When things go well for you, you begin to think you must be clever. People look up to you and you get a thrill from their envious stares. They obviously recognise how important and successful you are. They try to imitate you but you can leave them standing.
Sometimes success is false. You imagine it is your own effort and ability that has brought it about. But what if circumstances change? And they often do. Can you adapt or is the new situation beyond you. The masters of sailing ships who could win any race were confronted by steam. All their skills and experience were suddenly valueless.
Suddenly you are no longer cock o' the walk but an old has been. A source of amusement to the eager young men with their newfangled machinery. It is a big comedown.
We are being told here not to get too conceited "pride comes before a fall" so make sure your success is firmly based and take nothing for granted.
Proverbs store the wisdom of ages in short, memorable lines with several layers of meaning. This blog states a weekly proverb and explores its meaning. Sir Winston Churchill, the former British Prime Minister, war leader, writer, painter, historian, bon viveur, whose mother was a United States citizen, recommended that people lacking formal education to learn proverbs. "The Wisdom of Nations lies in their Proverbs... Collect and learn them". William Penn, founder of the State of Pennsylvania.
No comments:
Post a Comment