The Reward

Once upon a long time ago,
There lived a wealthy man.
With money, his coffers did flow,
And there was nothing he lacked.

Silken clothes, jewels and gold –
His closets were full of them.
A mansion, servants at his call,
And plates encrusted with gems.

Yes, he called himself fortunate
As he had all of life’s rewards.
He felt he had all the happiness,
And that he needed nothing more.

Then, one hot day, his caravan
Stopped to rest in the afternoon.
The chariots parked under a banyan
That had vast branches and roots.

As he got down to stretch his legs,
He saw a man dressed commonly.
Who smiled benevolently at him
And asked if he was hungry or thirsty.

With disdain, the rich man denied
And told him that he had no wants.
The man bowed his head and smiled
And turned away to another person.

This man served food and water
To people who rested under the tree.
He took no money even if offered,
And this, the affluent man saw silently.

As the sun set, he questioned
That man why he did what he did.
The man smiled and invited him
To serve with him food to the needy.

The opulent man laughed loudly
And agreed just to humor him.
He served a weary traveler a meal
In a plate made of woven leaves.

All of a sudden, he was overcome
With an emotion hitherto unknown,
From his eyes, tears flowed freely, and
He felt at peace and happy all at once.

As he looked at the common man,
That man just smiled at him.
He knew that this humane action
Had turned to dust his arrogance.

As the princely man sat in the chariot,
And his caravan began to move,
He realized he had been rewarded
By his own service that afternoon.

A reward that couldn’t be measured
By diamonds, gold and gemstones.
It was a prize he’d always treasure
From his generous gesture alone.

I hope that like the wealthy man,
My friends, you too realize –
An act of kindness and compassion
Is itself the true reward in our lives.