As illustrated by the following tale, we all sit by a “pot of stew.” A man sought out a respected old sage and said, “O wise one, I would like to know what heaven and hell are like.”
The sage led the man to two doors. He opened one of the doors, and the 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 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. 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 man shuddered at the sight of their misery and suffering. The wise man 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 that made the man’s mouth water. The people were equipped with the same long-handled spoons strapped to their arms, but here the people were well nourished and plump, laughing and talking.
The man said, “I don’t understand!”
“It is simple,” said his venerable guide. “It requires but one skill. You see, they have learned to feed each other, while the greedy think only of themselves” (author unknown).
Taken from: Spiritual Nourishment and Long-Handled Spoons
We all have long-handled spoons to deal with in our lives. They may come in the form of a physical illness or in the silent suffering of emotional illness. Maybe the heartache of loss makes it difficult to give ourselves the strength to go on, and so we need others with long-handled spoons to feed our aching souls. Whatever our troubles may be, we have something to offer. In serving others, we will find ourselves again. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will save his life for my sake shall find it (Matthew 16:25).
