Really Long Spoons

A long time ago, a man died and got to visit heaven AND hell. He came back to Earth miraculously and his description of what he saw on the other side of life has been passed on for hundred of years. Legend has it, that his first stop was hell. Upon arrival he was very confused because what he saw wasn’t the fiery lava pit he always imagined Hell to be. It was a feast with all the delicious food a person could ever want! 

But as he shifted his gaze from the table to the souls sitting around it, he saw desperate, starving faces. The guests at this feast of the underworld were each granted a really long spoon with which to eat, several feet long. Bulky and heavy, ridiculous looking things. They could scoop up the food from the table, but couldn’t turn the enormous spoons into their mouths. It was impossible, and still they spent eternity hopelessly trying to feed themselves. 

Shaken and disturbed, he was suddenly lifted up into heaven. Yet instead of relief, he was filled with dismay because heaven looked exactly like hell! The banquet, the really long spoons. All the same, until he witnessed heaven’s dinner guests. 

With their long spoons in hand, they scooped globs of food from the feast. Then, arms stretched out in front of them, they turned the food away from themselves and towards their neighbors. In this way, everyone was fed and everyone had their fill.