Tomorrow never comes

There was once a rich man who was extremely miserly. People in his village used to hate him because he did not give anything to the poor and the needy. He was also very unkind to children. In every way, he showed his stinginess.

This man used to promise the villagers that he would give all his wealth to charity when he died. He told them, “Now I do not want to give you any money, but in my will I will give so much money to you.”

The village people did not believe him at all. They knew that he was miserly to the core, so they had no confidence in his will.

One day the rich man went out shopping. It began raining very heavily and he took shelter at the foot of a tree. He was joined there by a pig and a cow.

These two animals started conversing. God opened up the man’s third eye so that he was able to understand their language.

The pig said to the cow, “Why is it that human beings are so unkind to me? You only give them milk and they appreciate you so much. I am utterly sick of hearing about cow’s milk! As if there was only cow’s milk and nothing else in God’s entire creation!

“In my case, I give three things at least: ham, bacon and bristles. I give so many things, but all I ever hear is ‘cow’s milk, cow’s milk!’ They all appreciate you and admire your bounty. Do they ever mention my name? No! Even when they eat what I have to offer, they do not show me any gratitude.”

The cow listened to the pig’s long list of woes and then she offered him her wisdom-light: “In my case, while I am alive human beings get milk from me. It is extremely nourishing and they like it very much. But, in your case, it is not like that. Only after your death do they get the benefit. When you want to do something good in this world, you have to do it while you are alive, not after you have left the body.”

The cow’s philosophy touched the rich man’s heart. He went home and gave away all his riches to the poor. He no longer cared to wait for the evening of his life to arrive in order to become a good person. Then he was admired, adored and loved by everybody.