by Linda McMillan
Middle-aged women traveling alone are not common in Ye. English-speaking women from America are not common either. Thus, last week, when the traveler stepped into the beer station, all eyes turned to gaze upon the fat, white, lady from afar.“Where you come from?” they wanted to know.“I am from America,” said the traveler. And all nodded that they know where that is, and they murmured “Obama, yes… Obama, strong.”“Why you come Ye?” They wanted to know.“I came to meet you,” she said. They were unimpressed with this answer, but let it go. “I went to the lake,” she said, “…and I saw your fish.” And, finally, she was invited to sit down and tell the story of her day in Ye.“I saw the fish fighting for food. They seemed do desperate, like they would die if they didn’t get some.” And they all agreed, the fish are desperate.They are shiny fish, about the size of a human hand, and they vie for small pellets which pilgrims buy and drop into the water. The fish literally swim on top of one another in the quest for some food. Sometimes, in their enthusiasm, they jump out of the water entirely, landing on the sharp rocks that line the edge of the lake. A young lad usually pushes them back into the water, but there were fish bodies that didn’t make it back in too — fish who struggled so hard for survival that they didn’t survive. Other fish were injured, swimming crooked but still trying for a few nibbles of food.“I think that we are also desperate for some kind of food,” she ventured. Everyone agreed, we are desperate for something.“Later,” she continued, “I walked out on the causeway to the little Buddha shrine. Even out there, I could hear the fish smacking and swimming, begging for some bit of food. But, I believe that out beyond the Buddha — past his placid expression, the candles, and incense, and hopes of many worshippers, out past all the accountments of religion — there is a big fish who swims alone.”“Yes, the lake is deep,” they said. There would be food, and there would be release from the clamor of constant desire.No conclusions were drawn. The beer was finished, and the traveler left.
Usually, I work with one of our Revised Common Lectionary readings for the week and try to lay out what it might mean. But, this week I want to do something different. Today, I am not going to lay out what I think it means. I want to hear from you.
What is the meaning of this story for you? Are we desperate for something too? What are the ineffective ways we try to get the things we need? Are there alternatives? Who are the main players in the story? Do you see yourself in any of these roles? What has the storyteller left out?
We can read this story as Christians, as people of a scientific age, as (mainly) westerners. How does this way of seeing the story change it for us?
What is different from your own culture? Are there beer stations in your town? (A beer station is like a water station, a place where there is some water. Only there is beer because water is often not clean.) Do people invite strangers to the table where you live? Are there places of truly public worship or do people divide themselves up into various believing factions?
This week, you interpret the parable. Leave your insights in the comments. And, thank you for being willing to do something different once in awhile.
Linda McMillan lives in Shanghai, China. She is a native Texan. Linda is currently in Yangon, Myanmar.
Image: Beyond Buddha, by Linda McMillan, Ye, Myanmar, Mon State. 2016
Some Notes of Possible Interest
You can read more about Ye here
Most of us have enough food, but food insecurity is still a big problem in the USA. You can read more about food insecurity in the USA here