This Gap Can Be Closed

It was the first day of school after summer vacation. Sunil Sir arrived in the class amidst lots of commotion .

“Good morning everyone! We have a new project.” All the students expressed their boredom.

“Don’t worry. This is a fun project. You just have to write a little bit about yourself.” Saying this, Sir handed out the paper to everyone.

Arun glanced at all the questions. “What was your favorite part of summer vacation? Which books did you read?” …

He thought, “Wow, this is an easy project. This will not take a lot of time.” As he kept reading, he reached the last question, “What did you and your parents do together that was fun?”

Arun was shocked. He was not able to recall any time that he had spent with his parents. He felt that he did not like anything that his parents liked.

On their way home from school, Pratik said, “Hey, this project is very easy, isn’t it? The most difficult part is to write about just one occasion that was the most fun among all such occasions with our parents.”

Arun asked, “Do you have a lot of such occasions?”

“Yes, definitely. I have to leave now as we are having dinner and fam

ily game night.” Pratik replied as he left.

Arun thought that he should do something to improve his relationship with his parents. He wanted to do something with his parents that day. He made a list of games that he wanted to play such as cricket, football, baseball, etc.

He told his parents that night, “Mom-Dad, let’s do something new today. Let’s play a game. Will you play with me?” His parents happily agreed. They were eager to know about Arun’s plan.

“I have prepared for us to play cricket. Mom, you are the baller, Dad is the fielder, and I will do the batting. Will that work?” He asked.

“Yes, let’s start Arun. Together, mom and I will defeat you!” Dad said with excitement.

Then started the excitement of the cricket match. The environment was filled will laughter and happiness.

As Arun was ready to hit a sixer, his dad got an important phone call, so that fun-filled evening suddenly came to an end. His dad said, “Sorry, there is an emergency at my office, so I have to go there. I will definitely play tomorrow.”

Tonight was very memorable. In spite of that, Arun was in a bad mood when he went to bed. He was sad that his plan was not successful.

“Let’s play basketball today,” Arun mentioned as they were having dinner the next night. But he saw that his mom and dad were not that excited.

“Arun, your dad and I are very tired today, but we promise that as soon as we are fresh, we will play basketball. Can we play a board game tonight?”

Arun got mad upon hearing this and he told his mom angrily, “You never take interest in my work and never appreciate me. I don’t want to play anything with you!” Saying this he stomped away to his room angrily and slammed the door. He was not able to sleep as he was having negative thoughts about his parents in his mind. Fed up, he got up and walked towards the kitchen to drink water. As he was walking, he stopped as he heard his mom and dad talking.

“I felt really bad today, but it’s been a while since I have played basketball. I don’t have that kind of strength anymore.” His dad said.

“I also felt really bad, but while making dinner tonight, my knees were really hurting.” His mom said.

Hearing this, Arun was filled with remorse. He felt bad that he pressured his parents without thinking about their situation. He started repenting and at that same time, Pratik sent him a video about how to maintain a good relationship with your parents.

Questioner: I want to take care of my parents and strengthen my relationship with them, but I end up seeing their faults. What should I do?

Dadashri: Children who see faults in their parents will never be happy. They may have material wealth, but they will never be happy spiritually. You must never see faults in your parents. How can you forget what they have done for you? You do not forget someone’s kindness even when they offer you a cold drink on a hot day, so how can you forget your parents’ kindness? Did you understand? Hmm… So, you should be grateful for their kindness. Care for them in the best possible way. You should take care of them very much. If they say something disagreeable to you, what should you do? Just overlook it. They are your elders. Do you think they deserve disrespect?

Questioner: No, but what if it happens by mistake?

Dadashri: Why do you not fall by mistake? You manage to be careful in that situation. Besides, if you slip accidentally, your father will understand, but if you make a mistake on purpose, then he will question you. Is that right or wrong? So, as far as possible try your best not to make a mistake. If it happens outside your control, they will understand and will know that you are not capable of doing it. Keep them happy.

Do they not try to keep you happy? Don’t they desire for your happiness?

Questioner: Yes, but Dada, I feel that they have got into a habit of nagging.

Dadashri: Yes, then it is your own fault. You must do pratikraman for hurting them. They should not be hurt. You should tell yourself that, you are here to keep them happy. Ask yourself what you did that made them unhappy.

Whatever comes your way is precise and it is as per our destiny. Whatever mother we got is good. Even if she is dark-skinned, still our mother is good. The reason is whichever mother we get in our destiny is good. Destiny has given her to you. Can you ever replace your mother?