Wisdom For The Faint Hearted

In the small village of Molinah, a group of women gathered around listening to the gossip of a young woman in her mid 30s. She told of a situation from a few months prior wherein her best friend and her fiance had betrayed her. An old man, in the distance, overheard this conversation, and couldn't help but recalling he had heard this story once before (weeks earlier) by the same young woman.

The young woman continued on about how her best friend had betrayed her by having an inappropriate relationship with her once soon-to-be husband, and how badly she'd been hurt by this. The tale she told was a sad one, to say the least, but it had been months since it had happened, and the old man was sure the friend and fiance had moved on with their lives, so why couldn't the young woman just move on with hers?

After listening to the story for the second time, the woman shedding tears just as she had the first time she spoke of this incident, the old man decided to intervene. The women were standing only about ten feet away, so surely they noticed he had been sitting there. Regardless, he had been minding his own business when he had been within hearing range of this story for the second time, and he was annoyed that the woman hadn't just let it go and gone about living her life.

He stood and made his way to where the women were all standing, the women still listening intently to the younger woman who had been crying for several minutes now, and not acknowledging the old man's presence. Inserting himself into the conversation, he said, "Do you fine ladies want to hear a joke?" None of them seemed to be in the mood for a joke, but he had a point to prove, so he pushed further. "It's a good one. You'll love it."

The women hesitated but seemed to be obliged to the old man's sense of humor, as they all agreed to hear his joke. The old man proceeded to tell his joke.

"A plane crashes just off the coast of South America and 27 people die. Upon arriving in heaven, God tells them he will grant each of them one wish. The woman at the front of the line had struggled with her appearance the majority of her life, so she asked God to make her beautiful. The man behind her didn't know what to wish for, so he wished for the same thing - beauty. At this point, the man at the back of the line began laughing, but the line continued to move forward, with the next few people wishing for the same thing - to be beautiful. The man at the end of the line laughed hysterically each time someone wished for beauty, but the last few who were left to make their wishes decided to wish for beauty as well, because they were amazed at how good-looking those before them had become. Finally, the man at the end of the line was next to make his wish. He was still laughing as he looked at all the beautiful people in front of him. 'What is your wish?' God asked the man. With a grin on his face, he said, 'Make them all ugly again!'"

The women laughed at the old man's joke and then stood in awkward silence for a moment. They glanced at one another, all wearing a grin of their faces. It was a much-needed joke during a time of a very serious matter. They were all glad the old man had approached them to tell them of this joke.

Breaking the silence, "Want to hear a joke?" the old man asked again.

"Sure," one of the women responded, hoping for another good laugh.

"A plane crashes just off the coast of South America and 27 people die... " the old man began.

The women cringed when they realized he was telling the same joke for a second time. At the end of the joke, to be polite, a few of the women laughed and the rest stood in utter silence. The old man continued laughing at his own joke, and a couple of the women just looked away or at the ground, sort of hoping if they ignored the old man that he would go away.

The old man stopped laughing and asked for the final time, "Want to hear a joke?"

None of the women responded this time. They all stared at him in disbelief, wondering if he was crazy.

"A plane crashes just off the coast of South America and 27 people die... " the old man told the entire joke again.

The old man laughed hysterically for the third time, but when none of the women laughed this time, the old man responded, "You can't laugh at the same joke over and over, so why cry over the same thing over and over?"

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Sometimes, we tend to hold onto things that hurt us the most. Why is it, though, that we sometimes don't hold onto things which make us the happiest? The point is, if you can't change the past, then move on from it. Crying over the same situation again and again isn't making the situation any better, and it sure isn't fixing what has already been done.

The past cannot be changed, but the future is still yet to be determined. Don't live in yesterday, but pursue tomorrow. You can choose to live your life or let your life live for you. Holding onto something in which you cannot change is bound to destroy your happiness; it will bring you into a dark place and you will find yourself struggling to escape its grasp on you. Wake up and laugh at the joke repeatedly, and stop crying over the past. Today is the day you can be happy, but only you can make that decision.