Luxury

There once was a woman who was full of good deeds and good works. Every single moment she had, she would spend on something meaningful and important; she was a member of countless charities, committees and pressure groups "to make a better world for our children and our children's children ..." At home, likewise, she never let up; there were no flowers in her garden as they would take up precious space which was better occupied with growing turnips for the poor. One day, whilst weeding furiously amidst the rows of turnips, she spotted a tiny daisy.

"Aha!" she called out, "I'll soon put and end to you!" But her little daughter stepped in the way and cried, "Mamma, mamma, why do you want to kill the flower?"

Looking into the small child's earnest eyes, the woman asked herself that question for the first time in her life. She put down the garden hoe, enfolded her daughter in her arms, and went into her house, to start a whole new way of life from that day forth.