Acres of Diamonds Under Your Feet

‘A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity;

an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.”

Winston Churchill

There was a farmer who lived in Africa. He was very glad and satisfied in his life. He was glad because he was satisfied with what he had. He was satisfied because he was glad. 

One day a wise man came to the farm and told about the magnificence of diamonds and the power that goes along with them. The wise man said, “If you had a diamond the size of your thumb, you could have your own city. If you had a diamond the size of your hand, you could own your own country.” And then he just left.

That day the farmer felt very restless. He felt doomed and he became dissatisfied in his life. The next day morning he came to a decision and made a plan to sell off his farm, he took care of his family and went off in search of diamonds.

He spent years searching all over Africa and couldn’t find any diamonds. He spent years searching all over Europe and couldn’t find any diamonds. After searching for the best part of a decade he got to Spain. He was physically, financially and emotionally broke. The feelings of disappointment overwhelmed him and he lost all hope. He flung himself into a river and committed suicide.

The person who bought the farm was standing at the stream that runs through the farm. He was busy watering the animals. Across the stream, the morning rays of the sun hit a stone. That stone sparkled like a rainbow. He thought it would look good on the mantle piece. He picked up the sparkling stone and placed it in the living room.

Shortly afterwards the same wise man returned and called on the new owner. He noticed the stone sparkling in the living room. He asked, “Did the previous owner find that sparkling rock?” The new owner replied, “No, why do you ask?” The wise man said, “Because I think it is a diamond. I tend to recognise one when I see one.” The new owner said, “No it is not a diamond it’s just a stone I picked up from the stream. Come, I’ll show you. There are lots of stones.”

They went and picked some samples and sent them for diamond examination. It was confirmed that the stones were diamonds. They found that the farm was indeed acres and acres of diamonds.

What is the moral of this story?

1. If our attitude is right, we can realise that we are walking on acres and acres of diamonds wherever we walk. Opportunity is always under our feet. We don’t have to go anywhere. All we need to do is recognise it.

2. The grass on the other side always looks greener. But remember, while we are dying for the grass on the other side, there are others who are dyeing for the grass on our side. They would be happy to trade places with us.

3. When people don’t know how to recognise opportunity, they complain of the noise when it comes knocking.

4. The same opportunity never knocks twice. The next one may be better or worse, but it is never the same.