The Old Ring
Once upon a time there was a young boy who was feeling very unhappy. He decided to go to his teacher for help. “I have come to you teacher” he said, “because I feel I am worth so little. I have no strength to do anything. People say I am good for nothing, I don’t do anything well and I’m too slow and too dumb. How can I improve? What can I do to better myself?”
Without looking up, the teacher said to him, “I feel very sorry for you young man, but I can’t help you. I have to solve my own problem first. Maybe after that.”
The he paused for a while and said, “Perhaps if you help me, I could solve this problem more quickly. Then I could help you.”
“O-of course, Teacher” said the boy. But he felt even more disheartened and he wondered if he would be able to help his teacher. The teacher pulled off a ring from his little finger and he gave it to the boy saying,
“Take your horse and go to the market. I need to sell this ring because I have to settle a debt. I must get the highest price possible for this ring. Don’t accept anything less than one gold coin for it. Go and come back with the money as soon as possible.
The young boy took the ring and left. When he got to the market he began to offer the ring to the merchants. They looked at it with some interest, until the boy told them how much it cost. When he told them he wanted one gold coin, some laughed and some walked off without even looking at him. Only one old man was kind enough to explain that the price of one gold coin was too expensive. Trying to help the boy, the old man even offered him a silver coin and a copper cup. But the young man remembered his teacher’s instructions; he didn’t accept anything less than one gold coin and he refused the offer.
After showing the jewellery to everyone who walked by at the market, the boy was crushed with defeat. He mounted his horse and went home. If only he had a gold coin to give to his teacher! He could solve his teacher’s problem and receive help and advice.
When he got to his teacher’s house he said, “Teacher, I’m sorry but it was impossible to do as you asked. Perhaps you could get two or three pieces of silver, but you can’t fool anyone about the value of this ring”.
The teacher smiled. “Firstly we must find out the value of the ring”, he challenged. “Go and get your horse and go to the jeweller. Who better to know the exact value of this ring? Tell him you want to sell it and ask what he will offer you for it. But no matter what he offers you, don’t sell it. Come back with my ring”.
The boy went to the jeweller and gave him the ring to examine. The jeweller looked at the ring with a magnifying glass, weighed the ring and said, “Tell your teacher if he wants to sell now, I cannot get more than 58 pieces of gold for the ring”.
“58 GOLD COINS!” exclaimed the young man.
“Yes,” replied the jeweller, I know that if I had more time, I could offer about 70 gold coins, but if the sale is urgent….”
And with that, the boy ran out of the door excitedly. He ran all the way to the teacher’s house. He told him everything that had happened.
“Sit down”. Said the teacher gently after the boy had finished.
“You are like this ring. You are like a precious and unique jewel that can only be appreciated by an expert.
“But I thought anyone could discover their true value?”
The teacher put the ring back on his finger and looking at the stone he said, “We are all like this gem. We are all precious and unique. Yet in life, as at the market, many people try to tell us we are not worth anything. But it is they who are inexperienced and who often don’t see a person’s true value. Like the jeweller, I can see with my expert eye that you are a very very important young man”.
Once upon a time there was a young boy who was feeling very unhappy. He decided to go to his teacher for help. “I have come to you teacher” he said, “because I feel I am worth so little. I have no strength to do anything. People say I am good for nothing, I don’t do anything well and I’m too slow and too dumb. How can I improve? What can I do to better myself?”
Without looking up, the teacher said to him, “I feel very sorry for you young man, but I can’t help you. I have to solve my own problem first. Maybe after that.”
The he paused for a while and said, “Perhaps if you help me, I could solve this problem more quickly. Then I could help you.”
“O-of course, Teacher” said the boy. But he felt even more disheartened and he wondered if he would be able to help his teacher. The teacher pulled off a ring from his little finger and he gave it to the boy saying,
“Take your horse and go to the market. I need to sell this ring because I have to settle a debt. I must get the highest price possible for this ring. Don’t accept anything less than one gold coin for it. Go and come back with the money as soon as possible.
The young boy took the ring and left. When he got to the market he began to offer the ring to the merchants. They looked at it with some interest, until the boy told them how much it cost. When he told them he wanted one gold coin, some laughed and some walked off without even looking at him. Only one old man was kind enough to explain that the price of one gold coin was too expensive. Trying to help the boy, the old man even offered him a silver coin and a copper cup. But the young man remembered his teacher’s instructions; he didn’t accept anything less than one gold coin and he refused the offer.
After showing the jewellery to everyone who walked by at the market, the boy was crushed with defeat. He mounted his horse and went home. If only he had a gold coin to give to his teacher! He could solve his teacher’s problem and receive help and advice.
When he got to his teacher’s house he said, “Teacher, I’m sorry but it was impossible to do as you asked. Perhaps you could get two or three pieces of silver, but you can’t fool anyone about the value of this ring”.
The teacher smiled. “Firstly we must find out the value of the ring”, he challenged. “Go and get your horse and go to the jeweller. Who better to know the exact value of this ring? Tell him you want to sell it and ask what he will offer you for it. But no matter what he offers you, don’t sell it. Come back with my ring”.
The boy went to the jeweller and gave him the ring to examine. The jeweller looked at the ring with a magnifying glass, weighed the ring and said, “Tell your teacher if he wants to sell now, I cannot get more than 58 pieces of gold for the ring”.
“58 GOLD COINS!” exclaimed the young man.
“Yes,” replied the jeweller, I know that if I had more time, I could offer about 70 gold coins, but if the sale is urgent….”
And with that, the boy ran out of the door excitedly. He ran all the way to the teacher’s house. He told him everything that had happened.
“Sit down”. Said the teacher gently after the boy had finished.
“You are like this ring. You are like a precious and unique jewel that can only be appreciated by an expert.
“But I thought anyone could discover their true value?”
The teacher put the ring back on his finger and looking at the stone he said, “We are all like this gem. We are all precious and unique. Yet in life, as at the market, many people try to tell us we are not worth anything. But it is they who are inexperienced and who often don’t see a person’s true value. Like the jeweller, I can see with my expert eye that you are a very very important young man”.
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