Today, the story that I am going to share is a popular European folk story. Let me introduce the story with you, and reflect later!
“The Stone Soup”
Once, a traveller reaches a town beset by poverty.
When they see the traveller walking past, the inhabitants try to discourage the traveller from staying. Understandably, they fear that he would stop by their door and ask them to give him some food after his long journey. They tell him, in no uncertain terms, “There’s no food anywhere to be found. The village is home to poor people.” They shut their windows and doors on him.
The traveller tries to explain that he does not need any food. He says, “I don’t want any! Thank you! Although, I was trying to make my famous recipe of ‘stone soup’… and I wanted to share it with all of you.”
The villagers watch him suspiciously as he builds a fire and fills a cauldron with water. They maintain a distance, lurking around the fire or watching from their windows as he sets his cauldron. With great ceremony, the traveller pulls a stone from a bag and drops it into the pot of water.
He sniffs the brew extravagantly and exclaims how delicious the stone soup is. As the villagers draw closer, beginning to show interest, he exclaims, “Ah! What a sumptuous soup! But a little cabbage would have brought out the flavour even more!”
Hearing him, a villager brings out a cabbage to share. Delighted, the traveller exclaims, “You, sir, deserve an extra serving of the delicious soup later!”
Another villager walks by, inquiring about the pot, and the traveler again mentions how the stone soup has not yet reached its full potential. More and more villagers walk by. Each add another ingredient to the pot like potatoes, tomatoes, celery, salt, pepper and much more. In this way, all of them unwittingly contribute to preparing an actual soup.
Finally, the stone, which is inedible, is removed from the pot. The villagers enjoy the delicious and nourishing pot of soup, sharing it among each other! By the end of the feast, the traveller drinks the leftover soup and continues his journey.
From the day on, the village learns to pool its resources, and face adversity together, becoming a much happier place!
This story addresses the human tendency to hoard in times of deprivation. When resources are scarce, we pull back and put all of our energy into self-preservation. We isolate ourselves and shut out others. Think about how people acted at the beginning of the lockdown. Hoarding essential goods to themselves, thus emptying the shelves where there is none left for others.
As the story of stone soup reveals, in doing so, we often deprive ourselves and everyone else of a feast. Of course, this metaphor plays out beyond the realm of food and material things.
We hoard ideas, love, and energy, thinking we will be richer if we keep them to ourselves. In truth, we make the world and ourselves poorer whenever we greedily stockpile our reserves.
The traveller could see that the villagers were holding back, and he had the genius to draw them out and inspire them to give, thus creating a delicious meal that none of them could have prepared alone.
Now, you must reflect on whether you have a similar tendency to withdraw in the face of adversity. Are you like one of the villagers, holding back? If you come forward and share your skills and knowledge, your time and efforts, and your belongings, you will inspire others to do the same.
The reward is a banquet that can nourish many!