Friday, January 28, 2011

The Unbelievable Request


Have you ever experienced one of those weeks where you feel as if you've walked out of your front door straight onto a spinning carnival ride? I say carnival with purpose because you know that ride isn't maintained very well and anything could happen. Can you say...out of control?

Imagine receiving a phone call from a person that you have not spoken to in fourteen years. You know nothing of what he/she has done over the past fourteen years or if they are even the least bit trustworthy. Then also imagine that person asking for one of your most loved and valuable possessions. And imagine one more thing. Imagine that this person expects you to hand it over...willingly, without any qualms.

If you were able to imagine such a scenario, then you have imagined this story:
The Unbelievable Request

A young girl falls in love with a young man. The two are married and are given a very small gift. This gift is a house. The house is extremely small, only one room and needs a lot of attention and care. The couple gladly take the gift, even knowing all the while that eventually the gift will have to be returned one day to the original owner. A year goes by and the couple work hard to make the little house into something beautiful. The house is a lot of work and sometimes required a lot of time and attention. The young woman never quit. She labored day and night on that house, but she noticed that her husband began to lose interest. He no longer wanted to spend anytime in the house. He would make excuses to not help with the work on the house and then one day, a couple of years later he never returned to the house. She was all alone in the house that still needed so much time and attention. One would think that maybe she should of given the house back, walked away from the challenge, but the fact was...she loved the house.

Over the years she continued to nurture the house and create a unique dwelling unlike any has ever seen. Fourteen years, she cried, loved, hurt and worked until she had turned that little one room fixer upper into a handsome, strong, reliable, incredible home. Everyone talked about how wonderful her house was, and she was extremely proud. She also knew that very soon she would have to give the house up, because it had become to big for her to keep. The house needed to have new experiences and even transform into something more unique and incredible.

Then, right before she was able to set the house free...she received a call from the man that left her with the house fourteen years ago. Although he never cared for the house and walked away from it for his own selfish desires instead of making the necessary sacrifices...he still felt entitled to the house. He asked the most unbelievable request...
"I want the house. I know that even though I was never there to do any of the work, or even check over the years to see if the house was okay or if you needed any help with the house, I still feel like I should be able to have access to the house. Remember...it was given to me as well."

So, she looked at her home, with tears in her eyes and replied, "You are the home you are supposed to be because of me. I painted your walls, repaired your roof and fixed the broken windows, knowing all the while that this day may come. The choice is yours."

The house responded, "I have to know. Was it me? Was I not good enough for him? This, I have to know."

The woman replied, "Yes, you will have to find that out for yourself, but I already know the answer. He was never good enough for you."

4 comments:

Durango said...

I have read the story of your house twice. The first time I read it I was not sure I understood what I was reading. The second time I read it I was fairly certain I understood what I was reading.

With that in mind, I think I can say, without fear of being wrong about what I say, that the builder of the house did a really good job building that house, that the person who walked away from building that house has nothing to do with how great the house turned out to be.

And it is really sort of shameless that the non-builder would suddenly want to enjoy the fruits of labors for which he did no laboring.

But. What do I know? I've not built a house for 25 years.

Cheap Tricks and Costly Truths said...

I am fairly certain that you, Mr. Durango, have surmised correctly

Ward in the Woods said...

He walked away.......

Cheap Tricks and Costly Truths said...

Yes, and unfortunately he continues to do so...but "we" already foresaw that