Theobeat, a young boy of 10 years, was walking along the unending shores of Friuli when he spotted an old man hauling a boat to the shore. The old man appeared to be exhausted, wearing tattered garments. His greying hair and unkempt beard indicated to the young boy that he must have been long away at sea. The old man fell to his knees and Theobeat rushed over to help the old man. As he wrung his arms around him to brace his fall, the old man looked at the boy and gasped saying, “Alas, I have come into the arms of another man.”
Exasperated, the old man sat down and faced the sea. The boat, or what remained of it, buried itself into the ground. Theobeat asked, “From where do you come, old man? Are you the captain of this ship?”
The old man replied softly, “Aye, I come from a land far from here where many honorable men live. A land no one can reach. Indeed, I am, or was, the captain of this ship. Many nights ago, I travelled with a group of valiant men, none of whom, have survived but me. And now I am here to tell my tale for I have escaped with only one breath left in me and now you shall hear my story.”
Theobeat knelt by the old man to listen.
“My name is Solomon. I am the son of the great king, David. Once a naïve youth, and now ever wiser, see where my wisdom has led me. To the final answer of life.”
“And what is this conclusion that you have come to?” asked the young boy.
“Vanity of vanities. All is vanity. This life I have lived, this journey I have committed my men and myself to. Now, I see that all is vanity, for not even the sands of this shore can number the amount of wealth I have squandered in my youth. I was a King, a man once beloved by all, and now, my kingdom is gone. Split in two, separated as a man who departeth from his wife, forever in conflict.”
“And tell me wise sir, how did all this wisdom prompt you for such a perilous journey?”
“My wife… she told me to set sail for the sea.”
“This wife, perhaps not as wise as you?” asked the boy.
“Nay,” quipped the old man, “wives.”
“Alas, how many?”
“One too many,” sobbed the old man. “One told me to find God; the other, riches.”
“And whose advice did you follow?”
“The one most beautiful and clever. A woman whose pride lay in gold and silver. She, whose words drip like honey, yet whose touch poisons a serpent. She urged me to set sail. Many jealous kings came to see my kingdom and build after it. These greedy kings built strong empires whose men were ready to plunder my own. In my foolish youth, I was prideful and allowed them to see all the treasures of my kingdom and they became jealous. I then took with me many strong men to seek greater shores of land and wealth to expand my empire. We were successful at first, until the hand of God reached out, and alas! a great storm came down upon us and swept away half my fleet. We then landed ashore on an island where many beautiful women took hold of even more of my men. The older men pleaded with the younger to continue with us, but the young men in their foolishness lay with the women of this unknown island. These deceitful women slept with each other’s men to arouse great jealousy among them. The old men and I watched them tear each other apart, blinded by rage and vengeance. We had no choice but to leave them, and we set sail. For months, we traversed a vast ocean where the sun beat down hard and led the last of my men to insanity. They argued with each other and lost sight of the purpose with which we had initially set sail for. One by one, they jumped ship and killed themselves, and I alone, have lived to tell you this. Many nights I spent alone, cast off from mankind, floating endlessly across the seas wondering when it would stop. And finally, I have arrived at this shore, and you are the first man my eyes have laid upon for many years. Forgive me if I sound desperate, but I have not had company apart from God since I have lost all my men.”
Theobeat was greatly taken aback and could not help but mutter to the old man. “Surely once a king, you have lived a full life. But it seems that you have placed trust in foolish counsel, and in your desire to improve your kingdom, you set sail for the end of your life. Now, you have only one final breath to speak, but forgive me. I am but a boy whose wisdom is miniscule unlike any wise man you have ever met. Perhaps, you had hoped to share your story with someone older than myself. I cannot offer any counsel, for what can a boy or any man advise you about after what you have faced.”
The old man forced himself into the lap of the boy and cried, “I am humbled by your humility. That is the first sign of wisdom, my boy. A listening ear is hard to come by. Surely, I would have loved your company with me on the ship. Ask me what you wish, for my wisdom is given by God, and I can offer you one answer before I draw my last breath. Ask and I shall give unto you all my wisdom.”
The boy cleared the dirt from the old man’s face and saw the innocence that every boy must have once had. The old man’s eyes were no longer weary, but brimming with youth, and his hair, though grey, appeared to have color. Looking at the old man, the young boy saw that he was looking at himself and saw a great depth of wisdom, locked, and stored away in a vast chasm of loneliness. Gazing upon his face, the boy wept and saw the vanity of life. A man who had lived many lifetimes, was now crumbling away in one moment. The poor boy wept.
“What is the meaning of life?” the boy whispered. “What could a man hope to achieve in one life, if all lives end like this. Decaying into the dust with which he was once made. What amount of experience and wealth could one hope for yet hold nothing. What is wealth if he is to be put into the ground with no possession to carry into the next life?”
The old man was pleased by the young boy’s question and arose from his lap and pressed his hands against the boy’s cheeks and began to weep for him. He then proceeded to answer:
“A young boy in appearance, but a wise, old man at heart. Listen carefully, which I know you shall, for I will give unto you the answer with which I have told many men of varying ages. Many times have I spoken wise words, only to fall upon deaf ears. There have been many young men such as yourself who have asked the same question, but none who have asked with the right heart as yours. Listen carefully, my son. To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die. There was once a father who had two sons. Both of whom he loved very much. Both grew to be great men, but the older became proud for he had lived longer than the second son. He fought with his father the most and thought he knew everything there was to know under the sun. The younger son grew as his father had instructed him and lived an unblemished life.
This son was adored by his father, for no matter what age he was, he still appeared as a baby ewe to his father. However, the older grew like a goat, with sharp and crooked horns. This one wrestled and toiled with his father. Many times, he would turn away from his father. Whenever the older son realized he had done wrong, he would come back to his father, repenting of his sins, and the father was always ready to forgive him for he loved him as much as he had loved the younger son. One day, the older son in great resentment, decided to leave his father. For a very long time, he did not return. The father would wait every day at the door hoping to see his beloved son return, ready to forget every wrong he had ever done. Though this time, he never returned. The father, in great angst, cried and wept for his older son, when finally, the younger son, unable to bear the sight of his father offered to go find his brother. The father, upon hearing him say this, wept sevenfold knowing that his younger son would not return if he sent him after his brother. For many days, the younger son persisted, until finally, the father relented and sent his son after his brother. The father sent him forth with every possession in his household, leaving nothing to spare, and said unto him, ‘Go now and come back together with your brother. I shall wait here.’ And so, the younger son went into the land where his brother lay with the wicked. A land where men took pleasure in slaying the innocent.
There, the son met with his older brother and pleaded with him to turn from these men and to return with him to their father, but the older brother would not listen and devolved further and further into greater sin. The younger brother would not leave until his brother agreed to turn back home and so, he waited and remained close at his brother’s side for many years. The younger son refused to take part in what the other men did, nor did he adopt the evil traditions of those men. Day by day, these men resented the younger brother; until one day, they said to themselves, ‘who is this young man that he is unlike us and pleads with us to turn from our sins? Let us take him away in the night and slay him for his presence is a great discomfort among us.’ And like a lamb that is plucked from his flock, they seized the younger brother and beat him mercilessly until he was within an inch of his life. They then tore apart his garments and nailed him to a tree and left him there to die.
When the older brother had heard what had been done to his younger brother, he went up to the tree and saw that his brother was nailed to it. Seeing the way that he had been treated, he got on his knees, and cried greatly. Not one of his brother’s murderers had heard his cries for they were all dancing and feasting in the city. Finally, the older brother, seeing the wickedness with which he had lived his life, detested himself and decided to return home with the body of his brother. When the father saw his son come back with his younger son in his arms, the father said to himself, ‘Alas, both my sons have come back – one alive and the other dead.’ The old father, lay hold of both his older and younger sons and together they wept. ‘Look father, I have returned, undeservedly with your beloved son. Look how I have sinned. Do with me as you please.’ However, the father could not bring himself to wrath. He lay hold of his older son, and said to him, ‘Nay, for you are my son with whom I am well pleased. All that I have is yours, and double that, for I shall give unto you all the blessings I have reserved for your brother.’ And until the end of his days, the older son remained with him, inheriting his wisdom, and eventually making a good life for himself. This then is the meaning of life. For all is vanity, but a good life is one that is honoring unto a Father whose love is unlike any father on earth. Pursue a heavenly walk with God and He shall make straight your paths and every blessing He has stored for you shall fall in-step. Direct all that you do to Him and He shall surely make your life a blessing. There is no other way to live than this, my son.”
Upon finishing his story, the old man let out one final breath and laid himself to sleep.
Image credit: The Helping Hand (1881) by Emile Renouf