Someone very, very smart.

 

Last night I dreamt of a great treasure that fate was sending my way.  I was, however, surrounded by people who were colored by greed and infested with bad intentions.  It felt like I was a plain and simple fish swimming in a tank of sharks and tricksters.

 

I began to question if any such treasure was worth thinking the worst of people.  I didn't even have it yet and it was already effecting who I was and my sleep.  Perhaps, for me, the treasure was my ability to reject it; to hold fast to my own belief that most people are good and decent. 

 

The moment I came to that realization I began to feel better about myself.  No longer was I tossing and turning, trying to get back to sleep.  A great calm came over me and I felt good.

 

That morning, I explained to my wife and children the dream about fate' s plan to deliver a great treasure to me and my realization that I needed to reject it.

 

My wife looked at me with intense disappointment and left the table.  My two girls told me I was lame, insensitive to their needs and was only thinking of myself.  Then they too left the table.

 

As I sat there looking down into my cereal bowl I began to wonder how, when floating in milk, the cereal manages to stay crunchy.  Maybe if I knew how that was possible, I also could float about in riches but still remain steadfast to my principles.

 

What I needed was to seek out someone who was wise.  I was not smart enough to solve this for myself.  While pushing my cereal around with my spoon I tried to think of someone I knew who was very, very smart.

 

Some twenty minutes later I noticed my cereal had sunk to the bottom of the bowl and I was now late for work.

 

 

It wasn't me.