Vine Thought
Wednesday 11th February 2009
by Idries Shah
Once there was a vine which realized that people came every year and took its grapes. It observed that nobody ever showed any gratitude.
One day a wise man came along and sat down nearby. ‘This’, thought the vine, ‘is my opportunity to have the mystery solved.’
It said: ‘Wise man, as you may have observed, I am a vine. Whenever my fruit is ripe, people come and take the grapes away. None shows any sign of gratitude. Can you explain this conduct to me?’
The wise man thought for a time. Then he said:
‘The reason, in all probability, is that those people are under the impression that you cannot help producing grapes.
