There was an old man who lived by a forest.
As he grew older and older, he started losing his hair, until one day, on his deathbed, he was completely bald. That day, he called his children to a meeting.
He said, "Look at my hair. It used to be so magnificent, but it's completely gone now. My hair can't be saved. But look outside at the forest. It's such a lovely forest with so many trees, but sooner or later they'll all be cut down and this forest will look as bald as my hair."
"What I want you to do," the man continued, "is, every time a tree is cut down or dies, plant a new one in my memory. Tell your descendants to do the same. It shall be our family's duty to keep this forest strong."
So they did. Each time the forest lost a tree, the children replanted one, and so did their children, and their children after them. And for centuries, the forest remained as lush and pretty as it once was, all because of one man and his re-seeding heirline.
A famous British explorer was invited to a seaside town to give a talk about his adventures in the African jungle.
โCan you imagine a people so primitive that they love to eat the embryos of a certain bird and slices of the belly of a certain animal?โ the explorer asked the assembled audience.
Its members gasped and looked around at each other in horror.
โThey also grind up grass seed, make it into a paste, burn it over a fire, then smear the result with a greasy mess thatโs extracted from the mammary fluid of certain other animals,โ the explorer continued.
โUtterly barbaric! How can people live like that?โ said a shocked individual.
โAll Iโve described is a breakfast of bacon, eggs and buttered toast, sir!โ retorted the explorer.
Moral of the story: Don't be quick to judge cultures before you understand your own!
Go to BabaMail
