I saw in another thread a parable, and cannot seem to find it again.

I believe it was "They young boy and the worldly man."

I do hope that the one who posted it will repost it here for future reference and discussion.

I don't know this one although I do know the one about they young bull and the old bull.

You wouldn't by chance be referring to this little story, would you?

That would be the one, Mr.Cybermancer.

I merely thought it would make a good addition to this part of the boards, seeing as we have both the young men looking to make their names and the old men who wish nothing more than to put such days behind them here.

I am not sure why I couldn't remember where it was that I had seen in in order to copy it here myself.

I will recopy it here then, for those who do not wish to follow the Link:

The Old Farmer and the Worldly Boy

Once upon a time there was a boy who grew up in a little farming village. He was a bright and enthusiastic young lad who showed a great deal of promise. The little village he grew up in seemed to small in his eyes and he thirsted for more.

The boys family was blessed with many sons to help around the farm. So to help earn extra income, the boy was often sent to the neighbouring farm where there lived an old man with no sons. The old man would pay the family for the boy’s help and also he would tip the boy. It was a modest farm and the two were able to get the chores done by working hard.

While they worked, they talked. Mostly the old man would talk about the weather, the crops and the local goings on. Sometimes this would bother the boy because he wanted to know more than what was going on beyond the small village. “Don’t you ever wish you were someplace else?” the boy would ask his elder.

“I have always been right where I wanted to be, when I wanted to be there,” the old man would reply before commenting how it looked like rain.

The old man was always right about such things.

One day, the little boy got to go to a neighbouring village with one of his brothers. It was still a rural village but at least, thought the boy, it was a different rural village. He met new people and saw different farms and it excited him.

When he returned from his trip, he told the old man about it.

“Did they grow cabbage like us?” The old man asked.

“Sure!” The boy exclaimed, excited. “And carrots and lettuce and everything else we grow!”

“Ah. Huh,” mumbled the old man. “Sky looks clear. Going to be a warm day.”

And the old man was always right about these things.

The little boy grew a little more and he got to see more little villages in the area and he realized they were all the same. Eventually he realized that the part of the world he had seen was still very small indeed. He wanted to see more. He wanted to experience more.

So when his father took him to the nearest town for the big market, he was very excited indeed. He saw many new things and experienced many new things. And when he got home he told the old man all about it.

“Did they buy cabbage like we grow here?” the old man asked.

“Sure they did and everything else we grow,” the boy said excitedly. “Plus they had salt and sugar and spices like the ladies use for their baking and cooking.”

“Ah. Huh,” the old man muttered. “Looks like gophers have been digging their holes. We best do something about that.”

And of course the old man knew just what to do.

When the boy was old enough to be allowed to make his own way in the world, he came to visit the old man, “I am leaving this village. I have seen villages and the town. In the town they told me of the city and I want to see that.”

“Do you think they will have cabbage there?” the old man politely asked.

“Of course they’ll have cabbage there!” The young boy exclaimed. “It’s the big city! It will have everything! Stuff like you’ve never seen.”

“That so?” the old man asked. “Best you start out in the morning. Going to be a dark night. The wolves like to hunt on nights like this.”

The old man knew about things like that.

When morning came, the boy set out on his journey to the city and he remained away for several seasons.

Eventually he returned and stopped to visit the old man. “I have been to the city!” he exclaimed.

“Did they have cabbage there?” asked the old man plainly.

“Of course they did!” the boy related what he saw excitedly. “They had a blacksmith and a mill and a tavern and so many things to do! And the people wore such clothes as you’ve never seen. How small your world is, old man. All you know about is the weather and the local goings on. All you ever ask about is the cabbage, no matter the wonderful places I’ve been.”

“Folks like cabbage,” the old man shrugged. “People got to eat and that is why I farm. There is a lot work to do. Could you lend me a hand and I will pay you what I can?”

The boy scoffed, “after what I have seen? Surely you do not expect me to go back to being some mere farmer in the dirt? I am special now! I am important!”

Knowingly, the old man nodded. “Of course you are. Well good sir, I must soon be to my labours but before I am off, could you do this old man one small favour?”

The young boy wasn’t really a bad sort so he asked, “What is it you need?”

“That box on the top shelf there,” The old man gestured to an old dusty wood box the boy had never noticed before though he had visited many times. “I am frail and could hurt myself trying to fetch it down. You are young and limber and can do what I cannot.”

It was an easy task and one the boy was eager to perform. He wanted the old man to know just how capable he was now that he had seen so much of the world. Easily he fetched down the box.

When the boy handed the box to the old man, the box was fumbled and fell to the ground. Out spilled it’s contents. There were medals and ribbons on the floor along with a brass compass and maps of far off lands. Also were several journals.

“What are these things?” asked the young boy, amazed for he had never seen such things or been to the places the maps shown.

“I was a soldier in my youth,” the old man said as he bent over to pick up a medal. “I got this for saving the life of my sergeant in a far off land that we had to get to by boat.” He put another ribbon in the box, “this one I got when we campaigned through the jungle in still yet another land.” One by one, he returned the items to the box, telling the boy of a different place and time with each one.

“You’ve been so many places and done so much,” the young boy was in awe. “What did you learn?”

“Folks like cabbage. People got to eat and that is why I farm.” The old man sniffed the air. “Rain is coming. We best get the animals in.”

The boy sniffed the air too and realized the old man was right. The young boy took his first steps towards becoming a young man by following the old man who had always been there in that small village.

Feel free to discuss.

I don't think Cyber qualifies as an old man. He can't be more than 35.

Scratch that, he's ancient! :p

I could teach you a thing or two, missy.

Holister wrote:"With age comes experience; with experience comes wisdom; with wisdom comes enlightenment."

I beleive that Master Li said that.

While that is one of the more obvious morales to this particular story, it is not the only one nor even the most important one.

Cybermancer wrote:I could teach you a thing or two, missy.

I might just give you that chance.

Nemesis wrote:

Cybermancer wrote:I could teach you a thing or two, missy.

I might just give you that chance.

At least she didn't bring up school girl outfits.

You might find it easier to sleep if you didn't go around imagining things that aren't there.

Cybermancer wrote:At least she didn't bring up school girl outfits.

Just for the record, I still fit into mine from Highschool. Da always made sure that I was enrolled in the finest all girl catholic private schools.

Now, about the parable, it seems to suggest that the wisdom and knowledge the boy yearned for was right there in the town for him all along. But would he really have recognized it without having some experience of his own under his belt first?