A traveler was journeying from one city to another and along the way became companions with someone who had several donkeys, each carrying a load. The traveler asked, “What is the load you are carrying?” The companion replied, “One part of it is beans and one part stone.” The traveler was surprised and asked again, “What is the load on the other one?” His companion answered, “That too is legumes and stone.” He asked again, “What is the load on the other animal?” The answer came, “The same, half legumes and half stone.” The traveler, puzzled, asked, “Are these stones you are carrying valuable?” He said, “No; they are not valuable, just stones from the desert.” The traveler, curious, asked for the reason; the load owner replied, “I put legumes on one side and stones on the other so the animal stays balanced.” The traveler thought, “How ignorant is this person?!” He said, “Next time, when loading, put one type of legume on one side and another type on the other side; this way balance will be maintained, and you can ride one of the donkey instead of walking.” The load owner said, “What a revelation! I did not realize and made a mistake; next time I will heed your advice.” The traveler, astonished by the man’s simplicity, asked, “Whom do these animals belong to?” He answered, “To me.” The fact that someone so naive owned four donkeys surprised the traveler even more, and he asked, “What else do you have?” He said, “That farm you saw at the entrance of the city belongs to me.” The traveler then asked, “Did you inherit it from your father?” He said, “No; I bought it myself.” The traveler, astounded, asked, “What else do you own?” The man answered, “I have several properties in the city.” The traveler, now amazed, said, “Friend! The things I said were all nonsense; just do what you know best.”
This story teaches us that everyone has a talent, and God has given everyone a talent that should be utilized; we should not pressure our children to “definitely do this job!” We should not impose a job on them; we should let them discover and utilize their talents. People succeed through understanding themselves; if we close that path for our child or anyone else, other paths also close, and they will not reach anywhere. If we have done this, it was a mistake. The value of this story lies in emphasizing people’s interests and talents; that person, despite his simplicity, was interested in farming and succeeded in it; if we force someone to do something they have no interest in, the effort will be fruitless and their life wasted.