Trekking In The Mountains

Spring was in the air. The flowers in the valley and on the mountain were in full bloom. A man decided to go for a trek to the top of the mountain.

The young man filled up his haversack and strapped it on to his back. He started his trek uphill, whistling a merry tune to himself. The spring in his step matched the spring in the air. He walked up slowly but surely. Every now and then he stopped to admire the flowers and the trees. Everything around him looked so happy. He stopped to feed the squirrels and the birds. He took out his packed lunch and ate it; he threw some tidbits to the rabbits too. A stray dog ventured near him, whining. The man noticed that the dog was bleeding. It had hurt its leg. He took out his first aid kit and carefully reached out for the poor mongrel. He washed the wound and dressed it up.

The man continued his trek up the mountain. He met some village children on the way. He gave them some toffees and chatted with them. They skipped along with him and showed him the best path to take. They showed him the rarest species of mountain undergrowth that only the locals know of. The children plucked wild berries off the trees and offered them to the man. He was wary of eating them, lest they are poisonous, but seeing the children eat, he ate them too. He went on further uphill, till he reached the top. The lovely spruce trees looked rich and green. The pine cones looked like nuggets of gold hanging on the trees. The air was cool and pure. He basked in the sun for a while.

As the sun went down he realized that it was time to go back. He started his descent. Half way down, he slipped and fell. He yelped in pain as his ankle got twisted. He was all alone. Now what? He applied some balm to his ankle and tied it up, but he just couldn’t walk. He realized that he may have to spend the night there. Just then he saw the stray dog looking at him. He saw the bandage that he had earlier applied to him. The dog seemed to understand that the man needed help. He licked the foot of the man and then limped away. Some time later the dog was back, followed by a group of children. The children recognized him as the toffee-man.
Together, the children helped him to hobble back, all the way down the mountain.

His little acts of kindness and love had won him enough friends to help him when he was making his descent. So too it is in life. It is important to be nice to people on our way up for we may need them on our way down.