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There once was a fish that swam near the surface of a lake by its
shore. He was so near the surface that he could hear the loud
singing and laughter of a monkey passing by. Out of curiosity, he
partly raised his head out of the water and spoke to the elated
monkey.
“Hey there, furry one,” the fish said.
“Hahahaha!…Hello scaly, fishy one,”
replied the monkey.
“What are you so happy about?” the fish
asked.
The monkey laughed even more and did three
consecutive back flips as monkeys usually do. When he settled, he
replied.
“I am going over that hill. I’ve been
travelling for weeks to reach the valley over there.”
“What’s so great about the valley over
there?” the fish asked.
The monkey rolled on the beach sand and said:
“The valley is full of green gardens, tall trees and sweet fruits
for many monkeys. Best of all, there are no tigers, bears, lions and
other great beasts to kill me for food.”
Being a fish, he didn’t know what a tiger,
bear or a lion was. But he assumed that they were as scary as
sharks, barracudas and other big fish in the water that always try
to eat him. The thought of being away from these predatory fishes
appealed to him very much. In a way, he shared with the monkey the
hope that there was freedom on the other side of the hill. He got so
entranced with the joy of the monkey that he blurted:
“Take me with you. I want to be away from the
sharks and other big hungry fishes that always try to eat me. I want
to be free.”
“Sure. There’s room for many,” The monkey
shouted.
So the fish leaped from the water and was caught
by the monkey. The monkey ran with the fish in his arms over the
hill. The water hasn’t even evaporated from the fish’s scales
when he was set on the grass of an expansive green, lush meadow.
“Furry one,” gasped the fish, “I can’t
breath.”
The monkey was too busy swinging on the trees
and eating fruits to hear the fish gasping and suffocating.
“Weeeeee! Freedom! Smell that fresh air!”
the monkey was heard shouting.
The fish’s consciousness left as soon as the
last drop of water on his scales evaporated under the warm sunlight.
The fish was obviously better off in the water.
Even with all the sharks and other predators in the sea, the fish
was designed and equipped to cope and survive the harsh under water
environment. For one moment, the fish forgot what kind of animal he
was, thus forgetting where he would thrive the most.
Do we as individuals know what kind of animal we
are? Or do we listen to others to tell us what is best for us not
knowing that even if it seems safe externally, we die inside because
it is not the environment we need to grow and be ourselves?
Are we in relationships and/or careers that
suffocate us because we listen to too many monkeys? Without the
monkey noises, who are we really?
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