The Gift of Rain

by Tan Twan Eng

Memories—they are all the aged have. The young have hopes and dreams, while the old hold the remains of them in their hands and wonder what has happened to their lives.

There is the misconception that we have reached our destinations the moment we grow old, but it is not a well-accepted fact that we are still traveling toward those destinations, still beyond our reach even on the day we close our eyes for the final time.

“You were born with the gift of rain. Your life will be abundant with wealth and success. But life will test you greatly. Remember—the rain also brings the flood.”

To have memories, happy or sorrowful, is a blessing, for it shows we have lived our lives without reservation.

“The problem is,” he said, “some mistakes can be so great, so grievous, that we end up paying for them again and again, until eventually all our lives forget why we began paying in the first place. If you’re able to remember, then you must make the greatest effort to put things right, now, before you forget again.”

“When you are lost, in this world or on the continent of time itself, remember who you have been and you will know who you are. These people were all you, and you are them. I was you before you were born and you will be me after I am gone. That is the meaning of family.”

have journeyed the limits of this world, Seen magical things And met many people, And I find that across the Four Oceans All men are brothers.

When elephants in the jungle fight, the mouse deer suffers.

“That is what growing old consists of, mostly. One starts giving away items and belongings until only the memories are left. In the end, what else do we really require?”

Accept that there are things in this world we can never explain and life will be understandable. That is the irony of life. It is also the beauty of it.”