The Mango and The Bananas

Around 30 years ago, I was speaking to a group of people who knew very little English and even less about Jesus Christ. Just before the outdoor meeting began, I sat down with my translator and went over the general ideas I would talk about so he would understand the point of my message, as well as give us the opportunity to clear up any confusion regarding idioms/word choices/etc.

Translator: Won’t work.

Me: What won’t work?

Translator: Jesus as the Bread of Life.

Me: Why not?

Translator: Most people here are unfamiliar with bread and, even if they know what it is, it is a rare thing, not a staple of life. Bread won’t work.

Me: I’ll think of something … what is something they eat every day?

Translator: Mangoes.

Me: (To myself) O my … Jesus as the Mango of Life? Dad will not be amused.

But that is exactly what I used, and, of course, the people got the point of the metaphor. After all, what use is a metaphor that no one understands?

Which leads me to another fruit as a metaphor for life.

The Bananas

What can bananas teach us about life, you ask?

What do you do with an old black banana that is so rotten it falls apart in your hands?
You throw it away.

What do you do with a green banana?
You put it away and wait for it to ripen.

What do you do with a ripe banana?
You eat it.

Thus saith The Three Bananas:

Rotten Banana: Throw your past away

Green Banana: Leave the future in the future, waiting for the opportune time to peel and eat it

Ripe Banana: Live off of the moment, live in the moment, eating the ripe banana, while keeping your eye on that Green Banana or it too will rot and end up in the trash, rather than in your stomach!

Copyright, Monte E Wilson, 2008