parables
the lost horse
the lost horse
In this story a farmer's horse runs away. The farmer's neighbors come to sympathize with him over his loss and bad luck. "This is a great misfortune!" they exclaim. The farmer calmly responds, "We will see." The next day the farmer's horse comes back and brings with it six wild horses. The neighbors come to visit again and gleefully observe, "What good fortune has befallen you". The farmer calmly responds, "We will see." The following day the farmer's son starts to train the horses for riding, but is thrown and breaks his leg. Once again the neighbors come over, this time to offer their sympathy for the farmer's bad luck. And once again his reply is "We will see." The next day army officers come and take all the young men as recruits to the war, but because the farmer's son has a broken leg, they don't take him. So the neighbors come over to rejoice how well everything has turned out. The farmer smiles, considers his fortunes, and once again replies, "As always - we can only wait and see."