The Nail

The merchant had success at the fair, selling his goods and accumulating a considerable amount of gold and silver. Now, he was eager to head back home and reach there before nightfall. He loaded his trunk with the precious metals and mounted his horse to begin his journey.

In the middle of the day, the merchant took a break in a town. As he prepared to continue his journey, the stable-boy brought out his horse and informed him that a nail was missing from the left hind shoe of his horse. Without any delay, the merchant replied, "Let it be. The shoe can certainly last for the remaining six miles I have to cover. I am in a hurry."

Later that afternoon, the merchant stopped again to take a break and let his horse rest and feed. The stable-boy entered the room and informed him that a shoe was still missing from the left hind foot of his horse. He suggested taking the animal to the blacksmith to fix the shoe. However, the merchant replied, "Let it still be. The horse can manage for the remaining two miles of the journey. I am in a hurry."

As he continued his journey, the horse began to limp after a short while. It didn't take long before the limping worsened and turned into stumbling. Eventually, the horse fell and broke its leg, forcing the merchant to leave the animal where it was. He had to remove the trunk from the horse's back, carry it on his own, and continue the rest of the journey on foot. It was already late at night when he finally arrived home. Disappointed and frustrated, he muttered to himself, "It was that unfortunate missing nail that caused this disaster."

Move forward cautiously, but consistently.

The End