The Sole

Long, long ago, when the world was young and the seas were new, all the fish that swam in the ocean’s depths looked quite different from how they appear today. Their bodies were straight and symmetrical, their fins perfectly balanced, and their mouths properly centered on their faces. Among these ancient fish lived a sole who was particularly proud of her beautiful, straight form and her perfectly shaped mouth.

In those days, the fish held great gatherings in the deepest parts of the ocean, where they would discuss the affairs of their underwater kingdom and share news from all the seven seas. The sole was always among the most vocal participants in these assemblies, for she considered herself to be one of the wisest and most important fish in all the ocean.

One day, a great commotion arose in the underwater realm. Word had spread throughout all the seas that the Lord of All Creation was planning to visit the ocean depths to judge the fish and determine which species were living according to divine law and which had strayed from the path of righteousness.

The news of this impending divine judgment caused great excitement and anxiety among the fish. Some were confident in their good behavior and looked forward to receiving divine approval. Others worried about their past misdeeds and wondered if they would face punishment. All began to prepare themselves for this momentous occasion.

The wise old whale, who served as an elder among the sea creatures, called for a great assembly to discuss how they should prepare for the divine visitation. Fish from every corner of the ocean gathered in the deepest trench, their scales glimmering in the mysterious light that filtered down from the surface far above.

“My fellow creatures of the sea,” announced the whale in his deep, resonant voice, “we must examine our hearts and our actions. The Creator comes to judge us, and we must be ready to account for how we have lived our lives in these waters.”

Many fish spoke during this assembly, confessing their faults and promising to do better. The sharks admitted they had sometimes been too aggressive in their hunting. The angelfish acknowledged they had occasionally been vain about their beautiful appearance. The pufferfish confessed to losing their tempers too quickly when threatened.

But when it came time for the sole to speak, she surprised everyone with her response.

“I cannot understand why everyone is so worried,” she said in a voice that carried clearly through the water. “Surely the Creator has more important things to do than swim down here to check on us fish. This is probably just a silly rumor started by some nervous minnow who saw a shadow and thought it was something important.”

The other fish gasped at the sole’s irreverent words. Even the sharks, who were known for their bold nature, would never have dared to speak so dismissively about divine matters.

The wise whale’s eyes grew stern. “Sister sole,” he said gravely, “you should not speak so lightly of sacred things. The Creator sees all and knows all, whether in the heavens above or the depths below.”

But the sole only laughed, a sound like bubbles rising through the water. “Oh, really now,” she said with obvious scorn. “If the Creator is truly all-knowing and all-seeing, then why would divine judgment be necessary? Surely an all-powerful being would already know who is good and who is bad without having to come down here personally to investigate.”

Her words shocked the assembly into silence. Even the most skeptical fish had never heard anyone speak with such disrespect about divine authority. Many began to swim away, not wanting to be associated with such blasphemous talk.

“Furthermore,” continued the sole, apparently oblivious to the horror she was causing, “I find it highly unlikely that the Creator would bother with such insignificant creatures as ourselves. We’re just fish, after all. Surely there are more important matters in the universe to attend to.”

The elderly whale tried once more to warn her. “My dear sole, your words are dangerous. You should show more respect and humility before it is too late.”

But the sole was enjoying the attention her controversial statements were bringing her. “Humility?” she scoffed. “Before what? Before some supposed divine being who may or may not exist? I think we fish should rely on our own judgment rather than cowering in fear of imaginary authorities.”

No sooner had these words left the sole’s mouth than something extraordinary and terrible began to happen. The water around the assembly suddenly grew bright with an otherworldly light, and a presence descended from above that was so powerful and majestic that every fish in the ocean felt compelled to bow their heads in awe.

The Creator had indeed come to the depths of the sea, just as had been foretold. But instead of finding a community of fish prepared to receive divine judgment with proper respect and reverence, the Creator heard the sole’s mocking words echoing through the water.

The divine voice spoke, and when it did, the entire ocean trembled from surface to seafloor:

“Sole, you who doubt My existence and mock My authority, you who question My concern for even the smallest of My creatures, you shall bear the mark of your disrespect for all to see. Since you have spoken with a crooked heart, your mouth shall be crooked as well. And since you have shown such disdain for divine judgment, you shall live always at the bottom of the sea, flat against the ocean floor, as a reminder of how the proud are brought low.”

As these words rang out through the water, the sole felt a strange sensation beginning in her face. Her perfectly centered mouth began to twist and slide to one side of her head, becoming permanently crooked and asymmetrical. At the same time, her entire body began to flatten and change shape, until she looked completely different from her former beautiful self.

But the transformation was not yet complete. The divine voice continued:

“Moreover, since you questioned whether I would trouble Myself to judge the fish, you shall have your answer. Every fish in the ocean shall indeed be judged, but you shall serve as an eternal reminder of what befalls those who mock divine authority.”

As the Creator’s presence withdrew, leaving the underwater realm in stunned silence, the sole discovered that her punishment had only begun. Her flattened body could no longer swim gracefully through the water as she once had. Instead, she was forced to live on the sandy bottom of the sea, lying flat against the ocean floor, her twisted mouth a permanent reminder of her irreverent words.

The other fish watched in awe and terror as the sole struggled to adapt to her new form. What had once been a beautiful, proud fish was now a strange, flat creature whose very appearance testified to the consequences of disrespecting divine authority.

Word of what had happened to the sole spread quickly throughout all the oceans of the world. Fish everywhere told and retold the story, using it as a warning to their children about the importance of showing proper reverence and humility.

The sole herself learned a bitter lesson from her transformation. She discovered that her new form made her life much more difficult than it had been before. She could no longer swim freely through the water, but had to glide along the bottom, partially buried in sand and mud. Her twisted mouth made it harder for her to catch food, and her strange appearance made other fish wary of associating with her.

In her new humility, born of harsh experience, the sole began to understand the wisdom of the old whale’s warnings. She realized that her pride and skepticism had blinded her to truths that wiser creatures had understood all along. The Creator did indeed care about all creatures, even the fish in the deepest parts of the ocean, and divine judgment was real and just.

Years passed, and the sole adapted to her new life as best she could. She learned to make the most of her flattened form, discovering that it had certain advantages for life on the seafloor. She could hide from predators by burying herself in the sand, and her position at the bottom of the sea gave her access to food sources that other fish couldn’t reach.

But she never forgot the lesson of her transformation. Whenever young fish would come near her hiding place in the sand, she would tell them her story, warning them about the dangers of pride and disrespect. Her twisted mouth served as a visual reminder of her words, making her tale all the more compelling.

“Learn from my example,” she would tell the young fish with deep sadness in her voice. “I was once beautiful and proud, swimming freely through the waters with perfect confidence in my own wisdom. But my pride led me to mock what I should have respected, and my skepticism caused me to doubt what I should have believed. Now I am changed forever, and though I have learned to accept my new form, I can never undo the consequences of my foolish words.”

Some of the young fish who heard her story felt sorry for the sole and asked if there was any way her punishment could be reversed. But the sole would shake her head sadly, her crooked mouth making the gesture even more poignant.

“Divine judgment, once pronounced, cannot be undone by regret alone,” she would explain. “I must live with the consequences of my choices. But perhaps my story can help others avoid making the same mistakes I made. That would give some meaning to my suffering.”

As generations passed, the sole’s story became one of the most important teaching tales in the ocean. Parents would point to sole fish lying flat on the seafloor and tell their children about the fish who learned too late about the importance of humility and respect.

The tale also served as a reminder that divine concern extends to all creatures, no matter how small or seemingly insignificant. The fact that the Creator had personally intervened to correct the sole’s disrespect showed that every being in creation matters and that no creature is too humble to be worthy of divine attention.

Marine biologists today, when they observe the flat form and asymmetrical mouth of the sole, might explain these features as evolutionary adaptations to life on the ocean floor. But according to this ancient tale, these distinctive characteristics serve as an eternal reminder of a much deeper truth about pride, humility, and the consequences of our words and attitudes.

The sole’s twisted mouth continues to this day to tell its silent story to anyone who looks closely enough to see. It speaks of a time when a proud fish learned that wisdom comes through humility, that skepticism without respect leads to downfall, and that some transformations, once undergone, mark us forever.

And so the sole remains on the ocean floor, a living testament to the truth that our words and attitudes have consequences that can extend far beyond what we imagine when we speak. Her story reminds us that true wisdom lies not in doubting everything, but in approaching the mysteries of existence with proper reverence and humility.

Moral: Pride and disrespect toward divine authority lead to lasting consequences. Our words reveal the state of our hearts, and those who mock what they should revere may find themselves permanently changed by their irreverence. True wisdom comes through humility, not through skeptical pride.