15 May 2006
Of mice and gratitude
A highschool classmate sent this one to my email yesterday. I like the story, despite the annoying fact that it came by way of chain mail -- surprise, surprise!
___________
The Mouse Tale
A mouse looked through the crack in the wall to see the farmer and his wife open a package.
"What food might this contain?" the mouse wondered. He was devastated to discover it was a mousetrap.
Retreating to the farmyard, the mouse proclaimed the warning. "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!"
The chicken clucked and scratched, raised her head and said, "Mr. Mouse, I can tell this is a grave concern to you, but it is of no consequence to me. I cannot be bothered by it."
The mouse turned to the pig and told him,"There is a mousetrap in the house! There is amousetrap in the house!"
The pig sympathized, but said,"I am so very sorry, Mr. Mouse, but there is nothing I can do about it but pray. Be assured you are in my prayers."
The mouse turned to the cow and said, "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!"
The cow said, "Wow, Mr. Mouse. I'm sorry for you, but it's no skin off my nose."
So, the mouse returned to the house, head down and dejected, to face the farmer's mousetrap alone. That very night a sound was heard throughout the house--like the sound of a mousetrap catching its prey. The farmer's wife rushed to see what was caught. In the darkness, she did not see it was a venomous snake whose tail the trap had caught. The snake bit the farmer's wife.
The farmer rushed her to the hospital, and she returned home with a fever. Everyone knows you treat a fever with fresh chicken soup, so the farmer took his hatchet to the farmyard for the soup's main ingredient. But his wife's sickness continued, so friends and neighbors came to sit with her round the clock. To feed them, the farmer butchered the pig.
The farmer's wife did not get well and died. So many people came for her funeral, the farmer had the cow slaughtered to provide enough meat for all of them. The mouse looked upon it all from his crack in the wall with great sadness.
So, the next time you hear someone is facing a problem and think it doesn't concern you, remember: When one of us is threatened, we are all at risk. We are all involved in this journey called life. We must keep an eye out for one another and make an extra effort to encourage one another.
Send this to everyone who has ever helped you out and let them know how important they are. Remember: Each of us is a vital thread in another person's tapestry; our lives are woven together for a reason. One of the best things to hold onto this world is a friend. Thank you for being mine.
___________
Those who have helped me. Despite all the sadness, annoyance, and even anger I'm burdened with right now, I'd still do the impossible and simply say thanks. I mean, clearly it's very hard for a villain like me to do the forgive-and-forget thing, so I'll settle for the easier and safer choice. Gratitude.
Who would have thought that after all the shit that ruined my days I'd still have the sanity to stay in the Optimists Lane? That after all the failed attempts at self-contentment, I'd still have the guts to prep up for the next fight? That after all the wannabees and users and pretentious freaks that gatecrashed my life, I'd still be up to go on?
Hold that thought, pal. I'm not about to burst into inspirational songs and enlightening ho-hums. The reason is pretty simple: I'm not done with all of you bastards and bitches yet.
My 22nd year on earth is about to end. And like all the frustrated-but-will-eventually-triumph heroes in the movies, I will shed my old skin and with it all the barf-worthy things that burst each and every cute bubble I had. Then again, it's only physical parting. Everything will still be in my head.
But right now, as the mouse above suggests, gratitude should come first. So to all those crappy things and nincompoops that stained my mortal existence, thank you. I now know better.
And, wait for me. I'll. Be. Right. There.
___________
The Mouse Tale
A mouse looked through the crack in the wall to see the farmer and his wife open a package.
"What food might this contain?" the mouse wondered. He was devastated to discover it was a mousetrap.
Retreating to the farmyard, the mouse proclaimed the warning. "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!"
The chicken clucked and scratched, raised her head and said, "Mr. Mouse, I can tell this is a grave concern to you, but it is of no consequence to me. I cannot be bothered by it."
The mouse turned to the pig and told him,"There is a mousetrap in the house! There is amousetrap in the house!"
The pig sympathized, but said,"I am so very sorry, Mr. Mouse, but there is nothing I can do about it but pray. Be assured you are in my prayers."
The mouse turned to the cow and said, "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!"
The cow said, "Wow, Mr. Mouse. I'm sorry for you, but it's no skin off my nose."
So, the mouse returned to the house, head down and dejected, to face the farmer's mousetrap alone. That very night a sound was heard throughout the house--like the sound of a mousetrap catching its prey. The farmer's wife rushed to see what was caught. In the darkness, she did not see it was a venomous snake whose tail the trap had caught. The snake bit the farmer's wife.
The farmer rushed her to the hospital, and she returned home with a fever. Everyone knows you treat a fever with fresh chicken soup, so the farmer took his hatchet to the farmyard for the soup's main ingredient. But his wife's sickness continued, so friends and neighbors came to sit with her round the clock. To feed them, the farmer butchered the pig.
The farmer's wife did not get well and died. So many people came for her funeral, the farmer had the cow slaughtered to provide enough meat for all of them. The mouse looked upon it all from his crack in the wall with great sadness.
So, the next time you hear someone is facing a problem and think it doesn't concern you, remember: When one of us is threatened, we are all at risk. We are all involved in this journey called life. We must keep an eye out for one another and make an extra effort to encourage one another.
Send this to everyone who has ever helped you out and let them know how important they are. Remember: Each of us is a vital thread in another person's tapestry; our lives are woven together for a reason. One of the best things to hold onto this world is a friend. Thank you for being mine.
___________
Those who have helped me. Despite all the sadness, annoyance, and even anger I'm burdened with right now, I'd still do the impossible and simply say thanks. I mean, clearly it's very hard for a villain like me to do the forgive-and-forget thing, so I'll settle for the easier and safer choice. Gratitude.
Who would have thought that after all the shit that ruined my days I'd still have the sanity to stay in the Optimists Lane? That after all the failed attempts at self-contentment, I'd still have the guts to prep up for the next fight? That after all the wannabees and users and pretentious freaks that gatecrashed my life, I'd still be up to go on?
Hold that thought, pal. I'm not about to burst into inspirational songs and enlightening ho-hums. The reason is pretty simple: I'm not done with all of you bastards and bitches yet.
My 22nd year on earth is about to end. And like all the frustrated-but-will-eventually-triumph heroes in the movies, I will shed my old skin and with it all the barf-worthy things that burst each and every cute bubble I had. Then again, it's only physical parting. Everything will still be in my head.
But right now, as the mouse above suggests, gratitude should come first. So to all those crappy things and nincompoops that stained my mortal existence, thank you. I now know better.
And, wait for me. I'll. Be. Right. There.
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