Day 2 of 3-day Quote Challenge – Faith

Welcome…those who read my blog yesterday would know that Sudersan nominated me for the 3-day Quote Challenge and so it’s Day 2 here. The rules, as stated yesterday, are as follows.

1. I thank the person who nominated me (obviously!!!) – did that yesterday itself 😉
2. I need to write 1-3 quotes everyday on my blog
3. I need to nominate 3 people each of the three days for the challenge! (Super! That makes it fun, doesn’t it?) Read on to know my thoughts today…

I get down at the bus stop and walk a little…I need to catch another bus! Phew I am tired of these long journeys and I almost hate it. But…okay let’s not digress this time 😉

As I walked amidst the crowd, one of those old men came with a cow that was adorned with a gold embroidered silk cloth (common sight in India…a cow is a Holy animal in the Hindu religion and these men get their cows so people on the roads would pray to them and in return give them some money. While I have never believed in it and do not particularly like the idea of making money by encouraging superstition, I know a lot of people who do). I passed by the old man who murmured something to ridicule my lack of belief and moved on to find someone else who would entertain his requests!

I kept walking, unfazed…one gets used to this over a period of time, I suppose! A frail old woman with a wrinkled face walked in the opposite direction. We looked into each other’s eyes for a fleeting second and I registered her worn out face, aged both by the years and by experience. I was about to turn right round the corner but something made me stop. I turned around to catch another glimpse of this old woman.

She was lying at the feet of the cow, as if offering everything she had. It’s wasn’t very far from where I stood. With great effort, she finally stood up. She placed some money on the cow’s forehead and closed her eyes, sending out another silent prayer. I think I saw her wiping away tears but I am not sure. Too many people walked between us.

While on one hand, I am pretty sure the cow won’t be able to do anything to solve her problems, on the other, I hope she finds some relief from whatever it is that’s troubling her. I wished and silently prayed for everything to be alright.

This happened a couple of years back with me and the image of her wiping her eyes with one hand and placing money on the cow’s forehead with the other has stayed in my mind like a still-life photograph. I have spent several moments wondering what it is that she got through that act…But I think I know it deep in my heart…in return for money, she strengthened her Faith!

“Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.

“Love, hope, fear, faith – these make humanity; These are its sign and note and character.” – Robert Browning

“Faithless is he that says farewell when the road darkens.” – J.R.R. Tolkien

*****

Today’s nominations for the challenge are:

1. Tanya @ https://tjartisticgallery.wordpress.com (I’ve just recently started following her work but I must say that I have loved every bit of what I have seen on her site! Cheers to her…can she instigate her artistic self to draw/paint/write around a quote??? Let’s wait and watch!)
2. Dajena @ https://moonskittles.wordpress.com/ (She’s one of the most beautiful poets around here…I would really like her to weave a poem with famous quotes in them for this challenge!)
3. Paul @ https://photopaulm.com/ (He is one of the most amazing photographers out there and I absolutely adore his work. I am wondering if he could use a quote as a theme and post pictures related to it? Or is it too much to ask??? not sure…I’ll let Paul decide if he wants to participate in this!)

Oh and while I am talking about Faith…have you read Mitch Albom’s ‘Have a Little Faith’ – probably the best book I’ve read about Faith. It has a very contemporary take on these ideas…and certainly reaches the reader’s heart!

 

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