Frog

These days the fable of the frog in the well is constantly in my mind. "In a certain well, there lived a frog that had dwelt at the bottom for many years. Around it were only tiny creatures — small frogs, snails, and crabs. Looking up from the bottom of the well, the frog could only see a small patch of sky, no bigger than a pot lid. Every time the frog let out a loud croak, it frightened all the other creatures in the well, so the frog boastfully considered itself a mighty ruler. It thought to itself: "The entire universe is just this much. The sky is only as big as a pot lid." With that belief, it kept gazing up at that tiny sky and imagined itself as grand as a sovereign lord. Day after day, seeing the same thing, it became convinced that the sky was truly no larger than a pot lid. Then one year, a tremendous rainstorm caused the water in the well to rise and overflow, carrying the frog up to the rim. Still clinging to its old habits, the frog arrogantly looked up at the sky. What…