Do You Know How To Swim?

A man was holidaying in a tourist beach resort, at the banks of the sea in a small township in India.

One day he asked a local boatman if he would take him for a joy ride into the sea.
The sea was calm and the little boat moved smoothly in the water as the man slathered sun tan lotion all over his body. He lay down and stretched his body as he enjoyed the salty air fanning his suntanned frame. He wore a funky flowered shirt, orange coloured Bermuda’s, a wide jute hat and dark glasses to protect his face from the sun.

Lazily, he asked the boatman if he had a newspaper. The boatman told him that he never got one because he was illiterate. The man threw up his hands in exasperation and said, “What good is it to be alive if you can’t even read? Surely a quarter of your life is as good as washed away into the sea, you unlettered goon!”

A short while later, the man asked the boatman, if he had a radio. The simpleton said that he had never felt the need for one. The man laughed scornfully and said, “Oye, Oye, how ancient are you man? Which age do you live in? How can you survive in this world, without having a radio or a music player to enjoy some music? So all you do is fish around or ferry people around in this little boat! What a cocoon you live in! Come on man; at least sometimes try to know about what the rest of the world is up to. Good Lord! Without a radio, I think a quarter of your life is as good as washed away into the sea.”

The man dozed off and a while later when he got up, he wondered what time it was and asked the boatman if he had a watch. The boatman replied that he didn’t ever feel the need for one. The simple man regulated his life by the rising and setting of the Sun! The man laughed and said, “Whether you need it or you don’t; whether you know how to see the time in it or you don’t; if you don’t own a watch, a quarter of your life is as good being washed away into the sea!”

The boatman pretended to be unaffected, as tears filled his eyes. Insult is greater than injury … Sooner than later, the sky darkened and the cool breeze turned into a nasty storm. The sea became rough and the little boat bobbled up and down dangerously, and it began to pour in sheets.

“Do you know how to swim,” shouted the boatman trying to make himself heard above the roar of the thunder and lightning. The man cried, “No…. I don’t!” “In that case your entire life is about to be washed away into the sea”, said the boat man as he tried desperately to keep the boat afloat in the raging waters.

Well! Certain things are important and others are just knowledge. It’s good to be knowledgeable and educated but one has to learn to distinguish between what is most important to learn is one’s life.

Everyone is placed in different circumstances in life. No two are identical. But there are certain things one must know as basic understanding. It’s great to be aware about the world and what’s happening around, but it’s more important to arm yourself with the basics depending upon your circumstances.

Common sense they say is seldom common. On a spiritual front, devotion and faith in God are what keep you afloat in trying times in life. We as parents owe it to our children to instil in them, the basic values of life and teach them how to connect with the supreme power! If parents won’t; who will?