pedo mellon a minno

Little Jack Horner
Extracted from pp21-22, Perilous Pursuits, Joseph Stowell, Moody Press 1994

... In a sense, ours is a "Little Jack Horner" world where the game of significance ignores the deeper issues of right and wrong. In a moment of what for him was stellar performance, Jack stuck his thumb into a Christmas pie, pulled out a plum, raised it high in the air, and proclaimed, "What a good boy am I." Pleased with his performance, he went public and sought significance through the applause and affirmation of those around him.

But don't forget where Little Jack Horner was sitting. If I remember correctly, "Little Jack Horner sat in a corner." As far as I know, the only reason little boys sit in corners is because they haven't been good. I also know of few mothers who reward their little boys for not being good by giving them a whole pie. It's possible he stole the pie from the kitchen.

However Jack got that pie, what's he doing taking credit for pulling out a plum, since it was his mother who put the plums there? Fundamental decency would require that he give credit to whom credit is due and not heap it upon himself. And even if you don't buy my analysis of the story, we would all have to agree that Jack is in clear violation of acceptable table manners by having his fingers in his food. But there he sits, inviting the applause of the world with what really seems a hollow and silly conquest.

It's this Little Jack Horner syndrome that makes us willing to do whatever is necessary to become significant. But if we ignore the process, we unwittingly erode our sense of worth by clouding our conscience. Regardless of the pinnacle we reach, our significance conquest finally becomes hollow and filled with regrets....