Stories That Will Change Your Life

Modern Civilization

Once upon a time, three friends—Jignesh, Magesh, and Suresh—who belonged to a rural region of India, won three tickets of USA tour. Certainly this was once in a lifetime opportunity, so they grabbed it.

It was hardly describable the way they felt because going out of state was like a dream. And now altogether they were going abroad on a vacation trip: lasting for ten days.

In New York, they got a common suite in one of the lavish hotels, and that also on the 50th floor. Nine consecutive days they toured every prominent place in the USA: White House, Florida Keys, Niagara Falls, Manhattan, Chicago, and of course New York City as well.

Now, it was time to leave. So they were heading back to their apartment, where they were staying. As they reached near elevator, all of a sudden there was a power failure (Of course, power cut is something that never happens in a city like New York, but this is just a story. So it'll do).

They got to know that this power failure will last for many hours, because there was a major technical issue. Jignesh said to his friends, "So what if there is a power failure? Let's go to our room through stairs."

But it was not a joke, going to the 50th floor by using the stairs?

Jignesh, however, encouraged them, saying, they are Indians, they are healthy enough to climb up Mount Everest, then what to speak of fifty floors?

Somehow or other Magesh and Suresh agreed. They decided to share their memorable moments of this ten day vacation. The idea behind was, they'll reach their apartment without whining, because they would be absorbed in conversing.

Jignesh shared his memorable moments, so did Magesh and Suresh. Like this they reached up till the 40th floor. Now only a few more floors were there to go. However, Suresh became inactive in the conversation, because something was bugging his mind, which he was unable to remember.

They reached on 45th floor, Jignesh and Magesh noticed Suresh was quiet for awhile. "Hey, speak up something, we are almost there. Don't be quiet now," Jignesh said.

"Well ... if I said something that will be devastating to you guys," Suresh replied, his voice held anxiety.

"C'mon! Spit it out already," Magesh snapped back.

"Promise me, you guys won't beat the stuffing out of me." Suresh's voice was as serious as his face. Jignesh and Magesh thought maybe he's just playing around, but it was getting on their nerves.

"Just say it!"

"I ... I think I dropped the keys of our hotel suite somewhere," Suresh blurted out.

What kind of reaction, Jignesh and Magesh suppose to give?

Moral of the story: Albert Einstein famously remarked in a conversation with Werner Heisenberg, he said, "You know, in the West, we've built a beautiful ship, and in it has all the comforts. But actually the one thing it doesn't have is a compass, and that's why it doesn't know where it is going."

This is exactly the situation of our modern civilization. Rapidly we are going up in terms of scientific progress, but the key to that true contentment and happiness is missing somewhere.

What did you learn from this story?