Don't forget to give it a fave point and take a pic!
CONGRATS TO kramer1730 ON GETTING FTF!
I discovered this icon on my travels to the "Birthplace of Texas" GeoTour and, of course, fitting in with my series theme, had to place a little cache here! (Anyone recognize the geocacher in the cache page image?)
Curiously, the ranch name emblazoned on the red and white gate, is Rancho Rey, which translated, is King Ranch. Hmmmmm....
While doing some research for the cache page, although I could not find info on what seems to be a cattle ranch, I came across 2 great stories:
The Rooster Prince
The Rooster Prince, is a Jewish mashal or parable told by Rabbi Nachman of Breslov, founder of the Breslov form of Hasidic Judaism. It was first told orally, and later published by Nathan of Breslov in Sippurei Ma'asiot, a collection of stories by Rebbe Nachman. It has since appeared in numerous folklore anthologies and works on Hasidic storytelling.
In this story, a prince goes insane and believes that he is a rooster. He takes off his clothes, sits naked under the table, and pecks at his food on the floor. The king and queen are horrified that the heir to the throne is acting this way. They call in various sages and healers to try and convince the prince to act human again, but to no avail. Then a new wise man comes to the palace and claims he can cure the prince. He takes off his clothes and sits naked under the table with him, claiming to be a rooster, too. Gradually the prince comes to accept him as a friend. The sage then tells the prince that a rooster can wear clothes, eat at the table, etc. The Rooster Prince accepts this idea and, step-by-step, begins to act normally, until he is completely cured.
The main interpretation of this story is that the prince represents a simple Jew who has forgotten his true self, and the sage represents a Hasidic Rebbe who has the cure for his soul. Rather than condemn the simple Jew for being non-religious, the Rebbe "descends" to his level to meet him where he is at, then shows him how to return to God step by step, and in a manner that he can accept upon himself. Some Breslov Hasidim say that the "wise man" is Rebbe Nachman himself. In 1991, Rabbi Avraham Greenbaum, himself a Breslover Hasid, published an entire self-help book based on this story, entitled Under the Table and How to Get Up. This book goes step by step through the story, expanding each detail into a personal lesson on spiritual growth.
The Rooster - A symbol of Portugal
The Rooster has long been the symbol of Portugal, as the eagle is for the United States of America. A delightful moral tale is traditionally credited with the selection of the rooster.
The story is set in the era of the early regional kings of Portugal. It tells of a humble villager who is accused of theft and sentenced to death.
The man loudly proclaimed his innocence and demanded to be set free. His jailors paid him no mind and laughed at his cries for freedom. As his execution day neared, however, his constant insistence on his innocence impressed one of the jailors who promised to speak to the king on his behalf.
The jailor had no opportunity to approach the king until the day of the execution. The jailor carried the condemned man’s plea to the king during a large banquet. In good humor due to the festive occasion, the king granted his request for the audience and the villager was brought before him.
“So you are innocent, are you?” laughed the king.
“Yes Sir, I am. Before God, I swear it,” answered the villager.
“Ah, but you have been accused and sentenced to death, and I can’t change the sentence on just your word without proof. How do you think you can prove your innocence, my good man?”
“But Sir, I swear that I am innocent,” the man insisted. He looked around the banquet room in desperation, seeking some way, some help. His eyes fell on a servant carrying in a large platter of fowl, steaming with seasonings. He fell to his knees.
“Lord God,” he prayed, “as Peter, your servant, denied you at the cock’s crow, would that you show my innocence as your humble servant by this rooster’s crow…”
All eyes turned to the platter of steaming cooked fowl and widened in wonder and amazement as the rooster got up, ruffled his feathers and crowed loudly.
“The Lord has indeed spoken,” the king said softly, and raising his voice, he proclaimed, “Let this be a lesson to each of us never to sit in quick judgment of our fellow man. The rooster, henceforth, shall be a reminder to us and to our children after us, of this, the Lord’s message. So shall it be in our land forever!”
The rooster, gaily decorated with bright designs, remains Portugal’s symbol and can be seen in almost every home and on every festive occasion, shaped in loaves of holiday bread and stamped on children’s candies. It has come to be considered by the Portuguese as a symbol of faith in the greatness of God.