By Staff
Front porches are great places to share stories.
Let me share one with you that was sent to me by my brother-in-law, Phil.
He and my wife, children of Methodist missionaries, grew up in Africa and he spent much of his professional life working in several African nations.
Naomi and I have returned a couple of times to visit her parents before their retirement.
Hence, we have an African connection.
The story (actually it's a fable) goes like this:
A wealthy old lady signs up for a photo safari in Africa.
She takes her faithful aged poodle, Cuddles, along for company.
One day Cuddles starts chasing butterflies and before long discovers that she's lost.
Wandering about, she notices a leopard heading rapidly in her direction with the intention of having lunch.
The old poodle thinks, "Oh, oh! I'm in deep doo-doo now!"
Noticing some bones on the ground close by, she immediately settles down to chew on the bones with her back to the approaching cat.
Just as the leopard is about to leap, the old poodle exclaims loudly, "Boy, that was one delicious leopard! I wonder if there are any more around here?"
Hearing this, the young leopard halts his attack in mid-strike, a look of terror comes over him and he slinks away into the trees.
Meanwhile, a monkey who had been watching from a nearby tree figures he can put this knowledge to good use and trade it for protection from the leopard.
So off he goes, but the old poodle sees him heading after the leopard with great speed, and figures that something must be up.
The monkey soon catches up with the leopard, spills the beans and strikes a deal for himself with the leopard.
The young leopard is furious at being made a fool of.
The old poodle sees the leopard coming with the monkey on his back and thinks, "What am I going to do now?"
Then, instead of running, Cuddles sits down with her back to the attackers, pretending she hasn't seen them yet.
Just as they get close enough to hear, the old poodle says: "Where's that stupid monkey? I sent him off an hour ago to bring me another leopard!"
Moral of this story: Don't mess with old geezers; age and treachery will always overcome youth and skill! Blarney and brilliance only come with age and experience!
And be very much aware that God is older and wiser than any of us.