A Scientist Learns to Relax

There was an old sci­en­tist who lived in a zoo.
He worked with so many engi­neers, he didn’t know what to do;
He gave them all advice with­out any dread;
But they drove him all crazy and out of his head.

Advice is given. It is good advice. Much of the advice is based on hav­ing learned very hard lessons. The advice is offered with the sole intent of help­ing the group suc­ceed with­out mak­ing the same errors that have been made in the past. But is the advice taken? Is the advice fol­lowed? Is the advice even heard? Oh, no!

What is the old sci­en­tist to do? He tries again. He tries again. He tries again. The old sci­en­tist is stub­born. It is the old scientist’s job to lead the zoo full of engi­neers through the many pit­falls that lie in front of them with­out hav­ing too many of them fall into the pits. It is very hard to do when they insist on jump­ing into the pits!

Scream­ing does not help. Yelling does not help. He is not allowed to use a cricket bat to whack them away from the pits (a cricket bat works much bet­ter than a base­ball bat - the flat side stings, and if that does not work, the sharp side really hurts!)

So all he can do is try, and try, and try, and try. And then seek a quite place where he can med­i­tate and seek some peace. But he finds medi­a­tion does not work. He tries and tries. He is even tenser than he was when he started. Feels all tingly. The cat runs away hissing.

Checks the inter­net. Checks many books. He is sit­ting cor­rectly. He is breath­ing cor­rectly. He is even hold­ing his thumbs and fore­fin­gers cor­rectly. And then it finally makes sense. No won­der the cat ran away so fast! No won­der there was that big spark! You are sup­posed to say “Om” not “Ohm”!

Is Still Here