“A dog is a dog,” my friend said.
“A dog may be a dog,” I replied, “but there’s a difference between a tame dog and a wild dog.”
“In either case, I’d rather have a cat.”
“Well, you don’t—if wishes were horses, and all that—what you have, what all men have, from creation till now, is a dog.”
“Well, why don’t I shoot the dog and be done with it.”
“Well,” I thought. “A dead dog is something, not nothing, and a carcass breeds maggots…”
“And what are maggots?” the question came.
“I suppose resentment, frustration; A dead passion is quickly undead. You slay the dragon, you get the gold, or the girl, but cut off your right hand and you don’t have a hand.”
“Isn’t that what the Bible tells us, though?”
“Yeah, in a way, but I don’t think that’s what it means.”
My friend sat back in his chair at that, raising a provocative eyebrow.
I continued: “Listen, Jesus is talking about an eye or a hand, but it’s obvious he’s talking about a cock, alright? We both get that. But, if he’s saying one thing and it’s obvious he’s implying another, well maybe that’s true for more than…I think what He’s saying is true. It’s better. But better isn’t best, right? It’s better to be maimed but have heaven? Okay, that’s true. And we should hate our fathers and mothers. That’s true too. But we’re also supposed to love them. It’s more complicated than just taking one verse and running with it.”
Tale Told 