I Met A Man, He Told Me.. (389 hits)
Category: UberMadness! EntryRating: 2 on 1 review (Rate this item) (V)
Submitted by Philst82 <Philipdstubbs.at.hotmail.com> (View user info) at 2004-09-17 05:08:18 EDT
This post was an official UberMadness! entry. Click here to view the original matchup.
As I sat at the bar, watching the sunset, I wondered how such a beautiful beach could remain untouched by the western world. In my head I had designs for hotel complexes and fancier, more expensive watering holes all along the perfect beachfront. I saw the possibility for financial growth of the area, which would bring wealth and employment to the people of the area.
I'd been going to that same bar for the last 4 nights of my holiday, and had gotten to know the barman and the regulars pretty well. Jacob, the old man who always propped up one end of the bar, was a fisherman, who fished all day, just so he could sit in his favourite stool and watch the sunset. Solomon sat at the other end of the bar, and was always trying to off load his latest acquisitions at bargain prices. John spent most of his time talking to the barman about whatever troubled him in the world. All the time the barman listened without saying much.
The barman himself told me that he liked to get up in the morning and go for a swim, followed by spending the day with his kids, and opening his bar in the evening to listen to John discuss a world that seemed so very far away.
To me, an outsider, this world seemed completely alien. "Why are you content with this? Don't you ever want more?"
"Jacob, you could hire more people to fish for you, and slowly build a strong business from sales at market." I explained. "With time and effort you could expand you company, take on more staff, and make yourself a very rich man!"
"Solomon could expand his business further with ease, by picking up more contacts, maybe I could even give him suppliers names from back home and he could have a truly international business. From a simple trading business with a little work, and some luck, you could become world renown!"
"And this bar.... Just think, if you were to expand and have guests to stay, you could bring in more money, maybe even hire more staff to take the smaller tasks away from you, and with a sunset like that you could control the tourism for this entire island!"
The barman looked at me. John was silent. Jacob and Solomon continued to watch the sunset.
"Tell me," said the barman, "what would all this allow us to do?"
"Jacob," I began, "could have enough to money to be comfortable enough to perhaps fish for the day, and then sit at this bar to watch the sunset as and when he pleased. Solomon could bring in more people to sell his wares to, getting him a better profit. This would allow him to sit and watch the sunset without having to sell his acquisitions."
"As for you," I continued, turning to the barman, "you could expand your business so far that you could own the entire beach front, and eventually employ enough people to run it for you, so that you could maybe swim in the morning, spend the day with your kids, and talk to John in the evening about a world that seems less far away..."
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Submitted by youarsoghey (user info) at 2005-01-16 12:29:49 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
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