There was an old lady who swallowed a fly
I don't know why she swallowed a fly - perhaps she'll die
There was an old lady who swallowed a spider
That wriggled and wiggled and tiggled inside her
She swallowed the spider to catch the fly
I don't know why she swallowed a fly - Perhaps she'll die
There was an old lady who swallowed a bird
How absurd to swallow a bird
She swallowed the bird to catch the spider
She swallowed the spider to catch the fly
I don't know why she swallowed a fly - Perhaps she'll die
There was an old lady who swallowed a cat
Fancy that to swallow a cat
She swallowed the cat to catch the bird
She swallowed the bird to catch the spider
She swallowed the spider to catch the fly
I don't know why she swallowed a fly - Perhaps she'll die
There was an old lady that swallowed a dog
What a hog, to swallow a dog
She swallowed the dog to catch the cat
She swallowed the cat to catch the bird
She swallowed the bird to catch the spider
She swallowed the spider to catch the fly
I don't know why she swallowed a fly - Perhaps she'll die
There was an old lady who swallowed a cow
I don't know how she swallowed a cow
She swallowed the cow to catch the dog
She swallowed the dog to catch the cat
She swallowed the cat to catch the bird
She swallowed the bird to catch the spider
She swallowed the spider to catch the fly
I don't know why she swallowed a fly - Perhaps she'll die
There was an old lady who swallowed a horse
She's dead, of course
This nusery rhyme inspires the idea that sometimes we indulge in behavior that gets us deeper and deeper into something that is fatal to our welfare. It seems harmless to swallow a fly, but to employ a spider to rid you of that misrake starts to develop a rhythm that is a detriment to life. Then it becomes extreme to employ a bird to eliminate that mistake, and it just keeps getting worse. After employing one "assassin" after another to remove a small mistake, it becomes fatal. This nursery rhyme inspires us with the idea that one tiny act of indiscretion can lead to one ill advised act after another in the effort to erase the initial error. Destructive intent can be physically fatal, and certainly spiritually fatal. In this writing, we see why remedy of a wrong comes through the spiritual attitude of our inner life, but trying to eliminate a mistake by physical means is detrimental. In essence, the ability to forgive and tolerate our short comings is conducive of life, whereas unbearable regret leads to fatal reactions.
Our inner life is swarming with emotions and thoughts that drive what we say and do, and within that swarm will be physical responses or spiritual responses. Physical responses to what we feel and think will eventually lead to negative consequences, but spiritual responses imparts a continuance of life. We know how swallowing a fly will stir various sentiments within our swarm of feelings and thoughts, but worldly responses leads to further deterioration of our inner life, whereas spiritual responses contribute to spiritual growth and increase. An example of this is a person turning to substance abuse during a time of having a swarm of emotional and mental turmoil. A person begins small with a "fly" of alcohol but to counter the affects or side-effects in public, they utilize another drug, or "spider." Then they begin to counter the effects of one drug with another drug until they swallow the "horse" which leads to their death. Then there's the infamous "affair" that a person succumbs to, but is very concerned about being blackmailed. As a response to the blackmail, a "spider" is sent to silence the "fly." After that, the spider "knows too much" so a "bird" is sent to silence the "spider." On and on goes the fatal cycle until the person is in so deep in crime that it becomes their death sentence. However, when we allow the spiritual fruit to work in us amidst the turmoil, agony, and regret of the initial "fly," we can have a more fruitful future that imparts life. With all the emotions and thoughts swarming in us, there can be hatred, cruel intentions, and ill-will, or there can be love, kindness, and goodwill in response to a moment of indiscretion. Unfruitful attitudes will lead to various degrees of harshness, aggression, and violence to keep others away from our regrets, but fruitful attitudes of meekness, gentleness, and peace will wash the mistake into a sea to be remembered no more. In this light, we discover faith, joy, and goodness to keep our attitude focused on the continuance of life, instead of the deadly nature of despair, pessimism, and evilness. Even in our indiscretion, there is the ability to persevere in the spiritual fruit as we allow self-control and patience to temper us when accusers judge us. The spiritual fruit living in our turmoil will counter-act the urge to respond from out of control behavior, with quick-temper impatience, and will save us from being a fatality.
Chasing the embarrassing "fly" of indiscretion will close our inner being to fruitful responses, but allowing the fruit of the spirit to wash the "fly" away keeps us open to constructive attitudes. Sometimes we will do something to comfort us emotionally, or to give us peace of mind, but that single behavior may have been contrary to the goodness that lives within. For example, you take $10.00 from someone's purse or wallet to put gas in the car to go to work, but on the inside you feel it was wrong so you attempt to hide the deed. When the person is curious about the missing money, you feel very awkward and start to close yourself to the subject by sending the "spider" of impatience with the inquisition.. Then as the victim becomes more curious about the circumstances, you start sending the dogs after the cats as arguments begin to develop. The closure and hardening of the inner life is transpiring. Eventually, you discover yourself spiritually dead by swallowing the whole horse of defrauding others and using unfruitful behaviors to defend the act. The perpetrator becomes known for being quick tempered, out of control, and someone that could be capable of fatal behaviors. The issue could of been remedied where it started at the "fly." A simple but humiliating apology, which is a confession, would keep us open to the spiritual fruit, and keep our relationship with others constructive. In turn, true peace of mind would follow, along with emotional comfort to impart fruitful results in our deeds. Whatever we are feeling or thinking inwardly, let self-control and patience be the seeds that sprout with persevearance amidst our turmoil. The seeds of the spiritual fruit is what keeps us open and spiritually alive when we err in the flesh.
Much of the turmoil, agony, and regret that we experience inwardly is a result of what we believe about specifc behaviors. If we think in rigid terms about what a "fly" represents, then we will develop specific guidelines for quelling those experiences, which in turn would stabilize our daily activities. When we think that swallowing the "fly" is inexcusable, then we will utilize every means possible to conceal it from public scrutiny, which could lead to some confrontational moments. Those confrontational moments might be the spider chasing the fly, which is an unfruitful way of regulating unwanted attention away from an indiscretion. Things begin to become more intense as the dog chases the cat leading to bodily harm, domestic disputes, and unraveling into a chaotic lifestyle. Who can imagine a lifestyle worst than that? Yet, in swallowing the horse you engraft violence and chaos into your way of handling intrusions into your concealed regrets. Death by violence is the result. However, when we think that an indiscretion can be overcome by regulating our inner turmoil with sentiments of a meek and gentle spirit of peace then a true sense of stabilty will be with us. While our indiscretion may have disturbed a safe and secure environment, we can still overcome severe regret by becoming a light of tranquility in an unforgiving and intrusive environment. The key is to not employ anymore tactics that cause tumult, and wash the fly away with a serene spirit while being flexible enough in your beliefs as to not escalate a volatile situation. Be gentle towards the body of others, be meek in your approaches, and let peace repair your inner turmoil.
Swallowing the "fly" referring to social behavior might mean a calloused deed done to another which evaporates the soft and moist tenderness of our inner life. That initial fly might represent a deed that causes a raindrop to vanish. Then progessing to the dog chasing the cat represents the rivers beginning to cease flowing. Then swallowing the horse represents the disappearance of the oceans that causes social death. A person might betray someone near to them, or betray their culture, in a demonstration of intolerance and exclusion of those they have socially sworn allegiance to. In order to hide from that regretful indiscretion, the person indulges in external displays of hate, cruelty, and ill-will towards outsiders to prove their loyalty. In the end, the horse is swallowed as they live a life of social abuses towards anyone who differs from the beliefs that should be, but the swallowing of the "fly" destroyed. The spiritual life of social harmony is in the moist tenderness of our inner life, the same as drinking water is life to the body. Swallowing a "fly" spiritually is like drinking mud physically. We will live through the experience if we refrain from drinking dirt and continue on with inputting the water that gives life. If we impede one raindrop of compassion through an anti-social act, let's remember the many other raindrops of compassion that we welcome. In that way, the oceans of tolerance, love, sensual intimacy, kindness, goodwill, and inclusion,will wash away regret, turmoil, and agony. From within us will flow rivers of humane deeds to bring harmony and social life.
The living deity of our inner being is truth, light, forgiveness, mercy, and life. In the process of attempting to hide an indiscretion within us, we hide away the best part of our soul. We lose contact with truth, shun divine awareness, become unforgiving, come across as unmerciful, and succumb to fatal consequences. The swallowing of the "fly" is a blemish on everything the universal deity wants us to be, which results in regret, agony, and turmoil from a broken union with the divine goodness. A separation from the supreme being becomes worst as the blemish becomes bigger and bigger until the Tyranasaurus Rex in us replaces the fruit of the spirit. Certain death is imminent as we sever self from the source of life. As we go from the indiscretion of the fly, to the perilous dog, to the deadly horse we gradually desolate the rewards of the deity, which are the spiritual fruit. Conflict, regret, agony, and turmoil festers within as we begin to lose respect for life. We lose our ability to reconcile with the comfort and forgiveness given us through the universal deity. Negative energy leads to fatalities and negative energy is what we have when we swallow the horse. Humbly reconciling self to the living entity of the "5th Element" is to acknowledge our awareness of the deed that separated us from the source of light and life. With acknowledgement is the sincere desire to refrain from words and deeds that fracture our union with the spiritual realm. In that process of reconciliation our inner life will blossom again with spiritual fruit. We will experience inner peace, a love for the sanctity of life, a reverence for the wonders of the "5th Element," and positive energy will flow with inmost joy.
Talking with our mouth full is difficult, but chasing the food in mouth down with more food makes it absolutely impossible to talk. In this light, we see that swallowing a fly enables us to talk some, but to swallow a cat or cow would make it impossible to talk. Swallowing the horse would be the death of our self-expression. The identity we become known by relates to what we say and do, so after swallowing a fly we can still communicate constructively. When we swallow a cat, who we are in words and deeds would become quite notorious. Furthermore, speaking what lays within us after swallowing a horse would be the death of any self-actualizing efforts. The self-expression of the person would be bogged down with negativity because each sentence would be full of evil, hopelessness, and pessimism. The person's identity would be known as an inhumane and horrid person. The physical death of the person could very easily result from being a verbal antagonist. In a moment of indiscretion, we might swallow a fly that makes us regret we said anything because that's not who we really are. Our identity is not yet that of someone whose beliefs, words and deeds are dark and gloomy. There is still hope as long as we have faith in our potential as a well-meaning person. With faith, we believe in the goodness that yet lives within. And with goodness, there is joy in the positive energy of knowing we have the opportunity to remedy a regretful word or deed. Instead of allowing positive fruit to be buried beneath an indiscretion in what was said or done, we should continue in the optimism of becoming a wiser identity.
We can assess that when the spiritual fruit interacts with agony, regret, and turmoil there will be a positive resolution. The diagnosis is that if we attempt to hide a small indiscretion with larger violations then death follows. In this light, we plan to tolerate and forgive our own mistakes to move on into fruitful attitudes. We implement that plan by allowing the moist and soft tenderness of our soul to wash away the fly. We know the plan is successful when spiritual blossoms are evident instead of inner desolation of a constructive perspective.