Two inspirational stories

I had the urge to relate a couple of very short stories that I once heard. I must stress that these are not mine and I do not know the origin of them so I cannot reference them. All I can say is that I have found both to be a source of inspiration...



The first is a little silly, to be honest, but ... well, here goes anyway. I like it!

Two ants were admiring the Taj Mahal. After a while, one turns to the other and remarks, "Aren't the creations of Man wondrous to behold?". To which the other replies, "What?! Don't tell me you believe in Man, do you?".

The second is a little less frivolous.

Upon dying, a man goes to heaven where he meets God. After a while he plucks up the courage to ask God a question. "When I was dying", he says, "true to the stories, I saw my whole life pass me by. My question relates to this. I was wondering why I saw it represented as footprints in the sand - two sets of footprint to be precise, side by side?"
"Ahh", replied God, "That is because throughout your life I have walked by your side".
"In that case", the man retorted, "why were there sometimes only one set of footprints?"
To this God said that they were the times when the man had had trouble in his life.
"What?!" cried the man, "You mean you deserted me whenever I had any trouble in my life. What sort of a God are you?"
God simply replied "You do not understand. When there was only one set of footprints, it was because I was carrying you".