He pointed to a display case. I went there and chose a cake. Then I wrote down on a piece of paper the message: "Happy Birthday Nishtha! Guru."
How much trouble he had writing 'Nishtha'! Perhaps he could not read my writing. He wrote 'Nishtta' and then something else. When it came to 'Guru', he thought I had written 'Garro'. So, I spelt it for him. As soon as he heard the correct word 'Guru', he became so happy, so delighted. The name meant so much to him that he was smiling and smiling.
I asked him, "Why are you so happy?"
He said, "I used to go to PS 86 and across the street is the world's best restaurant, best food — BEST — The Smile of the Beyond."
"I own it," I said. He could not believe his ears.
"You do not own it!"
"No, but one of my disciples does own it, and I am his boss."
"Oh," he said, throwing up his hands, "that means you are Shry!" I nodded and immediately he folded his hands and bowed.
When it came time to pay for the cake, three times I tried to give him twenty dollars, but he would not accept it. He said, "From you I cannot take anything."
I told him, "I have come to your place. Please take it as a gift." He was just a young man. He cannot have been the owner of the place. Finally, after I begged him to take the money, he did accept it. He said, "Since you have come to my place, I will take it as a gift."
I asked him if he knew of Annam Brahma Restaurant. He answered, "If it is the restaurant on 164th Street, I have been there three or four times. But I used to go to the Smile every day. It is the best restaurant."
I explained to him that the cake was for Nishtha, the owner of Annam Brahma. All the time he was looking at me with such respect and joy. I think this is the first time I have ever had this kind of experience in America. In Japan and India it has happened, but not in America. Did it ever happen to you that someone did not want to take money from you?
22 March 1988From:Sri Chinmoy,The Canvas of Time, Madal Bal, Czech Republic, 2019
Sourced from https://srichinmoylibrary.com/cat