Lessons from the Little Prince

Lessons from the Little Prince

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For those who haven't read the book yet (wait why on earth haven't you read the book yet?), major spoilers ahead. You've been warned.

There are some things or happenings or people in my life who made such a great impact. It shaped me and molded me to whoever I am today. Some of them even served as a shifting gear of who I am becoming. And today, I wanted to start off by sharing my reflections from one of my many favorite books - The little prince.


It's a children's book that catches not only kids, but also kids at heart. It's a mainstream! And those who are genius enough to read it, are geniuses indeed!

If I am to tell you e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g I loved about the book, it's going to beat my longest blog post ever twice. Or maybe thrice, because there are so much to tell because there are so much to learn from. And since I want to keep this short as much as possible, I will try so hard to not get so pumped up in sharing it out.

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Thought#1: The tiny planet and the baobabs.
We all have comfort zones. The zone where we do anything to protect its state of being comfortable and pleasurable. We become so watchful of the things that grow there because we know that what we let grow on it can be a potential for danger, or added beauty. Just like what the little prince does on his tiny planet. Flowers bring beauty to his planet, so flowers he water. But baobab, when grows up can destroy his home, so baobabs, he uproot. More like us. We protect that relationship, or that person, or that thing, or that dream, or that image from anything that spoils its beauty. Because if we do not, we feel destroyed and hopeless. And we found ourselves wondering everyday, where to go from here? It represents the grave danger that can transpire if we are too lazy to guard the world around us.

Thought#2: The departure.

Instead of confronting issues in life, we run away. It's easier. It's less hurtful. And we see it as a good distraction from remembering our painful experience. The little prince in the book found out that his ever beloved rose lied to him. So he flew away in response of what happened. But we can learn from the succeeding happenings in the book that running away wasn't really that a big help at all. When he left, there were unresolved issues. As a result, there was not a day the rose didn't occupy his thoughts — if it's still there, or if the glass globe protects the rose enough and so on. It worries him. Like us, the haunting goes on in the present if we are uncertain of what we left in the past.

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Thought#3: The vain and naive rose.
From out of nowhere it came and it changed the prince forever. It is undeniably beautiful but proud in nature. What I reflected upon reading their story are some of the many realities that happen in life. Say for example, the person you do not expect coming, comes, and gives you something to look forward to everyday.  And, there's always gonna be someone who loves someone more. Okay, those weren't really that sensible. On a serious note, people who are full of themselves find it hard to express their love. More often, the person might not intend to drive people away but pride does. And sometimes, when we go back to our senses, it's too late to persuade the people we love to stay. Pride hurts not only those who love us but also ourselves.
When we have pride, it is so hard to see the hands that are ready to help us just like the photo on the right side that I have seen somewhere in the internet. We find pride more precious than what we really need.  Moreover, we become oblivious of the sacrifices and the love one makes for us when we have this. The pride and the rose. What a beautiful metaphor!



Thought#4: The 44 sunsets

"You know--one loves the sunset, when one is so sad..." - The little prince.

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I agree on this! Specially that we're both alike — sentimental (ha. ha.). On a realistic point of view: maybe the saddest loves the sunsets (or sunrise for some) so much because it gives them the hope of tomorrow (or the emerging another). While on the other view: we tend to appreciate whatever we have regardless of how meager they are when we are at our lowest. The sun — when in its highest point can burn a skin; can increase the temperature of the ocean that causes vapor thus, typhoons; or dries up the ground hence, drought will occur. But when in its lowest point — it brings unique colors in the sky; its beauty become appreciated; everyone can look onto it for it harms no eyes anymore. It gives a more beautiful look in the heaven when the sun is in its lowest than that of when it is in its highest. The rest of what I have realized, I will leave by quoting the Bible. Let this verse speak for itself:

Before a downfall the heart is haughty, but humility comes before honor - Proverbs 18:12 NIV 

Thought#5: The five planets

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Every planet that the prince has gotten into has its own inhabitant. The first planet that he landed was ruled by a king who claims to rule the universe. He is unkind and tho he has a title, his reign is empty. The second planet was inhabited by a vain man. He always wants his beauty appreciated and is voracious of admiration. However, only by being alone is he assured of such grandiosity. The third planet he went into has a drunkard man. He spends his days and nights drinking as much booze as he can and embarrassed about it. He's a sad figure. The fourth one was the businessman. He owns all the stars yet remembers nothing and neither contributes to them. The sixth planet was inhabited by a geographer. He is a man of wisdom and he studies a wide variety of stuff but refuses to learn from the planet where he resides. I find these five interesting because they resemble that of human beings. There are people who have the position but don't get much of the work done. Usually, they're unkind, proud, and lacks empathy. There are also some who are so full of themselves. They live for the applause of other people. There are also who would like to forget so they drink their depressions up but are too naive to admit that they have problems and too scared to face them. Also, there are some who have it all but not really. They have the money but they do not have the one to comfort them on lonely nights. Usually, they are unappreciative. They also collect more and more money but it does nothing on him. There's something lacking in his life but is too busy to notice it. Lastly, there are wise men who tell other people about what has to be done but never told himself what has to be done in his.



Thought#6: The lamplighter

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The fifth planet was inhabited by a lamplighter. I decided to separate this from the others because he's the only one who has more pros than cons. He might seem eccentric at first but I adored him on the latter part of the story. Why? Because of his selflessness and faithfulness. Though restless and exhausted, "orders are orders" still.
Pros: Faithful, selfless, obedient, servant therefore great (Matthew 23:11).
Cons: unloving towards self.
Like a line in one of my favorite poem says: "Rest if you must, but don't you quit", we must continue to do whatever we are passionate about but we must know when to rest. In fact, in Bible, rest is a command. Because we all deserve it. A balance of hard-work and rest is a must. Anything that goes beyond the other doesn't do good anything at all.

Thought#7: The fox



 

I could in fact, write an entire blog post about the fox. But today, I'll keep my thoughts up as short as possible. Among the many happenings in the story, the prince's encounter with the fox is one of my favorite indeed. It tackles about relationships. The first thing I have learned from him is that only the heart can see accurately. The second is, you'll only know the worth of someone you love if you give it a space sometimes. Third, establishing relationships have cultures and limits. Fourth, to love entails responsibility. Lastly, you only know you love a person when you let them go. The fox too, like the lamplighter, is selfless. However he knew that even before they met, the prince has certain goals. Even though it pains him, he encouraged the prince to leave and do whatever it is for his own best interest.

awwwwwwww

While there are still many other characters and scenarios I'd like to tackle regarding the story, I'd like to just share whatever it is that marked in my heart the most.

So how did it affect me after reading?

I only realized that children are honest and have pure hearts. Not that I never believed that ever before, just that I never mean to say it the way I do now. That is why it is so important to cultivate their purity and honesty with love, sincerity, and careful instructions. 

Moreover, to choose the people who will tame you, to set boundaries, to build unique relationships, and to love is to sacrifice
— the most exciting thing in life to do yet the most poignant. But like what they say, it's always darkest before the dawn.