Pebbles in the Pond

She was sitting under a tree, throwing pebbles into the pond, still brooding over the events that took place earlier that day. Plonk! Plonk! Plonk! Went the pebbles into the pond, each time creating a ripple in the calm water, her thoughts echoing an entirely different chaos.

He should not have yelled at me like that! So what if he’s my elder brother. I’ve grown old too now, I am not a baby anymore…

Plonk! Plonk! Plonk…!

And how dare he call me an idiot? I am not an idiot! I am as intelligent as he is, may be more! And what happened was an accident…

Plonk! Plonk! Plonk! Plonk! Plonk! Plonk…! 

I know he’s always had this hatred for me. Momma’s blue eyed boy! Why is he always trying to put me down!!! We are just a few years apart anyway. Why does he have to act so superior?

Plonk! Plonk! Plonk! Plonk! Plonk! Plonk! Plonk! Plonk! Plonk! Plonk! Plonk! Plonk…!!!

I was insulted. I am ALWAYS insulted by him. This time, he’s going to pay for it! This time I will make him regret yelling at me! I will show him I am equal in all respects to him. This time…

SSPLASHHHH!!!!

She was wet; the big splash brought her back to reality. Droplets had formed on her face; her hair and dress were wet too. For a while she was confused. She had no idea who made the splash. With anger in her eyes she looked here and there to locate the source of the splash. She found no one. Slowly her eyes fell on her own palm. The one which was throwing pebbles in the pond. It now held a big stone. SHE had made the splash!

While brooding over her brother, she never realized when her hand began picking and chucking larger stones in the pond. With each passing thought her hand was grabbing a bigger pebble, till it turned into grabbing stones.

How often do we let, small grudges, misgivings and self pity to take a big ugly form by brooding over it, by unnecessarily dwelling on it?

Anger, ego, jealousy, self pity, pride, malice, vengeance, vanity all begin at pebbles, and we only realize their hazardousness once we are drenched by a big splash. Do you want to curb it at pebbles? Or are you waiting to get wet?