A Saturday Pontification – We ARE our Brothers’ and Sisters’ Keepers
Today I have for y’all more than just a line or two in short pontification format. It is a parable written by Ebrahim Rashid, that lends special meaning to the poignant pontification that we are, indeed, our brother’s keeper. Enjoy, reflect, and please share your impressions and thoughts in the comments.
***
A mouse looked through the crack in the wall to see the farmer an
d 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 its 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 a mousetrap 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 was caught by the trap. 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 around the clock.
To feed them, the farmer butchered the pig.
The farmer’s wife did not get well; she 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.
~~~~~
Morale (thus sayeth the Old Silly): 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 linked, all interconnected, with invisible karmic thread.
All of us are all involved in this journey called life. We must keep an eye out for one another and make an extra effort to protect, encourage, and look out for one another.
***
Oh and fore ya go – a little levity – my blogger buddy The Quirky Loon has a competition goin’ down. She’s gifting a “Plants vs. Zombies” game and bestowing a “Quombie Award” to the blog-hopper who can best pen a poem inspired by zombies. Ya have to link to her blog (which I just did – twice) and post your poem. Ya wanna here it? Here it goes-
A Zombie once wanted a Quombie.
He’d die in his coffin one to get.
He puzzled his head,
Though he was mostly brain dead,
and penned this pathetic poem wannabe.
***
Okay toodles, chow and bye bye. Blog in tomorrow for a great interview with Boomer Generation novelist Elisabeth Lee.
Click on Tweety Bird and tweet this post if you liked it!
Out Zormbie-standish! I vote YEAH! Bring on the Quombie award!
Oh and also – the parable? Right on, bro – we ARE each other’s keeper.
Great moral to this story. Love the saturday ponts, Marv – and hey – zombie poem? pretty cool, lol.
This story is soooooo true!. And I’ve been to Quirky Loon’s blog before – she’s even loonier than the old silly! lol
I love the parable…it didn’t go the direction I thought it would! I thought the mouse was going to get trapped and then taken in by the family as a treasured pet.
I haven’t been to Quirky Loon’s site before now, but I just became a follower. Thanks for the tip!
Elizabeth
Mystery Writing is Murder
Thanks, Elizabeth, and you’re welcome – Quirky’s blog is a daily stitch and a half – you’ll LOVE it!
Good parable. Love stories with a moral.
Hope you win the contest. Your poem was very good!
Helen
Straight From Hel
Really? Thanks, Helen – I don’t think of myself as much of a poet, but zombies inspre me I guess – lol
Thanks Marvin for writing this, I have a great fear at the moment……..Cancer. my cervix smear is abnormal, two of my children have been really supportive
the other one don’t even want to know the detrails, I am heartbroken but not defeated.
Have a lovely week-end.
Yvonne.
Yvonne – my heart and prayers are with you. Like Ron and others have said here – think and BE positive. Positive energy, thought, and prayer are powerful forces. And always live each day as if it were your last – even when completely healthy it is the way to live life to its fullest. Take care and please keep us informed of how you’re doing – you have friends here.
I hope you don’t mind Yvonne, but I’m a cancer survivor! Breast and cervical! Cancer does suck, but you will be able to fight it! And it won’t be super scary after awhile! It is NOT always a death sentence. I promise. I know lots of women who beat this thing! And you can too! Honest!
But I do know how overwhelming the feelings are right now. Just feel what you feel and find ways to self-soothe. My faith in God helped me tremendously.
My prayers will be with you!
Yvonne, think positive. It might have just been a smudge on the lens of the microscope. As for the parable, I’ve heard it before but I”ve always lived that way. I help others when I can.
Yvonne, you are now and forever more in my prayers. Remember, we never take God by surprise.
Great parable Marv… so fitting right now.
Love you man!
Katrina – I’m pretty sure I know why you’re saying that. (wink) Take care, sweetie!
A mouse story with a moral and a zombie poem. Perfect!
Elspeth
LOL – yep, strange bedfellows, eh?
I love the story. It is so true. It’s one thing to avoid the drama of someone’s problem but completely disengaging just isn’t right.
BTW, I wrote a poem, too. I just posted it so you can head back there when you get a chance.
Cool! Be right over!
That was a great example to not bury our heads in the sand. The rewards are so much greater when you help other people out than when you ignore them.
Morgan Mandel
http://morganmandel.blogspot.com
http://www.morganmandel.com
Great parable and poem Marvin!
I really liked the parable it made me smile.
The poem was great! But…will it be Quombie worthy? We shall see, my friend, we shall see!
hee hee
Thanks, Quirky. And I also want to thank you for the kind and encouraging words for Yvonne. Lotsa good peeps here pulling for her – I hope she comes back and reads these comments – especially yours. You’re the best, gf.
To all of you who have sent me good wishes through Marvins comment I thank you, It’s most comforting to know there are many people
the other side of the world have taken the trouble to write.
My positivity was shaken for a while Thursday and Friday but today is a different ball game all together, I am a firm believer in prayer
It helped when my son had cancer 2 years ago he is now in remission.
Once again many thanks from the bottom of my heart.
Yvonne.
Yvonne I’m so glad you came back to read these comments. Please keep us posted – and yes – ATTITUDE! Fight time, and fight to win. Having God on your side through prayer is a mighty sword. Wield it!
OldSilly,
Great parable… what one of us does effects all of us in some way or another.
I also just posted my Quirky Zombie poem.
To Yvonne: I’ll be healing thoughts your way!
A really good moral learned from there, Old Silly(:
Hey, nice hearing from you again in blogger! Keep in touch
Absolutely love the name of your blog, though very little time now, I will be back for more.
Have a great day.