Insights: The Fisherman, the Dog, and the Bird

Photo from peakpx.com


"The power to act is our will but the will to act is our power. "

There is a story of a fisherman and a dog fishing in the river. While fishing, there comes a bird who steals the worms used as bait by the fisherman, the dog notices it and tries to drive it away. Unknowingly the fishermen constantly scold him because of his barking. Preceding, the bird tries to get the worms again and the dog stops it, they fought over the worm and the fisherman saw the bird and drove it away. The dog saw the bird with its children and tried to feed them with fish. However, the children refused. The dog gave the bird the worms, and in return, the bird gave the dog a fish. Accordingly, the actions of the characters are reason driven. Due to the dog's loyalty, it protects the baits. The love for its children made the bird steal the bait. The fisherman's eagerness to catch a fish drove him to scold the dog because of its loud barks that disturb him.

From the dog’s point of view, there are two consecutive dilemmas, first is if it will let the bird take the worms so that it will not be scolded by its master and let his master do the fishing to get more fish or it will stop the bird from getting the worms for the fisherman to have baits in getting more fish. While the second one is that from the moment, it noticed the reason behind the bird’s action the dog is again faced with a dilemma. Whether to prioritize loyalty towards his master or his kindness towards the bird. In the end, the dog chooses kindness and in return, the bird gave fish to the dog thus, it shows solidarity and reciprocity.

Essential moral lessons that the video teaches us are first for us to avoid prejudicing or making an instant judgment about others and situations we are in. We should always remember, that whatever we do and the situation we are in, there is always a reason behind it. Though an action may seem wrong or inappropriate, we should always try to understand and look at the bigger picture because we might not know the person, we are judging faces heavier problems. Second, it teaches us the value of kindness and unconditional acts. Care is an avenue that fosters kindness, and as individuals gifted with rationality, we should use this to extend our hands to others without expecting any return. Accordingly, although we have individual goals and roles in the family or society, we belong we should always remember that success would not be fruitful if we achieved it by stepping on others or giving a blind eye to them when we have the capacity. For I believe that a person who gives a blind eye has a greater sin than the person causing the pain. The third is for us to go beyond our comfort zones and explore realities. Just like the dog in the boat, we should widen our eyes and look at our environment there is a bigger story than our boat. Beyond what is known and told to us, there are greater possibilities and life lessons that we will learn from others. Thus, allow us to appreciate the beauty and talents of each person and for us to prevent ourselves from being the fisherman who is heedless of the surroundings.

Indeed, as individuals, our power to act is our will, and we should use this power to do human acts. The one that is conscious, free, and voluntary leading for common good, like what ethics is all about, our essence of existence is never personal. Additionally, our capacity to pursue kindness, and unconditional acts, avoid prejudices and look beyond the box allow us, individuals, to address our indifferences and choose to be most kind when faced with conflicting situations. At times, we should choose to be kind than to be righteous. It will lead us to address the core problem of crab mentality. We will find joy in others’ success and find contentment on our own. Good deeds indeed ripple, and embodying them allows us to write stories with impactful acts.

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