A Wise Old Man

A wealthy man requested an old man to wean his son away from his bad habits. The old man took the boy for a stroll through a garden.

Stopping suddenly he asked the boy to pull out a tiny plant growing there. The boy held the plant between his thumb and forefinger and pulled it out.

The old man then asked him to pull out a slightly bigger plant. The youth pulled hard and the plant came out, roots and all.

Now pull out that one, said the old man pointing to a bush. The boy had to use all his strength to pull it out.

Now take this one out, said the old man, indicating a guava tree. The youth grasped the trunk and tried to pull it out. But it would not budge. It's impossible, said the boy, panting with the effort.

So it is with bad habits, said the sage. When they are young it is easy to pull them out, but when they take hold they cannot be uprooted.

The session with the old man changed the boy's life.

Moral of the story

Bad habits are like a comfortable bed, easy to get into, but hard to get out of. Don't wait for Bad Habits to grow in you. Conquer your bad habits soon or very soon they will conquer you. Break out of bad habits before they break your life.