#057 THE RETIRING CARPENTER


An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. He told his employer/contractor of his plans to leave the house building business and live a more leisurely life with his wife enjoying his extended family. He would miss the paycheck, but he needed to retire. They could get by.
The contractor was sorry to see his good worker go and asked if he could build just one more house as a personal favor. The carpenter said yes, but he thought "I've worked a lot of time with this man and he still asks me for favours", so in time it was easy to see that his heart was not in his work. He resorted to shoddy workmanship and used inferior materials. It was an unfortunate way to end his career.


When the carpenter finished his work and the builder came to inspect the house, the contractor handed the front-door key to the carpenter. "This is your house," he said, "my gift to you"


What a shock! What a shame! If he had only known he was building his own house, he would have done it all so differently. Now he had to live in the home he had built none too well.

So it is with us. We build our lives in a distracted way, reacting rather than acting, willing to put up less than the best. At important points we do not give the job our best effort. Then with a shock we look at the situation we have created and find that we are now living in the house we have built. If we had realized, we would have done it differently.

 Remember we're not that different.
We go about business or workplaces, working as we see fit. Some with passion, some without caring.
Some with excellence, some with low standards.
Some with dilligence, some without effort.
We are all in the process of boulding our own lives.
If you are not happy with what you see, perhaps it's a direct consequence of what you've been building over the years.

Think of yourself as the carpenter. Think about your house. Each day you hammer a nail, place a board, or erect a wall. Build wisely. It is the only life you will ever build. Even if you live it for only one day more, that day deserves to be lived graciously and with dignity. The plaque on the wall says, "Life is a do-it-yourself project."

Who could say it more clearly? Your life today is the result of your attitudes and choices in the past. Your life tomorrow will be the result of your attitudes and the choices you make today.

 Build wisely!




Comments

  1. Unknown27 September 2018 at 23:48

    This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Unknown27 September 2018 at 23:50

    This is a good metaphor of how we should value and know how we are working in our lives.


    Whatever we do in life, we must do it with dedication and effort, because maybe that will bring us better rewards in the future, you can not complain that your life is mediocre if your decisions are also mediocre.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

#002 THE MAN, HIS WIFE, THE DONKEY AND THE CRITICS

Image
Our society!!! An old man, his wife and a donkey were going to town. His wife rode on the donkey and the old man walked. As they went along, they passed some people who remarked it was a shame the old man was walking and his wife was riding. The man and his wife thought maybe the critics were right, so they changed positions. Then, later, they passed some people who remarked, "What a shame, he makes his wife walk." So they then decided they'd both walk! Soon they passed some more people who thought they were fools to walk when they had a decent donkey to ride. So, they both rode the donkey.  Now they passed some people who shamed them by saying how awful to put such a load on a poor donkey. The woman and her husband figured they were probably right, so they decided to carry the donkey. As they crossed the bridge, they lost their grip on the animal and he fell into the river and drowned. The moral of the story? If you try to please everyone,
Read more

#004 WHAT IS IT LIKE TO LIVE HERE?

Image
One afternoon, Socrates was standing outside the gates of Athens when he noticed a traveller who had been staring at him for a long time. Socrates asked the man why he had come to Athens. “I am thinking of moving to Athens”, the man said. “What is it like to live here?” He added. Socrates looked at him. “First, would you tell me what it was like in your home city?” The man replied: “Oh, it was awful. Everyone stabs you in the back and wants to steal money from you” Frowning, Socrates told him: “Well, you will find the same thing here. I suggest you go somewhere else” Socrates was standing there a few hours more when another man approached him. This man too had just arrived in Athens and was considering moving to the city. He also asked Socrates, “Can you tell me what it is like to live here?” Socrates asked, “First, would you tell me what it was like to live there where you come from?” “Where I come from, all the people work together and help each other”
Read more

#043 THE WOODEN BOWL

Image
A frail old man went to live with his son, daughter-in-law, and four-year-old grandson. The old man’s hands trembled, his eyesight was blurred, and his step faltered. The family ate together at the table.  But the elderly grandfather’s shaky hands and failing sight made eating difficult. Peas rolled off his spoon onto the floor. When he grasped the glass, milk spilled on the tablecloth. The son and daughter-in-law became irritated with the mess. “We must do something about father,” said the son. “I’ve had enough of his spilled milk, noisy eating, and food on the floor.”  So the husband and wife set a small table in the corner. There, Grandfather ate alone while the rest of the family enjoyed dinner. Since Grandfather had broken a dish or two, his food was served in a wooden bowl!  When the family glanced in Grandfather’s direction, sometimes he had a tear in his eye as he sat alone. Still, the only words the couple had for him were sharp admonitions when he dropped a fork or spil
Read more