Peeling the Onion (of Why I Do What I Do)

THIS IS THE HOUSE THAT JACK BUILT

When I was a child my mother taught me to read by reading a very old Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes book with me, of which my favorite was "This Is The House That Jack Built". It reads as follows :


This is the house that Jack built.



This is the malt

That lay in the house that Jack built.


This is the rat,

That ate the malt

That lay in the house that Jack built.


This is the cat,

That killed the rat,

That ate the malt

That lay in the house that Jack built.


This is the dog,

That worried the cat,

That killed the rat,

That ate the malt

That lay in the house that Jack built.


This is the cow with the crumpled horn,

That tossed the dog,

That worried the cat,

That killed the rat,

That ate the malt

That lay in the house that Jack built.


This is the maiden all forlorn,

That milked the cow with the crumpled horn,

That tossed the dog,

That worried the cat,

That killed the rat,

That ate the malt

That lay in the house that Jack built.


This is the man all tattered and torn,

That kissed the maiden all forlorn,

That milked the cow with the crumpled horn,

That tossed the dog,

That worried the cat,

That killed the rat,

That ate the malt

That lay in the house that Jack built.


This is the priest all shaven and shorn,

That married the man all tattered and torn,

That kissed the maiden all forlorn,

That milked the cow with the crumpled horn,

That tossed the dog,

That worried the cat,

That killed the rat,

That ate the malt

That lay in the house that Jack built.


This is the cock that crowed in the morn,

That waked the priest all shaven and shorn,

That married the man all tattered and torn,

That kissed the maiden all forlorn,

That milked the cow with the crumpled horn,

That tossed the dog,

That worried the cat,

That killed the rat,

That ate the malt

That lay in the house that Jack built.


This is the farmer sowing his corn,

That kept the cock that crowed in the morn,

That waked the priest all shaven and shorn,

That married the man all tattered and torn,

That kissed the maiden all forlorn,

That milked the cow with the crumpled horn,

That tossed the dog,

That worried the cat,

That killed the rat,

That ate the malt

That lay in the house that Jack built.


The other day I came across this rhyme again. Maybe it had something to do with my mood at the time, but it struck me in a whole new way. This rhyme is like life.....things compound until we are full and cannot handle anything else. Jack really needs to organize his house. So do we. However, if you notice it seems to have all started with malt. Malt was the very first thing Jack layed in his house. The MALT started the whole cascade. Right ??
Wrong !
JACK is what started the whole thing....it was JACK that built the HOUSE !
I guess my point is that when things in life seem to be cascading and crowding, instead of blaming all the things and people in and around your house, blame yourself - YOU BUILT IT !
And it might not all be as bad as it seems - yes the rat died, the cat was worried by the dog and the dog was tossed by the cow....but also....
The farmer,who owned to the cock that crowed in the morn, got his corn sowed , The crowing woke the priest all shaven and shorn, so he could marry the man all tattered and torn to the maiden so she could stop being so forlorn, who milked the cow with the crumpled horn.

Ok, I guess in the end it all works out for the best.