The young mother began her journey on the path of life. “Is the way long?”, she asked.
“Yes,” answered her Guide, “and the way is hard. You will be old before you reach the end of it. But—” He stopped to smile warmly. “The end will be better than the beginning.
The young mother was so happy, though, that she could not believe anything could be better than these early years. She played with her children, and gathered flowers for them along the way, and swam with them in the clear streams. The sun shone on them and life was good, and the young mother cried, “Nothing will ever be lovelier than this.
Then the darkness of night came, and the storm’s fury with its howling winds, thunder and lightning, and the path was dark and forbidding. The children shook with fear and cold, and the mother drew them close to her, covering them with her mantle. Her children said, “Oh, Mother, we are not afraid when you are near.” The mother said, “This is better than the brightness of day, for I have taught my children courage.
Then the morning came, and there was a steep hill before them. The children climbed and grew tired. The mother was exhausted, but she kept encouraging her children, “Just a little farther and we will be there.” So the children kept on climbing. When they reached the top, they said, “We could not have done it without you, Mother.” And the mother, when she lay down that night, looked past the stars and said, “This is a better day than the last. My children have learned determination in the face of difficulty. Yesterday I taught them courage, today I have taught them about strength.
With the next day came strange clouds that darkened the earth—clouds of war, discrimination, hatred and fear. The children cast about in the confusion and stumbled every so often. The mother said, “Look up. Lift your eyes past the blackness to the Light.” The children looked up and saw an Everlasting Glory above the strange clouds. It guided them and brought them through the darkness and evil. Their mother always encouraged them to be “be strong and courageous; do not be frightened or dismayed,” (Joshua 1:9). That night the mother said, “This is the best day of all, for I have helped my children learn about the Holy One, blessed be He.”
The days went by, the weeks turned to months and the months passed to years. The mother grew old, until she was very little and bent. Her children had grown tall and strong, and they walked with courage. They remembered the teaching “do not despise your mother when she is old. (Proverbs 23:22)
When the way was hard, they helped their mother; when the way was rough, they lifted her, for she was as light as a feather. At last they came to a hill, and beyond the hill they could see a shining road and magnificent gate open on top of the hill.
The mother said, “l have reached the end of my journey. Now I know that the end really is better than the beginning, for my children can walk alone, and they will teach their children after them.
The children said, “You will always walk with us, Mother, even when you have gone through the gates.
They stood and watched her as she went on alone, and the gates slowly closed after her. They said, “We can’t see her, but she is with us still. A mother like ours is more than just a memory.
May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)
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Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)
Rachmiel Tobesman is a motivational speaker and Maggid (spiritual Storyteller). He is available for speaking engagements or storytelling, Click here to contact us