Grandma's Restaurant

A long time ago, there was a lone wanderer who was returning from his parents'home which was a few miles away from his town. It was raining very heavily and there was no sign of public transport.

"I should have stayed back at my parent's house." He thought and sighed as he kept walking. He didn't even have enough money to live in an inn.

After walking for a long time he was exhausted. He was very hungry. He had been walking for a few hours.

The sun had already set down and there was no restaurant, inns or any food stalls to be seen.

He didn't stop walking. After walking a few steps he saw a ray of light. He followed the path where the light led to. He realised that the light actually led to a small restaurant on the side. There was an overwhelming smell coming from the restaurant. The place was quite empty except for two customers and an old woman who introduced herself as the owner of the restaurant.

"Come, my dear young man, you look weary." She welcomed him. The man looked around the place. The whole restaurant was built of bamboos.

The smell coming from the little kitchen in the corner was enough to satisfy the young man's hunger.

The man then looked at two other customers. One was a priest and the other had a big scar on his forehead and had ragged clothes on. The two men were seated in different tables. Both of them were smiling and talking among themselves. It was as if they were really good friends. The young man was so exhausted that he would pass out at any moment.

Just then the old woman served him a miso soup. The miso soup looked different than the regular ones. It looked so delicious that his stomach began to grumble. It was the soup's smell that really overwhelmed him.

"Go ahead young man" The old woman urged humbly.

The young man wasted no time and started having his meal. It was different, it had a very unique flavour, a magical flavour. Whenever he took a sip, his whole body would jolt like electricity passing through his body. After finishing having the soup, the young man asked her.

"Grandma, this soup has a heavenly taste. What soup is this?"

The old woman smiled warmly at him and replied," This is just a plain soup I've been preparing for years."

"It can never be called a plain soup." The young man said."Its a soup made by god itself."

The old woman smiled once again.

"How did you reach here, young man?" She asked.

"I was returning from my parent's house when I happened to find your restaurant. I wanted to stay in an inn but I don't have enough money. I am a poor labourer who works hard for a living. I barely get time to see my parents." The young man replied.

"Your clothes are quite soaked. But I am grateful that your cold has gone." said the old woman.

The young man realised that his cold jas is gone. It wasn't even a moment ago his nose blocked and he was continuously sneezing.

The grandma smiled.

"Oh, I forgot to pay..." He suddenly remembered.

"You don't have to my child." She says.

"Why not Grandma?" He asked.

"Its because you are all equal to me. In this place, no one is discriminated. This place is a home for everyone."

She then pointed out to the priest and the man who looked like a criminal.

"The man with a scar was actually a robber who used to steal and rob people for his living. The priest had always helped people with their needs. He has also done good work. Now, this robber has also done good work. He has helped many poor families by giving them food and shelter but then of course by robbing people. The priest may have been very devoted to god but he always differentiated poor and rich which is of course not a good thing to do.

But then you see both are same more or less."

The young man was in awe. But then a question stroke his mind. "How come they are same?" He asked the old lady.

The old lady smiled and said," They both have humanity in them. They both contain good as well as evil in them."

The old lady then again pointed them and said." You can clearly see their friendship although they never met before."

The old lady then led the young man to a cabin.

"Rest here tonight, young man." She says.

The cabin was small but comfortable. It only consisted of a bed and a table.

As soon as she walked outside and closed the door, the exhausted young man fell asleep.

Next morning after waking up, the young man walked out of the cabin. He was shocked to find that there was no trace of the restaurant that was there last night.

The young man then shoved his hand into his coat pocket. He felt the pocket is full. He was surprised to find out that there was more than enough amount of money in his pocket. He turned back to the empty place and smiled before walking away from the place.