CERPEN

THE COLOUR OF FRIENDSHIP

Once upon a time the colors of the world started to quarrel: all claimed that they were the best, the
most important, the most useful, the favorite.
GREEN said: “Clearly I am the most important. I am the sign of life and of hope. I was chosen for
grass, trees, leaves - without me, all animals would die. Look over the countryside and you will see
that I am in the majority.”

BLUE interrupted: “You only think about the earth, but consider the sky and the sea. It is the water
that is the basis of life and, drawn up by the clouds, forms the deep sea. The sky gives space and
peace and serenity. Without my peace, you would all be nothing.”

YELLOW chuckled: “You are all so serious. I bring laughter, gaiety, and warmth into the world. The
sun is yellow, the moon is yellow, the stars are yellow. Every time you look at a sunflower, the whole
world starts to smile. Without me there would be no fun.”

ORANGE started next to blow her trumpet: “I am the color of health and strength. I may be scarce,
but I am precious for I serve the needs of human life. I carry the most important vitamins. Think of
carrots, pumpkins, oranges, mangoes, and pawpaws. I don’t hang around all the time, but when I fill
the sky at sunrise or sunset, my beauty is so striking that no one gives another thought to any of
you.”

RED could stand it no longer. He shouted out: “I am the ruler of all of you - I am blood - life’s blood! I
am the color of danger and of bravery. I am willing to fight for a cause. I bring fire into the blood.
Without me, the earth would be empty as the moon. I am the color of passion and of love, the red
rose, the poinsettia and the poppy.”

PURPLE rose up to his full height. He was very tall and spoke with great pomp: “I am the color of
royalty and power. Kings, chiefs, and bishops have always chosen me for I am the sign of authority
and wisdom. People do not question me - they listen and obey.”

Finally, INDIGO spoke, much more quietly than all the others, but with just as much determination:
“Think of me. I am the color of silence. You hardly notice me, but without me you all become
superficial. I represent thought and reflection, twilight and deep water. You need me for balance and
contrast, for prayer and inner peace.”

And so the colors went on boasting, each convinced of his or her own superiority. Their quarreling
became louder and louder. Suddenly there was a startling flash of bright lightening - thunder rolled
and boomed. Rain started to pour down relentlessly. The colors crouched down in fear, drawing
close to one another for comfort.

In the midst of the clamor, rain began to speak: ” You foolish colors, fighting amongst yourselves,
each trying to dominate the rest. Don’t you know that you were each made for a special purpose,
unique and different? Join hands with one another and come to me.”
 Doing as they were told, the colors united and joined hands. The rain continued: “From now on,
when it rains, each of you will stretch across the sky in a great bow of color as a reminder that you
can all live in peace. The RAINBOW is a sign of hope for tomorrow.”

And so, whenever a good rain washes the world, and a rainbow appears in the sky, let us remember
to appreciate one another.

Friendship Forever

Two inseparable friends, Sam and Jason, met with an accident on their way to Boston City.
The following morning, Jason woke up blind and Sam was still unconscious. Dr. Berkeley
was standing at his bedside looking at his health chart and medications with a thoughtful
expression on his face. When he saw Sam awake, he beamed at him and asked." How are you
feeling today Sam?" Sam tried to put up a brave face and smiled back saying, "absolutely
wonderful Doctor. I am very grateful for all that you have done for me. "Dr Berkeley was
moved at Sam's deed. All that he could say was, "You are a very brave man Sam and God
will make it up to you in one way or another". While he was moving on to the next patient,
Sam called back at him almost pleading, "promise me you won't tell Jason anything".
"You know I won't do that. Trust me." and walked away.
"Thank you " whispered Sam. He smiled and looked up in prayer " I hope I live up to your
ideas...please give me the strength to be able to go through this..Amen"

Months later when Jason had recuperated considerably, he stopped hanging around with Sam.
He felt discouraged and embarrassed to spend time with a disabled person like Sam.

Sam was lonely and disheartened ,since he didn't have any body else other than Jason to
count on. Things went from bad to worse. And one day Sam died in despair. When Jason was
called on his burial, he found a letter waiting for him. Dr Berkeley gave it to him with an
expressionless face and said" This is for you Jason. Sam had asked me to give it to you when
he was gone". 

In the letter he had said: " Dear Jason, I have kept my promise in the end to lend you my eyes
if anything had happened to them. Now there is nothing more that I can ask from God, than
the fact ,that will see the world through my eyes. You will always be my best
friend........Sam".

When he had finished reading Dr. Berkeley said " I had promised Sam to keep his sacrifice
he made a secret from you. But now I wish I didn't stick it Because I don't think It was
worthy it" . 
All that was left for Jason while he stood there was tears of regret and memories of Sam for
the rest of his life . 
 Friends

One day, when I was a freshman in high school, I saw a kid from my class was walking home from
school. His name was Kyle. It looked like he was carrying all of his books. I thought to myself, "Why
would anyone bring home all his books on a Friday? He must really be a nerd." I had quite a
weekend planned (parties and a football game with my friend tomorrow afternoon), so I shrugged
my shoulders and went on.

As I was walking, I saw a bunch of kids running toward him. They ran at him, knocking all his books
out of his arms and tripping him so he landed in the dirt. His glasses went flying, and I saw them land
in the grass about ten feet from him. He looked up and I saw this terrible sadness in his eyes. My
heart went out to him. So, I jogged over to him and as he crawled around looking for his glasses, and
I saw a tear in his eye.

As I handed him his glasses, I said, "Those guys are jerks. They really should get lives." He looked at
me and said, "Hey thanks!" There was a big smile on his face. It was one of those smiles that showed
real gratitude. I helped him pick up his books, and asked him where he lived. As it turned out, he
lived near me, so I asked him why I had never seen him before. He said he had gone to private
school before now. I would have never hung out with a private school kid before. We talked all the
way home, and I carried his books. He turned out to be a pretty cool kid. I asked him if he wanted to
play football on Saturday with me and my friends. He said yes. We hung all weekend and the more I
got to know Kyle, the more I liked him. And my friends thought the same of him.

Monday morning came, and there was Kyle with the huge stack of books again. I stopped him and
said, "Damn boy, you are gonna really build some serious muscles with this pile of books everyday!"
He just laughed and handed me half the books. Over the next four years, Kyle and I became best
friends. When we were seniors, we began to think about college. Kyle decided on Georgetown, and I
was going to Duke. I knew that we would always be friends, that the miles would never be a
problem. He was going to be a doctor, and I was going for business on a football scholarship. Kyle
was valedictorian of our class. I teased him all the time about being a nerd. He had to prepare a
speech for graduation. I was so glad it wasn't me having to get up there and speak.

Graduation day, I saw Kyle. He looked great. He was one of those guys that really found himself
during high school. He filled out and actually looked good in glasses. He had more dates than me and
all the girls loved him! Boy, sometimes I was jealous. Today was one of those days. I could see that
he was nervous about his speech. So, I smacked him on the back and said, "Hey, big guy, you'll be
great!" He looked at me with one of those looks (the really grateful one) and smiled. "Thanks," he
said. As he started his speech, he cleared his throat, and began.

"Graduation is a time to thank those who helped you make it through those tough years. Your
parents, your teachers, your siblings, maybe a coach... but mostly your friends. I am here to tell all of
you that being a friend to someone is the best gift you can give them. I am going to tell you a story."
I just looked at my friend with disbelief as he told the story of the first day we met. He had planned
to kill himself over the weekend. He talked of how he had cleaned out his locker so his Mom
wouldn't have to do it later and was carrying his stuff home. He looked hard at me and gave me a
little smile. "Thankfully, I was saved. My friend saved me from doing the unspeakable."

I heard the gasp go through the crowd as this handsome, popular boy told us all about his weakest
moment. I saw his Mom and dad looking at me and smiling that same grateful smile. Not until that
moment did I realize it's depth. Never underestimate the power of your actions.

With one small gesture you can change a person's life.

"Friends are angels who lift us to our feet when our wings have trouble remembering how to fly."