🪔 The Grandmother's Lamp

In a village, the nights were very dark. One evening, the village head announced, 'Tonight, let each family bring one lamp to the temple. Let us light up our village together!'

People started arguing. 'My lamp is too small, what difference will it make?' said one. 'My house is too far,' said another. 'Let the rich families do it,' said a third.

One old grandmother said nothing. She simply lit her one small lamp and slowly walked to the temple, protecting the little flame with her hand.

Children saw her and asked, 'Grandma, your one lamp cannot remove the whole village's darkness. Why do you go?'

She smiled, 'I cannot light the whole village. But I can light my one lamp. At least around me, there will be no darkness.'

Something changed that night. One neighbour saw her flame and lit his lamp. Then another. Then ten more. Others took light directly from her lamp — and her flame did not become smaller by sharing.

By midnight, the whole village glowed like the stars had come down. And it all began with one old woman who refused to curse the darkness.