 ou
know, you can be held captive by a physical device —
a straitjacket, handcuffs, leg-irons, etc. — or by a belief, something
that has no more substance than a puff of smoke. If it's the former, then
someone is doing it to you. If it's the latter, then you're doing it to
yourself.
During the Middle Ages a serf named Albert incurred the displeasure
of his master, who ordered him imprisoned. He was arrested, escorted to
the dungeon of the castle by a jailer carrying an enormous key, and thrown
into a cell. The door was shut behind him with a clang.
Albert languished in his cell for years. Each day the door would be
opened, water and bread thrust inside, and then the door would be closed
with a bang.
Finally, he decided that he couldn't take his imprisonment any longer;
he'd rather be dead. But Albert didn't want to take his own life. So he
decided that the next time the jailer brought food, he would attack him,
and then the jailer would kill him.
As Albert waited, he decided to familiarize himself with the way the
door worked, so that he could carry out his plan more effectively. While
he was playing with the handle, the door opened by itself. When he attempted
to examine the locking mechanism, he found to his amazement that the door
didn't have any.
He left the cell, and groped his way along the corridor until he found
a stairway which he climbed. At the top, he found two soldiers alongside
an arched opening in the castle wall leading to the outside.They were chatting
idly. As Albert emerged from the castle, they threw him a glance, and then
returned to their conversation, completely ignoring him. He left the castle
grounds a free man.
Think about it. |
