A story of two pebbles

Many years ago a farmer in London had the misfortune to owe a huge sum to a money lender.The Moneylender, who was old and ugly, fancied the farmer's beautiful daughter. So he proposed a bargain.

He said he would forget the farmer's debt if he could marry his daughter.
Both the farmer and his daughter were horrified by the proposal. So the cunning money-lender suggested that they let providence decide the
matter.

He told them that he would put a black pebble and a white pebble into an
empty money bag. Then the girl would have to pick one pebble from the
bag.

If she picked the black pebble, she would become his wife and her father's debt would be forgiven.
If she picked the white pebble she need not marry him and her father's debt would still be forgiven.
But if she refused to pick a pebble, her father would be thrown into jail.

They were standing on a pebble strewn path in the farmer's field. As they talked, the moneylender bent over to pick up two pebbles. As he picked them up, the sharp-eyed girl noticed that he had picked up two black pebbles and put them into the bag.

He, then, asked the girl to pick a pebble from the bag.

Now imagine that you were standing in the field. What would you have
done if you were the girl? If you had to advise her, what would you have
told her?

Careful analysis would produce three possibilities:

The girl should refuse to take a pebble.
The girl should show that there were two black pebbles in the bag and expose the money-lender as a cheat.
The girl should pick a black pebble and sacrifice herself in order to save her father from his debt and imprisonment.

Take a moment to ponder over the story. The above story is used with the hope that it will make us appreciate the difference between lateral and logical thinking.

The girl's dilemma cannot be solved with traditional logical thinking.
Think of the consequences if she chooses.

The above logical answers.
What would you recommend to the girl to do?

Well, here is what she did:

The girl put her hand into the moneybag and drew out a pebble. Without looking at it, she fumbled and let it fall onto the pebble-strewn path where it immediately became lost among all the other pebbles.
"Oh, how clumsy of me," she said. "But never mind, if you look into the bag for the one that is left, you will be able to tell which pebble I picked."

Since the remaining pebble is black, it must be assumed that she had picked the white one. And since the money-lender dared not admit his dishonesty, the girl changed what seemed an impossible situation into an extremely advantageous one.


MORAL OF THE STORY:Most complex problems do have a solution. It is only that we don't attempt to think.

The Lion And The Hare

There was a lion that woke up in one evening feeling hungry. He went to look for food in the jungle. He was so hungry that he wanted to catch anything he found. Suddenly, he saw a hare running about. The lion ran after the hare. Soon he caught that little hare. As he was going to eat the hare, he saw a deer. He became greedy. He thought he should eat the big deer instead of the hare. So he left the hare and turned to chase the deer. The deer ran as fast as he could for fear of the lion. The deer ran very fast that the lion could not catch him.

Finally he stopped running because he was too tired. He said to himself, "I had better go back to eat the hare." He hurried back to the hare. But when he was at the place, the hare had gone. The lion was so sorry. He was greedy and now he had nothing to eat even a little hare.

Moral : "Be satisfied with what you have."

The Wolf In The Sheep's Clothing

A Wolf wanted to eat the sheep, but he was afraid of the vigilant shepherd and his dogs. One day the Wolf found the skin of a sheep. He put it on and walked among the sheep. A Lamb thought that the Wolf was its mother because his skin looked like hers. So it followed the Wolf. 

Soon after they went away from the dogs and Shepherd, the Wolf came at the Lamb and ate it up. For some time he succeeded in deceiving the sheep, and enjoying hearty meals. 

                                          

Moral: “Appearances are deceptive.”

A Vixen And The Lioness

A Vixen who was taking her seven babies out for an airing one balmy morning, came across a Lioness with a single cub.

"Why do you have only one child, dear dame?" asked the vixen.

"Look at my healthy and numerous litter here, and imagine, if you are able, how a proud mother should feel."

The Lioness gave her a squelching look, and lifting up her nose, walked away, saying calmly,

"Yes, just look at that beautiful collection. What are they? Foxes! I've only one, but remember, that one is a Lion."


Moral: “Quality is better than quantity.”