The Obstacle in Our Path In ancient times, a king had a boulder placed on a roadway.
Then he hid himself and watched to see if anyone would remove the huge rock. Some of the
king's wealthiest merchants and courtiers came by and simply walked around it. Many loudly
blamed the king for not keeping the roads clear, but none did anything about getting the
big stone out of the way. Then a peasant came along carrying a load of vegetables. On
approaching the boulder, the peasant laid down his burden and tried to move the stone to
the side of the road. After much pushing and straining, he finally succeeded. As the
peasant picked up his load of vegetables, he noticed a purse lying in the road where the
boulder had been. The purse contained many gold coins and a note from the king indicating
that the gold was for the person who removed the boulder from the roadway. The peasant
learned what many others never understand. Every obstacle presents an opportunity to
improve one's condition.
