The Stranger and the Lost Mille Lacs Nets

For every action there is a reaction.

Every once in a while we are startled out of our comfortable habits and ways of thinking and forced to try something original. Unfortunately, often times the first reaction to something out of the ordinary is fear. Or anger. Or perhaps both.

For years different people have been telling me to think outside the box. And for the most part I do. But at the core of any thought, whether inside or outside the box is the search for the truth and what is right. Even while thinking outside the box, stay true to the center and search for the truth and believe in what is right.

A wise man once told me that doing the right thing is sometimes hard. Especially when everyone around you doesn't seem to feel the same way.

I can't say that I have always done the right thing. Nobody is perfect. Even my Pastor said he hasn't always done the right thing. Thank God for forgiveness. But that doesn't mean I don't try. Most of the time.

The recent incident involving the tribal gillnets that went missing in Garrison Bay last week has brought a lot of emotions back to the surface in and around this community. In the mix are fear and anger.

I received an email with a different view today. Written in a thought provoking poem. The author asked to remain anonymous. I asked if I could post it here and my request was granted.

Please read it with an open mind. And see if you can see in a different light — outside your box of comfortable thoughts.

THE STRANGER AND THE LOST MILLE LAC NETS
By Anonymous


They cast the net,
But something occurred.
A whirlwind of sorts
In a few short words.

A Stranger came
To Galilee.
And simply said to:
“Follow me.”

Simon and Andrew
Left nets in the Sea.
And John and James left theirs
In Galilee.

The Stranger would do
The will of God,
And this the fishers knew
From just one nod.

Important not, was the boat or the net.
Important less, were the fish they’d get.
Suddenly, their hearts filled with eternal goals.
For they thought not of fish, but of men and their souls.

So if a net is lost,
On the Lake called Mille Lac,
Think of the Stranger,
Before you attack.

A parable unfolds,
Before us this day.
We can choose to hate,
Or to go another way.

Because when for thee,
The final bells doth toll,
How you act on a lost net
May impact your soul.


Peace.