Masterpiece - A Short Story

Once upon a time there was a talented Painter. This incredible Artist was known all over the world for His intricate and beautiful masterpieces. His paintings were priceless, and He gave His life completely to the works of art that He created.

            One particular painting He treasured most highly. For many years He worked on this painting, perfecting and beautifying it. The more that He worked on this painting, the more it resembled the very nature of the Painter Himself.

The painting often grew tired of the constant changes and perfecting that the Painter put it through. It was hidden in the back of the Artist’s gallery and no one was allowed to see it. It often wondered why it needed so much perfecting if no one was to ever enjoy the work He put into it.

There were many other beautiful paintings that hung in the Artist’s gallery. The painting, not being able to see its own beauty, often bemoaned its own supposed ugliness. “For, surely,” it thought, “I must be terribly hideous for the Artist to work so much and still hide me from the eyes of the world.”

The only bright spot in its dark life behind the curtain was the time that the Artist spent lovingly touching up and perfecting it. Often the Painter would rub away spots or scrape off extra paint. This was not a pleasant experience for the painting but it soon grew to trust the Master who worked so carefully and patiently on His masterpiece.

One day, the Master stopped working, stepped back and admired His painting. It was truly the most beautiful painting in the world and worth more than anything to the Painter. He had given much time and effort to this painting; it was the dearest thing in the world to Him.

The Painter decided that the time had come to showcase His masterpiece to the world. However, because of the incredible value of the painting, He only allowed a very small, privileged group of people to come to the showing. These were of the very highest caliber; personal friends of the Painter Himself. He knew that He could trust them to care for His masterpiece should they decide to buy it.

The day finally came. The painting was carefully placed in the most honored section of the gallery. The handful of people who had been invited started to arrive. Each one praised the incredible beauty of the painting and the comments went something like this:

“What an amazing painting! Surely everyone in the world must seek after such a prize!”

“Oh, that I could own such a painting! But I could never be worthy of such a gift.”

The Painter smiled with pleasure at the comments that the people made. He knew the priceless value of His creation and the great beauty it displayed.

The painting was astonished at the words directed towards itself. It knew that it had nothing to do with its own beauty and gladly reflected all the praise towards the Painter who had created it. However, when none of the people offered to actually buy it for his own, the painting began to feel sad and disheartened. It saw the look of joy on the Artist's face and the pride with which He showcased His work of art. However, the painting could not understand why no one actually sought to buy the painting for himself.

Days went by and it seemed that all the close, trusted friends of the Painter had been allowed to view its exquisite beauty. The painting, discouraged by the lack of interest, started to lose heart. It became discontent when no man sought to own it for himself.

One day the beautiful painting asked the Artist the reason for the lack of interest. It said, “Master, if I am so beautiful, and if everyone admires me so much, why is no one interested in owning me himself? Why must I wait so long in this gallery when so many other paintings are bought every day?”

The Master smiled at the beautiful painting and said, “My beautiful masterpiece, you are priceless. None of the buyers that come in here every day are worthy to take you home. For now, you belong only to Me.”

The painting sighed and replied, “But Master, what about the close friends that have come? The ones that You trust most, that You give Your best paintings to? Why was I not given to one of them?”

The Master said nothing for a while. He looked thoughtful and when He spoke, His words were weighed carefully. “I have someone already picked out whom you have never seen. This friend of Mine is very dear to My heart. He has never been here, not because he is not interested in buying any of My works of art, but because he trusts Me to pick out the very best. He does not need to look for the best one himself: he is simply trusting Me to create one for him. He will come when I decide that he is ready and worthy to take you for his own.”

Days, weeks and even months passed. The painting continued to be perfected and beautified, and shown only to the most worthy of the Artist’s close friends. It was admired by all, but none sought to buy the painting for his own. It seemed as if they all knew that it had already been claimed, or else feared that the Artist would not wish to give up his most prized possession. The painting tried to remember all that the Painter had said about the one chosen to take it home, but it was difficult to not be jealous of the other paintings that found homes sooner.

At the end of one particular day, the gallery was closed and the lights were turned off in the main area. As usual, the Painter made his way to the back of the gallery to admire the beautiful masterpiece that He kept for Himself.

Only this time, the Painter was not alone. With Him was someone who looked and acted very much like the Painter Himself. The painting had never seen this man in the gallery before. He walked by all of the other paintings without even seeing them. Toward the back he strode with a strong, firm step. The moment his eyes lighted on the beautiful masterpiece, he stopped in amazement. The Painter saw the look of admiration on the man’s face and said softly, “Are you pleased with the work that I have prepared for you? I have decided that you are now ready to take this masterpiece home. I trust it with no one other than you.”

The man, still staring wistfully at the priceless painting, replied in wonder, “Oh Sir, I could never afford such a wonderful work of art as this! This is the most beautiful thing that I have ever seen. It reminds me so much of You! I could never buy this priceless treasure.”

The master Painter smiled and said, “There is no need for you to buy this painting. I have paid the price for it already. It is a gift. It was created for you and will fit perfectly in your life.”

With that, the Artist lifted the beautiful work of art off of its place and handed it carefully to the man. With a solemn look He instructed him in the care of the masterpiece and the priceless worth that it held. The man gazed in wonder at the gift of which he had only dreamed. It was the most perfect thing he had ever held and he knew that nothing else would ever mean as much to him as this incredible gift from his Friend.

The joy of the painting was boundless. This man was better than any it had ever seen, and more perfect than it had dreamed. It knew that although it was leaving the gallery, it would always see its Master’s face in the look of the new owner to whom it had been given.

The Painter led the man to the door. He thanked the Artist again and again for the beautiful gift and promised to treasure it and protect it with his life. The Artist smiled, knowing that both the painting and the man would be happy. They had trusted Him; waiting for His perfect plan and timing. He knew that they both would be happy beyond their wildest dreams.