There was a small bird living in a desert. With no sign of greenery the bird used to hop around on the hot sand through the day.

He went and asked “O little bird! What are you doing in this hot desert? Can I do something for you?”

The little bird said, “I am very pleased with my life, but this heat is unbearable. Both my feet are getting burnt. Only if there was a tree here, I’d be delighted”.

The Angel said, “Growing a tree in the middle of a desert is beyond my scope. I am to going meet God, let me speak to him and ask if he could fulfill your desire”.

The Angel asked God, if he could help the bird. God said, “I could grow a tree, but her destiny doesn’t allow it. And I can’t change that. However, you can give her my message, which will help her survive the heat. Ask her to hop with one foot at a time. That way she can rest the other one for a while and change foot often. This way only one of her foot will have to bear the heat and other one will be able to rest and recover. Also tell her to remember all the good things that have happened in her life and be thankful to God for that.

The Angel came back to where the bird was and gave her this message from God.

The bird was delighted by the idea and thanked him for the effort he made to make her comfortable.After a few days, the Angel was crossing the same desert and thought of checking on the little bird.

He saw the bird sitting on a big green tree, right in the middle of the desert.

The Angel was happy to see the bird in comfort but was very disappointed with God who suggested that there was no tree in the bird’s destiny.

He went to meet God and told him the whole story.

And God replied, “I never lied to you. There was no tree in the bird’s destiny. However, after you gave her my message, which asked her to be grateful to God for the kind things, she did put those words to action. She remembered every possible thing from her life and thanked God with a pure heart. I was moved with her feeling of gratitude and that’s what made me change her destiny. The Angel was pleased with the answer.

A small bit of gratitude for all that we have in our lives can bring so much more into it.