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Tuesday, September 25, 2012

When God gives you a Bloody Nose.

TitleThe Acorn And The Pumpkin
AuthorJean de La Fontaine


Once there was a country bumpkin
Who observed a great big pumpkin
To a slender stem attached;
While upon an oak tree nourished,
Little acorns grew and flourished.

"Bah!" said he. "That's badly matched."
"If, despite my humble station,
I'd a hand in this Creation,
Pumpkins on the oaks would be;
And the acorn, light and little,
On this pumpkin stem so brittle
Would be placed by clever Me."

Then, fatigued with so much thought, he
Rest beneath the oak tree sought. He
Soon in slumber found repose
But, alas! An acorn, falling
On the spot where he lay sprawling,
Hit him--plump!--Upon the nose.

Up he jumped--a wiser bumpkin.
"Gosh!" he said. "Suppose a pumpkin
Came a-fallin' on my face!
After all, if I had made things,
I'll allow that I'm afraid things
Might be some what out of place.



The meaning of the acorn and the pumpkin?

God knows better than we do. Before the man took a nap under the acorn tree, he mocked God's creation.  He stated that a tree as giant as an acorn tree surely would have been better fit for something large, like pumpkins, to grow on.
However, he later found that he was mistaken.
An acorn fell on his nose, causing it to bleed, making him realize that had it been a pumpkin, he would not have been as fortunate.
That is why at the end of the poem he says,"God knows His business after all, no question!", because he realized he does not know more than God does. and he should not question Him.


"Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God!
How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!"
-Romans 11:33-

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Oh the wisdom of accepting the perfection of nature even when we fail to understand it

David Writer said...

What a lovely way to teach this lesson. And funny, too - I could see it coming. :-)

Anthony Kladitis said...

Thank you both.

This is such a simple, yet powerful little story that teaches so much!