heaven and hell

taken from an email
A holy man was having a conversation
with the Lord one day and said.

'Lord, I would like to know what
Heaven and Hell are like.


The Lord led the holy man to two
doors.


He opened one of the doors and the
holy man looked in. In the middle of
the room was a large round table. In
the middle of the table was a large pot
of stew, which smelled delicious and
made the holy man's mouth water.
The people sitting around the table
were thin and sickly. They appeared to
be famished. They were holding
spoons with very long handles that
were strapped to their arms and each
found it possible to reach into the pot
of stew and take a spoonful.

But because the handle was longer
than their arms, they could not get the
spoons back into their mouths.

The holy man shuddered at the sight
of their misery and suffering.

The Lord said, 'You have seen Hell.


They went to the next room and
opened the door. It was ex actly the
same as the first one. There was the
large round table with the large pot of
stew which made the holy man's mouth
water. The people were equipped with
the same long-handled spoons, but here
the people were well nourished and
plump, laughing and talking. The holy
man said, 'I don't understand.'

'It is simple,' said the Lord.

'It requires but one skill. You see
they have learned to feed each
other, while the greedy think only
of themselves.'