Whether it happened or not, there lived a cattle breeder in the same country. He was honest, hardworking and sober, he never offended anyone, and all his herds and flocks grazed in the mountains and in the meadows unattended, and neither animals nor people offended them, since he had no enemies.
In the same country there lived a lazy man and a slacker. He doesn't do anything and is too lazy to move. Others work, but he sits side by side and lives in poverty, only complaining about his fate.
One day this cattle breeder meets him. He greets the poor man and asks:
- How are you living, friend?
“What is my life,” he whined, “I can barely breathe from hunger.”
“Come to me,” says the cattle breeder, “work for me for a year, help me on the threshing floor and during the grape harvest, I’ll give you a couple of good bulls - you’ll plow it, you’ll sow your own field, you’ll have enough to eat.”
Thought the quitter:
“Well, work for him, work hard for a couple of bulls, I’d better go and take what I want from his herd myself. They say that they graze unattended, who will stop me?”
I thought and went.
He went up into the mountains and saw that the cattle were scattered across the pasture, but there were not a single shepherd. He looked at this wealth and his heart ached with envy. He came closer, but as soon as he approached the herds, something suddenly rang, and all this multitude of cows, bulls and sheep rushed; running, roaring, all crowded in one place.
This lazy fellow also came up. He sees a tiny man standing among the cattle, and the cows and sheep are fawning over him, some licking his face, some his hand, and he caresses them, stroking their fur.
The lazy man was surprised and asked:
- Who are you, what kind of creature are you, where have you been, where did you suddenly come from?
“And I am the happiness of the owner of this herd,” says the little man, “only I guard all his cattle, I don’t let anyone touch them.”
- Where is my happiness? - asks the poor man.
“Your happiness is on such and such a mountain, under such and such a bush,” says this little man.
- Will I find my happiness if I go there?
- Why can’t you find it, you will find it! - says the little man.
The lazy man went, wandered, wandered, and finally reached the indicated mountain. He searches and searches for his happiness, but he can’t find it. I got tired, lay down under a tree out of grief and dozed off.
He slept so well. I woke up and the sun was already setting. Suddenly he hears someone sigh.
He stood up and looked for who was sighing like that?
He sees a little man lying under a gnawed thorn bush, skin and bones, lying there, groaning, groaning.
“Who are you, what kind of creature are you, why are you lying around here?” - asks the lazy man.
“And I am your happiness,” says the little man.
- Oh, you slacker! — the lazy man got angry. - How lucky are you to lie here and moan? I’m dying of hunger, and you just lie there and don’t think about me?
“You are a good person,” says this happiness, “you lie and sleep, and I lie and sleep.” You are sitting idle, and I am even more so. Get up, move your hand, work hard, work, and I will please you - then prosperity will come.
Fuck this poor man. Started working. He works hard and spares no effort. He got rid of poverty, got on his feet, got married, started a family and lived a carefree life.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru