The little !

 The ants gathering nectar from  small flowers! This sight held my attention. 

Is there enough nectar in small flowers! The ants need only little. Is that the only reason!

It is this thought that led me to dwell on the largeness of the small!

The boy who gave his packet of five loaves and two fish to Jesus of Nazareth appeared to be   little for a gathering of five thousand for their meal. Jesus received and gave thanks for the food, broke the bread and distributed, which became enough for the five thousand with twelve basket full of bread left over!

This is the largeness of the little!

Th widow  of Zarephath, baked bread from the little dough and oil left with her, when the prophet Elijah came visiting. Since then the dough or the oil did not get exhausted till the famine came to an end. The little became enough for the widow and her son to live well, who when Elijah met her was gathering firewood for preparing her last meal with no more dough and oil left in her jars!

What is this little which has  a magical power! This is the creative power of God at work. It is a gathering of four cells following the fertilisation which forms a foetus, who is born as a human baby, few months later. 

Saint Teresa of Calcutta had only the goodwill of the Loretta convent, when she set out to take care of the patients of leprosy and the ailing aged living in the pavements of the city of Calcutta. Now the sisters of her, Missionaries of Charity order works in over 100 countries to  bring health and healing to hundreds who live reduced lives. They are in the forefront in the relief camps to bring comfort to those affected by  the Ukrainian crisis following the Russian invasion. 

Yesterday a family who came to visit from Tanil Nadu had no hope left for their son, whom they dedicated to become a temple priest, but now at the age of seven years has many features of developmental delay. What they needed was listening years to share their grief! That was the little that I could offer in that seventy minutes! While going back, the father who is the temple priest said, ' we have found peace because you gave us time to listen to us'!

Listening is a small gesture of goodwill. Often in complex situations that alone is left as a gesture of kindness !

Two post graduates from Anaesthesia waited for long to meet me to invite me for a seminar their department was organising. They said: 'We wanted to meet you and give you the invitation personally'. A little thing but an immensely cordial act!

The little things we can do can bring cheer to others and a sense of fullness to ourselves! What is life until it makes connections with others, who are our co-voyagers in this pilgrim journey of life!

M.C.Mathew (text and photo)