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Leo Tolstoy once wrote a
story about a successful peasant farmer who was not satisfied with his
lot. He wanted more about everything. One day he received a novel offer.
For 1000 rubles, he could buy all the land he could walk around in a day.
The only catch in the deal was that he had to be back at his starting
point by sundown.
Early the next
morning he started out walking at a fast pace. By midday he was very
tired, but he kept going, covering more and more ground. Well into the
afternoon he realized that his greed had taken him far from the starting
point. He quickened his pace and as the sun began to sink low in the sky,
he began to run, knowing that if he did not make it back by sundown the
opportunity to become an even bigger landholder would be lost.
As the sun began to
sink below the horizon he came within sight of the finish line. Gasping
for breath, his heart pounding, he called upon every bit of strength
left in his body and staggered across the line just before the sun
disappeared. He immediatelly collapsed, blood streaming from his mouth.
In a few minutes he was dead.
Afterwards, his
servants dug a grave. It was not much over six feet long and three feet
wide.
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