Posted on Oct 13, 2014
What's your favorite parable (life lesson story)?
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Parables were often used to teach life lessons and when observed they would help you learn how to survive or how to handle life's ups and downs, etc. They can come from the wisdom of past generations, ancient philosophers, books, films, or even music (songs)... Basically they just tell a moral or offer some advice to the listener, through an entertaining anecdote
My favorite is the one about the little bird who fell out of it's nest.
"There once was a little bird trying to sleep high in tree on cold winter night. But it just couldn't get comfortable and by moving around too much it fell out of the tree onto the snowy ground below. There it cried out for help (squawk! squawk!) Finally a cow came along and saw this poor little bird. So she did the only think she could, she raised her tail and released a large pile of manure on the little bird. Now the bird was very warm underneath it all but still wasn't happy. And so the little bird cried out for help (squawk! squawk!). Finally a coyote came by and saw this poor little bird so he reached with his paw and carefully pulled the bird out. Brushed the 'dirt' off and... swallowed the bird in one gulp!"
The moral of the story is 'not every who craps on you wants to hurt you and not everyone pulls you out is there to help'.
What is your favorite Parable?
My favorite is the one about the little bird who fell out of it's nest.
"There once was a little bird trying to sleep high in tree on cold winter night. But it just couldn't get comfortable and by moving around too much it fell out of the tree onto the snowy ground below. There it cried out for help (squawk! squawk!) Finally a cow came along and saw this poor little bird. So she did the only think she could, she raised her tail and released a large pile of manure on the little bird. Now the bird was very warm underneath it all but still wasn't happy. And so the little bird cried out for help (squawk! squawk!). Finally a coyote came by and saw this poor little bird so he reached with his paw and carefully pulled the bird out. Brushed the 'dirt' off and... swallowed the bird in one gulp!"
The moral of the story is 'not every who craps on you wants to hurt you and not everyone pulls you out is there to help'.
What is your favorite Parable?
Education
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Morals
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Edited 10 y ago
Posted 10 y ago
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Two stories seem to explain most of life to me: The Emperor's New Suit of Clothes and B'rer Rabbit and the Tar Baby. Yep, the first explains everything from Star Bucks Coffee (bad beans, burnt and sold at ridiculous prices) to most celebrities (have you seen the complementary photos of Gwyneth Paltrow circulating on the Internet).
Many may not be familiar with the second, so allow me to summarize. The fox captures the rabbit by constructing a "person" out of tar, dressing it, and setting it on a log by the trail that the rabbit frequents. The rabbit becomes upset when the tar baby fails to respond to simple pleasantries such as a "Good morning," going so far as to punch the tar baby and becoming stuck. The harder the rabbit fights, the faster he becomes stuck. There's a life lesson in that story...
Many may not be familiar with the second, so allow me to summarize. The fox captures the rabbit by constructing a "person" out of tar, dressing it, and setting it on a log by the trail that the rabbit frequents. The rabbit becomes upset when the tar baby fails to respond to simple pleasantries such as a "Good morning," going so far as to punch the tar baby and becoming stuck. The harder the rabbit fights, the faster he becomes stuck. There's a life lesson in that story...
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I think this one qualifies as a Parable...at any rate, it's a story with a good moral:
An old Cherokee is teaching his grandson about life. "A fight is going on inside each of us," he said to the boy.
"It is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves. One is evil - he is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego."
He continued, "The other is good - he is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith. The same fight is going on inside you - and inside every other person, too."
The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather, "Which wolf will win?"
The old Cherokee simply replied, "The one you feed."
An old Cherokee is teaching his grandson about life. "A fight is going on inside each of us," he said to the boy.
"It is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves. One is evil - he is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego."
He continued, "The other is good - he is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith. The same fight is going on inside you - and inside every other person, too."
The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather, "Which wolf will win?"
The old Cherokee simply replied, "The one you feed."
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MAJ Robert (Bob) Petrarca
It's actually a children's book SSG Pete Fleming
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Giving_Tree
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/370493.The_Giving_Tree
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Giving_Tree
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/370493.The_Giving_Tree
The Giving Tree - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Giving Tree is a children's picture book written and illustrated by Shel Silverstein. First published in 1964 by Harper & Row, it has become one of Silverstein's best known titles and has been translated into numerous languages.
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SSG Pete Fleming
MAJ Robert Petrarca, Ah, ok... thanks for the link. I may have to add this to the collection. Thank you
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MAJ Robert (Bob) Petrarca
I've always loved it since I first heard it back when I was in first grade SSG Pete Fleming and have passed it on to my children.
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