I read this story the other day, and while I remember it, I won't repeat it exactly, as I have no problem making up one of my own, similar and maybe even an improvement upon the original. The story is from 1920, after all. The tale is about a lesson a father passes down to his son, and later in life the son realizes the significance of the content of the story, though this is not what fascinates me about it at all.
My father, he says, came to me one day when I was very young and gave me two boxes. In one box was a pocket knife. In the other, a pocket knife. My father said to me, "One of these knives cost $5. The other cost $1. I want you to use both knives the same amount each day. At the end of the month, I want you to tell me the difference between these knives."
The point of a story like this is fairly evident, and you know that at the end of the month, the lesson to be learned is that quality matters. The cheap knife will have rusted, will have dulled, will have chipped. The $5 knife will remain pristine, will somehow seem sharper, if only exaggerated by comparison, and later on the son will have a son of his own, and he will encourage his boy to spend extra money on something of quality, like a pickup truck or a tool set. When his daughter picks out the most expensive pair of shoes, he'll probably say, 'Dang.'
What fascinates me is that I don't have a great store of these tales, and I am unsure if I should just make some up for my own parenting. I'd hate to think I'm leaving my kids high and dry in this regard. I am flying to Denver next week, and then to St. Louis the week after, and if I do not return, my oldest is old enough to remember me, but not really any stories I have told him. He will rely upon something like the following, "ONCE UPON A TIME, A LITTLE BOY DID NOT EAT HIS PEAS WHEN HIS FATHER SAID SO. THE LITTLE BOY WAS LATER DESTROYED AND THE REST OF THE FAMILY LIVED HAPPILY EVER AFTER. THE END. THE POINT OF THIS STORY IS THAT YOU SHOULD EAT YOUR PEAS, IN CASE THAT WASN'T EVIDENT."
I just went digging through the garage and found two boxes. Now I just have to come up with something to put in them.
6 comments:
I think it should be fairly obvious. One should be a $1 tie, and the other should be - ahem! - "the best tie, hands down and I don’t think I have to tell you who the owner of that garment was and still is". Years from now he'll appreciate the difference.
At the end of the month when the father asked the son to compare and contrast the knives, the boy replied, "Well, the first one was kind of dull, but I used the second to kill a man just to watch him die, so I think I'll keep the first one and discard the second because, y'know, evidence."
vahid, i think he's hoping more along the lines of BOX 1: USED SEGA GENESIS BOX 2: XBOX 360.
sir, yeah, i'm definitely going to skip the knives, the gift that keeps on killing.
You can explain that Green Giant canned peas are generally better than the supermarket brand.
You write good.
I liked your old blog better.
neil, that might be a hard lesson for him to swallow.
brooke, my old blog was maybe the best thing on the internet, but man was it a troublemaker. i am enjoying my retirement.
Post a Comment