9. Paragraphs 27-29

“Do you not see?” replied the hermit. “If you had not pitied my weakness yesterday and had not dug these beds for me, you would have gone away. Then that man would have attacked you, and you would have wished you had stayed with me. So the most important time was when you were digging the beds. And I was the most important man, and to do me good was your most important business. Afterwards, when the man ran to us, the most important time was when you were caring for him, because if you had not dressed his wounds, he would have died without having made peace with you. So he was the most important man, and what you did for him was your most important business.

 

“Remember then, there is only one time that is important and that time is ‘Now’. It is the most important time because it is the only time we have any power to act.

 

“The most necessary person is the person you are with at a particular moment, for no one knows what will happen in the future and whether we will meet anyone else. The most important business is to do that person good because we were sent into this world for that purpose alone.”