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    From Darkness to Light: The Power of Good
    From Darkness to Light: The Power of Good
    From Darkness to Light: The Power of Good
    Ebook108 pages1 hour

    From Darkness to Light: The Power of Good

    By Barry J Stone

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    About this ebook

    Planet Earth is full of good, yet also evil. Light, yet also darkness. Bad things happen, but sometimes we get a glimpse of situations where those events bring about good and positive things.

    These three stories tend to illustrate how such things might happen. In a world which is apparently descending into darkness there are people and places and situations where The Light shines through, clearly and brightly bringing faith and hope and much love.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherAuthorHouse UK
    Release dateJul 17, 2015
    ISBN9781504937573
    From Darkness to Light: The Power of Good
    Author

    Barry J Stone

    Barry J Stone has had a long career in education and has written numerous educational articles. He has degrees from London University, Southampton University and Pretoria University. Retirement has allowed him to write stories which include his interests in spiritual matters. He tends to write with reality in mind, so the accounts in these three short stories are based on fact. Barry has a large extended family, has lived and worked in Southern Africa as well as in England, and he is currently 'retired' in Surrey. He is a member of an Anglican congregation in Thorpe which assembles in a village church which is more than 1000 years old.

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      Book preview

      From Darkness to Light - Barry J Stone

      © 2015 Barry J Stone. All rights reserved.

      No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

      Published by AuthorHouse 07/17/2015

      ISBN: 978-1-5049-3751-1 (sc)

      ISBN: 978-1-5049-3749-8 (hc)

      ISBN: 978-1-5049-3757-3 (e)

      Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models,

      and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

      Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

      Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

      CONTENTS

      The Food Thief

      The Forest

      The Lost Boy

      THE FOOD THIEF

      This story is based on a true initial event, but the details as to the year or place in America are not clear. It was told to us by a former principal of a school at which I taught. The other parts of the story are a compendium of events of others, and based on reality.

      The setting is an American school a few decades ago.

      It was probably a typical school of its time. Single gender. Uniforms. Only a few hundred students. Punishment by caning. And there was not a great deal of money around. Besides, when there was money in the family education took place at public (i.e. private) schools or possibly academies associated with the military.

      But I digress.

      A new boy was in school. He was sullen and quiet. He was only about 14, but, despite being small and thin he seemed to have an aura of old grey worn-out-ness about him. He had little to do with the other boys, even when they tried to be friendly. They knew his name was Peter, but that was all they really knew. John in particular tried to make friends.

      Peter’s school uniform seemed to be second hand. Furthermore it seemed as if he only had one school shirt and pair of shorts because, although they were always laundered, they had the exact same defects.

      Fairly soon after Peter’s arrival food began to be missing from the satchels of various boys. It seemed to happen during the morning break. Never the same boy victim two or three days running. It was an apparently and carefully random theft. Not enough information about which to make too much fuss.

      But the headmaster was concerned. Theft was anathema, but theft within his own school was unacceptable.

      Naturally suspicion fell upon the subdued new boy. So the headmaster began some discrete surveillance. Within weeks he caught the new boy Peter stealing sandwiches from the bag of a boy in his class, John. The John who had tried to be friendly.

      John’s bag was under his desk in his classroom.

      In order to reinforce the evil of theft Peter was hauled in the front of the school at the end of the routine assembly. A chair was brought onto the stage platform. The deputy headmaster handed a sturdy cane to the headmaster. After a short sermon on the wrongs of stealing Peter was told to bend over the chair. The whole school knew that Peter would be given six hard lashes with the cane.

      At that point Peter was beginning to shake with fear of the cane and fear of humiliation. Those close to him noticed tears forming in his eyes.

      At that point John, the victim, was walking forward towards the platform.

      Wait ! he cried out. I will take that boy’s punishment.

      The hall went silent, and not a few mouths were open. The staff looked at each other. They knew John well, and knew he was a good lad.

      Why do you want to take the punishment for someone who has stolen from you? exclaimed the headmaster.

      John replied in a low voice, so that the others in the hall could not hear,

      "Look at the poor fellow. He wears the same uniform every day. He hardly ever speaks to anyone. He has no friends. He does not bully anyone. He is probably does not want to steal. After all he shares his stealing around.

      He is probably poor and hungry. That is why he steals food. Look how skinny he is.

      Nothing else is taken except food. It is a little like that character in the book ‘Les Miserables’ that we are studying in English. I know it is wrong to steal, but he seems to be desperate. How would you feel when you have had little or nothing to eat all day and the other boys are scoffing down food? So I will take his punishment. It will hurt me less than it hurts him. He is skinny so beating his buttocks will hurt his bones. Besides, he is humiliated enough. He needs kindness and compassion and forgiveness, not a thrashing in front of the whole school. He is already depressed enough.

      This put the headmaster in a very difficult confusion of thoughts. He did not want to cane John. Yet he knew that a crime had been committed. And although it was highly irregular the headmaster agreed to cane John instead of Peter. John bent over the chair and was given ‘six-of the best’. He was unflinching and somewhat serene. The beating hurt, but he did not mind. He was thinking of poor Peter.

      The entire hall went silent. The looks on the faces of some of the boys was indescribable.

      After the thrashing John returned to his seat walking slowly so the pain would abate. All eyes followed him. But Peter had his face in his hands and was clearly sobbing heavily.

      Assembly was over. Everyone left solemnly for their classes.

      At the end of school Peter was waiting outside for John.

      John said, Hello. How are you?

      At that point tears came into Peter’s eyes, and hesitantly he stepped up to John and gave him a brief hug. Thank you for what you did for me today, he managed to stutter out.

      That’s OK. Are you sure you are alright?

      Yes. Thanks. I must go home now. And he was off.

      The next day Peter came up to John to say thank you again and to ask why he did it.

      John told Peter that although theft is wrong, Peter did not deserve to be punished for being hungry and taking food. And then John gave Peter a lunch box with some nice sandwiches and a banana.

      Bring that lunch box back tomorrow and you will get another full lunch box.

      Peter stood and stared at his food. He virtually choked out a thank you, and wiped away the tears that had welled up in his eyes. The bell rang and all the pupils went into their first class.

      At break time John and Peter sat on a bench together and munched their food from Peter’s lunch box number 2. They said little of importance. But Peter did thank John for his kindness.

      This routine went on for a week or so, alternating lunch box 1 and 2. There was always good healthy food and a piece of fresh fruit. John noticed that Peter did not always finish his meal but always left some. He wondered

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