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How to not Collapse under the Weight of Expectations
Once upon a time, ijapa the tortoise, the wiliest of beasts woke up from a dream to find itself in the hallowed realm of the gods where knowledge and the future reside. It was all unfamiliar territory but Ijapa had a great guide — Wisdom, who walked by the tortoise and answered the questions to the numerous marvels it beheld, many of which were beyond the imagination of man and beast. As they both walked, Ijapa stumbled upon a box with its name on it. Curious, he asked Wisdom,
“What is this box and what is inside it?”
“It is the holder of the affairs of the future and it contains the things that will happen to you in the future. However, you can’t read its contents in this realm — you will need to return to the realm of men to know what it contains.”
Excited at the prospects of knowing its future, Ijapa grabbed the box and hoisted it atop its rough shell.
Wisdom said nothing.
Further on, Ijapa found another box with its name on it — a bigger one this time. As it did with the first, it grabbed the box, hoisted it atop its shell, balancing the smaller one on top of the bigger one.
Wisdom said nothing.
On and on, as they walked, Ijapa found bigger and heavier boxes, and carried them on. The idea of knowing…
