Continue from Best Friend (2)...
Mouth wide open, he walked slowly towards his best friend and sat beside him in silent. His face felt hot all of a sudden. Mixtures of indescribable feelings overwhelmed him, made him struggled for words, any words, to come out.
"Why-" At last, after several agonizing minutes, the words came to him. "Why did you write those words, buddy?" His voice cracked a little bit, but that was all he could do to withhold rushes of emotions inside him now.
First the writing on the sand; 'Today my best friend slapped me in the face'; Now, etched on the stone; 'Today my best friend saved my life'.
Why?!
For a long time, his best friend didn't answer him. He just tilted his face and studied the canopies of trees above him, as if the answer was there. His face had nothing on it but peace. From afar, he looked so content and fully at ease, as if he just discovered a secret of happiness and secretly enjoy the knowledge...
Then, he answered.
Looking straight into his friend's waiting eyes, he smiled as these words flowed out of his lips.
"When i first wrote the writing on the sand, i was really hurt buddy. It wasn't as much about the pain you inflicted when you slapped me. Instead, it was more to do with the manner things happened at the moment. Aren't we best friend? I keep asking myself. Didn't that count for something when things got out of control?
"Yeah, things do get messy sometimes, but that was the time when we can rely on our so called friendship to help overcome the situations. Which in our case, didn't happened.
"One great test from God, and our friendship almost crumbled into pieces. And that was what really saddened me at the time..."
He paused. Once again he tilted his head up, this time with his eyes closed. The now sad smile on his face somehow made him looked like an old man with a lot of things going on in his mind.
Watching his best friend through now-blurry eyes, he felt his egos falling one by one. He can never be as good friend as his best friend there to him. Even just now, when he had the chances to blast him for his bad antic yesterday, he didn't do it. Instead he talked about it with smile, as if he just talked about the good weather or the good food they just ate at one fine restaurant in town.
"But i still didn't answer your question just now, did i buddy?" His best friend was back. Again with the smile. Again with the piercing eyes on his face.
He nodded.
"I have to admit buddy, i did that, partly to hurt you. I won't punch you back. Never in million years. You know that, don't you?" He didn't wait for answer as he continued, "So, i did the only thing i knew will affect you. I wrote the writings on the sand..."
His best friend paused, then he continued
"This morning, you saved my life. Even though you are not really a good swimmer, you still dove into the raging river and tried to save me. At first i was angry with you. What if something happened to you? But soon, i have nothing but gratitude in my heart. I was grateful to God for giving me chances to still be alive and even more grateful to Him because He sent you to save me!"
Once again his best friend paused. From the corner of his eyes, he can see his best friend tried his best to fight off his tears. So he looked away. He understand what his best friend went through at the moment. He waited, and after a while, his best friend continued,
"I cannot say how thankful I am for what you did for me. You saved my life! That was the highest sacrifice a friend can do. And you did it buddy. For me!"
The voice cracked. But his best friend didn't finish yet,
"After you asked me to get some rest, i did a lot of thinking. About what had happened yesterday and then today. Only after that did i decide to engrave the stone with another writing. This writing!" he pointed towards the writings on the stone (Today, my best friend saved my life)
"Why-" At last, after several agonizing minutes, the words came to him. "Why did you write those words, buddy?" His voice cracked a little bit, but that was all he could do to withhold rushes of emotions inside him now.
First the writing on the sand; 'Today my best friend slapped me in the face'; Now, etched on the stone; 'Today my best friend saved my life'.
Why?!
For a long time, his best friend didn't answer him. He just tilted his face and studied the canopies of trees above him, as if the answer was there. His face had nothing on it but peace. From afar, he looked so content and fully at ease, as if he just discovered a secret of happiness and secretly enjoy the knowledge...
Then, he answered.
Looking straight into his friend's waiting eyes, he smiled as these words flowed out of his lips.
"When i first wrote the writing on the sand, i was really hurt buddy. It wasn't as much about the pain you inflicted when you slapped me. Instead, it was more to do with the manner things happened at the moment. Aren't we best friend? I keep asking myself. Didn't that count for something when things got out of control?
"Yeah, things do get messy sometimes, but that was the time when we can rely on our so called friendship to help overcome the situations. Which in our case, didn't happened.
"One great test from God, and our friendship almost crumbled into pieces. And that was what really saddened me at the time..."
He paused. Once again he tilted his head up, this time with his eyes closed. The now sad smile on his face somehow made him looked like an old man with a lot of things going on in his mind.
Watching his best friend through now-blurry eyes, he felt his egos falling one by one. He can never be as good friend as his best friend there to him. Even just now, when he had the chances to blast him for his bad antic yesterday, he didn't do it. Instead he talked about it with smile, as if he just talked about the good weather or the good food they just ate at one fine restaurant in town.
"But i still didn't answer your question just now, did i buddy?" His best friend was back. Again with the smile. Again with the piercing eyes on his face.
He nodded.
"I have to admit buddy, i did that, partly to hurt you. I won't punch you back. Never in million years. You know that, don't you?" He didn't wait for answer as he continued, "So, i did the only thing i knew will affect you. I wrote the writings on the sand..."
His best friend paused, then he continued
"This morning, you saved my life. Even though you are not really a good swimmer, you still dove into the raging river and tried to save me. At first i was angry with you. What if something happened to you? But soon, i have nothing but gratitude in my heart. I was grateful to God for giving me chances to still be alive and even more grateful to Him because He sent you to save me!"
Once again his best friend paused. From the corner of his eyes, he can see his best friend tried his best to fight off his tears. So he looked away. He understand what his best friend went through at the moment. He waited, and after a while, his best friend continued,
"I cannot say how thankful I am for what you did for me. You saved my life! That was the highest sacrifice a friend can do. And you did it buddy. For me!"
The voice cracked. But his best friend didn't finish yet,
"After you asked me to get some rest, i did a lot of thinking. About what had happened yesterday and then today. Only after that did i decide to engrave the stone with another writing. This writing!" he pointed towards the writings on the stone (Today, my best friend saved my life)
"I am very thankful to God the irony of what i've done didn't escape me. In fact it gave me reason to believe that what happened today and yesterday held a very powerful 'hikmah' behind it. It served both as reminder and lesson to me about life in general and our friendship in particular."
He nodded slowly. He didn't really understand what his best friend just said. But at this point, he decided he will agree on everything that came out from his best friend's mouth.
If only he knew it was all too transparent on his face, that despite his best friend's soberness at the time, he smiled a little bit while he explained what he meant just then.
"When i wrote the writing on the sand, never once the significance of it crossed my mind. However, God opened my eyes, and i see it clearly now, as i see the flower in the morning and the brilliance of the moonlight during the darkest of night...
"Can't you see, buddy. My hurtful words on the sand, brought up by my anger will soon be erased by the wind of forgiveness. But my engraving on the stone, which came from gratitude for what you have done for me, will always be there. Nothing can ever erase it! The etching on the stone will stay, as will the memory of your sacrifice, in my heart..."
-The End-
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