How One Life Touches The Other

Saturday Stories

October 6, 2018

I

Marcus Aurelius once said: "Accept the things to which fate binds you, and love the people with whom fate brings you together, but do so with all your heart." Fate is a curious thing. Sometimes, when it seems to be the end of everything, it turns out to be the beginning of something else – something new, something even better. In my life, I'm amazed how things would always work out for the best, and I'm grateful for the Higher Power that guides us all.

II

I thought a lot about fate when I was reading "Far From The Madding Crowd," the 1874 classic by Thomas Hardy. It is the story of four complete strangers, and how their lives changed when they meet each other. My favorite character is Gabriel Oak, a young shepherd in the countryside. I once stayed on a friend's farm in the province, and since I'm the kind of person who thrives on silence and solitude, I would have loved his life. But one day, by a strange twist of fate, Gabriel entire flock died. He sold his farm to pay his debts, and he went to the city to find work and a new beginning.

III

Gabriel led a simple life and he was happy. The farmer William Boldwood, however, is the opposite: he was rich and he owned land, but he felt alone in the world. Then one day, he received a card from a woman who asked him to marry her. Marriage was also the dream of Frank Troy, a young seageant in the British army At his wedding with his fiance Fanny Robin, he waited and waited at the church – but she didn't come. Time went by. When Frank had already married someone else, he saw Fanny again – and he realized that he still loved her.

IV

Their lives all came together because of the beautiful and free-spirited farmer Bathsheba Everdene. I have to admire her for her independence, and her inner strength to assert herself in a time and place where woman were not taken seriously. Gabriel and William wanted to marry her, but she refused because she didn't want to lose her freedom, then she married Frank who loved someone else. Such are the ironies of life – which shows that the universe has a great sense of humor. But in the end, she realized who it was all along. She got on her horse to run after him as he was about to leave England, hoping it was not too late.

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