There is a story like this: A billionaire decided to send his only son to a poor, remote rural area, to live with the poor, day by day he had to go out to pick up every penny… to help him understand. How lucky I am to live in wealth. The father believes that the boy will have an unforgettable lesson.
After spending 7 days living in a poor family in the countryside, the father came back to pick up the boy. On the way home, the billionaire asked his son: “How do you feel living there?”. His answer was beyond his expectations: “I feel great”.
The father suddenly asked: “Is their family life any different from ours?” The boy said: “Yes, very different”.
Then he told his father:
– We have one dog, and they have many.
– We swim in the swimming pool, and they have a big lake with clear water, in which there are many kinds of fish swimming around.
– We use electric light bulbs to illuminate the garden, and their yard is filled with the light of the moon and stars.
– Our garden is only as wide as the walls, and their garden extends to the horizon.
– We have to buy the meals, and they can make their own food.
– Our food is cooked in a microwave oven, and their food is cooked with a wood stove, so the taste is much better.
– My house is surrounded by walls, while the front door of their house is always open, so friends can always come over to play.
– Our lives cannot be separated from phones, computers and televisions, and their lives are connected with blue sky, fresh rivers, green meadows and shady trees.
At the end of the story, the boy said: “I thank you father for teaching me how poor our family is.”
The billionaire was extremely surprised by his son’s answer. But then, he suddenly remembered the famous saying of Rodolfo Costa that he had forgotten for a long time: “There are so many poor people that the only thing they have is money”.
Although city life is affluent and full, it is emotional and cold in the soul despite wearing a lot of warm clothes, making people sometimes feel very lonely. Meanwhile, life in the countryside, sometimes a little poor, but warm human love, cohesion, harmony with nature and trees.
By this time, the billionaire father was shocked by his son’s confession. It turns out that in life, health, happiness and love are things that cannot be bought with money.
By this time, he was even more deeply absorbed in the philosophy of Benjamin Franklin: “Money has never and will never make people happy, in essence nothing can create happiness. the more it wants, the more it wants.” When you are grateful for the people around you and the things you have, you will stop pursuing the “rich life” because then you will realize you have everything.
Source: Cafebiz
Source: Vietnam Insider