One day, as I was walking from court, I noticed a young courtier standing. He had been standing for several hours, and though there were several chairs in front of him he did not take one.
I asked him, "My friend, why do you stand?"
"So that one day I may be allowed to sit."
"Why not simply sit down then?"
"Because while I am able to stand, I will."
"It seems you are at somewhat of an impasse, no? That you do one thing while you can in anticipation of the time you won't have to any longer?"
When I said this the man's Lord walked by and kicked his feet from under him and the courtier fell. He sat on the ground, as placid as he was when he stood. After several moments I asked him, "My friend, why do you sit?"
He replied, "So that one day, I might be allowed to stand."
No comments:
Post a Comment