Zorba the Greek

It wasn't too long ago that I had a high fever. As I rested in a most uncomfortable way and my delirious mind wandered ... something gave me a throbbing headache ... for some unexplainable strange reason, the title of a movie I once saw in Canada kept bothering me. This was Zorba the Greek. It was a classic Oscar-award winning performance by Anthony Quinn as Zorba.

It was a movie about self-discovery, learning and wisdom.

The following quotation and thoughts are those of Zorba's boss while he is with Zorba somewhat close towards the end of the story, which is somewhat rather philosophical and just great food for thought!

"We are little grubs, Zorba, minute grubs on the small leaf of a tremendous tree. The small leaf is the earth. The other leaves are the stars that you see moving at night. We make our way on this little leaf examining it anxiously and carefully. We smell it; it smells good or bad to us. We taste it and find it eatable. We beat on it and it cries out like a living thing.

"Some men -- the more intrepid ones -- reach the edge of the leaf. From there we stretch out, gazing into chaos. We tremble. We guess what a frightening abyss lies beneath us. In the distance we can hear the noise of the other leaves of the tremendous tree, we feel the sap rising from the root of our leaf and our hearts swell. Bent thus over the awe-inspiring abyss, with all our bodies and all our souls, we tremble with terror. From that moment begins…"

"I stopped. I wanted to say "from that moment begins poetry," but Zorba would not have understood. I stopped.

"'What begins'? asked Zorba's anxious voice. 'Why did you stop'?

"…begins the great danger, Zorba. Some grow dizzy and delirious, others are afraid; they try to find an answer to strengthen their hearts, and they say: 'God'! Others again, from the edge of the leaf, look over the precipice calmly and bravely and say: 'I like it.'!