Peter was a
very lively
little boy.
Everyone loved him: his family, his teachers and his
friends. But
he did have one weakness."
"What
was that?"
"Peter
could never live in the moment He had not learned to
enjoy the
process of life. When he was in school, he dreamed of
being
outside playing. When he was outside playing he dreamed of
his summer
vacation. Peter constantly daydreamed, never taking
the time to
savor the special moments that filled his days. One
morning,
Peter was out walking in a forest near his home. Feeling
tired, he
decided to rest on a patch of grass and eventually dozed
off. After
only a few minutes of deep sleep, he heard someone
calling his
name. 'Peter! Peter!' came the shrill voice from above.
As he slowly
opened his eyes, he was startled to see a striking
woman
standing above him. She must have been over a hundred
years old and
her snow-white hair dangled well below her
shoulders
like a matted blanket of wool. In this woman's wrinkled
hand was a
magical little ball with a hole in the center and out of
the hole
dangled a long, golden thread."
"'Peter,'
she said, this is the thread of your life. If you pull the
thread just
a bit, an hour will pass in seconds. If you pull a little
harder,
whole days will pass in minutes. And if you pull with all
your might,
months — even years — will pass by in days.' Peter
grew very
excited at this discovery. 'I'd like to have it if I may?' he
asked. The
elderly woman quickly reached down and gave the ball
with the
magic thread to the young boy.
The next
day, Peter was sitting in the classroom feeling
restless and
bored. Suddenly, he remembered his new toy. As he
pulled a
little bit of the golden thread, he quickly found himself at
home,
playing in his garden. Realizing the power of the magic
thread,
Peter soon grew tired of being a schoolboy and longed to
be a
teenager, with all the excitement that phase of life would
bring. So
again he pulled out the ball and pulled hard on the golden
thread.
Suddenly he
was a teenager with a very pretty young
girlfriend
named Elise. But Peter still wasn't content. He had
never
learned to enjoy the moment and to explore the simple
wonders of
every stage of his life. Instead, he dreamed of being an
adult. So
again he pulled on the thread and many years whizzed by
in an
instant. Now he found that he had been transformed into a
middle-aged
adult. Elise was now his wife and Peter was
surrounded
with a houseful of kids. But Peter also noticed
something
else. His once jet black hair had started to turn grey.
And his once
youthful mother whom he loved so dearly had grown
old and frail.
Yet Peter still could not live in the moment. He had
never
learned to 'live in the now' So, once again, he pulled on the
magic thread
and waited for the changes to appear.
Peter now
found that he was a ninety-year-old man. His thick
dark hair
had turned white as snow and his beautiful young wife
Elise had
also grown old and had passed away a few years earlier.
His
wonderful children had grown up and left home to lead lives
of their
own. For the first time in his entire life, Peter realized that
he had not
taken the time to embrace the wonders of living. He
had never
gone fishing with his kids or taken a moonlight stroll
with Elise.
He had never planted a garden or read those
wonderful
books his mother had loved to read. Instead, he had
hurried
through life, never resting to see all that was good along
the way.
Peter became
very sad at this discovery. He decided to go out
to the
forest where he used to walk as a boy to clear his head and
warm his
spirit. As he entered the forest, he noticed that the little
saplings of
his childhood had grown into mighty oaks. The forest
itself had
matured into a paradise of nature. He lay down on a
small patch
of grass and fell into a deep slumber. After only a
minute, he
heard someone calling out to him. 'Peter! Peter!' cried
the voice.
He looked up in astonishment to see that it was none
other than
the old woman who had given him the ball with the
magic golden
thread many years earlier.
'How have
you enjoyed my special gift?' she asked.
Peter was
direct in his reply.
'At first it
was fun but now I hate it. My whole life has passed
before my
eyes without giving me the chance to enjoy it. Sure,
there would
have been sad times as well as great times but I
haven't had
the chance to experience either. I feel empty inside. I
have missed
the gift of living.'
'You are
very ungrateful,' said the old woman. 'Still, I will give
you one last
wish.'
Peter
thought for an instant and then answered hastily. 'I'd
like to go
back to being a schoolboy and live my life over again.' He
then
returned to his deep sleep.
Again he
heard someone calling his name and opened his eyes.
'Who could
it be this time?' he wondered. When he opened his
eyes, he was
absolutely delighted to see his mother standing over
his bedside.
She looked young, healthy and radiant. Peter realized
that the
strange woman of the forest had indeed granted his wish
and he had
returned to his former life.
'Hurry up
Peter. You sleep too much. Your dreams will make
you late for
school if you don't get up right this minute,' his mother
admonished.
Needless to say, Peter dashed out of bed on this
morning and
began to live the way he had hoped. Peter went on to
live a full
life, one rich with many delights, joys and triumphs, but
it all
started when he stopped sacrificing the present for the future
and began to live in the moment."
