“Truth is Truth”
Shakespeare
Two men were traveling together; one always spoke the truth and the other always lied. By chance they came to the land of the apes. The king commanded that these travelers be seized and brought into his court so he might know what was said of him among men. He ordered that all the apes be arranged in a long row to his right and left, and that a throne be placed for him. After these preparations his officers brought them before him and the king greeted them, "What sort of a king do I seem to be to you?” The lying traveler answered, "You seem to be a great and mighty king." "And what is your estimate of those you see around me?" the king asked. "These," he responded, "are your worthy companions, fit to be ambassadors and leaders of armies." The Ape and all his court, gratified with the lie, commanded that a handsome present be given to the flatterer. The truthful traveler thought, "If this reward was given for a lie, what will be my great reward for telling the truth?" The king quickly turned to him and asked, “What do you think of my friends and I?" "You are," he said, "a most excellent ape, and all your companions are excellent apes like you." The King, enraged at hearing these truths, gave him over to the teeth and claws of his companions.
“Why is it difficult for us to face fact? Unlike a lie, the truth is difficult to swallow. It is like medicine that parents force children to take. When it comes to reality we often behave as toddlers, choosing rather to bear the pain of sickness than swallow the bitterness of cure” (Anonymous).
“Our rejection of reality does not change it; it changes us. If we refuse to listen; we will lose our ability to hear. If we refuse to obey, we will lose our ability to see. If people cannot see it is because they have closed their eyes. No one becomes more deaf than those who refuse to listen and no one becomes more blind than those who refuse to see” (Anonymous). The truth that makes us free is for the most part the truth which we prefer not to hear” (Herbert Agar). Jesus said, “If you abide in my word … you shall know the truth and the truth will set you free.”
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