The Shepherd of the Mountains
(Image source: flickr.com) A shepherd lived with his family on a Himalayan mountain stretch on its foothill. He owned a house and a Tibetan Mastiff dog. Buddhist by birth, he often wondered about the mysteries of life, looking at the white mountains. A cairn stood near his house on the path leading to distant lands of Tibet and Nepal through forlorn villages hidden by snow. Each stone on the pile would remind him of the unknown passers-by. He would try to remember the faces of a few with whom he had chatted. There were villagers, mountaineers, scientists, and traders treading that trail for who knows how many centuries. The shepherd would give water to his yaks and sheep in the corral every morning and go to the village prayer hall. The Buddha idol there, with half-closed eyes, seemed to be fast asleep. “Where are the answers?” he asked the marble statue when no one was around. His teenage son had moved to Kathmandu to work there as a driver. His wife was ailing...
