Put some pebbles in your pockets, people!

A Story of Pebbles in your pockets

Ok, so the title and topic of this post might not make sense right off the bat. It isn’t directly related to separation or divorce. But it is related to humanity. So please do keep reading.

I was reading a book to my son and two of his friends this weekend about a rock. That book made me think of another story I knew, this one about some pebbles, which I proceeded to tell them as well. Now I’m hoping those three boys are walking around with pebbles in their pockets. I don’t know who wrote it, so I can’t give the author credit, but thank you whoever you are.

Here is the story.

One late afternoon, Grandpa was sitting in his rocking chair when his grandson asked “Can I sit in your lap, Grandpa?”
“Of course” Grandpa replied, reaching over and lifting the boy onto his lap. The boy squirmed around, trying to get comfortable.

“Why is your lap so lumpy and bumpy Grandpa? Especially here?” asked the boy, pointing to Grandpa’s right side.
Grandpa smiled, reached into his right pocket and pulled out four pebbles. “Because of these” he said.

“Why do you have rocks in your pocket?” asked the boy.

“Because my father had rocks in his pockets, and his father before him, and his father before him, and so on. These rocks are magic rocks.”

The boy stared at the pebbles in Grandpa’s hand. They looked like plain ordinary pebbles. Not gems. Not shiny. Nothing special about them at all.

“How are they magic, Grandpa?” the boy wondered.

“These pebbles have the power to make people do good deeds,” Grandpa said.
“How do they do that?” the boy asked, his eyes wide.

“Every morning when I get dressed I put these four pebbles into my left pocket. Throughout the day, when I do a good deed or help someone, I move one pebble over to my right pocket. I try to get all of the rocks into my right pocket by the end of the day. The next day, I start again. If you want, I can get you a set of magic pebbles. They will work the same magic for you.”

“No they won’t, Grandpa” the boy sighed, disappointed. “I don’t have any money. I can’t do any good deeds. And I’m just a kid. How could I help anyone?”

“That is the thing” Grandpa said. “The pebbles don’t care about the size of the deed. Or the person. After all, these aren’t great big boulders. They are just tiny pebbles. But they do big magic.”

“You don’t need money.” Grandpa continued. “Smiling at someone who looks sad or helping your mother bring in the groceries is just as important as serving a meal to the homeless or making a donation to charity. Do what you can. And by the end of the day, the pebbles will all magically appear in your right pocket.”

Go pick some pebbles for your pockets, people.