It is a week now since Typhoon Morakot hit Taiwan with 2.6 meters (102 inches) of rain water, which caused massive mudslides and floods. There are of course many tragic stories of victims and exciting stories of the bravery of rescuers, but one story caught my attention. The six-story Jinshuai Hotel in Jhihben collapsed into the Jhihben River after its foundations were eroded by surging floodwaters.
This reminds me of a story that I learnt very early in kindergarten. It is called the story of the three little pigs. One day the time had come for the three little pigs to leave their mother and to strike out on their own. The first pig built a house of straw, possibly because it was the easiest way to build a house. The second pig built his house out of sticks while the third pig built his with bricks.
Along came the big bad wolf, who decided to eat these three fat little pigs. In each of the three houses he demanded to be let in, and in all cases entry was refused. So the big bad wolf huffed and puffed and guess what? He blew the house of straw and the house of sticks down without much effort, and of course he was rewarded with meals of pork chops.
But when he came to the third house, he could not blow it down no matter how hard he huffed and puffed. Why? Because this house had a strong foundation, being built of bricks.
The Jinshuai Hotel could not withstand the huffing and puffing of Typhoon Morakot. If the foundation is weak, how can the structure withstand the fury of the storm?
Think about it. How firm is your own foundation? Are you standing on a solid foundation in your value system? Is your belief system based on a solid rock? What about your moral system? Is it standing on shifting sand? Remember, if the foundation is weak, you will sway with the forces of the storms of life, and you may even perish in it. Fortify yourself therefore with a firm and solid foundation.
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