Two Fishermen

One day the two fishermen were fishing in a nearby pond. Both of them were looking forward to having fresh fish afterwards.

They both had packed utensils, cooking accessories, ingredients, and fishing equipment. Once they arrived at the pond, they chose to sit at a distance to hunt for fish. The first fisherman caught a big and beautiful fish within a few minutes. He was very happy. He then placed the fish in the icebox to retain its freshness. He would cook it whole fish in the noon.

He caught a few more other small fishes after a while. He froze a few fish to take it back home.

After about an hour of fishing, the first fisherman offered to help the second fisherman. The second man politely declined. And then the second fisherman also caught a large fish. Surprisingly, he threw it back into the pond.

The first man was bewildered by his act. He remained silent as he watched the second man capture many big fishes only to have them thrown back into the water.

The first fisherman, annoyed by this, retorted, ‘Why are you throwing the fishes back into the water? They were beautiful and big!’

The second fisherman replied, ‘I know they were big, but I don’t have a big pan to cook the big fish! So I’m looking for a smaller fish that fits my cooking pan!”

The first fisherman was startled by the response. He advised the second fisherman to cut the big fish into pieces to fit them into the small pan.

Many of us are just like the second fisherman. We tend to overlook a handful of opportunities, chances, and even fortune that come in our way because we are too stubbornly looking for what we want. We need to learn to capture every opportunity and work it out so that it will fit into our lives perfectly.

"Most do not understand the wonderful opportunities life gives. Until they are looking back."