Windows of Gold

There was a girl who lived on a hill on one side of a valley. Each late afternoon she noticed on the hill on the opposite side of the valley a house that had shining, golden windows. Her own home was small and somewhat shabby, and the girl dreamed of living in that beautiful house with windows of gold.

One day the girl was given permission to ride her bike across the valley. She eagerly rode until she reached the house with the golden windows that she had admired for so long. But when she dismounted from her bike, she saw that the house was abandoned and dilapidated, with tall weeds in the yard and windows that were plain and dirty. Sadly, the girl turned her face toward home. To her surprise, she saw a house with shining, golden windows on the hill across the valley and soon realized it was her very own home!

There are two important things I learn from this story.

1. We may envy what we see that others may have. But it is just as likely that those other people are also looking at us with envy. It is important to recognize that we have everything if we have a knowledge of the Gospel. The grass is not greener elsewhere. Learn to love and enjoy what you do have. If you cannot be content with what you have you will likely not be content no matter what you have.

2. No matter what our circumstances, we can try to reflect the light of the Savior. In this story, the beautiful golden shine came from the sun, not from the house. If we strive to have the Spirit with us, we can reflect the Savior's light and love. They will look at us and see Him, despite our shortcomings and weaknesses.

Source: Jean B. Bingham