The Power of Patience

An old man in a small village planted a tiny, almost invisible seed.

His neighbors, busy with faster-growing vegetables, scoffed. "Why waste time

on that? It will take years!" The old man just smiled, watering his patch

with unwavering patience. Months passed. The neighbors harvested their crops repeatedly,

while the old man’s seed showed no sign of life above ground. They teased him, calling him foolish.

"Still nothing?" they'd taunt. He remained calm. "What grows silently beneath the earth

is often more significant than what appears quickly above it." Five years later, a fierce drought

hit, withering all other crops. But the old man’s garden remained