THE MAN AND THE APES
A group of apes did an experiment on a man. They drew a series of parallel lines, from thick and dark to thin and light, bold to faint. They offered the man a genuine gold watch if he would walk to and step over the first bold line.
It took him 48 hours to reach. He crossed; the apes put the watch on him and cut off his pinky toe.
The apes politely said, “You have 24 hours to cross your next line and get the prize. Start walking now, or you forfeit all further potential rewards.”
The man walked all through the night in pain and arrived at the next fainter line as the noonday sun shone its brightest. He looked at his watch and crossed the line just in time.
The apes bolted a heavy pair of pure gold boots on his feet, tore out his eyes, and gently informed him, “The next line is a mere minute away.” It took the man an hour to arrive and cross the line with their help.
The man whimpered, “Please forgive the delay. If it weren’t for these boots and”—
The apes replied, “We forgive you. Relax,” and they began to remove his clothes.
Great! A golden robe, the man thought.
“Hold your head steady,” said the apes.
Great, a gold crown, the man thought.
The apes beheaded the man, left his body naked in the street, and laughed as they walked away with the gold.
Greed takes all it gives.
What does it profit a man to gain the world but lose his soul?
NEW PURITAN 