A “Parable” is a simple story with a lesson. (Trust me. I looked it up too.) I’ve been exposed to some parables that I’d like to share for their “learning take-away”. (Oh, and they contain a modicum, (you can look this one up) of irreverence and sarcasm as well. I’ve tried to find the original authors' names but have been unable to do so. So let’s go.
“It’s winter and I observed a small bird making the journey South, but it was really cold and actually froze in flight and fell to the ground. Now, this particular bird was very fortunate because it fell into a cow pasture and it landed in a stack of fresh cow dung. The bird’s good fortune continued, as the cow dung actually was warm and thawed the little bird out. Full of joy, the bird broke into song. But, (yes, one of those pesky “buts”) a cat strolling nearby, saw the bird deep in dung (you can insert a different word of your own…like “..it”), IKR.
You know the rest of the story. The cat ate the bird.
Now, what possible “lessons” might you glean from this parable I’ve told you?
Possible lessons from the story:
(1) Not everyone who “..its” on you is your enemy.
(2) Not everyone who gets you out of “..it” is your friend.
(3) And when you're in deep “..it”, sometimes it's best to keep your mouth shut!
(4) Before you embark on a journey, plan ahead and always be mindful of the possible need to make course corrections.
And then you can also get lucky when you find yourself deep in “..it”. Hope that that cat that comes along is a vegetarian and helps you on your way again.
See, there are lessons to be found in parables. More next time.