Parable of The Swimmer and the Desert Man
Take the story of the former college swimming champion and the middle aged business man from the desert.
There was a businessman and swimming champion who loved the water and was very proud of his abilities in it. When on a business trip he met the man from the desert and asked if he wanted to go to the pool with him for a swim. The man from the desert stared for a moment, mumbled something and walked away. The next day the swimmer ran into the desert man again and again invited him for a swim, knowing and believing that one can swim their way to perfect health. The desert man scornfully replied back “did you not hear me yesterday? I don't swim! I don't like swimming! It is too much a waste of time." The swimmer persisted though, explaining all of the physical rewards swimming offers, having noticed desert man had a weak, pallid look about him. The man from the desert responded angrily that the problem with swimmers was too much water on the brain and in the ears and walked away. This exchange continued for several days, in spite of desert man's resistance, because the swimming champ knew he would want to be pushed hard to jump into the water if he was resistant to it.
Then, one day after returning from a trip out of town, the swimming champ started looking around for the desert man, who was nowhere to be seen. Stopping a fellow worker, he asked for desert man's whereabouts. He had come up with the most convincing argument yet for getting him into the water.
He was told then that the man from the desert was taken to the hospital earlier. Apparently he had been drinking his third cup of coffee after finishing a trucker's sized breakfast, when he suddenly got up mumbling something about how he was going shut that swimming fanatic up once and for all by jumping in at the edge of the pool, holding on at all times, so that he could pull himself out right away. Unlike the swimming champ, desert man had grown up in the desert where swimming pools were a waste of a valuable commodity. He had never learned to swim because no one was around when he was a child to teach him. Swimming was a foreign word by the time he was in college. Anyway, immediately after jumping into the water he cramped up into knots and nearly drowned before someone pulled him out. He did recover enough prior to the ambulance taking him away, to say that the water felt so cool and refreshing for a moment, that he may try getting in again, but first he was going to prepare himself and be certain he was ready. A few days later the swimming champ sent a note of apology to the desert man. The note read: "I'm sorry if my badgering caused you to put your life at risk. It’s just that I knew if I never got in a pool before, I would want someone to push me to jump in. I never thought that the life I had led would cause me to falsely expect someone unfamiliar with it to eagerly accept it too.
The moral to this is: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you as if you were living in their life.
Parable - the Swimmer and the Desert Man
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- Tom Watson
- Forever Silent Friend
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Parable - the Swimmer and the Desert Man
A valuable lesson. Nicely done. <img border="0" alt="[ThumbsUp]" title="" src="graemlins/thumbsup.gif" />
Parable - the Swimmer and the Desert Man
A lesson that should be practiced by [ALL] not just a select few. Good write!
Spaces <img border="0" alt="[Hello]" title="" src="graemlins/wave1.gif" />
Spaces <img border="0" alt="[Hello]" title="" src="graemlins/wave1.gif" />
Parable - the Swimmer and the Desert Man
Actually Tom, I found the moral to the story even more profound. Your story aligns precisely with this teaching parable:
"Moreover, no one pours new wine into old wine skins. Should he do so, the new wine will burst the old skins, the wine will spill out and the skins will be lost. New wine should be poured into fresh skins." LK. 5:37-38
Wonderfull story. <img border="0" alt="[ThumbsUp]" title="" src="graemlins/thumbsup.gif" /> Really makes ya think.
~Mary O
"Moreover, no one pours new wine into old wine skins. Should he do so, the new wine will burst the old skins, the wine will spill out and the skins will be lost. New wine should be poured into fresh skins." LK. 5:37-38
Wonderfull story. <img border="0" alt="[ThumbsUp]" title="" src="graemlins/thumbsup.gif" /> Really makes ya think.
~Mary O
- kuperian4ever
- Seafoam Poet
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My dear fellow poets above and those to come below. And to Tom who
has written a most wonderful parable..
My disagreeance with it is...
Take a young child and a teacher..the young child has never attended
school and has never left the clutches of it's parents. The child will fear
most horribly that first day of school. Will even resort to tears and
temper tantrum to resist the mere thought of it. In this, the child will
attend and will be much better off for it.
The moral of the story above is in order to learn the golden rule one
must teach you it's meaning. You will fear recieving the lesson but
will become more spiritually wealthy in it's teaching.
Mary O..I believe the pouring of new wine into old skins has a different
meaning than what is intended here for even to bring the gospel to one
who has never heard it would never happen if that were the case.
The parable of wise man and the fool would be better fitting for that.
has written a most wonderful parable..
My disagreeance with it is...
Take a young child and a teacher..the young child has never attended
school and has never left the clutches of it's parents. The child will fear
most horribly that first day of school. Will even resort to tears and
temper tantrum to resist the mere thought of it. In this, the child will
attend and will be much better off for it.
The moral of the story above is in order to learn the golden rule one
must teach you it's meaning. You will fear recieving the lesson but
will become more spiritually wealthy in it's teaching.
Mary O..I believe the pouring of new wine into old skins has a different
meaning than what is intended here for even to bring the gospel to one
who has never heard it would never happen if that were the case.
The parable of wise man and the fool would be better fitting for that.
Bric-a Brac
Death will be your final victory over life
Rejoice, for victory comes even as you live
Spread your arms and embrace the future
Death will be your final victory over life
Rejoice, for victory comes even as you live
Spread your arms and embrace the future
- Tom Watson
- Forever Silent Friend
- Posts: 1336
- Joined: Sun Dec 01, 2002 12:01 am
- Location: Novato, CA USA
- Contact:
...I had forgotten about this one being here.....sorry about the lack of response to you who commented....
Crowtiger, if you are still around, thank you for reading and taking the time to comment.
Spaces, I know you are gone now, but should you return, thank you for the kind words
Mary, I have not heard from you either, for a while....thank you for the thought and response....parables can lead to many interpretations and yours is one for deep thought...
Kup, thank you for the studied comment, for which you will find no disagreement from me......as I read it now, I reflect upon the effort to introduce a non-christian to Jesus and the difficulties encountered...yet when the spirit moves that person to "test the waters" so to speak, he finds amazing changes take place in his life.....
Tom
Crowtiger, if you are still around, thank you for reading and taking the time to comment.
Spaces, I know you are gone now, but should you return, thank you for the kind words
Mary, I have not heard from you either, for a while....thank you for the thought and response....parables can lead to many interpretations and yours is one for deep thought...
Kup, thank you for the studied comment, for which you will find no disagreement from me......as I read it now, I reflect upon the effort to introduce a non-christian to Jesus and the difficulties encountered...yet when the spirit moves that person to "test the waters" so to speak, he finds amazing changes take place in his life.....
Tom
"Whispers of Love" a book of poetry expressing love of the heart and spirit is released worldwide on August 11, 2009. Visit my home page at
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