22/03/2025
A young lad asked his fisherman father,
"Papa, is it okay to tell people about my goals and dreams in life?"
The fisherman was silent for a moment, then asked,
"Why do you want to know that?"
The young lad answered,
"Well, papa, I have many big dreams, really big! I want to be of impact in all areas of life, to my generation and all aspects of life. However, I don't know if I should or shouldn't tell people about these dreams I have."
The fisherman smiled, then said,
"You know what... let's go catch some fish in the river. And then, we will continue this conversation, okay?"
At that moment, the fisherman and his son took their fishing equipment and went fishing. At the river, they put a piece of bait on the hook and casted the fishing rod into the river to catch a fish.
A few hours later, they had already caught a lot of fish and their basket was almost filled. The fisherman then stopped, pointed at the basket, and said to his son,
"Take a look at all these fish in the basket. They've been caught by the hook, and their fate is now different from that of those in the river. These fish have lost everything in their lives; their families, friends and home. Sadly, they will have to suffer and be killed in a gruesome way. Some will be fried, some baked, some berbecued, some grilled, some steamed, etc. Do you know why they have to go through much misfortune?"
The boy thought for a minute, then shook his head and said,
"I don't know, papa. Tell me."
The fisherman took a deep breath, and then whistled,
"Well, it is because they couldn't close their mouths. It is stated that a fish with a closed mouth never gets caught by the hook. It never falls a victim."
Upon saying that, the fisherman patted his son's shoulder, smiled and then continued,
"Son, this is what happens in real life. Many people have failed and lost everything they ever acquired in life because they opened their mouths too wide and told other people about their dreams and plans.
