#modern fable

There was once a large stone by the sea. For many years, people had walked past it, ignoring it as it was pounded by waves at mid and low tide and sunk at high tide, fish and other creatures eating the algae that grew upon its underside, taking tiny grains of it with them. One day, the stone could take no more, and noticed a man dressed in a sailor's garb, surely on his way to the docks.

"Help me sir, please move me away from the shore, for the waves batter me, weathering me away and at high tide the fish eat the algae that grows on me."

The man simply chuckled and said, "But you are a mighty stone, surely the waves and fish are but a small annoyance to you."

The stone pleaded with the man, "Please sir, I have been here for many years-"

"Then surely, you shall stand mighty and strong for many more years, after all, what's the sea to a mighty mountain?" The man then walked away.

As the stone sat there, high tide came and went, the cycle of nibbling fish and pounding waves started all over again.

The next day, when a woman in fine clothes on a beach side stroll walked by, the stone begged of her, "Please ma'am, move me away from the shore, for the waves ceaselessly batter and weather me and fish eat at the algae that grows on me."

The woman stopped and responded, "But where would you live, mighty stone, for you are of the sea, are you not?"

"Yes, I am of the sea, have always lived by the sea, but the way I live is miserable."

The woman simply patted the stone and said to it, "This pain will pass sea stone, and you will learn to love your home again, you simply need to learn to love what you have, for the grass is not always greener on the other side, and you must be grateful for the beautiful home that you have, for some don't have one at all," and so she left the stone to its own devices.

The stone knew that the woman was only trying to comfort him, but it still hurt. It had asked her for help and she had basically done nothing, just left him to get pounded by the waves, it was as if she didn't care and only wanted to say pretty words.

As the fish picked at the algae, the stone felt pieces of itself being pulled away, feeling tiny cracks being made in itself. It would weep if it could, wondering if it would ever leave this place.

Soon enough, a child collecting shells upon the beach was spotted by the stone, "Little one, please help me! The waves that hit weather me and fish eat at the algae that grows on my underside! Please move me away from this place and take me somewhere where I will feel no pain."

The child asked the stone, "Aren't you strong? Why do the waves hurt you?"

"I have lived on this beach for many years child, being hit by the waves every single day every single year will hurt and it hurts me now, just as I'm sure it would hurt you, you don't need to move me far, just push me to the dunes."

The child nodded and put their pail down, going to push the stone up the beach, when they heard a scolding yell, "What are you doing?"

The child stopped their efforts and looked to the voice, their mother, "I wanted to help the stone, Mother, it asked me to help."

She went up to the child and gripped their wrist, pulling them away, "And yet I have told you a million times to not go in the water! For the waves will sweep you away! Besides, the stone could easily slip from your grasp and crush your foot from it being so weathered. Just leave it be."

The stone now truly knew no one would help it, no one believed a stone could suffer. A stone was supposed to be mighty and strong, was it not? Had it not lived by the sea for as long as it could remember? Not to mention the mother was right, it could hurt someone if it was dropped.

"Maybe I am just ungrateful, maybe I do complain over nothing," lamented the stone, thinking that perhaps the waves truly were nothing.

And so the stone kept getting steadily broken, battered by the waves and torn bit by bit by fish. At this point, it didn't even notice the people who passed it by.

One bright sunny day, people relaxed on the beach, barely noticing the choppy water's effect on the stone.The stone felt itself becoming more and more delicate. It tried to hold out, tried to ignore the waves upon its surface, but it just hurt so much, it didn't think it could take much more, maybe if it just rested...

CRACK!

The people on the beach looked at the source of such a sound, and saw the broken stone and they were confused.

"How did this happen? The stone had been so strong, how could it let itself crack?" said the sailor man who refused to help.

"It had such a good life, it lived by the beautiful sea, how could it give up something so wonderful?" Asked the woman who had condescended the stone.

The child that had tried to help the stone wept, for their efforts simply weren't enough. They touched the pieces of rock and said, "I'm sorry, stone, I'm sorry I couldn't help."