Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Monday, February 6, 2012
STORY OF THE POOR FISHERMAN
There was once upon a time
a fisherman so old and so poor
that he could scarcely manage
to support his wife and three
children. He went every day to
fish very early, and each day he
made a rule not to throw his
nets more than four times. He
started out one morning by
moonlight and came to the sea-
shore. He undressed and threw
his nets, and as he was drawing
them towards the bank he felt a
great weight. He though he had
caught a large fish, and he felt
very pleased. But a moment
afterwards, seeing that instead
of a fish he only had in his nets
the carcase of an ass, he was
much disappointed.
Vexed with having such a bad
haul, when he had mended his
nets, which the carcase of the
ass had broken in several places,
he threw them a second time. In
drawing them in he again felt a
great weight, so that he
thought they were full of fish.
But he only found a large basket
full of rubbish. He was much
annoyed.
"O Fortune," he cried, "do not
trifle thus with me, a poor
fisherman, who can hardly
support his family!"
So saying, he threw away the
rubbish, and after having
washed his nets clean of the
dirt, he threw them for the third
time. But he only drew in
stones, shells, and mud. He was
almost in despair.
Then he threw his nets for the
fourth time. When he thought
he had a fish he drew them in
with a great deal of trouble.
There was no fish however, but
he found a yellow pot, which by
its weight seemed full of
something, and he noticed that
it was fastened and sealed with
lead, with the impression of a
seal. He was delighted. "I will
sell it to the founder," he said;
"with the money I shall get for
it I shall buy a measure of
wheat."
He examined the jar on all sides;
he shook it to see if it would
rattle. But he heard nothing, and
so, judging from the impression
of the seal and the lid, he
thought there must be
something precious inside. To
find out, he took his knife, and
with a little trouble he opened
it. He turned it upside down, but
nothing came out, which
surprised him very much. He set
it in front of him, and whilst he
was looking at it attentively,
such a thick smoke came out
that he had to step back a pace
or two. This smoke rose up to
the clouds, and stretching over
the sea and the shore, formed a
thick mist, which caused the
fisherman much astonishment.
When all the smoke was out of
the jar it gathered itself
together, and became a thick
mass in which appeared a
genius, twice as large as the
largest giant. When he saw such
a terrible-looking monster, the
fisherman would like to have
run away, but he trembled so
with fright that he could not
move a step.
"Great king of the genii," cried
the monster, "I will never again
disobey you!"
At these words the fisherman
took courage.
"What is this you are saying,
great genius? Tell me your
history and how you came to be
shut up in that vase."
At this, the genius looked at the
fisherman haughtily. "Speak to
me more civilly," he said,
"before I kill you."
"Alas! why should you kill me?"
cried the fisherman. "I have just
freed you; have you already
forgotten that?"
"No," answered the genius; "but
that will not prevent me from
killing you; and I am only going
to grant you one favour, and
that is to choose the manner of
your death."
"But what have I done to you?"
asked the fisherman.
"I cannot treat you in any other
way," said the genius, "and if
you would know why, listen to
my story.
"I rebelled against the king of
the genii. To punish me, he shut
me up in this vase of copper,
and he put on the leaden cover
his seal, which is enchantment
enough to prevent my coming
out. Then he had the vase
thrown into the sea. During the
first period of my captivity I
vowed that if anyone should
free me before a hundred years
were passed, I would make him
rich even after his death. But
that century passed, and no one
freed me. In the second century
I vowed that I would give all the
treasures in the world to my
deliverer; but he never came.
"In the third, I promised to
make him a king, to be always
near him, and to grant him
three wishes every day; but that
century passed away as the
other two had done, and I
remained in the same plight. At
last I grew angry at being
captive for so long, and I vowed
that if anyone would release me
I would kill him at once, and
would only allow him to choose
in what manner he should die.
So you see, as you have freed
me to-day, choose in what way
you will die."
The fisherman was very
unhappy. "What an unlucky man
I am to have freed you! I
implore you to spare my life."
"I have told you," said the
genius, "that it is impossible.
Choose quickly; you are wasting
time."
The fisherman began to devise a
plot.
"Since I must die," he said,
"before I choose the manner of
my death, I conjure you on your
honour to tell me if you really
were in that vase?"
"Yes, I was" answered the
genius.
"I really cannot believe it," said
the fisherman. "That vase could
not contain one of your feet
even, and how could your whole
body go in? I cannot believe it
unless I see you do the thing."
Then the genius began to
change himself into smoke,
which, as before, spread over
the sea and the shore, and
which, then collecting itself
together, began to go back into
the vase slowly and evenly till
there was nothing left outside.
Then a voice came from the vase
which said to the fisherman,
"Well, unbelieving fisherman,
here I am in the vase; do you
believe me now?"
The fisherman instead of
answering took the lid of lead
and shut it down quickly on the
vase.
"Now, O genius," he cried, "ask
pardon of me, and choose by
what death you will die! But no,
it will be better if I throw you
into the sea whence I drew you
out, and I will build a house on
the shore to warn fishermen
who come to cast their nets
here, against fishing up such a
wicked genius as you are, who
vows to kill the man who frees
you."
At these words the genius did all
he could to get out, but he could
not, because of the
enchantment of the lid.
Then he tried to get out by
cunning.
"If you will take off the cover,"
he said, "I will repay you."
"No," answered the fisherman,
"if I trust myself to you I am
afraid you will treat me as a
certain Greek king treated the
physician Douban. Listen, and I
will tell you."
Written By : Ajit Hari Sahu
Read more ...
a fisherman so old and so poor
that he could scarcely manage
to support his wife and three
children. He went every day to
fish very early, and each day he
made a rule not to throw his
nets more than four times. He
started out one morning by
moonlight and came to the sea-
shore. He undressed and threw
his nets, and as he was drawing
them towards the bank he felt a
great weight. He though he had
caught a large fish, and he felt
very pleased. But a moment
afterwards, seeing that instead
of a fish he only had in his nets
the carcase of an ass, he was
much disappointed.
Vexed with having such a bad
haul, when he had mended his
nets, which the carcase of the
ass had broken in several places,
he threw them a second time. In
drawing them in he again felt a
great weight, so that he
thought they were full of fish.
But he only found a large basket
full of rubbish. He was much
annoyed.
"O Fortune," he cried, "do not
trifle thus with me, a poor
fisherman, who can hardly
support his family!"
So saying, he threw away the
rubbish, and after having
washed his nets clean of the
dirt, he threw them for the third
time. But he only drew in
stones, shells, and mud. He was
almost in despair.
Then he threw his nets for the
fourth time. When he thought
he had a fish he drew them in
with a great deal of trouble.
There was no fish however, but
he found a yellow pot, which by
its weight seemed full of
something, and he noticed that
it was fastened and sealed with
lead, with the impression of a
seal. He was delighted. "I will
sell it to the founder," he said;
"with the money I shall get for
it I shall buy a measure of
wheat."
He examined the jar on all sides;
he shook it to see if it would
rattle. But he heard nothing, and
so, judging from the impression
of the seal and the lid, he
thought there must be
something precious inside. To
find out, he took his knife, and
with a little trouble he opened
it. He turned it upside down, but
nothing came out, which
surprised him very much. He set
it in front of him, and whilst he
was looking at it attentively,
such a thick smoke came out
that he had to step back a pace
or two. This smoke rose up to
the clouds, and stretching over
the sea and the shore, formed a
thick mist, which caused the
fisherman much astonishment.
When all the smoke was out of
the jar it gathered itself
together, and became a thick
mass in which appeared a
genius, twice as large as the
largest giant. When he saw such
a terrible-looking monster, the
fisherman would like to have
run away, but he trembled so
with fright that he could not
move a step.
"Great king of the genii," cried
the monster, "I will never again
disobey you!"
At these words the fisherman
took courage.
"What is this you are saying,
great genius? Tell me your
history and how you came to be
shut up in that vase."
At this, the genius looked at the
fisherman haughtily. "Speak to
me more civilly," he said,
"before I kill you."
"Alas! why should you kill me?"
cried the fisherman. "I have just
freed you; have you already
forgotten that?"
"No," answered the genius; "but
that will not prevent me from
killing you; and I am only going
to grant you one favour, and
that is to choose the manner of
your death."
"But what have I done to you?"
asked the fisherman.
"I cannot treat you in any other
way," said the genius, "and if
you would know why, listen to
my story.
"I rebelled against the king of
the genii. To punish me, he shut
me up in this vase of copper,
and he put on the leaden cover
his seal, which is enchantment
enough to prevent my coming
out. Then he had the vase
thrown into the sea. During the
first period of my captivity I
vowed that if anyone should
free me before a hundred years
were passed, I would make him
rich even after his death. But
that century passed, and no one
freed me. In the second century
I vowed that I would give all the
treasures in the world to my
deliverer; but he never came.
"In the third, I promised to
make him a king, to be always
near him, and to grant him
three wishes every day; but that
century passed away as the
other two had done, and I
remained in the same plight. At
last I grew angry at being
captive for so long, and I vowed
that if anyone would release me
I would kill him at once, and
would only allow him to choose
in what manner he should die.
So you see, as you have freed
me to-day, choose in what way
you will die."
The fisherman was very
unhappy. "What an unlucky man
I am to have freed you! I
implore you to spare my life."
"I have told you," said the
genius, "that it is impossible.
Choose quickly; you are wasting
time."
The fisherman began to devise a
plot.
"Since I must die," he said,
"before I choose the manner of
my death, I conjure you on your
honour to tell me if you really
were in that vase?"
"Yes, I was" answered the
genius.
"I really cannot believe it," said
the fisherman. "That vase could
not contain one of your feet
even, and how could your whole
body go in? I cannot believe it
unless I see you do the thing."
Then the genius began to
change himself into smoke,
which, as before, spread over
the sea and the shore, and
which, then collecting itself
together, began to go back into
the vase slowly and evenly till
there was nothing left outside.
Then a voice came from the vase
which said to the fisherman,
"Well, unbelieving fisherman,
here I am in the vase; do you
believe me now?"
The fisherman instead of
answering took the lid of lead
and shut it down quickly on the
vase.
"Now, O genius," he cried, "ask
pardon of me, and choose by
what death you will die! But no,
it will be better if I throw you
into the sea whence I drew you
out, and I will build a house on
the shore to warn fishermen
who come to cast their nets
here, against fishing up such a
wicked genius as you are, who
vows to kill the man who frees
you."
At these words the genius did all
he could to get out, but he could
not, because of the
enchantment of the lid.
Then he tried to get out by
cunning.
"If you will take off the cover,"
he said, "I will repay you."
"No," answered the fisherman,
"if I trust myself to you I am
afraid you will treat me as a
certain Greek king treated the
physician Douban. Listen, and I
will tell you."
Written By : Ajit Hari Sahu
Saturday, February 4, 2012
tHE DOMESTIC EAGLe
Once a farmer found an
abandoned eagle's nest and
in it was an egg still warm.
He took the egg back to his
farm and laid it in the nest
of one of his hens. The egg
hatched and the baby eagle
grew up along with the
other chickens. It pecked
about the farmyard,
scrabbling for grain. It spent
its life within the yard and
rarely looked up. When it
was very old, one day it
lifted up its head and saw
above it a wonderful sight -
an eagle soaring high above
in the sky. Looking at it, the
old creature sighed and said
to itself, "If only I'd been
born an eagle".
mESSAGE OF THE STORy
Situation might have placed you where you are, that doesn't mean that your potentials and abilities are not in you. You are more than what you think you are. Just try to discover your potentials, work on your abilities and stop wishing you were in the shoes of others, only then will you make progress
Use the story sharing tools below to share this story with your friends if you like it. Remember, someone shared it with you.
Read more ...
abandoned eagle's nest and
in it was an egg still warm.
He took the egg back to his
farm and laid it in the nest
of one of his hens. The egg
hatched and the baby eagle
grew up along with the
other chickens. It pecked
about the farmyard,
scrabbling for grain. It spent
its life within the yard and
rarely looked up. When it
was very old, one day it
lifted up its head and saw
above it a wonderful sight -
an eagle soaring high above
in the sky. Looking at it, the
old creature sighed and said
to itself, "If only I'd been
born an eagle".
mESSAGE OF THE STORy
Situation might have placed you where you are, that doesn't mean that your potentials and abilities are not in you. You are more than what you think you are. Just try to discover your potentials, work on your abilities and stop wishing you were in the shoes of others, only then will you make progress
Use the story sharing tools below to share this story with your friends if you like it. Remember, someone shared it with you.
Friday, February 3, 2012
wHO WILL BE THE BOSs?
When the body was first made,
all parts wanted to be the Boss. There arose and arguement and it was concluded that each part should give a reason for which it should be the boss...
The Brain said I, because I decide.
Th Feet said us and so did the
Heart Lungs, Hands, and Eyes, each giving their reasons
Finally the Asshole said I should
be the Boss.
All the parts started laughing.
So the Asshole went on strike,
blocked itself, and refused to
open.
In a short time,the Hands
cranked,
The Eyes blurred,
The Ears emitted hot air,
The Brain got heavy,
The Heart and Lungs panicked...
So they all agreed that the
Asshole should be the BOSS
mORAL OF THE STORy:
1. Every one, no matter who you are or how little you're regarded has his/her own value.
2. It does'nt matter how talented
you are.,
Any Asshole can be your Boss..
This story was submitted by ayz
Use the share buttons below to share this post with your friends if you like it.
Read more ...
all parts wanted to be the Boss. There arose and arguement and it was concluded that each part should give a reason for which it should be the boss...
The Brain said I, because I decide.
Th Feet said us and so did the
Heart Lungs, Hands, and Eyes, each giving their reasons
Finally the Asshole said I should
be the Boss.
All the parts started laughing.
So the Asshole went on strike,
blocked itself, and refused to
open.
In a short time,the Hands
cranked,
The Eyes blurred,
The Ears emitted hot air,
The Brain got heavy,
The Heart and Lungs panicked...
So they all agreed that the
Asshole should be the BOSS
mORAL OF THE STORy:
1. Every one, no matter who you are or how little you're regarded has his/her own value.
2. It does'nt matter how talented
you are.,
Any Asshole can be your Boss..
This story was submitted by ayz
Use the share buttons below to share this post with your friends if you like it.
Thursday, February 2, 2012
tHE SMELL OF RAIn
A cold March wind danced
around the dead of night in
Dallas as the Doctor walked into
the small hospital room of Diana
Blessing. Still groggy from
surgery, her husband David held
her hand as they braced
themselves for the latest news.
That afternoon of March
10,1991, complications had
forced Diana, only 24 weeks
pregnant, to Danae Lu Blessing.
At 12 inches long and weighing
only one pound and nine
ounces, they already knew she
was perilously premature. Still,
the doctor’s soft words
dropped like bombs. I don’t
think she’s going to make it,
he said, as kindly as he could.
“There’s only a 10 percent
chance she will live through the
night, and even then, if by some
slim chance she does make it,
her future could be a very cruel
one.” Numb with disbelief,
David and Diana listened as the
doctor described the
devastating problems Danae
would likely face if she survived.
She would never walk, she
would never talk, she would
probably be blind, and she
would certainly be prone to
other catastrophic conditions
from cerebral palsy to complete
mental retardation, and on and
on. “No! No!” was all Diana
could say. She and David, with
their 5-year-old son Dustin, had
long dreamed of the day they
would have a daughter to
become a family of four. Now,
within a matter of hours, that
dream was slipping away.
Through the dark hours of
morning as Danae held onto life
by the thinnest thread, Diana
slipped in and out of sleep,
growing more and more
determined that their tiny
daughter would live, and live to
be a healthy, happy young girl.
But David, fully awake and
listening to additional dire
details of their daughter’s
chances of ever leaving the
hospital alive, much less
healthy, knew he must confront
his wife with the inevitable.
David walked in and said that
we needed to talk about making
funeral arrangements. Diana
remembers, ‘I felt so bad for
him because he was doing
everything, trying to include me
in what was going on, but I just
wouldn’t listen, I couldn’t
listen. I said, “No, that is not
going to happen, no way! I
don’t care what the doctors
say; Danae is not going to die!
One day she will be just fine,
and she will be coming home
with us!”
As if willed to live by Diana’s
determination, Danae clung to
life hour after hour, with the
help of every medical machine
and marvel her miniature body
could endure. But as those first
days passed, a new agony set in
for David and Diana. Because
Danae’s under-developed
nervous system was essentially
raw, the lightest kiss or caress
only intensified her discomfort,
so they couldn’t even cradle
their tiny baby girl against their
chests to offer the strength of
their love. All they could do, as
Danae struggled alone beneath
the ultraviolet light in the tangle
of tubes and wires, was to pray
that God would stay close to
their precious little girl. There
was never a moment when
Danae suddenly grew stronger.
But as the weeks went by, she
did slowly gain an ounce of
weight here and an ounce of
strength there. At last, when
Danae turned two months old,
her parents were able to hold
her in their arms for the very
first time. And two months
later-though doctors continued
to gently but grimly warn that
her chances of surviving, much
less living any kind of normal
life, were next to zero. Danae
went home from the hospital,
just as her mother had
predicted.
Today, five years later, Danae is
a petite but feisty young girl
with glittering gray eyes and an
unquenchable zest for life. She
shows no signs, what so ever, of
any mental or physical
impairment. Simply, she is
everything a little girl can be
and more-but that happy
ending is far from the end of
her story.
One blistering afternoon in the
summer of 1996 near her home
in Irving, Texas, Danae was
sitting in her mother’s lap in
the bleachers of a local ballpark
where her brother Dustin’s
baseball team was practicing. As
always, Danae was chattering
non-stop with her mother and
several other adults sitting
nearby when she suddenly fell
silent. Hugging her arms across
her chest, Danae asked, “Do
you smell that?” Smelling the
air and detecting the approach
of a thunderstorm, Diana
replied, “Yes, it smells like
rain.” Danae closed her eyes
and again asked, “Do you smell
that?” Once again, her mother
replied, “Yes, I think we’re
about to get wet, it smells like
rain. Still caught in the moment,
Danae shook her head, patted
her thin shoulders with her
small hands and loudly
announced, “No, it smells like
Him. It smells like God when you
lay your head on His chest.”
Tears blurred Diana’s eyes as
Danae then happily hopped
down to play with the other
children.
Before the rains came, her
daughter’s words confirmed
what Diana and all the members
of the extended Blessing family
had known, at least in their
hearts, all along. During those
long days and nights of her first
two months of her life, when
her nerves were too sensitive
for them to touch her, God was
holding Danae on His chest and
it is His loving scent that she
remembers so well.
Read more ...
around the dead of night in
Dallas as the Doctor walked into
the small hospital room of Diana
Blessing. Still groggy from
surgery, her husband David held
her hand as they braced
themselves for the latest news.
That afternoon of March
10,1991, complications had
forced Diana, only 24 weeks
pregnant, to Danae Lu Blessing.
At 12 inches long and weighing
only one pound and nine
ounces, they already knew she
was perilously premature. Still,
the doctor’s soft words
dropped like bombs. I don’t
think she’s going to make it,
he said, as kindly as he could.
“There’s only a 10 percent
chance she will live through the
night, and even then, if by some
slim chance she does make it,
her future could be a very cruel
one.” Numb with disbelief,
David and Diana listened as the
doctor described the
devastating problems Danae
would likely face if she survived.
She would never walk, she
would never talk, she would
probably be blind, and she
would certainly be prone to
other catastrophic conditions
from cerebral palsy to complete
mental retardation, and on and
on. “No! No!” was all Diana
could say. She and David, with
their 5-year-old son Dustin, had
long dreamed of the day they
would have a daughter to
become a family of four. Now,
within a matter of hours, that
dream was slipping away.
Through the dark hours of
morning as Danae held onto life
by the thinnest thread, Diana
slipped in and out of sleep,
growing more and more
determined that their tiny
daughter would live, and live to
be a healthy, happy young girl.
But David, fully awake and
listening to additional dire
details of their daughter’s
chances of ever leaving the
hospital alive, much less
healthy, knew he must confront
his wife with the inevitable.
David walked in and said that
we needed to talk about making
funeral arrangements. Diana
remembers, ‘I felt so bad for
him because he was doing
everything, trying to include me
in what was going on, but I just
wouldn’t listen, I couldn’t
listen. I said, “No, that is not
going to happen, no way! I
don’t care what the doctors
say; Danae is not going to die!
One day she will be just fine,
and she will be coming home
with us!”
As if willed to live by Diana’s
determination, Danae clung to
life hour after hour, with the
help of every medical machine
and marvel her miniature body
could endure. But as those first
days passed, a new agony set in
for David and Diana. Because
Danae’s under-developed
nervous system was essentially
raw, the lightest kiss or caress
only intensified her discomfort,
so they couldn’t even cradle
their tiny baby girl against their
chests to offer the strength of
their love. All they could do, as
Danae struggled alone beneath
the ultraviolet light in the tangle
of tubes and wires, was to pray
that God would stay close to
their precious little girl. There
was never a moment when
Danae suddenly grew stronger.
But as the weeks went by, she
did slowly gain an ounce of
weight here and an ounce of
strength there. At last, when
Danae turned two months old,
her parents were able to hold
her in their arms for the very
first time. And two months
later-though doctors continued
to gently but grimly warn that
her chances of surviving, much
less living any kind of normal
life, were next to zero. Danae
went home from the hospital,
just as her mother had
predicted.
Today, five years later, Danae is
a petite but feisty young girl
with glittering gray eyes and an
unquenchable zest for life. She
shows no signs, what so ever, of
any mental or physical
impairment. Simply, she is
everything a little girl can be
and more-but that happy
ending is far from the end of
her story.
One blistering afternoon in the
summer of 1996 near her home
in Irving, Texas, Danae was
sitting in her mother’s lap in
the bleachers of a local ballpark
where her brother Dustin’s
baseball team was practicing. As
always, Danae was chattering
non-stop with her mother and
several other adults sitting
nearby when she suddenly fell
silent. Hugging her arms across
her chest, Danae asked, “Do
you smell that?” Smelling the
air and detecting the approach
of a thunderstorm, Diana
replied, “Yes, it smells like
rain.” Danae closed her eyes
and again asked, “Do you smell
that?” Once again, her mother
replied, “Yes, I think we’re
about to get wet, it smells like
rain. Still caught in the moment,
Danae shook her head, patted
her thin shoulders with her
small hands and loudly
announced, “No, it smells like
Him. It smells like God when you
lay your head on His chest.”
Tears blurred Diana’s eyes as
Danae then happily hopped
down to play with the other
children.
Before the rains came, her
daughter’s words confirmed
what Diana and all the members
of the extended Blessing family
had known, at least in their
hearts, all along. During those
long days and nights of her first
two months of her life, when
her nerves were too sensitive
for them to touch her, God was
holding Danae on His chest and
it is His loving scent that she
remembers so well.
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