Everyone stared at him, the Sad Eyed Gentleman wandering through town. They all mocked and despised this lonesome stranger, lost in empty streets, covered by rain, looking at the buildings and people with his grey, dull eyes. Everyday he went out with this cloud above him, completely dressed in grey. Everything in his life seemed grey: all the buildings were grey to him, people were colorless, dull and irritating to him. He was bitter and sad, he felt as he had turned into a grey, ruinous statue.
I always felt bad for him, especialy after my mother told me that once, a long time ago, he was the happiest child on earth. He was known for his beautiful deep blue eyes. They would send out rays of sunshine all through the day, and looking in his eyes one could admire a clear blue sky accompanied by the strongest burning sun one had ever seen. At nightfall, as the sun in his eyes set, clear shining stars took over. And when he smiled, all the stars in his right eye would twinkle. He had the possibility to turn sad people happy and in that the little boy would find his amusement.
I asked my mom why he turned into grey then? Why did the beautiful, deep blue eyed boy turn into the Sad Eyed Gentleman? She told me that, as all suffering known to us humans, it was caused by rejection and the lack of love. But how could that be, I wondered. He was such a pretty boy, for sure people must have loved him, no?
According to the story, the Sad Eyed Gentleman didn't lose his shiny eyes overnight. It was a slow process that people must have noticed, but no one seemed to have had the courage to help. All people wanted was for the boy to turn sadness into happiness, no one cared for his heart, his need for some happiness. Old men and women, children, teenagers, everyone came to the blue eyed boy in search of happiness.
And every day he would be there, help sad and suffering people, and he did it with all he could. Only sad people visited the boy, and only happy people left him. All he needed was for the happy people to return once in a while, as happiness was the fuel of his eyes, those blue sunny eyes. But selfish as people are, once happy they didn't look at his precious eyes anymore, they were happy forever, so they didn't feel the need to go back. To share their happiness with the boy that gave them such gift. Were people really that dumb, to think that happiness was an unlimited source, didn't they realise, were they that selfcentered?
The twinkling starts in the boy's right eye were the first to go, he smiled but there were no more twinkles. And next were the stars in his lift eye, they dissapeard together with the rays of sunshine. Still people would come, and altough somehow dissapointed -because these were no longer magic eyes- they asked for happiness, received it and left the boy alone. One ray of sunshine remained in his right eye, the left one had already completely turned grey.
One day a sad young woman came up to the boy, requesting him to give her the happiness. She needed it so much, she was suffering and could not handle anything. She promised to give him anything he wanted, if only he could help her. 'But I only have one ray of sunshine lef' - said the boy. 'After helping you, my right eye will turn grey, just like my left one. You will have to come back to share with me your moments of happiness, only then I will help you.' The girl agreed, of course she would do this, how hard could it be? And in tears she accepted and swore she would share the happiness with him, her saviour. And moments later, the sad young woman turned into a smiling beauty. She felt great, almost untouchable. She thanked the sweet boy that had given her the happiness, and promised she would be back in a few days. The boy's eyes turned grey, but he was happy. He was sure that the returning happy woman would bring him enough fuel to regain his powerful, blue healing eyes.
But the girl never came back. The boy started wondering through town, looking for this girl which he had turned so happy. But when he found her and asked her if she could give him some happiness, as to regain strength, she answered: 'I am sorry but I can not take the risk of losing my happy feeling, goodbye little man'. And she walked away. In that instant the clear grey eyes became dull, darker in grey and the boy turned into the Sad Eyed Gentleman still wandering the streets today.
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