The unlit candle

The unlit candle

July 2015

A man had a little daughter, an only and much beloved child. He lived only for her; she was his life. So when she became ill and her illness resisted the efforts of the best obtainable physicians, he became like a man possessed, moving heaven and earth to restore her to health.

However, his best efforts proved fruitless and the child died. The father was totally irreconcilable. He became a bitter recluse, shutting himself away from his friends, refusing every activity that might restore his poise and bring him back to normal. One night he dreamt that he was in heaven, witnessing a grand pageant of little child angels. They were marching in an apparently endless line past the ‘Great White Throne’. Every white-robed, angelic tot carried a candle. He noticed, however, that one child’s candle was not lit. Then he saw that the child with the unlit candle was his own little girl. Rushing towards her, while the pageant faltered, he seized her in his arms, caressed her tenderly, and asked, “Why is your candle unlit?”

“Father, they often relight it, but your tears always put it out again,” her daughter said. With this, the man awoke from his dream. The lesson was crystal clear, and its effects were immediate. From that hour on he was no longer a recluse, but mingled cheerfully with his friends. No longer would his little darling’s candle be extinguished by his useless tears.