Hello everyone, today I would like to share with you a short story from Grimm’s Fairy Tales called The Nail.Although this story is short, the truth it contains is very profound.It tells us that some seemingly trivial things in life, if not dealt with in time, may bring about unexpected and serious consequences.
Let’s take a look at what this story tells us!
I. A Businessman in a Hurry, Overlooking a Small Problem
The protagonist of the story is a businessman.He sold all his goods in the bazaar and made a lot of money.He tied the chest full of money to his horse and intended to hurry home before dark.
At noon, he came to a small town to rest for a while.At that moment, the stable boy came to him with his horse and said, “Master, it seems that the piece of horseshoe on the hind leg of your horse is missing a nail, do you want me to find someone to mend it?”
Upon hearing this, the merchant waved his hand and said, “It’s fine, the hoof iron should still last six miles, I’m in a hurry now, so don’t delay.”
So he rode on, ignoring the question.
II. The Problem Becomes Bigger, But Is Ignored Again
Toward the afternoon, the merchant stopped again to feed his horse.This time the stable boy came again and reported, “Master, the hoof has fallen off just now, do you want to take it to the blacksmith to have it repaired?”
The merchant still didn’t care and said, “Forget it, the horse can still walk the remaining miles, don’t worry about it.”
And so, once again, he chose to ignore the problem and continued on his way.
III. Problems erupt and losses are high
It wasn’t long before his horse began to walk unsteadily and limp.Then, the horse lost its balance completely, fell to the ground, and broke its leg.
At this point the merchant could only dismount, unload the money box from the horse’s back and carry it home himself.By the time he reached home it was already midnight, and he sighed while saying, “Alas, it’s all because of that damned nail that harmed me.”
You see, a small nail, which could have taken only a few minutes to solve, ended up causing such a big trouble because it was neglected – not only was the horse hurt, but he himself suffered and his return home was greatly delayed.
IV. What does this story teach us?
1. Small things should not be neglected, or they may lead to big mistakes
In life, we often encounter some seemingly small problems.For example, the cell phone battery is almost dead, the computer runs slower, and the buttons on our clothes are loose. …… All these things seem unimportant, but if we keep leaving them unattended, they may turn into bigger problems.
Like the businessman in the story, he knew from the beginning that there was something wrong with the horseshoe, but he thought “it’s still going anyway” and chose to ignore it.In the end, this kind of luckiness made him suffer a big loss.
Therefore, we have to learn to pay attention to every detail in our lives, and not to think that “it doesn’t matter” and “we’ll talk about it in a few days”.Sometimes it’s the “little problems” that cause the bigger problems.
2. When faced with a problem, take the initiative to solve it instead of avoiding it.
Many people’s first reaction to a problem is to avoid or delay it.They think, “I’m too busy right now, let’s put it aside”, “I’ll talk about it when I have time”.But reality often does not give us much time to prepare.
The businessman in the story actually had the opportunity to solve the problem, but he chose to avoid it twice.The first time it was a loose nail and the second time it was a dropped hoof.If only he had spent a little time and effort to repair it at that time, the tragedy that followed would not have occurred.
Therefore, we should learn to “act now” in life, and deal with problems as soon as we find them, rather than letting them get bigger and bigger.
3. Tolerance and understanding are more powerful than blame.
Although this story does not directly mention the word “tolerance”, it actually reflects the different attitudes of people when facing problems.
If the merchant had listened to the horseman’s advice, what happened later might not have happened.In reality, we often encounter situations in which people remind us of problems.If we are willing to accept other people’s advice, instead of just rejecting or refuting it, a lot of unnecessary troubles can be avoided.
Often times, others’ reminders are not meant to accuse you, but rather to hope that you can do better.If we can accept different voices with an open mind, maybe we will go farther.
4. Every action has consequences and we are responsible for our choices
One of the most central truths of this story is that every decision has a corresponding consequence.The merchant didn’t want to take the time to fix the horse’s hoof, and ended up spending more time walking home; he didn’t want to stop and look at the problem, and instead he got himself into trouble.
This also reminds us to consider the consequences before making any decision.Don’t just look at whether it saves you money in the immediate future, but think about the long-term implications.
V. Summarize
We can learn a lot through this simple story:
Don’t ignore the small problems in life;
It is important to solve problems promptly;
Accepting other people’s advice is a kind of wisdom;
Every choice brings results and we have to be responsible for our own behavior.
In fact, the reason why the story of “The Nail” has been passed down for so long is that it tells a mistake that many people make: they always think that “it’s okay” and “it’s almost okay”.But the reality is often very cruel, it will not let you go just because you do not care.
So, from today onwards, let’s be a careful person and take every little thing seriously.Maybe a small decision you make now can help you avoid big trouble in the future.
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