The Ring: A Tale Of The Value Of Things
The Ring is a story about the value of things. However, your lesson can also be applied to a person’s worth.
The story begins with a wise man, whom everyone called “Teacher”. Many people came to him for advice, which was always wise and helpful.
The Professor was also a very skilled craftsman who made beautiful objects, much desired by everyone. One morning a very sad young man appeared in his workshop. He told the Professor that he was very unhappy. “Everyone says I’m too dumb and I don’t have any skills”. “How can I change? What do I need to do to become someone of value?” asked the boy.
The Professor didn’t even look at him, said that he also had his own problem and that he needed to solve it before helping someone else solve hers. The story goes that the young man was surprised by his answer.
an interesting deal
The Professor waited a moment and then said: “If I solve my problem, I will be happy to help you. Maybe if you help me, I can help you more quickly ” . The young man’s eyes lit up and he smiled for the first time since he arrived. “Clear! Tell me what I can do for you,” he said. However, deep down, he felt disappointed that he had to put off his own needs once more.
The story says that after reaching an agreement, the Professor took out a ring he wore on his little finger. He showed it to the young man and said he needed to sell it urgently. The Professor was in debt, and that was the only valuable thing he owned.
He asked the young man to help him sell the ring. He also said that the goal was to get the highest possible value for him. “Do not accept less than a gold coin”, he warned the young man. Then he pointed to a horse in the stable and told him to pick it up and go as quickly as possible to the nearest market. As soon as he returned, the Professor would help him solve his problem.
a hard sale
The story goes that the young man left quickly, intending to sell the ring as soon as possible. Upon reaching the market, it began to advertise it. Some merchants were interested, but when the boy told them the price, they started laughing or turned away.
Finally, an older man said that he was asking too high a price for such a small ring. Nobody would pay what he was asking. The old man offered a silver coin and a piece of copper for the jewel, but the young man would not accept.
He spent the entire day trying to sell the ring to no avail, even though he offered it to over 100 merchants. Disappointed, he mounted his horse and returned to the Professor’s workshop. He had failed.
the moral of the story
The young man said to the Professor: “I think this ring is worth at most a few silver coins. I didn’t want to mislead people about its worth . ” The Professor was happy and congratulated him for his effort and attitude. However, he told the young man that he was not even sure how much the ring was worth. The best thing then would be to take it to a specialist to have it evaluated.
After that, the young man went to one of the most prestigious jewelry stores in the city. After introducing himself, he asked the jeweler to tell him how much he would be willing to pay for the jewel. The story goes that the jeweler examined the ring very carefully. Then he said, “I cannot give you more than 58 gold coins for this ring. ” The boy was surprised and, without hesitation, quickly returned to the Professor’s workshop.
Upon arriving, he enthusiastically told the Professor what had happened. Then the teacher told him, “You are like that ring. A valuable and unique gem. But remember that no one knows the true value of things at first glance. It is you who must know your value, before giving credit to what others say“. With that, the Professor put the ring back on the little finger.
