A story is like water

Story Water by Rumi

A story is like water

that you heat for your bath.

It takes messages between the fire

and your skin. 

It lets them meet,

and it cleans you.

Very few can sit down

in the middle of the fire itself.....

We need intermediaries.

Source: www.dreamstime.com

Beauty surrounds us,

but usually we need to be 

walking in a garden to know it.

The body itself is a screen

to shield and partially reveal

the light that is blazing

inside your presence.

Stories, water, the body, 

All the things we do, are mediums

that hide and show what's hidden.

Study them,

and enjoy this being washed....

Translation by Coleman Barks, The Essential Rumi

Source: hdwallpaperbackgrounds.net

My thoughts:

As anyone who reads stories knows, one can experience a gamut of emotions while going through a story. Sometimes the writer manages to draw me into the story so deeply that I start identifying with the characters or the situations, and I laugh, I cry, I hope.

Some stories fire my imagination, while some inspire me to achieve more. Some stories reiterate the power of human emotions such as love and friendship; others lead me to explore distant lands or bygone eras.

But one thing remains constant - all the stories help me comprehend and appreciate the miracle of this human existence that I have been blessed with.

I think that is what this poem talks about. How we all have stories to tell, how each of our stories influences others' stories, how all our stories are different and yet somehow similar at their core.

So what is your story?