My Grandpa

There’s an amazing story that I’ve held onto for the past 4 years since I’ve studied in Spain that I have read and reread a million times. I come back to it whenever I’m going through a transition in my life with the departure of a friend or when I up and move to a different country.:) My teachers in Spain gave me the story and therefore the story has been in Spanish. However, on my recent journey back to the States for my grandpa’s funeral I decided to translate the story into English and share it with all of you. Through the many agonies (as a recent friend put it) my grandpa truly had a beautiful heart...
Once upon a time there was a young man that went around the world saying that he had the most beautiful heart in the world. He went from town to town betting with the people that his heart was the most beautiful of all, and he demonstrated it. In fact, his heart was precious, young, and strong. But one day the young man found himself with an old man that insisted that his heart was much more beautiful than the young mans’. The young man laughed, thinking to himself that the old man was crazy but to give him the pleasure of competing agreed to bet with the old man. The two men took out their hearts in order to compare them. The heart of the old man was full of patches, holes, and scars. The young man asked, “How can you possibly say that your heart is more beautiful than mine? Look at it. It’s ugly, full of scars and holes. Mine is strong, perfect, and young.” The old man responded: “Every hole that you see is a piece of my heart that I have given to somebody. And each patch and scar is a piece that somebody has given to me. My heart is full of the marks of everyone who has passed through my life and meant anything significant to me. I have shared my heart with them and them with me.” The young man realized in this moment that the old man was right. He conceded to the old man the right to say he had the most beautiful heart in the world and he asked him to exchange a piece of his heart, so young and perfect. In this manner the young man began to make his heart more beautiful.