Be Careful What You Pray For


At a time when everyone in Syracuse wished for the death of Dionysius, an old woman kept praying for his safety and continued survival. When the tyrant found out about this he asked her why she did it. She replied, "When I was a little girl we were ruled by an evil tyrant and I kept praying that he would die. When he was killed his successor was still more oppressive, and I kept wishing for his rule to end. Then we began to have a third ruler who was even worse-you. And so if you are taken from us a worse ruler will take your place."