REFLECTION
A story is told from many, many years ago in a time of great hardship and famine, of an old soldier who wandered into a poverty stricken village and asked for shelter for the night.
"There's nothing to eat here," the villagers told him, "you'd better move on!"
"I have enough here to make soup for all of us," the soldier replied, "if I could just find a pot large enough."
Curious, one of the villagers produced a pot and not too much time passed before a crowd gathered and stood around watching as the soldier filled it with water and built a small fire underneath.
Then, the old soldier took three round stones from a small bag and dropped them into the water.
As the water started to boil the soldier sniffed it hungrily saying,
"I do love stone soup, but if I just had a little cabbage it would taste even better!"
At this another one of the villagers disappeared, only to return a few minutes later with a cabbage that he had been hiding and it was put into the pot.
A while later the soldier tasted the soup and said, "Hmm, this is good, but a couple of carrots would make it better still."
Again another villager performed a vanishing act, and on return produced a bunch of carrots and so it went on as potatoes, onions, mushrooms, a bit of salt, chilli and beef were all added to the pot.
The end result was: a delicious meal for all.
Reflection:
There are many versions of this old story, but the message is the same. We all have a contribution to make and by sharing our gifts and resources, our own lives are enriched.
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©2012 The Maravi Post. Reproduction authorised, with usual acknowledgment.
The famine-hit village and the stone soup
Written by THE WISE ONE
REFLECTIONA story is told from many, many years ago in a time of great hardship and famine, of an old soldier who wandered into a poverty stricken village and asked for shelter for the night.
"There's nothing to eat here," the villagers told him, "you'd better move on!"
"I have enough here to make soup for all of us," the soldier replied, "if I could just find a pot large enough."
Curious, one of the villagers produced a pot and not too much time passed before a crowd gathered and stood around watching as the soldier filled it with water and built a small fire underneath.
Then, the old soldier took three round stones from a small bag and dropped them into the water.
As the water started to boil the soldier sniffed it hungrily saying,
"I do love stone soup, but if I just had a little cabbage it would taste even better!"
At this another one of the villagers disappeared, only to return a few minutes later with a cabbage that he had been hiding and it was put into the pot.
A while later the soldier tasted the soup and said, "Hmm, this is good, but a couple of carrots would make it better still."
Again another villager performed a vanishing act, and on return produced a bunch of carrots and so it went on as potatoes, onions, mushrooms, a bit of salt, chilli and beef were all added to the pot.
The end result was: a delicious meal for all.
Reflection:
There are many versions of this old story, but the message is the same. We all have a contribution to make and by sharing our gifts and resources, our own lives are enriched.
----
©2012 The Maravi Post. Reproduction authorised, with usual acknowledgment.
Tags: Reflection
