I found on a friend's blog:

The Pencil Maker took the pencil aside, just before putting him into the box.

“There are 5 things you need to know”, he told the pencil, “before I send you out into the world. Always remember them and you will become the best pencil you can be?

ONE: You will be able to do many great things, but only if you allow yourself to be held in Someone’s hand.

TWO: You will experience a painful sharpening from time to time, but you’ll need it to become a better pencil.

THREE: You will be able to correct any mistakes you might make.

FOUR: The most important part of you will always be what’s inside.

AND FIVE: On every surface you are used on, you must leave your mark. No matter what the condition, you must continue to write.

The pencil understood and promised to remember, and went into the box with purpose in its heart.

I don’t know who the author is but it has been circulated so many times and for so long online that nobody remembers who exactly wrote it or when it was written. But whoever wrote this, is indeed wise. Life is tough, but we can always correct our mistakes. Its always what’s inside us that is most important. The ability to reflect and improve is what make us humans. We can be made to feel that we are unimportant and dispensable in the workplace and in many places, but in life, when we hold out a helping hand and assist another, when we care for or love another, we leave a footprint in another’s life. Love needs to be shared and circulated, just like this inspirational parable of the pencil.