self-fulfilling prophecy
Here's a sardonic tale pilferred from one of my favourite authors, Jeffery Archer, who in turn pilferred it from antiquity. Makes you ponder...
A servant in Baghdad rushed home to his master one day with a look of utter fear frozen upon his face.
"Master, I just came back from the market," he explained, "where I saw Death. When he saw me, he made a menacing gesture. Allow me to flee to from here and I will ride to Samara, where Death will not find me."
The master gave his consent and the servant flew at once out of the city to Samara. Later that afternoon, the master went to the market himself. Amongst the crowd, he too chanced upon Death. Angry that he had lost a good servant, he confronted him.
"This morning you saw my servant and made a menacing gesture towards him. Why did you do that?"
Death replied: "I never intended to frighten him. That was not a gesture of menace but a reaction of surprise. I did not expect to see him here, for I had an appointment with him this afternoon in Samara."
A servant in Baghdad rushed home to his master one day with a look of utter fear frozen upon his face.
"Master, I just came back from the market," he explained, "where I saw Death. When he saw me, he made a menacing gesture. Allow me to flee to from here and I will ride to Samara, where Death will not find me."
The master gave his consent and the servant flew at once out of the city to Samara. Later that afternoon, the master went to the market himself. Amongst the crowd, he too chanced upon Death. Angry that he had lost a good servant, he confronted him.
"This morning you saw my servant and made a menacing gesture towards him. Why did you do that?"
Death replied: "I never intended to frighten him. That was not a gesture of menace but a reaction of surprise. I did not expect to see him here, for I had an appointment with him this afternoon in Samara."
