"Ibu, saya mahu ice-cream."

Hi semua!

Khamis lalu merupakan hari penilaian untuk CDS - The Powerful Art of Story-telling.

Berikut adalah cerita yang telah saya kongsi dan ingin saya kongsi sekali lagi :)

Ceritanya bertajuk "Ice-cream".

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Last week, I took my children to a restaurant. My six-year-old son asked if he could say grace. As we nodded our heads, he said, "God is good. God is great. Thank you for the food, and I would even thank you more if Mom gets us ice-cream for dessert. And Liberty and justice for all! Amen!"

Along with the laughter from the other patrons nearby, I heard a woman remark, "That's what's wrong with this country. Kids today don't even know how to pray. Asking God ice-cream! Why, I'd never!"

Hearing this, my son burst into tears and asked me, "Did I do it wrong? Is God mad at me?"

As I held him and assured him that he had done a terrific job and that God was certainly not mad at him, an elderly gentleman approached the table. He winked at my son and said, "I happen to know that God thought that was a great prayer."

"Really?" my son asked.

"Cross my heart," the man replied.

Then in a theatrical whisper, he added, "Too bad she never asks God for ice-cream. A little ice-cream is good for the soul sometimes."

Naturally, I bought my kids ice-cream at the end of the meal. My son stared at his for a moment. He then picked up his sundae and without a word, walked over and placed it in front of the woman.

With a big smile he told her, "Here, this is for you. Ice-cream is good for the soul sometimes; and my soul is good enough already."

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Selain sedikit inti keagamaan yang terkandung dalam cerita ini, ada banyak pengajaran yang lebih penting yang tersirat di dalamnya. Hari ini kita nak bercakap tentang "sarcasm".

Kadang-kadang kita menggunakan kata-kata sinis untuk menyampaikan pengajaran.
Kadang-kadang, kita ditegur dengan kata-kata yang sinis untuk diberikan pengajaran.
(Macam pernah dengar jer?)

There's always two sides to a story. Or more.

Sesuatu boleh disampaikan dengan niat yang berbeza-beza.
Terpulang pada kita untuk menilainya.
Kalau "sarcasm" itu berasas, kita harus menerimanya dengan hati yang terbuka. Jangan simpan dalam hati tanpa mengambil pelajaran yang ingin disampaikan. Jangan terlalu cepat tersinggung.

Life's all about learning.
A learnt man is one who accepts criticism with an open mind.

Hidup ini penuh dengan pengajaran. Seseorang yang terpelajar menerima kritik dengan fikiran yang terbuka.

Jom kita memulakan kehidupan dengan belajar untuk menjadi orang yang "terpelajar"! :)

Sekian. Niat hanya untuk berkongsi pendapat. :)