A young man was struggling hard on a dirt road to keep up his pace on a
very
hot day. He looked like he had not taken a bath for a long time. From the
look of his dirty, tattered clothes and his bare feet, one could say that
he
was a homeless person. He pressed on with heavy breathing and occasionally
stopped to wipe the sweats off his forehead. Dried and thirsty as he was,
he did not take a detour to find a drink of water.
He then slowed down and came to a complete stop, putting his hand above his
eyes to see who was standing far ahead of him. It was an old man of rather
high social status. Even on such a hot day, the old man had put on his best
outfit and was very well-groomed. He patiently stood there waiting in the
middle of the dirt road. It could have been hours...
The young man gathered whatever strength he had left and ran toward the old
man with great emotions. He stopped right in the front of the old man,
gathered his composure and whatever dignity he had left. He was
speechless... His eyes met the old man's, begging for forgiveness. The old
man said nothing, although tears were rolling down on his face already. He
simply extended his welcome to the young man with opened arms. It had been
a long time since someone embraced the young man with genuine love, but
this
time, it was even more, because it was the embrace of a father to his son
who was once lost and now has found his way back.
