ODAL - TRADITIONAL DANISH STORY

Long lived in Denmark a man who had two sons before losing his wife by a fever. Alone and too old to look for a new partner, try to raise her two kids and educate them as best he could.


One of them, the youngest, had a quiet spirit and deeply appreciated what little they had, but grew more sullen character and thought only of himself.


One day, the father felt terribly tired and, realizing that his time was running out, he decided to bring together their two children to have what little he had to bequeath and decide which of them would leave over the farm.


By tradition, the post should correspond to the eldest son, but the old man watched with concern as the boy as he was squandered everything and nothing was done to improve what little they had and try to keep the farm rightful inheritance. The child, however struggled to work the land and, with many sweat and toil, ensure at least sustenance for his father and brother. So understood, that tradition is not always needed to maintain unwavering and such matters was sometimes necessary to rely more common sense.


He gathered his two sons around the table and after a scanty meal, invite you to come to the era. There, he reached into his bag, pulled out a cloth bag with metallic sound singing and asked his eldest son.


- Between the bag with silver and farm land, what you consider is more valuable?


The boy laughed loudly and replied that obviously presumptuous airs silver was more valuable than that terroir worth nothing and obviously only served to sell and make him a bad bunch of silver.


The father frowned but did not answer and repeated the same question to the younger son. The boy looked at the bag in the hands of his father and then the small plot of land. It was not much, but always gave its good fruit if it is carefully tilled so he answered:


- The value of silver is not always the same, changes depending on the fame of wars or kings. In the hands of a measured and sensible man you can do great things, but in the hands of a fool, will not last more than a couple of nights. However, the earth maintains a constant value. It is not land itself that contains the value, but this depends on the hand and planting the seed and the care with which it is concerned. I would stick with the earth: with hard work and determination, I guarantee a handful of coins sure all seasons and a livelihood for my family.


Father seemed wise words of the young, and decreed that this would be the heir and the older brother he handed the bag with silver. The latter left fuming, thinking his father had done him a contempt not leave the farm by inheritance, but with the bag of silver in his hand chopped soon forgot about it.


After his father's death, it happened that, as the younger brother had predicted, silver in the hands of a fool not last long. The brother then had to return in May with his younger brother, who with patience and determination, now had not only a good farm with a few cows and a handful of laborers, but also had a beautiful wife and the support of the neighboring clan with which he had joined by marriage.


So the young selfish, had no choice but to bow to the will of his brother and work as a simple laborer for a while, until the young couple consider he had learned his lesson and allowed him to share the work and the benefit of the farm.


FINISH