A magic coin
A boy was walking along the way as he spotted a one-penny coin lying on the ground. "Well," he thought, "a penny is also money!" He took it and put it in his wallet. And then he began to think further: "What would I do if I found a thousand rubles? I would buy gifts to my father and mother!". Hardly had he thought so as he felt his wallet having grown thicker. He looked into it, and there was a thousand rubles.
"How strange,” the boy was surprised. There was one coin, and now – as much as a thousand rubles! Well, what would I do if I found ten thousand rubles? I would buy a cow and feed my parents with milk! ". He looked inside the wallet found there already ten thousand rubles! "Miracles!”, the lucky fellow was delighted. "What if I found a hundred thousand rubles?" Then I would buy a house, get married and settle in a new house with my old parents! ". Quickly did he open the wallet – and here you are – there was as much as a hundred thousand rubles!
Then he began to meditate: "Maybe I’d better not take my father and mother to the new house? My wife might not like them. May they live in their old house. And to keep a cow is troublesome. I'd better buy a goat. And I will not buy a lot of gifts: the expenditures are big, anyway."
At once he felt that his wallet had become light and airy! He got frightened, glimpsed inside it – but there's only one-penny coin there...
Read also
Not magic, but faith: Christian code of The Lord of the Rings
Tolkien wrote his book in memory of muddy trenches and a typhus ward. We explore why weakness triumphs in his world, and how to glimpse the Star when the sky is sealed by shadow.
The сourage to be the first: Why the Apostle Andrew chose the cross
On December 13, the Church commemorates the one who was first to believe, first to follow, and first to bring us the good news of the Savior. This is a reflection on the “fisherman’s net” of the Apostle Andrew, on his astonishing sermon from the cross, and on his ability to thank God for pain.
Matins: why we sit while reading psalms and why a monk needs an "alarm clock"
We analyze the structure of the morning service. What a “kathisma” is, why the polyeleos is called the “very merciful chant”, and how to properly listen to church readings.
The mystery of Bethlehem Icon: the only image with smiling Theotokos
One step away from the birthplace of the Savior is an icon that breaks the canons. Why does the Mother of God shine with joy here – in the pre-festive cycle "Artifacts of Christmas".
The Pope in exile: Where the story of persecution of our Church began
A Roman aristocrat who became a convict in Crimea. The story of St. Clement opens our new series on the history of persecution of the Church on Ukrainian lands.
Mystery of the Ark of Covenant: What lies hidden beneath the Temple Mount
Where did the world’s most sacred relic disappear, and what is truly concealed beneath the “Foundation Stone”? An investigation spanning biblical legend, mystical lore, and an early-20th-century adventure worthy of Indiana Jones.