THE STORY OF DISCIPLINE AND LIFE PURPOSE
Three young men were going through the woods on a bright sunny day.
These men were wonderful buddies, and they all had ambitious goals in life. John, Kevin, and Frank were their names.
As the friends were chatting about their goals, talking about pretty girls, and cracking jokes, Kevin suddenly fell into the Earth with a yelp!
John and Frank ran over to the hole where Kevin fell.
John yelled, “Oh my gosh Kevin! Are you okay?”
Kevin replied weakly, “Yeah, I think so… can you guys help me get out of here?”
Frank and John grabbed Kevin and pulled him up.
“Thanks, guys, I thought I was a goner for a second there. What is this hole?”
Frank pulled out a pocket flashlight and shined the light down the hole.
“I think it’s a well,” said Frank.
John muttered, “Well jeez, I saw a danger warning sign or something was telling you that there was a well smack dab in the middle of the forest path.”
Suddenly, a sign appeared in front of the three friends that read, “DANGER! Magical Well Ahead. Watch your step!”
Frank, John, and Kevin were flabbergasted. They could not believe their eyes.
Kevin exclaimed, “No way! This has got to be a dream. So basically this is a real-life wishing well? I thought this stuff only happened in the movies.”
The other two friends murmured in agreement.
Frank decided to take a chance of looking like a fool and wished for an apple.
An apple appeared in front of them out of nowhere.
When the other two buddies realised what was going on, they made their wishes as well.
Kevin wants a gorgeous lady to take out on a date, while John wishes for a new bicycle.
A black gear bicycle and a lovely young woman emerged out of nowhere.
Frank stood passively watching as John rode around on his new bicycle while Kevin struck up a flirting chat with his new girlfriend. He could tell something wasn’t quite right.
His father had always warned him that if something seemed too good to be true, it was most likely true.
By wishing in a well, no one gets anything for nothing. There had to be a catch, Frank thought.
Just as that thought bubbled up in his mind, John yelled as he crashed into the bushes while riding the cycle.
The bike had disappeared out from underneath him! Kevin’s new lady friend also disappeared into thin air, which left him disappointed as things were coming along quite well for him up until that moment.
“What the heck happened? My new bike vanished!” exclaimed John.
Frank checked his watch.
“Guys, you’ve been making your wishes for exactly 30 minutes. I believe you should try again in 30 minutes and see if it happens again.”
John and Kevin made their same respective wishes again. This time, nothing happened.
“Maybe we can’t make the same wish twice or something? I wish for a sports car!” said John.
Almost instantly, a shiny red Ferrari appeared before him.
“Sweet!” said John.
Feeling depressed about losing his new girlfriend, Kevin wished for his favourite junk food, sat down, and started eating.
Again, Frank wished for nothing more, wanting to see what would happen again after 30 minutes.
Lo-and-behold, in another 30 minutes John fell to the ground and gained a few scratches and bruises.
Luckily, the Ferrari was parked when the 30 minutes were up! John had just been sitting inside.
After making sure his friend was okay, Frank turned to Kevin and asked, “Kevin, does your stomach feel any lighter?”
“No, I can still feel the food in my stomach,” Kevin said, having long since finished his dinner. I suppose if you eat whatever you want before the 30 minutes are over, you get to keep it!”
The three pals would return to the well together over the next few weeks.
Kevin and John wished for more and more things that they’ve always wanted but didn’t feel they could get without the magic of the well.
Frank did end up making a few wishes and had some fun, but quickly grew dissatisfied.
He accompanied the other two friends less frequently as time passed.
Frank observed that his friends stopped talking about their goals and plans for the future as much as they had in the past.
Now, all they could think about was what they were going to wish for next from the magical well.
As time went on, Frank grew more distant from Kevin and John.
Noticing this Kevin and John confronted Frank and asked him why he was spending less time with them.
“You folks think this well is a wonderful treasure,” Frank explained, “but all I see is fool’s gold.” None of the things we wish for here endures very long, and I believe you’re beginning to get addicted. Plus, if you don’t work for what you have, you won’t appreciate it as much, and you won’t take enough breaks from the nonstop indulgence.”
Kevin, who had acquired weight as a result of all the food he had requested, responded, “Fine then.” Max, you’re free to do as you choose. We don’t need you or your stuffy principles as long as we have this magical well here.”
John nodded. “We have everything we need,” says the narrator. Sure, it doesn’t last very long, but we may keep hoping for things and never have to deal with the stress of hard work. Why put up the effort if you don’t have to?”
Frank tried to warn his friends of the hidden dangers of the magic well, but they refused to listen.
At that moment, Frank bid his lifelong friends farewell, as there was nothing more he could do to convince them.
He began walking away, all alone.
For the next couple of decades, Frank went to work.
His mastery of discipline allowed him to have complete control over himself and his appetites.
Although he was a very successful and influential man who could have nearly anything he wanted, have a beautiful house, cars but he rarely over-indulged himself.
He enjoyed incredible experiences that came with his wealth, but he did so in moderation, balancing pleasure with disciplined effort.
One morning, Frank found himself feeling guilty.
On a sunny day, he was in his backyard, overlooking a beautiful blue ocean sea, with his gleaming white house proudly standing behind him.
He was thinking about his friends from all those years ago as he gazed into the water.
He felt like he’d abandoned them, so he decided to go to the woods.
He knew he’d have to wait a long time for them to come around to the magical well because he didn’t know if they still lived near it or even if they still frequented it as frequently as they used to.
Despite this, he packed his camping gear and drove to the woods. He carefully stepped onto the route after parking his red Bentley SUV outside the trees.
Suddenly, an old-looking man with a long beard and dark eye bags under his eyes appeared from the bushes.
He was smelly, extremely skinny, dirty-looking, and seemed to be wearing rags.
“M-Frank?” whimpered John.
At Frank appeared confused, but then his expression quickly changed to one of pure horror. “Oh my god, John, is that you?”
After a tense conversation with John, Frank discovered that John and Kevin had moved into the woods to be closer to the well several decades ago.
They’d become completely entangled with what it could do for them.
The longer they stayed with the well, the more dependent they became on it.
Since everything they wished for disappeared in 30 minutes, they had nothing to show for the years they spent in the woods, which was in complete contrast to Frank.
Not only that, but they never acquired key virtues like patience, diligence, gratitude, and discipline because they never had to labour for what the well gave.
The magic well sent both Kevin and John into a downward spiral of self-destruction for many years.
Unfortunately, John informed Frank that Kevin had passed away many years ago from complications caused by all the unhealthy food and drink he addictively wished for.
John did not know how to cope with the loss of his friend and felt that he couldn’t integrate himself back into society, so he decided to live out the rest of his life in the woods.
Over the years, John had grown tired of wishing for things that only destroyed his body and mind further.
He began to wish for tools and nature literature from the well to learn how to live off the land naturally and be free of its terrifying influence.
Frank and John spent the rest of the day together catching up, although it wasn’t exactly a joyous reunion.
At the end of the day, Frank invited John to come to stay with him until he could transition back into society, but John vehemently refused.
As Frank turned to leave and return home, John called, “You were right you know. All those years ago, you tried to warn us, Frank. Like fools, we tried to take immediate gratification without putting in the discipline to create truly lasting rewards in our lives. I realize it now. If we had listened, maybe Kevin would still be with us.”
Frank froze after hearing John’s words. Unsure of what to say, Frank continued walking towards his car with tears rolling down his face.
The conclusion of the story is that nothing worthwhile in life is possible without self-discipline.
In our own lives, the “magic well” might take numerous shapes.
For some, it may emerge as a never-ending search for a “get-rich-quick” scheme.
It could be an addiction to television, video games, or partying for others.
For others, it could be chasing the opposite sex all the time.
All of these things, like Frank, Kevin, and John’s storey, might provide instant gratification, but they are all fleeting and ephemeral.
If you want to be truly successful, you must eliminate all “magic wells” in your life and devote yourself to the development of self-discipline via actual practice.
There is no other option.
