Power of Letting go -a powerful Motivational Story for you _ Learn English through Story

Along a slow and clear river, in a small village, there lived an old farmer named Thomas and his wife, Grace. Their cottage was simple. The roof was made of straw. There was a little garden at the back of the house. Chickens pecked in the yard. In the morning, Thomas and Grace used to go to the river with a wood bucket to take water. They had done this for years. Thomas was once strong and fast. However, now his hands shook a little, and his knees become sore when he climbed the hill. Grace had gray hair, as soft as a cloud lining. She moved slowly, but her eyes were cool and bright. On one of the hot days, Thomas discovered a gourd in the garden. It was large, soft on the surface, and was light in his hands. He cut it, wiped it, dried in the sun, and tied a cord around its neck. Look, Grace, he said proudly. A fine gourd bottle. Grace smiled. It is lovely, Thomas. Then Thomas took the gourd away to the river in the afternoon. Slowly, he laid it in the water. Happy and free, it bobbed up and down. Thomas laughed like a child. Grace, see how it dances. Grace clapped softly. Today the river is kind, she said. But when Thomas made to reach the gourd, a thought came to him. I wonder, he said, is it possible of holding it under the water? Grace looked at him. Why would you do that? No reason. Just to see if I can. Thomas forced the surface of the gourd beneath the water. The gourd dropped out of his hands and came up again. He made another attempt with both hands. The gourd fought him. It turned. Grace chuckled. It wants the open air, she said. That is just a gourd, Thomas grumbled. Thomas began to feel the pinch of pride in his breast. I will keep it down this time, he said. He took a deep breath, put the gourd into the water, and push it with all his strength. The gourd re-emerged, higher still than ever, and made all the water spurt on his shirt. Grace shook her head, smiling. Its nature is to float, Thomas. Thomas frowned. Its nature can learn, he said. He took a flat stone and knotted it to the cord of the gourd. Now it will stay, he said. He lowered it into the water. The gourd stood motionless a moment. Then the stone fell off. The cord came unknotted and the gourd uprose again and leaped, as if laughing at him. Thomas' face grew red. Why can't I just... He stopped. The sentence was a mystery to him. Why can't I just what? Control the river? Control the gourd? Control time? Control fears in my heart, which rise up at night? He did not say these thoughts, but he felt them. Grace watched him kindly. She moved forward and placed a hand on his shoulder. Thomas, she said softly, look at the water. You are struggling against something which is not your rival. Thomas gazed into the river. Let it go, Grace whispered. Then Thomas eased the grips of his fingers, and the gourd shot up free. Grace laughed, and Thomas laughed this time with her, and upon the bank they sat and had a view, as the gourd spin and rest, riding on the little playful waves. After a while, Grace spoke. You remember how you and I could not sleep when our son was away? She asked. Like you pressed that gourd, we foisted down our thoughts. They always came back. Thomas nodded, and he recalled the nights of long, silent pauses. He recalled how when he attempted to push away the fear, it increased and became obstinate, like this gourd in the river. When I started to have the fear go through me, I got a moment of peace, said she. Thomas stared at the water, and his feelings softened. They were going home without making an effort to win anything today. Thomas and Grace went back to the river in the morning. Thomas poured some water over his hands and wiped his face. The cold touch woke him fully. Since that time when a concern was arising, Thomas would imagine the gourd. He would say in a gentle voice, I see you. Your nature is to float. I do not need to hold you under. And the anxiety would go up and pass away along the stream of his imagination. The neighbors noticed this change. Thomas appeared lighter, they said. Grace looks younger. What medicine had you taken? People asked them. Thomas simply raised his finger to the water and the simple gourd. Some nodded and understood. Others laughed, and they did not know yet. That was fine. Knowledge has also its time and method of rising to the surface. The chickens kept pecking. The garden kept growing. Thomas and Grace grew older, but their hearts were soft and open, like the sky after rain. They were not attempting to grasp the sky. They did not press it down. They let it be. And this is what they taught everyone that would listen. It is easy to let go than to push things down. A clear mind does not struggle with the river. It sees the gourd rise and fall, and knows how to breathe with the water. When we do not press our worries behind, they stop pushing us around. They pass, and we are liberated.