents would send the girl to railway station to beg for money. Shomu was full of pity for that girl, he instantly deduced that something should be done. He told his friend that he would rob the house and give the money to the little girl and send her to the little school or to hostel.
His friend at first retorted and began to step back but with some deliberance from the Shomu’s side he agreed at the plan. So ultimately shuomu with that key and little intelligence and knowledge the God had given him robbed the house and took the money.
Next morning he approached the girl and gave the money to her. The girl was very thankful it him. She knew that it was a god send opportunity so she did not refuse. Although she gave some money to shomu and his friend too. But unfortunately Shomu was caught by the police. He was taken to police station and interrogated. The police listened to the entire story. They heard the story and they too were moved by shomu kindness.
They talked to the owner and they also were relieved and related well to the shomu’s tale. The girl although retuned the money to owner but still the owner upon seeming the plight on the girl gave some money to her. Shomu and his friend were released. Shoumu could not sleep that night. He never compared to God again for he seen more battered soul than his in this mean world.
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