A man once committed a crime. He was very rich, and he inquired about the best lawyer around.
When the lawyer arrived and examined the case, he said, "Look, the evidence is overwhelming. You will be found guilty in a manner of minutes. There is only one way to get you out of this, but you have to do exactly what I tell you. From now on and until I tell you otherwise, no matter what you are asked, you are to respond by saying, ‘Shilabib’.”
"Shilabib? What does shilabib mean?"
"Nothing. It's not even a proper word. Now, stop asking me questions, and just follow my instructions."
Later, when the man was asked by the prosecutor what his name was, he responded, "Shlabib."
"Why did you commit this crime?"
"Shilabib."
"Did you act alone?"
"Shilabib."
"Are you mentally unstable?"
"Shilabib."
The judge decided that the man was mentally unfit to stand trial and that he should spend some time in a mental institute.
Later, the lawyer arrived to collect his fees. Smiling, he declared, "I told you I would get you out of this. You have to admit that I had a brilliant strategy, but, as I am sure you will understand, brilliant strategies are expensive."
The man just stared at his lawyer, nodded his head, and said, "Shilabib."
"Oh, that’s funny. That's really cute. You can stop saying ‘shilabib’ now, okay?"
"Shilabib."
"Listen, my friend, the case is over. I got you completely out of this mess. Now it’s time to pay me."
"Shilabib."
"I am getting tired of this."
"Shilabib."
“I was the idiot who taught you this game, okay."
"Shilabib."
-----------------------
The above story is excerpted from a book, Metaphors of Islamic Humanism, by my dear friend, Dr. Omar Imady, copyright 2005.
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About Me
- Elizabeth Mahlou
- I am the mother of 4 birth children (plus 3 others who lived with us) and grandmother of 2, all of them exceptional children. Married for 42 years, I grew up in Maine, live in California, and work in many places in education, linguistics, and program management. In my spare time, I rescue and tame feral cats and have the scars to prove it. A long-time ignorantly blissful atheist converted by a theophanic experience to Catholicism, I am now a joyful catechist. Oh, I also authored a dozen books, two under my pen name of Mahlou (Blest Atheist and A Believer-in-Waiting's First Encounters with God).
Recommended Reading List
Because I am blog inept, I don't quite know how to get a reading list to stay at the end of the page and not disappear from sight. Therefore, I entered it as my first post. I suppose that is not all that bad because readers started commenting about the books, even suggesting additional readings. So, you can participate with others in my reading list by clicking here.I do post additional books as I read them and find them to be meaningful to me, and therefore, hopefully, meaningful to you. One advantage of all the plane traveling I do is that I acquire reading time that I might not otherwise take.
This is an interesting lesson!
ReplyDeleteI thought so, too.
ReplyDelete