There is a story about a farmer named Matan, who lived in a small house with red tiles that was surrounded by green trees. He had a neighbor named Noah, who lived close to him, also in a small house with red tiles surrounded by green trees. They had been good friends since they were children. They always helped each other. Matan would help Noah pick the apricots in his garden when the harvest season came, Noah would help Matan shear the wool from the sheep when it was time to shear. Matan would help Noah milk his cows, and Noah would help Matan harvest the wheat in his field. In the evenings, Matan would invite Noah to drink tea with him on the balcony, and Noah would invite Matan to taste the cherry jam he had made himself.
They never fought... Until one day Matan found a small calf. "It's my calf," Matan said happily, but Noah, who was standing there, said: "No, it's my calf. I'm sure my cow gave birth to him, he's very much like her.' 'Wrong,' said Matan. "The calf is mine. And it is like my cow.' 'It's mine,' Noah shouted. "Liar!" shouted Matan. "Thief!" shouted Noah. "I'll never talk to you," Matan screamed. "You don't have to," Noah shouted. Each of them went home, and from that day Matan and Noach did not speak to each other, nor did they help each other any more...
Many days passed, and one day, "Tuk Tuk", there was a knock on the door of Matan's house. Matan opened the door and saw a man holding a toolbox on his shoulder. "Who are you?" asked Matan. 'I'm Elijah,' said the man, 'Elijah the carpenter. I'm looking for a job. Maybe there's something you need to fix?' Matan invited Eliyahu the carpenter to come into his house and have breakfast with him – he baked his own buns with butter and honey, and a large glass of milk that he milked from the cow in the morning. While they were eating and drinking, Matan said: 'Maybe I have some work to do for you. Look out the window, you see? Right on the border between my land and Noah's neighbor's land, there's a deep water canal. It wasn't there a week ago. Noah, my neighbor, dug it up to the pool at the top of the hill, and he pumped the water into the canal to separate us. But I want to do something even better: I want you to build me a tall wooden fence along the canal, so that I will never see Noah, neither him nor his house. Would you be able to do that? 'Yes,' said Eliyahu the carpenter. "I can do it if you just give me planks and nails." "I have a lot of planks and nails in the warehouse," Matan said. 'Take as much as you need. I have to ride to the city now for shopping, and by the time I come back, I hope you'll finish the job.' And so Matan got on his horse and rode to the city, and Elijah the carpenter took out all the planks and nails from the storeroom and brought them near the water canal. He opened the toolbox and began to work.
He measured, sawed, and hammered more and more nails, and attached a board to the board. He worked for many hours, and behold, in the evening, just as Matan was returning from the city, Eliyahu the carpenter finished his work. And when Matan got off the horse and approached Eliyahu the carpenter, suddenly his eyes opened and became very large, and his mouth also opened wide, but he could not get a word out of his mouth... There was no high fence there at all! There was a bridge! A bridge over the canal, from one side of the canal to the other. A large and beautiful bridge with a nice wooden railing. And who is the one who comes in front of him on the bridge with his hand outstretched forward, if not the neighbor is resting, and he says: 'Matan, you are really a good friend. It's good that you built the bridge. I'm so happy that we can be friends again.' Matan hugged Noah and said to him: 'The calf is really yours. I knew this all along, and I'm also happy that we can be friends again.'
Eliyahu the carpenter began to gather his tools into a toolbox, put the toolbox on his shoulder and began to walk home. 'Wait,' said Matan. 'Stay with us, I have more work to do for you.' Eliyahu the carpenter smiled and said: 'I would have stayed willingly, but I can't. I have to go, I have many more bridges to build.' And he went away...
Moral of the story: Many times we let anger distance us from the people we love, and pride come before love. Don't let that happen, know how to forgive and appreciate what you have. Always remember: the past doesn't matter but the future does, no "anger" will spoil a special relationship, try to build your bridges when necessary, and always cross them with a smile...
