A holy man was having a conversation with the Lord one day and said, Lord, I would like to know what Heaven and Hell are like.' The Lord led the holy man to two doors. He opened one of the doors and the holy man looked in. In the middle of the room was a large round table. In the middle of the table was a large pot of stew, which smelled delicious and made the holy man's mouth water.
The people sitting around the table were thin and sickly. They appeared to be famished. They were holding spoons with very long handles that were strapped to their arms and each found it possible to reach into the pot of stew and take a spoonful. But because the handle was longer than their arms, they could not get the spoons back into their mouths. The holy man shuddered at the sight of their misery and suffering.
The Lord said, 'You have seen Hell.'
They went to the next room and opened the door. It was exactly the same as the first one. There was the large round table with the large pot of stew which made the holy man's mouth water. The people were equipped with the same long-handled spoons, but here the people were well nourished and plump, laughing and talking. The holy man said, 'I don't understand. 'It is simple,' said the Lord. 'It requires but one skill. You see, they have learned to feed each other. The greedy think only of themselves.'
gongman: The OP started with "I am not religious or anything,but....................."
Neither am I,but this one hit me right between the eyes.
One of the best I have ever seen on these forums.
I liked that one too
heres a similar one from old folklore........
The Legend of Stone Soup
Many years ago, during the Hundred Years War in France, three weary soldiers were returning from battle. They stopped in a small village after two days of no food. The impoverished towns people, who had little food themselves, saw the bedraggled men and decided to hide what little they had from the famished soldiers.
Everywhere they went, they heard the same story. There was no food in anyone's pantry. The soldiers were desperate and desperate men can be quite cunning. The three pitched a camp close to the center of town. They found a large cauldron and decided to make "stone soup."
Over a campfire, they got the pot boiling with some water from a nearby creek. Into the boiling water they placed a few stones. The curious townspeople saw the pot boiling and started asking questions. The soldiers explained that they had made a "stone soup" but that it would be much better with some seasonings.
Off ran some peasants to get some herbs to spice up the pot. As the aroma improved another peasant decided it would be better with vegetables. Still another thought, "what is a soup without meat?" and ran to get some. Eventually all the peasants had to get involved with this wonderful soup and everyone contributed something.
With the cooperation of the whole town, the best meal everyone had had in years was provided. They all decided they would never go hungry again, now that they knew how to make soup from stones.
gongman: And they eventually turned it into Holland´s Pies.........
Apologies to non Lancastrians.
hahaha - I live not too far from there it smells great on baking day - but I come from Stockport really where we have Robinsons Brewery - brewing day is flea market day and I used to hate the smell as a child - I love it now though, and miss it.......
trish123: hahaha - I live not too far from there it smells great on baking day - but I come from Stockport really where we have Robinsons Brewery - brewing day is flea market day and I used to hate the smell as a child - I love it now though, and miss it.......
Even if you have never been to Manchester or even England,you can appreciate this "smell" story.
Boddingtons is a well known brewery in Manchester.They make amazing beer.
Strangeways is a prison in Manchester.They imprison people.
The one is very close to the other.The smell drifts across.
gongman: A holy man was having a conversation with the Lord one day and said, Lord, I would like to know what Heaven and Hell are like.' The Lord led the holy man to two doors. He opened one of the doors and the holy man looked in. In the middle of the room was a large round table. In the middle of the table was a large pot of stew, which smelled delicious and made the holy man's mouth water.
The people sitting around the table were thin and sickly. They appeared to be famished. They were holding spoons with very long handles that were strapped to their arms and each found it possible to reach into the pot of stew and take a spoonful. But because the handle was longer than their arms, they could not get the spoons back into their mouths. The holy man shuddered at the sight of their misery and suffering.
The Lord said, 'You have seen Hell.' They went to the next room and opened the door. It was exactly the same as the first one. There was the large round table with the large pot of stew which made the holy man's mouth water. The people were equipped with the same long-handled spoons, but here the people were well nourished and plump, laughing and talking. The holy man said, 'I don't understand. 'It is simple,' said the Lord. 'It requires but one skill. You see, they have learned to feed each other. The greedy think only of themselves.'
Very inspirational , Gongman ! Thank you for sharing
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day and said, Lord, I would like to know what Heaven and Hell are like.'
The Lord led the holy man to two doors. He opened one of the doors and the
holy man looked in. In the middle of the room was a large round table. In
the middle of the table was a large pot of stew, which smelled delicious and
made the holy man's mouth water.
The people sitting around the table were thin and
sickly. They appeared to be famished. They were holding spoons with very
long handles that were strapped to their arms and each found it possible to
reach into the pot of stew and take a spoonful. But because the handle was
longer than their arms, they could not get the spoons back into their
mouths. The holy man shuddered at the sight of their misery and
suffering.
The Lord said, 'You have seen Hell.'
They went to the next room and opened the door. It was
exactly the same as the first one. There was the large round table with the
large pot of stew which made the holy man's mouth water. The people were
equipped with the same long-handled spoons, but here the people were well
nourished and plump, laughing and talking. The holy man said, 'I don't
understand. 'It is simple,' said the Lord. 'It requires but one
skill. You see, they have learned to feed each other. The greedy think
only of themselves.'