I have heard several versions of this story. I will include both endings because I think the original ending invites us to see life in a richer, more expansive manner.
A man was walking through the bush when he heard a low growl and something moving through the bush. He realized it was a tiger hunting. He ran as fast as he could and came to the edge of a rugged cliff. He looked down and saw a branch jutting out just as the tiger appeared out of the bush.
He jumped and grabbed a hold of the branch thankful to be alive. The tiger paced back and forth looking hungrily at the man just out of his reach. When the man looked down he saw two more tigers standing on the rocks right below him. He looked to the left and saw some ripe, red berries. He loved strawberries so he took a deep breath and smiled broadly as he picked the berries and ate them. They were the best strawberries he ever tasted.
In the original story. He reached out, picked the berries and ate them before he realized they were poisonous. He looked out at the horizon and enjoyed the view.
Life is best when savored fully and we can only do that in the moment.
Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor of your old thinking. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.
Mark Twain
With love and aloha,
Susan