From Best Loved Fairy Tales Published in 1999
Synopsis
The once was a pedlar who had an enchanted harp. The harp could play any tune for any occasion and brought great joy to people.
One day a young boy was visiting the market where the pedlar brought the harp each day. The boy was mesmerized and wished he had the harp so he could make a fortune.
The boy tricked the pedlar into looking to the sky for pigs falling and snatched the harp.
The boy set up the harp in a town miles away, charging much more than the pedlar was for the harp to play. He made a large amount of money and was able to buy fine clothes and anything else his heart desired.
One day, the pedlar came disguised as a customer and requested the harp play a song that would drive you mad. The harp proceeded to play the most annoying tune that no one wanted to hear. The boy was unable to make any money and quickly lost his fortune.
With remorse, the boy took the harp back to the town where he found the pedlar. Of course, the pedlar was the one who wished for the annoying tune so he knew how to make it stop. The boy must ask the passing crowd what tune they would like to hear and pay them a penny.
The boy agreed and was grateful that the maddening tune was over, even if that meant he had to work to give out pennies.
The End
Lessons & Takeaways
Sometimes the Easy Road is Actually the Hardest
The boy saw something that he wanted and immediately took it. He saw it as an easy way to make money and thought that he deserved it more than the pedlar. Only observing it for a short time, he thought it was a simple device that could be used to his advantage.
In the end, he did not understand how to use the harp and lost it just as easily as he got it.
The pedlar probably had the harp for many years and took the time to understand how it works and what it needs. He put in the work and was rewarded for it. This is why he was able to trick the boy so easily and have it returned to him.
The boy had to eventually get a job just to pay people to request songs. Had he just gotten an honest job he would have been able to make money. Now he works twice as hard to have money for songs and to live.
People often look for shortcuts in life. Most of the time, those shortcuts aren’t going to work. You need to either put in the time or just get really, really lucky.
FableStoryNovel 