"In a place out of doors, near forests and meadows, stands a jar of vinegar – the emblem of life.
Confucius approaches the jar, dips his finger in and tastes the brew. “Sour,” he says. Nonetheless, I can see where it could be very useful in preparing certain foods.”
Buddha comes to the vinegar jar, dips in a finger and has a taste. “Bitter,” is his comment. “It can cause suffering to the palate, and since suffering is to be avoided, the stuff should be disposed of at once.”
The next to stick a finger in the vinegar is Jesus Christ. “Yuk,” says Jesus. “It’s both bitter and sour. It’s not fit to drink. In order that no one else will have to drink it, I will drink it all myself.”
But now two people approach the jar, together, naked, hand in had. The ………….First the man and then the woman sticks a thumb in the vinegar. She licks his thumb and he hers. Initially they make a face, but almost immediately they break into wide grins. “It’s sweet,” they chime. “Swee-eet!”"


"I take the universal and make it personal. The only truly magical and poetic exchanges that occur in this life occur between two people. Sometimes it doesn’t get that far. Often, the true glory of existence is confined to individual consciousness. That’s okay. Let us live for the beauty of our own reality."


-Tom Robbins, Even Cowgirls Get the Blues