We are all connected...

fable: author unknown.. a story I read earlier today. I was touched by what we can all learn from it... here goes. 

A rat looked through a crack in the wall to see the farmer and his wife opening a package.  
"What food it might contain?", thought the hungry rat. He was aghast to discover that it was a rat trap! Retreating into the barnyard, the rat proclaimed the warning; "There's a rat trap in the house, a rat trap in the house!"

The chicken clucked and scratched, raised her head and said, "Excuse me Mr. Rat, I can tell this is a grave concern to you, but it is of no consequence to me. I cannot be bothered by it."

The rat turned to the goat and repeated, "There's a rat trap in the house, a rat trap in the house!" "I am so very sorry Mr. Rat, but there is nothing I can do about it but pray. be assured that you are in my prayers." says the goat sympathetically.. 

The rat told the cow the same to which she replied, "Like.. Wow!, Mr.Rat, a rat trap? I am in grave danger? Duh!"
So, the rat returned to the house, head down and dejected, to face the farmer's rat trap alone. That very night, a sound was heard throughout the house.. PRAPPP!!.. like the sound of a rat trap catching its prey. The farmer's wife rushed to see what was caught. In the darkness, she did not see that it was a venomous snake whose tail the trap had caught and the snake bit her! She was rushed to the hospital, treated, however returned home with fever. Now, everyone knows you treat a fever with fresh chicken soup, so the farmer took his hatchet to the barnyard for the soup's main ingredient!

His wife's illness continued, so friends and neighbors came to sit with her round the clock. To feed them, the farmer slaughtered the goat. The farmer's wife did not get well and died. So many came to her funeral and the farmer ordered for the cow to be slaughtered to provide food for all of his guests.



So, the next time you hear that someone is facing a problem and think that it does not concern you, just remember how a rat trap in the house gotten the whole barnyard affected. 

Sometimes, we fail to realize, 'everything happens for a reason'. And just maybe, when things like these comes knocking at our door, it was just Allah, asking us to 'lend a hand'; giving assistance, be it words of encouragements or positive deeds till the next person takes over.  After all, life is such; inter-relating, a chain reaction.

images: world wide web (Google image)

18th Nov 2012 @5:20pm GMT+8... I found the original writer! Known as Sheikh Umarr Kamarah, he wrote the story and called it The Trap. enjoy!!