the tiger and the cat (maybe off-topic)

[Guest guest]

<< Once upon a time there lived in a big forest a young tiger and an

old cat, among other animals. The old cat was very famous for his

wisdom but especially for the various leaps he was able to make in

every situation. The young tiger was very eager to learn.

One day he came to the cat's place and said:

" Good morning, Mr Cat. I'm your new pupil. Please teach me everything

you know about leaping. "

" Shall we start the lessons straightaway? " asked the cat.

And they spent the whole day together. The cat showed the tiger how

to leap, jump and even turn a somersault. The tiger proved to be a

good pupil, but at the end of the day he was very tired and hungry.

He thought to himself:

" Well, this old chap has taught everything he knew and everything I

needed to know. That's enough. Now it's my meal time. " And of course

the tiger had the idea of using the old cat as the main course of his

evening meal. Accordingly, taking advantage of a moment when the cat

seemed distracted with something, the tiger leapt over him in order

to catch him.

Much to his surprise, however, the cat escaped from his attack

without a bruise and even had the tiger fall upon hard rock.

With the body aching all over, the moaning tiger still had some

strength left to say:

" How come, Mr Cat, you didn't teach me that one leap? "

" My dear friend, that is the leap of the cat. Had I taught you that

one trick, my life would be lost by now. A wise teacher doesn't tell

everything to his pupils. " >>

Lately I've been remembering this tale from the Brazilian folklore

whenever I thought about what happened between and me on this

forum. Perhaps most of you don't remember it anyway, but here it is

in a nutshell.

told about her raw diet. I asked questions (perhaps too many).

She offered to answer off-line those who were interested in following

the diet, because she had no interest in defending her choices or

persuading anyone else to a course of action. I accepted this, but

later on I questioned her channelling the information. She maintained

her position by saying I was free to make questions while she was

free to decline to answer. Of course we parted from that day on.

Looking back, I think I was a little like the young tiger, while she

might be compared to the cat. I had momentarily forgotten that

teachers have their own right to retain some information, not only to

guarantee their own survival, but also to encourage the pupils to

learn by themselves.

I made a mistake with , and I wish she would forgive me.

However, I've found it very amusing that answered all the

questions from Deanna on the same subject on-line. I can offer three

explanations for this different outcome with Deanna:

1. changed her mind about speaking about her diet in

public;

2. Deanna's approach was more subtle and friendly than mine

( probably didn't feel threatened this time);

3. It is a woman talking to another woman. A younger man (me)

asking questions to an older woman () may be an embarrassing

situation.

Well, anyway, let bygones be bygones. It's very bad to be on a list

and not be on talking terms with everyone. I know that this problem

often happens – there are people who you can't take to from the very

beginning, or otherwise, there are people who won't like you no

matter what you do or say. But I had a friendly start with ,

and I've seen that she is a helpful and interested person since then.

It's a pity to be here and not to be able to talk to her.

, I think I've mended my ways. Or in other words, I hope you,

too, can look at me in a sweeter light from now on.

I don't know if you're still reading my posts (I won't resort to the

trick of putting your name in the subject line). If I'm lucky and you

are still reading them, I don't know if you'll forgive me for my

previous ineptitude. If you will, I don't know if you're going to

talk to me again. But the dice are cast. I may even lose my face by

exposing myself again. But I know I've pulled my own weight, and I

feel a lot more relieved now that I was able to talk about this and

make the first step towards maybe mutual understanding.

Sincerely,

José