Gold Lessons

⛏️ The Gold and the Flecks: A Lesson in Accumulation

A story is told of a young prospector who worked relentlessly trying to find gold. Despite his effort, he found nothing. Deciding to abandon his search and return home, he encountered an old, successful prospector.

“That’s quite a pile of rocks you are getting there, my boy,” the older man observed.

“There’s no gold here. I’m going back home,” the young man replied.

The old prospector walked over to the discarded rocks and declared, “Oh, there is gold all right. You just have to know where to find it.” He demonstrated, crashing two rocks together until one split open, revealing several tiny flecks of gold sparkling in the sun.

The younger man’s gaze fell on a bulging leather pouch fastened to the elder's waist. “I’m looking for nuggets like the ones in your pouch, not just tiny flecks,” he said.

The old prospector extended his pouch. The young man looked inside, expecting to see several large nuggets, but was stunned to find it was filled only with thousands of flecks of gold.

“Son,” the old man explained, “it seems to me you are so busy looking for large nuggets that you’re missing filling your pouch with these precious flecks. The patient accumulation of these little flecks has brought me great wealth.”