So it was told that in France, a soldier was attending to his sick mother when Franco-German war broke out. The soldier was at once called to fight on the front. With a sick mother on one side who needed the help of her only son at that time and the enemies on the other side against whom he was ready to fight till death for the honor and pride of his country; he was really confused. There was no one else in the family who could actually take care of his mother and with all the chaos of war and people moving to other places, he could not think of leaving her. And there was also no soldier like him in bravery, spirit and strategy making. His country and his people needed him.
Being not able to decide himself, the soldier went to a saint and told him how he had to choose between his mother and his country. He told him if he chose to serve his country leaving his mother and she died in his absence, he would never forgive himself and if he stayed back and the country lost, he would be blaming himself throughout his life. The saint listened to him carefully and said, "You know why you came to me, it’s because you knew what I would say. You did not go to your mother’s friends or relatives and asked for advice because you knew they would want you to stay. You did not talk to your general about it because you knew he would convince you to serve your country. You came to me and you knew what I would say. So here I say it, just go and do what you think you should do. Do whatever you decide. Choose whatever you think is right."
The story ends here. It does not even tell us what did the soldier decide to do in the end, but either way he did the right thing and that’s what our life is about. Life is not at all about choosing between good or evil. It’s mostly about choosing between two goods and two evils. And making right choices at right time is what changes our lives forever!