Memoirs of an imperfect beauty: Cuts and Blisters
There lived a young beauty. She appeared perfect to everyone who beheld her. But her life was anything but perfect. Just like everyone around her, she had her fair share of pain and sorrow.
One of her biggest sorrows was a big wound on each of her palms. She hid these wounds by always fisting her hands. No one but her closest friends knew of these wounds which were festering and ruining her hands slowly.
One wound was caused by a small pebble that shone like a pearl. She had once been friends with another beauty whom she had lent a dress for a ball. In return, her friend had given her the pearl-like pebble, but it was red hot and thus shone like a ruby. Beauty had no idea it was hot , and not really a ruby but a pebble, and once she clasped her hand around it, it burned her terribly. She threw it on the floor, hurt and betrayed. Once it was cool, she took the pebble and went away, vowing to never forget the unkindness of her once friend.
On her way, she met a young slave who was dying of thirst. She drew water from a nearby well and offered him a drink, and helped him get rid of his chains so that he could escape forever. In return, he gave her a diamond that he had stolen from his master, among other treasures.
He said that preferred to give her the diamond because it shone like her face; she had no idea he was not telling the truth. Beauty had no idea that the diamond was cursed and was bound to cut anyone besides its true owner.
The edges of the diamond cut deeply and she bled terribly. She however continued the journey with the diamond in hand, vowing to never forget the ungrateful slave.
Days passed and the pebble and diamond injured Beauty's hands. Soon, crusts of dried blood and fluid had partially covered the pebble and diamond, and Beauty had a new problem. She could not let go of the irritants without feeling the pains she felt the day the wounds were inflicted.
Her friends tried to remove them but each time, she felt more pain than ever, and she started hiding from them. The best physicians gave her the option of cutting off her hands or teaching her to live with the stones in hand, while sipping potions meant to relieve the pain. She was distressed more than she was the day she received the bogus gifts.
One day, while crying in a forest, she encountered an old wise man who was drawn by her sobs. On inquiring further, she showed him her hands and he felt sorry that she could not let the stones go. He then asked her why she never let them go on the first day. It was then that she opened up and explained in detail how she got the stones in return for her kindness.
He gently prodded her for details, and on explaining, she absentmindedly fiddled with the stones and the crusts became loose and eventually they fell off, freeing the stones. Beauty felt horrible pain as the crusts loosened, but she was relieved that her burdens were finally off her!!
The wise old man helped her clean the now open wounds and gave her a salve to help her heal. But it was his words that helped her most.
He said, " My dear, you are not built to hold on to grudges, that is why your hands were festered. Whenever someone wrongs you, do not hold on to them or their actions, but hold on to the lesson. You learned that you are capable of immense kindness while people can be immensely ungrateful.
Do what is good. Be who you are no matter the nature of those you encounter, because taking on their nature will hurt only you in the end."
This is Serenity!!
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