The Washerman and the Foolish Donkey - Legend Modernized

Have you heard the story of "The Washerman and the Foolish Donkey"?

To refresh your memory, and for the benefit of those who have not grown up listening to this moral story, it goes like this...

There was once a washer man who had a donkey and a dog.

One night when the whole world was sleeping, a thief broke into the house, the washer man was fast asleep but the donkey and the dog were awake.

The dog decided not to bark since the master did not take good care of him and wanted to teach him a lesson. The donkey got worried and said to the dog that if he doesn't bark, the donkey will have to do something himself.

The dog did not change his mind and the donkey started braying loudly. Hearing the donkey bray, the thief ran away, the master woke up and started beating the donkey for braying in the middle of the night for no reason.

Moral of the story “One must not engage in duties other than his own"

Now take a new look at the same story...

The washer man was a well educated man from a premier management institute.

He had the fundas of looking at the bigger picture and thinking out of the box. He was convinced that there must be some reason for the donkey to bray in the night. He walked outside a little and did some fact finding, applied a bottom up approach, figured out from the ground realities that there was a thief who broke in and the donkey only wanted to alert him about it.

Looking at the donkey's extra initiative and going beyond the call of the duty, he rewarded him with lot of hay and other perks and became his favorite pet.

The dog's life didn't change much, except that now the donkey was more motivated in doing the dogs duties as well. In the annual appraisal the dog managed a “meets requirement ".

Soon the dog realized that the donkey is taking care of his duties and he can enjoy his life sleeping and lazing around.

The donkey was rated as "star performer".

The donkey had to live up to his already high performance standards. Soon he was over burdened with work and always under pressure and now is looking for a job rotation.....

A WORLD SURVEY

A world wide survey was conducted by the UN.

The only question asked was: 'Would you please give your honest opinion about solutions to the food shortage in the rest of the world?'

The survey was a huge failure;

In Africa they didn't know what 'food' meant,

In India /Pakistan they didn't know what 'honest' meant,

In Europe they didn't know what 'shortage' meant,

In China they didn't know what 'opinion' meant,

In the Middle East they didn't know what 'solution' meant,

In South America they didn't know what 'please' meant,

And in the USA they didn't know what 'the rest of the world' meant!

ANTS AND GRASSHOPERS

OLD VERSION...
The ant works hard in the withering heat all summer long building his house and laying up supplies for the winter. The grasshopper thinks
the ant's a fool and laughs & dances & plays the summer away. Come winter, the
ant is warm and well fed. The grasshopper has no food or shelter so he
dies out in the cold.

MODERN VERSION
The ant works hard in the withering heat all summer long, building
his house and laying up supplies for the winter. The grasshopper thinks
the ant's a fool and laughs & dances & plays the summer away. Come winter, the
shivering grasshopper calls a press conference and demands to know
why the ant should be allowed to be warm and well fed while others are cold and
starving.

NDTV, BBC, CNN show up to provide pictures of the shivering
grasshopper next to a video of the ant in his comfortable home with a table
filled with food. The World is stunned by the sharp contrast. How can this be
that this poor grasshopper is allowed to suffer so?

Arundhati Roy stages a demonstration in front of the ant's house.
Medha Patkar goes on a fast along with other grasshoppers demanding that
grasshoppers be relocated to warmer climates during winter. Amnesty
International and Koffi Annan criticize the Indian Government for not

upholding the fundamental rights of the grasshopper. The Internet is
flooded with online petitions seeking support to the grasshopper
(many promising Heaven and Everlasting Peace for prompt support as against the wrath
of God for non-compliance) . Opposition MP's stage a walkout.Left
parties call for "Bharat Bandh" in West Bengal and Kerala demanding a Judicial
Enquiry.CPM in Kerala immediately passes a law preventing Ants from
working hard in the heat so as to bring about equality of poverty
among ants and
grasshoppers.

Lalu Prasad allocates one free coach to Grasshoppers on all Indian
Railway Trains, aptly named as the 'Grasshopper Rath'.

Finally, the Judicial Committee drafts the Prevention of Terrorism
Against Grasshoppers Act [POTAGA]", with effect from the beginning of
the winter.

Arjun Singh makes Special Reservation for Grass Hopper in educational

Insititutions & in Govt Services.

The ant is fined for failing to comply with POTAGA and, having
nothing left to pay his retroactive taxes, his home is confiscated by the
Government
and handed over to the grasshopper in a ceremony covered by NDTV.

Arundhati Roy calls it "a triumph of justice". Lalu calls it
'Socialistic Justice'. CPM calls it the 'revolutionary resurgence of
the downtrodden'

Koffi Annan invites the grasshopper to address the UN General
Assembly.

Many years later...The ant has since migrated to the US and set up a
multi billion dollar company in silicon valley.100s of grasshoppers
still die of starvation despite reservation somewhere in India ...

As a result loosing lot of hard working ants and feeding the
grasshoppers India is still a developing country..... .

Food as Medicine

HEADACHE?
EAT FISH!
Eat plenty of fish -- fish oil helps prevent headaches.
So does ginger, which reduces inflammation and pain.


HAVE FEVER? EAT YOGURT!
Eat lots of yogurt before pollen season.
Also-eat honey from your area (local region) daily.


TO PREVENT STROKE
DRINK TEA!
Prevent buildup of fatty deposits on artery walls with regular doses of
tea.
(actually, tea suppresses my appetite and keeps the pounds from
invading....Green tea is great for our immune system)!


INSOMNIA (CAN'T SLEEP?) HONEY!

Use honey as a tranquilizer and sedative.

ASTHMA? EAT ONIONS!!!!

Eating onions helps ease constriction of bronchial tubes. (when I was
young, my mother would make onion packs to place on our chest, helped the
respiratory ailments and actually made us breathe better).


ARTHRITIS? EAT FISH, TOO!!

Salmon, tuna, mackerel and sardines actually prevent arthritis. (fish has
omega oils, good for our immune system)


UPSET STOMACH? BANANAS - GINGER!!!!!

Bananas will settle an upset stomach.
Ginger will cure morning sickness and nausea.

BLADDER INFECTION?
DRINK CRANBERRY JUICE!!!!
High-acid cranberry juice controls harmful bacteria.


BONE PROBLEMS? EAT PINEAPPLE!!!
Bone fractures and osteoporosis can be prevented by the manganese in
pineapple.


PREMENSTRUAL SYNDROME? EAT CORNFLAKES!!!!
Women can ward off the effects of PMS with cornflakes, which help reduce
depression, anxiety and fatigue.


MEMORY PROBLEMS? EAT OYSTERS!

Oysters help improve your mental functioning by supplying much-needed zinc.

COLDS?
EAT GARLIC!
Clear up that stuffy head with garlic. (remember, garlic lowers
cholesterol, too.)


COUGHING? USE RED PEPPERS!!

A substance similar to that found in the cough syrups is found in hot red
pepper. Use red (cayenne) pepper with caution-it can irritate your tummy.

BREAST CANCER?
EAT Wheat, bran and cabbage
Helps to maintain estrogen at healthy levels.


LUNG CANCER? EAT DARK GREEN AND ORANGE AND VEGGIES!!!

A good antidote is beta carotene, a form of Vitamin A found in dark green
and orange vegetables.

ULCERS?
EAT CABBAGE ALSO!!!
Cabbage contains chemicals that help heal both gastric and duodenal ulcers.


DIARRHEA? EAT APPLES!
Grate an apple with its skin, let it turn brown and eat it to cure this
condition.
(Bananas are good for this ailment)

CLOGGED ARTERIES?
EAT AVOCADO!
Mono unsaturated fat in avocados lowers cholesterol.

HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE?
EAT CELERY AND OLIVE OIL!!!
Olive oil has been shown to lower blood pressure.
Celery contains a chemical that lowers pressure too.


BLOOD SUGAR IMBALANCE? EAT BROCCOLI AND PEANUTS!!!

The chromium in broccoli and peanuts helps regulate insulin and blood
sugar.

Kiwi: Tiny but mighty. This is a good source of potassium, magnesium,
Vitamin E &fiber. It's Vitamin C content is twice that of an orange.


Apple: An apple a day keeps the doctor away? Although an apple has a low
Vitamin C content, it has antioxidants &flavonoids which enhances the
activity of Vitamin C thereby helping to lower the risks of colon cancer,
heart attack & stroke.


Strawberry: Protective fruit. Strawberries have the highest total
antioxidant power among major fruits &protects the body from cancer
causing, blood vessels clogging free radicals.
(Actually, any berry is good for you..they're high in anti-oxidants and
they actually keep us young.........blueberries are the best and very
versatile in the health field........they get rid of all the free-radicals
that invade our bodies)


Orange: Sweetest medicine. Taking 2 - 4 oranges a day may help keep colds
away, lower cholesterol, prevent & dissolve kidney stones as well as lessen
the risk of colon cancer.


Watermelon: Coolest Thirst Quencher. Composed of 92% water, it is also
packed with a giant dose of glutathione which helps boost our immune
system. They are also a key source of lycopene - the cancer fighting
oxidant. Other nutrients

found in watermelon are Vitamin C &Potassium. (watermelon also has natural
substances [natural SPF sources] that keep our skin healthy, protecting our
skin from those darn suv rays)



Guava &Papaya: Top awards for Vitamin C. They are the clear winners for
their high Vitamin C content. Guava is also rich in fiber which helps
prevent constipation.


Papaya is rich in carotene, this is good for your eyes. (also good for gas
and indigestion)


Tomatoes are very good as a preventative measure for men, keeps those
prostrate problems from invading their bodies