THE MISSING GOAT





“But, wishes are only granted in fairy tales.”

Simone Elkeles

The reason why some tales are called ‘Fairy Tales’ is, because, they, always, end with this wonderful ending: ‘And they lived happily ever after’!

If Fairies don’t exist, how can you expect to live happily ever after? They both exist only in our childish fantasies… Often, meant to put us to sleep!

Some thirty-odd years ago – yes, I was a young man then – a very experienced and elderly teacher pointed to a casual phrase I had written and asked me, ‘What do you mean by this?”

The phrase was ‘Lasting Happiness’!

I, instantly, found myself stumped! Before it was too late, I pulled out that weed from my vocabulary. Since then, to me, ‘Happiness’ – yes, it does exist. ‘Lasting Happiness’ – No, it doesn’t!

Just as Fairies… Just as that mirage of living happily ever after!

I think, the Pursuit of Happiness should be a pursuit in this real world… Not in the ‘other world’… the world of Fairies!


My college buddy Joe and I both had identical hand-to-mouth existence when we were in college. But, we both remember living some of our glorious moments of simple happiness. He stayed back in Mangalore to become a reasonably successful businessman… I crossed over to this city of dreams, probably, looking for Fairies. Thank God, I met many wise souls to drill into my head the wisdom: “The Kingdom of God is within you…  Don’t look for it outside… It simply doesn’t exist there!”

Last night, Joe sent to me this ‘Fairy Tale’:


THE MISSING GOAT

(Author unknown)
It all started one lazy Sunday afternoon in a small town near Toronto in Canada. Two school-going boys had a crazy idea… They rounded up three goats from the neigbourhood and painted the numbers 1,2 and 4 on their sides. That night, they let the goats loose inside their school building.

The next morning, when thee authorities entered the school, they could smell something was wrong. They, soon, saw goat-droppings on the staircase and near the entrance and realized, that some goats had entered the building. A search was immediately launched and, very soon, the three goats were found. But, the authorities were worried – Where was goat no. 3? They spent the rest of the day looking for goat no. 3…

The school declared the classes off for the students for the rest of the day… The teachers, helpers, guards, canteen staff, boys were all busy looking for goat no. 3, which, of course, was never found…

Simply because it did not exist!



GERALD D’CUNHA

Pic.: pixels/Vladyslav Dukhin

Video: Dare to Do Motivation


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