The house with the golden windows

The little girl lived in a small, very simple, poor
house on a hill and as she grew she would play
in the small garden and as she grew she was
able to see over the garden fence and across the
valley to a wonderful house high on the hill –
and this house had golden windows, so golden
and shining that the little girl would dream of
how magic it would be to grow up and live in a
house with golden windows instead of an
ordinary house like hers.
And although she loved her parents and her
family, she yearned to live in such a golden
house and dreamed all day about how wonderful
and exciting it must feel to live there.
When she got to an age where she gained
enough skill and sensibility to go outside her
garden fence, she asked her mother is she could
go for a bike ride outside the gate and down the
lane. After pleading with her, her mother finally
allowed her to go, insisting that she kept close
to the house and didn’t wander too far. The day
was beautiful and the little girl knew exactly
where she was heading! Down the lane and
across the valley, she rode her bike until she got
to the gate of the golden house across on the
other hill.
As she dismounted her bike and lent it against
the gate post, she focused on the path that lead
to the house and then on the house itself and
was so disappointed as she realized all the
windows were plain and rather dirty, reflecting
nothing other than the sad neglect of the house
that stood derelict.
So sad she didn’t go any further and turned,
heart broken as she remounted her bike. As she
glanced up she saw a sight to amaze her. There
across the way on her side of the valley was a
little house and its windows glistened golden as
the sun shone on her little home.
She realized that she had been living in her
golden house and all the love and care she found
there was what made her home the “golden
house”. Everything she dreamed was right there
in front of her nose!