Take Responsibility - The Rock in the Road - Story

[Sara]

VALUES:  Taking responsibility.

STORY:    Long, long ago, a king had a big rock placed in the middle of a busy road.
Then he hid nearby to see if anyone would move the rock out of the way.
Some of the king’s wealthiest supporters came passed and simply walked around it. Many others moaned and complained about the rock and many blamed the king for the problem, but no-one did anything about moving it out of the way.

Eventually, a poor farmer came along, carrying a load of old vegetables. When he saw the rock, he put down his load, and tried to move the heavy rock to the side of the road. No-one  stopped to help him. Many laughed at him and made jokes as they walked past. Finally, after much pushing and straining, and with no help, he managed to get the rock to the side of the road. As he bent down to pick up his vegetables, he noticed a small bag lying in the road, exactly where the rock had been. The bag contained a lot of money and a note from the king saying that the money bag was for the person who moved the rock out of the way.


TEACHING POINT:

Taking responsibility is about taking care of things. The farmer in this story takes responsibility when no-one else is prepared to. Taking responsibility does not always mean that you will get an instant reward, but it is a value that builds up community, and will make life better for all of us.

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[Sara]

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