Once a newly married man was living with his new wife and mother. Soon the daughter-in-law and the mother-in-law started having difficulties living with each other. The daughter-in-law started to feel that the mother-in-law was very unreasonable and did every thing to make the daughter-in-law`s life miserable. As time passed the daughter-in-law`s misery kept on intensifying.
One day she contacted her friend to discuss what she should do, and the friend suggested poisoning her mother-in-law. The daughter-in-law went to an Ayurvedic expert and requested him to give her poison. The Ayurvedic expert asked her why she wanted to get the poison. She blurted out that she wanted to get rid of her mother-in-law.
The Ayurvedic expert was a wise man. He gave her some herbs, and told her that it was poison, and instructed her to mix it in the food that she was cooking for the mother-in-law, but she should put in less quantity, for a slow death of the mother-in-law will ensure that the daughter-in-law will not be suspected. The Ayurvedic expert also suggested that the daughter-in-law should ensure that she is very polite and caring so as to ensure that nobody would suspect her in case of mother-in-laws death.
Gradually, the daughter-in-law started to feel that the mother-in-law`s behaviour towards her was changing, and that she also was beginning to like her mother-in-law. In due course of time, the daughter-in-law started to feel that their relationship was now more of a daughter and mother.
She went to the Ayurvedic expert and told him to give her the antidote for poison, for now the mother-in-law had changed and that she wanted her to live.
The Ayurvedic expert told the daughter-in-law that there was no need for the antidote for poison, for he had given her a mild seasoning not poison. The seasoning made the food tastier, but what really contributed towards the improvement in the situation was the fact that the daughter-in-law was being loving and kind to the mother-in-law.
It takes one to end a fight and one to start it as well. To be happy with family and friends the happiest are those who overlook many small mistakes committed by others towards them, but are alert to any mistake that they may commit towards others.
Once I was travelling with a Senior Japanese colleague in a taxi in New York, and the taxi driver was visibly very rude, but my colleague remained silent and calm. On one occasion, I was about to blurt out and try to drill manners into the taxi driver, but my senior colleague held my hand gently and asked me to calm down, since he was my senior, I listened to him.
As we were getting down from the taxi, my senior colleague thanked the taxi driver politely. To our surprise, the taxi driver got off the taxi, came around and apologized to my senior colleague and me, and told us that he has had to work non stop for more than twenty four hours and he was very tired.
I asked my senior colleague as to how he kept his cool during the ride, and he answered that to have a safe taxi ride was far more important for him and me, than to have the luxury of a polite taxi driver as well, and to risk a safe ride for some bit of politeness could be dangerous.
I thanked my senior colleague, for he taught me a lesson, never to put the must to haves in life at stake for good to haves.