The Gold Coins
An old miser lived in a house with a garden. The miser hides
his gold coins in a pit under some stones in the garden. Every day, before
going to bed, the miser went to the stones where he hides the gold and counted
the coins. He continued this routine every day, but not once did he spend the
gold he saved.
One day, a thief who knew the old miser’s routine, waited
for the old man to go back into his house. After it was dark, the thief went to
the hiding place and took the gold. The next day, the old miser found that his
treasure was missing and started crying loudly.
His neighbor heard the miser’s cries and inquired about
what happened. On learning what happened, the neighbor asked, “Why didn’t you
save the money inside the house? It would’ve been easier to access the money
when you had to buy something!”
“Buy? said the miser. I never used the gold to buy
anything. I was never going to spend it.”
On hearing this, the neighbor threw a stone into the pit and
said, “If that is the case, save the stone. It is as worthless as the gold you
have lost”.
Moral
Possession is just as worthy of what it is used for.