THE owner of an elegant house stood outside his home, and spoke to the painter, “I want those grills of my house to stand out.
Paint them in black, white, silver and gold! Just look at the intricate design I told the welder to make, now I want every twist and turn of those iron rods to be emphasized. Let those grills be a work of art!” And the painter went to work.
With clever skill and deft hand he brought out the lines and edges of the grill, blues and reds and black and gold! The next morning when the morning walkers hit the road, they stared with astonishment at the handiwork on display.
They stopped and the owner of the house came out with a smile, “How do you like my grills?” he asked.
The morning walkers all in their shorts and sports shoes, looked at each other, then sighed.
They were about to get on with their walk, when the most forthright amongst them, said out loud, “It’s hideous!” “It’s what?” roared the owner of the house.
“The beauty of your house, the loveliness of the landscaping, the prettiness of those lace curtains, hanging so delicately from your windows, are now lost by you showcasing your ugly grills!” said the forthright man.
And overcoming his timidity another spoke, “Grills are a necessary evil to guard one’s home, but one should hide its ugliness, not enhance their presence!” he said softly and the others solemnly nodded with him.
The owner of the house looked crestfallen, for indeed the rest of his house, it’s architecture and beauty had paled into nothingness against the grotesqueness of the grills!
The morning walkers walked on, but suddenly new light dawned on their minds as they realized it was not just grills that of times stole the beauty around, but other forms of grills that abounded all around them.
They thought of a president with his crass and crude behaviour, his obscene gesture with the fairer folk, and his venom filled tweets who had been painted bright colours by a voter public for four long years, “He should have been hidden from public view!” they all sighed.
They thought of religious leaders who played politics with their religion and political leaders who played religion into their politics.
They sat down and opened a newspaper and read how their country was now slotted as “Partly Free” and not ‘Totally Free’ anymore, by Freedom House’s Freedom in the World report and they sighed, “The ugly grills are beginning to mar our beauty!”
They said, and watched as the owner of the house with the ugly grills, raised a fist at them in defiance, “Some people cannot recognize ugliness!” said the same bold and forthright walker and the others nodded sadly with him..!
