A Tale of Peace in Storm and Stillness

Old Man’s House

There was once an old wise man who lived in a small house at the water’s edge.

His hut was built on sturdy pylons above the sea level.

Day after day, month after month and year after year, he could be seen meditating every day on the covered porch that faced the horizon.

One day, one of the towns people went to visit the wise old hermit.  She found him sitting in silence, facing the sea.  As she approached, he turned to face her.

“Excuse me,” she said, now a bit uncertain for having disturbed his meditation.

He patted the floorboards next to where he sat on the deck.  She sat down.

“Why have you come to this old man’s house?” he asked.

“I often walk along the shore and see you sitting meditating here on the beautiful warm and sunny days.  But I also see you on the dark and stormy days. Still you sit in silence as the waves crash under you, shaking your house.”

The old man smiled.

“How can you stay so still, even in the middle of the storm?” she asked.

“Ahh…” he chuckled, “But you see…I do not live in the storm.  I do not live in the stillness.  No matter what the wind and sea is doing around me, I always live above it.”

The young woman was silent. There were no more questions.

The water lapping gently beneath them provided the only interruption to the stillness.

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Note: This post is part of the 31-post Ultimate Blog Challenge. During the month of July, 2012, I will be posting 31 times. Since this is a lot of posts over a short period of time, I prepared a special page where you can catch any you may have missed.

Photo Credit:  bordenphoto