A parable, a statistic and a post script…
The Parable
Once upon a time, a group of people in a small town realized their town was in trouble. So they built a swimming pool, opened it to the neighborhood and invited everyone to come. And the people came. And they were happy. They discovered a new sense of community and the whole town was renewed.
The idea spread to other towns and soon there were swimming pools in every town and every neighborhood. Soon there were so many swimming pools, they decided to form an Association of United Swimming Pools and a Synod of Swimming Pools in America, and the movement spread like wildfire.
Eventually it seemed nearly everyone belonged to a swimming pool, so there was little need to go through the neighborhood inviting others. The associations beg…