THE KING AND THE PEASANT

As the sun was getting low in the sky, old Matthias straightened his back andlooked toward his cottage. It was time to go home and end his day of hardwork in the fields. As he glanced toward the road, he saw a cloud of dust thatgradually took the form of a troop of men riding toward the city. At their head,rode the king, leading his lords and knights home after a day of hunting in thenearby woods. The fading sun glittered off of the crown that circled the king’shead. Suddenly, much to the old man’s surprise, the company came to a halt. Theking and three other men turned their horses toward Matthias, coming to a stopright in front of the old man, who now knelt, head bowed in front of his ruler.“Arise, old friend,” said the king, “and tell me, why did you not rise earlyenough to finish your work?”Matthias replied, “I did, my gracious and beloved king, but God did notallow me.”The king nodded, and then asked, “How long has that snowy orchard beenblooming on that sage mountain top?”Matthias smiled, “Going on forty years, my good lord.”The king nodded his head, as if he understood every word the old manspoke. “Tell me, how many years have the streams been flowing from under themountain?”“The streams, my lord, have been flowing and flowing for fifteen yearsnow.”“So far, so good, my friend.” The king looked pleased. “Now one morething, when the three geese come from the east, will you be able to fleece them?”The old peasant looked up at the king and smiled, “They will be wellfleeced, my king.”The king smiled back at the old man, then he undid a golden belt that ringedhis own waist and handed to the Matthias. He thanked him for his words andhoped that God would see fit to bless them both. The king and his three counselors turned and rode back to the waiting company, continuing theirjourney to the palace.Later that evening, the king called the three advisors who had witnessed hisconversation with Matthias to his chambers. He asked the men to explain themeaning of his questions and the old man’s answersThe three men thought for a long time, trying to explain the riddles, butnone even came close to their true meaning. Finally, the king told them that theyhad thirty days to figure out the meaning of the conversation. If they failed, hewarned, he would replace them with new counselors.Day after day, night after night, the three men debated the meaning of thewords spoken by the king and the peasant. They repeated the words over andover again, trying to find a clue, but to no avail. Finally, they decided that onlyone person could help them, so they visited old Matthias.The old man welcomed the king’s counselors into his home, but he refusedto enlighten them upon the meaning of his conversation with the king. The threemen pleaded and threatened, but it was useless. He would not be moved. Finally,each man put a bag of one hundred gold coins on the table. Matthias smiled,gathered the bags into his arms, and disappeared with them into his back room.He then came back and told the three counselors what the conversation was allabout.“The king asked, with his first question, why I did not marry young andhave sons and daughters to work my fields. I replied that I did, but that God hadtaken them and that all my children had died before me. Next the king asked howlong ago my hair had turned white. I told him forty years. The third question washow long had I grieved for my beloved wife and I answered that I had criedfifteen years now, in her remembrance.” Matthias stopped and smiled at thelooks of profound amazement that had come across the faces of the three men.“Lastly, the king asked if I would fleece the three foolish geese that camefrom the east. Those geese are the three of you, gentlemen, and by taking yourgold to explain my conversation with the king, I have fleeced you well indeed.”The three men left the cottage, poorer in coin but richer in wisdom forhaving met the truly wise old Matthias.