A king who had everything called
his men for a meeting. He said he was unhappy with his life and he wanted them
to look for ways to make him happy. He had wine and women; he also had silver
and gold, yet he was unhappy. Not one of his men could make the king happy. So the
king called a wise man and told the same. The wise man told the king that he
should be happy if he had all the gold in his kingdom. But the king replied
that he was still unhappy despite he had all the gold. So the wise man asked the
king to show him his gold. The king did it but was still unhappy. The wise man
asked the king to pick the gold that he valued much and place them in a sack. The
king also did it but was still unhappy. The wise man asked the king to close
his eyes and open it only after counting one to ten. The king did it but when he opened his eyes, the wise man was running away from him with his gold. The king
became angry that he ran after the wise man. When the king caught the wise man,
he grabbed him and took from him his gold. The wise man asked the king, “How
did you feel while chasing me?” The king replied, “Of course, I was mad because
you are not a wise man but a charlatan. You deserve to be punished” The wise
man asked another question, “How did you feel when you caught me?” The king
replied, “Now, I am happy. I recover the gold that you attempt to steal from
me.” Finally, the wise man said to the king, “Well, my king, I have solved your
problem. It’s you who said that you are now happy. Would you still punish me
for making you happy?”
My dear friends, happiness can’t
be found outside of us because it comes from within us. People or things cannot
make us happy. Rather, it is how we see and put more value on them (people or
things) that causes us happiness. Look at Mama Mary (Luke 1:46-56). She said, “My
soul magnifies the Lord.” The word magnify here means to make a thing big. It means
seeing everything in a greater perspective or better view. In this way, Mary valued
her experience with God. She was happy about it. If like Mary, we could magnify
a thing or a person or an event, then we would not be looking for happiness
anymore. If we could give emphasis on small things and appreciate them, we
would not wait for bigger things to happen in order to be happy. If we could be
keen enough to value the little that we have, we would not ask for more. If like
Mary, we could see the hands of God working in every detail of our life, we
would accept things as they are and would be happy to say, “My soul magnifies the
Lord.”
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