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The Miser and His Gold
Once upon a time there was a Miser who used to hide his gold at the foot of a tree in his garden; but every week he used to go and dig it up and gloat over his gains. A robber, who had noticed this, went and dug up the gold and absconded with it. When the Miser next came to gloat over his treasures, he found nothing but the empty hole. He tore his hair, and raised such an outcry that all the neighbors came around him, and he told them how he used to come and visit his gold. ”Did you ever take any of it out?” asked one of them. “Nay,” said he, “I only came to look at it.” “Then come again and look at the hole,” said a neighbor; “it will do you just as much good.”
Moral, or lesson, of the story: Wealth unused might as well not exist.
by Aesop
Aesop may or may not have been an actual person. If real, he would have been born in about 620 B.C.E. He would have been a fabulist, or storyteller, credited with a number of works known collectively as “Aesop’s Fables.” In some of the stories, animals possess human characteristics, such as the ability to speak or have jobs. Aesop would have passed on at about 56 years of age in about 564 B.C.E.
Once upon a time there was a Miser who used to hide his gold at the foot of a tree in his garden; but every week he used to go and dig it up and gloat over his gains. A robber, who had noticed this, went and dug up the gold and absconded with it. When the Miser next came to gloat over his treasures, he found nothing but the empty hole. He tore his hair, and raised such an outcry that all the neighbors came around him, and he told them how he used to come and visit his gold. ”Did you ever take any of it out?” asked one of them. “Nay,” said he, “I only came to look at it.” “Then come again and look at the hole,” said a neighbor; “it will do you just as much good.”
Moral, or lesson, of the story: Wealth unused might as well not exist.
by Aesop
Aesop may or may not have been an actual person. If real, he would have been born in about 620 B.C.E. He would have been a fabulist, or storyteller, credited with a number of works known collectively as “Aesop’s Fables.” In some of the stories, animals possess human characteristics, such as the ability to speak or have jobs. Aesop would have passed on at about 56 years of age in about 564 B.C.E.
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Thinking One Can
A little railroad engine was employed about a station yard for such work as it was built for, pulling a few cars on and off the switches. One morning it was waiting for the next call when a long train of freight-cars asked a large engine in the roundhouse to take it over the hill. “I can’t; that is too much a pull for me,” said the great engine built for hard work. Then the train asked another engine, and another, only to hear excuses and be refused. At last in desperation the train asked the little switch engine to draw it up the grade and down on the other side. “I think I can,” puffed the little locomotive, and put itself in front of the great heavy train. As it went on the little engine kept bravely puffing faster and faster, “I think I can, I think I can, I think I can.” Then as it near the top of the grade, that had so discouraged the larger engines, it went more slowly, but still kept saying, “I - think - I - can, I - think - I - can.” It reached the top by dint of brave effort and then went on down the grade, congratulating itself, “I thought I could, I thought I could.”
To think of hard things and say, “I can’t” is sure to mean, “Nothing done.” To refuse to be daunted and insist on saying, “I think I can,” is to make sure of being able to say triumphantly by and by, “I thought I could, I thought I could.”
by Author Unknown: as published in “Wellspring for Young People” (1906)
This is MFOL! . . . you can if you think you can . . .
A little railroad engine was employed about a station yard for such work as it was built for, pulling a few cars on and off the switches. One morning it was waiting for the next call when a long train of freight-cars asked a large engine in the roundhouse to take it over the hill. “I can’t; that is too much a pull for me,” said the great engine built for hard work. Then the train asked another engine, and another, only to hear excuses and be refused. At last in desperation the train asked the little switch engine to draw it up the grade and down on the other side. “I think I can,” puffed the little locomotive, and put itself in front of the great heavy train. As it went on the little engine kept bravely puffing faster and faster, “I think I can, I think I can, I think I can.” Then as it near the top of the grade, that had so discouraged the larger engines, it went more slowly, but still kept saying, “I - think - I - can, I - think - I - can.” It reached the top by dint of brave effort and then went on down the grade, congratulating itself, “I thought I could, I thought I could.”
To think of hard things and say, “I can’t” is sure to mean, “Nothing done.” To refuse to be daunted and insist on saying, “I think I can,” is to make sure of being able to say triumphantly by and by, “I thought I could, I thought I could.”
by Author Unknown: as published in “Wellspring for Young People” (1906)
This is MFOL! . . . you can if you think you can . . .
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The Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing
A hungry wolf found great difficulty in getting at a flock of sheep, due to the vigilance of the shepherd and his dogs. But one day the wolf found the skin of a sheep that had been flayed and thrown aside, so it put it on over its own pelt and strolled down among the sheep. The lamb that belonged to the sheep, whose skin the wolf was wearing, began to follow the wolf in the sheep’s clothing, and so, by leading the lamb a little astray, he soon made a meal of her, and for some time he succeeded in deceiving the sheep, and enjoyed hearty meals of them.
by Aesop
Moral, or lesson, of the story: Appearances can be deceiving, and therein lies danger.
Aesop may or may not have been an actual person. If real, he would have been born in about 620 B.C.E. He would have been a fabulist, or storyteller, credited with a number of works known collectively as, “Aesop’s Fables.” In some of the stories, animals possess human traits, such as the ability to speak or hold jobs. Most of the stories teach a moral lesson. Aesop would have passed on at about 56 years of age in about 564 B.C.E.
A hungry wolf found great difficulty in getting at a flock of sheep, due to the vigilance of the shepherd and his dogs. But one day the wolf found the skin of a sheep that had been flayed and thrown aside, so it put it on over its own pelt and strolled down among the sheep. The lamb that belonged to the sheep, whose skin the wolf was wearing, began to follow the wolf in the sheep’s clothing, and so, by leading the lamb a little astray, he soon made a meal of her, and for some time he succeeded in deceiving the sheep, and enjoyed hearty meals of them.
by Aesop
Moral, or lesson, of the story: Appearances can be deceiving, and therein lies danger.
Aesop may or may not have been an actual person. If real, he would have been born in about 620 B.C.E. He would have been a fabulist, or storyteller, credited with a number of works known collectively as, “Aesop’s Fables.” In some of the stories, animals possess human traits, such as the ability to speak or hold jobs. Most of the stories teach a moral lesson. Aesop would have passed on at about 56 years of age in about 564 B.C.E.
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Keeper of the Spring
The late Peter Marshall was an eloquent speaker and for several years served as the chaplain of the Unite States Senate. He used to love to tell the story of the “Keeper of the Spring,” a quiet forest dweller who lived high above an Austrian village along the eastern slope of the Alps.
The old gentleman had been hired many years earlier by a young town councilman to clear away the debris from the pools of water up in the mountain crevices that fed the lovely spring flowing through their town.
With faithful, silent regularity, he patrolled the hills, removed the leaves and branches, and wiped away the silt that would otherwise have choked and contaminated the fresh flow of water.
The village soon became a popular attraction for vacationers. Graceful swans floated along the crystal clear spring, the mill wheels of various businesses located near the water turned day and night, farmlands were naturally irrigated, and the view from restaurants was picturesque beyond description.
Years passed. One evening the town council met for its semiannual meeting. As they reviewed the budget, one man’s eye caught the salary figure being paid the obscure keeper of the spring.
Said the keeper of the purse, “Who is the old man? Why do we keep him on year after year? No one ever sees him. For all we know, the strange ranger of the hills is doing us no good. He isn’t necessary any longer.” By a unanimous vote, they dispensed with the old man’s services. For several weeks, nothing changed.
By early autumn, the trees began to shed their leaves. Small branches snapped off and fell into the pools, hindering the rushing flow of sparkling water.
One afternoon someone noticed a slight yellowish-brown tint in the spring. A few days later, the water was much darker. Within another week, a slimy film covered sections of the water along the banks, and a foul odor was soon detected.
The mill wheels moved more slowly, some finally ground to a halt. Swans left, as did the tourists. Clammy fingers of disease and sickness reached deeply into the village.
Quickly, the embarrassed council called a special meeting. Realizing their gross error in judgment, they rehired the old keeper of the spring, and within a few weeks, the veritable river of life began to clear up. The wheels started to turn, and new life returned to the hamlet in the Alps.
Never become discouraged with the seeming smallness of your task, job, or life. Cling fast to the words of Edward Everett Hale: “I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something; and because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do something I can do.”
The key to accomplishment is believing that what you can do will make a difference.
by Peter Marshall
Peter Marshall was born in 1902. He was a Scottish-born American preacher, a writer, and a chaplain of the United States Senate. Peter Marshall passed on in 1949.
The late Peter Marshall was an eloquent speaker and for several years served as the chaplain of the Unite States Senate. He used to love to tell the story of the “Keeper of the Spring,” a quiet forest dweller who lived high above an Austrian village along the eastern slope of the Alps.
The old gentleman had been hired many years earlier by a young town councilman to clear away the debris from the pools of water up in the mountain crevices that fed the lovely spring flowing through their town.
With faithful, silent regularity, he patrolled the hills, removed the leaves and branches, and wiped away the silt that would otherwise have choked and contaminated the fresh flow of water.
The village soon became a popular attraction for vacationers. Graceful swans floated along the crystal clear spring, the mill wheels of various businesses located near the water turned day and night, farmlands were naturally irrigated, and the view from restaurants was picturesque beyond description.
Years passed. One evening the town council met for its semiannual meeting. As they reviewed the budget, one man’s eye caught the salary figure being paid the obscure keeper of the spring.
Said the keeper of the purse, “Who is the old man? Why do we keep him on year after year? No one ever sees him. For all we know, the strange ranger of the hills is doing us no good. He isn’t necessary any longer.” By a unanimous vote, they dispensed with the old man’s services. For several weeks, nothing changed.
By early autumn, the trees began to shed their leaves. Small branches snapped off and fell into the pools, hindering the rushing flow of sparkling water.
One afternoon someone noticed a slight yellowish-brown tint in the spring. A few days later, the water was much darker. Within another week, a slimy film covered sections of the water along the banks, and a foul odor was soon detected.
The mill wheels moved more slowly, some finally ground to a halt. Swans left, as did the tourists. Clammy fingers of disease and sickness reached deeply into the village.
Quickly, the embarrassed council called a special meeting. Realizing their gross error in judgment, they rehired the old keeper of the spring, and within a few weeks, the veritable river of life began to clear up. The wheels started to turn, and new life returned to the hamlet in the Alps.
Never become discouraged with the seeming smallness of your task, job, or life. Cling fast to the words of Edward Everett Hale: “I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something; and because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do something I can do.”
The key to accomplishment is believing that what you can do will make a difference.
by Peter Marshall
Peter Marshall was born in 1902. He was a Scottish-born American preacher, a writer, and a chaplain of the United States Senate. Peter Marshall passed on in 1949.
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The Boy and the Wolf
A little boy was set to keep
A little flock of goats or sheep;
He thought the task too solitary,
And took a strange perverse vagary:
To call the people out of fun,
To see them leave their work and run,
He cried and screamed with all his might, -
“Wolf! wolf!” in a pretended fright.
Some people, working at a distance,
Came running in to his assistance.
They searched the fields and bushes round,
The Wolf was nowhere to be found.
The Boy, delighted with his game,
A few days after did the same,
And once again the people came.
The trick was many times repeated,
At last they found that they were cheated.
One day the Wolf appeared in sight,
The Boy was in a real fright,
He cried, “Wolf! wolf!” - the neighbors heard,
But not a single creature stirred.
“We need not go from our employ, -
‘Tis nothing but that idle boy.”
The little Boy cried out again,
“Help, help! the Wolf!” he cried in vain.
At last his master came to beat him.
He came too late, the Wolf had eat him.
This shows the bad effect of lying,
And likewise of continual crying.
If I had heard you scream and roar,
For nothing, twenty times before,
Although you might have broke your arm,
Or met with any serious harm,
Your cries could give me no alarm;
They would not make me move the faster,
Nor apprehend the least disaster;
I should be sorry when I came,
But you yourself would be to blame.
by John Hookham Frere
The moral, or lesson, of the story: No one believes a person who has a reputation of being liar even when that person tells the truth, so if you wish to be believed, tell the truth always.
A little boy was set to keep
A little flock of goats or sheep;
He thought the task too solitary,
And took a strange perverse vagary:
To call the people out of fun,
To see them leave their work and run,
He cried and screamed with all his might, -
“Wolf! wolf!” in a pretended fright.
Some people, working at a distance,
Came running in to his assistance.
They searched the fields and bushes round,
The Wolf was nowhere to be found.
The Boy, delighted with his game,
A few days after did the same,
And once again the people came.
The trick was many times repeated,
At last they found that they were cheated.
One day the Wolf appeared in sight,
The Boy was in a real fright,
He cried, “Wolf! wolf!” - the neighbors heard,
But not a single creature stirred.
“We need not go from our employ, -
‘Tis nothing but that idle boy.”
The little Boy cried out again,
“Help, help! the Wolf!” he cried in vain.
At last his master came to beat him.
He came too late, the Wolf had eat him.
This shows the bad effect of lying,
And likewise of continual crying.
If I had heard you scream and roar,
For nothing, twenty times before,
Although you might have broke your arm,
Or met with any serious harm,
Your cries could give me no alarm;
They would not make me move the faster,
Nor apprehend the least disaster;
I should be sorry when I came,
But you yourself would be to blame.
by John Hookham Frere
The moral, or lesson, of the story: No one believes a person who has a reputation of being liar even when that person tells the truth, so if you wish to be believed, tell the truth always.
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Hairy Mary
Mary never cut her hair. So her hair grew and grew, on her head, her arms, and her legs. Some people called her Hairy Mary. Mary did not like being called that, and she especially did not like people who called her that behind her back. Mary was so careful about not being friends with people who called her Hairy Mary that some called her Wary Hairy Mary.
Mary owned many cows that she milked to sell to people. There was lots of grass for her cows because Mary lived on the prairie next to the highway, but the pasture where her cows grazed was on the other side of a river. So Mary built a flat boat to carry her cows across the river called the Wary Hairy Mary Prairie Dairy Carry Ferry.
One day, Mary got the idea of using berries to flavor her milk. Soon her Wary Hairy Mary Berry Prairie Dairy Carry Ferry became famous. People always asked her to mix all kinds of different berries together with the milk. But Mary angrily said no, she only sold ordinary berry flavored milk.
Everybody liked her ordinary berry flavored milk, but people thought she was a little scary, and so some people called her Scary Wary Hairy Mary. This made Mary even madder, so sometimes Mary became very contrary and would not give them a ride on her ferry. So they started calling it the Very Contrary Scary Wary Hairy Mary Ordinary Berry Prairie Dairy Carry Ferry.
However, people soon discovered if you asked her very politely in a very gracious way to let you ride across the river, she would always let you ride. Pretty soon everybody learned the Very Contrary Scary Wary Hairy Mary Ordinary Berry Prairie Dairy Carry Ferry Query so they could ride across the river.
by Author Unknown
What is the moral, or lesson, of the story?
Mary never cut her hair. So her hair grew and grew, on her head, her arms, and her legs. Some people called her Hairy Mary. Mary did not like being called that, and she especially did not like people who called her that behind her back. Mary was so careful about not being friends with people who called her Hairy Mary that some called her Wary Hairy Mary.
Mary owned many cows that she milked to sell to people. There was lots of grass for her cows because Mary lived on the prairie next to the highway, but the pasture where her cows grazed was on the other side of a river. So Mary built a flat boat to carry her cows across the river called the Wary Hairy Mary Prairie Dairy Carry Ferry.
One day, Mary got the idea of using berries to flavor her milk. Soon her Wary Hairy Mary Berry Prairie Dairy Carry Ferry became famous. People always asked her to mix all kinds of different berries together with the milk. But Mary angrily said no, she only sold ordinary berry flavored milk.
Everybody liked her ordinary berry flavored milk, but people thought she was a little scary, and so some people called her Scary Wary Hairy Mary. This made Mary even madder, so sometimes Mary became very contrary and would not give them a ride on her ferry. So they started calling it the Very Contrary Scary Wary Hairy Mary Ordinary Berry Prairie Dairy Carry Ferry.
However, people soon discovered if you asked her very politely in a very gracious way to let you ride across the river, she would always let you ride. Pretty soon everybody learned the Very Contrary Scary Wary Hairy Mary Ordinary Berry Prairie Dairy Carry Ferry Query so they could ride across the river.
by Author Unknown
What is the moral, or lesson, of the story?
- Published on
Set Your Priorities
A philosophy professor stood before his class, with some items in front of him.
When class began, wordlessly he picked up a large empty glass jar and proceeded to fill it with rocks right to the top, rocks about 5 centimeters (2 inches) in diameter. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They all agreed that it was.
So the professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them in to the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles, of course, rolled into the open areas between the rocks. The students laughed. He asked his students again if the jar was full. They agreed that yes, it was.
The professor then picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else.
“Now,” said the professor, “I want you to recognize that this is your life. The rocks are the important things - your family, your spouse, your health, your children - anything that is so important to you that if it were lost, you would be nearly destroyed. The pebbles are the other things in life that matter, but on a smaller scale. The pebbles represent things like your job, your house, your car. The sand is everything else. The small stuff. “If you put the sand or the pebbles into the jar first, there is no room for the rocks. The same goes for your life. If you spend all your energy and time on the small stuff, the material things, you will never have room for the things that are truly most important. Pay attention to the things that are critical in your life. Don’t ever take them for granted in any way. There will always be time to go to work, clean the house, give a dinner party, and organize the closet.”
The moral, or lesson, of the story is: Take care of the rocks first - the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just pebbles and sand.
by Author Unknown
A philosophy professor stood before his class, with some items in front of him.
When class began, wordlessly he picked up a large empty glass jar and proceeded to fill it with rocks right to the top, rocks about 5 centimeters (2 inches) in diameter. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They all agreed that it was.
So the professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them in to the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles, of course, rolled into the open areas between the rocks. The students laughed. He asked his students again if the jar was full. They agreed that yes, it was.
The professor then picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else.
“Now,” said the professor, “I want you to recognize that this is your life. The rocks are the important things - your family, your spouse, your health, your children - anything that is so important to you that if it were lost, you would be nearly destroyed. The pebbles are the other things in life that matter, but on a smaller scale. The pebbles represent things like your job, your house, your car. The sand is everything else. The small stuff. “If you put the sand or the pebbles into the jar first, there is no room for the rocks. The same goes for your life. If you spend all your energy and time on the small stuff, the material things, you will never have room for the things that are truly most important. Pay attention to the things that are critical in your life. Don’t ever take them for granted in any way. There will always be time to go to work, clean the house, give a dinner party, and organize the closet.”
The moral, or lesson, of the story is: Take care of the rocks first - the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just pebbles and sand.
by Author Unknown
- Published on
The Bundle of Sticks
An old man summoned his sons around him to give them some advice. He ordered his servants to bring in a bundle of sticks, and said to his eldest son: “Break it.” The son strained and strained, but with all his efforts was unable to break the Bundle. The other sons also tried, but none of them was successful. “Untie the bundle,” said the father, “and each of you take a stick.” When they had done so, he called out to them: “Now, break,” and each stick was easily broken. “You see my meaning,” said their father.
Moral, or lesson, of the story: Union gives strength.
by Aesop
Aesop may or may not have been an actual person. If real, he would have been born in about 620 B.C.E. He would have been a fabulist, or storyteller, credited with a number of works known collectively as “Aesop’s Fables.” In some of the stories, animals possess human characteristics, such as the ability to speak or have jobs. Aesop would have passed on at about 56 years of age in about 564 B.C.E.
An old man summoned his sons around him to give them some advice. He ordered his servants to bring in a bundle of sticks, and said to his eldest son: “Break it.” The son strained and strained, but with all his efforts was unable to break the Bundle. The other sons also tried, but none of them was successful. “Untie the bundle,” said the father, “and each of you take a stick.” When they had done so, he called out to them: “Now, break,” and each stick was easily broken. “You see my meaning,” said their father.
Moral, or lesson, of the story: Union gives strength.
by Aesop
Aesop may or may not have been an actual person. If real, he would have been born in about 620 B.C.E. He would have been a fabulist, or storyteller, credited with a number of works known collectively as “Aesop’s Fables.” In some of the stories, animals possess human characteristics, such as the ability to speak or have jobs. Aesop would have passed on at about 56 years of age in about 564 B.C.E.
- Published on
Two Little Kittens
Two little kittens, one stormy night,
Began to quarrel, and then to fight;
One had a mouse, the other had none,
And that’s the way the quarrel begun.
“I’ll have that mouse,” said the biggest cat;
“You’ll have that mouse? We’ll see about that!”
“I will have that mouse,” said the eldest son;
“You shan’t have the mouse,” said the little one.
I told you before ’twas a stormy night
When these two little kittens began to fight;
The old woman seized her sweeping broom,
And swept the two kittens right out of the room.
The ground was covered with frost and snow,
And the two little kittens had nowhere to go;
So they laid them down on the mat at the door,
While the old woman finished sweeping the floor.
Then they crept in, as quiet as mice,
All wet with the snow, and cold as ice,
For they found it was better, that stormy night,
To lie down and sleep than to quarrel and fight.
by Author Unknown (about 1880)
What is the moral, or lesson, of the story?
Two little kittens, one stormy night,
Began to quarrel, and then to fight;
One had a mouse, the other had none,
And that’s the way the quarrel begun.
“I’ll have that mouse,” said the biggest cat;
“You’ll have that mouse? We’ll see about that!”
“I will have that mouse,” said the eldest son;
“You shan’t have the mouse,” said the little one.
I told you before ’twas a stormy night
When these two little kittens began to fight;
The old woman seized her sweeping broom,
And swept the two kittens right out of the room.
The ground was covered with frost and snow,
And the two little kittens had nowhere to go;
So they laid them down on the mat at the door,
While the old woman finished sweeping the floor.
Then they crept in, as quiet as mice,
All wet with the snow, and cold as ice,
For they found it was better, that stormy night,
To lie down and sleep than to quarrel and fight.
by Author Unknown (about 1880)
What is the moral, or lesson, of the story?
- Published on
The Two Crabs
One fine day two Crabs came out from their home to take a stroll on the sand. “Child,” said the mother, “you are walking very ungracefully. You should accustom yourself to walking straight forward, without twisting from side to side.” “Pray, mother,” said the young one, “do but set the example yourself, and I will follow you.”
Moral, or lesson, of the story: Example is the best teacher.
attributed to Aesop
Aesop may or may not have been an actual person. If real, he would have been born in about 620 B.C.E. He would have been a fabulist, or storyteller, credited with a number of works known collectively as “Aesop’s Fables.” In some of the stories, animals possess human characteristics, such as the ability to speak or have jobs. Aesop would have passed on at about 56 years of age in about 564 B.C.E.
One fine day two Crabs came out from their home to take a stroll on the sand. “Child,” said the mother, “you are walking very ungracefully. You should accustom yourself to walking straight forward, without twisting from side to side.” “Pray, mother,” said the young one, “do but set the example yourself, and I will follow you.”
Moral, or lesson, of the story: Example is the best teacher.
attributed to Aesop
Aesop may or may not have been an actual person. If real, he would have been born in about 620 B.C.E. He would have been a fabulist, or storyteller, credited with a number of works known collectively as “Aesop’s Fables.” In some of the stories, animals possess human characteristics, such as the ability to speak or have jobs. Aesop would have passed on at about 56 years of age in about 564 B.C.E.
