The Wooden Bowl

A frail old man went to live with his son, daughter-in-law and four year old grandson. The old mans hands trembled, his eyesight was blurred and his steps faltered. The family ate together at the table but the grandfathers shaky hands and failing sight made eating difficult. Peas rolled off his spoon and when he grasped the glass, milk spilled on the tablecloth.
The son and his wife became irritated with the mess. 'We must do something about father' said the son. 'I have had enough of his spilled milk, noisy eating and food on the floor.' so the son and his wife set a small table in the corner. There Grandfather ate alone while the rest of the family enjoyed dinner.
Since Grandfather had broken a dish or two, his food was served in a wooden bowl.
When the family glanced in Grandfathers direction he sometimes had a tear in his eye as he sat alone. Still the only words the couple had for him were sharp admonishing when he dropped a fork or spilled food.
The four year old watched it all in silence.
One evening before supper, the father noticed his son playing with wood scraps on the floor. 'What are you making?' Just as sweetly the boy responded, 'Oh I am making a little bowl for you and Mummy to eat your food in when I grow up.' the four year old smiled and went back to work.
The words so struck the parents that they were speechless, then tears started to stream down their cheeks. Though no words were spoken they knew what had to be done. That evening the husband took Grandfathers hand and gently led him back to the family table. For the remainder of his days he ate his meals with the family and neither husband or wife seemed to care if milk was spilled or a fork was dropped.