The proprietor of a
large construction company had a dishonest manager who used fraudulent means to
cheat the customers and make money for himself. He used to manipulate the
accounts, use raw materials of poor quality and neglect the design, technical
specifications and workmanship to make unauthorized personal profit. The
proprietor had full confidence in the manager and gave him complete control in
the concern.
One day, the proprietor told the manager that he was proceeding on a
tour of many foreign countries and would return only after several months. He
asked the manager to undertake the construction of a new house for the
proprietor using the best materials and
workmanship available.
The wicked manager decided to betray the proprietor and make a fortune.
He used the cheapest construction materials of the lowest quality and completed
the construction at a fast pace. He ignored the technical specifications and
quality in every aspect of the construction - design, foundation, materials,
masonry, plumbing, wiring, carpentry, plastering and painting but gave an
attractive and appealing appearance to the final structure. He withdrew a very
large sum of money from the proprietor's account giving false and exaggerated
statements about the expenditure.
When the proprietor
returned from abroad, the manager was ready to receive him at the airport. He
escorted the proprietor to the new house and ceremoniously handed over the keys
to the proprietor. The proprietor thanked the manager for completing the
construction in a short period and embraced him. The proprietor told him,
"You may keep the keys with you. I am giving this house and the
surrounding land to you as my special gift to you in recognition of your
splendid services to me and our establishment."
The manager could not believe these words. He never expected to receive
such a gift. He was afraid to occupy the new house as he was fully aware of the
poor quality of its construction. He was in a real dilemma. He felt sorry for
his fraudulent practices.
Honesty is the best policy. It is a good rule that we should be faithful
and truthful in every action - both big and small.
Jesus Christ taught, "Do for others just what
you want them to do for you."
...........................................................................................................
© By Dr. Babu Philip, Professor, Cochin University
of Science & Technology, Fine Arts Avenue, Kochi-682016, Kerala, India, Prof. Mrs. Rajamma Babu, Former Professor, St. Dominic's
College, Kanjirappally and Leo. S. John and Neil John, Maniparambil,
Ooriyakunnath, Kunnumbhagom, Kanjirappally, Kottayam-686507, Kerala, India.
For more moral stories, parables and anecdotes for
students kindly visit our web-site:
This is Story No. 132 in this site. Please click ‘Older Posts’ at the bottom of a page to read previous stories and
click 'Newer Posts' at the bottom of
a page to read newer stories in this site. Please click on a word in the 'Story Themes' to read stories on that
theme
No comments:
Post a Comment