Today I'm going to tell a story of Lalli Chachi (Auntie), who was staying all alone. Her son hadn't come from abroad for a long time. She missed him a lot, but didn't leave her house. His son had requested time and again to live with him, but she said to her son, "If she left, someone would take over the property. Your father had worked very hard to build this house."
But there was one more reason. She had emotional attachment to that house, where she had lived with her loving and caring husband for more than four decades.
Once she and her husband went to live with their son, but after six months, they decided to return, as they didn't like the place and culture. They missed their surroundings, neighbours and the nearby temple and its deities and devotees.
Following the passing of her spouse, Lalli Chachi made a resolute choice not to migrate. She had a very faithful servant, Keshav, who looked after her throughout the day. So she felt no handicap in staying alone with her servant.
Her son and family had come back after her husband's demise, but thereafter they had almost forgotten her and her place.
One day she also expired. Her son came for a while and then left. He asked Keshav to look after the house with four rooms. He told Keshav to stay and take care of the house with the promise that he would send money to him every month from abroad.
Keshav, who used to be alone before, brought his wife and children from the village to stay in the same house to take care of the house. He got his children admitted to local schools and started working as a delivery boy. He now rides a motorcycle instead of a bicycle.
The ones who built that house are no longer in this world. This applies to all houses. Those occupying a house should also know that they are also caretakers, not the owners of the house. This reminds me of a saying that a fool builds a house, but a wise man lives in it. As brood parasites, cuckoos lay eggs in the nests of other birds who adopt the young cuckoos as their own and act as foster parents.
Let's embrace life with pure intentions, free from malice and the relentless pursuit of wealth. Let's find joy in the simple pleasures, forge meaningful connections, and savour the moments that truly matter. In doing so, we can discover a richer and more fulfilling existence that transcends the mere accumulation of material possessions.
--Kaushal Kishore
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